COAC Working Group to Look at Remote and Autonomous Cargo Processing
A new working group within the Commercial Customs Operations Advisory Committee (COAC) is reviewing the risks and benefits around remote and autonomous cargo processing, according to a CBP issue paper released ahead of the Dec. 4 COAC meeting. “Drones, driverless vehicles, captainless ships -- autonomous delivery is already operating within borders to deliver goods to customers,” it said in the paper. The government should examine the risks and opportunities created by the technologies, CBP said. “As CBP embarks on autonomous processes and conditions, it needs to realize impacts and benefits to industry.”
The Remote and Autonomous Cargo Processing Working Group will put together examples of autonomous conveyance in each environment, provide cost and benefit analyses for industry and government and “identify the tipping point at which this technology will be widely adopted,” it said. The group will also consider which CBP processes would need to be modernized and “identify individual approaches that need to evolve as the trade moves to autonomous conveyance and CBP moves toward automated cargo ports of entry.”
The COAC One U.S. government (1USG) Working Group posted some draft recommendations for CBP's plans to replace the manufacturer/shipper identification code (MID) with a Global Business Identifier (see 1808150076). The working group divided the recommendations between “Short term recommendation (for Evaluative Proof of Concept)” and longer term suggestions for after the EPoC. CBP has said it plans to test the GBI program in fiscal year 2019 but hasn't provided further specifics (see 1808150076).
Among the early recommendations are that CBP “broaden the scope of the EPoC to include Mexico” and that participants not be penalized for late filings of incomplete data. Also, that “the currently proposed two phased launch of EPoC be combined into a single phase with cargo release and entry filing under the EPoC to launch concurrently as this would enable transaction processing to occur in one or two steps as needed within the EPoC,” it said. After the test, CBP should look at aligning the GBI “in an international context” and “explore the effective use of GBI related to screening entities of concern (e.g. Restricted Party Screening, Import Alerts etc.),” the group said. It also “recommends that CBP, in light of proprietary concerns, evaluate the degree of information access afforded to private-sector parties other than the importer of record.”
CBP also said work is continuing toward a Unified Entry Process, which is a result of the 21st Century Customs Framework discussion. The unified process “will enhance facilitation and security by ensuring collection of the best and most reliable data, enabling risk management and cargo release decisions further in advance of cargo arrival, harmonizing procedures to enhance predictability and reduce friction for Trade and government stakeholders, and leveraging automation to scale critical operations.”
CBP posted the following documents for the Dec. 4 COAC meeting in Washington:
Intelligent Enforcement
- Intelligent Enforcement Subcommittee Trade Executive Summary (here)
- AD/CVD Issue Paper (here)
- Intellectual Property Rights Issue Paper (here)
- Risk-Based Bonding Issue Paper (here)
Next Generation Facilitation
- Next Generation Facilitation Subcommittee Trade Executive Summary (here)
- 1USG (U.S. Government) Government Issue Paper (here)
- 1USG DRAFT Recommendations (here)
- Emerging Technologies Government Issue Paper (here)
- Entry Type 86 Government Issue Paper (here)
- Unified Entry Process Government Issue Paper (here)
Secure Trade Lanes
- Secure Trade Lanes Subcommittee Executive Summary (here)
- Export Modernization Issue Paper (here)
- Export Modernization DRAFT Recommendations (here)
- In-Bond Issue Paper (here)
- Remote and Autonomous Cargo Processing Government Issue Paper (here)
- Trusted Trader Issue Paper (here)
Rapid Response