18 March 2005

CBP sticks to "green lane" timetable

The following article is excerpted from the 18 March 2005 edition of “American Shipper”.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection intends to announce "at least the bulk" of its plan to create an inspection-free "green lane" for security-conscious importers this year, even if some programs underpinning the incentive are not ready, said Michael Mullen, the agency's director of trade relations.

In January, Commissioner Robert C. Bonner declared his intention to provide immediate release of cargo to shippers in the Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism who adopt higher security levels than new baseline standards set forth in the trusted shipper program.

CBP will likely phase in the "green lane" incentive as the agency and industry increase their capability to take additional steps to protect international supply chains, Mullen told the annual gathering of the National Customs Brokers and Forwarders Association of America in San Diego Wednesday.

"There are varieties of the green lane and we hope to have a variety of it in place this year," he said.

Bonner has said the highest tier of C-TPAT benefits would go to companies that ship their products through foreign ports with on-site U.S. customs officers targeting outbound cargo for exams under the Container Security Initiative, do not have a history of compliance problems and attach a container security device to their box that can detect and record whether tampering has occurred with the door after the seal has been installed at the point of origin.

However, DHS officials have stated that this type of "smart box" technology is still unreliable and not ready for commercial deployment….