International Trade Today is providing readers with the top stories from March 22-26 in case they were missed. All articles can be found by searching on the titles or by clicking on the hyperlinked reference number.

The Federal Communications Commission should strengthen the agency’s equipment authorization process to make sure no devices enter the U.S. that are produced with forced labor in China, Commissioner Brendan Carr said in a March 30 speech. The FCC's approach should align with legislation introduced by Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., earlier this year (see 2101290045), Carr said, according to a news release from his office. “We should do our part at the FCC by launching a proceeding that would update our equipment authorization rules to ensure that we are not approving any devices that have been produced with forced labor,” Carr said. “One way we can do this is by requiring every company that procures any devices or components from the [Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (XUAR)] to meet a heightened burden to ensure that their supply chain does not rely on any forced labor. Communist China must not profit from their human rights abuses.”

An importer of garments that were detained by CBP due to the suspected involvement of North Korean nationals in the production was unable to sufficiently show forced labor wasn't used, CBP said in a recently released ruling dated March 5. The use of North Korean labor is considered to be forced labor under the Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (see 1711070046). The ruling marks the first one directly focused on forced labor since 2002 (see 2001070033), according to CBP's rulings database.

The Commerce Department will delay a requirement for aluminum import licenses under its new Aluminum Import Monitoring System until June 28, CBP said in a CSMS message sent March 29. “At the request of the Department of Commerce the [Aluminum Import Monitoring] license requirement has been delayed until June 28, 2021,” CBP said. “We have updated ACE to remove the LPC requirement.”

The Department of Justice appears to be digging in for a fight over the issue of refund relief against the thousands of Section 301 plaintiffs inundating the Court of International Trade seeking to have it declare the lists 3 and 4A Chinese tariffs unlawful. The government won’t support a stipulation in which the plaintiffs, if successful in the massive litigation, could seek refunds of all tariffs paid, regardless of the imports’ liquidation status, including whether the 12-month window on protesting individual liquidations has expired, a DOJ response filed March 26 said.

Sewing thread made from polyester textured yarn is still subject to antidumping and countervailing duty orders on polyester textured yarn from India and China (A-533-885/C-533-886, A-570-097/C-570-098), the Commerce Department said in a March 22 scope ruling. The importer of the thread, American & Efird, had argued sewing thread is not subject to the AD/CVD orders, but Commerce found the duties cover polyester textured yarn in “all forms.”

Imports of disposable gloves made by Top Glove Corporation in Malaysia may be seized by CBP as of March 29 under a finding that the company uses forced labor, CBP said in a notice released March 26. CBP's finding follows a withhold release order aimed at the company's gloves in July last year (see 2007150032). A CBP official recently said more findings are likely to come (see 2103120051).

CBP's consideration of the value that would be added with continuing education for customs brokers requirements remains a “work in progress,” said Brenda Smith, CBP executive assistant commissioner-trade, during a March 25 call with reporters. Smith, whose last day before retirement is March 26 (see 2103170057), said CBP received “a lot of comments” and “across the board, there were a number of concerns that were raised that we are going to have to think through whether the value of requiring continuing professional education outweighs” the costs. “We've got some good insight into how we could analyze those costs and benefits,” she said.

CBP incorrectly reversed its own Enforce and Protect Act determination that an importer evaded antidumping duties on frozen warmwater shrimp from India, a U.S. shrimp industry group said in a complaint filed at the Court of International Trade March 23. The Ad Hoc Shrimp Trade Enforcement Committee (AHSTEC), made up of shrimp producers and wholesalers, said CBP should have stuck with its original finding that Minh Phu transshipped Indian shrimp through Vietnam, in part because the exporter did not provide enough information on its supply chain.

Advocates for seasonal workers in the U.S., on farms and in other settings, are asking the Mexican government to use USMCA's labor chapter to bring a case on gender-based discrimination in those programs. The Center for Migrant Rights announced the complaint March 23, which says that farms and other businesses prefer to recruit men, which is proven by the fact that 97% of H2A visas go to men, and 87% of H2B visas go to men. Even when women are hired, they are assigned to lower-paid positions, such as packing, rather than field work, the complaint said.