Overview of this investigation:

• Petition initially submitted to U.S. International Trade Commission (Commission) on September 15, 2025.
• Petition submitted by Quartz Manufacturing Alliance of America (QMAA).
• QMAA supplemented the petition with additional information on September 23, 2025, and November 17, 2025. The Commission deemed the petition to be properly filed on November 17, 2025.
• The Commission published a notice of investigation [PDF, 7 pages] in the Federal Register on December 1, 2025.
  • The Commission has determined that this investigation is “extraordinarily complicated,” and will make its serious injury determination by April 1, 2026.
  • The Commission will hold a hearing on serious injury on February 24, 2026.
  • In the event the Commission makes an affirmative serious injury determination or is equally divided on the question of injury in this investigation, it will hold a hearing on the question of remedy on April 14, 2026. (See the Federal Register notice [PDF, 3 pages] for details.)
• The Commission will submit to the President the report required under section 202(f) of the Act within 180 days after the date on which the petition was filed, or by May 18, 2026.
• See the Federal Register notice [PDF, 3 pages] for detailed information concerning participation in the investigation, appearing at or observing any public hearing, and the filing of written submissions. Updates will also be provided in the Investigations Database System (IDS).

Section 201 investigations in general:

• U.S. International Trade Commission has sole responsibility to conduct investigations under section 201 of the Trade Act of 1974.
  • If the Commission makes an affirmative serious injury determination, it recommends a remedy to the President.
  • The President makes the final decision on whether to provide a remedy to the U.S. industry, and if so, the nature and duration of the remedy.
  • The remedy is temporary. The initial period of relief cannot be longer than four years, and if extended, the full period of relief cannot exceed eight years in the aggregate.
• Investigations under this statutory authority sometimes are also referred to as “global safeguard investigations” and “escape clause” investigations.
• When a petition or request is filed, the Commission must determine whether an article is being imported in such increased quantities as to be a substantial cause of serious injury or the threat of serious injury to a U.S. industry.
• Global safeguard investigations do not require a finding of an unfair trade practice such as under the U.S. countervailing duty law (relating to a foreign governmental subsidy) or the antidumping duty law.
• Global safeguard investigations are not country specific. They involve imports of the products under investigation from all sources. However, Commissioners who make affirmative injury determinations are required to make additional separate findings for certain countries with which the U.S. has free trade agreements. These include the USMCA countries (Canada and Mexico), Jordan, Australia, Colombia, Korea, Panama, Peru, Singapore, the CAFTA-DR countries, and Israel.

Process:

• The statute requires the Commission to complete the injury phase of the investigation within 120 days after the request is received unless it determines, as it has in this proceeding, that the investigation is “extraordinarily complicated,” in which case it may take up to 30 additional days to make its injury determination.
  • If the Commission makes an affirmative serious injury determination, it will then conduct a remedy phase. It holds a public hearing in each phase.
  • If the Commission makes a negative serious injury determination, the proceeding will end and the Commission will not conduct a remedy phase or recommend a remedy.
• At the conclusion of the remedy phase, the Commission will announce its remedy recommendation(s) and forward its determinations and findings and any remedy recommendations in a report to the President. Only the Commissioners who make affirmative injury determinations may recommend remedy measures to the President.
• The Commission must send its report to the President within 180 days after the petition is filed.
• The President makes the final decision on whether to impose a remedy, and if so, the form, amount, and duration of the remedy.
  • In determining what action to take, if any, the President is to take into account the Commission’s report, industry efforts to make a positive adjustment to import competition, factors related to the national economic interest of the United States, and certain other statutory factors.