The President has issued a Proclamation to amend the Harmonized Tariff Schedule to implement the U.S. - Peru Trade Promotion Agreement (Free Trade Agreement, PFTA), effective for goods entered or withdrawn from warehouse for consumption on or after February 1, 2009.
Forced Labor
CBP is the primary U.S. agency tasked with combating forced labor in international trade. It is the only agency with legal authority to take enforcement action and prevent entry into domestic commerce of goods produced with forced labor. CBP combats forced labor by issuing Withhold Release Orders (WROs) and Findings, and enforcement of the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA), and Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA). Goods subject to WROs and Findings, UFLPA, and CAATSA status cannot be entered at any ports of the U.S.
The Department of Labor's Bureau of International Labor Affairs (ILAB) has issued a notice requesting information, for use in preparing the eighth annual report, regarding the implementation of international commitments to eliminate the worst forms of child labor by countries seeking benefits under the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP), Caribbean Basin Trade and Partnership Act (CBTPA), the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA), and the Andean Trade Preference Act as amended and expanded by the Andean Trade Promotion and Drug Eradication Act (ATPA/ATPDEA).
Labor Dept Requests Information on Forced Child Labor in the Production of Certain Products in China
The Department of Labor's Bureau of International Labor Affairs has issued a notice requesting information to assist it in conducting a review of a submission on forced child labor in the production of bricks, coal, foundry products, chemicals, cotton, grape products, toys, and fireworks in China.
The International Longshore & Warehouse Union caucus delegates voted unanimously on August 21, 2008 to send the proposed contract to the membership for their review and vote. (ILWU notice available at http://contract2008.org/.)
On July 8, 2008, the House agreed to the Senate's version of H.R. 802, the Maritime Pollution Prevention Act of 2008, which would require the Coast Guard and the Environmental Protection Agency to prescribe regulations to implement vessel air emission standards and requirements that are outlined under Annex VI to the MARPOL Convention. This clears the measure for the President. (Congressional Record, dated 07/08/08, available at http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/B?r110:@FIELD(FLD003d)@FIELD(DDATE20080708))
On June 23, 2008, the Senate Appropriations Committee reported S. 3181, the fiscal year 2009 appropriations bill for the Department of Homeland Security, affecting U.S. Customs and Border Protection and Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
The Pacific Maritime Association has issued an update stating that although the six-year West Coast waterfront labor agreement expired on July 1, 2008, negotiations between the PMA and the International Longshore and Warehouse Union on a new contract will continue. The ILWU has posted a notice stating that its members will continue loading and unloading cargo while meetings on a new labor agreement continue. PMA notes that although the ILWU has stated that work will continue as normal as they negotiate, the ILWU did not agree to a formal extension of the contract and its no strike clause and arbitration procedures for resolving workplace disputes, including the tactic of slowdowns. (PMA update, dated 07/02/08, available at http://www.pmanet.org/?cmd=main.content&id_content=2142608144. ILWU statement, dated 07/02/08, available at http://contract2008.org/)
The Department of Health and Human Services has issued a news release announcing that the Bush Administration is amending its budget request for fiscal year 2009 to include an additional $275 million for the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. HHS also posted a fact sheet on investing in FDA's transformation. (HHS press release, dated 06/09/08, available at http://www.hhs.gov/news/press/2008pres/06/20080609a.html; HHS fact sheet, dated 06/09/08, available at http://www.hhs.gov/news/facts/fdatransformation.html.)
On March 14, 2008, President Bush signed into law S. 2745, a bill that extends certain aspects of the Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002 (2002 Farm Bill) to April 18, 2008 (from March 15, 2008), including funding for certain trade programs. (See ITT's Online Archives or 03/14/08 news, 08031415, for BP summary of the House and Senate passage of S. 2745.) (White House press release, dated 03/14/08, available at http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2008/03/20080314-9.html.)
Business Week reports that inflation has hit China in recent months, hurting margins, forcing price increases on some products, and putting pressure on companies to find new ways to cut costs. This will in turn affect U.S. manufacturers that have come to rely on inexpensive Chinese labor to help keep costs low, an advantage they passed along to U.S. consumers in the costs of finished products. (Business Week, dated 03/02/08, available via email by sending a request to documents@brokerpower.com)