FMC Holds Hearings on Enforcement
The Federal Maritime Commissions (FMC) has held hearings on enforcement activities that included prioritizing enforcement efforts dealing with ocean carrier behavior in compliance, particularly with the guideline that the FMC issued in 2020. Personnel from the Bureau of Enforcement covered how they are meeting the direction from Chairman Maffei on enforcement efforts on unreasonable demurrage and detention practices. A notice on the meeting can be found on the FMC website.
CBP Issues a Best Practice Document on Preparing for an Audit
U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has issued a document as a best practice framework for importers to assist in preparing for an audit. This simple document is intended to provide the importing community some general guidance for the trade to focus on specific aspects to look at on its preparation for an audit. It emphasizes four core areas that importers should focus their efforts on: Compliance, Social Responsibility, Traceability, and Remediation. The document can be found at CBP’s website.
Timing on the Uygher Forced Labor Prevention Act
We are receiving a lot of questions on what will be required for filing entries on goods from Xinjiang Uygher Region. The new law requires documentation for shipments from that region will be needed for entry and that U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) issue instructions before the effective date of the law, which is Tuesday, June 21, 2022. CBP is currently working on a Federal Register Notice, and they expect it to be issued by the end of April.
Shenzhen Covid Lockdown May Mean Cargo Delivery Delays
There has been a covid lockdown in the area around Shenzhen, China. The lockdown is expected to last through next week. This will have an impact on manufacturing in the area. Shenzhen is the center of electronics production in China. The actual production will be affected if parts and components cannot get to the factories and the factories have to lower production. This could lead to delays in delivery of products to the Yantian Port. Importers should check the carriers regularly to see if their cargo was timey delivered to the Port, if the ship booked to carry it has received it, and if the container is onboard.
San Pedro Bay Ports Will Begin Clean Truck Fund Collection
The Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach will begin collecting a Clean Truck Fund (CTF) fee beginning on April 1, 2022. The fee will be $10.00 per TEU on loaded import and export containers that are hauled by a drayage trucker as the container enters or leaves the terminals.
The fee will help subsidize the Ports’ goal for zero-emission truck drayage by 2035. The CTF rate was created to help fund the changeover to cleaner trucks serving the ports in the San Pedro Bay. The fees will be collected through Portcheck, a private firm chosen by the ports.
Exemptions to the CTF fee will be provided for containers hauled by a zero-emission truck. Information on the fee can be found on a fact sheet here.