U.S. Customs and Border Protection has issued a CSMS message announcing that, effective immediately, the ACE Modernization information section of CBP's Web site can no longer be accessed using Quicklinks. An attachment to CBP's CSMS message includes instructions for accessing the ACE Modernization information section. (CSMS 08-000087, dated 05/19/08, available at http://apps.cbp.gov/csms/viewmssg.asp?Recid=17095&page=&srch_argv=08-000087&srchtype=all&btype=&sortby=&sby.)
At the April 2008 National Customs Brokers & Forwarders Association of America's Annual Conference, an Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) official discussed a variety of export-related issues. Highlights of her remarks include the following points:
The House and Senate have both passed the conference version of H.R. 2419, the Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008 (Farm Bill), by greater than two-thirds majorities.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection has posted a fact sheet on the Automated Commercial Environment multi-modal manifest (MMM) capability, which will expand ACE to include all modes of transportation and provide a single, automated system for cargo control and release.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection has issued an ACE Portal Accounts and ACE Reports CSMS message announcing that it will soon introduce ad hoc reporting capabilities as an enhancement to Automated Commercial Environment reports.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection has issued a Truck Manifest CSMS message announcing that it has fixed the problem with the Automated Commercial Environment (ACE) is experiencing some synchronization issues with the Free and Secure Trade (FAST) database that was causing Commercial Drivers Licenses (CDL) to appear to be expired. According to CBP, Truck manifest filers should not be receiving rejected manifests based on expired CDLs.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection, with trade community input, has created a new Automated Commercial Environment Secure Data Portal account revenue report.
The House Agriculture Committee reports that on May 8, 2008, Congressional negotiators announced a final Farm Bill conference agreement. According to a Committee fact sheet, the conference agreement includes, among many other things, a provision to make country-of-origin labeling for meat and produce mandatory. (House Agriculture Committee statement available at http://agriculture.house.gov/inside/FarmBill.html; Fact Sheet on conference agreement summary available at http://agriculture.house.gov/inside/Legislation/110/FB/Conf/FarmBillOnePager.pdf.)
U.S. Customs and Border Protection has posted the April 2008 customs broker license exam answer key.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection has published a list of field offices whose ports accept the electronic CBP Form 214 (e214, Foreign Trade Zone Admission and/or Status Designation) in lieu of a paper copy.