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HQ 084811


August 14, 1989

CLA-2 CO:R:C:G 084811 VEA

CATEGORY: CLASSIFICATION

TARIFF NO.: 9817.00.5000

Steve Sanders
Border Brokerage Company
P.O. Box B
Blaine, Washington 98230

RE: Choker grapple and slack-pulling carriages, which are used in the logging industry.

Dear Mr. Sanders:

Your letter of April 27, 1989, to our New York office, on behalf of Johnson Industries Ltd., requests a ruling on the classification of equipment used in the logging industry under the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States Annotated (HTSUSA). The equipment was classified in headings 8431 and 8483, and the request was forwarded to Headquarters to determine whether the articles could be classified as machinery, equipment and implements used for agricultural or horticultural purposes in subheading 9817.00.5000.

FACTS:

The articles at issue consist of a choker grapple and slack-pulling carriages, which are used in the logging industry. The choker grapple and slack-pulling carriages are used with log yarders.

The choker grapple consists of two curved hinged metal jaws, a cable operated system to open and close the grapple jaws and a slider mechanism. It is used with a log yarder to transport trees from the logging area to a central collection point.

The slack-pulling carriages are also used with a log yarder. They consist of several sheaves mounted in a block or housing with an opening to which choker cables holding logs can be suspended. The sheaves allow the carriage to be pulled horizontally along the yarder line in order to transport the logs. The carriages include other features such as double
driver sheaves, non-twist line infeed and extended side-block capacity.

Our New York office classified these articles in the following subheadings: the choker grapple in subheading 8431.49.1090 and the slack pulling carriage in subheading 8483.50.8080. You ask whether these articles could be classified as machinery, equipment and implements to be used for agricultural or horticultural purposes in subheading 9817.00.5000.

ISSUE:

Whether the choker grapple and slack pulling carriage are machinery, equipment and implements to be used for agricultural or horticultural purposes classifiable in subheading 9817.00.5000.

LAW AND ANALYSIS:

The General Rules of Interpretation (GRIs), the legal principles by which merchandise is classified, govern classification under the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUSA). GRI 1 states, in part, that the primary consideration in the classification of goods is the terms of the heading and any relative section or chapter notes. The subheading at issue provides:

9817.00.5000 Machinery, equipment and implements to be used for agricultural or horticultural purposes

Pursuant to GRI 1, classification in subheading 9817.00.5000 requires that the articles be used for agricultural or horticultural purposes. U.S. Note 2(t), Subchapter XVII states that the provisions of subheadings 9817.00.5000 and 9817.00.6000 do not apply to articles provided for in various headings. Headings 8431 and 8483 are not included in this note. Thus, the choker grapple and slack pulling carriage are eligible for classification under 9817.00.5000 if they are "machinery, equipment and implements to be used for agricultural or horticultural purposes."

Courts have classified equipment used in the logging industry as agricultural implements in item 666.00 under the Tariff Schedule of the United States (TSUS). See: The United States v. Norman G. Jensen, Inc., 76 Cust. Ct. 42, C.D. 4634, 408 F. Supp. 1379 (1976) aff'd. 550 F. 2d 662 (1977); Border Brokerage Co., Inc., v. United States, 2 CIT 326 (1981) and Border Brokerage Co., Inc., v. United States, 6 CIT 262 (1983). In these decisions, the courts held that the growing and harvesting of trees constituted an agriculture pursuit and merchandise used for such purposes was within the provision for agricultural implements. Thus, both the choker grapple and slack pulling carriage would be entitled to free entry under heading 9817 if there is actual use certification in compliance with 19 CFR 10.138.

HOLDING:

The choker grapple and slack pulling carriage are machinery, equipment and implements to be used for agricultural or horticultural purposes classifiable in subheading 9817.00.5000.

Sincerely,

John Durant, Director

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