The FDA announced May 31 that it will in about six months begin requiring accreditation under its Laboratory Accreditation for Analyses of Foods (LAAF) regulation for laboratories testing for mycotoxins to support admissibility or removal from an import alert (see 2112020017).
USDA's Commodity Credit Corporation announced May 30 that Special Import Quota #7 for upland cotton will be established June 6, allowing importation of 7,680,747 kilograms (35,277 bales) of upland cotton, the same as the previous quota period. The quota will apply to upland cotton purchased not later than Sept. 3, 2024, and entered into the U.S. by Dec. 2, 2024. The quota is equivalent to one week's consumption of cotton by domestic mills at the seasonally adjusted average rate for the January through March 2024 period, the most recent three months for which data is available.
The Foreign-Trade Zones Board issued the following notices on May 31:
The White House on May 31 extended a one-year exception for 25% tariffs on steel from Ukraine, one day before the waiver was set to expire (see 2205310061. This will be the third year Ukrainian steel has been allowed to avoid the tariffs.
Lars Winkelbauer, former executive at Polar Air Cargo Worldwide, was sentenced to four years in prison on May 30 for his role in a scheme to defraud his former employer out of more than $32 million, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York announced.
A listing of recent Commerce Department antidumping and countervailing duty messages posted on CBP's website May 30, along with the case number(s) and CBP message number, is provided below. The messages are available by searching for the listed CBP message number at CBP's ADCVD Search page.
CBP issued the following releases on commercial trade and related matters:
The Court of International Trade on May 31 said that a duty drawback claim becomes deemed liquidated after one year if the underlying import entries are also liquidated and final, with finality defined as the end of the 180-day window in which to file a protest with CBP.
CBP's Acting Commissioner Troy Miller said the agency "has suspended multiple customs brokers from participating in the Entry Type 86 Test after determining that their entries posed an unacceptable compliance risk," and that it will continue to take action against those who "abdicate their customs compliance responsibilities." The statement also said: “Any broker that has been suspended will be considered for reinstatement if it demonstrates to CBP that it has developed and implemented a remedial action plan."
Acting CBP Commissioner Troy Miller said CBP "has suspended multiple customs brokers from participating in the Entry Type 86 Test after determining that their entries posed an unacceptable compliance risk."