[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 85 (Tuesday, May 3, 2016)]
[Notices]
[Pages 26573-26575]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2016-10348]


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DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY

U.S. Customs and Border Protection


Commercial Truck Single-Crossing User Fee Automation and 
Prepayment Pilot

AGENCY: U.S. Customs and Border Protection; Department of Homeland 
Security.

ACTION: General notice.

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SUMMARY: This document announces that U.S. Customs and Border 
Protection (CBP) intends to conduct a pilot test program pursuant to 
its authority under 19 CFR 101.9(a) to allow a new payment option for 
commercial truck single-crossing user fees. The CBP regulations specify 
the applicable user fee for commercial trucks upon arrival into the 
United States and the methods of payment, which include payment on an

[[Page 26574]]

annual basis or on a per crossing basis. Although commercial truck 
carriers can electronically prepay the user fees on an annual basis, 
carriers who opt for the single-crossing user fee must pay the fee upon 
arrival at a U.S. port of entry. This pilot will enable the owner, 
agent, or person in charge of a commercial truck to prepay the single-
crossing user fee online prior to arrival at a port of entry. This 
notice describes the pilot, its purpose, how it will be implemented, 
the duration of the pilot, and invites public comment on any aspect of 
the pilot. This pilot will not affect the annual commercial truck user 
fee payment option.

DATES: The pilot will begin at the Buffalo, Detroit and El Paso ports 
of entry starting on June 2, 2016. If it is determined that the pilot 
is working successfully at these initial ports, the pilot would be 
expanded to all U.S. land border ports of entry that process commercial 
trucks. The exact date of the expansion to all U.S. land border ports 
of entry would be announced on the CBP Web site, http://www.cbp.gov. 
The pilot will run for approximately one year. Comments concerning this 
notice and all aspects of the pilot may be submitted at any time during 
the pilot period.

ADDRESSES: Written comments concerning any aspect of the pilot should 
be submitted to James Pattan, Program Manager, Office of Field 
Operations, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, via email at 
[email protected]. In the subject line of your email, please 
indicate ``Comment on Commercial Truck Single-Crossing User Fee 
Pilot''.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: James Pattan, Program Manager, Office 
of Field Operations, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, by telephone 
at (202) 344-2293 or by email at [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

Background

Commercial Truck User Fees

    CBP collects user fees to pay for the costs incurred in providing 
customs services. These user fees offset inspection costs that were 
previously funded solely by general taxpayer revenue. Pursuant to the 
Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1985 (COBRA), Sec.  
13031, Public Law 99-272, 110 Stat. 82 (1986), codified at 19 U.S.C. 
58c, CBP shall charge and collect certain processing fees for air and 
sea passengers, commercial trucks, rail cars, private vessels, dutiable 
mail packages, and Customs broker permits.
    Sections 24.22(b)-(e) and (g) of the CBP implementing regulations 
(19 CFR 24.22(b)-(e) and (g)) provide that, under certain 
circumstances, user fees must be paid upon arrival into the United 
States of certain commercial vessels, barges, and other bulk carriers 
from Canada or Mexico; commercial trucks; railroad cars; certain 
private vessels or private aircraft; and passengers aboard commercial 
vessels and commercial aircraft.
    Section 24.22(c) sets forth the regulations pertaining to the user 
fees for commercial trucks upon arrival into the United States. The 
total commercial truck user fee consists of an Animal and Plant Health 
Inspection Service/Agricultural Quarantine Inspection (APHIS/AQI) fee 
collected on behalf of the U.S. Department of Agriculture and a CBP 
fee.\1\ CBP collects the APHIS/AQI user fee and the CBP user fee 
together as one commercial truck user fee.
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    \1\ The APHIS/AQI fee collected on behalf of the U.S. Department 
of Agriculture is authorized by 21 U.S.C. 136a. The APHIS/AQI fee 
amount is set forth in Section 354.3 of title 7 of the Code of 
Federal Regulations (7 CFR 354.3).
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Current Payment Options

