CAREFULLY CONSIDER MANIFEST CONFIDENTIALITY

CAREFULLY CONSIDER MANIFEST CONFIDENTIALITY    Representatives from 20 major importers and shipping industry firms asked U.S. Customs to carefully consider the pros and cons of making certain information in advance manifests confidential.
   The Treasury Advisory Committee on Commercial Operations of the U.S. Customs Service (COAC) made its recommendation to the agency at a meeting in Washington, Jan. 24.
   On Jan. 9, Customs published a proposed rulemaking to address cargo manifest confidentiality. The change, if approved, would allow any party that electronically transmits ocean cargo manifest information directly to Customs, including non-vessel-operating common carriers and vessel operators, to request confidentiality with respect to the identity of the importer and consignee.
   Reporting services gained access to manifest information in 1984 when Customs lost in court to PIERS, a Journal of Commerce/Commonwealth Business Media-owned reporting service, and had to amend its regulations under the 1930 Tariff Act.
   Industry views on confidentiality have been mixed. Non-vessel-operating common carriers and numerous importers believe that unrestricted publishing of detailed manifest data poses both commercial and security risks. PIERS and many ocean carriers, on the other hand, want to maintain the status quo.
   “COAC is not in a position to recommend whether the information should be made public, but we do recommend that the underlying policy issue be carefully analyzed and addressed,” said Carol A. Fuchs, attorney with KMZ Rosenman and COAC member, to senior Customs officials.
   “Simply viewing the statute as requiring disclosure and preserving the ‘status quo’ misses the point,” Fuchs said. “The new advance manifest rule does change the information that will fall into the public domain. These changes must be carefully considered.”
   “If the information should not be subject to public disclosure, then the law should be changed,” she said. “If the information should be disclosed, then the existing law may be adequate. In either case, enforcement activity should be suspended until the underlying policy issue is addressed.”
   Customs will take comments about the proposed confidentiality rulemaking from the industry through Feb. 10.