U.S. Customs and Border Protection's Revenue Division Bond Team (Bond Team) has posted to its Web site its August 20, 2007 version of its Current Issues which has been updated to add a section on riders and termination requests for all CBP Form 301 continuous bonds.
The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service has issued a final rule, effective August 17, 2007, that amends 7 CFR Parts 305, 319, and 352 by revising, reorganizing, and making substantive changes to the regulations pertaining to the prevention of pests in imported fresh fruits and vegetables.
The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service has issued a final rule, effective August 17, 2007, that amends 7 CFR Parts 305, 319, and 352 by revising, reorganizing, and making substantive changes to the regulations pertaining to the prevention of pests in imported fresh fruits and vegetables.
The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service has issued a final rule, effective August 17, 2007, that amends 7 CFR Parts 305, 319, and 352 by revising, reorganizing, and making substantive changes to the regulations pertaining to the prevention of pests in imported fresh fruits and vegetables.
U.S. Customs and Border Protection has posted an updated version of its guidance document entitled "Latest News and Developments," which provides information on the Pilot Bond Centralization Program and current issues, policies, and procedures for processing Activity Code 1 continuous bond applications.
The Office of Textiles and Apparel has posted updated information in the "Hot Issues" section of its Web site regarding issues affecting U.S. textile and apparel exporters. OTEXA provides updated information searchable by country, date, etc.
On June 15, 2007, the House of Representatives passed H.R. 2638, the fiscal year (FY) 2008 appropriations bill for the Department of Homeland Security, including U.S. Customs and Border Protection, by a vote of 268 to 150. (Congressional Record dated 06/15/07, available at http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/B?r110:@FIELD(FLD003d)@FIELD(DDATE20070615).
The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service has issued an interim rule, effective June 1, 2007, which amends 7 CFR Part 319 to prohibit or restrict the importation of certain articles from Canada that present a risk of being infested with emerald ash borer (EAB).
The House Ways and Means Committee has issued a press release announcing that on May 17, 2007, a bipartisan group of 42 lawmakers filed a Section 301 petition calling on the U.S. Trade Representative to take strong action to end China's continued undervaluation of its currency, and to consider taking action against the undervalued Japanese yen. The press release notes that members of Congress filed similar requests with the Bush Administration in September 2004 and April 2005. (Committee press release, dated 05/17/07, available at http://waysandmeans.house.gov/news.asp?formmode=release&id=515.)
On April 30, 2007, the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative released its 2007 "Special 301" annual report on the adequacy and effectiveness of intellectual property rights (IPR) protection by U.S. trading partners.