Sen. Marco Rubio, co-author of the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act, along with the leaders of the House Homeland Security Committee and the House Select Committee on China, have provided detailed supply chain maps for lithium-ion battery makers CATL (Contemporary Amperex Technology Co.) and Gotion High Tech, linking them to companies that transfer Uyghur workers and companies that mine minerals or make aluminum in Xinjiang.

Seko Logistics will still pursue its lawsuit challenging CBP's suspension of the company from Type 86 filing and the Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism, despite CBP's conditional reinstatement of the customs broker, according to a June 4 statement from the company. The Chicago-area customs broker and freight forwarder says CBP still hasn’t fully provided its reasons for Seko’s initial suspension.

Although Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, happily described a trade preferences hearing as a "pro-trade love fest," comments from the panel's top Republican and its chair revealed why the Generalized System of Preferences benefits program, which has broad support, has spent years stalled in Congress.

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.

Barely more than half of the pharmaceuticals' value consumed in the U.S. is domestically produced, but re-shoring is not the answer to vulnerabilities in the supply chains for drugs or medical equipment, panelists said at a think tank event.

Seko Customs Brokerage, which had added staffing to handle Type 86 filings before it was suspended from the Type 86 program beginning May 27 (see 2405310031), filed a complaint on June 3 asking the Court of International Trade to force CBP to reinstate it through an injunction.

The Consumer Product Safety Commission is expanding its “beta” pilot for its partner government agency (PGA) message set to 2,000 participants, and also extending the pilot for “up to three years,” or until a final rule implementing CPSC “eFiling” takes effect.

The Court of International Trade on May 31 said that a duty drawback claim becomes deemed liquidated after one year if the underlying import entries are also liquidated and final, with finality defined as the end of the 180-day window in which to file a protest with CBP.

CBP's Acting Commissioner Troy Miller said the agency "has suspended multiple customs brokers from participating in the Entry Type 86 Test after determining that their entries posed an unacceptable compliance risk," and that it will continue to take action against those who "abdicate their customs compliance responsibilities." The statement also said: “Any broker that has been suspended will be considered for reinstatement if it demonstrates to CBP that it has developed and implemented a remedial action plan."

The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service plans to begin its seventh phase of enforcement of Lacey Act import declaration requirements on Dec. 1, it said in a notice that includes a list of tariff provisions included under phase seven and seeks comments on product coverage.