The Drug Enforcement Administration is proposing to list methoxetamine (MXE), a member of the arylcyclohexylamine class of drugs with dissociative anesthetic and hallucinogenic properties, similar to phencyclidine (PCP) and ketamine, under Schedule I of the Controlled Substances Act, it said in a notice released Dec. 6. “If finalized, this action would impose the regulatory controls and administrative, civil, and criminal sanctions applicable to schedule I controlled substances on persons who handle (manufacture, distribute, reverse distribute, import, export, engage in research, conduct instructional activities or chemical analysis with, or possess), or propose to handle, methoxetamine.” Comments are due by Feb. 7.
More than 80 agricultural trade groups this week urged the House to pass the Ocean Shipping Reform Act of 2021 (see 2108100011), saying the global transportation “crisis” has “become increasingly dire each month. The bill, which could address unreasonable fees imposed by ocean carriers, is expected to receive a House vote this week. “As the ocean transport crisis deepens, this vote comes not a moment too soon,” the groups said in a Dec. 6 statement signed by the Agriculture Transportation Coalition, the National Pork Producers Council, the U.S. Dairy Export Council and others. “We ask every member of Congress to support the nation’s agriculture community by voting in favor of this bill.”
The Federal Maritime Commission will hold the first meeting of its maritime data initiative (see 2111160006) Dec. 7, which will examine how data constraints are impeding ocean cargo flow and feature the White House's top port adviser. Officials at the meeting -- including John Porcari, port envoy for the White House’s Supply Chain Disruptions Task Force -- will also discuss “the need for data standards and transparency to improve supply chain efficiency,” the FMC said. The virtual meeting will begin at 1 p.m. EST.
The Drug Enforcement Administration is setting 2022 quotas for the manufacture and importation of controlled substances in Schedules I and II of the Controlled Substances Act (see 2110150008), it said in a notice set for publication Dec. 2. Substances not listed in the table included in DEA's notice will have a quota of zero. DEA is also setting quotas for the Schedule I chemicals ephedrine, phenylpropanolamine and pseudoephedrine.
The Federal Trade Commission ordered Walmart, Amazon, Kroger, Procter & Gamble, Tyson Foods, Kraft Heinz and three wholesale grocery firms to detail "the primary factors disrupting their ability to obtain, transport and distribute their products; the impact these disruptions are having in terms of delayed and canceled orders, increased costs and prices; the products, suppliers and inputs most affected; and the steps the companies are taking to alleviate disruptions; and how they allocate products among their stores when they are in short supply."
Perth USAsia Centre, a think tank that focuses on relationships between Australia, the U.S. and Asian countries, and the Asia Society Policy Institute say that while the World Trade Organization is not well-equipped to combat trade coercion, there are international approaches that could make the tactic more costly for perpetrators and help injured companies that are hurt by the coercion.
A new effort by the Federal Maritime Commission will examine how “data constraints” are impeding ocean cargo flow and slowing U.S. supply chains, the FMC announced Nov. 15. The effort, which Commissioner Carl Bentzel will lead, will eventually propose recommendations for “common data standards” used by the international shipping supply chains as well as new policies that could “streamline information sharing,” the FMC said.
The Federal Maritime Commission is investigating whether Hapag-Lloyd violated Shipping Act regulations by imposing unfair detention fees on containers that couldn’t be returned to a terminal, the FMC said in a notice released Nov. 16. The commission said Hapag-Lloyd, A.G. and Hapag-Lloyd (America) LLC may have imposed unreasonable or unjust charges on containers “when return locations with corresponding appointments were unavailable,” the FMC said. The investigation order was formally served Nov. 10. Hapag-Lloyd didn’t comment.
The Fish and Wildlife Service is issuing a final rule listing the Atlantic pigtoe, (Fusconaia masoni), a freshwater mussel species from Virginia and North Carolina, as threatened under the Endangered Species Act. Listing includes a 4(d) rule for this species that prohibits importation and exportation without a permit. New import and export restrictions set by the agency’s final rule take effect Dec. 16.
The Federal Trade Commission will vote at a Nov. 18 open meeting on whether to issue orders to large retailers and consumer goods suppliers to study the competition impact of supply chain disruptions, the agency said Nov. 10. The FTC Act Section 6(b) study would “focus on why these disruptions occur, whether they are leading to specific bottlenecks, shortages, anticompetitive practices, or contributing to rising consumer prices.”