Bipartisan Bill Requiring de Minimis Regs Within 18 Months Introduced

A bill that directs the Biden administration to promulgate rules within 18 months to require data submissions for de minimis importers was introduced April 9 by Sens. Mike Braun, R-Ind., and Tammy Baldwin, D-Wis., called the Ensure Accountability in De Minimis Act.

The bill says that if de minimis entries don't enter via international mail, they can only avoid duties if the consignee, owner or purchaser is identified, or if a customs broker makes the entry.

The bill doesn't make a lot of demands about what should be in the regulations, but it does say the rule should, as much as it can, make sure regulations are not redundant with other requirements.

CBP has already developed a regulations package to require data submissions for de minimis entries, but, as of a few weeks ago, the language hadn't cleared DHS to begin interagency review (see 2403260009)

It says that importers will have to submit information about the origin of materials used in the production of the goods to ensure they aren't made with forced labor, or otherwise prohibited from entry. They also said the information provided should help to uncover goods bearing a counterfeit mark, and detect narcotics in the de minimis environment.

It also sets up oversight on de minimis information sharing among the 47 federal agencies in the International Trade Data System, and increases civil penalties for recurring violations of negligence, gross negligence or fraud.

The bill would require CBP and the Treasury Department to submit an annual report to congressional committees on the total number of articles that sought to enter under de minimis; how many were seized by CBP because they were illegal; descriptions of the goods seized; to the extent feasible, the country of origin of those goods; and the fair retail value, by country of origin, of the seized goods.

Braun said in a news release: “This bill would increase transparency and accountability for bad actors that take advantage of the de minimis threshold. In recent years, the majority of de minimis shipments have come from China, our top trade competitor. We need to make sure they are not gaming the system.”

Baldwin said: "We have a responsibility to ensure packages that are coming into our country are not harming Americans, but right now we are falling short. Bad actors in China are taking advantage of a trade loophole to traffic counterfeit goods that undermine our businesses and illegal substances like fentanyl that are crushing our communities."