CSMS Message: 93-001161

TO : ALL ABI BROKERS.

FROM : ROBYN DAY

SUBJECT : ELECTRONIC HTS FROM GPO

DATE : 12/17/93

4351071
DECEMBER 17, 1993

CO:TO:T:T ET
CATEGORY: NAF

TO : IMPORT SPECIALISTS, INSPECTORS AND OTHER INTERESTED
PARTIES SUCH AS BROKERS AND IMPORTERS

FROM : DIRECTOR, NAFTA IMPLEMENTATION TASK FORCE

SUBJECT : FACT SHEET 9: ACCESSING THE HARMONIZED TARIFF
SCHEDULE OF THE UNITED STATES (1994) THROUGH
THE GPO FEDERAL BULLETIN BOARD

BACKGROUND:

THE PRESIDENTIAL PROCLAMATION INSTITUTING NAFTA WAS SIGNED
ON DECEMBER 15, 1993. THE INTERNATIONAL TRADE COMMISSION (ITC)
IS SENDING THE HARMONIZED TARIFF SCHEDULE (HTS) TO BE PRINTED.
HOWEVER, IT WILL NOT BE AVAILABLE UNTIL THE SECOND WEEK OF
JANUARY 1994. TO ASSIST THE IMPORTING COMMUNITY IN OBTAINING
NAFTA TARIFF INFORMATION, THE ITC WILL POST THE HTS, WITH
APPLICABLE NAFTA DESCRIPTIONS AND ALL TEXT, TO THE GOVERNMENT
PRINTING OFFICE'S (GPO) FEDERAL BULLETIN BOARD. THE INFORMATION
FROM THE BULLETIN BOARD CAN BE DOWNLOADED FOR PUBLIC USE AT A
CHARGE OF $27. THE INFORMATION CAN ALSO BE DISPLAYED FOR
BROWSING ONLY, FREE OF CHARGE. THE BULLETIN BOARD WILL BE
AVAILABLE 7 DAYS A WEEK, AND IT WILL ONLY BE CLOSED FROM 2 TO
4 AM (EST) FOR MAINTENANCE.

BEFORE BEING ABLE TO DOWNLOAD, APPROVAL MUST BE OBTAINED
FROM GPO. THIS PROCESS TAKES AN ESTIMATED 2-3 DAYS. ANYONE
INTERESTED SHOULD SET UP AN ACCOUNT AS EARLY AS POSSIBLE WITH THE
GPO BY USING THEIR TELECOMMUNICATIONS SOFTWARE AND CALLING
(202) 512-1387. TO ESTABLISH YOUR ACCOUNT, PLEASE MAKE REFERENCE TO
THE ATTACHED USER INFORMATION ON ACCESSING THE FEDERAL
BULLETIN BOARD. THE FILE WITH THE HTS INFORMATION IS CALLED
94HTSA1.EXE (ALL CAPS AND NO SPACES).

QUESTIONS REGARDING THIS FACT SHEET MAY BE DIRECTED TO THE
NAFTA HELP DESK AT (202) 927-0066. QUESTIONS REGARDING THE
BULLETIN BOARD MAY BE DIRECTED TO STAN STEWART AT THE GPO AT
(202) 512-0608.

MARIA REBA

ATTACHMENTS

D. ACCESSING THE FEDERAL BULLETIN BOARD AS A NEW USER

D.1. CALLING THE FEDERAL BULLETIN BOARD

USING YOUR TELECOMMUNICATION SOFTWARE, CALL THE FEDERAL BULLETIN
BOARD AT (202) 512-1387.

ONCE YOU ARE CONNECTED, THE BBS WILL USE AUTO-SENSING TO
DETERMINE IF YOU HAVE THE FILE ANSI.SYS IN YOUR CONFIG.SYS FILE. IF
YOU DO, THE WORD ANSI WILL BLINK AND YOU SHOULD TYPE Y TO
CONFIRM THIS AND THEN PRESS YOUR RETURN OR ENTER KEY. IF THE
WORD ANSI IS NOT BLINKING, YOU SHOULD TYPE N AND THEN PRESS YOUR
RETURN OR ENTER KEY. ANSWERING NO TO THIS QUESTION WILL NOT
EFFECT YOUR USE OF THE BBS, BUT IT ALLOWS THE FEDERAL BULLETIN
BOARD TO PRESENT SCREENS IN ACCORDANCE WITH YOUR SYSTEM'S
CONFIGURATION.

