President Signs Legislation Impacting AGOA, DR-CAFTA and Burma
Grunfeld, Desiderio, Lebowitz, Silverman & Klestadt LLP / http://www.gdlsk.com/home.html
On August 10, 2012, the President signed H.R. 5986 into law. Highlights of the new law include the following:
Africa Growth and Opportunity Act (“AGOA”)
1. Duty-free treatment for garments produced in designated lesser developed sub-Saharan African countries, from third-country fabrics, is extended through September 30, 2015.
2. South Sudan is added to the list of sub-Saharan countries that may potentially benefit under the AGOA program.
Dominican Republic – Central America Free Trade Agreement (“CAFTA”)
1. Currently, the collars and cuffs of garments made from “short supply” fabrics may be of third country origin. Under the new law, this exception is extended to ribbed waistbands present in combination with cuffs (but only if identical in fabric construction).
2. The requirement that elastomeric yarns (e.g., spandex) in short supply materials originate in the CAFTA region is eliminated. However, when an article is made in part from a short supply material (e.g.., fabric, knit to shape components) and in part from originating materials, any elastomeric yarns used in the originating material must be CAFTA originating.
3. For purposes of determining CAFTA-eligibility, the definition of sewing thread is expanded to include yarns of Heading 5402 (Synthetic filament yarn not put up for retail sale) that are used as sewing thread.
4. For purposes of determining CAFTA-eligibility, visible lining fabrics, narrow elastic fabrics, sewing thread and pocket bag fabric (where relevant to the CAFTA rule for a particular garment) may be of third-country origin if it appears on the CAFTA “short supply” list.
5. The above amendments to the CAFTA program will take effect with respect to CAFTA goods entered (or withdrawn from warehouse for consumption) on or after the date determined by the U.S. Trade Representative as the date by which the other CAFTA countries have made equivalent amendments.
Burma / Myanmar
The Presidential authority for the existing import restrictions with respect to Burma / Myanmar is extended.
Issuance of Revised Customs and Border Protection Form (CBPF) 7501 Instructions
U.S. Customs & Border Protection / www.cbp.gov
The purpose of this memorandum is to provide notification to the trade community of an update to the CBPF 7501 Instructions, dated June 8, 2012. The update will affect the reporting of companies subject to an antidumping and/or countervailing duty order and transportation charges originating from a North American Free Trade Agreement signatory country at Column(s) 29(B) and 32(B) of CBP Form 7501, respectively.
The revised CBPF 7501 Instructions, dated July 24, 2012, may be located at:
http://forms.cbp.gov/pdf/7501_instructions.pdf
CBP Seizes More than 18 Million in Fake Women’s Fashion Shoes
U.S. Customs & Border Protection / www.cbp.gov
20,457 Pairs of Counterfeit Christian Louboutin Shoes Seized at LA/LB Seaport
Los Angeles — Worn by celebrities and royalty in the fashion world, the lacquered “red sole” in women’s shoes is a distinctive symbol of famous French designer Christian Louboutin. However, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) import specialists and officers have a different view of the lacquered “red sole.” They see a trademark protected by U.S. law.
On August 14 and on July 27, CBP import specialists and officers assigned to the Los Angeles/Long Beach seaport seized a total of five shipments arriving from China containing 20,457 pairs of ladies footwear, in violation of the Christian Louboutin trademark, with a domestic value of $57,490 and an estimated manufacturer’s suggested retail price of $18 million.
“This seizure illustrates the outstanding level of commodity expertise and vigilance of CBP import specialists and officers at our nation’s largest seaport. CBP maintains an aggressive and proactive posture on intercepting shipments containing counterfeit and pirated items,” said Todd C. Owen CBP Director of Field Operations in Los Angeles.
Often available on illegitimate websites and underground outlets, counterfeit high fashion commodities multiply the illegal profits of smugglers and traffickers. The public is misguided into believing they are buying an original product at a significant discount.
In fiscal year 2011, there were 1,020 trade seizures with a domestic value exceeding $37 million at Los Angeles/Long Beach seaport complex. This represents an 18 percent increase in the number of seizures from fiscal year 2010.
CBP plays a critical role in enforcing trade laws, including the enforcement of intellectual property rights. Preventing the entry of counterfeit items is crucial to protecting consumers, as well as the economy of the United States.
FDA Approves Vaccines For the 2012-2013 Influenza Season
U.S. Food and Drug Adminisration / www.fda.gov
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced today that it has approved the 2012-2013 influenza (flu) vaccine formulation for all six manufacturers licensed to produce and distribute the vaccines in the United States.
Each year experts from the FDA, the World Health Organization, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and other public health experts study influenza virus samples and global disease patterns to identify virus strains likely to cause the most illness during the upcoming flu season.
Based on that information and the recommendations of the FDA’s Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee, the strains selected for inclusion in the 2012-2013 flu vaccines are:
- A/California/7/2009 (H1N1)-like virus
- A/Victoria/361/2011 (H3N2)-like virus
- B/Wisconsin/1/2010-like virus.
