On June 17, 2004, the House Ways and Means Committee's Trade Subcommittee held a hearing on the budget authorizations for fiscal year (FY) 2005 and FY2006 for U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and the Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), as well as on other Customs issues. At this hearing, the subcommittee was addressed by two witnesses and six panelists.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has issued a memorandum describing procedures for the implementation of enforced compliance and penalties for the prior notice of imported food (PN) requirements contained in the Public Health Security and Bioterrorism Preparedness and Response Act of 2002 (Bioterrorism Act).
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has issued a notice which clarifies the new reporting requirements associated with imported sugar classified under HTS 1701.11.2000.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) have each posted a similar reminder to their Web sites stating that if the Automated Commercial System/Automated Broker Interface (ACS/ABI) is not working or if a custom broker's or self-filer's system is not working, prior notice (PN) of imported food must be submitted through the FDA PN System Interface (PNSI), pursuant to 21 CFR 1.280(b).
On June 9, 2004, the Secretary of Homeland Security testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee on progress at the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). Among other things, the Secretary testified that DHS has created several new two-way channels of communication, including the National Infrastructure Coordination Center (NICC). According to the Secretary, NICC provides a centralized mechanism for the private sector, industry representatives, individual companies, and the Information Sharing and Analysis Centers to share and receive situational information about a threat, event, or crisis. (DHS Secretary testimony, dated 06/09/04, http://www.dhs.gov/dhspublic/display?content=3708.)
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has issued the May 2004 issue of the U.S. Customs and Border Protection Modernization newsletter, which is highlighted below:
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has issued an ABI administrative message (Adm: 04-1427) announcing that the Automated Commercial System (ACS) was to be brought down for approximately three hours, from 3:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m. EDT, on Tuesday, June 8, 2004 in order to accommodate emergency maintenance.
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has issued a final rule, effective July 6, 2004, which amends 21 CFR Parts 1, 10, and 16 to provide procedures for the administrative detention of an article of food, if an officer or qualified employee of the FDA has credible evidence or information indicating that such article presents a threat of serious adverse health consequences or death to humans or animals.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has issued a press release announcing that beginning on June 4, 2004 at 6 a.m. the third phase of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA)/U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) discretionary enforcement plan for the prior notice (PN) requirements of the Bioterrorism Act will be implemented.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has issued a notice announcing that its Office of Field Operations and its Office of Information and Technology are in the process of conducting various public meetings at several of the major land borders across the U.S to present the major provisions of its regulations and policies on the advance electronic presentation of information for inbound truck cargo and to answer questions from affected parties.