NOTE: WHENEVER YOU RESPOND TO A BBS QUESTION OR SELECT A MENU
OPTION, YOU MUST PRESS YOUR RETURN OR ENTER KEY TO SEND YOUR
RESPONSE TO THE BBS.

D.2. IDENTIFYING YOURSELF

THE NEW USER REGISTRATION PROCESS STARTS AT THE BOTTOM OF THE
WELCOME TO THE FEDERAL BULLETIN BOARD SCREEN, WHERE YOU ARE ASKED TO
ENTER YOUR USER-ID OR NEW. TYPE NEW AND THEN PRESS RETURN.
NEXT, YOU WILL SEEA SCREEN EXPLAINING YOUR USER-ID OPTIONS.
PLEASE READ THIS SCREEN IF YOU HAVE NOTALREADY READ THE SECTION ON
ESTABLISHING A USER-ID IN THIS MANUAL. THE BBS WILL NOW ASK A
SERIES OF QUESTIONS. SINCE THERE IS A SE T LIMIT TO THE NUMBER
OF CHARACTERS YOU CAN ENTER, PLEASE ABBREVIATE IF YOUR RESPONSE
IS TOO LONG. THE QUESTIONS AND THE CHARACTER LIMITS ARE AS
FOLLOWS:

FIRST AND LAST NAME: (29 CHARACTERS)
NAME OF YOUR ORGANIZATION: (29 CHARACTERS)
STREET ADDRESS OR P.O. BOX: (29 CHARACTERS)
CITY, STATE, AND ZIP: (29 CHARACTERS)

COUNTRY (USA ASSUMED): (29 CHARACTERS)
DAYTIME (VOICE) TELEPHONE NUMBER: (15 CHARACTERS)

WHEN YOU COMPLETE THESE QUESTIONS, THE BBS WILL ASK WHAT KIND OF
COMPUTER SYSTEM YOU ARE USING. IF YOU DO NOT KNOW, PLEASE ENTER 0
ZERO|. YOU WILL ALSO BE ASKED HOW YOU LEARNED ABOUT THE FEDERAL
BULLETIN BOARD.

D.3. ESTABLISHING A USER-ID AND A PASSWORD

AFTER COMPLETING THESE QUESTIONS, YOU WILL BE ASKED TO SELECT A
USER-ID. THE SYSTEM WILL SUGGEST YOUR NAME AS YOUR USER-ID. IF YOU
AGREE, ENTER Y. IF YOU WANT TO CREATE A DIFFERENT USER-ID,
ENTER N AND YOU WILL BE GIVEN THE OPPORTUNITY TO SPECIFY ANOTHER
USER-ID.

ENTER UP TO 29 CHARACTERS, INCLUDING LETTERS, NUMBERS, SPACES,
PERIODS, COMMAS AND HYPHENS, FOR YOUR USER-ID. THE BBS WILL
DISPLAY YOUR NEW USER-ID AND ASK YOU TO CONFIRM THAT IT IS
CORRECT. IF IT IS, TYPE Y. IF NOT, TYPE N AND THE BBS WILL LET YOU
REPLACE YOUR USER-ID. CHECK CAREFULLY. THIS IS YOUR LAST
CHANCE TO CHANGE YOUR USER-ID.

HERE IS A SIMULATED MESSAGE OF THE WAY YOUR USER-ID WILL APPEAR:
FROM YOUR USER-ID: DID YOU SEND ME AN E-MAIL MESSAGE TODAY? ARE
YOU SATISFIED WITH YOUR CHOICE OF USER-ID (Y N)?

ONCE YOU CONFIRM THAT YOUR USER-ID IS CORRECT, THE BBS WILL ASK
YOU TO ENTER A PASSWORD, SO THAT OTHERS CANNOT USE YOUR USER-ID
WITHOUT YOUR PERMISSION. YOUR PASSWORD SHOULD BE SHORT AND
MEMORABLE, BUT NOT OBVIOUS. KEEP YOUR PASSWORD CONFIDENTIAL IT IS
YOUR PROTECTION AGAINST FRAUDULENT CHARGES TO YOUR ACCOUNT.
IF YOU SUSPECT UNAUTHORIZED USE, IMMEDIATELY CHANGE YOUR PASSWORD
(SEE BELOW). IF NECESSARY, YOU CAN CONTACT GPO TO REQUEST THAT
YOUR USER-ID BE CANCELLED BY SENDING AN E-MAIL MESSAGE TO BBS
VALIDATION OR CALLING (202) 512-1003.
YOUR PASSWORD CAN BE 4 TO 9 CHARACTERS, WITHOUT SPACES OR SPECIAL
CHARACTER, SUCH AS # OR . SINCE YOU CANNOT SEE THE PASSWORD
THAT YOU TYPED, YOU WILL BE ASKED TO TYPE YOUR PASSWORD TWICE
BEFORE IT IS ACCEPTED.

