OT:RR:CTF:CPMMA H281803 AJK
TARIFF NO: 6307.90.9891
Mr. Brett Ian Harris
Pisani & Roll LLP
Attorneys at Law
1629 K Street NW, Suite 300
Washington, DC 20006
RE: Revocation of NY N187630 and HQ H254127; Modification of NY L81761 and L81762; Classification of Textile Cover for Unsprung Mattress Foundation
Dear Mr. Harris:
This letter is in reference to your New York Ruling Letter (NY) N187630, dated October 24, 2011, and Headquarter Ruling Letter (HQ) H254127, dated May 15, 2015, concerning the tariff classification of textile covers for unsprung mattress foundations. In the aforementioned rulings, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) classified the merchandise in heading 9403, Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS). We have reviewed NY N187630 and HQ H254127, and have determined that the classification of the merchandise in heading 9403, HTSUS, was incorrect.
We have also reviewed NY L81761, dated January 21, 2005, and NY L81762, dated January 24, 2005, and have determined that they were incorrect. For the reasons set forth below, we revoke two ruling letters and modify two ruling letters.
Pursuant to section 625(c)(1), Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. § 1625(c)(1)), as amended by section 623 of Title VI, notice proposing to revoke NY N187630 and HQ H254127 and to modify NY L81761 and L81762 was published on April 28, 2021, in Volume 55, Number 16, of the Customs Bulletin. No comments were received in response to this Notice.
FACTS:
The subject merchandise was described in NY N187630 as follows:
The foundation covers are designed to be placed and stapled to a Medium Density Fiberboard (MDF) mattress foundation, which is used in conjunction with a Tempur-Pedic mattress. The foundation covers typically consist of three different fabrics: a rectangular 100 percent polyester stitch-bonded platform piece sewn to single warp, 100 percent polyester knit side panels, and a separate rectangular 100 percent polyester non-woven dust cover stapled to the bottom of the foundation. These foundation covers are not designed to cover a mattress, only the foundation that the mattress will rest on.
The subject merchandise was described in HQ H254127 as follows:
The mattress foundation incorporates characteristics of a bed frame, in that it sits directly on the floor, and it replaces a standard box spring for this specialized adjustable bed. The foundation is composed of a wooden frame (medium-density fiberboard or MDF) with various adjustable steel parts which allow the head portions and/or the foot portions of the bed to raise and lower electronically.… The mattress foundation does not contain any springs or wire mesh or stuffing of any kind.
…
The subject merchandise are three different styles of textile mattress foundation covers, which are placed on the mattress foundation and secured via staples post-importation. The styles are the Tempur-Up, Tempur-Ergo Grand, and the Tempur-Ergo Premier. Each features a rectangular stich bonded or woven fabric platform piece sewn to decorative knit or woven side panels. The Tempur-Up style also features a separate rectangular non-woven fabric dust cover stapled to the bottom of the mattress foundation. The products are not used as bed covers or used to cover the mattress layer, rather, they are only attached to the mattress foundation.
The subject merchandise was described in NY L81761 as follows:
The fiber content … is stated to be 59 percent polyester and 41 percent polypropylene fabric with polyester fiber and nylon netting. The foundation cover is comprised of a rectangular non-woven platform sewn to quilted side panels. The bottom portion of the cover is open. After importation the cover will be placed over and stapled to a wooden frame with slats. This foundation is used to support a mattress but … it is not filled with springs or steel wire mesh.
The subject merchandise in NY L81762 is substantially similar to the product described in NY L81761.
ISSUE:
Whether the textile cover for unsprung mattress foundation is classified in heading 6307, HTSUS, as other made up textile articles, heading 9403, HTSUS, as other furniture and parts, or heading 9404, HTSUS, as mattress supports.
LAW AND ANALYSIS:
Classification of goods under the HTSUS is governed by the General Rules of Interpretation (GRI). GRI 1 provides that classification shall be determined according to the terms of the headings of the tariff schedule and any relative section or chapter notes. In the event that the goods cannot be classified solely on the basis of GRI 1, and if the headings and legal notes do not otherwise require, the remaining GRIs 2 through 6 may then be applied in order.
* * * * * *
The HTSUS provisions at issue are as follows:
6307: Other made up articles, including dress patterns.
9403: Other furniture and parts thereof.
9404: Mattress supports; articles of bedding and similar furnishing (for example, mattresses, quilts, eiderdowns, cushions, pouffes and pillows) fitted with springs or stuffed or internally fitted with any material or of cellular rubber or plastics, whether or not covered.
Note 7 to Section XI, which provides for textiles and textile articles, provides:
7. For the purposes of this section, the expression "made up" means:
…
(f) Assembled by sewing, gumming or otherwise (other than piece goods consisting of two or more lengths of identical material joined end to end and piece goods composed of two or more textiles assembled in layers, whether or not padded); ….
