Suspending Unused IOR Numbers, New Bonding Schemes Among Potential Options for AD/CVD Executive Order
SCOTTSDALE, Arizona -- CBP is looking at a wide range of options for meeting the goals of the March executive order (see 1704030033) meant to resolve issues of unpaid antidumping and countervailing duties, said Troy Riley, executive director-Commercial Targeting and Enforcement in the CBP Office of Trade. Riley, who is leading implementation of the executive order, discussed several things being considered, including suspending importer of record numbers that haven't been used in years and new bonding schemes, during a panel on May 24 at the West Coast Trade Symposium. Brenda Smith, executive assistant commissioner for the CBP Office of Trade, alluded to the likelihood of additional orders along the same lines. "My guess is we have not seen the end of" trade-focused executive orders, said Smith, who moderated the panel.
Implementation of the executive order is a "group effort" and CBP is engaging sureties and other members of the trade to consider "how to focus this effort," Riley said. "One of the things the team looked at right away is 'Well, they're talking about bonding, should we just create a new bonding scheme across the board?'," he said. "And that is an approach ... it may not be the right approach," he said. That's because only a "small subset" of importers brings in goods subject to AD/CV duties, he said. Instead, CBP is considering the use of "qualitative risk assessment" for new bonding schemes, he said. The agency will develop plans by June 29 on how best to handle importers deemed an AD/CV duty payment risk (see 1704030033).
CBP is also "looking at suspending some of the importer of record numbers we have in our system today that have no activity whatsoever," Riley said. There are "millions" of such numbers with no activity for years, he said. That would help with the agency's data analysis abilities, he said. CBP may also update the "time frames for sending out the billing information," making use of automation and ACE to move away from paper, he said.
On the intellectual property rights enforcement component of the executive order, the agency is "looking at different alternatives to seizure," including denial of entry or destruction that doesn't always require a seizure, Riley said. The agency would like to get away from the seizure process in some cases because it requires the same amount of work whether it's a $5 item or a $5,000 item, he said. CBP is also working with the Justice Department to provide more expertise on trade violations, he said. Both the trade executive order and the Trade Facilitation and Trade Enforcement Act likely will result in increased focus "on certain areas, as opposed to feeling the catch of that wide net," Riley said.
There's still a lot of opportunity internationally with mutual recognition arrangements (MRAs) that allow for other countries to consider participation in other countries' trusted trader programs, said John Leonard, executive director-Trade and Policy and Planning in the CBP Office of Trade. Leonard, who recently returned to headquarters from Singapore, where he was an attache for CBP, said movement away from manufacturer identifiers and toward a unique identifier would make it easier to reach MRAs. More international information sharing agreements, called Customs Mutual Assistance Agreements, also offers potential improvements to customs enforcement.
A lack of data within Section 321 low value shipment entries provided specifically for partner government agencies (PGAs) is the main question that remains, Leonard said. "We're going to have to make them feel comfortable for that," he said. A CBP interim final rule last year increased the de minimis value threshold to $800 and asked for comment on several other issues, including PGA involvement (see 1608250029). "We're going to look toward the trade to help us with this, to regulate this, to get more information on it," he said. "We've got a few good ideas I think we're starting to look at. Ways to get some basic, minimal information without putting a huge burden on the trade," he said.