The United States appeals the decision of the Court of International Trade classifying Medline Industries Inc.’s (Medline’s) draw-sheets under subheading 6307.90.95 of the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS). We reverse the Trade Court’s classification of Medline’s drawsheets under HTSUS 6307.90.95 and hold that the drawsheets are properly classifiable under HTSUS 6302.31.20 as “bed linens.”
Background
Medline imports “drawsheets,” rectangular pieces of fabric ranging from 45" x 72" to 54" x 90" which are hemmed on two or four sides and have no handles or attachments. Drawsheets are used primarily by hospitals and other health care providers to lift, roll, or slide incapacitated patients and to protect undersheets and mattresses from soiling.
The U.S. Customs Service (Customs) classified Medline’s drawsheets under HTSUS 6304.92.00 as “other furnishing articles,” dutiable at a rate of 7.2% ad valorem and subject to textile quota restraints under textile quota category 369. Medline appealed this classification to the Court of International Trade, alleging that the proper classification of the drawsheets was under HTSUS 6307.90.95 as “other made up articles,” dutiable at the rate of 7.0% ad valorem and not subject to any textile quota restraints. The United States contended that the drawsheets were most properly classified under subheading 6302.31.20 of HTSUS as “bed linens,” dutiable at the rate of 7.6% ad valorem and subject to textile quota restraints under textile quota category 362. The Trade Court held that, although a drawsheet is literally a sheet used on a bed, it is a special type of sheet such that it is outside the scope of what is commonly understood to be bed linen, and thus is not properly classified under HTSUS 6302.31.20. The Court further held that Customs had erred in classifying the drawsheets under HTSUS 6304.92.00, and that the draw-sheets were properly classified under *1409 HTSUS 6307.90.95, the so-called basket provision, for “other made up articles.” The United States now appeals from the judgment of the Court of International Trade. We have jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. § 1295(a)(5) (1988).
Standard of Review
The Federal Circuit reviews questions of fact under a clearly erroneous standard; questions of law are subject to full and independent review (sometimes referred to as
“de novo
” or “plenary” review).
Newell Cos. v. Kenney Mfg. Co.,
Classification under HTSUS 6302
The Court of International Trade concluded that “drawsheets are outside of the defined scope of the term ‘bed linen’ ” because “the term ‘bed linen’ is broadly defined to include those items found on
all
beds; but it is undisputed that drawsheets are utilized only by the health care industry, and even then, only for certain patients whose condition directs their use.” The Trade Court’s conclusion on this point — that Medline’s drawsheets are not bed linen — was based on its conclusion that the term “bed linen” is limited to those items found on
all
beds. That “determination of the breadth of meaning [of a tariff term] is a conclusion of law and thus is not entitled to the deference” given to a question of fact.
Daiv Indus., Inc. v. United States,
The Court of International Trade inserted limitations into HTSUS 6302 which are not supported by the language of that classification. HTSUS 6302 covers “[b]ed linen, table linen, toilet linen and kitchen linen.” The Trade Court limited the “bed linen” term of HTSUS 6302 to the court’s narrowly defined “items found on all beds.” No such limitation exists in HTSUS 6302, which covers all types of “bed linen,” not merely those linens “found on all beds.”
Tariff terms are construed in accordance with their common and popular meaning, and in construing such terms the court may rely upon its own understanding, dictionaries and other reliable sources.
Marubeni Am. Corp. v. United States,
Neither the statute nor the sources cited above limit the definition of “bed linens” to only “those items found on all beds.” The definition of bed linens includes at least linen, cotton or other fabric articles for a bed. This definition is broad enough to encompass Medline’s drawsheets. 1 The Court of Inter *1410 national Trade erred as a matter of law in limiting the scope of the tariff term “bed linens” to include only those items found on all beds.
Conclusion
The Court of International Trade erred in limiting the scope of the term “bed linen” in Heading 6302 of HTSUS to include only those items found on all beds. The correct definition of bed linens includes linen, cotton or other fabric articles for a bed. Because this definition is broad enough to encompass Medline’s drawsheets, the drawsheets qualify for classification under subheading 6302.31.20. The decision of the Court of International Trade is thus
REVERSED.
Notes
. Because Heading 6302 of HTSUS provides the most specific provision for the imported draw-sheets and therefore prevails over Heading 6304 and Heading 6307 of HTSUS, we do not address whether the drawsheets could be properly classified under either of these provisions. In addition, the Explanatory Notes to Heading 6304 provide that Heading 6304 covers furnishing articles “other than those of the preceding headings.” Because we find that the imported drawsheets are properly classifiable under Heading 6302, they are excluded from classification under 6304.