Parties & Agencies

U.S. Department of Commerce

Also known as: DOC · Commerce · Department of Commerce

The cabinet-level department whose International Trade Administration runs antidumping and countervailing duty investigations and Section 232 cases.

The U.S. Department of Commerce (DOC) is the cabinet-level executive department responsible for promoting economic growth, technology, and U.S. business interests. It is led by the Secretary of Commerce and headquartered in the Herbert C. Hoover Building in Washington, D.C.

For trade compliance, the most important sub-agency is the International Trade Administration (ITA). ITA's Enforcement and Compliance unit administers:

  • Antidumping (AD) investigations — Determining whether foreign producers are selling merchandise in the U.S. at less than fair value, and calculating dumping margins
  • Countervailing duty (CVD) investigations — Determining whether foreign producers receive countervailable subsidies, and calculating subsidy rates
  • Administrative reviews of existing AD/CVD orders, typically annually
  • Section 232 national security investigations — Investigating whether imports of specific articles threaten national security and recommending remedies to the President
  • Scope rulings — Determining whether specific merchandise falls within an existing AD/CVD order

Commerce works in tandem with the USITC on AD/CVD cases — Commerce determines the dumping or subsidy margin, while the USITC determines injury. Both affirmative determinations are required for an order to issue. CBP then collects the duties at the port of entry.

Other Commerce sub-agencies relevant to trade include the U.S. Census Bureau (Foreign Trade Division, which manages Schedule B and import/export statistics), the Bureau of Industry and Security (which administers export controls), and OTEXA (textiles and apparel).

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Related Terms

Antidumping Duty

A duty imposed on imported goods sold in the United States at less than fair value, when those imports cause or threaten material injury to a domestic industry.

Countervailing Duty

A duty imposed to offset government subsidies provided to foreign producers, when those subsidized imports cause or threaten material injury to a domestic industry.

Section 232 Tariffs

Tariffs imposed by the President under the Trade Expansion Act of 1962 when imports threaten to impair U.S. national security — most prominently on steel, aluminum, and derivative products.

U.S. International Trade Commission

The independent federal agency that publishes the HTS, investigates trade injury, and provides Congress with trade analysis.

U.S. Census Bureau

The Commerce Department agency whose Foreign Trade Division publishes U.S. import and export statistics and maintains the Schedule B.
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