The Tariff Act of 1930 does not provide the exclusive means for recovering evaded antidumping duties, the Anti-Fraud Coalition said in a June 26 amicus brief at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit. The False Claims Act stands as a "complementary enforcement mechanism" used when an importer defrauds the U.S. by filing false customs forms to evade duties, the brief said. The coalition filed its brief in an FCA suit on whether Sigma Corp., along with other companies, evaded antidumping duties on welded couplets from China by submitting false customs information (Island Industries v. Sigma Corp., 9th Cir. # 22-55063).

Companies shouldn’t be forced to turn over sensitive data to competitors and European governments under the threat of massive fines authorized under the EU’s Data Act, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce said Wednesday. EU officials reached agreement on the Data Act Tuesday. European Commissioner for Internal Market Thierry Breton called it a “milestone in reshaping the digital space.” The chamber cited concerns about the legislation’s impact on competition, investment and innovation. “We urge EU policymakers to engage in dialogue with stakeholders, including American businesses, as the Act is finalized and implemented,” said Sean Heather, senior vice president-international regulatory affairs and antitrust.

FCC nominee Anna Gomez likely faces a relatively easy road to confirmation after avoiding any real trouble during her Senate Commerce Committee confirmation hearing last week (see 2306220067), industry officials and others told us. Gomez was careful throughout the panel, never committing outright to voting for reclassification of broadband as a Communications Act Title II service, while also stressing the importance of FCC oversight. Some observers questioned whether the Senate would be able to confirm any Democrat to the fifth FCC seat if the Gomez nomination fails.

Arkansas Attorney General Tim Griffin’s (R) “strained portrayal” of his lawsuit against TikTok as deserving to be remanded to state court (see 2306090047) “ignores reality,” said TikTok’s opposition Monday (docket 1:23-cv-01038) to the remand motion in U.S. District Court for Western Arkansas in El Dorado. Griffin alleges TikTok is violating the Arkansas Deceptive Trade Practices Act by duping Arkansas residents about the privacy and data risks of using the social media platform. However the court views the state’s claims at the current stage of the case, those claims “implicate core federal concerns,” and the state shouldn’t be allowed “to ignore them to remain in state court,” it said. “When boiled down to its essence,” the case involves the state’s “extraordinary attempt” to regulate “sensitive issues of national security and foreign affairs,” it said. Those issues “at this very moment” are under “active consideration” by the federal government, it said. Federal question jurisdiction exists and the state’s motion to remand should be denied, it said. In its remand motion, the state argues the court lacks jurisdiction because the case doesn’t require the resolution of any federal issue, said TikTok. But the state concedes that to succeed on its claims, “it must establish that TikTok user data may be accessed and exploited by a hostile foreign government,” it said. The question of whether China is accessing and exploiting TikTok user data “is one that the U.S. government has been evaluating through a formal review and investigation” conducted by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the U.S., it said. Because adjudicating the state’s claims “would require a state court to second-guess the federal government’s assessment of the nature and degree of any national security threat from China vis-a-vis TikTok, this case necessarily raises disputed and substantial questions of federal law,” it said.

Broadband experts debated how the FCC should proceed in adopting its final rules on combating digital discrimination. Some at a Friday Federalist Society webinar raised concerns about how the commission may define discrimination and its authority on the issue. The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act mandated the agency adopt final rules by Nov. 15. The proceeding "is one of the most important items on the FCC's plate," said Free State Foundation President Randolph May. The "key problem" with the rulemaking is that it "exceeds the statutory authority" by imposing a disparate impact on ISPs, said FSF Policy Studies Director Seth Cooper. The current record before the FCC doesn't suggest providers are actively engaging in discrimination, Cooper said, and the agency should instead focus on prohibiting "intentional discrimination of access." Public Knowledge Senior Vice President Harold Feld noted Congress "did make explicit findings with regard to lack of access" for communities of color and low-income areas when it directed the commission to establish rules to combat digital discrimination. "The FCC has an obligation to step in where the market will fail," Feld said, saying "every provider has a responsibility." Questions remain on what the FCC's authority is and whether there's a possibility for overreach once final rules are issued, said Clint Odom, T-Mobile vice president-strategic alliances and external affairs, noting the Enforcement Bureau "can wield a lot of power" due to this rulemaking.

FCC nominee Anna Gomez faced tough questions Thursday on net neutrality, data privacy, the Standard General/Tegna deal and how she would balance her current role leading the U.S. delegation in preparing for the World Radiocommunication Conference if she's confirmed to the FCC. The Senate Commerce Committee nomination hearing saw Commissioner Geoffrey Starks hit by many of the same questions on his nomination for a second term on the FCC. Commissioner Brendan Carr, also being renominated, and Fara Damelin, nominee for FCC inspector general, faced fewer questions.

Chinese online shopping platform Temu has no procedures to comply with the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act, which “all but guarantees” imports from the company violate the UFLPA, the House Select Committee on China said this week. In a new report, the committee said both Temu and Chinese online retailer Shein “rely heavily” on the de minimis exception when shipping packages to the U.S., allowing them to avoid CBP scrutiny of potential forced labor violations.

House Communications Subcommittee members made the future of the FCC’s affordable connectivity program a major focus of its Wednesday commission oversight hearing, as expected (see 2306200075), but the panel didn’t result in a clear sense of whether Commerce Committee GOP leaders will back additional funding for the initiative. Subpanel Chairman Bob Latta, R-Ohio, and others haven’t committed themselves as either for or against further ACP funding (see 2305100073). Democrats strongly defended the program and urged its extension.

Plaintiffs' claims against Old Dominion Freight Line should be dismissed for unripe claims, failure to state claims under the Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act (BIPA) and failure to state a claim for lack of subject-matter jurisdiction in their class action against the company, said defendants' Friday motion (docket 1:23-cv-02187) in U.S. District Court for Central Illinois in Peoria. Old Dominion moved the court to either dismiss plaintiffs’ second amended putative class action complaint or to strike their class allegations.

An attempt by subsidiaries of two Chinese companies to raise deference questions in a recent filing at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit (docket 23-1032) on FCC equipment authorization rules may not work, legal experts said. Dahua USA and Hikvision USA raised deference issues as part of their arguments on why equipment they make and sell in the U.S. doesn’t belong on the FCC’s list of “covered equipment” deemed to pose a threat to U.S. security.