While the H1N1 virus is the same as what was included in the 2011-2012 influenza vaccines, this year’s influenza H3N2 and B viruses differ from those in the 2011-2012 influenza vaccines.
Vaccination remains the cornerstone of preventing influenza, a contagious respiratory disease caused by different influenza viruses infecting the nose, throat and lungs. This year’s seasonal vaccines will provide protection against the three influenza virus strains that global surveillance indicates are likely to be the most common strains circulating during the upcoming season.
There is always a possibility of a less than optimal match between the virus strains predicted to circulate and the virus strains that end up causing the most illness. However, even if the vaccine and the circulating strains are not an exact match, the vaccine may reduce the severity of the illness or may help prevent influenza-related complications.
“The best way to prevent influenza is by getting vaccinated each year,” said Karen Midthun, M.D., director of the FDA’s Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research. “It is especially important to get vaccinated this year because two of the three virus strains used in this season’s influenza vaccines differ from the strains included in last year’s vaccines.”
According to the CDC, between 5 percent and 20 percent of the U.S. population develops influenza each year. This leads to more than 200,000 hospitalizations from related complications. Influenza seasons are unpredictable and can be severe, with annual influenza-related deaths ranging from a low of about 3,000 to a high of 49,000 people in the U.S. The CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, recommends that everyone six months of age and older receive an annual influenza vaccine.
Health care providers play an important role in advising their patients to get vaccinated each year and should also protect themselves, their patients, their family, and the community from influenza by getting vaccinated.
The manufacturers licensed to produce the nation’s 2012-2013 flu vaccines and the brand names of the vaccines for the upcoming flu season are:
- Afluria, manufactured by CSL Limited;
- Fluarix, manufactured by GlaxoSmithKline Biologicals;
- FluLaval, manufactured by ID Biomedical Corporation;
- FluMist, manufactured by MedImmune Vaccines Inc.;
- Fluvirin, manufactured by Novartis Vaccines and Diagnostics Limited; and
- Fluzone, Fluzone High-Dose and Fluzone Intradermal, manufactured by Sanofi Pasteur.
For more information:
The FDA, an agency within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, protects the public health by assuring the safety, effectiveness, and security of human and veterinary drugs, vaccines and other biological products for human use, and medical devices. The agency also is responsible for the safety and security of our nation’s food supply, cosmetics, dietary supplements, products that give off electronic radiation, and for regulating tobacco products.
CBP Updated Informed Compliance Publications
U.S. Customs & Border Protection / www.cbp.gov
FTC Approves Final Settlement With Facebook
Federal Trade Commission / www.ftc.gov
Facebook Must Obtain Consumers' Consent Before Sharing Their Information Beyond Established Privacy Settings
Following a public comment period, the FTC has accepted as final a settlement with Facebook resolving charges that Facebook deceived consumers by telling them they could keep their information on Facebook private, and then repeatedly allowing it to be shared and made public.
The settlement requires Facebook to take several steps to make sure it lives up to its promises in the future, including by giving consumers clear and prominent notice and obtaining their express consent before sharing their information beyond their privacy settings, by maintaining a comprehensive privacy program to protect consumers' information, and by obtaining biennial privacy audits from an independent third party.
The Commission vote to approve the final order and letters to members of the public who commented on it was 3-1-1 with Commissioner J. Thomas Rosch dissenting and Commissioner Maureen K. Ohlhausen not participating. The Commission issued a statement authored by Chairman Jon D. Leibowitz and Commissioners Edith Ramirez and Julie Brill. The Commission statement affirmed that, based on the extensive investigation of the staff, there is a strong reason to believe that the settlement is in the public interest, and that the Order's provisions make clear that Facebook will be liable for a broad range of deceptive conduct. As set forth in his separate statement, Commissioner Rosch dissented from the acceptance of the final consent order, questioning whether Facebook's express denial of liability provided "a reason to believe" that the settlement was "in the interest of the public" and expressing concern that the final consent order may not unequivocally cover all representations made in the Facebook environment. (FTC File No. 092-3184; the staff contact is Laura Berger, Bureau of Consumer Protection, 202-460-8364; see press release dated November 29, 2011.)
The Federal Trade Commission works for consumers to prevent fraudulent, deceptive, and unfair business practices and to provide information to help spot, stop, and avoid them. To file a complaint in English or Spanish, visit the FTC's online Complaint Assistant or call 1-877-FTC-HELP (1-877-382-4357). The FTC enters complaints into Consumer Sentinel, a secure, online database available to more than 2,000 civil and criminal law enforcement agencies in the U.S. and abroad. The FTC’s website provides free information on a variety of consumer topics. Like the FTC on Facebook, follow us on Twitter, and subscribe to press releases for the latest FTC news and resources.
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Announces More Than $33 Million in Grants to Support Land Acquisition and Conservation Planning for Endangered Species
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service / http://www.fws.gov/
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service today announced nearly $33 million in grants to 21 states to support conservation planning and acquisition of vital habitat for threatened and endangered fish, wildlife and plants.
