|
| US urged to delay 24-hour rule for cargo manifests |
|
(SINGAPORE) Global container shipping lines are urging the US government to delay implementation of its so-called '24-hour rule' for cargo manifests by 12 months saying the proposal will slow international commerce and significantly increase carrier and shipper costs. In a detailed 24-page response to the proposal, the Washington-based World Shipping Council (WSC), comprising over 40 major international liner operators, cautioned that while the US may deem implementation of the rule necessary in the interests of security, 'it should do so only with the understanding that it will delay commerce, significantly increase carrier and shipper costs and require trade processes to change significantly'. The US Customs proposed the rule in August, requiring cargo manifests for all US-bound cargo to be filed 24 hours before the containers are loaded on vessels at all foreign ports. It also aimed to tightened cargo descriptions to do away with commonly used generic descriptions like 'freight all kinds' (FAK), 'general cargo', or 'said to contain'. Customs commissioner Rober Bonner said at the time that the move was necessary to fully implement the agency's Container Security Initiative (CSI) aimed at pre-screening US-bound cargo. Backing the broad aims of the proposal, the WSC described it as 'the single most substantial change to how America's international maritime commerce would be conducted since Sept 11'. But it went on to emphasise the proposal's far reaching nature with ramifications affecting virtually every component of ocean trade including the shipper, importer, NVOCC, agent, port, terminal operator, transport intermediary, bank and foreign government involved in shipping goods to the US. 'The United States has the clear right and duty to protect itself and its trade from terrorist risks,' said the WSC. 'At the same time, because it is the largest trading nation touching businesses across the globe, major adjustments to its trading laws should be undertaken in a manner that all of its government and commercial trading partners can clearly understand and reasonably adapt to.' Emphasising that while the cargo manifest has become the key piece of information used to prescreen cargo, 'it was not designed for this purpose and has some limitations in this regard', said the WSC. 'It is essential ... that the role, the limitations and the ramifications of the manifest be kept in mind,' it added. And contrary to earlier Customs' statements that the proposals would 'not have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities', the WSC said that as a 'very significant regulatory action', it will have 'a significant economic impact not only on a substantial number of small entities, but on major enterprises as well'. One major ocean carrier and member line of the WSC has estimated that the proposed changes would require it to spend up to US$15 million in new systems, operating costs and personnel. The WSC also pointed out that preparing a cargo manifest for a ship loading hundreds or thousands of containers takes time. By requiring cargo manifests 24 hours before loading in a foreign port means that shippers will have to provide carriers with cargo documentation even earlier - as much as 24 to 72 hours prior to this 24-hour manifest period. The carriers also questioned whether the Customs Service understands the magnitude of manifest filings the proposed rule would create and whether it could handle the added volume. Citing the agency's estimates of 100 annual filings per carrier, the WSC said: 'We do not know how that number was derived, but it is certainly incorrect and too low. 'A single weekly trans-Pacific service that calls at five Asian ports would generate 260 annual filings by a single vessel carrier,' it said, adding that a 'substantial number of vessel carriers would have thousands of foreign load port manifest filings per year'. The council said the extra regulatory burden resulting from the proposed rule may divert US-bound cargo to Canadian ports, where customs regulations follow industry norms of requiring manifests 24 to 72 hours prior to the ship's arrival. This could make US ports uncompetitive versus Canadian ports it said. |
File DownLoad