THE BBS WILL NOW CONFIRM THAT YOUR USER-ID AND PASSWORD HAVE BEEN
REGISTERED. DO NOT LOSE YOUR PASSWORD. GPO CANNOT GIVE OUT A
PASSWORD BY MAIL OR PHONE UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES. IF YOU FORGET
YOUR PASSWORD, YOU WILL HAVE TO RE-REGISTER TO HAVE ACCESS TO THE
BBS. DO NOT PRESS RETURN UNTIL YOU HAVE SECURED YOUR PASSWORD.
YOU CAN CHANGE YOUR PASSWORD, AND OTHER INFORMATION SUCH AS YOUR
ADDRESS AND TELEPHONE NUMBER, ANYTIME YOU WISH BY ENTERING 31 AT THE
BOTTOM OF THE MAIN MENU. IT IS A GOOD IDEA TO CHANGE YOUR
PASSWORD AT LEAST ONCE EVERY 60 TO 90 DAYS.

NOW THAT YOU HAVE COMPLETED THE NEW USER REGISTRATION PROCESS,
YOU WILL HAVE ACCESS TO THE BASIC, FREE SERVICES ON THE FEDERAL
BULLETIN BOARD DESCRIBED IN SECTION C.1 ABOVE. NEXT TIME YOU
SIGN ON, YOU CAN USE THE BBS BY TYPING YOUR USER-ID AT THE BOTTOM OF
THE WELCOME TO THE FEDERAL BULLETIN BOARD SCREEN.

A USER-ID THAT IS NOT VALIDATED WILL AUTOMATICALLY EXPIRE IF IT
IS NOT USED FOR 30 DAYS. PLEASE SEE SECTION II.E. BELOW FOR
INFORMATION ON BECOMING A VALIDATED USER.

D.4. DOWNLOADING A COPY OF THIS USER'S GUIDE

AT THE CONCLUSION OF THE NEW USER REGISTRATION, YOU WILL RECEIVE A
MESSAGE THAT SAYS:

YOU HAVE NEW E-MAIL. DO YOU WISH TO SEE IT NOW? (Y N)

ALL NEW USERS RECEIVE AN E-MAIL MESSAGE WITH A COPY OF THIS
USER'S GUIDE ATTACHED. TO READ THE MESSAGE NOW, ENTER Y AND
PRESS RETURN. IF YOU ENTER N, YOU WILL GO DIRECTLY TO THE MAIN
MENU.

YOU CAN READ OR DOWNLOAD THE USER'S GUIDE WHEN YOU ARE READY BY
SELECTING 2 FROM THE MAIN MENU, AND THAN TYPING RTFR AT THE
ELECTRONIC MAIL MENU. IF YOU NEED ANOTHER COPY OF THIS MANUAL,
YOU MAY DOWNLOAD THE FREE BBSUSER.TXT FILE ATTACHED TO YOUR E-
MAIL MESSAGE. IF YOU WOULD LIKE ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ON HOW TO
USE E-MAIL, PLEASE REFER TO SECTION III.C. ON E-MAIL IN THIS
USER'S GUIDE.

YOU CAN DOWNLOAD A COPY OF THIS USER'S GUIDE AT ANY TIME FROM THE
FREE INFORMATION AREA UNDER THE FILES FOR DOWNLOADING AREA ON THE
MAIN MENU. THE FILE NAME IS BBSUSER.DOC.

E. BECOMING A VALIDATED USER

E.1. USING THE REGISTRY

WHEN YOU ARE READY TO BECOME A VALIDATE USER, YOU MUST COMPLETE
THE QUESTIONNAIRE IN THE REGISTRY AREA. ENTER 32 AT THE BOTTOM
OF THE MAIN MENU TO GO TO THE REGISTRY.

