CBP posted its proposed rulemaking on drawback regulations under the Trade Facilitation and Trade Enforcement Act. The 444 pages of proposed rules are scheduled for publication in the Federal Register on Aug. 2, with comments due 45 days after that. Among the contentious issues involved was how the rules would treat distilled spirits in terms of substitution drawback (see 1708090043).
Federal Universal Service Fund
The FCC's Universal Service Fund (USF) was created by the Telecommunications Act of 1996 to fund programs designed to provide universal telecommunications access to all U.S. citizens. All telecommunications providers are required to contribute a percentage of their end-user revenues to the Fund, which the FCC allocates for four core programs: 1. Connect America Fund, which subsidizes telecom providers for the increased costs of offering services to customers in rural and remote areas 2. Lifeline, which directly subsidizes low-income households to help pay for the cost of phone and internet service 3. Rural Health Care, which subsidizes health care providers to offer broadband telehealth services that can connect rural patients and providers with specialists located farther away 4. E-Rate, which subsidizes rural and low-income schools and libraries for internet and telecommunications costs The Universal Service Administrative Company (USAC) administers the USF on behalf of the FCC, but requires Congressional approval for its actions. Many states also operate their own universal service funds, which operate independently from the federal program.
Latest News on the Universal Service Fund
CIT Grants Preliminary Injunction Prohibiting Imports of Mexican Fish Caught Near Endangered Species
Imports of all fish products from Mexican fisheries that use gillnets close to a nearly extinct species of porpoise will be banned while a legal proceeding on the ban proceeds, Court of International Trade Judge Gary Katzmann said in a July 26 ruling. The ruling granted a preliminary injunction meant to prevent further threats to vaquita porpoises, of which fewer than 30 remain, "pending final adjudication of the merits," it said. While legal arguments remain undecided, "what cannot be disputed is that the vaquita’s plight is desperate, and that even one more bycatch death in the gillnets of fisheries in its range threatens the very existence of the species," CIT said.
The following lawsuits were filed at the Court of International Trade during the week of July 16-22:
The American Institute for International Steel and two companies asked the Court of International Trade on July 19 to immediately stop the enforcement of Section 232 tariffs, AIIS said in a news release. A summary judgment is necessary to prevent further monetary harm to steel importers, as well as "the port authorities, customs brokers, insurance companies, and logistics companies that are members of AIIS and that derive significant portions of their revenue from their handling of imported steel," AIIS said in its filing.
Recently imposed countervailing duties on new pneumatic off-the-road tires from Sri Lanka look set to end, after the Court of International Trade on July 11 sustained a redetermination by the Commerce Department. After taking out a program CIT found was not a subsidy, the CV duty rate for Camso Loadstar and the rate for all other Sri Lankan exporters fell to 1.23%, below the two percent threshold for imposing CV duty orders on developing countries under World Trade Organization rules. Commerce issued its CV duty order in March (see 1703030031).
The following lawsuits were filed at the Court of International Trade during the week of July 9-15:
The following lawsuits were filed at the Court of International Trade during the week of July 2-8:
The Court of International Trade has jurisdiction to hear government lawsuits to recover unpaid excise taxes even when no penalty is sought, it said in a pair of decisions issued July 3. CIT has exclusive purview over cases dealing with violations of 19 USC 1592, and though laws on CIT jurisdiction over those cases refer only to penalty cases and recovery of customs duties, the underlying law specifically allows CBP to seek recovery of duties, taxes and fees without collecting a penalty, CIT said. Federal excise taxes, which are collected at the time of importation and are a condition of release, “are customs duties for the purposes of jurisdiction,” the trade court said.
International Trade Today is providing readers with some of the top stories for June 25-29 in case they were missed.
The following lawsuits were filed at the Court of International Trade during the week of June 25 - July 1: