[Federal Register Volume 84, Number 172 (Thursday, September 5, 2019)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 46676-46678]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2019-19129]


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DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY

U.S. Customs and Border Protection

19 CFR Parts 12 and 141

[USCBP-2016-0075; CBP Dec. No. 19-11]
RIN 1651-AB02


Technical Correction to Centers of Excellence and Expertise 
Regulations

AGENCY: U.S. Customs and Border Protection, DHS.

ACTION: Final rule; technical correction.

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SUMMARY: On December 20, 2016, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) 
published an interim final rule in the Federal Register, which 
established the Centers of Excellence and Expertise (Centers) as a 
permanent organizational component of the agency and transitioned 
certain operational trade functions to the Center directors that 
traditionally resided with the port directors. This technical 
correction clarifies two sections of CBP regulations that do not 
currently reflect CBP's operational structure or the objective of the 
``Regulatory Implementation of the Centers of Excellence and 
Expertise'' interim final rule. This document amends CBP regulations to 
correct the discrepancies.

DATES: This final rule is effective on September 5, 2019.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Lori Whitehurst, CBP Office of Field 
Operations, by telephone at (202) 344-2536 or by email at 
[email protected]; or Susan S. Thomas, CBP Office of Field 
Operations, by telephone at (202) 344-2511 or by email at 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

[[Page 46677]]

I. Background

    On December 20, 2016, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) 
published the ``Regulatory Implementation of the Centers of Excellence 
and Expertise'' interim final rule (Centers IFR) in the Federal 
Register (81 FR 92978), which established the Centers of Excellence and 
Expertise (Centers) as a permanent organizational component of CBP and 
transitioned certain trade functions to the Centers. As part of this 
transition, the Centers IFR amended certain regulations to provide 
Center directors with the authority to make decisions normally reserved 
for port directors. However, two of the regulations in title 19 of the 
Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), 19 CFR 12.73(j) and 141.113(b), do 
not currently reflect the Center directors' authority provided in the 
Centers IFR as discussed further below. This document amends these 
sections to correct the discrepancies. CBP will publish a final rule 
addressing the public comments received for the Centers IFR at a later 
date.

II. Amendatory Changes

Section 12.73(j)

    Section 12.73(j) was amended in the Centers IFR to provide that, if 
good cause is shown, the Center director, rather than the port 
director, has the authority to extend the period of time that the 
importer has to submit the necessary U.S. Environmental Protection 
Agency (EPA) declaration providing that a vehicle or engine being 
imported conforms to Federal emission requirements. Additionally, the 
Centers IFR specified that the EPA declaration must be delivered by the 
importer to CBP, either to the port of entry or electronically. This 
extended the authority to collect the document to either the Center 
director or port director.
    On December 27, 2016, seven days after publication of the Centers 
IFR, 19 CFR 12.73(j) was amended by the ``Importations of Certain 
Vehicles and Engines Subject to Federal Antipollution Emission 
Standards'' final rule publication in the Federal Register (81 FR 
94974) as part of a substantial revision of part 12. This final rule 
resulted in contradictory regulatory text in 19 CFR 12.73(j) that only 
partially reflected the authority of the Center directors. As a result, 
the current regulation only partially accounts for the edits made by 
the Centers IFR and two discrepancies regarding the Center directors' 
authority must be addressed in this document.
    Currently, Sec.  12.73(j) contains an inconsistency. It states that 
the importer or consignee must deliver documentation of EPA approval to 
CBP, either at the port of entry or electronically, but later requires 
that EPA approval must be delivered to the port director. Pursuant to 
the Centers IFR, the EPA document must be delivered to CBP, either to 
the port of entry or electronically, to extend the authority to collect 
the document to either the Center director or port director. This 
document corrects Sec.  12.73(j) accordingly. It is noted that if the 
EPA approval is not delivered to CBP within the specified period, Sec.  
12.73(j) remains unchanged in that the importer or consignee must 
deliver or cause to be delivered to the port director those vehicles 
that were released under a bond.
    Additionally, Sec.  12.73(j) currently states that the Center 
director may set a later deadline for submission based on good cause; 
yet subsequently, the paragraph states that the port director sets the 
later deadline. To reconcile these contradictions in the current 
regulatory text and to reflect the changes made in the Centers IFR, CBP 
is correcting the text in Sec.  12.73(j) to provide that, if good cause 
is shown, the Center director, rather than the port director, has the 
authority to extend the period of time for submission of the EPA 
approval.

