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HQ 953860

June 23, 1993

CLA-2 CO:R:C:M 953860 DWS

CATEGORY: CLASSIFICATION

TARIFF NO.: Various

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

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