Customs Modernization Bill Focused on Facilitation Introduced
A bill that aims to create a true single window for importers, as well as reduce redundancies in advance export manifest data submissions, was introduced in the Senate by Sens. Bill Cassidy, R-La., and Catherine Cortez Masto, D-Nev.
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The Customs Facilitation Act of 2025 is only slightly changed from a discussion draft the pair shared last July (see 2407310037), though one of the changes directs CBP to look into whether there is a commercially available alternative to programming its own major updates to ACE. If it doesn't think there is one, it needs to report in detail to Congress why developing its own system would be more cost-effective and would better address the needs of traders and partner government agencies' needs for data.
Whether procuring or developing, CBP must implement ACE 2.0 within one year of receiving funding for it, the text says.
Cassidy's staff said a summary of the previous draft is still a good reference, because the bill is mostly the same as last year's version.
That summary addresses how drawback is handled, and how it should change. It says: "This section addresses lengthy processing delays in the duty drawback export promotion program by allowing for an accelerated payment of duty drawbacks, which are refunds on duties on imported items that are re-exported, for all claims where a bond is filed securing repayment of 100% of the claimed refund and where the claimant has provided supporting documentation."
In the text, the bill directs CBP to promulgate regulations within 180 days on what information drawback filers would need to submit; it also says prior approval will not be required for substitution drawback.
The bill also would codify the Border Interagency Executive Council (BIEC), require CBP to provide contact information for trade inquiries at ports and Centers of Excellence and Expertise, and clarify that clerical errors in submissions of export data "shall be exempt from penalties, so long as they are not part of a pattern of violative conduct."
This bill is part of a larger package of efforts by Cassidy to modernize trade laws. He and Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, D-R.I., previously introduced a customs modernization bill that was more focused on enforcement. That bill has not yet been reintroduced this session of Congress. He and Whitehouse also introduced a bill that would disclose redacted manifests for air, rail and truck shipments, not just ocean shipments. Information from those documents is often used by non-government organizations to track goods they say could be linked to forced labor.
In the press release announcing the facilitation bill, Cassidy said, "Trade done right has the ability to create more jobs in the United States and lower the price of goods that we purchase. Whether this happens depends upon how well we process information about the goods entering our country. This legislation modernizes the laws and streamlines the movement of goods and services going in and out of our country in a way that benefits all of us.”
"Moving goods through America’s ports creates jobs and lowers costs for everyday Americans, but red tape and complicated reporting requirements are making the process of doing so too inefficient," Cortez Masto said in the release. "The Customs Facilitation Act makes common-sense changes to streamline customs procedures and reduce the regulatory burden on American businesses."
In addition to the ACE 2.0 and drawback directives, the bill would require that CBP review its deadlines for rulings, protests and petitions, and improve them when appropriate, with input from the Commercial Customs Operations Advisory Committee (COAC). It would require that Centers of Excellence and Expertise "provide guidance to importers on the post-entry and clearance procedures for imported merchandise impacted by admissibility issues including alleged [forced labor] violations."
It also asks the Government Accountability Office to do several reports, including one on how CBP should restructure its fees "to reduce costs for the entities in the trade community that are the most compliant with the customs and trade laws of the United States," and also to ensure that all entities with a stake in CBP clearing packages pay for Customs services.