CLA-2 CO:R:C:G 084682 DPS
Mr. H.M. Wells
Executive Vice President
The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company
Akron, Ohio 44316-0001
RE: Classification of belting items from South Africa
Dear Mr. Wells:
Your letter of April 25, 1989, to our New York Office, has
been referred to this office for a ruling on the tariff
classification of the semi-finished conveyor belt carcass and
the finished conveyor belt, imported from South Africa, under
the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States Annotated
(HTSUSA). Samples of the belting items were submitted with your
letter. Your inquiry also addressed the issue of whether these
articles from South Africa are prohibited entry into the United
States pursuant to the South African Transactions Regulations,
codified at 31 CFR, Part 545 (1989).
As our New York office informed you, the HTSUSA, effective
January 1, 1989, now supersedes the Tariff Schedules of the
United States (TSUS). Whether the belting items at issue are
subject to the prohibited entry provisions of the South African
Transactions Regulations is dependent upon their classification
under the HTSUSA.
FACTS:
The items requiring HTSUSA classification are: (1) a semi-
finished conveyor belt carcass; and (2) a finished conveyor
belt. The product is manufactured by The Goodyear Tyre & Rubber
Company (S.A.)(Proprietary) Limited ("Goodyear South Africa"), a
wholly-owned South African subsidiary of Goodyear. As stated by
the importer, the semi-finished product consists of solid woven
fabric impregnated with PVC (polyvinyl chloride) plastisol to
form a semi-finished conveyor carcass. The solid woven fabric
consists of a polyester warp strength member, twisted
nylon/cotton weft, and a cotton face warp yarn in a single ply.
The semi-finished conveyor belt carcass consists of
approximately 30 to 50 percent solid woven fabric by weight. It
is currently manufactured in widths of up to approximately 60
inches and in lengths of approximately 300 meters. It can be
manufactured in black or brown colors.
According to the importer, Goodyear South Africa uses the
semi-finished conveyor belt described above to manufacture
finished conveyor belting. The semi-finished conveyor belt
carcass is coated with PVC in coating thicknesses that range
from approximately 0.8 millimeters to 3.0 millimeters, resulting
in a finished conveyor belt which, by weight, consists of
approximately 55 to 80 percent PVC and approximately 20 to 45
percent solid woven fabric. The thickness of the finished
conveyor belt ranges from approximately 0.25 inches to 0.60
inches depending on the particular class of belt involved. The
finished conveyor belt is currently manufactured in widths of up
to approximately 60 inches and in lengths of up to approximately
300 meters. The finished conveyor belt is designed to convey
coal in underground mining operations.
ISSUE:
Whether the semi-finished and finished conveyor belts at
issue are properly classifiable as articles of textile within a
heading in Chapter 59, HTSUSA, or as articles of plastic within a
Chapter 39, HTSUSA, heading; and, whether the items, as
classified, are subject to the prohibited entry provisions of the
South African Transactions Regulations, codified at 31 CFR
545.211 (1989).
LAW AND ANALYSIS:
The General Rules for the Interpretation of the Harmonized
System (GRI's) govern classification under the Harmonized Tariff
Schedule. According to GRI 1, the primary consideration in
determining whether merchandise should be classified in a heading
should be given to the language of the heading and to any
relevant chapter or section notes. Inasmuch as the articles in
question are constructed using two distinct materials, textiles
and plastics, at least two headings may apply to the belting
items at issue in this case. The relevant headings include:
(a) 5903.10, textile fabrics impregnated, coated,
covered or laminated with plastics, other than
those of heading 5902: with polyvinyl chloride;
(b) 5910.00.1000, transmission or conveyor belts
or belting, of textile material, whether or not
reinforced with metal or other material: of man-
made fibers;
(c) 3921.12.1100, other plates, sheets, film,
foil and strip of plastics: cellular: of polymers
of vinyl chloride: combined with textile
materials: products with textile components in
which man-made fibers predominate by weight over
any other single textile fiber: over 70 percent by
weight of plastics; and
(d) 3926.90.5700, other articles of plastics and
articles of other materials of headings 3901 to
3914: other: belting and belts, for machinery:
containing textile fibers: other: with textile
components in which man-made fibers predominate by
weight over any other textile fiber;
The Section and Chapter Notes relevant to the above headings
provide further guidance in determining the proper classification
of the belting items at issue. The relevant notes also raise
questions with regard to conflicting provisions within the
HTSUSA.
A close examination of the Section and Chapter notes
associated with Section XI, Chapter 59, and Section VII, Chapter
39 reveals confusion with regard to the proper classification of
the belting items. Section XI, Note 1(h) generally excludes
woven, knitted or crocheted fabrics, impregnated, coated, covered
or laminated with plastics, of Chapter 39, from classification
within the section (which includes chapters 50 to 63). However,
Heading 5903 is an express provision for the type of article
excluded by Note 1(h), Section XI. The relevant chapter note
concerning Heading 5903 states, in pertinent part:
2. Heading 5903 applies to: (a) Textile fabrics,
impregnated, coated, covered or laminated with
plastics, whatever the weight per square meter and
whatever the nature of the plastic material (compact or
cellular), other than:
(3) Products in which the textile fabric is either
completely embedded in plastics or entirely coated
or covered on both sides with such material,
provided that such coating or covering can be seen
with the naked eye with no account being taken of
any resulting change of color (chapter 39);
When read together, the chapter note serves to clarify which
items are not excluded by the section note. For the purposes of
this ruling, Chapter 59, Note 2 serves to include items within
the chapter which, otherwise, could be interpreted to be excluded
by Section XI, Note 1(h).
