The White House released its Consumer Privacy Bill of Rights Act draft Friday to “establish baseline protections for individual privacy in the commercial arena” for both online and offline data and “foster timely, flexible implementations of these protections through enforceable codes of conduct developed by diverse stakeholders.” Sen. Ed Markey, D-Mass., industry groups and consumer groups expressed concern with the bill as it includes a provision that could pre-empt strong state laws, such as California’s privacy law, that already protect the privacy rights of consumers. But Microsoft expressed support.
A Department of Homeland Security funding lapse will not stop "front line cargo operations" and import and entry specialists will continue to review entries during that time, said CBP Commissioner Gil Kerlikowske. Kerlikowske discussed the looming shutdown, a result of a fight over DHS funding in congress, with members of the trade industry and reporters in a Feb. 26 call. Despite going without a paycheck during the shutdown, CBP personnel will also be available to answer questions for importers and brokers, he said. DHS funding will stop Feb. 28 unless congress allocates more funding before then.
Triennial status reports from all licensed customs brokers are due to CBP by Feb. 28. Reports can either be submitted in paper to the director of the port that issued the license (see (here) for a suggested format), or online via Pay.gov (here). Each report must be accompanied by a $100 fee. CBP has posted a frequently asked questions page (here) to its website with more information on how to file triennial status reports.
MIAMI -- There's no indication that importers and brokers will not be prepared for the rapidly approaching Automated Commercial Environment deadlines, said CBP Commissioner Gil Kerlikowske in a sit-down interview with International Trade Today on Feb. 24 at the International Chamber of Commerce and U.S. Council for International Business symposium. Kerlikowske said he expects only a “tiny” percentage of traders and brokers will not be ready for the required use of ACE. As of May 1, CBP will require ACE for all electronic manifest filings, while all electronic cargo release and entry summary filings will be required in ACE as of Nov. 1.
A furniture importer is currently pursuing two federal court cases related to the assessment of antidumping duties on an entry where it was incorrectly listed as importer of record, International Trade Today has learned. Following a CBP ruling that held it liable for payment of the 216.01% duty applicable under the AD duty order on wooden bedroom furniture from China (see 1501290028), Lifestyle Furniture filed suit in November at the Court of International Trade to challenge CBP’s denial of its protest. Just under a month later, Lifestyle sued the customs broker that apparently made the mistake on entry documentation, Nestor Reyes, in North Carolina Middle U.S. District Court.
A Trek Leather executive who was recently found liable for the customs violations of his company appealed the case to the Supreme Court in a petition for a writ of certiorari filed Feb. 13. Harish Shadadpuri, the company's owner, argued he cannot automatically be held liable for over $500,000 in penalties and unpaid duties for his company’s negligent failure to declare assists on imports of men’s suits. Rather, the government has to prove he personally aided and abetted those violations, or “pierce the corporate veil” and make the case that Trek Leather’s corporate officers should be liable, of which the government did neither in the case, said Shadadpuri.
CBP and other agencies tested the procedures for resuming cargo operations at the Port of Savannah following a disaster, CBP said in a press release (here). "This exercise included 30 representatives from CBP, U.S. Coast Guard, U.S. Food and Drug Administration, U.S. Fish and Wildlife, Chatham, Ga., Emergency Management Agency, Georgia Ports Authority, and the Independent Customs Brokers and Freight Forwarders Association of Savannah," said the agency. The Jan. 21 test also looked at the resumption procedures for expedited Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism cargo release, it said.
Despite expectations to the contrary, no recommendations on the collection of importer bona fides by customs brokers were forthcoming at the Feb. 11 meeting of the CBP Advisory Committee on Commercial Operations. Although it had appeared on the agenda (see 1501200017), the report of COAC’s Trade Modernization Subcommittee, which advises CBP's role of the broker activities, said it unfortunately “struggled to come to an agreement as to how the importer can identify themselves to the Customs Broker with an acceptable Bona Fides.” With the end of COAC’s current 13th term, the issue will head to the next term without outgoing role of the broker working group lead Jeff Coppersmith, who is departing the COAC. The advisory committee’s bona fides recommendations had initially been on hold while revisions to CBP Form 5106 were in development (see 13111801). CBP released its proposed revisions in October (see 14100815).
Health insurance giant Anthem's hacking last week, leaving vulnerable personal information for 80 million current and former customers and employees (see 1502050028), was a subject of an Online Trust Alliance (OTA) panel on privacy Thursday, at which speakers were divided about the breach's significance. Anthem said Wednesday that personal information was stolen, but Anthem CEO Joseph Swedish said in a statement, “There is no evidence that credit card or medical information, such as claims, test results or diagnostic codes were targeted or compromised.” A Democratic FTC commissioner and the head of the group that organized Thursday's event both called the breach a wake-up call.
Health insurance giant Anthem's hacking last week, leaving vulnerable personal information for 80 million current and former customers and employees (see 1502050028), was a subject of an Online Trust Alliance (OTA) panel on privacy Thursday, at which speakers were divided about the breach's significance. Anthem said Wednesday that personal information was stolen, but Anthem CEO Joseph Swedish said in a statement, “There is no evidence that credit card or medical information, such as claims, test results or diagnostic codes were targeted or compromised.” A Democratic FTC commissioner and the head of the group that organized Thursday's event both called the breach a wake-up call.