US Says Customs Brokers License Exam Questions Provided Adequate Information to Reach Correct Solutions
In response to a Georgia woman’s claim that the customs broker license exam “lacked sufficient information” on four questions, resulting in her failure to pass (see 2402160040), the U.S. said the woman was “entirely incorrect” regarding the questions’ ambiguity (Skeeter-Jo Stoute-Francois v. U.S., CIT # 24-00046).
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Applicants for a customs brokerage license must score at least 75% on the exam to pass. Skeeter-Jo Stoute-Francois brought a motion for judgment to the Court of International Trade contesting four exam questions after she scored 72.5%.
CBP was right to deny Stoute-Francois’ appeals of the four questions, the U.S. said.
For example, one question, question 16, asked how base metal mixes of metals should be classified according to the Harmonized Tariff Schedule. Stoute-Francois selected the answer that the mix should be classified by the metal imparting the essential character of the product; CBP held that the answer was that the mix should be classified based on the metal that predominates by weight.
CBP was correct, the U.S. said. It said that HTS’ General Rules of Interpretation direct that classification should be made according to section and subsection headings. The appropriate section heading for metal mixtures explains that subject products should be classified according to the predominant base metal, it said.
Stoute-Francois’ argument, on the other hand, would impose “an obligation that CBP’s test questions contain all possible permutations of facts that could theoretically bear upon classification of a good,” it said.
Another question, question 44, asked about the proper classification of “an automatic baseball pitching machine that releases five time-delayed balls in succession” and was brightly colored and recommended for children aged three and up. That product was properly classified under subheading 9503.00.0073 for toys, not under any subheading under heading 9506 for general exercise equipment, it said. It said CBP’s designated answer was correct based on CIT case law precedent.