CPSC Announces Creation of New Import Surveillance Team
The Consumer Product Safety Commission has issued a press release announcing the creation of a new Import Surveillance Division at the CPSC as part of its new import strategy and to increase CPSC presence at the ports.
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This team, in coordination with the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), is tasked with inspecting, detecting and stopping hazardous products from entering into the U.S.
The following are highlights of CPSC's press release:
Long Beach is First to Have Permanent CPSC Presence
According to CPSC, the Port of Long Beach in California is the first port that will have a permanent CPSC presence and additional staff will be assigned to other busy ports as the division is expanded.
CPSC/CBP Strengthening Relationship, CPSC Can Stop/Examine Shipments
CPSC states that CBP is strengthening its cooperative relations with CPSC. This year, for those ports of entry where there are permanent CPSC staff assigned, CPSC will have the ability to identify, stop, examine, and either hold or release shipments coming into the U.S.
CPSC will also test more samples and conduct more port-of-entry surveillance blitzes with assistance from CBP. CBP has already been assisting CPSC in doing some product testing at its labs, and CPSC will continue to use this resource to leverage its ability to identify product hazards and violations of CPSC standards.
CPSC Utilizing ACE
Working with CBP, CPSC is utilizing the Automated Commercial Environment (ACE), which will expose CPSC to many potential problems sooner, and give CPSC more time and information to respond before a dangerous product reaches the U.S.
CPSC press release (dated 03/05/08) available at http://www.cpsc.gov/cpscpub/prerel/prhtml08/08206.html
BP Note
On March 6, 2008, the Senate passed its version of H.R. 4040, a consumer product safety bill, in order to establish consumer product safety standards and other safety requirements for children's products and to reauthorize and modernize the CPSC. (See future issue of ITT for details of this measure.)
(See ITT's Online Archives or See ITT's Online Archives or 01/07/08 news, 08010710, for BP summary of House passage of its own version of H.R. 4040.
See ITT's Online Archives or 02/26/08 news, 08022610, for BP summary of bipartisan Senate agreement on the consumer product safety bill. See ITT's Online Archives or 12/21/07, 07122115, for BP summary of the U.S.-China agreement on toy, food, etc. product safety.)