Effects of Sequestration on Customs Business and Cargo Releases
C-Air / C-Air International - Eric Jones / www.c-air.com
The automatic spending cuts under Sequestration will affect all government agencies, including Homeland Security. Even though U.S. Customs will experience budget cuts, they have already announced that security measures will remain their highest priority and physical examinations of cargo will continue at their current rates.
The spending cuts became effective March 1st and to date there have been only minimal delays in processing the release of cargo of both x-ray exams at the docks and intensive exams at the container freight stations, but this could change soon.
Part of the budget cuts includes the immediate reduction of some overtime to customs staffing and the possible reduction in the hours of service at some airports and seaports. Customs advises that required physical examinations of cargo could take up to five days longer to complete due to these cuts. Before March 1st customs would routinely staff exam sites on an overtime basis to clear the backlog of cargo requiring exams. This “catch up” of Customs exams will no longer be possible with overtime cuts now in effect.
Customs will begin furloughing employees if the Sequestration continues into April. Unpaid furloughs would further delay normal Customs business and would understandingly affect the disposition of Customs staffing.
One area that importers can assist in the release of their cargo is to provide C-Air with their import documents as soon as possible. Customs entries can be electronically filed five days prior to a vessel’s arrival. This pre-arrival period provides Customs additional time to resolve any issues that may otherwise require an intensive exam of cargo.
USMX, ILA Move Closer to Final Approval of Master Contract
Vote by ILA’s Wage Scale Committee Sends Agreement to Members for Ratification
International Longshoremen's Association
http://www.ilaunion.org/news_USMX-ILA_move_closer_to_final_approval_of_master_contract.html
TAMPA (March 13, 2013) --- The Master Contract for International Longshoremen’s Association members at East and Gulf Coast ports moved a step closer to final approval today after the union’s Wage Scale Committee voted to recommend approval of the six-year agreement. The contract now goes to ILA’s 14,500 members and to members of the United States Maritime Alliance for ratification.
The formal vote by the 200-member committee came Tuesday on the eve of a meeting between the ILA and the USMX in Tampa and a week after the ILA and the New York Shipping Association reached a tentative agreement on a local contract covering work rules and other issues for the 3,250 ILA workers at the Port of New York and New Jersey.
"We're obviously pleased we were able to reach an agreement with the ILA and now look forward to the final ratification votes and completion of local bargaining," USMX Chairman and CEO James A. Capo said. "Given the industry's essential role in the U.S. economy, it’s vitally important that we’ve resolved our differences and have come to an agreement, preventing any disruption of port operations."
"Our ILA Wage Scale delegates have achieved a great contract for the rank-and-file members we represent," ILA President Harold Daggett said. "Our union worked hard for over a year to bring home a landmark agreement that I am sure our members will ratify."
The Master Contract, which must also be approved by the container carriers, terminal operators and port associations that make up USMX’s membership, includes a $1-an-hour wage increase in 2014, 2016 and again in 2017, the final year of the contract. Starting pay for new employees would stay at $20 an hour but they would reach the top wage scale in six years instead of the current nine.
On the issue of container royalties, the contract ensures that for the next six years the carriers will fund the annual royalty payments at $211 million, the amount paid in 2011, plus up to an additional $14 million for administrative expenses, and share equally with the ILA any container royalties that exceed $225 million.
Other provisions of the Master Contract include:
- A $1-an-hour increase in the contribution by employers to local fringe benefit funds, which include pension plans;
- An agreement to protect the jobs of workers displaced by the introduction of new technology and automation at the ports; and
- A provision to promote continued ILA jurisdiction over chassis maintenance and repair work within the marine terminals and port areas covered by the contract.
The Master Contract would replace the agreement that expired on Sept. 30, 2012. Negotiations on a new contract began a year ago. Both sides had since agreed twice to extend the contract and to continue bargaining under the auspices of the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service Director George H. Cohen and his team. The tentative agreement was reached Feb. 1 on the eve of the expiration of the last contract extension.
Since 1977, negotiations with the ILA have resulted in nine new contracts without a single strike or coast-wide work stoppage.
Statement by FMCS Director George H. Cohen
On United States Maritime Alliance
and International Longshoremen’s Association Labor Negotiations
Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service
http://usmxlaborupdates.com/static/uploads/general-images/ILA-USMX_Statement-3-13-13.pdf
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service Director George H.Cohen issued the following statement today on the labor negotiations between the United States Maritime Alliance and the International Longshoremen’s Association:
“I am extremely pleased to announce that today the parties have approved their tentative agreement for a successor Master Agreement. In doing so, the parties have successfully concluded lengthy, complex and understandably sometimes contentious negotiations concerning a multitude of economic and job related issues. Mutual respect, good old fashioned ‘roll up your sleeves’ hard work and applying innovative problem solving skills ultimately prevailed.”
“This monumental result, which will be submitted to their respective memberships for ratification, paves the way for six years of stable labor-management relations covering all the Atlantic and Gulf Coast ports. What this means in real life terms is that once again collective bargaining proved up to the task and played a major constructive role in helping to avoid a potential disruption that unquestionably would have had severe impact on the nation’s economy—at the precise time that a significant recovery is in progress.”
