The lack of disclosure in Enforce and Protect Act evasion proceedings and the deferential standard of review "stack the deck" in favor of the alleger, giving importers "a lot to complain about in the EAPA process," customs lawyer Larry Friedman of Barnes/Richardson said in a July 6 blog post. Even importers who believe they have conducted reasonable due diligence may have serious unexpected liabilities that come out during the investigation, he said.

Sixteen trade groups, including the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the National Association of Manufacturers, PhRMA and BIO, asked U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai to press Mexico to comply with its USMCA commitments during her trip to Mexico for the Free Trade Commission meeting.

International Trade Today is providing readers with the top stories from last week in case they were missed. All articles can be found by searching on the titles or by clicking on the hyperlinked reference number.

Sheffield Hallam University issued reports detailing Uyghur forced labor in the cotton, polysilicon, PVC and metals industries presaged withhold release orders and detentions against goods containing those inputs. Now, its Forced Labor Lab is offering the public a massive list of companies that operate in the Uyghur region, whose products are therefore considered to be made with forced labor unless importers can prove otherwise.

Rep. Earl Blumenauer, D-Ore., recently said CBP needs to do more to know what's inside packages imported under the de minimis threshold, adding that the agency “has no idea what's coming in.”

The change from NAFTA to USMCA rules of origin, and in particular an increased regional value content threshold, increased sourcing of auto parts from Canada and Mexico by U.S. automakers as well as parts production in those two countries, the International Trade Commission said in a report released June 30. But the new agreement’s labor value content rules increased labor costs, causing production to relocate to the U.S. and Canada, the report said.

The International Trade Commission posted Revision 9 to the 2023 Harmonized Tariff Schedule. The semiannual update to the HTS adds new 10-digit tariff numbers for a variety of products, including various varieties of ornamental cut flowers and greens, certified organic vegetables, and medical scrubs and protective equipment. All changes take effect July 1, unless otherwise specified.

CBP reversed an evasion determination against Scioto Valley Woodworking, after initially having found that Scioto had imported Chinese wooden cabinets and vanities by transshipment through Malaysia using adverse facts available. Upon review, CBP found the use of AFA was unwarranted and said evidence showed the manufacturer, Alno, could and did produce wooden cabinets and vanities in Malaysia.

The Enforce and Protect Act evasion investigation process is being gamed by both allegers and CBP to tilt it in favor of finding evasion by importers to the point that the agency finds evasion 90% of the time, customs lawyers Jennifer Diaz and David Craven said during a June 29 webinar hosted by National Customs Brokers & Forwarders Association of America Educational Institute.

Electro-mechanical actuators used in automotive applications don't meet the “parts” exception to the NAFTA tariff shift rule because the parts at issue are provided for is a separate subheading, CBP said in a recent ruling.