The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) published its fall 2018 regulatory agenda for CBP. The agenda includes a new mention of a proposed rulemaking involving Privacy Act exemptions for some information collected through the Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism (CTPAT). "In this proposed rulemaking, the Department proposes to exempt portions of the system of records from one or more provisions of the Privacy Act because of criminal, civil, and administrative enforcement requirements," CBP said. The agency is aiming to issue the proposal in February, it said.
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The structure of the Commercial Customs Operations Advisory Committee (COAC) will be updated in order to mirror CBP's mission and to allow for quicker reaction to events, said Bradley Hayes, CBP executive director of trade relations, during the Oct. 3 COAC meeting. The number of subcommittees will go from six to four for this COAC term, he said. The four subcommittees and underlying work groups are:
CBP intends to begin transitioning members of its Importer Security Assessment program into a new Trusted Trader portal in the coming months, said Liz Schmelzinger, director-CTPAT Partnership Programs at CBP’s Office of Field Operations, during an Oct. 3 meeting of the Commercial Customs Operations Advisory Committee. The seven participants in the Trusted Trader pilot began testing the new portal on Oct. 1 and, once testing is completed, CBP plans to move ISA members onto the portal throughout the following year.
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CBP released a list of eight Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism (CTPAT) benefits being considered as part of the Trusted Trader pilot that combines trade compliance with security standards ahead of the Oct. 3 Commercial Customs Operations Advisory Committee (COAC) meeting. The list includes eight program benefits that were "prioritized based on their feasibility of implementation and impact to industry" and were part of a document from CBP on the COAC Trusted Trader Subcommittee. CBP has previously discussed some benefits being considered, including expedited rulings and an identify theft program (see 1808170003). Other possible benefits include "penalty mitigation/offset," "reconciliation" and "exemption from random" nonintrusive inspections.
CBP is "conducting integration testing to prove compatibility of a blockchain platform with multiple partner systems," according to an update from the emerging technologies working group ahead of the Oct. 3 Commercial Customs Operations Advisory Committee (COAC) meeting. CBP began an initial "proof of concept" in September as the agency considers the potential for the distributed ledger technology (see 1808200040). "Portions of the NAFTA / CAFTA import process, specifically verification of intellectual property and relationships between licensees and licensors, have been identified as good candidates for improvement if a transition to a more digitized, decentralized system is undertaken," it said.
CBP signed a Mutual Recognition Agreement with Peru during the agency's Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism conference on Sept. 12. The agreement allows CBP to consider involvement in Peru's Authorised Economic Operator program as similar to participating in the CTPAT program. The event was closed to the press but Mohawk Global Trade Advisors tweeted about the signing. CBP didn't comment. Among other happenings mentioned in tweets from the CTPAT conference is that Canada will update its Partners in Protection and Customs Self Assessment programs. New eligibility criteria are in the works, as is a new compliance regime with "tiered benefits," Integration Point tweeted.
The Commercial Customs Operations Advisory Committee (COAC) for CBP will next meet Oct. 3 in Washington, CBP said in a notice.
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