On March 4, 2004, the Senate passed its version of H.R. 1047, the "Miscellaneous Trade and Technical Corrections Act of 2003."
The Federal Maritime Commission (FMC) has clarified its orders in which it granted three Chinese carriers exemption from certain provisions of Section 9(c) of the Shipping Act of 1984 (46 USC app. 1708) (Controlled Carrier Act).
The Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) has issued a notice announcing the availability of, and requesting public comment by May 7, 2004 on, its preliminary regulatory impact analysis (PRIA) of three interim final rules and one notice issued by FSIS on January 12, 2004 regarding additional protection measures in response to the detection of a case of Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy (BSE, also known as mad cow disease) in the U.S.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) have clarified/re-issued an earlier administrative message regarding the full implementation of Automated Broker Interface (ABI) edits for FDA Prior Notice (PN) of imported food.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has issued a notice announcing that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has identified and corrected a system problem which caused erroneous transmission of the error message "Warning - PN Not Required" for transmissions which do require prior notice (PN). CBP states that any such messages transmitted on April 15, 2004 should be disregarded. According to CBP, no PN confirmation numbers will be issued for the lines affected by the message.
| The budget overview for the Department of Treasury | 04/20/04 | Subcommittee on Transportation, Treasury and General Government; Senate Committee on Appropriations |
| A ten year perspective and implications for the future regarding NAFTA | 04/20/04 | Subcommittee on International Economic Policy, Export and Trade Promotion; Senate Committee on Foreign Relations |
| U.S.-China relations and the status of reforms in China | 04/22/04 | Subcommittee on East Asian and Pacific Affairs; Senate Committee on Foreign Relations |
| The effectiveness of the federal government's current efforts to enforce existing intellectual property rights and how current U.S. intellectual property enforcement policies relates to the loss of manufacturing jobs | 04/20/04 | Subcommittee on Oversight of Government Management, the Federal Workforce, and the District of Columbia; Senate Committee on Governmental Affairs |
| The Taiwan Relations Act: The Next Twenty-Five Years | 04/21/04 | House Committee on International Relations |
| Standards, Sharing, Collaboration: Tools of Trade | 04/22/04 | Subcommittee on Terrorism and Homeland Security; House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence |
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has announced that the following vessel operating common carriers (VOCCs) have become Sea Automated Manifest System (AMS) operational:
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has issued a notice announcing that it will conduct a series of seminars in Asia on the implementation of the Public Health Security and Bioterrorism Preparedness and Response Act of 2002 (Bioterrorism Act).
According to a Washington File report, the Treasury Department has found that no major U.S. trading partner manipulated its currency in the last six months of 2003 to gain unfair competitive advantage or prevent balance of payment adjustments. Treasury's report also reiterated the U.S. position endorsed by major industrialized countries that a pegged exchange rate policy is not appropriate for a major economy such as China. (Washington File Pub 04/16/04, available at http://usinfo.state.gov/xarchives/display.html?p=washfile-english&y=2004&m=April&x=20040416122714SAikceinawz4.645938e-02&t=livefeeds/wf-latest.html)
On April 1, 2004, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) issued a first set of Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) and responses regarding the mandatory advance electronic information requirements for inbound air cargo.