Foreign-Trade Zone 15, Kansas City, Missouri; Application for Subzone at Ford's Auto Assembly Plant in Claycomo, Missouri

TEXT: Notice is hereby given that an application has been submitted to the Foreign-Trade Zones Board (the Board) by the Greater Kansas City Foreign-Trade Zone, Inc. (KCFTZ), grantee of Foreign-Trade Zone 15, requesting authority for a special-purpose subzone at Ford Motor Corporation's auto assembly plant in Claycomo. Clay County, Missouri, within the Kansas City Customs port of entry, The application was submitted pursuant to the provisions of the Foreign-Trade Zones Act, as amended (19 U.S.C 81a-81u), and the regulations of the Board (15 CFR part 400). It was formally filed on March 18, 1983. The applicant is authorized to make this proposal under a special act of the State of Missouri Legislature, approved June 22, 1971.

On March 23, 1973, the Board authorized the KCFTZ to establish a foreign-trade zone project with 2 sites in Kansas City, Missouri (Board Order 93, 37 FR 15535, 8/3/72). Another site was added in 1974 (Board Order 102, 39 FR 39487, 11/1/74). In FY 1982 the zone received over $30 million in merchandise.

The subzone will be for Ford's Kansas City auto assembly plant which covers 155 acres on Highway 69, Claycomo, Missouri, some 7 miles from downtown Kansas City. Ford is in the process of renovating the plant to produce a new line of compact cars. The facility can produce over 200,000 cars and trucks annualy. Although most of the parts and material used at the plant are produced domestically, close to 5 percent of the components such as engines, transaxles and radios are imported.

Zone procedures will exempt Ford from paying duties on foreign components used for its exports. On its domestic sales, the company will be able to defer duty and to take advantage of the same duty rate available to importers of finished autos. The average duty rate for the foreign components Ford uses at its Kansas City plant is 4.6 percent whereas the rate for finished autos is 2.8 percent. The savings from zone procedures are expected to contribute to Ford's efforts to reduce plant costs, helping to make it more competitive with auto production facilities offshore. The result will be continued investment in the Kansas City facility and a possible increase in the plant's workforce currently some 3800 persons.

In accordance with the Board's regulations, an examiners committee has been appointed to investigate the application and report to the Board. The committee consists of: Dennis Puccinelli (Chairman), Foreign-Trade Zones Staff, U.S. Department of Commerce, Washington, D.C. 20230; William L. Duncan, District Director, U.S. Customs Service, North Central Region, 120 S. Central Avenue, St. Louis, Missouri 63105; and Colonel Gurnie C. Gunter, District Engineer, U.S. Army Engineer District Kansas City, 700 Federal Building, Kansas City, Missouri 64106.

Comments concerning the proposed subzone are invited in writing from interested persons and organizations. They should be addressed to the Board's Executive Secretary at the address below and postmarked on or before April 28, 1983

A copy of the application is available for public inspection at each of the following locations:

U.S. Department of Commerce District Office, 601 East 12th Street, Room 1845, Kansas City, Missouri 64106

Office of the Executive Secretary, Foreign-Trade Zones Board, U.S. Department of Commerce, Room 1872, 14th and Pennsylvania, NW., Washington, D.C. 20230

Dated: March 23, 1983.

John J. Da Ponte, Jr.,

Executive Secretary. [FR Doc. 83-7988 Filed 3-28-83; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 3510-25-M