CBP issued the following releases on commercial trade and related matters:
The U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia on Sept. 30 vacated a decision from USDA's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service to "switch to a new system for mitigating the risk of a pest outbreak caused by imported Chilean table grapes." Judge Amir Ali held that the action was arbitrary and capricious under the Administrative Procedure Act (California Table Grape Commission v. U.S. Dep't of Ag., D.D.C. # 24-02645).
CBP expects to continue to implement new Section 232 tariffs should the government shutdown persist past the effective date of any new tariffs, officials said on an Oct. 1 call with the trade to discuss the government shutdown. CBP also plans to implement expected tariffs, such as the ones for lumber and furniture that take effect Oct. 14, without delays.
As the trade braces for a possible government shutdown amid the budget impasse in Congress, federal agencies are dusting off their contingency plans while the trade association representing customs brokers continues to offer suggestions about which activities are deemed essential for trade compliance.
USDA's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service is notifying the Office of Management and Budget that it's planning to continue to collect information and data related to the potential introduction or spread of diseases resulting from the importation of small and exotic ruminants, it said in a Federal Register notice this week.
The USDA's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service will stop accepting paper submissions of the Plant Protection and Quarantine (PPQ) 505 or 505B form as of Jan. 1, 2026, APHIS said in an emailed alert. Filers will need to submit their declarations using CBP's ACE or the USDA-APHIS Lacey Act Web Governance System (LAWGS). Those who submit a paper declaration after Jan. 1 will be violating the Lacey Act, APHIS said.
CBP created Harmonized System Update 2528 on July 25, containing 10 Automated Broker Interface records and two Harmonized Tariff Schedule records. In support of the PGA Message Set, the USDA APHIS tariff flag AQ1 has been removed from HTS 2827.39.90.10 and 2827.39.90.50.
Fruit imported from New Zealand no longer needs documentation declaring that the fruit is free of the light brown apple moth (LBAM), the USDA's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service said in a Federal Register notice. This deregulation action is effective July 25.
The USDA's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service is asking the Office of Management and Budget to allow the agency to continue information collection on imports of poultry meat and poultry products from the Mexican states of Sinaloa and Sonora, saying that these two states pose negligible risk of introducing Newcastle disease, it said in a Federal Register notice.
USDA's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service is seeking public comments on an information collection related to plant pest and noxious weeds regulations. APHIS collects information so that the agency can evaluate the risks associated with the importation or interstate movement of plant pests, noxious weeds, and soil, under the Plant Protection Act. The information collection also can assist with developing risk mitigations, if necessary, for the importation or interstate movement of plant pests, noxious weeds and soil, APHIS said. Comments are due by Sept. 22.