The Wall Street Journal states that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is declaring a temporary hiring freeze at U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) due to a potential $1.2 billion budget shortfall. According to the article, the exact cause of the budget shortfall is unclear and may simply be a computer glitch. (WSJ, 03/26/04, www.wsj.com )

The Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) has issued a notice to the wildlife import/export community, dated March 12, 2004, detailing the universal labeling requirements for sturgeon and paddlefish caviar that were adopted by the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES).

Customs Not in Contempt for Revoking is Approval for the "Duty-free" Sale of Fuels.In Ammex, Inc. v. U.S., the Court of Appeal for the Federal Circuit (CAFC) affirmed the Court of International Trade's (CIT's) denial of Ammex's motion to hold Customs in contempt because it revoked approval of the sale of gasoline and diesel fuel on a duty- and tax-free basis at the Ambassador Bridge between Detroit, MI and Windsor, Canada.

According to Presidential Proclamation 7758, which was issued on March 1, 2004, as well as U.S. governmental sources, Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) duty free treatment will terminate for goods entered, or withdrawn from warehouse, for consumption, on or after May 1, 2004 from the following seven countries:

On March 23, 2004, Secretary of Homeland Security Tom Ridge addressed the issue of Department of Homeland Security (DHS) port security efforts at the American Association of Port Authorities (AAPA) Spring Conference. In addition, DHS has also issued a fact sheet regarding the Coast Guard's efforts to protect U.S. ports.

The World Customs Organization (WCO) is encouraging all its Members to implement recommended security measures without delay, in light of the March 11, 2004 terrorist attacks in Madrid, Spain.

The International Trade Administration (ITA) has initiated an antidumping (AD) duty investigation of magnesium metal from China.

As required by the Foreign Relations Authorization Act, Fiscal Year 2003 (P.L. 107-228), the Census Bureau has been developing regulations to mandate filing through the Automated Export System (AES) of all exports that require Shipper's Export Declaration (SED) information.

The Commerce Department's Office of Textiles and Apparel (OTEXA) has issued its January 2004 Textiles and Apparel Import Report, which includes statistics on general imports (both quota and non-quota) of cotton, wool, man-made fiber, silk blend, and non-cotton vegetable fiber textiles and apparel.