Senate Bill Would Restructure Customs

Leaders of the Senate Finance Committee want to change the focus of the federal Customs and Border Protection agency to stress efforts on trade enforcement and facilitation.

Chairman Max Baucus, D-Mont., and the ranking Republican, Sen. Charles Grassely, R-Iowa, filed the Customs Facilitation and Trade Enforcement Reauthorization Act of 2009 this month.

The bill would  make a significant change in Customs’ senior management, and it would call the agency to account for its activities including the Automated Commercial Environment, Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism, import safety and intellectual property rights. The bill also would require Customs to develop joint strategies with Immigration and Customs Enforcement.

Responsibilities for Customs’ trade and security functions would be divided between two executives. The bill would create a principal deputy commissioner in charge of trade facilititation and enforcement matters, revenue, public communication and human resources.

A deputy commissioner would be in charge of Customs’ security operations, security analysis and enforcement of non-trade laws.

The bill would change the name of the Office of International Trade to the Office of Trade.

The Commercial Operations Advisory Committee (COAC) would become the Customs Commercial Operations Advisory Committee (CCOAC), which would oversee ICE as well as Customs operations.

Customs would be obligated to work with CCOAC, and the Trade Support Network to develop new benefits for participants in C-TPAT. Customs also would be required to set up a voluntary “Customs Facilitation Partnership Program” to provide benefits to companies that enter merchandise.

The bill would authorize $300,000 for ICE in fiscal 2010, 2011 and 2012, but also require Customs to report to Congress how the advanced computer system will be completed by Sept. 30, 2012.

The bill also calls for an automated system for making drawback claims. Drawback refunds duties to importers who re-export goods. Marianne Rowden, president of the American Association of Exporters and Importers, said that improving drawback was one of the group’s highest priorities.

“We have worked out the principles for drawback modernization with CBP. We’ve had a deal with them for about five years,” Rowden said. Improvements in the system should encourage wider use of drawback, especially by medium- and small-sized companies. “We and the government have an interest in expanding the use of drawback, which has fallen in the past several years.”