Monday Morning eBriefing

A group of 200 trade associations, maritime and logistics services companies, ILWU, and other interested parties, including NCBFAA, urged Mayors Karen Bass of Los Angeles and Rex Richardson of Long Beach, California, in a Sept. 17 letter to oppose the adoption of a Port Indirect Source Rule (ISR) by the South Coast Air Quality Management District.

The Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Los Angeles Field Office on Sept. 16 released a port procedure for the disposition of merchandise refused by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) at the Harry Reid International Airport.

The freight forwarding and customs broker industry has been patiently waiting for language that can be shared to help clarify Established Business Relationships (EBRs). Governments are currently asking airlines to attest to their business relationships with forwarders, shippers, and other airfreight supply chain partners.

A summary of the latest customs and cross-border trade regulatory updates brought to you by our NCBFAA Customs Counsel firm Sandler, Travis & Rosenberg.

According to Customs and Border Protection (CBP), several carriers are arriving at the Port of Laredo’s World Trade Bridge and Colombia Solidarity Bridge without the mandated QR Code which impacts crossing/wait times.

The USDA National Organics Program will begin hard enforcement of the Organics regulation on Sept. 19. Entries for organic products submitted on that date must have an Organic Import Certificate issued by a USDA-accredited certifier and both the importer and exporter must be certified.

The Biden-Harris Administration on Friday, Sept. 13, announced that it’s taking new actions to address what it says is a “significant increased abuse of the de minimis exemption, in particular China-founded e-commerce platforms" and will implement new rules to more effectively "target and block" illicit shipments.

Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has developed a non-exhaustive list of unacceptable vs. acceptable cargo descriptions.

Although the Gemini Cooperation Agreement took effect Sept. 9, Federal Maritime Commission (FMC) Chairman Daniel Maffei expressed “questions and concerns” whether the agreement could still result in “anti-competitive consequences” that violate the Shipping Act.

Customs and Border Protection (CBP) notified the trade that all repackaged medications sold to retail customers will be required to be marked with the country of origin.

A Sept. 12 press release issued by Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) announced a final rule to incorporate various voluntary self-disclosure (VSD) and penalty guidelines policy changes made over the past few years into their Export Administration Regulations (EAR) and the appointment of the agency’s first-ever Chief of Corporate Enforcement.

Customs and Border Protection (CBP) notified the trade that the Upland cotton fee does not apply to de minimis shipments.

The Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) on Sept. 13 announced final modifications concerning the statutory review of the tariff actions in the Section 301 investigation of the People’s Republic of China’s (PRC) Acts, Policies, and Practices Related to Technology Transfer, Intellectual Property, and Innovation.

A group of 45 industry organizations, including NCBFAA, urge Congress to prioritize funding to the Department of Transportation’s Emergency Relief Program (ERP) to facilitate the replacement of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore and other critical national assets impacted by unforeseen disasters.

A summary of the latest legislative and regulatory transport, logistics and trade sector updates brought to you by our NCBFAA Transportation Counsel firm Venable.

The new emergency measures come in the wake of reports of two packages containing incendiaries having caught on fire within European parcel networks.

The Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) released an interim final rule on Sept. 13 extending the record keeping requirements to 10 years to be consistent with the statue of limitations.

The NCBFAA Government Affairs Conference (GAC) on Sept. 22-24 is an opportunity for you to join your colleagues in Washington, D.C., to meet with U.S. lawmakers and their staff to collectively voice legislative positions that better our customs brokerage and freight forwarding industry.

On behalf of NCBFAA's Board of Directors, Leadership and Staff, we want to take a moment to acknowledge and welcome Focus Business Solutions, iClear CHB, Intertrans Forwarding Services, LSP Cargo, and Trade Force Multiplier which have recently joined our association.

The Census Bureau announced a new response message in the Automated Export System (AES) which will be available in CERT testing environment on Sept. 16 and in Production on Sept. 30.