U.S. Customs and Border Protection officials further elaborated on the challenges they face due to budgetary constraints at late morning and afternoon sessions of its Industry Day event, held in Washington, DC on May 22, 2012. In the face of such constraints, CBP officials said that cooperation with industry is essential to improve efficiency and lessen the burden on port personnel. A panel on intelligence and targeting said such budgetary constraints have encouraged CBP to use pre-departure initiatives for the same motive. However, an official from the Department of Homeland Security research arm bemoaned the effect of budget woes on the development of revolutionary technology.
A number of questions remain for U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) on the next locations for the next five Centers for Excellence and Expertise (CEEs), said participants at the Advisory Committee on Commercial Operations meeting May 22 in Savannah, Ga. CBP will be establishing industry working groups to be co-chaired by CBP and trade to take on CEE issues, said Brenda Smith, executive director for Trade Policy and Programs in the Office of International Trade at CBP.
A difficult budget environment for U.S. Customs and Border Protection was the early theme for CBP's Industry Day May 22, despite expectations for increased travel and trade. The days of the Department of Homeland Security budget growing 7.5 percent per year are over, said keynoter Rafael Borras, under secretary for management at DHS.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection released the following documents ahead of the May 22, 2012 Commercial Operations Advisory Committee (COAC) meeting scheduled for Savannah, Georgia:
CBP continues to consider combining Importer Self-Assessment (ISA) with C-TPAT, U.S. Customs and Border Protection Acting Commissioner David Aguilar said during a House May 17 hearing on Customs issues . He also said critical fixes to already deployed ACE capabilities are among the major goals for CBP in the coming year. E-Manifest: Rail and Sea (M1), simplified entry, and the integration of export capability are also top priorities, he said in response to questions following his written testimony.
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is working in the Asia-Pacific region to increase supply chain security there, DHS Office of International Affairs Deputy Assistant Secretary Mark Koumans said during testimony May 8, 2012. He also lauded a number of existing programs said to have helped the trade relationship between the U.S. and the Asia-Pacific region. Koumans spoke before the House Committee on Homeland Security, Subcommittee on Transportation Security during a hearing on “Building Secure Partnerships in Travel, Commerce, and Trade with the Asia-Pacific Region.”
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and the European Union (EU) reached a Mutual Recognition (MR) Decision between CBP’s Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism (C-TPAT) program and the EU’s Authorized Economic Operator (AEO) program May 4, 2012. An EU press release said the mutual recognition would begin July 1, 2012.
Both sides are claiming progress during the U.S.-China Strategic and Economic Dialogue (S&ED) this week in Beijing. Among other things, they decided to continue to implement the Memorandum of Understanding between the Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Customs and Border Protection and the General Administration of Customs of the People's Republic of China Concerning Bilateral Cooperation on Supply Chain Security and Facilitation and the Action Plan, according to the official joint statement issued by the two countries after the meeting.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection offered some clarifications on the Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism (C-TPAT) International Organization for Standardization (ISO) seal standard for truckers, in a set of Frequently Asked Questions. The FAQs describe the continued use for seal standard ISO/PAS 17712. A new seal standard for containers was previously planned to be implemented by March 1, 2012, but CBP said in February an indeterminate delay was necessary for testing.
The next meeting of the Advisory Committee on Commercial Operations of Customs and Border Protection (COAC) will be on May 22, 2012 at 1 p.m. (EST) in Savannah, Ga. U.S. Customs and Border Protection is seeking comment on the planned agenda items, according to a notice in the Federal Register May 4, 2012. Online registration for webcast and in-person attendance at the COAC meeting is open through May 18, 2012.