Note 2 to Chapter 94, HTSUS, provides, in pertinent part:
2. The articles (other than parts) referred to in headings 94.01 to 94.03 are to be classified in those headings only if they are designed for placing on the floor or ground.
* * * * * *
The Harmonized Commodity Description and Coding System (HS) Explanatory Notes (ENs) constitute the official interpretation of the HS. While not legally binding or dispositive, the ENs provide a commentary on the scope of each heading of the HS at the international level, and are generally indicative of the proper interpretation of these headings. See T.D. 89-80, 54 Fed. Reg. 35127 (August 23, 1989).
The General EN to Chapter 94, HTSUS, provides, in pertinent part:
For the purposes of this Chapter, the term “furniture” means:
(A) Any “movable” articles (not included under other more specific headings of the Nomenclature), which have the essential characteristic that they are constructed for placing on the floor or ground, and which are used, mainly with a utilitarian purpose, to equip private dwellings, hotels, theatres, cinemas, offices, churches, schools, cafés, restaurants, laboratories, hospitals, dentists’ surgeries, etc., or ships, aircraft, railway coaches, motor vehicles, caravan-trailers or similar means of transport.…
The Parts EN to Chapter 94, HTSUS, provides in pertinent part:
This Chapter only covers parts, whether or not in the rough, of the goods of headings 94.01 to 94.03 and 94.05, when identifiable by their shape or other specific features as parts designed solely or principally for an article of those headings. They are classified in this Chapter when not more specifically covered elsewhere.
EN 63.07 provides as follows:
This heading covers made up articles of any textile material which are not included more specifically in other headings of Section XI or elsewhere in the Nomenclature.
EN 94.03, provides, in pertinent part:
The heading does not include:
…
(n) Mattress supports (heading 94.04) ….
EN 94.04 provides, in pertinent part, as follows:
(A) Mattress supports, i.e., the sprung part of a bed, normally consisting of a wooden or metal frame fitted with springs or steel wire mesh (spring or wire supports), or of a wooden frame with internal springs and stuffing covered with fabric (mattress bases).
* * * * * *
As a preliminary matter, we clarify the difference between each textile cover for unsprung mattress foundations in the aforementioned rulings. Although all of the subject merchandise are designed to cover mattress foundations without springs or wires, each has minor distinguishable characters. First, the textile covers in NY L81761 and NY L81762 are designed to be stapled to unsprung mattress foundations while leaving the bottom portions open. Similarly, the merchandise in NY N187630 and HQ H254127 are designed to be stapled to the mattress foundations; however, they contain additional dust covers that are stapled to the bottom of the foundations. Second, unlike the unsprung mattress foundation in HQ H254127 that is designed and intended to be placed directly on the floor, the descriptions of unsprung mattress foundations in NY N187630, NY L81761 and NY L81762 suggest that they are designed to be used in conjunction with bed frames. As explained below, however, the differences in the placement of the covers and unsprung mattress foundations do not affect our analysis.
Note 2 of Chapter 94 states that heading 9403, HTSUS, includes articles and parts that are designed to be placed directly on the floor or ground only. The General EN to Chapter 94 further explains that “furniture” means any movable articles that are designed to be placed on the floor or ground and used to equip private dwellings. Accordingly, the mattress foundation in HQ H254127, which is intended to be placed directly on the floor, constitutes furniture for classification purposes under HTSUS. The mattress foundations in NY N187630, NY L81761 and NY L81762, however, do not qualify as “furniture” because they are designed to be placed on bed frames, not on the floor.
The Parts EN to Chapter 94 provides that “[chapter 94] only covers parts … of the goods of heading[] … 94.03 …, when identifiable by their shape or other specific features as parts designed solely or principally for an article of those headings.” The term “part”, however, is not defined in HTSUS or ENs. In the absence of a statutory definition, courts have applied two tests to determine whether a merchandise constitutes a part of an article. See Bauerhin Techs. Ltd. Pshp. v. United States, 110 F.3d 774, 779 (Fed. Cir. 1997). First, as set forth in United States v. Willoughby Camera Stores, Inc., a “part” of an article is “an integral, constituent, or component part, without which the article to which it is to be joined, could not function as such article.” 21 C.C.P.A. 322, 324 (1933). Second, as held in United States v. Pompeo, an item is a “part” if (1) “at the time of importation [it is] dedicated solely for use” with a particular article, and (2) “when applied to that use … meet[s] the definition of “parts” established by the Willoughby case.” 43 C.C.P.A. 9, 14 (1955). Moreover, an item is not a part if it is “a separate and distinct commercial entity.” Bauerhin, 110 F.3d at 779.
