CBP issued the following releases on commercial trade and related matters:

The coming ACE protest module mentioned in a recent Federal Register notice (see 1607270015) will only be available through the ACE portal, CBP said in a CSMS message (here). Another Federal Register notice is coming that will detail how to create an ACE portal protest account, CBP said.

International Trade Today is providing readers with some of the top stories for July 25-29 in case they were missed.

The National Marine Fisheries Service issued a final rule (here) that will consolidate existing import, export and re-export permits for filing in CBP’s Automated Commercial Environment. Under the new regulations, currently separate permits and documentation for the Antarctic Marine Living Resources (AMLR) and the Highly Migratory Species International Trade Permit (HMS ITP) programs must be filed in ACE under a single International Fisheries Trade Permit (IFTP), via both data elements and scanned images. Non-resident importers will have to go through a registered agent residing in the U.S. to obtain an IFTP. NMFS is also finalizing new permit requirements for seafood products regulated under the Tuna Tracking and Verification Program (TTVP), also under the consolidated IFTP procedures. The final rule takes effect Sept. 20.

CBP issued the following releases on commercial trade and related matters:

CBP is “headed in the right direction” as it works to resolve ACE system performance issues causing some concern in the trade community, the agency’s chief information officer, Phil Landfried, said at the July 27 meeting of the Customs Commercial Operations Advisory Committee (COAC). The agency is “not at 100 percent,” and “probably never will be,” but it’s “trying to get as close” as possible, he said. CBP will be deploying a performance dashboard “over the next couple of days” on its website, giving filers a way to see whether any issues they’re experiencing are systemwide, Landfried said. “If you’re seeing a slow response and we’re reporting green” on a red-yellow-green scale “then obviously there’s a disconnect there, and we should be able to address those right away.”

CBP issued the following releases on commercial trade and related matters:

There are ongoing discussions of how to best pay for future development of the International Trade Data System and ACE, said Christa Brzozowski, deputy assistant secretary for trade policy at the Department of Homeland Security. "We've been having some interesting discussions with [the Office of Management and Budget] on funding models, how to make this something of a collective funding scheme to make sure we can do more than maintenance and current operations and really accommodate trade, PGA and CBP needs in the out years," she said. "Institutionalizing the governance and the funding structure are critical elements," she said. Brzozowski described some of the future considerations for ITDS and ACE during the July 27 Commercial Customs Operations Advisory Committee (COAC) meeting in Boston. While the Border Interagency Executive Council is focused on ITDS, "frankly there's a lot of fatigue on this issue," so "we need to push past that going into the next year," she said.

The Environmental Protection Agency is establishing formaldehyde emissions standards and import certifications for composite wood products, in a final rule (here) that awaits publication in the Federal Register. Under the new regulations, required under a 2010 law that amended the Toxic Substances Control Act (see 10070920), importers will have to submit TSCA certifications for covered products, including for "articles," which are not usually covered by TSCA certification requirements. The final rule also sets recordkeeping requirements for manufacturers and importers, and creates a new third-party certification system for composite wood products. Compliance with the final rule is required in one year for most provisions, two years for importer certification requirements, and seven years for some provisions that apply to laminated wood.

Treasury's Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) is seeking comments on a proposed new information collection method it is submitting to the Office of Management and Budget that will allow it to collect import data through ACE, it said (here). The information collection for the ACE alternate method form would cover what data to submit through ACE under the "alternate" electronic (i.e., in lieu of paper) method for submitting partner government agency (PGA) message set data. Most of the information TTB will require in ACE is already required by TTB regulations, but there are also additional requirements, TTB said. Comments should be submitted by Aug. 27.