CBP CROSS Rulings

In the October 5, 2005 issue of the U.S. Customs and Border Protection Bulletin (CBP Bulletin) (Vol. 39, No. 41), CBP issued notices: (a) revoking one classification ruling on disposable foot socks, and (b) revoking or modifying eleven classification rulings on certain synthetic "pumice" stones. CBP states that it is also revoking any treatment it has previously accorded to substantially identical transactions that are contrary to its position in these notices.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) recently issued an interim rule which, effective October 5, 2005, eliminated the textile declaration requirement and newly required the Manufacturer Identification Code (MID) for textile and apparel products from all countries to be constructed from the name and address of the entity performing the origin-conferring operations, etc. (See ITT's Online Archives or 10/06/05 news 05100605 for Part I of BP's two-part summary of this interim rule.)

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has issued an administrative message stating that the main office building in the Port of Buffalo, NY will be moved from the Dulski Federal Building to the Larkin Building, 726 Exchange Street, Suite 400, Buffalo, NY 14210. As a result, a snow day will be granted for the closure of the port on October 21, 2005 to accommodate the move to the new location. (Adm: 05-1190, dated 10/14/05, available at http://www.brokerpower.com/cgi-bin/adminsearch/admmsg.view.pl?article=2005/2005-1190.ADM )

The Federal Maritime Commission (FMC) has issued a press release announcing that in order to gain a better understanding of current conditions at U.S. ports, it conducted an October 2005 industry briefing by members of the National Association of Waterfront Employers (NAWE). At the briefing, marine terminal operators discussed improvements in port productivity as a result of the PierPASS Program. Other topics included: the impact of increasing cargo volumes on constrained port, marine terminal, rail, and highway infrastructures; additional ways to keep cargo moving through the U.S. transportation grid, etc. (FMC press release NR 05-17, dated 10/19/05, available at

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has posted to its Web site the fifth edition (dated October 2005) of the Customs Automated Manifest Interface Requirements (CAMIR)-Intermodal. According to CBP, the fifth edition replaced the full CAMIR publication issued in October 2000 and includes all changes that have occurred in the Automated Manifest System (AMS) since that time.

In the October 12, 2005 issue of the U.S. Customs and Border Protection Bulletin (CBP Bulletin) (Vol. 39, No. 42), CBP issued a notice revoking one classification ruling on certain soccer shinguards. CBP states that it is also revoking any treatment it has previously accorded to substantially identical transactions that are contrary to its position in this notice.

According to a Textile Development Memo (TDM) issued by the U.S. Association of Importers of Textiles and Apparel (USA-ITA), Administration plans are moving forward for President Bush to visit China November 19 and 20, and presumably the Administration would not want textile-related issues to be at the top of the list of irritants during those high level meetings. (TDM, dated 10/18/05, www.usaita.com )

In the September 28, 2005 issue of the U.S. Customs and Border Protection Bulletin (CBP Bulletin) (Vol. 39, No. 40), CBP issued notices: (a) proposing to modify two classification rulings concerning cutlery sets, and (b) withdrawing a notice of proposed modification with regard to a classification ruling on certain disposable coveralls. CBP states that it is proposing to revoke any treatment it has previously accorded to substantially identical transactions that are contrary to its position in its notice of proposed modification.

The Journal of Commerce states that upper-level bureaucratic review is at least part of what is bogging down three sets of government regulations that affect the trade industry: the Census Bureau's rules for advance cargo data reporting of exports; Customs and Border Protection's (CBP) rules setting standards for container bolt seals and a protocol for tracking seal integrity as containers move between modes; and the Transportation Security Administration's (TSA) rules for air cargo security. (JoC, 09/26/05, www.joc.com)

On October 7, 2005 the Senate passed the conference version of H.R. 2360, the fiscal year (FY) 2006 appropriations bill for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), including U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), the Transportation Security Administration (TSA), etc. The House passed the conference version of H.R. 2360 on October 6, 2005.