On December 14, Rep. Peter King (R-NY) and Rep. Greg Meeks (D-NY) introduced the Customs Business Fairness Act (HR 4657) to provide relief to customs brokers for duties paid on behalf of importers who declare bankruptcy. Congressman King described the bill as "an effort to eliminate an unfair financial burden borne by customs brokers."

A second request to confirm the accuracy of the corporate information in the NCBFAA databases was sent to those designated as the primary contact to represent their company for the NCBFAA. For those who had responded to the original request, thank you; all others are encouraged to please take a few minutes to use the access credentials included in that email communication to review, and if necessary to update, your company's information. Even if you already responded, you may want to confirm that your updated information is correct.

With year-end fast approaching and the holidays here, what better gift to share with someone (or yourself) than registering for the 2018 NCBFAA Annual Conference in beautiful Rancho Mirage, CA!

With 2017 rapidly coming to a close, we are looking at supporting our members through the turn-over into the new year. At the writing of this article, it does not appear that GSP will be renewed. NCBFAA has previously published instructions on setting the GSP preferences to have the date of presentation be the date of entry. We encourage you to work with your clients to maximize the savings under this program by timing your entries appropriately.

As we have reported previously, the NCBFAA is a member of the Coalition for Fair Port Practices and submitted a petition with the FMC asking if the agency would issue an interpretive rule relating to the imposition of demurrage and detention practices. More specifically, the petition, which is docketed as petition number P4-16, asked the commission to require the carriers to extend free time in those situations when NVOCCs and VCOs are unable to pick up containers from the port due to unusual weather, port congestion, labor unrest or other issues beyond their control. That petition has of course been strenuously opposed by carrier and port interests

Harmonized System Update (HSU) 1708 was created on December 20, 2017 and contains 33,859 ABI records and 6,591 harmonized tariff records.

With 2017 rapidly coming to a close, we are looking at supporting our members through the turn-over into the new year. At the writing of this article, it does not appear that GSP will be renewed. NCBFAA has previously published instructions on setting the GSP preferences to have the date of presentation be the date of entry. We encourage you to work with your clients to maximize the savings under this program by timing your entries appropriately.

The National Ocean and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) will soon begin implementing a far-reaching traceability program for imports of 11 species of seafood and products containing the seafood. Beginning January 1, new data elements must be submitted through ACE.

The U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO - www.gao.gov) is composing a report on Great Lakes-St. Lawrence Seaway (GLSLS) shipping for the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works and the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure. The GAO is an independent, nonpartisan agency that investigates how the federal government spends taxpayer dollars on behalf of Congress.

Last week, NCBFAA Executive Vice President Megan Montgomery was focused on diving into NCBFAA's relationship with CBP from the daily ACE status calls to continued discussions on the NCBFAA priorities. There was robust dialogue to follow up the well-attended East Coast Trade Symposium. She had the opportunity to spend time with American Shipper, working on our partnership for the upcoming year. She supported the ongoing NCBFAA Board's strategic planning initiative, to be fully unveiled at the 2018 Annual Meeting as the path forward for the Association for the next five years. Last week was also the week for the monthly "usual suspects" gathering at a fellow trade association office, where Executives of trade associations, who really understand the technical aspects of customs and trade, meet once a month to share information and strategy to help better serve our members by working together. Finally, amidst a desk full of general Trade Symposium follow-up, she dedicated time to the upcoming Annual Conference. With 2018 just around the corner, the Annual Conference will be here in the blink of an eye.

Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has provided guidance for the additional duties on U.S. imports of Brazilian products that are subject to the July 30 Executive Order (EO), “Addressing Threats to the United States by the Government of Brazil,” and will become effective at 12:01 a.m. ET on Aug. 6.

The NCBFAA Customs Committee and Counsel of Sandler, Travis & Rosenberg, P.A., are reviewing the details of the numerous reciprocal tariffs that took effect Aug. 1, the new 35% Canadian product tariff, the Section 232 import duties on copper and copper derivative products, and the end to de minimis for commercial shipments effective on Aug. 29. The Committee will report any ongoing Customs and Border Protection (CBP) guidance related to these White House actions to our customs broker members as soon as it’s released by the agency.

Recognizing the rapid and unexpected increase in duties, customs brokers and warehouse proprietors increasingly are encountering situations of unclaimed, rejected, and abandoned cargo. In response, the NCBFAA Customs Committee, Transportation Committee, Committee Counsel, and Leadership have collaboratively developed a guidance document to assist NCBFAA Regular Members to address the recurring questions regarding this cargo and to clarify the rights of the transacting parties, as well as service providers.

The Vanguard Pest Control treatment provider informed the USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) that it will discontinue phytosanitary fumigations and close its treatment facility at the Newark, New Jersey, location at the end of July. APHIS provided guidance to the trade.

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

Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has provided guidance for the additional duties on U.S. imports of Brazilian products that are subject to the July 30 Executive Order (EO), “Addressing Threats to the United States by the Government of Brazil,” and will become effective at 12:01 a.m. ET on Aug. 6.

The NCBFAA Customs Committee and Counsel of Sandler, Travis & Rosenberg, P.A., are reviewing the details of the numerous reciprocal tariffs that took effect Aug. 1, the new 35% Canadian product tariff, the Section 232 import duties on copper and copper derivative products, and the end to de minimis for commercial shipments effective on Aug. 29. The Committee will report any ongoing Customs and Border Protection (CBP) guidance related to these White House actions to our customs broker members as soon as it’s released by the agency.

Recognizing the rapid and unexpected increase in duties, customs brokers and warehouse proprietors increasingly are encountering situations of unclaimed, rejected, and abandoned cargo. In response, the NCBFAA Customs Committee, Transportation Committee, Committee Counsel, and Leadership have collaboratively developed a guidance document to assist NCBFAA Regular Members to address the recurring questions regarding this cargo and to clarify the rights of the transacting parties, as well as service providers.

The Vanguard Pest Control treatment provider informed the USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) that it will discontinue phytosanitary fumigations and close its treatment facility at the Newark, New Jersey, location at the end of July. APHIS provided guidance to the trade.

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

Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has provided guidance for the additional duties on U.S. imports of Brazilian products that are subject to the July 30 Executive Order (EO), “Addressing Threats to the United States by the Government of Brazil,” and will become effective at 12:01 a.m. ET on Aug. 6.

The NCBFAA Customs Committee and Counsel of Sandler, Travis & Rosenberg, P.A., are reviewing the details of the numerous reciprocal tariffs that took effect Aug. 1, the new 35% Canadian product tariff, the Section 232 import duties on copper and copper derivative products, and the end to de minimis for commercial shipments effective on Aug. 29. The Committee will report any ongoing Customs and Border Protection (CBP) guidance related to these White House actions to our customs broker members as soon as it’s released by the agency.

Recognizing the rapid and unexpected increase in duties, customs brokers and warehouse proprietors increasingly are encountering situations of unclaimed, rejected, and abandoned cargo. In response, the NCBFAA Customs Committee, Transportation Committee, Committee Counsel, and Leadership have collaboratively developed a guidance document to assist NCBFAA Regular Members to address the recurring questions regarding this cargo and to clarify the rights of the transacting parties, as well as service providers.

The Vanguard Pest Control treatment provider informed the USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) that it will discontinue phytosanitary fumigations and close its treatment facility at the Newark, New Jersey, location at the end of July. APHIS provided guidance to the trade.

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