U.S. Customs and Border Protection is allowing an additional 30 days, until March 8, 2012, to comment on eight existing carrier cargo information collections, including the Importer Security Filing. CBP is proposing to extend the expiration date of these information collections with no changes to the information collected on the forms or regulations. However, CBP has revised its estimates of the burden hours and response times based on analysis of recent data.
Automated Commercial Environment (ACE)
The Automated Commercial Environment (ACE) is the CBP's electronic system through which the international trade community reports imports and exports to and from the U.S. and the government determines admissibility.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection has posted another updated version of its 2011 Automated Commercial Environment (ACE) Accomplishments Fact Sheet, which now lists a total of 42 accomplishments from January to December 2011. In October - December 2011, CBP implemented ACE e-Manifest: Rail and Sea (M1) training for more than 700 CBP officers at 13 ports; began both the trade and CBP pilots in support of M1; reported successful M1 manifest receipts by a sea and rail carrier, and 13 ports began to successfully accept and process M1 manifests; and completed a draft Cargo Release functional requirements document.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection has announced that the Advisory Committee on Commercial Operations of U.S. Customs and Border Protection (COAC) will meet on February 21, 2012 in Washington, D.C. Topics to be discussed at the meeting include Air Cargo Advance Screening, the one government at the border initiative, and IPR enforcement. There will be comment opportunities before and during the meeting. The registration deadline to attend or listen to the webcast of the meeting is February 17.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection has issued a CSMS Message announcing that a new Importer Security Filing (ISF) Report, the "Late ISF Importer Report (PDF)," is now available for importers and filers.1 Users will need to subscribe to this new report.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection has issued CSMS #12-000023 to provide information on the recently released Microsoft Internet Explorer version 8 security patch KB2585542, which is incompatible with the current Automated Commercial Environment (ACE) application and has resulted in slow Portal performance. CBP states it is investigating the conflict and hopes to resolve the issue as quickly as possible. CBP has provided an interim solution for trade consideration and determination, which involves the removal of the security patch. If this temporary solution is selected, CBP states users should work with their local IT resources to perform the removal. If users determine to effectuate the removal, CBP has provided the following steps:
U.S. Customs and Border Protection has posted two fact sheets on the benefits of its Automated Commercial Environment (ACE) for service providers and truck carriers, which include the following:
U.S. Customs and Border Protection states it is aware that ABI filers began having issues with release dates beginning with a code deployment on the evening of January 17, 2012, when the M1 team switched the manifest system of record from AMS to ACE. This change in the system of record resulted in some issues with cargo release dates, which are in the process of being fixed. CBP states its Field Offices will be notified not to issue liquidated damages created by these systems issues.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection has posted a January 2012 update on its progress with various Automated Commercial Environment (ACE) capabilities and other projects, such as Document Image System (DIS), PGA Message Set, e-Manifest: rail and Sea (M1), ACE Truck, Automated Export Processing etc. With this update, CBP states that in addition to allowing the trade to electronically transmit document images and associated data to CBP, the DIS will support processing single transaction bonds submitted by the trade. CBP also notes that as of January 2012, it deployed M1 at 17 ports (from 13 ports in December 2011).
U.S. Customs and Border Protection has posted presentation slides on its "Trade Transformation" initiatives for 21st century trade. Within the slides, CBP states that it seeks to improve cargo security while increasing trade competitiveness by fully aggregating risk management. According to CBP, it will accomplish this by leveraging end-to-end visibility of accounts that captures a holistic view of the global supply chain through the use of its "BEST" goals.
Trade and other sources state that U.S. Customs and Border Protection could maintain its momentum in the development of the Automated Commercial Environment, even without a Presidential appointee as Commissioner.