CBP released several documents outlining the agency's plans and expectations for operations following the budget cuts that took effect March 1. The agency will allow for operations as usual for Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism (C-TPAT) and the Air Cargo Advance Screening (ACAS), the agency said. CBP has said it will continue to keep security, including radiation portal monitors, as a top priority during the cuts, but that trade processing could see major delays as a result of CBP furlough and cuts to overtime expenses. A list of CBP's trade priorities following sequestration is (here).
Automated Commercial Environment (ACE)
The Automated Commercial Environment (ACE) is the CBP's electronic system through which the international trade community reports imports and exports and the government determines admissibility.
CBP posted updated documents providing overviews of the Automated Commercial Environment (ACE) and its benefits for various industries. The updates are minimal.
The Import Administration is working closely with partner agencies including CBP and Immigration and Customs Enforcement to fight antidumping and countervailing duty evasion and fraud schemes, said Assistant Secretary Paul Piquado at Georgetown Law School’s 2013 International Trade Update Conference in Washington, D.C., Feb. 28. A key tool in this cooperation is the Automated Commercial Environment, he said. The collaboration has resulted in several successful criminal prosecutions related to duty evasion and fraud, he said. (Import Administration is the unit within the International Trade Administration tasked with administering AD/CV duties.)
The planned budget cuts of sequestration set to hit the U.S. government March 1 will likely slow down the processing of ruling requests from those involved in international trade, said Al Gina, assistant commissioner in the CBP Office of International Trade. Gina spoke Feb. 28 at the International Consumer Product Health and Safety Organization conference in Arlington, Va. CBP has previously said it expects some slowdown to trade processing at the border and potentially some cutbacks on intellectual property rights enforcement and its efforts toward the Automated Commercial Environment (ACE) as a result of sequestration.
CBP is surveying importers, brokers, carriers about use of the Automated Commercial Environment, the agency said in a CSMS message. The survey will help CBP formally gauge the areas where ACE is doing well and where improvement is needed, the agency said. The survey is (here).
CBP posted a February version of its list of trade benefits for participants in the Automated Commercial Environment (ACE) by industry segment. Specific benefits are listed for Customs brokers, importers, self-filers, sureties, carriers, trade account owners (TAOs), as well as all users with portal accounts, for (1) ACE Secure Data Portal, (2) Periodic Monthly Statement, (3) ACE Reports, (4) Cargo Release/Simplified Entry, (5) Entry Summary Filing (6) Document Image System, (7) Post Summary Corrections, (8) e-Manifest: Truck and (9) e-Manifest: Rail and Sea.
CBP resolved technical problems when processing Automated Commercial System and Automated Commercial Environment entry summaries, said CBP in a CSMS message.
The planned budget cuts set to take effect March 1 would immediately force CBP to cut back on overtime and will likely result in longer wait times, the agency told industry stakeholders during a Feb. 22 conference call to discuss sequestration. According to the National Customs Brokers and Forwarders Association of America (NCBFAA), while uncertainty remains on the details of how CBP's operations will continue following the cuts, the agency was anxious to provide its plans for international trade processing.
CBP released a list of its near term priorities for development for the Automated Commercial Environment (ACE). The agency document said work on three items previously mentioned to be priorities, the Participating Government Agency (PGA) Message Set, automated corrections/deletions, and initial entry summary edits, will begin with "agile pilots." CBP also listed some priorities planned for the second half of the year, including PGA message set integration and entry integration with in-bond.
CBP announced the location and agenda for the next meeting of the Advisory Committee on Commercial Operations (COAC), March 6 at 1 p.m. (ET) in Washington, D.C. Online registration for webcast and in-person participation is available through March 4, said a Feb. 19 notice.