Some 34 percent of those who took the October 2014 customs broker license exam passed the test, said Paula Connelly, a Boston-area customs lawyer who teaches an exam preparation class. Connelly said she learned of the passage rate through her participation in a CBP-led broker exam working group. CBP didn't comment.
A proposed Federal Maritime Commission rulemaking on Ocean Transport Intermediaries still has issues despite some heavy revisions in response to industry concerns, said the National Customs Brokers and Forwarders Association of America (NCBFAA) in comments (here). The FMC requested comments on the revised notice of proposed rulemaking in October (see 14100916). While the NCBFAA said it appreciated that the FMC removed a number of the most troubling part of the previous proposal, it "still has a number of concerns."
The Mexican government recently announced a series of measures on the importation of textiles and apparel, including registration and reporting requirements, that will take effect on Jan. 1, 2015. At a press conference held in Mexico City on Dec. 3, Mexican officials said the moves will stem fraud and undervaluation of textile and apparel imports and improve the competitiveness of Mexican industry (here).
CBP's proposed changes to its Importer ID Input Record (Form 5106) would require companies to provide a overly intrusive level of detail that would not increase importer compliance, said the American Association of Exporters and Importers (AAEI) in comments to CBP on the proposal. CBP requested public comments by Dec. 8 on the proposed revisions in October (see 14100815). The proposal would add a number of new data fields to the form, which are hoped to improve CBP's risk assessment abilities. The agency falls short of that goal with the proposed form, which may instead increase privacy risks, said the trade group.
CBP plans to stop publication of canceled individual or corporate customs broker licenses in the Federal Register, the agency said in a notice (here). The cancellations are in response to voluntary requests from brokers that no longer want to or cannot conduct customs business, said CBP. While the agency has historically published the cancellations, it is "not required by statute or regulation, but rather has been provided by CBP as courtesy notice to the public," it said. "Given the ease of access to current information available online and with consideration for the most efficient use of CBP customs broker management resources, CBP will no longer publish notice of customs broker license or permit cancellations." Instead, CBP will maintain a list of active brokers on its site, the agency said. CBP will continue to publish Federal Register notices for customs broker licenses that have been suspended or revoked, it said..
The customs broker’s license examination scheduled for April 2015 will be on Monday, April 13, said CBP in a notice (here). While CBP didn't provide any additional information, the exam typically consists of 80 multiple-choice questions. Exam topics usually include: Entry, Classification, Country of Origin, Trade Agreements, Antidumping/Countervailing Duty, Value, Broker Responsibilities, FP&F, Protests, Marking, Prohibited and Restricted Merchandise, Drawback, Intellectual Property Rights, and other subjects pertinent to a broker's duties. The agency said it will post more information soon.
The following lawsuits were filed at the Court of International Trade during the week of Nov. 24-30:
While there has been some FCC progress toward an International Trade Data System, the complexity of bringing together a disparate group of governmental bodies with differing statutory requirements presents roadblocks, said government and industry officials in recent interviews. Led by Customs and Border Protection, the work on ITDS continues to have momentum from President Barack Obama's executive order in February that created a 2016 deadline for finishing ITDS (see 1402200028), they said. The FCC plans to review its international trade data collection processes as part of its work on ITDS, said an agency official. ITDS's goal is to simplify the filing of cargo import information required by numerous federal agencies.
The recent congestion surcharges announced by some major carriers may indicate illicit collaboration, said the National Customs Brokers & Forwarders Association of America in a letter to several government officials. NCBFAA Chairman Geoffrey Powell wrote to several government officials, including Federal Maritime Commission Chairman Mario Cordero and Commerce Department Secretary Penny Pritzker, noting that the addition of "identical surcharges" raises the "question of whether this is unlawful collusive behavior." The surcharge announcements also fall outside of Shipping Act requirements and it's likely that "much or all of any congestion is attributable to their own conduct and inefficiencies," Powell said. Several major carriers have recently imposed congestion surcharges (see 1411210018).
The Treasury Department published its fall 2014 regulatory agenda for CBP (here), which lists no new rulemakings in the works. The agenda lists Treasury's CBP rulemakings that are pending at the proposed, interim final, final, and completed stages, as well as rulemakings that are long-term actions. The agenda lists the regulation title; past regulation(s), if any; the timeframe for the next regulatory action(s), if any; a brief description of the regulation; and a contact party name and telephone number. The Department of Homeland Security has also issued its fall 2014 regulatory agenda for CBP (see 1411260010).