The determination covers stevia leaf (Stevia rebaudiana) extracts or glycosides classified under subheading 2938.90.0000 in the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States that are produced or manufactured by the Inner Mongolia Hengzheng Group Baoanzhao Agriculture, Industry, and Trade Co., Ltd. in the People's Republic of China. This entity is also known by the following names: The Inner Mongolia Hengzheng Group Baoanzhao Agriculture and Trade Co., Ltd.; the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region Prison Administration Bureau Baoanzhao Agriculture and Trade Co., Ltd.; and the Baoanzhao Prison Farm.

 

The full notice is available here.

Pursuant to section 307 of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (19 U.S.C. 1307), “[a]ll goods, wares, articles, and merchandise mined, produced or manufactured wholly or in part in any foreign country by convict labor or/and forced labor or/and indentured labor under penal sanctions shall not be entitled to entry at any of the ports of the United States, and the importation thereof is hereby prohibited.” Under this section, “forced labor” includes “all work or service which is exacted from any person under the menace of any penalty for its nonperformance and for which the worker does not offer himself voluntarily” and includes forced or indentured child labor.

The CBP regulations promulgated under the authority of 19 U.S.C. 1307 are found at sections 12.42 through 12.45 of title 19, Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) (19 CFR 12.42-12.45). Among other things, these regulations allow persons outside of CBP to petition the Commissioner of CBP to investigate whether a certain “class of merchandise . . . is being, or is likely to be, imported into the United States [in violation of 19 U.S.C. 1307].” 19 CFR 12.42(a)-(d). CBP also has the authority to self-initiate an investigation. If the Commissioner of CBP finds that the information available “reasonably but not conclusively indicates that merchandise within the purview of section 307 is being, or is likely to be, imported,” the Commissioner will order port directors to “withhold release of any such merchandise pending [further] instructions.” 19 CFR 12.42(e). After issuance of a withhold release order, the covered merchandise will be detained by CBP for an admissibility determination and excluded unless the importer demonstrates that the merchandise was not made using forced labor. The importer may also export the merchandise.

These regulations also set forth the procedure for the Commissioner of CBP to issue a Finding when it is determined that the merchandise is subject to the provisions of 19 U.S.C. 1307. Pursuant to 19 CFR 12.42(f), if the Commissioner of CBP finds that merchandise within the purview of 19 U.S.C. 1307 is being, or is likely to be, imported into the United States, the Commissioner of CBP will, with the approval of the Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), publish a Finding to that effect in the Customs Bulletin and in the Federal Register.[1] Under the authority of 19 CFR 12.44(b), CBP may seize and forfeit imported merchandise covered by a Finding.

Pursuant to 19 U.S.C. 1307 and 19 CFR 12.42(f), it is hereby determined that certain articles described in paragraph II.B., that are mined, produced or manufactured in whole or in part with the use of convict, forced, or indentured labor by the Inner Mongolia Hengzheng Group Baoanzhao Agriculture, Industry, and Trade Co., Ltd. in the People's Republic of China, are being, or are likely to be, imported into the United States. Based upon this determination, the port director may seize the covered merchandise for violation of 19 U.S.C. 1307 and commence forfeiture proceedings pursuant to 19 CFR part 162, subpart E.