Commerce to Issue ANPRM on Removing AES Filing Requirements for Exports to Puerto Rico

The Commerce Department plans to issue an advance notice of proposed rulemaking to remove certain filing requirements for exporters shipping goods to Puerto Rico, said Kiesha Downs, chief of the Foreign Trade Division’s regulations branch at the Census Bureau. The rule is under review by the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs and is expected to be published this year, Downs said during a June 2 Regulations and Procedures Technical Advisory Committee meeting.

The rule will likely include a 60-day comment period, Downs said. “Because this is such a large change that potentially could take place, we want to ensure that we have allowed the full trade community to comment ... on what the elimination of the filing requirements between the U.S. and Puerto Rico would do,” she said.

Puerto Rico has asked Census to remove the requirements for “years,” saying they are overly burdensome (see 2003100054). Census had been discussing whether to issue the rule since at least March, but had been undecided because the agency was searching for another way to collect the data it receives from the mandatory electronic export information filings in the Automated Export System.

Census is still searching, Downs said. “We are hoping that through the rulemaking process that potentially other data sources could be identified,” Downs said. “I don't think right now there is an alternative that has been proposed that would be useful.” Census hopes industry can provide other data sources in comments, Downs said. She said the agency is “open” to coordinating calls and other outreach with industry groups.

Downs also said Census continues to work with CBP and the Commercial Customs Operations Advisory Committee on the electronic export manifest system (see 2003110038) but did not provide a timeline for its release. The agencies are still working to “identify the owner of specific data elements” in AES and in export manifests (see 1912020048) to catch “duplicate information that's being collected,” Downs said.