The Canadian Food Inspection Agency will soon begin to add the first commodity group of a phased-in approach for implementing organic import requirements in the Automated Import Reference System, the CFIA said in a May 7 email. "To implement the import requirements into AIRS, CFIA will use a phased-in approach which will involve creating new commodity identifiers (OGD extension codes) for organic products by commodity type," it said. "The fresh fruits and vegetables will be the first commodity group to be implemented on May 29th, 2019. The list of the new OGD extensions will be made available prior to the AIRS publication."

The National Marine Manufacturers Association celebrated Canada's full removal of tariffs on multiple types of boats from the U.S., in a May 6 news release. The Department of Finance Canada recently announced the change, which is expected to run in Canada Gazette on May 15, the NMMA said. Effective April 30, Canada's 10 percent retaliatory tariffs won't apply to the following items:

India’s Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs is looking into the “quality and cost of services” in the country’s customs, such as shipping lines and customs brokers, and is planning to abandon “physical supervision” in bonded warehouses, according to a May 7 report from the India Brand Equity Foundation. The announcement is part of a larger examination by the CBIC into “issues” faced by its exporters in an attempt to improve “trade facilitation.”

Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross, speaking May 7 in New Delhi, chided India for its high tariffs and non-tariff barriers, blaming them for the trade deficit with the U.S. He did not acknowledge the termination of the Generalized System of Preferences benefits for India. Although the administration warned India could be terminated from the GSP program as of May 4, so far, that has not happened. However, Ross did tell a local TV station, according to Reuters, that retaliation for the end of GSP would be inappropriate.

The Department of Justice issued an updated guidance for corporate compliance programs, describing how “well-designed” programs should work and detailing what Justice expects from those programs, the department said in an April 30 press release. The 19-page guide aims to “harmonize” compliance guidance with standards from other departments, DOJ said, while “providing additional context to the multifactor analysis of a company’s compliance program.”

The National Association of Manufacturers urged the Senate to confirm three nominees to the board of directors for the Export-Import Bank of the United States, saying it would restore a “hobbled” entity. NAM endorsed Kimberly Reed for president and chair and Spencer Bachus III and Judith DelZoppo Pryor to serve on the board of directors, it said in a May 6 letter to the Senate. The nominees would give the bank enough directors for a quorum to approve transactions of more than $10 million. The association said the lack of required directors has left the bank unable to “to implement the reforms still outstanding from the 2015 Ex-Im Bank reauthorization.” That has hurt U.S. manufacturers, who have lost about “$119 billion in output as a result.” Calling the nominees “highly qualified,” the letter says their confirmations will help the bank “end America’s unilateral economic disarmament, support America’s manufacturing workers and help the United States compete more effectively with China, Russia and others.” The letter came three days after the Senate voted to end the debate on the nominees (see 1905030027).

The Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control left out several key components of an effective compliance program in its recent sanctions compliance guide, according to a May 6 report from law firm Paul Hastings. The report said the guide should have included descriptions and instructions for “a confidential reporting process,” an "investigations process,” “disciplinary measures for employees which fail to follow the program” and “an emphasis” on mid-level employees stressing the importance of compliance instead of just senior management. The report said these components “appear in guidance documents in other areas” and "it is not clear why OFAC chose to omit these nuances … but no doubt practitioners will seek further clarification from OFAC in the weeks and months to come.” The guide, published May 6, represented an escalating step in OFAC’s effort to disseminate information about effective compliance programs, potentially allowing the agency to more successfully prosecute compliance cases (see 1905030055). The guide provides details of compliance programs that are “now all but mandatory in OFAC’s opinion,” the report said.

The Directorate of Defense Trade Controls' Defense Export Control and Compliance System (DECCS) Commodity Jurisdiction application is live, the State Department said in a May 6 notice. The new system allows users to save commodity jurisdiction applications as drafts and return to them later. Users can also now download a PDF version of the submitted form for record keeping, State said. Commodity jurisdiction determinations allow users to determine whether a product or service is covered by the U.S. Munitions List and subject to International Traffic in Arms Regulations export controls, State said. All “DTrade Super Users with valid email addresses” were automatically enrolled in DECCS, the notice said.

Export Compliance Daily is providing readers with some of the top stories for April 29 -May 3 in case they were missed.

The recent Global Conference on the future of the Harmonized System for tariffs and trade held by the World Customs Organization resulted in some broad policy recommendations, the WCO said in a news release. Those recommendations will now be sent to the WCO Policy Commission for consideration. The event, which took place May 2-3 at the WCO, included "over 300 participants from Member Customs administrations, partner international organizations, industry associations, trade professionals, import/export companies and academia," it said.