“I especially want to convey my appreciation to ILA President Harold Daggett and USMX Chairman and CEO James Capo for the confidence they exhibited in our agency first by jointly requesting our assistance and thereafter by fully cooperating with myself and my colleagues throughout the mediation process. Finally, I want to acknowledge the extraordinary contributions of Deputy Director Scot Beckenbaugh, Director of Mediation Services Jack Sweeney and Commissioner Pete Donatello.”
Notice to the Wildlife Import/Export Community
Subject: Effects of the Sequester on Overtime Clearances
U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service / http://www.fws.gov/le/public-bulletin.html
Background: Funding cuts related to the Federal budget sequestration that went into effect on March 1, 2013, will immediately impact U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) import/export inspection operations. To reduce expenditures for the remainder of FY 2013, the Service has imposed a hiring freeze (meaning that wildlife inspector vacancies will not be filled) and has suspended all overtime activities (including those at ports of entry).
We anticipate that the trade will experience a reduction in service at affected ports. As the Service works to implement the required spending reductions, we will continue to update the trade on any additional effects on port operations.
Action: Effective immediately, the Service will not inspect or clear any wildlife import or export during overtime hours on weekdays, weekends, or Federal holidays. We urge the wildlife import/export trade to adjust the timing of shipments accordingly to prevent the loss of live or perishable wildlife/wildlife products.
Re-Designation of Qualifying Industrial Zones: United States-Israel Free Trade Area Implementation Act
Office of the U.S. Trade Representative / http://www.regulations.gov/#!documentDetail;D=USTR_FRDOC_0001-0251
SUMMARY: Under the United States-Israel Free Trade Area Implementation
Act (IFTA Act), articles of qualifying industrial zones (QIZs)
encompassing portions of Israel and Jordan or Israel and Egypt are
eligible to receive duty-free treatment. Effective upon publication of
this notice, the United States Trade Representative, pursuant to
authority delegated by the President, is modifying the designation of
the previously-designated Al Minya, Alexandria, Beni Suief, Central
Delta, Greater Cairo, and Suez Canal zones in Egypt under the IFTA Act
to provide that all present and future facilities in these zones are
potentially able to export goods duty-free to the United States. This
modification would also clarify and, in some cases, adjust the
geographic boundaries of the QIZs.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Sonia Franceski, Director for Middle
East Affairs, (202) 395-4987, Office of the United States Trade
Representative, 600 17th Street NW., Washington, DC 20508.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Pursuant to authority granted under section
9 of the United States-Israel Free Trade Area Implementation Act of
1985 (IFTA Act), as amended (19 U.S.C. 2112 note), Presidential
Proclamation 6955 of November 13, 1996 (61 FR 58761) proclaimed certain
tariff treatment for articles of the West Bank, the Gaza Strip, and
qualifying industrial zones. In particular, the Presidential
Proclamation modified general notes 3 and 8 of the Harmonized Tariff
Schedule of the United States: (a) To provide duty-free treatment to
qualifying articles that are the product of the West Bank, the Gaza
Strip, or a qualifying industrial zone and are entered in accordance
with the provisions of section 9 of the IFTA Act; (b) to provide that
articles of Israel may be treated as though they were articles directly
shipped from Israel for purposes of the United States-Israel Free Trade
Area Agreement (``the Agreement'') even if shipped to the United States
from the West Bank, the Gaza Strip, or a qualifying industrial zone, if
the articles otherwise meet the requirements of the Agreement; and (c)
to provide that the cost or value of materials produced in the West
Bank, the Gaza Strip, or a qualifying industrial zone may be included
in the cost or value of materials produced in Israel under section
1(c)(i) of Annex 3 of the Agreement and that the direct costs of
processing operations performed in the West Bank, the Gaza Strip, or a
qualifying industrial zone may be included in the direct costs of
processing operations performed in Israel under section 1(c)(ii) of
Annex 3 of the Agreement.
Section 9(e) of the IFTA Act defines a ``qualifying industrial
zone'' as an area that ``(1) encompasses portions of the territory of
Israel and Jordan or Israel and Egypt; (2) has been designated by local
authorities as an enclave where merchandise may enter without payment
of duty or excise taxes; and (3) has been specified by the President as
a qualifying industrial zone.'' Presidential Proclamation 6955
delegated to the United States Trade Representative the authority to
designate qualifying industrial zones.
The United States Trade Representative has previously designated
six qualifying industrial zones in Egypt under Section 9 of the IFTA
Act, on March 13, 1998 (63 FR 12572), March 19, 1999 (64 FR 13623),
October 15, 1999 (64 FR 56015), October 24, 2000 (65 FR 64472), and
December 12, 2000 (65 FR 77688), June 15, 2001 (66 FR 32660) January
28, 2004 (69 FR 4199), December 29, 2004 (69 FR 78094), November 16,
2005 (70 FR 69622) and January 28, 2009 (74 FR 4482). In each of those
designations, the USTR designated as qualifying industrial zones the
areas occupied by currently producing factories, as specified on maps
and materials submitted by Egypt and Israel.
