1. CBP to Report to Congress on SFI in April and October
The Transportation Security Administration has issued a press release stating that to meet the 9/11 law's requirement for 100% screening of air cargo on passenger planes by 2010, a new Certified Cargo Screening Program (CCSP) office will allow the aviation and cargo industries to assume direct responsibility for screening, which could be done at factories and warehouses, with phase one of the program beginning in 2008. (TSA press release, dated 01/03/08, available at http://www.tsa.gov/press/happenings/aircargo_security.shtm )
The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Food and Safety Inspection Service has posted a revised directive (5420.4, Revision 4) which details the procedures that its Office of International Affairs (OIA) Import Inspection Division (IID) field personnel are to follow when the Department of Homeland Security declares a threat condition Yellow (Elevated), Orange (High), or Red (Severe).
The New York Times reports that China recently stated it would introduce production guidelines for seafood, covering more than 100 categories from breeding fish and seafood products to disease prevention and drug controls. (New York Times, dated 12/27/07, available at http://www.nytimes.com/2007/12/27/business/worldbusiness/27cnd-fish.html)
The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service has issued a final rule, effective August 17, 2007, that amends 7 CFR Parts 305, 319, and 352 by revising, reorganizing, and making substantive changes to the regulations pertaining to the prevention of pests in imported fresh fruits and vegetables.
Reuters reports that the World Trade Organization decision on the amount of retaliation that Antigua and Barbuda can impose on the U.S. as a result of a gambling trade dispute has been postponed. (See ITT's Online Archives or 07/17/07 news, 07071715, for BP summary of a U.S. Trade Representative notice on U.S. compensation talks with 8 countries due to the dispute, with links to previous summaries.) (Reuters, dated 12/14/07, available at http://today.reuters.com/news/articlenews.aspx?type=internetNews&storyid=2007-12-14T190520Z_01_N14311323_RTRUKOC_0_US-USA-TRADE-GAMBLING.xml)
American Shipper reports that U.S. Customs and Border Protection Deputy Commissioner Jayson Ahern stated that container security device applications are being looked at for cross-border truck traffic from Mexico, in-bond movements, the Secure Freight Initiative (SFI), and Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism (C-TPAT) program. (AS, dated 12/07/07, www.americanshipper.com)
The General Services Administration has posted to its RegInfo.gov Web site the semi-annual regulatory agendas for Federal government agencies.
The State Department's Washington File reports that Congress has sent President Bush the Peru Trade Promotion Agreement (PTPA) Act for his signature, which is expected. A Presidential Proclamation is still needed for implementation. (Washington File, dated 12/07/07, available at http://usinfo.state.gov/xarchives/display.html?p=washfile-english&y=2007&m=December&x=20071205114240AKllennoCcM0.5224726 )
Japan's Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) has issued a press release announcing that in November it met with the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) for the first Japan-U.S. Conference on Product Safety, with discussions on an accident information reporting system, among other things. (METI press release, dated 11/20/07, available at http://www.meti.go.jp/english/newtopics/data/nBackIssue20071120_01.html)