NCBFAA WANTS CONGRESS TO RESTORE GSP

NCBFAA WANTS CONGRESS TO RESTORE GSP    The National Customs Brokers and Forwarders Association of America wants Congress to restore the Generalized System of Preferences program, which expired on Sept. 30, 2001.
   GSP provides duty-free treatment on imports of certain products from specified developing countries. Developing countries benefit from GSP by making their products more attractive to U.S. importers. Without the program, U.S. tariffs remain high on a number of imported goods from GSP beneficiary countries.
   “GSP is an integral part of the U.S. economy, saving consumers millions of dollars each year on a significant range or products,” said Federico “Kiko” Zuniga, president of the NCBFAA, is a letter to Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus, D-Mont. “The program also serves as a tool in a wide variety of industries. Many small U.S. companies rely on the duty savings from GSP to remain competitive.”
   The NCBFAA said it’s important that Congress renew GSP for up to five years.
   “Over the past decade, GSP has been reviewed for only short increments — usually less than 15 months,” Zuniga said. “Typically, the program lapses abruptly mid-year while attempts at renewal drag on uncertainly for up to a year or more.”
   “This creates a frustrating cycle of uncertainly that is costly to U.S. businesses and damaging to the goals of the program,” Zuniga added. “As customs brokers, we have seen first-hand the effects on small businesses, who are not equipped to suddenly begin paying duties on these products for an indefinite period of time.”