The product at issue is comprised of solid woven fabric
which is coated on both sides with PVC. The coating can be seen
with the naked eye, which, according to Chapter 59, Note 2(a)(3),
effectively excludes classification from Heading 5903.
Another heading within Chapter 59, Heading 5910, and its
concomitant Chapter Note specifically provides for "Transmission
or conveyor belts or belting, of textile material, whether or not
reinforced with metal or other material." No language is
provided in the notes which defines "textile material" for the
purposes of Heading 5910. Nor does the note applicable to 5903
expand its application to all headings within the chapter. The
only transmission or conveyor belting, of textile material,
excluded by Chapter 59, Note 6, is belting of a thickness of less
than 3 millimeters. Here, the subject belting measured in its
thinnest, semi-finished form, ranges in width between 5 and 7
millimeters. When finished, the belting's thickness ranges from
7 to 17 millimeters. Because the subject merchandise is
conveyor belting constructed of textile material and plastic,
with a thickness of over 3 millimeters, regardless of whether its
plastic component is considered to be "reinforcement," the
product appears to be classifiable in subheading 5910.00.1000,
HTSUSA, as "Transmission or conveyor belts or belting, of textile
material, whether or not reinforced with metal or other material:
Of man- made fibers."
A close reading of the Section XI, Chapter 59 and Chapter 39
Notes, in conjunction with the relevant Explanatory Notes to the
HTSUSA, which constitute the official interpretation of the
tariff at the international level, is instructive in determining
the proper HTSUSA classification. Note 2(l), Chapter 39,
excludes "Goods of section XI (textiles and textile articles)"
from classification within Chapter 39 in the same way that
Section XI, Note 1(h) excludes woven fabrics, impregnated or
coated with plastics, of Chapter 39, from classification within
the textile section. The Explanatory Notes to Chapters 39 and 59
indicate that classification of the subject belting items is
possible in either chapter. The Explanatory Notes to Chapter 39,
at page 554, state that "classification of plastics and textile
combinations is essentially governed by Note 1(h) to Section XI,
Note 3 to Chapter 56 and Note 2 to Chapter 59." The Explanatory
Notes to Chapter 39 further provide, in pertinent part:
The following products are also covered by this
Chapter: ...
(b) Textile fabrics and nonwovens, either
completely embedded in plastics or entirely coated
or covered on both sides with such material,
provided that such coating or covering can be seen
with the naked eye with no account being taken of
any resulting change of colour;
The Explanatory Notes to Chapter 59, at page 821, state that
Heading 5910 "includes belts and belting made from woven
synthetic fibres, in particular, polyamides, coated, covered
or laminated with plastics." The note further states:
Transmission or conveyor belts (i.e., lengths of
belting cut to size and either with the ends
joined together or furnished with fastenings for
joining them together) are classified here
irrespective of the thickness of the material.
The Explanatory Notes indicate that the subject conveyor
belting is classifiable in both chapters, 39 and 59. This being
the case, GRI 3(a) requires that the heading which provides the
most specific description of the article shall be preferred over
headings providing a more general description. Here, Heading
5910 refers to "conveyor belts or belting of textile material,"
Heading 3921 refers to "other plates, sheets, film, foil and
strip of plastics," and Heading 3926 refers to "other articles of
plastics and articles of other materials of headings 3901 to
3914." The belting at issue is specifically referred to in
subheadings 3926.90.5700 and 5910.00.1000. Because the two
possible subheadings can be considered to be equally specific
pursuant to GRI 3(a), resort to GRI 3(b) is necessary.
GRI 3(b) requires that goods which cannot be classified by
reference to 3(a), be classified as if they consisted of the
material or component which gives them their essential character.
Here, the textile/plastic combination belting has varying
quantities of plastic, depending on the needs of the party
utilizing the product. The textile component, which provides the
underlying structure of the belting, remains constant. In light
of these circumstances, no essential character determination can
be made, because neither the plastic nor the textile component of
the conveyor belting can be said to give it its essential
character. Therefore, resort to GRI 3(c) is necessary.
GRI 3(c) provides:
When goods cannot be classified by reference to
3(a) or 3(b), they shall be classified under the
heading which occurs last in numerical order
among those which equally merit consideration.
Pursuant to GRI 3(c), the subject conveyor belting is properly
classifiable under subheading 5910.00.1000, HTSUSA.
In accordance with the Comprehensive Anti-Apartheid Act of
1986, 22 U.S.C. 5001-5116, and the South African Transactions
Regulations, codified at 31 CFR, Part 545, certain items produced
or manufactured in South Africa are prohibited from importation
into the United States. 31 CFR 545.211, specifically prohibits
importation of South African uranium ore, uranium oxide, coal and
textiles to the United States. The Office of Foreign Assets
Control, Department of Treasury, regularly notifies the Customs
Service of prohibited South African articles under the HTSUSA.
South African articles listed by the Office of Foreign Assets
Control as prohibited from entering the United States include,
inter alia, the following HTSUSA classifications: all textile
articles including merchandise provided for in HTSUSA chapters 50
through 63; and items classifiable under subheading 3921.12.11
and subheading 3926.90.57.
HOLDING:
The semi-finished and finished conveyor belting made of
textile and plastics, manufactured in South Africa, is properly
classifiable under subheading 5910.00.1000, HTSUSA. Items from
South Africa with this classification are prohibited from
entering the United States pursuant to the South African
Transactions Regulations (specifically, 31 CFR 545.211).
Accordingly, Goodyear's proposed importation of conveyor belting
items is prohibited. Further questions concerning the
prohibition on South African imports should be directed to the
Office of Foreign Assets Control, Department of the Treasury,
Washington, D.C.
Sincerely,
John Durant, Director
Commercial Rulings Division