CBP has begun a “significant communications outreach” to the trade community on forced labor in the wake of the recent passage of a law that set restrictions on entry of merchandise tied to North Korean nationals, it said in a press release. The agency updated its informed compliance publication on reasonable care to include new information on forced labor, and “has engaged with the Commercial Customs Operations Advisory Committee (COAC) Forced Labor Work Group and has acted on many of its recommendations,” it said.
International Trade Today is providing readers with some of the top stories for Oct. 23-27 in case they were missed.
The Labor Department is requesting comments to inform development of the government’s 2018 edition of the List of Goods Produced by Child Labor or Forced Labor and possible updates to the List of Products Produced by Forced or Indentured Child Labor, as needed, Labor said. Labor is requesting that commenters provide information to Labor’s Office of Child Labor, Forced Labor, and Human Trafficking by 5 p.m. Jan. 12, 2018. Further, DOL seeks comments to inform the 2018 edition of the Worst Forms of Child Labor report, an annual review that fulfills a statutory mandate tasking the labor secretary with reporting findings with regard to Generalized System of Preferences countries’ implementation of international commitments to eliminate the “worst forms of child labor,” DOL said.
The Commercial Customs Operations Advisory Committee (COAC) for CBP will next meet Nov. 14 in Washington, CBP said in a notice.
CBP should update its regulations to give more details about the processing of forced labor allegations under the Trade Facilitation and Trade Enforcement Act (TFTEA), Senate Finance Committee Chairman Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, said in an opening statement at an Oct. 24 hearing on the nomination of Kevin McAleenan for CBP commissioner. The Committee's ranking member Ron Wyden, D-Ore., also sought clarity on the forced labor regulations. McAleenan said "we want to make sure we are able to apply all effective enforcement tools in the most precise and appropriate manner to this priority mission."
RANCHO MIRAGE, Calif. -- CBP is working on a standardized process for customs brokers to vet their importer clients' powers of attorney, said Julia Peterson, chief of CBP's broker management branch, at the Western Cargo Conference (WESCCON) on Oct. 13. Every importer will be required to provide the same information, and every broker required to vet the same information, which should “level the playing field” and diminish or eliminate “broker shopping,” Peterson said.
CBP is considering enforcement measures following reporting by The Associated Press that found North Koreans working in Chinese factories that produce goods for export to the U.S., an agency spokesman said in an emailed statement. The AP recently reported that North Korean laborers are working in Chinese factories that process seafood and others that make wood flooring and garments, though the AP only tracked seafood shipments from China to the U.S. President Donald Trump signed into law new sanctions against North Korea over the summer (see 1708020030) that prohibit imports of goods made using North Korean forced labor.
CBP is aiming to release rules for entry filings of goods valued under the $800 de minimis threshold "before the end of the calendar year," said Brenda Smith, executive assistant commissioner for the CBP Office of Trade, on Sept. 12 during the National Customs Brokers & Forwarders Association of America conference in Washington. CBP knows "it's a big deal" to customs brokers "whether we require the classification on all small packages," she said. It's a "thorny issue," but "I think we are close to having kind of the final conversations," so "look forward to that in the next couple months."
Multiple recommendations submitted by the Commercial Customs Operations Advisory Committee (COAC) for Section 321 entries proved to be contentious, eliciting disagreement among members during the Aug. 23 COAC meeting in San Diego. The presentation of the recommendations at the meeting included the unusual step of votes and discussions on each individual recommendation. While some of the recommendations faced opposition, all were ultimately approved by the COAC. "There's a lot of uncertainty in this area because it's a new and different model that was not necessarily envisioned or anticipated by the market, by those that are participating in it or by our government partners," said Cindy Allen, the co-chair of the Trade Modernization Subcommittee.
CBP posted more documents on the agency's website for the upcoming Commercial Customs Operations Advisory Committee (COAC) meeting on Aug. 23 in San Diego. Among other things, CBP posted draft recommendations from the International Engagement and Trade Facilitation Working Group that describe some best practices that the agency could suggest to other customs administrations. For example, CBP should advocate that other customs regimes include standard public commenting procedures for regulatory changes, implement advanced ruling programs and simplify clearance procedures.