2012 Export Reform Event Tonight!

With Special Guest: Under Secretary Hirschorn, US Dept. of Commerce

Date: Tuesday, April 24th, 2012
Time: Networking and refreshments at 6:30pm. Program commences at 7:00pm.
Location: Law offices of Baker & McKenzie in the Grace Building, 1114 Avenue of the Americas (the entrance is on 42nd Street directly across from Bryant Park.) New York, NY

Come learn about President Obama’s Export Control Reform Initiative which is described as being a common sensed approach to overhauling the nation’s aged export control system.

The Administration has determined that fundamental reform of the current system is necessary to enhance our national security by (i) focusing resources on the threats that matter most, (ii) increasing inter-operability with our Allies, and (iii) strengthening the U.S. defense industrial base by reducing incentives for foreign manufacturers to design out and avoid using U.S. parts and components.

Under Secretary Hirschhorn was appointed by President Barack Obama to be an Under Secretary of Commerce, heading the Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS), on March 29, 2010. Mr. Hirschhorn was sworn in April 2, 2010.Prior to his appointment, Mr. Hirschhorn was a partner in the Washington, D.C. office of Winston & Strawn LLP. Mr. Hirschhorn oversees the Commerce agency that advances U.S. national security, foreign policy and economic objectives by ensuring an effective export control and treaty compliance system and by promoting U.S. strategic technology leadership.

For more information and to register go to www.owitny.org or click here. 

Cost: $20 for OWIT-NY members, students and government employees
$25 for non-members.

Registration is required in order to enter the building.

Hope to see you there!

Why Are Imports Stopped at the Border?

The only way to really answer this question is to first ask: “What is
being imported?”

This is because there are a limitless number of reasons why cargo is
stopped before entry takes place – and when I say “entry,” I mean both
physical entry into the territory of the U.S. as well as “entry” in
the Customs-ease sense of the word.  (For more info. on entry, click
here.)

This results, in part, from requirements mandated by other US federal
agencies, for which US Customs has oversight over compliance on
imported merchandise.  Examples would include proper labeling on
apparel articles (Federal Trade Commission), the requisite licenses
for vehicles (Dept. of Transportation), food stuffs (Food and Drug
Administration) for purposes of quality/pest extermination issues, and
the Drug Enforcement Administration due to a concern about chemicals
being imported for pharmaceutical use but ultimately ending up in the
hands of illegal drug manufacturers, and the list goes on and on.

Since the examination of imports takes up a lot of Customs resources,
an alternative to that is flagging a shipment for “doc review,” which
requires the shipping records together with the entry to be delivered
to Customs for an analysis of the documents.

A variety of factors could contribute to a shipment being questioned
such as a change in a supplier, an odd routing for the transport of
the cargo, a suspect manufacturer, a suspect importer, a commodity
being shipped that is not typically one imported by the importer, and
so on and so forth.

Shipments are viewed by US Customs as a “mosaic,” that is, there are a multitude of flags that may be raised with respect to cargo starting from the time it arrives at the foreign port.  As a shipment is looked at in its “totality,” when enough points have accrued, then US Customs’ system generates an instruction for something as hands-off as a “doc review” to something as hands-on as an intensive physical exam.

These flags can be raised, and a “hold” placed on the goods for an
exam, long before entry is ever attempted to be made – something to
keep in mind should you unknowingly get involved with suspect cargo
after-the-fact.

Questions/comments?  Post below or email me at clark.deanna@gmail.com

Saying "Yes" - Importing Wedding Gowns

Going with a friend to try on wedding gowns proved to be a great opportunity to learn more about their importation. Most dresses are in limited sizes within a store and cannot merely be purchased on the spot and taken home by the consumer on the same day.

In fact, it is not uncommon to find the dress (“the one,” that is) and then the gown shop sends the order electronically to the manufacturer for it to be made.

Though I found myself at a bridal store recently that does offer styles “off the rack” – which it turns out are often sold to foreigners who then take it back to their home country for proper fitting – the bulk of their dresses likewise needed to be special ordered.

Given the sheer size of many of the dresses with their multiple layers of fabric, I thought that the dresses may have been containerized as hanging garments. Completed dresses are instead however, shipped folded in a plastic bag with a bubble packaged wrapping on its exterior.

In terms of shipping volumes and making the most effective “stuffing” of a container, this actually makes sense when you look at it in terms of freight costs.

After traveling by vessel (or air if it is a "rush job"), they come into distribution centers from the port and are thereafter trucked to their appropriate store destination.

Upon arrival at the store roughly two (2) to three (3) months later, they are then removed from the packaging and hung on a hanger upon arrival to the shop.

Wedding gowns have special labeling requirements under the Federal Trade Commission’s regulations and the Textile Act. Therefore, any gowns sold in the US or imported here must abide by this agency’s apparel rules.

You can learn more about these at the Federal Trade Commission’s website at www.ftc.gov.

Questions/comments? Post below or email me at clark.deanna@gmail.com

Interagency Import Safety

With import safety being a priority trade issue, US Customs works with other “import safety agencies,” or in other words, agencies with statutory responsibilities for public safety, in order to protect US consumers from unsafe imports.

Agencies with Statutory Responsibilities for Public Safety include:

• Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives (ATF) www.atf.gov/about/

• Animal Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) www.aphis.usda.gov/

• Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) www.cpsc.gov/

• Customs and Border Protection (CBP) www.cbp.gov/

• Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) www.epa.gov/

• Food and Drug Administration (FDA) www.fda.gov/

• Food Safety Inspection Service (FSIS) www.fsis.usda.gov/

• Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE) www.ice.gov/

• National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) www.nhtsa.gov/

• National Marine Fisheries Services (NMFS) www.nmfs.noaa.gov/

• Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) www.phmsa.dot.gov/

To support this effort amongst these safety agencies, an interagency import safety agreement was signed by leaders of these federal agencies to:

- Create an interagency forum of senior representatives dedicated to import safety cooperation;

- Support information sharing across federal agencies involved in import safety concerns;

- Enhance efforts to help the private sector comply with import safety requirements;

- Develop common systems to exchange information;

- Create consistent enforcement measures to deter imports of unsafe products; and,

- To use risk-management strategies to streamline lawful trade.

Interagency import safety collaboration assists US Custom’s mission to identify trusted and lawful shipments as early and as far any from the physical borders of the US as possible.

This allows US Customs to focus resources on higher risk shipments and prevent entry of dangerous and illicit items.

For more information about US Customs and interagency safety collaborations click here.

Questions/comments? Post below or email me at clark.deanna@gmail.com