Tim Warren

Recent delays at the Port of New York/Newark during the delivery of refrigerated container boxes moving from marine terminals to Centralized Examination Stations (CES) were due to a lack of available generator sets and chassis at marine terminal locations, CBP New York said in an informational pipeline message. The generator sets are used to allow refrigerated cargo to maintain a consistent temperature when moving between terminals and CES locations. CBP "has been working diligently with the trade community to reduce these short term delays in the examination process and improve overall service and efficiency," it said. Email documents@brokerpower.com for a copy of the message.

Customs Rulings Online Search System (CROSS) was updated July 23 with 221 rulings, bringing the total number of searchable rulings to 173241. The most recent ruling is dated 7/20/2012 12:00:00 AM.

CBP will open a new comment period on proposed changes to the in-bond process after it didn't post a small business regulatory analysis quickly enough following the initial Federal Register notice (FR Pub 02/22/12). A notice on the new comment period ran July 26 in the Federal Register. Comments, solely on the small business analysis, are due Aug. 27. The comment period for the initial proposal concluded April 23.

The House Ways and Means Committee scheduled a July 26 markup on legislation granting Russia permanent normal trade relations (PNTR) status and repealing legislation that limits trade with Communist countries. The bill, HR-6156, is (here). The Senate Finance Committee gave its approval to similar legislation July 18. (See ITT's Online Archives 12071912 for a summary of the Senate Finance bill.)

The House didn't hold a scheduled July 24 vote on HR-5986, a trade bill that would extend African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) provisions and extend Burmese import restrictions. The House bill was scheduled for consideration under suspension of the rules, meaning a markup from the House Ways and Means Committee, where the bill originated, won't be required. No reason for the delay was given.

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is working in closely with other federal departments and agencies to translate the high-level the Supply Chain Security Strategy into concrete actions, said DHS Secretary Janet Napolitano during a House Homeland Security Committee hearing July 25 on "Understanding the Homeland Threat Landscape."

CBP issued its weekly tariff rate quota and tariff preference level commodity report as of July 23.

The U.S. Department of the Interior said it reviewed the rules proposed by the National Marine Fisheries Service that would lift the trade restrictions on importing bigeye tuna from Bolivia and Georgia but didn't have any comments "at this time." The proposed rule would also make administrative changes to the section containing species-specific harmonized tariff codes in support of the International Trade Program. Comments are due July 25. In the rulemaking, NMFS would also consider administrative changes in support of the International Trade Permit (ITP) program to implement recent changes to the Harmonized Tariff Schedule.

CBP announced the suspension of a Customs broker license and all associated permits pursuant to section 641 of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended, (19 USC 1641) and the U.S. Customs and Border Protection regulations (19 CFR 111.53). The 30-month suspension is effective July 23. A notice of suspension for broker's license below ran in the Federal Register July 25.

CBP will allow non-automated entities to release cargo based on screen printouts from importers and brokers in order to support the ongoing Simplified Entry (SE) pilot, CBP said in a July 24 CSMS message. The printout should have at a minimum the shipment ID and quantity being released, the type of release as well as clear identification of who presented the release information, said CBP.