The governments of Israel and Egypt submitted a request for
designation of additional factories in two zones, the Beni Suief and Al
Minya zones, on December 5, 2012. Following this request, during
consultations in Washington on January 7, 2013, USTR discussed with
representatives of Egypt and Israel a proposal to modify the
designation of the existing QIZs to provide that all present and future
facilities in these zones are potentially able to export goods duty-
free to the United States. This modification would also clarify and, in
some cases, adjust the geographic boundaries of each of the six
existing zones. The geographic boundaries of each the six zones being
designated are specified on maps and materials on file with the Office
of the U.S. Trade Representative. Israel and Egypt have each confirmed
that merchandise may enter, without payment of duty or excise taxes,
areas under their respective customs control that comprise the Greater
Cairo zone, the Alexandria zone, the Suez Canal zone, the Central Delta
zone, the Beni Suief zone and the Al Minya zone, as described in this
notice. Further, the operation and administration of these zones are
provided for in the previously agreed ``Protocol between the Government
of the State of Israel and the Government of the Arab Republic of Egypt
On Qualifying Industrial Zones.'' Accordingly, each of the six zones
meet the criteria under sections 9(e)(1) and (2) of the IFTA Act.
Therefore, pursuant to the authority delegated to me by Presidential
Proclamation 6955, I hereby re-designate the areas that comprise the
Al Minya zone, the Alexandria zone, the Beni Suief zone, the Central Delta
zone, the Greater Cairo zone, and the Suez Canal zone, as specified on
maps and materials on file at the office of the United States Trade
Representative, as qualifying industrial zones under section 9 of the
IFTA Act, effective upon the date of publication of this notice,
applicable to articles shipped from these qualifying industrial zones
after such date. This re-designation supersedes any previous designation
of these zones.
U.S. Customs & Border Protection Seizes Children’s Humidifiers with Fraudulent UL Markings
U.S. Customs & Border Protection / www.cbp.gov/xp/cgov/newsroom/news_releases/local/03112013_6.xml
Savannah— U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) at the port of Savannah has seized 3,400 children’s humidifiers with a Manufactures Suggested Retail Price (MSRP) of $112,696.00 found labeled with fraudulent Underwriters Laboratory (UL) markings.
CBP officers discovered the shipment of children’s humidifiers in a container that was selected for exam. While conducting the inspection, officers discovered the retail packaging marked with the fraudulent UL listing. Products bearing a false UL certification have not been approved by UL and could pose a health and safety hazard to consumers.
Underwriters Laboratories® is an independent not for profit product safety certification organization that tests products for safety. UL evaluates products and its components to promote safe living and working environments by the application of safety science and hazard-based safety engineering. Consumers of products which bear the recognized UL label are confident that the item meets safety standards without posing a risk to the end user. Millions of products and their components are tested to UL’s Standards for Safety. Only those items which pass its testing are allowed to mark their products with the UL label.
Area Port Director Lisa Brown stated, “This seizure demonstrates the commitment CBP has with its partner agencies to work as one government at the border and keep the American public safe. Ensuring the safety of imported merchandise is a top priority for CBP.”
To address the ongoing threat to domestic industries and the need to identify and interdict counterfeited goods, CBP works closely with private industry, U.S. government agencies and foreign governments to stem the flow of illegal goods to protect consumers and the economy.
CBP and EPA Seize Shipment of Counterfeit Headphones and Unsafe ATVs in Los Angeles
U.S. Customs & Border Protection / http://www.cbp.gov/xp/cgov/newsroom/news_releases/national/03072013_9.xml
Washington — U.S. Customs and Border Protection at the LosAngeles/Long Beach seaport seized a shipment containing 445 counterfeit “Beats by Dr. Dre” headphones and 28 all-terrain vehicles (ATVs) that violated U.S. Environmental Protection Agency regulations on February 5. The total value of the seized merchandise was $171,499.00.
"This seizure demonstrates the vigilance of CBP officers and partner agencies working together at the Commercial Targeting and Analysis Center (CTAC) to ensure the safety of the American public,” said CBP Assistant Commissioner Allen Gina. “The co-location of CBP and partner agencies at the CTAC allows greater sharing of information and targeting tools to ensure the safety of imported merchandise. The CTAC demonstrates the possibilities when we work together as one U.S. Government at the border.”
The shipment was targeted for examination by the CBP Commercial Targeting and Analysis Center in Washington, D.C. Working together at the CTAC, CBP and Consumer Product Safety Commission personnel identified the shipment as a high import safety risk. Examination of the cargo revealed the counterfeit products. The “Beats by Dr. Dre” headphones and [ ATVs ] motorcycles were not certified to meet EPA emissions standards.
CBP works closely with CPSC and the EPA to identify potentially unsafe shipments entering our ports of entry. Both agencies have established permanent staffing at the CTAC in Washington, D.C.
The CTAC combines resources and personnel from various government agencies to protect the American public from harm caused by unsafe imported products. The Center accomplishes this through enhanced communication and information-sharing and by reducing redundant inspection activities. For additional information on the CTAC, please visit their site.