The International Trade Commission launched its Miscellaneous Tariff Bill information website (here) to provide news on the upcoming MTB process “as it develops and solidifies.” The website will include “all key documents here as they are issued, along with informational articles, tips for filing and commenting on MTB petitions, and other useful materials,” the ITC said. Currently posted on the website are an overview of the MTB petition system and information on the timeline for the MTB process, and a recent law that overhauled the MTB process (see 1605200041). The ITC is building a web-based MTB portal to be used for filing and commenting on MTB petitions, it said: “When the petition process launches on October 14, the MTB portal will become the main MTB page.”
The Federal Trade Commission is amending its regulations on EnergyGuide labeling requirements for refrigerators, ceiling fans, central air conditioners and water heaters, in a final rule (here). The agency will also begin requiring that manufacturers submit links to an online version of a product’s EnergyGuide label to a central FTC database before distributing that product in the U.S., it said. Changes take effect June 12, 2017, except for some changes for ceiling fans that take effect Sept. 17, 2018.
The Fish and Wildlife Service issued a final rule (here) listing the white fringeless orchid (Platanthera integrilabia), a plant species from Alabama, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, South Carolina and Tennessee, as threatened under the Endangered Species Act. New import and export restrictions set by the agency’s final rule take effect Oct. 13.
The Energy Department is again proposing new energy efficiency standards for walk-in coolers and freezers (here), after standards it issued in 2014 were subsequently vacated by a federal court (see 1511100072). Once finalized, the standards will apply to all walk-in cooler and freezer refrigeration systems imported three years after publication of the final rule, DOE said.
The Federal Trade Commission is proposing to require EnergyGuide labels on portable air conditioners, large-diameter and high-speed small diameter ceiling fans, and instantaneous electric water heaters, it said (here). The FTC’s proposed rule would also eliminate some marking requirements for plumbing products. Comments are due Nov. 14.
The Drug Enforcement Administration permanently placed four synthetic cannabinoids -- PB-22, 5F-PB-22, AB-FUBINACA and ADB-PINACA -- into Schedule I of the Controlled Substances Act, in a final rule (here). Though the final rule takes effect Sept. 6, these substances were already temporarily listed in Schedule I and subject to registration, labeling, recordkeeping, and import and export requirements, the DEA said.
The Drug Enforcement Administration said it intends to temporarily add the synthetic opioid U-47700 to Schedule I of the Controlled Substances Act (here). DEA can issue a final order temporarily adding the substances after a period of 30 days passes. If issued, the final order will take effect immediately and will stay in effect for a maximum of three years, pending completion of a permanent scheduling order.
The Drug Enforcement Administration said it intends to temporarily add the opioids mitragynine and 7-hydroxymitragynine, both found in the increasingly popular drug kratom, to Schedule I of the Controlled Substances Act (here). DEA can issue a final order temporarily adding the substances after a period of 30 days passes. If issued, the final order will take effect immediately and will stay in effect for a maximum of three years, pending completion of a permanent scheduling order.
A successful Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership will require U.S. negotiators to agree to repeal Jones Act shipping competition policies and to give up some restrictions on commercial air travel and government procurement projects, said Dan Ikenson, director of the Cato Institute’s Herbert A. Stiefel Center for Trade Policy Studies, in a blog post (here). So far in TTIP negotiations, the U.S. “hasn’t budged an inch” toward any trade liberalization in those areas, he said. “Until that is no longer the case, the TTIP should be considered a failure,” Ikenson wrote. After Brexit’s aftereffects and some of the political controversy surrounding trade and TTIP de-intensifies, the U.S. and the EU should approach the negotiating table willing to liberalize all bilateral trade, “including sacred cows,” Ikenson said. Upping the ante will bring a higher level of interest, excitement and leverage needed to conclude a solid trade agreement, he said.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) will end its partner government agency message set pilot for data submission in ACE, ATF said in a notice (here). While the pilot will end as of Aug. 31, "the mandatory filing date for filing entries in ACE has yet to be determined," ATF said. The agency began the pilot last summer (see 1507290025). "Importers should be aware that no changes have been made to the requirement that importers submit their copy of the Form 6A (with Sections I and III completed) to ATF within 15 days of release from CBP custody," ATF said.