DHS Working on Time Release Study to Set Baseline for ITDS

The Department of Homeland Security is working on a "Time Release Study" meant to "assess baseline metrics" for its work on an International Trade Data System, said DHS Under Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas in a letter to U.S. Chamber of Commerce CEO Thomas Donohue (here). Mayorkas, who is the chair of the Border Interagency Executive Committee, wrote to Donohue in response to an industry letter that asked that ITDS is kept as a priority at DHS (see 1501210011). The group of trade associations in January urged the agency to work aggressively to meet the 2016 completion deadline created by a 2014 executive order (see 14021928).

The agency expects to finish the study in July, said Mayorkas. Such studies use World Customs Organization guidelines as a "standard method" to assess import and export processing times, he said. The BIEC is also now working to implement new messaging capabilities "from the government to filers regarding the status of a shipment" and improved agency coordination of risk-management, said Mayorkas in the letter.

The next "critical" step will be the pilot tests within other agencies, he said. The testing of system capabilities within "real-work environments" will require "active engagement with private sector stakeholders," said Mayorkas. "Pilot activities must begin soon and will be crucial to identify and address any technical or operational glitches prior to the required transition to the new system for electronic filings in November 2015," he said. "DHS is working aggressively to finalize all preparatory work for these pilot activities, to include detailing each agencies' technical needs and operational requirements, posting filing instructions for importers and exporters, and developing operational 'business rules' to guide distribution and processing of data."

Mayorkas also promised that ITDS would remain among the agency's top efforts. "Let me assure you that achieving on-time delivery of the ITDS by the December 2016 deadline remains a top DHS priority," he said. "Today, over half of ITDS technical capabilities have been successfully deployed and U.S. Customs and Border Protection is on track to complete the remaining core components by July 1, 2015." DHS laid out a series of broad goals for ITDS late last year (see 1412190021).