    Section 24.22(c) provides commercial truck carriers with two 
alternatives to pay the required user fee. The commercial truck carrier 
may either prepay the fee for all arrivals of that truck during a 
calendar year (annual commercial truck user fee) \2\ or pay a per 
crossing fee each time the truck enters the United States (single-
crossing user fee).
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    \2\ For user fee collection purposes, a ``transponder'' is a 
plastic card which contains a chip that electronically transmits 
confirmation that applicable user fees for commercial trucks have 
been paid for the calendar year.
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    The owner, agent, or person in charge of the commercial truck can 
prepay the annual commercial truck user fee online through the Internet 
portal, ``Decal and Transponder Online Procurement System (DTOPS)'',\3\ 
or by mail.\4\ After the annual user fee is paid, a transponder is 
issued, which is affixed to the vehicle's windshield to reflect the 
prepayment.
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    \3\ The DTOPS portal allows CBP to process user fee prepayment 
requests and accept electronic payments.
    \4\ CBP Form 339C (Annual User Fee Decal Request--Commercial 
Vehicle).
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    Carriers that have not prepaid the annual commercial truck user fee 
are required to pay a per crossing fee each time the truck enters the 
United States. The user fee is collected when the truck arrives at the 
U.S. port of entry. The driver or other person in charge of the 
commercial truck is required to pay the user fee during primary 
processing or during referral to the administrative office.\5\ Payment 
may be by cash or credit card.
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    \5\ The method of payment for the commercial truck single-
crossing user fee is currently dependent on the logistics of the 
particular U.S. port of entry.
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Commercial Truck Single-Crossing User Fee Automation and Prepayment 
Pilot

Purpose of the Pilot

    The purpose of the pilot is to streamline the payment of the 
commercial truck single-crossing user fees by introducing a new payment 
option. Specifically, CBP is working towards the elimination of cash 
and credit card collections of the commercial truck single-crossing 
user fee during commercial truck primary processing by automating and 
allowing prepayment of the fee.
    This will provide benefits to both CBP and to commercial truck 
carriers. Cash and credit card collection at the port of entry is a 
manual, burdensome, and time-consuming process. The automation and 
prepayment option for the single-crossing user fee will reduce wait 
times, improve primary processing, save costs to truck carriers 
associated with idling time (such as gas and lost driving hours), and 
alleviate CBP officers of the administrative functions pertaining to 
the collection, accounting and transmittal of user fee collections.

Description and Implementation of the Pilot

    Currently, when a commercial truck arrives at a U.S. port of entry 
and the annual user fee has not been prepaid, the driver or other 
person in charge of the truck pays the single-crossing user fee upon 
arrival. This pilot provides an additional payment option that will 
allow the owner, agent, or person in charge of a commercial truck to 
prepay the single-crossing user fee online via the DTOPS portal prior 
to the truck arriving at a U.S. port of entry.\6\ This pilot will allow 
the owner, agent, or person in charge of a commercial truck to access 
the DTOPS portal via a desktop computer (https://dtops.cbp.dhs.gov/) or 
a smartphone app to pay the required single-crossing user fee before 
arriving at the U.S. port of entry. After accessing the DTOPS portal, 
the Vehicle Identification Number (VIN) must be registered and the 
required user fee paid by credit card for each truck that will transit 
the U.S. border. After payment is accepted, DTOPS will provide an 
electronic

[[Page 26575]]

receipt that may be printed. When the commercial truck arrives at 
primary processing, the CBP officer will check the Automated Commercial 
Environment (ACE) system to ensure that the user fee was prepaid. If 
the user fee was not prepaid, the driver or other person in charge of 
the truck will be required to pay the fee at the port of entry using 
cash or a credit card.
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    \6\ The prepayment of the annual commercial truck user fee is 
already automated via the DTOPS portal.
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Duration of the Pilot

    The pilot will begin at the Buffalo, Detroit and El Paso land ports 
of entry starting on June 2, 2016. If it is determined that the pilot 
is working successfully at these initial ports, the pilot would be 
expanded to all U.S. land border ports of entry that process commercial 
trucks. The exact date of the expansion to all U.S. land border ports 
of entry would be announced on the CBP Web site, http://www.cbp.gov. 
The pilot will run for approximately one year. Any owner, agent, or 
person in charge of a commercial truck can participate in the pilot. No 
application is needed to participate in the pilot. When sufficient 
pilot analysis has been conducted, and the comments analyzed, CBP will 
then consider whether to begin rulemaking to add the single-crossing 
commercial truck user fee prepayment option to 19 CFR 24.22(c).

Privacy

    CBP will ensure that all Privacy Act requirements and applicable 
policies are adhered to during the implementation of this pilot.

Paperwork Reduction Act

    An agency may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required 
to respond to, a collection of information unless it displays a valid 
control number assigned by OMB. The collections of information in this 
notice will be submitted for OMB approval 1651-0052 (User Fees).

Authorization for the Pilot

    This pilot adds a payment option for commercial truck single-
crossing user fees in addition to the payment method specified in 19 
CFR 24.22(c). It is being conducted in accordance with Sec.  101.9(a) 
of the CBP regulations (19 CFR 101.9(a)), which authorizes the 
Commissioner to impose requirements different from those specified in 
the CBP regulations for the purposes of conducting a test program or 
procedure designed to evaluate the effectiveness of new technology or 
operational procedures regarding the processing of passengers, vessels, 
or merchandise.

    Dated: April 28, 2016.
R. Gil Kerlikowske,
Commissioner.
[FR Doc. 2016-10348 Filed 5-2-16; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 9111-14-P