Customs Committee Agenda for 4/5/07 Meeting - ncbfaa

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070222 v.1.0 The Customs Committee would appreciate the opportunity to reach an understanding with CBP on this important issue. 13:50 – ACE eManifest As eManifest becomes mandatory we continue to experience problems related to systems, training, and acceptance. We can appreciate the investment CBP has made and continues to make to provide for a smooth transition, and we recognize that our community needs to be part of the solution and not part of the problem. The Customs Committee believes that in at least some cases CBP has been reluctant to seek practical solutions to acknowledged issues, allowing unwarranted penalties to result, the burden for resolution to fall unduly on our members, and our cost of doing business to unnecessarily escalate. If NCBFAA and its members can be of any practical assistance to make for a better transition as ACE eManifest advances, this Committee would like to know the specific means by which that might be done. The Customs Committee believes that it brings to this meeting important insight into ways by which CBP might improve this experience. For this discussion we think that the participation of Jim Swanson and/or Lou Samenfink would be beneficial. 14:40 – Break 15:00 – Recordkeeping Amendments The Customs Committee’s request for revision of the recordkeeping regulations (see Attachment “B”) would bring those requirements into conformity with current business practice without compromising CBP’s legitimate interests to have records available for inspection and review at the port of entry within a reasonable period of time after making a demand for production of those records. This very important consideration for our Committee and the entire customs brokerage industry has languished at headquarters for the last four years. On several occasions we were told by Betsy Durant that our request had been well received, that proposed rulemaking could be anticipated, and that we would be well pleased with the revisions. In the Committee Chairman’s last meeting with Larry Rosenzweig, as Acting Director for the Office of Trade Relations, he said that he agreed with our request. To this date CBP has offered no substantive reason for the delay in coming forward with proposed rulemaking based upon our draft revisions. For years CBP has publicized its progress toward business oriented and account based paradigms in rebuilding the agency to better accomplish its missions. Our community has worked mightily, as volunteers, alongside CBP in the TSN, COAC and other trade support efforts to help CBP realize its business goals. It is extremely disheartening when we make such a modest proposal that would greatly facilitate our own business practice without diminishing in any way CBP’s legitimate interests, and requiring only minimal effort on the part of CBP to accomplish, to have nothing to show for it after four years. The Customs Committee would appreciate the opportunity to discuss this item with the Assistant Commissioner and the responsible OR&R attorney. 15:30 – Emergency Temporary Permit Regulation In view of the recent creation of the Office of Trade, the imperative for post incident resumption of trade readiness established in P.L. 109–347 dated October 13, 2006 (The SAFE Ports Act of 2006), Section 202, and in consideration of the key role played by customs brokers Page 4 of 17
070222 v.1.0 in facilitating the efficient clearance of goods, and the criticality of that function immediately following an federally declared emergency, the Customs Committee believes it is obliged to bring this agenda item to the Assistant Commissioner’s attention. There are four essential parts to this provision (See Attachment “C”): 1. The rule comes into effect only on declaration of an emergency in the affected area by the federal government, applies only to those customs brokers having a permit in the affected area, and expires at the discretion of the CBP Commissioner. 2. The provision authorizes the CBP Commissioner to grant a temporary permit in another district to which the customs broker has been forced to relocate their place of business because of the emergency. 3. The temporary permit will authorize the relocated customs broker to clear cargo for customers pre-existing the emergency if the cargo arrives at ports in the same district as the affected area or in other ports at which cargo arrives when diverted from the affected area. 4. The revocation of the temporary permit will be without prejudice and the customs broker will be allowed to conclude all transactions begun while the temporary permit was in force. 16:00 – EIP RLF Actual Use Merchandise The Customs Committee considered whether the rationale given by CBP to explain its exclusion of actual use merchandise from the RLF prototype is consistent with regulatory provisions. § 10.134 Declaration of intent. – "A showing of intent by the importer as to the actual use of imported merchandise shall be made by filing with the entry for consumption or for warehouse a declaration as to the intended use of the merchandise, or by entering the proper subheading of an actual use provision of the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS) and the reduced or free rate of duty on the entry form. Entry made under an actual use provision of the HTSUS may be construed as a declaration that the merchandise is entered to be used for the purpose stated in the HTSUS, provided the port director is satisfied the merchandise will be so used. However, the port director shall require a written declaration to be filed if he is not satisfied that merchandise entered under an actual use provision will be used for the purposes stated in the HTSUS." In the presumably very small number of cases when the final clause of 19 CFR 10.134 is applicable, the Port Director could issue a CBP Form 28. The Committee concluded that CBP’s claim that there is a paper document required at entry is contrary to the plain language of the governing regulation. The Customs Committee would like to revisit this matter with CBP at this meeting. Blue headings indicate OLD BUSINESS Green headings indicate NEW BUSINES 16:30 – Adjourn Page 5 of 17
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Customs Committee Agenda for 4/5/07 Meeting - ncbfaa

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