Port Authority Prepared to Accommodate Nearly Five Million Travelers During 2013 Memorial Day Weekend
The Port Authority of New York & New Jersey / http://www.panynj.gov/press-room/press-item.cfm?headLine_id=1790
Agency is taking proactive steps to ensure safe traveling experience
The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey is putting in place a number of steps to accommodate the nearly five million people who will travel by air, car or rail during the upcoming Memorial Day weekend, which marks the traditional start of the summer travel season. The agency is taking proactive measures to ensure travelers have a safe and customer-friendly experience while using Port Authority facilities across the region.
Airports
Beginning Friday, May 24 through Tuesday, May 28, the agency expects more than 1.5 million passengers to use Port Authority aviation facilities. This is a 1.4 percent increase from last year’s Memorial Day weekend.
To handle the high volume of expected air travelers, the Port Authority is assigning additional Customer Care Representatives (CCRs) at its airports during peak hours throughout the holiday weekend. The CCRs will be available to answer questions and assist travelers. The added support staff will supplement the existing 350 CCRs who help passengers navigate the region’s airports throughout the year.
The Port Authority expects approximately 690,000 passengers to travel through John F. Kennedy International Airport, approximately 450,000 to travel through Newark Liberty International Airport, and an estimated 360,000 to travel through LaGuardia Airport, which are the agency’s three major commercial airlines. The agency encourages passengers travelling to and from JFK and or Newark to use the agency’s AirTrain service.
Passengers planning to use the Port Authority’s airports during the Memorial Day weekend can sign up for Airport Info Alerts at www.airportinfoalerts.com. This free, mobile subscription service notifies customers about weather delays, parking lot capacities and AirTrain service delays.
Bridges and Tunnels
The Port Authority is projecting approximately 3.2 million travelers will use its bridges and tunnels during the holiday weekend. The agency will have a full complement of toll collectors on duty to expedite travel through the crossings. With passenger traffic expected to be heavier than normal, motorists are encouraged to allow extra time to reach their destination.
To receive free, real-time travel alerts, travelers are encouraged to register for Port Authority Alerts at http://btt.paalerts.com. Motorists will receive alerts directly to cell phone and e-mail accounts and will have the ability to monitor projected time ranges.
PATH
PATH will operate additional trains as needed on Friday, May 24, to assist commuters leaving early for the holiday weekend. PATH will operate on a Sunday schedule on Monday, May 27. For up-to-date service information, riders are encouraged to follow PATH Rail System on Twitter or text their origin and destination to 266266. Riders also can sign up for PATHAlerts at www.panynj.gov, which provide up to the minute bulletins on PATH service changes.
Baltimore CBP Intercepts First in Port Gall Wasp
U.S. Customs & Border Protection / http://www.cbp.gov/xp/cgov/newsroom/news_releases/local/05172013_3.xml
Baltimore - A national U.S. Department of Agriculture entomologist confirmed on May 16, that the Callirhytis, sp., gall wasp was another first local discovery for Baltimore U.S. Customs and Border Protection agriculture specialists.
CBP agriculture specialists discovered the gall wasp on May 15, in a shipment of Italian ceramic tiles. These tiny wasps reportedly lay their eggs on the limbs of oak trees and their larvae cause galls that eventually may cause the stem to die from the gall outward.
Though widespread infestations are uncommon, severe gall wasp infestations have been observed in several Florida counties. These infestations are known to have affected young to mature trees in woodlands and residential areas.
“The threat of invasive hitchhiking insect pests is very real, and an extremely serious concern for United States’ agriculture industries,” said Ricardo Scheller Port Director for the Port of Baltimore. “One of Customs and Border Protection’s priority missions is to intercept and eradicate potential agriculture threats at our nation’s borders, and our agriculture specialists take their mission very seriously.”
The previous Callirhytis, sp., gall wasp interception occurred in Santa Teresa, N.M. in 2011.
CBP submitted the specimen on May 16, to the local USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service Plant Protection and Quarantine entomologist for identification.
CBP agriculture specialists work closely with USDA’s APHIS PPQ to protect our nation’s agriculture resources against the introduction of foreign plant pests and animal diseases.
Read more on the USDA APHIS PPQ program. ( USDA: Plant Health )
CBP agriculture specialists have extensive training and experience in the biological sciences and agricultural inspection. On a typical day, they inspect tens of thousands of international air passengers, and air and sea cargoes nationally being imported to the United States, and seize 4,919 prohibited meat, plant materials or animal products, including 476 insect pests.
FTC Announces Schedule for Reviewing Regulations
Federal Trade Commission / http://www.ftc.gov/opa/2013/05/regreform.shtm
As part of the Federal Trade Commission’s systematic review of all current FTC rules and guides, the agency is announcing a modified 10-year regulatory review schedule.
To ensure that its rules and industry guides stay relevant and are not overly burdensome, the Commission reviews them on a 10-year schedule. The review schedule is published each year, with adjustments in response to public input, changes in the marketplace, and resource demands. For 2013, the Commission intends to begin reviews of, and solicit comments on, the following rules:
- Telemarketing Sales Rule, 16 CFR Part 310;
- Regulations under Section 4 of the Fair Packaging and Labeling Act, 16 CFR Part 500;
- Exemptions from Requirements and Prohibitions under Part 500, 16 CFR Part 501;
- Regulations under Section 5(c) of the Fair Packaging and Labeling Act, 16 CFR Part 502; and
- Statements of General Policy or Interpretation [under the Fair Packaging and Labeling Act], 16 CFR Part 503.