THERE ARE 23 QUESTIONS IN THE REGISTRY. YOU SHOULD ANSWER ALL OF
THE QUESTIONS, BUT YOU MUST ANSWER QUESTIONS 1 THROUGH 7 AND 9
THROUGH 12 IF YOU WISH TO BECOME A VALIDATED USER. THESE
QUESTIONS WILL SOLICIT ADDITIONAL INFORMATION, INCLUDING A
PAYMENT METHOD. GPO ACCEPTS PAYMENT BY MASTERCARD, VISA OR GPO
DEPOSIT ACCOUNT. SOME OF THE QUESTIONS, SUCH AS NAME AND ADDRESS
MAY SEEM REDUNDANT, BUT THE ANSWERS THAT YOU PROVIDED IN THE NEW
USER REGISTRATION MAY NOT MATCH THE BILLING INFORMATION ON YOUR
CREDIT CARD OR GPO DEPOSIT ACCOUNT.

YOU MAY ENTER X AT ANY QUESTION TO EXIT THE QUESTIONNAIRE.
HOWEVER, IF YOU EXIT THE REGISTRY WITHOUT COMPLETING THE ENTIRE
QUESTIONNAIRE, YOUR ENTRIES WILL NOT BE SAVED AND YOU CANNOT
BECOME A VALIDATE USER WITH THE ABILITY TO DOWNLOAD FILES FROM
THE BULLETIN BOARD.

YOU MAY UPDATE THE INFORMATION IN YOUR REGISTRY AT ANY TIME. YOU
SHOULD REVIEW IT AT LEAST ONCE EVERY 60 TO 90 DAYS TO ENSURE THAT
THE INFORMATION LISTED IS CURRENT. SEE SECTION II.E.3 FOR
INSTRUCTIONS ON UPDATING REGISTRY INFORMATION.

E.2. ESTABLISHING A PAYMENT METHOD

THE THIRD QUESTION IN THE REGISTRY ASKS IF YOU WANT TO REQUEST
VALIDATION AND COMMIT TO PAYING FOR FILES DOWNLOADED WITH YOUR
USER-ID AND PASSWORD. ANSWERING YES AUTOMATICALLY NOTIFIES GPO
THAT YOU WISH TO BECOME A VALIDATED USER.

GPO ACCEPTS PAYMENT BY MASTERCARD, VISA OR GPO DEPOSIT ACCOUNT. YOU
WILL BE ASKED TO SPECIFY YOUR PREFERRED PAYMENT METHOD, THE
ACCOUNT NUMBER, AND THE EXPIRATION DATE, IF APPLICABLE. YOU MUST
ENTER A 0 (ZERO) BEFORE YOUR GPO DEPOSIT ACCOUNT NUMBER OR THE
SYSTEM WILL REJECT IT. THE SYSTEM WILL ALWAYS ASK FOR AN
EXPIRATION DATE. IF YOU ARE USING A GPO DEPOSIT ACCOUNT, THERE
IS NO EXPIRATION DATE, SO YOU SHOULD ENTER THE CURRENT MONTH AND
YEAR (MM YY).

YOUR USER-ID SHOULD BE VALIDATED BY GPO WITHIN TWO WORKING DAYS
AFTER YOU ENTER YOUR PAYMENT INFORMATION IN THE REGISTRY. YOU
WILL RECEIVE AN E-MAIL MESSAGE LETTING YOU KNOW THAT YOUR USER-ID
HAS BEEN VALIDATED AND THAT YOU ARE NOW ABLE TO DOWNLOAD FILES
FOR A FEE. IF YOU DO NOT RECEIVE NOTIFICATION WITHIN TWO WORKING
DAYS OR HAVE OTHER QUESTIONS ABOUT THE STATUS OF YOUR ACCOUNT,
SEE SECTION II.E.4. BELOW.

USERS WHO DO NOT WISH TO PAY BY CREDIT CARD MAY SETUP A GPO
DEPOSIT ACCOUNT. FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ON OPENING A DEPOSIT
ACCOUNT, SEE SECTION II.F. BELOW. UNTIL YOU HAVE AN ACCOUNT YOU MAY
USE THE FREE BBS SERVICES AS A CASUAL USER. WHEN YOU RECEIVE YOUR
DEPOSIT ACCOUNT NUMBER, PLEASE ENTER IT IN THE REGISTRY.
WITHIN TWO WORKING DAYS YOU SHOULD RECEIVE AN E-MAIL MESSAGE
TELLING YOU THAT YOU ARE NOW A VALIDATED USER AND ABLE TO
DOWNLOAD FILES FOR A FEE.