Business practices for data security, protecting children and mobile apps were some of the issues updated in the Direct Marketing Association’s 2014 version of its Guidelines for Ethical Business Practices, released Tuesday (http://bit.ly/1cmobQa). The trade association said its new guidelines will take effect in July. DMA Senior Vice President-Compliance Services and General Counsel Senny Boone said in a release: “DMA believes self-regulation is the most effective tool to stave off unnecessary regulation and to keep innovative marketing moving forward to provide relevant, customer-centric marketing for consumers and ensure consumers have choices about their marketing.” DMA has opposed data broker legislation (WID Dec 20 p2). Most recently, the group objected to the Data Act from Senate Commerce Committee Chairman Jay Rockefeller, D-W.Va., and Sen. Ed Markey, D-Mass., which would require that data brokers give consumers access to information collected about them, with the opportunity to correct the data or opt out of collection altogether (http://bit.ly/1fvYzxN).
CBP again reminded brokers and importers in a CSMS message that all imports of steel mill products need a steel import license for each entry. "During the government shutdown in October 2013, the U.S. Department of Commerce temporarily stopped issuing entry specific steel license numbers on imports of steel mill products, and permitted importers to use two non-entry specific steel license numbers on entry summaries," said CBP. "Those two temporary steel license numbers were only valid for use from October 1 -- 16, 2013 and not beyond. It has come to our attention that some Customs brokers and importers are incorrectly continuing to use the temporary steel license numbers on entry summaries for imports of steel mill products. This practice must cease immediately." The steel import license number obtained for each shipment needs to be reported on the corresponding entry summary, the agency said. Steel import licenses come from the Department of Commerce International Trade Administration.
CBP posted its draft agenda and other documents for the upcoming Advisory Committee on Commercial Operations of Customs and Border Protection (COAC) meeting on Feb. 20, which include the "foundational principles required to position the U.S. government to efficiently manage strategic cross border issues in a manner that reduces the cost of doing business" related to exports. Other documents include draft recommendations, and other documents on trade modernization, the global supply chain, trade enforcement and other topics. The draft agenda is (here). The principles for a "One U.S. Government at the Border Cooperation for Exports" is (here).
CBP's official notice beginning a pilot program that would test a combined Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism (C-TPAT) and Importer Self Assessment (ISA) was delayed in order to include information on participation by other government agencies, said CBP in a document released ahead of the Feb. 20 Advisory Committee on the Commercial Operations of CBP (COAC) meeting. CBP said in November it planned to officially request pilot participants for the program, known as "Trusted Trader," by the end of 2013 (see 13111920). Another COAC working group said it is working to develop recommendations for customs broker permitting updates by May.
The Customs Plaza Construction Act of 2014, introduced on Feb. 11, would provide funding to construct the New International Trade Crossing (NITC) at the U.S. -- Canada border and other federal customs plazas at U.S. ports of entry, said sponsor Rep. Gary Peters, D-Mich., in a press release. The legislation would prioritize funding for facilities and buildings at the busiest ports in the country, according to the bill text, providing appropriations from 2015 through 2021. Michigan Governor Rick Snyder and Canadian officials brokered the NITC agreement in 2012 (here), but construction has yet to begin.
The Census Bureau released on Feb. 11 its schedule for Automated Export System (AES) seminars and AESPcLink workshops for 2014. At each event, training will be provided by Census, CBP, and the Bureau of Industry and Security at the seminar on the first day. These experts will cover the filing requirements of the Foreign Trade Regulations, how to classify commodities in Schedule B, EAR compliance, enforcement of the FTR, and provide a thorough overview of the AES. The second day will offer a half-day AESPcLink Workshop.
CBP posted an updated version of its notice announcing that the next customs broker license exam will be on Monday, April 7.
Send event information for inclusion in the International Trade Today Calendar toITTNews@warren-news.com.
CBP performed 2,129 total Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism (C-TPAT) validations in 2013, falling slightly short of its plans to reach 2,200 validations in the year, the agency said in an update on C-TPAT program statistics. The 2013 total included 576 initial validations and 1,553 revalidations, it said. While validations for 2013 started out slowly, the agency maintained it planed to reach 2,200 validations for the year (see 13060627). CBP did a total of 2,376 validations, including 640 initial validations and 1,736 revalidations, in 2012. The agency has done 33 validations this year as of Feb. 3, the update said.
The Food and Drug Administration’s proposed rule on the Foreign Supplier Verification Program leaves too much to the imagination and could impose burdensome requirements on importers, said the American Association of Exporters and Importers in comments recently submitted to the agency (here). “A close reading of the lengthy and complex rule reveals that many fundamental questions remain unanswered,” said AAEI. Worried about provisions of the proposed rule that could prove costly, including management and recordkeeping requirements, “some AAEI members that import only small amounts of food have indicated that they will cease future imports of food if the FSVP Rules are implemented in their current form,” the group warned.