Section 141.113(b)

    Due to an accidental omission in the amendatory instructions in the 
Centers IFR, 19 CFR 141.113(b) was not revised as CBP intended. As 
described in the preamble to the Centers IFR, CBP intended to amend 
Sec.  141.113(b) to provide that if the Center director, rather than 
the port director, finds during the conditional release period of an 
imported textile or textile product, that the textile or textile 
product is not entitled to admission into the commerce of the United 
States because the country of origin of the textile or textile product 
was not accurately represented to CBP, he or she shall promptly demand 
its return to CBP custody. Although this amendment was described in the 
preamble of the Centers IFR, due to an inadvertent error, the 
instruction to amend Sec.  141.113(b) by replacing `port director' with 
`Center director' was omitted in the Centers IFR. Thus, this document 
amends Sec.  141.113(b) accordingly.

III. Signing Authority

    This document is being issued in accordance with 19 CFR 0.2(a), 
which provides that the authority of the Secretary of the Treasury with 
respect to CBP regulations that are not related to customs revenue 
functions was transferred to the Secretary of Homeland Security 
pursuant to section 403(1) of the Homeland Security Act of 2002. 
Accordingly, this final rule to amend such regulations may be signed by 
the Secretary of Homeland Security (or his delegate).

List of Subjects in 19 CFR Parts 12 and 141

    Reporting and recordkeeping requirements.

Amendments to the Regulations

    For the reasons given above, parts 12 and 141 of title 19 of the 
Code of Federal Regulations (19 CFR parts 12 and 141) are amended as 
set forth below.

PART 12--SPECIAL CLASSES OF MERCHANDISE

0
1. The general authority citation for part 12 and the specific 
authority citation for Sec. Sec.  12.73 and 12.74 continues to read as 
follows:

    Authority: 5 U.S.C. 301; 19 U.S.C. 66, 1202 (General Note 3(i), 
Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States (HTSUS)), 1624.
* * * * *
    Sections 12.73 and 12.74 also issued under 19 U.S.C. 1484, 42 
U.S.C. 7522, 7601;
* * * * *

0
2. The third and fourth sentences of Sec.  12.73(j) are revised to read 
as follows:


Sec.  12.73   Importation of motor vehicles and motor vehicle engines.

* * * * *
    (j) * * * If the EPA approval is not delivered to CBP, either to 
the port of entry or electronically, within the specified period, the 
importer or consignee must deliver or cause to be delivered to the port 
director those vehicles which were released under a bond required by 
this paragraph (j). In the event that the vehicle or engine is not 
redelivered within five (5) days following the date the exemption or 
exclusion indicated on the EPA declaration form expires, or any later 
deadline specified by the Center director, whichever is later, 
liquidated damages will be assessed in the full amount of the bond, if 
it is a single entry bond, or if a continuous bond is used, in the 
amount that would have been assessed under a single entry bond.
* * * * *

PART 141--ENTRY OF MERCHANDISE

0
3. The general authority citation for part 141 and the specific 
authority citation for

[[Page 46678]]

Sec.  141.113  continues to read as follows:

    Authority: 19 U.S.C. 66, 1448, 1484, 1498, 1624.
* * * * *
    Section 141.113 also issued under 19 U.S.C. 1499, 1623.


Sec.  141.113  [Amended]

0
4. Section 141.113(b) is amended by removing the words ``port 
director'' and adding in their place the words ``Center director''.

    Dated: August 30, 2019.
Robert E. Perez,
Deputy Commissioner, U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
[FR Doc. 2019-19129 Filed 9-4-19; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 9111-14-P