CBP Commissioner Met with New Global Air Advisory Group
On December 1, 2011, U.S. Customs and Border Commissioner Alan Bersin met for the first time with the Global Air Cargo Advisory Group, a newly established organization comprised of four international air transport trade associations (including the International Federation of Freight Forwarders Associations), in order to discuss their most pressing concerns, including their interest in driving down costs and attaining group efficiencies.
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The group also is supporting the use of electronic data interchange with regards to not only advanced customs information, but also with import and export clearances, and wanted Commissioner Bersin to help it communicate to the World Customs Organization (WTO) the need, the desire, and certainly the benefits of these paperless initiatives. The trade group also is a proponent of industry-government collaboration, including providing advance data information on shipments for security purposes.
Bersin Updated Group on ACAS Pilot, Etc.
Bersin and his staff provided an update on the agency’s Air Cargo Advance Screening pilot program, known as ACAS. The program, a joint effort with the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), was launched in December 2010, in response to a foiled terrorist plot in which explosive devices were planted within cargo shipments on board aircraft bound for the U.S. They noted that the initial phase of the pilot has focused on the express consignment industry. The next phase will include passenger carriers and freight forwarders.
(See ITT's Online Archives 11110205 and 11101314 for summaries of CBP stating it would soon expand its ACAS pilot to more international sites and its plan to move ACAS from a pilot to regulations.)
Bersin suggested that the group learn more about CBP’s approach to trade. “Expediting lawful traffic is the primer of the security program. It enables us to focus on high-risk shipments,” he said. “This is a good thing to do for the private sector. It’s also absolutely essential for the security of our nation.”
(Also attending the meeting were officials from the American Petroleum Institute (API), which represents America’s oil and natural gas industry.
The International Federation of Freight Forwarders Associations (FIATA), the International Air Transport Association (IATA), The International Air Cargo Association (TIACA) and the Global Shippers’ Forum (GSF) now come under one roof due to the formation of the new Global Air Cargo Advisory Group (GACAG).)