CLA-2 CO:R:C:G 087918 CRS
Jay S. Berlinsky, Esq.
Greenberger, Krauss & Jacobs
180 North La Salle Street
Chicago, IL 60601
RE: Plain woven cotton towels of greige sheeting material are
readily distinguishable from shop towels made from coarse
fabric. Towels advertised and sold as dish towels. Textile
Guidelines.
Dear Mr. Berlinsky:
This is in reply to your letters of February 22, 1990, to
our New York office, and July 25, 1990, to Congressman John
Porter, on behalf of your client, Excello, Ltd., concerning the
classification of cotton towels under the Harmonized Tariff
Schedule of the United States Annotated (HTSUSA). Included in
your submission were sample finished and unfinished towels, as
well as promotional literature and other pertinent materials. In
addition to your written submission, a meeting was held at
Customs Headquarters on October 16, 1990, to discuss the issues
involved in this case.
FACTS:
The merchandise in question consists of 100 percent cotton
plain woven towels of greige sheeting material imported from the
People's Republic of China. The towels have a thread count of 44
x 44 or 54 x 54, weigh approximately 3.4 oz/yd, and are imported
in a range of sizes, including 20 inches x 37 inches, 25 inches x
40 inches, 31 x 32 inches and 38 inches x 32 inches.
The greige towels are imported by Excello, a manufacturer
and distributor of kitchen textiles, including dish towels,
dishcloths, aprons, oven mitts and potholders, for use as "flour
sack" dish towels. This type of dish towel, so called because
it was originally manufactured from flour sacks, has been a
feature of Excello's product line for over seventy years. Once
imported, the towels are processed to remove any lint and to
impart the white, fluffy quality that is characteristic of flour
sack towels. The finished flour sack towels are sold through a
variety of distribution networks including department stores,
specialty chains, grocery stores, drug stores, catalogues and
door to door sales organizations.
In support of your client's position that the imported
towels should be classified as dish towels you have submitted
examples of packaging materials in which the finished towels are
marketed as well as a number of mail order catalogues. The
packaging materials (clear plastic wrappers; paper wrappers)
describe the flour sack towels as "kitchen towels" or "cook's
towels," and note that the towels are suitable for use as dish
towels, and in addition, as culinary cloths and needlecraft
cloths. In catalogues, the Excello towels are advertised as
kitchen towels and/or as flour sack towels. Some catalogues note
that the towels have multiple uses, e.g., "to steam puddings,
poach a whole fish in court bouillon...[and that] they are also
ideal for drying dishes, putting a sparkle on glasses..." while
others do not elaborate at all. Frequently, the flour sack
towels are marketed with other kitchen articles such as
potholders or dishcloths, or other towels printed with designs
such as fruit, vegetables, stripes or barnyard animals.
ISSUE:
Whether the 100 percent cotton greige fabric towels in
question are classifiable under the provision for dish towels in
subheading 6302.91.0045, HTSUSA, or whether they are classifiable
in subheading 6302.91.0050, HTSUSA, under the provision for other
towels.
LAW AND ANALYSIS:
Heading 6302, HTSUSA, provides for bed linen, table linen,
toilet linen and kitchen linen. According to the Explanatory
Notes, which although not legally binding constitute the official
interpretation of the Harmonized System at the international
level, kitchen linen includes articles "such as tea towels and
glass cloths." Excluded, however, are "articles such as floor
cloths, dish cloths...and similar cleaning cloths, generally made
of coarse thick material." EN 63.02 at 863. As the towels at
issue are not made from coarse material, they are embraced by the
terms of heading 6302 and are therefore classifiable accordingly.
Within heading 6302, however, the provision for dish towels
is a U.S. statistical breakout. The Guidelines for the Reporting
of Imported Products in Various Textile and Apparel Categories,
53 FR 52563, (Textile Guidelines) were developed to facilitate
classification at the statistical level, as well as to assist in
determining the appropriate textile quota category. The Textile
Guidelines, 52564, provide in pertinent part that:
Dish towels (category 369) and hand towels (category
363) fall within the same size range, 15 to 18 inches wide
and 24 to 32 inches long, and are sometimes difficult to
distinguish from each other. With one exception, dish
towels always have a design printed on them or woven or knit
into them. The design may be in the form of pictures of
fruit, kitchen utensils, chickens, etc., or may be checks,
stripes, or similar patterns. The dish towels that usually
do not have a design are light weight, plain woven, nonpile
cotton towels that may be similar to, but readily
distinguishable from, shop towels which are made from a much
coarser fabric. These towels may be longer than the other
dish towels.
* * *
Shop towels (category 369) are dedicated to use in
garages, filling stations, machine shops, etc., and are
always plain woven nonpile construction, made from a coarse
fabric, usually an osnaburg or similar low grade fabric, the
average yarn number of which normally falls within the 3 to
12 range. However, some shop towels are made from a heavier
duck-type fabric. Shop towels may be square or rectangular
in shape and usually vary in shape from 16 inches to 30
inches wide and from 16 to 32 inches long. Shop towels are
usually gray (greige) material, but may be colored, usually
dull reds, blues, greens and yellows.
The towels at issue have characteristics that are associated
with both dish towels and shop towels. They are of greige
quality, i.e., unfinished material, and in size are larger than
most dish towels. In this respect they resemble the articles
described in the Guidelines as shop towels.
However, the similarity to shop towels ends here. The
instant towels are not made from osnaburg or similar low grade
fabrics but rather from sheeting, a plain weave cotton fabric
which ranges in construction from 40 x 38 to 64 x 68. The
towels have a yarn count of 44 in contrast to an average yarn
count of between 3 and 12 for shop towels. Moreover, while the
towels are larger than most dish towels, the Guidelines provide
that plain woven dish towels may be longer than those dish towels
that have designs printed on them.
Furthermore, although merchandising is not always a proper
means for determining classification, the manner in which the
towels are advertised and sold nevertheless has probative value.
Davis Products, Inc. v. U.S., 59 Cust.Ct. 226, 230, C.D. 3127
(1967). The instant towels are advertised as kitchen towels and
are sold together with articles such as aprons, potholders and
other towels with traditional kitchen designs.
In view of their construction and the manner in which they
are marketed, Customs is of the opinion that the Excello towels
belong to the class or kind of merchandise commonly known as dish
towels and therefore readily distinguishable from shop and other
towels.
HOLDING:
The towels in question are classifiable in subheading
6302.91.0045, HTSUSA, under the provision for bed linen, table
linen, toilet linen and kitchen linen, other, of cotton, other,
towels, other, dish, and are dutiable at the rate of 10..5
percent ad valorem. The textile category is 369.
The designated textile and apparel category may be
subdivided into parts. If so, visa and quota requirements
applicable to the subject merchandise may be affected. Since
part categories are the result of international bilateral
agreements which are subject to frequent renegotiations and
changes, to obtain the most current information available, we
suggest that you check, close to the time of shipment, the Status
Report on Current Import Quotas (Restraint Levels), an internal
issuance of the U.S. Customs Service, which is available for
inspection at your local Customs office.
Due to the changeable nature of the statistical annotation
(the ninth and tenth digits of the classification) and the
restraint (quota/visa) categories, you should contact your local
Customs office prior to importation of this merchandise to
determine the current status of any import restraints or
requirements.
Sincerely,
John Durant, Director
Commercial Rulings Division