In September 2007, the European Commission submitted a proposal to amend European Council Directive 80/181/EEC to, among other things, no longer require metric-only labeling by 2009 (as the current Directive requires) and to indefinitely allow the use of supplementary (non-metric) indications. (EC proposal (2007/0187 (COD), dated 09/10/07) available at http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/site/en/com/2007/com2007_0510en01.pdf)
According to The Journal of Commerce, a Teamster official warned that a flourishing industry in fake credentials threatens to compromise TWIC, and noted that fake commercial drivers licenses with Hazmat endorsements was already a problem. (JoC dated 11/05/07, www.joc.com )
The Journal of Commerce reports that the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach Clean Truck Plans did not contain the Teamster-backed plan to use employee drivers instead of independent truck contractors, nor the proposals for truck-operating concessions or a dirty-truck fee, apparently due to the threat of legal action and disapproval from Washington. (JoC 11/05/07, www.joc.com )
The Canada Border Services Agency has issued a press release announcing that on December 1, 2007, the government of Canada will reduce the application fees (currently $80) for the NEXUS and Free and Secure Trade (FAST) programs to $50, which will coincide with current U.S. application fees. (CBSA press release, dated 10/24/07, available at http://www.cbsa.gc.ca/media/release-communique/2007/1024ottawa-eng.html)
U.S. Customs and Border Protection has posted to its Web site a notice providing details on the enhancements to the Automated Commercial Environment account type for importers that were implemented with the deployment Entry Summary, Accounts, and Revenue (ESAR) A1.
American Shipper reports that U.S. Customs and Border Protection Deputy Commissioner Jayson Ahern recently stated that the mandatory use of container security devices on all ocean containers entering the U.S. is unlikely due to difficulty finding a reliable CSD; however, CSDs could be useful in limited applications. (AS, dated 10/31/07, www.americanshipper.com)
U.S. Customs and Border Protection has posted to its Web site a notice providing details on the enhancements to the Automated Commercial Environment account type for brokers that were implemented with the deployment Entry Summary, Accounts, and Revenue (ESAR) A1.
Yahoo! News reports that the White House has threatened to veto a bill to expand federal assistance for retraining workers who have lost their jobs because of trade. In response, Democrats warned that the White House's hopes of winning Congressional approval of trade agreements with Peru, Panama, Colombia, and South Korea were at risk. (Yahoo! News, dated 10/30/07, available at http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20071030/pl_nm/bush_congress_trade_dc_4)
Reuters reports that Canadian officials have stated that Canada is entering a difficult final phase of free-trade negotiations with South Korea and will need to secure a deal in order to compete with the U.S. in Asia. The article further quotes a Canadian official as stating that unless there are some breakthroughs in the negotiations, the free trade agreement may not be signed by the end of 2007. (Reuters, dated 10/23/07, available at http://ca.today.reuters.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=domesticnews&storyID=2007-10-23T214619Z_01_N23331612_RTRIDST_0_CANADA-TRADE-KOREA-COL.XML.)
The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service has issued a notice reminding the public of the fiscal year 2008 (October 1, 2007 - September 30, 2008) user fees for agricultural quarantine and inspection (AQI) services provided in connection with certain commercial vessels, commercial trucks, commercial railroad cars, commercial aircraft, and international airline passengers arriving at ports in the customs territory of the U.S.