Customs & Border Protecton News

Today's blog provides useful information recently posted on the CBP web site.

1. CBP Announces 2009 Trade Symposium

The 2009 Trade Symposium is scheduled for December 8 – 10, 2009, and will be held at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center in Washington, DC. Additional information regarding registration procedures and symposium details will be made available in the early fall.

2. CBP Posts Schedule of Future ISF Outreach Events

CBP will offer ISF training in the following cities during the month of August
· Philadelphia, PA - Wednesday August 19, 2009
· Seattle/Tacoma, WA - Wednesday August 19, 2009
· Boston, MA - Wednesday August 26, 2009
· Houston, TX - Wednesday August 26, 2009

ISF training will take place in September for the following cities; however, the dates have not yet been announced. Click HERE to check for updates.
· Baltimore, MD
· Long Beach, CA
· Miami, FL
· Charleston, SC
· Chicago, IL
· Oakland/San Francisco, CA
· Norfolk, VA
· Newark, NJ
· Washington, DC

3. CBP Provides Guidance for Validating the Power of Attorney

Since the POA is instrumental in the movement of imported cargo into the United States, it is important for brokers to ensure the validity of each POA. To assist brokers in this effort, CBP issued some guidelines for brokers to validate the power of attorney and demonstrate reasonable care. These steps are not mandatory but do demonstrate some suggested methods for verifying validity.

· To the greatest extent possible, have POAs completed in person so the grantor’s personal identification (driver’s license, passport, etc.) can be reviewed.
· Check applicable Web sites to verify the POA grantor’s business and registration with State authorities.
· If the principal uses a trade or fictitious name in doing business, confirm that the name appears on the POA.
· Verify that the importer’s name, importer number and Employer Identification Number (also known as the Federal Tax Identification Number) on the POA match what is in ACS.
· Check whether the POA grantor is named as a sanctioned or restricted person or entity by the U.S. Government. (See the Bureau of Industry and Security, U.S. Department of Commerce.)

4. CBP Selects Brokers for Self-Assessment Pilot Program

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) selected four customs brokers from 26 applicants to participate in the Broker Self-Assessment Outreach Pilot program announced in April 2009. The BSA is based on the Importer Self-Assessment Program (ISA) initiated in 2002. CBP plans to use the pilot program to assist the agency in determining whether to formally implement the BSA program and what changes might be needed to ensure its effectiveness.

5. CBP Issues Update to ACE Portal Reports Dictionary

The second version of the ACE Portal Reports Dictionary has been completed. Formatted as a PDF file, the Reports Dictionary is available on the CBP web site. The dictionary will also available by the end of August under the “Help Folder” when running ACE Reports. There is a separate dictionary for brokers, carriers, importers and sureties.

The ACE Portal Reports Dictionary is a reference guide of the most frequently accessed Account Profile, Account Management and Transactions reports designed to enhance the understanding of reports for ACE users, to assist in identifying the report that best fulfills a particular business need and to encourage the overall use of the reporting tool. The dictionary defines each report and its corresponding data objects, making it easier for ACE users to identify specific reports to meet their data requirements. The dictionary also provides the exact location of each report in the ACE reporting tool, the categorical classification of each report, the standard report filters/prompts and a description of each data object contained in the report.