U.S. Customs and Border Protection has posted an updated version of its recently issued Participating Government Agencies Customs and Trade Automated Interface Requirements (CATAIR) chapter.
Lacey Act
The Lacey Act and subsequent amendments make it unlawful to import, export, transport, sell, receive, or acquire any plant, fish or wildlife obtained in violation of U.S., tribal or foreign law, as well as any injurious wildlife. The law is administered by the Fish and Wildlife Service, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service and CBP. APHIS has been implementing Lacey Act declaration requirements since 2009. Lacey Act declarations may be filed by the importer of record or its licensed customs broker, and include information on imported item's species name, value, quantity, and country where it was harvested.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection has issued a CSMS message stating that the code to accept the Lacey Act data was successfully deployed the morning of April 1, 2009 to both the Production and Certification regions. CBP notes that it has already received a number of entries containing Lacey Act data and that the application is working in good form. (CSMS 09-000156, dated 04/01/09, available at http://apps.cbp.gov/csms/viewmssg.asp?Recid=17544&page=&srch_argv=09-000156&srchtype=all&btype=&sortby=&sby)
U.S. Customs and Border Protection and the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service have issued instructions regarding the submission of the automated and paper versions of the Lacey Act Amendments Plant and Plant Products Declaration (PPQ 505).
According to several sources, U.S. Customs and Border Protection may soon announce a one month delay - until May 1, 2009 - of its enforcement of the Lacey Act Amendments declaration requirement for certain wood and wood articles classified in HTS Chapter 44 that are imported by rail or truck.
The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service has updated certain instructions that appear on PPQ Form 505, the Lacey Act Amendments Plant and Plant Product Declaration (for imported plants and plant products), since its original December 2008 posting.
According to Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service sources, the Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN) Taxonomy for Plants1 is often a better tool for helping to determine the correct plant genus and species for the Lacey Act Amendments than the Plant Genus and Species Look Up provided on APHIS' Lacey Act Web page.
The White House has posted remarks by the Vice President at the swearing-in of former Dallas Mayor Ron Kirk as U.S. Trade Representative on March 20, 2009. In his remarks, the Vice President emphasized that the USTR's mission is to blaze a trail beyond our borders and come up with innovative ways for our trade policies to inspire a new environment of basic fairness. (Vice President's remarks, dated 03/20/09, available at http://www.whitehouse.gov/the_press_office/Remarks-by-Vice-President-Biden-at-the-Swearing-in-of-United-States-Representative-Ron-Kirk/.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection has made available through a recent Webinar1 a March 17, 2009 PowerPoint presentation containing updated information on the Lacey Act Amendments declaration requirement for imported plant and plant products.
CBP Issues Sample Message Sets for Lacey Act Amendments Data (Phase II Enforcement Begins April 1st)
U.S. Customs and Border Protection has posted examples of PGA CATAIR Chapter message sets using the HI, HN and EI applications, that CBP will accept for entries that contain the Lacey Act Amendments declaration data for imported plants and plant products.
CBP has posted a presentation providing an update on ESAR A2.2 (the Initial Entry Summary Types release) and A2.3.1 (the Harmonized Tariff Schedule (HTS), Antidumping/Countervailing Duty (AD/CVD) release) that was given at the March 3-4, 2009 Trade Support Network meeting. (See ITT's Online Archives or 03/04/09 news, 09030425 4, for BP summary of other documents from the March TSN meeting.) (See future issue of ITT for details.) (Presentation, posted 03/06/09, available at http://www.cbp.gov/linkhandler/cgov/trade/automated/modernization/trade_support_network/session_highlights/march_2009_tsn/esar_update.ctt/esar_update.pdf)