[Federal Register Volume 82, Number 202 (Friday, October 20, 2017)]
[Notices]
[Pages 48787-48788]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2017-22800]


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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service

[Docket No. APHIS-2008-0119]


Implementation of Revised Lacey Act Provisions

AGENCY: Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, USDA.

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: The Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008 amended the 
Lacey Act to provide, among other things, that importers submit a 
declaration at the time of importation for certain plants and plant 
products. The declaration requirements of the Lacey Act became 
effective on December 15, 2008, and enforcement of those requirements 
is being phased in. In 2009, we initiated a blanket declaration pilot 
program for participants in U.S. Customs and Border Protection's 
expedited border release programs. In this notice, we are announcing 
the end of the blanket declaration pilot program and providing guidance 
on how participants in the program may continue to file declarations as 
required by the Lacey Act.

DATES: The blanket declaration pilot program will end on April 18, 
2018.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Richard Schading, Regulatory 
Policy Specialist, Permitting and Compliance Coordination, Compliance 
and Environmental Coordination Branch, PPQ, APHIS, 4700 River Road Unit 
60, Riverdale, MD 20737-1231; (301) 851-2045.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    The Lacey Act (16 U.S.C. 3371 et seq.), first enacted in 1900 and 
significantly amended in 1981, is the United States' oldest wildlife 
protection statute. The Act combats trafficking in illegally taken 
wildlife, fish, and plants. The Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 
2008, effective May 22, 2008, amended the Lacey Act by expanding its 
protections to a broader range of plants and plant products (Section 
8204, Prevention of Illegal Logging Practices). As amended, the Lacey 
Act now makes it unlawful to, among other things, import, export, 
transport, sell, receive, acquire, or purchase in interstate or foreign 
commerce any plant, with some limited exceptions, taken, possessed, 
transported, or sold in violation of any Federal, State, tribal, or 
foreign law that protects plants or that regulates the theft of plants; 
the taking of plants from a park, forest reserve, or other officially 
protected area; the taking of plants from an officially designated 
area; or the taking of plants without, or contrary to, required 
authorization.
    In addition, Section 3 of the Lacey Act, as amended, makes it 
unlawful, beginning December 15, 2008, to import plants and plant 
products without an import declaration. The declaration must contain, 
among other things, the scientific name of the plant, value of the 
importation, quantity of the plant, and the name of the country in 
which the plant was harvested. Currently, enforcement of the 
declaration requirement is being phased in, as described in five 
notices published in the Federal Register.\1\
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    \1\ To view these notices and the comments we received, go to 
http://www.regulations.gov/#!docketDetail;D=APHIS-2008-0119.
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    Commenters on these notices asked that we consider establishing a 
program through which importers could submit periodic blanket 
declarations instead of submitting declarations with each shipment. The 
commenters noted that such declarations would reduce the paperwork 
burden on affected entities, reduce costs, and could, in addition, 
improve the quality and usefulness of the information collected. Some 
commenters provided detailed descriptions of possible blanket 
declaration programs.
    In response to these comments, the Animal and Plant Health 
Inspection Service (APHIS) began a pilot blanket declaration program on 
May 1, 2009 for participants in U.S. Customs and Border Protection's 
(CBP's) expedited border release programs, Automated Line Release (ALR) 
or Border Release Advance Screening and Selectivity (BRASS) in CBP's 
Automated Commercial System (ACS). This pilot program tested the 
feasibility of collecting the required information through the use of a 
monthly ``blanket'' declaration, with subsequent reconciliation 
reports. Blanket declarations could be used to declare routine and/or 
repeat shipments. The pilot program for the Lacey Act blanket 
declaration was open only to those entities participating in ALR or 
BRASS. Eligible importers who wished to participate in the pilot were 
required to send a letter to APHIS specifically requesting 
participation in the program. Eighty-two individual companies 
registered a total of 119 participants with the pilot program. We note 
that by January 2017, only eight companies were still participating in 
the program.
    Executive Order 13659 required CBP to create a ``single window'' 
for trade to file entries through its Automated Commercial Environment 
(ACE). As a result, the ACS was discontinued and entries are no longer 
filed in that system.
    Due to the development of the ACE system, and a diminishing number 
of participants, APHIS has decided to end the pilot program on April 
18, 2018. CBP's BRASS program will continue to operate as it did prior 
to the creation of the pilot program, and participants in the blanket 
declaration pilot program will not lose their line release status in 
the expedited border release programs. When the program ends, importers 
whose products are subject to the Lacey

[[Page 48788]]

Act declaration requirement and clear under the BRASS program are 
advised to file the required declaration information along with their 
CBP entry summary documentation.

Additional Information

    APHIS will continue to provide the latest information regarding the 
Lacey Act on our Web site, http://www.aphis.usda.gov/plant_health/lacey_act/. The Web site currently contains the full text of the Lacey 
Act, as amended; a slideshow covering background and context, 
requirements, commodities and products covered, information on 
prohibitions, the current status of implementation of the declaration 
requirement of the Lacey Act, and frequently asked questions. The Web 
site will be updated as new materials become available. We encourage 
persons interested in receiving timely updates on APHIS' Lacey Act 
efforts to register for our stakeholder registry at https://public.govdelivery.com/accounts/USDAAPHIS/subscriber/new/ and select 
``Lacey Act Declaration'' as a topic of interest.

    Done in Washington, DC, this 16th day of October 2017.
Michael C. Gregoire,
Acting Administrator, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service.
[FR Doc. 2017-22800 Filed 10-19-17; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 3410-34-P