The Los Angeles and Long Beach ports again postponed by a week a new surcharge meant to incentivize the movement of dwelling containers (see 2110280031), the two ports announced May 27. The ports had planned to begin imposing the fee in November 2021 but have postponed it each week since. The latest extension delays the effective date until June 3.
The State Department is seeking comments on an information collection related to defense trade registration, the agency said in a notice. The information collection applies to companies registered with the Directorate of Defense Trade Controls and involved “in the business of manufacturing or exporting or temporarily importing defense articles or furnishing defense services.” Comments are due June 27.
CBP will combine its trade symposium and Customs Trade Partnership Against Terrorism events for a July 18-20 conference in Anaheim, California, the agency said on its website. Registration for the Trade Facilitation and Cargo Security Summit will open June 1, it said.
The Bureau of Industry and Security this week extended the comment period for an information collection relating to offset agreements worth more than $5 million for sales of weapons systems or defense articles to foreign countries or companies (see 2201130008). Comments on the information collection, originally due March 15, have been extended for an additional 30 days to June 27.
The State Department’s Directorate of Defense Trade Controls renewed the Defense Trade Advisory Group charter for two years, according to a copy of the renewal released this week.
The State Department’s Directorate of Defense Trade Controls recently posted two new frequently-asked-questions under its licensing and registration guidance pages.
The State Department’s Directorate of Defense Trade Controls posted the slide presentations from the April 28 Defense Trade Advisory Group plenary meeting (see 2204290032). The slides include presentations from several DTAG working groups, including a recommendation for a new International Traffic in Arms Regulation exemption, recommendations for clarifications and corrections to certain ITAR definitions, and a report on ITAR-related challenges for controlled unclassified information.
If the upcoming negotiations between West Coast ports and their dockworkers’ union “go poorly,” U.S. shippers and traders could face new, worsening logistics delays, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce said May 23. The chamber said “stakes are especially high” for talks between the International Longshore and Warehouse Union and the Pacific Maritime Association, which began May 10 and need to reach a resolution before their contract expires in July (see 2111240052).
A few days after the majority of senators said they want Taiwan to be included in the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (see 2205180034), U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai issued a readout of a May 20 meeting with a top Taiwanese official that made no mention of IPEF. Tai said she met with Taiwan’s Minister-Without-Portfolio John Deng, and said that they discussed "opportunities to deepen the economic relationship, advance mutual trade priorities based on shared values, and promote innovation and inclusive economic growth for their workers and businesses." It said they also discussed how Taiwan and the U.S. both want to fight forced labor, and how important supply chain traceability is.
The State Department approved a potential $691 million sale of military equipment to Egypt, the Defense Security Cooperation Agency said May 19. The sale includes “TOW 2A Radio Frequency (RF) Missiles” and related equipment. The principal contractor will be Raytheon Missiles & Defense.