The Transpacific Stabilization Agreement has issued a press release announcing that its lines have adopted a voluntary guideline across-the-board increase of $500 per 40-foot container, with proportionate increases for other equipment sizes, to take effect August 10, 2009. The increase will apply to rates for all commodities and all U.S destinations. TSA notes that in certain cases, it will be necessary for lines to engage with shippers in a renegotiation of contracts that do not provide for some form of interim rate adjustment. (TSA press release, dated 07/07/09, available by emailing documents@brokerpower.com.)
In response to a question about the Buy American policy posed at a press conference in Canada, Secretary of State Clinton stated that the Buy American provision is not being enforced in any way that is inconsistent with U.S. international trade obligations. She acknowledged the concerns that there may be elements of the international trade obligations or absences of agreements that should be looked at so that the U.S. can promote more procurement and other kinds of trade interactions and assured Canadian officials that the U.S. will take a very close look at that. (Press briefing, dated 06/13/09, available at http://www.state.gov/secretary/rm/2009a/06/124717.htm.)
The President, after reviewing the findings and recommendations of a Presidential Study Directive on how the White House should be organized to deal with the critical issues of homeland security and counterterrorism, announced a new approach which will strengthen U.S. security and the safety of its citizens. (White House statement, dated 05/26/09, available at http://www.whitehouse.gov/the_press_office/Statement-by-the-President-on-the-White-House-Organization-for-Homeland-Security-and-Counterterrorism/.)
The White House has posted a joint press conference transcript and a fact sheet related to the President's April 16, 2009 visit to Mexico.
According to a White House press briefing, on April 13, 2009, the President directed the Secretaries of State, Treasury and Commerce to carry out the actions necessary to lift all restrictions on the ability of individuals to visit family members in Cuba, and to send them remittances.
Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack testified before the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Agriculture on March 31, 2009, outlining the Administration's plans to bring reform to USDA and discussing how the President's budget will revitalize rural America. Among other things Secretary Vilsack stated that while the country as a whole has a trade deficit, agriculture has a trade surplus estimated to be $13 billion in FY 2009. (USDA, dated 03/31/09, available at http://www.usda.gov/wps/portal/!ut/p/_s.7_0_A/7_0_1OB?contentidonly=true&contentid=2009/03/0078.xml)
The Port of Los Angeles is launching an Intermodal Container Incentive Program that will pay shipping companies $20 per TEU for each additional container they bring into the Port by rail that exceeds their 2008 level. The new incremental incentive program, which begins on May 1, 2009, is expected to cost $900,000. (Port of Los Angeles news release, dated 03/20/09, available at http://www.portoflosangeles.org/newsroom/2009_releases/news_032009_rail_incentive.asp)
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/.
On March 18, 2009, the Mexican Government published a notice in its Diario Oficial (Mexico's version of the Federal Register) announcing the imposition of higher tariffs on certain U.S. origin products in response to the U.S. cancellation of the U.S.-Mexico cross-border trucking pilot1.
Senator Robert Menendez (D) sent a letter to Secretary of Homeland Security Napolitano expressing concern about her testimony which doubted the Department of Homeland Security would be able to meet the Congressionally-mandated July 2012 deadline for 100% scanning. Menendez urges the DHS Secretary to do everything she can to either ensure the July 2012 deadline is fully met or that significant progress towards fulfilling the mandate is achieved. (Menendez press release and letter available at http://menendez.senate.gov/newsroom/record.cfm?id=309058)