Although the mattress foundation in HQ H254127 is classifiable as furniture under heading 9403, HTSUS, the textile cover does not constitute a part of furniture for classification purposes because it fails to satisfy the two tests of Willoughby and Pompeo. Under Willoughby, the textile cover is not a part because the cover is not necessary for the mattress foundation to perform its function of supporting a mattress. In HQ H254127, CBP held that the textile covers are part of mattress foundations because the covers are specially cut to fit over mattress foundations, are permanently attached to mattress foundations, and provide a permanent decorative look by covering parts of the mattress foundations which would otherwise be exposed. Although the covers undeniably provide the aesthetics to the mattress foundations, we now hold that such aesthetical enhancement cannot be upheld as an integral part of the mattress foundations. Without the cover, the foundation is already capable of performing its function due to the wooden parts that establish the shape, strength, and utility of the foundation. The mere covering of the exposed wooden parts does not affect the functionality of the foundation itself. Thus, under Willoughby, the cover does not constitute as “an integral, constituent, or component part” that the foundation cannot function without. Moreover, even if the cover is a distinguishable item that can be used solely with a particular mattress foundation, it still fails under Pompeo, because it does not meet the Willoughby test. Therefore, the textile cover cannot be classified as a part of the unsprung mattress foundations under heading 9403, HTSUS.
The unsprung mattress foundations in NY N187630, NY L81761 and NY L81762, which are not intended to be placed directly on the floor, are excluded from heading 9403, HTSUS; instead, they are, prima facie, classified in heading 9404, HTSUS, which is an eo nomine provision for mattress supports. EN 94.04 provides that heading 9404, HTSUS, includes wooden or metal frame fitted with springs, wires, or stuffing covered with fabric. In HQ H273340, dated July 26, 2016, however, CBP held that heading 9404, HTSUS, is not restricted to sprung mattress foundations because the fact that EN 94.04 states that mattress supports “normally” consists of springs or wire mesh does not preclude unsprung mattress foundations from heading 9404, HTSUS. Accordingly, the unsprung mattress foundations without springs and wires, which are used to support mattresses and placed on bed frames, are classified in heading 9404, HTSUS, as mattress supports. The wholly textile articles that are stapled to the mattress foundations, however, are not classifiable in heading 9404, HTSUS, because they are clearly not mattress support themselves. Furthermore, as there is no provision for parts within heading 9404, HTSUS, the textile covers cannot be classified as parts of mattress supports.
EN 63.07 provides that heading 6307, HTSUS, includes “made up articles of any textile material which are not included more specifically in other headings of Section XI or elsewhere in the Nomenclature.” The term “made up” is defined in Note 7 to Section XI as textiles that are “[a]ssembled by sewing, gumming or otherwise”. See Note 7(f) to Section XI. Accordingly, the instant textile covers are classified in heading 6307, HTSUS, because the covers are made up articles that are sewn and do not fall under any other heading in HTSUS. In NY K81507, dated December 10, 2003, NY N024859, dated March 27, 2008, and HQ H273340, dated July 26, 2016, we found that similar textile covers for mattress foundations were classified in heading 6307, HTSUS. Therefore, the instant textile covers for unsprung mattress foundations, regardless of whether the foundations are designed to be placed directly on the floor, are classified in heading 6307, HTSUS, as made up textile articles.
Pursuant to GRI 1, the textile covers for unsprung mattress foundations are classified in heading 6307, HTSUS, as “[o]ther made up articles, including dress patterns”. This conclusion is consistent with prior CBP rulings classifying other textile covers for unsprung mattress foundations and similar articles under heading 6307, HTSUS.
HOLDING:
By application of GRI 1, the textile covers for unsprung mattress foundations are classified in heading 6307, HTSUS, specifically subheading 6307.90.9891, HTSUS, which provides for “[o]ther made up articles, including dress patterns: [o]ther: [o]ther: [o]ther: [o]ther: [o]ther”. The 2021 column one, general rate of duty is seven percent ad valorem.
Duty rates are provided for your convenience and subject to change. The text of the most recent HTSUS and the accompanying duty rates are provided at www.usitc.gov.
EFFECT ON OTHER RULINGS:
NY N187630, dated October 24, 2011, and HQ H254127, dated May 15, 2015, are hereby revoked. In addition, NY L81761, dated January 21, 2005, and NY L81762, dated January 24, 2005, are modified.
In accordance with 19 U.S.C. § 1625(c), this ruling will become effective 60 days after publication in the CUSTOMS BULLETIN.
Sincerely,
Allyson Mattanah for
Craig T. Clark, Director Commercial and Trade Facilitation Division
CC: Mr. Greg Wind
Boyd Flotation, Inc./ Boyd Specialty Sleep
2440 Adie Road
Maryland Heights, MO 63043