Monday Morning eBriefing

Starting Jan. 1, USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) will no longer allow copies of phytosanitary certificates and forms for plant commodities to be submitted in the Document Imaging System (DIS). Only original phytosanitary certificates will be allowed.

2021 was undoubtedly another roller coaster year filled with challenges due to the ongoing global health crisis and supply chain upheaval. The end of the year, however, brings us hope for calm in both these areas.

In a letter to members of Congress, NCBFAA President Jan Fields raised serious association concerns with H.R. 3075, legislation to expand the Seafood Import Monitoring Program (SIMP).

Congress is expected to pass a three-month extension of several bankruptcy provisions that scheduled to sunset on Dec. 31. The provisions, which include the Customs Business Fairness Act (CBFA), were originally included in the December 2020 stimulus package.

The ports of Los Angeles and the Port of Long Beach continue to postpone their “Container Dwell Fee,” this time until Dec. 20. The fee was previously set to take effect on Monday, Dec. 13, after previous postponements.

FDA Messaging: The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced it will begin using the following electronic ACE messaging when a final admissibility decision is rescinded:

On behalf of NCBFAA's Board of Directors, Leadership and Staff, we want to take a moment to acknowledge and welcome the following member who has recently joined our association:

The Commerce Department’s Census Bureau proposes to add a conditional data element, country of origin, when “foreign” origin is selected in the Foreign/Domestic Origin Indicator field in the Automated Export System (AES).

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) on Dec. 13 hosted a virtual meeting with Headquarters’ Office of Strategy Policy Senior Counselor to the Undersecretary for Policy, Joel Meyer, to gather insights from trade to assist in the development of DHS’s 2022 Quadrennial Homeland Security Review and 2022-2026 Strategic Plan.

The NCBFAA Transportation Committee’s Logistics Subcommittee is regularly collecting data on the nation’s rail delays and port congestion that are impacting the supply chain and your business operations.

The Commerce Department’s International Trade Administration (ITA) seeks nominations for its Advisory Committee on Supply Chain Competitiveness. The committee advises the Commerce secretary on the elements of a comprehensive policy approach to supply chain competitiveness. The department intends for the committee to play a key role in developing recommendations to address current global supply chain challenges, including identifying key bottlenecks in supply chains and actionable solutions to address them, advising on the latest advances in supply chain management technology and how to apply them to the current challenges in the economy, and developing long term recommendations to make supply chains more resilient.

The U.S. Commercial Service (USCS) recommends customs brokers and freight forwarders join the agency’s Business Service Provider (BSP) program.

The Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) updated its guidance under the Craft Beverage Modernization and Tax Reform Act relating to:

So, your ocean carrier representative will not bother with your service complaint. What can you do about it then?

Here is a summary of the latest legislative and regulatory transport, logistics and trade sector updates brought to you by our NCBFAA Transportation Counsel firm Venable:

Be ready when the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Hydrofluorocarbon (HFC) takes effect on Jan. 1, requiring importers of bulk HFCs to have a “consumption” allowance.

Sen. Bill Cassidy’s office during a Dec. 3 telephone conference with trade representatives expressed appreciation for the trade facilitation aspects for consideration in the proposed Customs Modernization Act of 2021 (ModAct-21).

On Dec. 6, President Biden released the first-ever U.S. Strategy on Countering Corruption. The strategy outlines a “whole-of-government approach” to elevating the fight against corruption. It places particular emphasis on better understanding and responding to the threat’s transnational dimensions, including by taking additional steps to reduce the ability of corrupt actors to use the U.S. and international financial systems to hide assets and launder the proceeds of corrupt acts. You can read the strategy document here.

Customs and Border Protection (CBP) on Dec. 6 published an ACE Development and Deployment Schedule update to the agency’s website here. “This is a notional schedule and subject to change,” CBP said.

NCBFAA mourns the tragic deaths of Peter Almen, 64, of DSV and his wife Ella, 56, recently in Chicago.