The Commission is currently reviewing 22 of the 65 rules and guides within its jurisdiction. The agency is postponing review of the Preservation of Consumers’ Claims and Defenses [Holder in Due Course Rule], 16 CFR Part 433, previously scheduled for 2013, until 2014.
The Commission vote to publish the proposed Federal Register notice regarding its regulatory review program was 4-0.
U.S. Fish & Wildlife - CITES Country-Specific Trade Restrictions
U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service / www.fws.gov
Subject: CITES Country-Specific Trade Restrictions
Background: The Endangered Species Act prohibits trade (import, export, re-export, introduction from the sea) in specimens contrary to the CITES Convention. Articles II and VIII of the CITES treaty require countries to take appropriate measures to enforce provisions of the treaty and to prohibit trade in specimens that are in violation. These treaty measures also require countries to monitor trade in CITES-listed specimens and file annual reports. CITES documents may only be issued and considered valid when it is determined that the specimens have been legally acquired.
As a member of CITES, the United States is committed to carrying out decisions and policies approved by CITES countries that reflect appropriate interpretations of the treaty. The failure by a country to file their annual reports constitutes a major problem with implementation of CITES. In addition, when countries fail to implement the required CITES legislation, the United States cannot establish legal origin of wildlife that is exported or re-exported from the affected country. The United States also cannot allow trade to the affected country since the necessary enforcement provisions are not in place to ensure the CITES treaty is being implemented.
- CITES Notification No. 2013/017 announced the suspension of commercial trade with Guinea.
- CITES Notification No. 2013/018 announced the suspension of all trade with Afghanistan.
- CITES Notification No. 2013/019 announced the suspension of all trade with Djibouti.
- CITES Notification No. 2013/020 announced the suspension of all trade with Lesotho.
Action: Until further notice, the United States will:
- Prohibit the commercial import or introduction from the sea of CITES-listed specimensfrom Guinea;
- Prohibit the commercial export or re-export of CITES-listed specimens to Guinea;
- Prohibit all imports and introduction from the sea of CITES-listed specimens from Afghanistan, Djibouti and Lesotho; and
- Prohibit the export or re-export of all CITES-listed specimens to Afghanistan, Djiboutiand Lesotho.
All such prohibited shipments or specimens are subject to refusal of import/export or seizure and forfeiture. Additional information on CITES trade suspensions can be found at:
http://www.cites.org/eng/resources/ref/suspend.php
CBP, French Customs Seize Critical Counterfeit Electronic Components
U.S. Customs & Border Protection / http://www.cbp.gov/xp/cgov/newsroom/news_releases/national/05222013_2.xml
Washington - In partnership with French Customs, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) recently completed Operation Core Systems, a bilateral intellectual property rights enforcement operation that targeted counterfeit critical computer and other electronic components, including semiconductors, computer networking equipment, hard drives, and memory cards, which are a threat to both the U.S. and France. Conducted from Nov. 1, 2012 through April 30, the operation resulted in the seizure of 480 shipments of potentially harmful counterfeit electronic components.
“CBP is proud to work with our French Customs partners on such an important issue,” said CBP Assistant Commissioner Al Gina. “Intellectual property rights violations have the potential to cause great harm to our country’s economy as well as the American public’s health and safety. Building these types of international partnerships will continue to become increasingly important to facilitating a safe and secure flow of trade.”
“The Core Systems operation gave us a better understanding of the global threat presented by counterfeit critical electronic components, the opportunity to cooperate with the right holders, and to make significant seizures,” said François Richard, French Customs Attaché in Washington D.C. “It is the third bilateral IPR enforcement operation organized by our two agencies, and for sure not the last.”
While combating a growing threat to both industry and individual consumers, the operation highlights an expanded level of cooperation that has proven increasingly productive between CBP and its international partners. Customs leaders from both nations have been encouraged by the results and are anxious to continue working together.
Critical electronic components are indispensable to modern government, industrial, business, financial, transportation, education, security and health care infrastructures as well as general consumer use.
Counterfeit components lack manufacturing standards and have much higher failure rates. These faulty products not only create extra costs for businesses and individuals, but can also corrupt the computer networks of critical infrastructure and potentially jeopardize public safety.
In response to the overall threat, CBP has designated IPR enforcement as a priority trade issue and devotes significant resources to collecting advanced information from the trade and targeting high-risk IPR-infringing shipments.
In fiscal year 2012, computers and their accessories ranked seventh on CBP’s top 10 list of IPR seizures.
U.S.-Korea Free Trade Agreement: Effects on U.S. Small and Medium-Sized Enterprise
United States International Trade Commission /
www.usitc.gov
This news release concerns the release of the Commission's report U.S.-Korea Free Trade Agreement: Effects on U.S. Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises.
6 Ways to Fight a Smartphone Crime Wave
MSN Money / http://money.msn.com/saving-money-tips/post.aspx?post=dbfdb53a-d8c5-4698-bff1-996f64c4f5c7
Up to half of all thefts in some cities involve a cellphone. Here are some tips for protecting your property and data.
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