International Trade Today is providing readers with the top stories from last week in case they were missed. All articles can be found by searching on the titles or by clicking on the hyperlinked reference number.
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.
As USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service prepares for the Dec. 1 enforcement of the seventh phase of Lacey Act import declaration requirements (see 2405300052), officials already are eyeing the challenges that may come in implementing Phase VIII.
CBP issued the following releases on commercial trade and related matters:
Washington state importer Tip the Scale, doing businesses as L & D Kitchen and Bath, pleaded guilty and was sentenced on June 14 for "making false declarations" on the "species and harvest location" of timber it used in its wooden cabinets and vanities, DOJ announced.
International Trade Today is providing readers with the top stories from last week in case they were missed. All articles can be found by searching on the titles or by clicking on the hyperlinked reference number.
CBP issued the following releases on commercial trade and related matters:
The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service plans to begin its seventh phase of enforcement of Lacey Act import declaration requirements on Dec. 1, it said in a notice that includes a list of tariff provisions included under phase seven and seeks comments on product coverage.
A bipartisan bill to amend the Lacey Act was introduced in the House of Representatives, and it would add a ban on import and export of "prohibited primate species." The bill's text was published this week. Reps. Earl Blumenauer, D-Ore., Nancy Mace, R-S.C., Brian Fitzpatrick, R-Pa., and Joe Neguse, D-Colo., were the original sponsors; 15 other co-sponsors have joined the bill since its introduction.
FORT LAUDERDALE -- The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service will “hopefully” publish its notice launching Phase VII of Lacey Act Enforcement “in the next two-ish months,” said Erin Otto, of the agency’s Lacey Act program, on April 16. That will trigger a six-month countdown until full enforcement of Phase VII, which covers all non-composite plant products that Lacey Act requirements haven't previously covered.
Arthur "Jack" Schubarth, a Montana rancher, pleaded guilty March 12 to conspiring to violate the Lacey Act and to violating the Lacey Act by illegally importing wildlife from Kyrgyzstan, DOJ announced. Schubarth worked for nearly a decade as part of a scheme to "create giant sheep hybrids" in the U.S. with the goal of selling them to "captive hunting facilities," DOJ said. He faces a maximum of five years in prison for each count and a fine of up to $250,000.