The grants, awarded through the Cooperative Endangered Species Conservation Fund, will benefit numerous species, ranging from the Peninsular bighorn sheep to Kirtland’s warbler.
“Our strong partnerships with states, landowners and local communities are the key to the successful protection and recovery of threatened and endangered species, and these grants will fund important conservation work,” said Secretary Salazar. “While dozens of imperiled species will benefit from these efforts, improving the health of our land and water will also help the people, communities and economies that depend on these resources.”
Authorized by Section 6 of the Endangered Species Act, these competitive grants enable states to work with private landowners, conservation groups and other government agencies to initiate conservation planning efforts and acquire and protect habitat to support the conservation of threatened and endangered species.
“Ensuring the survival of imperiled species depends on long-term partnerships and voluntary landowner participation,” said U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Director Dan Ashe. “The vital funding provided by these grants is matched by the states and leveraged to great advantage in helping conserve and recover some of the most imperiled wildlife in the country.”
This year, the Cooperative Endangered Species Fund provides approximately $9.5 million through the Habitat Conservation Planning Assistance Grants Program, $15 million through the Habitat Conservation Plan Land Acquisition Grants Program, and $8.5 million through the Recovery Land Acquisition Grants Program. The three programs were established to help advance creative partnerships for imperiled species conservation recovery.
A complete list of the 2012 grant awards under these programs (Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance Number 15.615) is available online at:
http://www.fws.gov/endangered/grants/index.html.
Habitat Conservation Plans (HCPs) are agreements between a landowner and the Service. These agreements allow a landowner to undertake otherwise lawful activities on their property, even if they may impact listed species, when that landowner agrees to conservation measures designed to minimize and mitigate the impact of those actions. HCPs may also be developed by a county or state to cover certain activities of all landowners within their jurisdiction and may address multiple species.
Under the HCP Land Acquisition Grants Program, the Service provides grants to states or territories for land acquisition that complements the conservation objectives of approved HCPs.
For example, the State of Washington, will receive $3.7 million to protect 4,160 acres in southern Asotin County, including four miles of critical bull trout habitat along the Lower Grande Ronde River and three miles of riparian habitat along Cougar Creek. This project is part of a larger, landscape-level conservation effort that will protect over 15 miles of streams and 13,000 acres of habitat that support federally listed gray wolf, bull trout, and steelhead as well as the unlisted interior redband trout, elk, bighorn sheep, deer, and golden eagles.
The HCP Planning Assistance Grants Program provides grants to states and territories to support the development of HCPs through funding of baseline surveys and inventories, document preparation, outreach and similar planning activities.
For example, a grant of $600,000 will support the State of Pennsylvania’s efforts to prepare a state-wide HCP that will apply an adaptive management strategy to minimize and mitigate the impacts of forest management activities on state lands to Indiana bats. In addition, the State of Florida will use a grant of $300,250 to initiate the planning of a county-wide HCP for scrub habitats in Highlands County to benefit the Florida scrub-jay, eastern indigo snake and other dry scrub species. Implementation of an HCP in Highlands County marks a significant step forward for scrub conservation in the heart of Florida’s central ridge, and enhances similar efforts made in neighboring counties.
The Recovery Land Acquisition Grants Program provides funds to states and territories to acquire habitat for endangered and threatened species with approved recovery plans. Habitat acquisition to secure long term protection is often an essential element of a comprehensive recovery effort for a listed species.
One of this year’s grants will provide $1.2 million to enable the State of Hawaii to acquire 3,128 acres of sensitive coastal habitat, including more than a mile of coastline on the southern coast of the island of Hawaii. These beaches are important habitat for hawksbill turtles, green turtles, and Hawaiian monk seals. The property is adjacent to the largest natural area reserve in the state and will provide landscape-level protection of the area’s unique ecosystems and habitats.
The Endangered Species Act provides a critical safety net for America’s native fish, wildlife, and plants. The Service is working to actively engage conservation partners and the public in the search for improved and innovative ways to conserve and recover imperiled species. To learn more about the Endangered Species Program, visit http://www.fws.gov/endangered/.
The mission of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is working with others to conserve, protect, and enhance fish, wildlife, plants, and their habitats for the continuing benefit of the American people. We are both a leader and trusted partner in fish and wildlife conservation, known for our scientific excellence, stewardship of lands and natural resources, dedicated professionals, and commitment to public service. For more information on our work and the people who make it happen, visit www.fws.gov. Connect with our Facebook page at www.facebook.com/usfws, follow our tweets at www.twitter.com/usfwshq, watch our YouTube Channel at http://www.youtube.com/usfws and download photos from our Flickr page at http://www.flickr.com/photos/usfwshq.
Airlines Set Records for First Half of 2012 in On-Time Performance, Fewest Cancellations and Tarmac Delays, Lowest Mishandled Baggage Rate
U.S. Department of Transportation / www.dot.gov
Read article at: http://www.dot.gov/affairs/2012/dot8912.html