CBP’s Kerlikowske calls for C-TPAT revitalization

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Commissioner Gil Kerlikowske told customs brokers and forwarders Tuesday that members of a key trade facilitation program, known as CBP’s Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism program, need “enhanced benefits.    U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Commissioner Gil Kerlikowske said a key trade facilitation program is in need of rejuvenation at a speech to customs brokers and freight forwarders Tuesday in Washington, D.C.
   Kerlikowske, who is retiring as the head of CBP is December, said it’s important for the agency to provide broader and more tangible benefits to participants in CBP’s Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism (C-TPAT) program.
   “C-TPAT does need additional work,” he told the National Customs Brokers and Forwarders Association of America (NCBFAA) Government Affairs Conference. “We need to enhance the benefits to tier 2 and tier 3 members.”
   Kerlikowske even went the comedic route, saying CBP should adopt the slogan “Make C-TPAT Great Again.”
   The topic of C-TPAT is top of mind in recent days given it was the first major program after 9/11 targeted to help facilitate trade, while also helping customs identify risk patterns among global shippers and their supply chain partners.
   American Shipper trade compliance benchmark research has found that C-TPAT members see its benefits as having stagnated in recent years.
   Meanwhile, Kerlikowske highlighted the efforts of CBP under his watch, noting that borders are safer than they were a decade ago. He said there are more than 800 CBP officers stationed in 40 countries, a symbol of the United States’ efforts to push screening further away from its borders.
   He also said the U.S. has played a larger role in global customs policy making at the World Customs Organization (WCO) level, with the commissioner himself attending WCO policy committee meetings, not just an annual conference.
   “We’ve made our voices heard in the WCO arena,” he said. “The more we can use the respect of CBP globally to harmonize customs and border security agencies, the better. We’ve sent the message that customs brokers are not companies that shouldn’t be trusted, that they want the same things for their countries that you want for yours.”
   As for how anti-trade campaign rhetoric is affecting CBP’s mission, Kerlikowske said his job is to ensure that the agency doesn’t get embroiled in the politics of the issue.
   “We’re the pointy end of the spear,” he said. “We’re not the U.S. Trade Representative or the Department of Commerce. My job is to make sure CBP is adequately resourced. One of my goals is to keep the 60,000 people in CBP out of the political drama on trade.”