Forty-six U.S. business executives will join Commerce Secretary Locke in China and Indonesia May 15-25 on the first cabinet-level trade mission of the Obama administration. Locke will lead American companies on this clean energy mission to advance their export opportunities and support American jobs. (Release, dated 05/04/10, available at http://www.commerce.gov/NewsRoom/PressReleases_FactSheets/PROD01_009210)

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration has issued an emergency declaration stating that motor carriers and drivers transporting (i) specialized equipment to seal the ruptured well head and to effect other immediate and necessary repairs of the oil well and/or adjacent pipelines, (ii) booms, skimmers, chemical dispersants, flammable liquids and other oil containment equipment, or (iii) other equipment, supplies and materials used to provide direct assistance for emergency relief efforts related to the above oil spill are exempt from 49 CFR Parts 390-399 from 2:00 p.m. EDT, April 30, 2010, until 11:59 p.m. EDT, May 14, 2010. (Declaration, dated 04/30/10, available at http://www.fmcsa.dot.gov/rules-regulations/Oil-Spill-Emergency-Declaration.aspx)

The Justice Department has intervened in a whistleblower lawsuit against Kellogg Brown & Root (KBR), Panalpina Inc. and others that alleges that employees of two freight forwarders doing business with the companies provided unlawful kickbacks to KBR transportation department employees. The government will seek damages and penalties under the False Claims Act and common law, as well as penalties under the Anti-Kickback Act. (DOJ press release, dated 05/05/10, available at http://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/2010/May/10-civ-529.html)

The International Trade Administration has issued its preliminary results of the following antidumping duty administrative reviews:

The International Trade Administration has made a preliminary affirmative antidumping determination that certain coated paper suitable for high-quality print graphics using sheet-fed presses from China is being, or is likely to be, sold in the U.S. at less than fair value (A-570-958).

The Directorate of Defense Trade Controls has revised its Guidelines for Completion of Export and Temporary Import License Applications in order to add guidance on the use of individual names.

The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative has announced the country-specific allocations for the recently announced increase to the fiscal year 2010 in-quota tariff-rate quota quantity for imported raw cane sugar.

In its May 5, 2010 open Commission meeting, the Consumer Product Safety Commission unanimously approved publication of four proposed rules in the Federal Register, including the proposed "15 Month" rule¹ on testing and labeling, the related proposed rule on component testing, and proposed “15(j)” rules for drawstrings and hand-held hairdryers.

Broker Power recently reported that the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service’s April 2010 version of its Lacey Act Primer indicates that units of measure such as pieces (pcs) or planks are no longer allowed to be used on the Lacey Act declaration for imported plants and plant products.

The Foreign Agriculture Service issued the following GAIN reports: