Presstelegram.com reports that a new study shows that the twin ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles would only lose about 1.2% of their annual container throughput if authorities in San Pedro Bay implement their proposed clean-truck program, which would restrict marine terminal access to trucking companies with the cleanest trucks operated by employee drivers, and is awaiting ratification by both port commissions. (Presstelegram.com, dated 09/18/07, available at http://www.presstelegram.com/search/ci_6922630?IADID)
American Shipper reports that proposed food safety legislation by U.S. Senators Harkin and Kohl would give the Food and Drug Administration the authority to make its current voluntary guidelines mandatory. The bill would also require stepped-up inspections of produce operations as well as the establishment of national standards tailored to specific commodities and risk factors. (American Shipper, dated 09/24/07, www.americanshipper.com)
The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service has issued a final rule, effective November 19, 2007, that will amend 9 CFR Parts 93-96 to establish conditions for the importation of live bovines and certain bovine products from regions that present a minimal risk of introducing bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE, aka mad cow disease). Currently only Canada qualifies.
The Journal of Commerce reports that U.S. Customs and Border Protection intends to release the 102 (Security Filing (SF)) draft plan in about one month and will then have a 60 to 90 day public comment period before publishing the final regulation; there will probably be a one-year phase-in period before full enforcement takes place. (JoC, dated 09/19/07, www.joc.com)
U.S. Customs and Border Protection has issued its weekly tariff rate quota and tariff preference level commodity report as of September 17, 2007. This report includes TRQs on various products such as beef, sugar, dairy products, peanuts, cotton, cocoa products, tobacco, certain BFTA, DR-CAFTA, Israel FTA, JFTA, MFTA, SFTA, UAFTA (AFTA) and UCFTA (Chile FTA) non-textile TRQs, etc. Each report also includes the AGOA, ATPDEA, BFTA, DR-CAFTA, CBTPA, Haitian HOPE, MFTA, NAFTA, SFTA, and UCFTA TPLs and TRQs for qualifying apparel and/or other textile articles, the TRQs on worsted wool fabrics, etc. (CBP's weekly TRQ/TPL commodity report, dated 09/17/07, available at http://www.cbp.gov/xp/cgov/import/textiles_and_quotas/commodity/)
The Fish and Wildlife Service has issued a final rule, effective September 24, 2007, revising and updating its regulations in 50 CFR Parts 10, 13, 17, and 23 that implement the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). According to a FWS news release, the final rule represents the first major update and compilation of regulations implementing CITES since 1977.
The International Herald Tribune reports that the U.S.-Colombia free trade agreement signed 18 months ago may have difficulty passing a hostile U.S. Congress. Critics of the FTA argue that Colombia does not merit a trade deal because of murders of Colombian labor leaders, among other things. (IHT, dated 09/10/07, available at http://www.iht.com/articles/2007/09/09/bloomberg/bxtrade.php)
U.S. Customs and Border Protection's Cleveland Area Port has issued a Pipeline announcing the reorganization of the Cleveland Service Port's Import Specialist Branch, which was to take place on September 5, 2007 and result in commodity team number changes, phone number changes, and personnel changes on each commodity team. Cleveland later issued an amendment to its Pipeline to provide the correct new team numbers. (Pipelines 07-97 and 07-97A, dated August 30 & 31, 2007, available via email by sending a request to documents@brokerpower.com )
According to The Times of India, Japan and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) are nearing completion of a free trade agreement which could be signed during a summit later this year. Under the FTA, Japan would abolish tariffs on 90% of its imports from ASEAN countries with the list of items with no tariffs to be expanded every five years. (Times of India, dated 08/25/07, available at http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Top_Headlines/ASEAN_and_Japan_near_agreement_on_free_trade/articleshow/2309646.cms)
U.S. Customs and Border Protection has posted to its Web site a frequently asked question document regarding Automated Commercial Environment Entry Summary, Accounts, and Revenue (ESAR) A1.