President Donald Trump’s “many tweets” and statements from his administration are strong evidence the White House unlawfully imposed the lists 3 and 4A tariffs to boost the U.S. Treasury and not curb the allegedly bad Chinese trade behavior documented in the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative’s March 2018 Section 301 investigative report. So said the lawyer for two automotive components importers making the case that the tariffs are unconstitutional because only Congress has the power of taxation.

A combination of “inconsistent reviews” and the “reliance on importers’ self-reported data” within the CBP reconciliation process leaves millions of dollars at risk, the Department of Homeland Security Office of the Inspector General said in a report released Oct. 2. “CBP also missed opportunities to maximize revenue because of inadequate reporting on importers who filed reconciliation entries late or did not file at all,” it said. CBP took issue with parts of the OIG report, it said in a response.

The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative is considering sanctions against Vietnam for importing illegal lumber to use in wood furniture and for currency manipulation that it suspects is hurting U.S. industry. The Section 301 investigations, announced the evening of Oct. 2, invite public comment on the extent of the violations, the scope of its impact on U.S. commerce, and suggestions for how to respond. Comments are due by Nov. 12.

The U.S.-Japan mini-deal is not consistent with World Trade Organization rules, a former White House trade negotiator said, so the two sides mentioned a future phase two deal to cover substantially all trade to convince Japan's parliament to pass the accord. Because of the way the deal was structured, with small tariff reductions for Japanese exporters, it did not require a vote in Congress, Clete Willems, speaking recently on a webinar for University of Nebraska students, said. In calling the mini-deal phase one, “I think both sides were playing it cute, to be honest,” Willems, now at Akin Gump, said. He said Japan was not interested in a comprehensive bilateral trade deal, because it still wants the U.S. to rejoin the Trans-Pacific Partnership.

The Commercial Customs Operations Advisory Committee (COAC) Intelligent Enforcement Subcommittee offered some broad enforcement process improvement suggestions as part of a white paper on CBP's “intelligent enforcement modernization” efforts. CBP posted the document ahead of the next COAC meeting Oct. 7. Among the “solutions” mentioned are changes to the Fines, Penalties and Forfeiture (FPF) branches and revisions to mitigation guidelines.

The thousands of complaints seeking to vacate the lists 3 and 4A Section 301 tariffs on Chinese goods and have the duties refunded warrant the Court of International Trade assigning the litigation to a three-judge panel instead of a single judge, Akin Gump said Sept. 30 on behalf of importers HMTX Industries and Jasco Products, in a court filing. The Department of Justice told Akin Gump it opposes the motion and will file a response, it said.

More than 150 exclusions from lists 1 and 2 Section 301 China tariffs are set to expire Oct. 2, after the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative declined to extend them in the days prior to their expiration.

House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, D-Md., said that a bill that overwhelmingly passed the House last week that would change the presumption of guilt for goods coming from China's Xinjiang region may not get a vote in the Senate this year. “They haven't been moving much legislation,” he told International Trade Today during a phone call with reporters Sept. 30. “We'll see when we get to the lame duck, what the status of that is.”

A New Jersey freight forwarder has agreed to shipper and importer verification requirements, as well as conditions on acting as a go-between for customs brokers and importers, as part of a settlement of a trademark suit filed by Nike in the Southern New York U.S. District Court.

International Trade Today is providing readers with the top stories from Sept. 21-25 in case they were missed. All articles can be found by searching on the titles or by clicking on the hyperlinked reference number.