CLA-2 CO:R:C:M 953860 DWS
District Director
U.S. Customs Service
U.S. Customhouse
1 East Bay Street
Savannah, GA 31401
RE: Protest No. 1704-92-100315; Lawn Mower Parts; GRI 2(a);
Explanatory Notes 2(a)(V) and 2(a)(VII); Explanatory Note
3(b)(VIII); HQ 083222; HQ 088891; HQ 081999; 8433.11.00
Dear District Director:
The following is our decision regarding the request for
further review of Protest No. 1704-92-100315 concerning your action
in classifying and assessing duty on lawn mower parts under the
Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS).
FACTS:
The merchandise consists of various lawn mower parts which
include engine assemblies and several discrete "detail" parts. The
parts are shipped in bulk, with like items packaged together. This
shipment procedure is used principally for inventory control
purposes. After importation into the U.S., the parts are combined
with parts obtained from the U.S. and third country suppliers for
the manufacture of lawn mowers. Among the many parts produced in
the U.S. and essential to the manufacture of the lawn mowers are
cutter housings, rotary cutting blades, and handles.
The merchandise was entered under the various subheadings of
the HTSUS which specifically describe the parts. The entries were
liquidated on June 5, 1992, under subheading 8433.11.00, HTSUS, as
powered mowers for lawns.
Besides the various subheadings of the HTSUS which
specifically describe the lawn mower parts, the remaining
subheading under consideration is as follows:
8433.11.00: [m]owers for lawns, parks or sports grounds:
[p]owered, with the cutting device rotating in a
horizontal plane.
The general, column one rate of duty is 4 percent ad valorem.
ISSUE:
Whether the lawn mower parts, imported in bulk, are
unassembled, incomplete lawn mowers imparting the essential
character of finished lawn mowers under the HTSUS?
Whether the lawn mower parts are classifiable under the
various subheadings which specifically describe the parts, or under
subheading 8433.11.00, HTSUS, as powered mowers for lawns?
LAW AND ANALYSIS:
Classification of merchandise under the HTSUS is in accordance
with the General Rules of Interpretation (GRI's), taken in order.
GRI 1 provides that classification is determined according to the
terms of the headings and any relative section or chapter notes.
Because it is claimed that the parts impart the essential
character of unfinished lawn mowers, GRI 2(a) must be consulted.
It states that:
[a]ny reference in a heading to an article shall be taken to
include a reference to that article incomplete or
unfinished, provided that, as entered, the incomplete or
unfinished article has the essential character of the
complete or finished article. It shall also include a
reference to that article complete or finished (or falling
to be classified as complete or finished by virtue of this
rule), entered unassembled or disassembled.
In understanding the language of the HTSUS, the Harmonized
Commodity Description and Coding System Explanatory Notes may be
utilized. The Explanatory Notes, although not dispositive, are to
be used to determine the proper interpretation of the HTSUS. 54
Fed. Reg. 35127, 35128 (August 23, 1989).
Explanatory Note 2(a)(V) (p. 2) states that:
[t]he second part of Rule 2(a) provides that complete or
finished articles presented unassembled or disassembled are
to be classified in the same heading as the assembled article.
When goods are so presented, it is usually for reasons such
as requirements or convenience of packing, handling or
transport.
In part, Explanatory Note 2(a)(VII) (p. 2) states that:
[f]or the purposes of this Rule, "articles presented
unassembled or disassembled" means articles the components
of which are to be assembled either by means of simple fixing
devices (screws, nuts, bolts, etc.) or by riveting or welding,
for example, provided only simple assembly operations are
involved.
Explanatory Note 3(b)(VIII) (p. 4) states that:
[t]he factor which determines essential character will vary
as between different kinds of goods. It may, for example,
be determined by the nature of the material or component,
its bulk, quantity, weight or value, or by the role of a
constituent material in relation to the use of the
goods.
It is claimed that the parts, imported in bulk and used
principally for inventory purposes, do not impart the essential
character of finished lawn mowers. We agree. Among the many parts
produced in the U.S. and essential to the manufacture of lawn
mowers are cutter housings, rotary cutting blades, and handles.
The cutter housings, which constitute the frame of the lawn mowers,
provide the basic structural support for the lawn mowers. The
rotary cutting blades, because they perform the cutting function,
are essential to the operation of the lawn mowers. The handles,
without which the lawn mowers could not operate as intended, are
also essential.
In HQ 083222, dated April 25, 1989, which dealt with the
classification of automotive parts imported for assembly with other
parts into a truck, it was stated that:
it is reasonable to say that in order to have the essential
character of a motor vehicle, the imported components must be
advanced to the point that they are recognizable as a motor
vehicle, i.e., having the essential features of a vehicle
. . . There is no evidence that any of these components are
intended to be assembled into a specific motor vehicle, nor
is there any evidence that they constitute something other
than discrete components intended for inventory for a
manufacturing operation.
It is our position that the subject parts do not impart the
essential character of finished lawn mowers. They are not advanced
to the point that they are recognizable as lawn mowers. As
previously stated, the cutter housings, rotary cutting blades, and
handles are not included in the shipments of parts. These
components make up what could be said to be the most essential
parts of a lawn mower.
It is also our position that the parts, imported in bulk, do
not qualify as unassembled lawn mowers. There is no evidence that
the parts are presented for reasons such as requirements or
convenience of packing, handling or transport. They are parts
shipped in bulk for inventory purposes. This is not the type of
"convenience of packing, handling or transport" that the
Explanatory Notes contemplate. See HQ 088891, dated June 21, 1991.
Also, the parts, once imported into the U.S., are not
assembled by means of simple fixing devices as contemplated by
Explanatory Note 2(a)(VII). It is our understanding that the lawn
mower assembly operations in the U.S. are not simple assembly
operations.
In HQ 081999, dated December 10, 1990, which dealt with the
classification of parts imported for the assembly of golf carts,
it was stated that:
[w]e do not consider an assembly line operation in which a
motor vehicle is built piece by piece from the frame up as a
"simple" assembly within the meaning of GRI 2(a). The
disassociation of parts from individual vehicles, the parts
presented in bulk, and the nature of the required assembly
process after importation are evidence that the parts are not
presented together so that they can be reasonably associated
with individual CKD golf cars. Rather, the parts are in the
nature of parts inventory for the production of golf cars and,
as such, do not fall within the meaning of the term
"unassembled" for purposes of GRI 2(a).
Concerning the lawn mowers, it is our understanding that the
assembly line operation involves construction of the lawn mowers
piece by piece from the cutter housing up, there is a
disassociation of the parts from the finished lawn mowers, and the
parts are presented in bulk in the nature of parts inventory for
the production of lawn mowers.
Therefore, because lawn mower parts, imported in bulk, are not
unassembled, incomplete lawn mowers imparting the essential
character of finished lawn mowers, it is our position that the
parts are classifiable under the subheadings of the HTSUS which
specifically describe them.
HOLDING:
The lawn mower parts are classifiable under the subheadings
of the HTSUS which specifically describe them.
Assuming you are in agreement with the proposed classification
of each individual part, the protest should be granted. A copy of
this decision should be attached to the Customs Form 19 and
provided to the protestant as part of the notice of action on the
protest.
Sincerely,
John Durant, Director