Washington Notebook: CBP’s new port director for Houston/Galveston

   U.S. Customs and Border Protection has named L. Dave Fluty as port director for the Houston/Galveston area.
   Fluty previously served as the deputy assistant commissioner for CBP’s Office of Training and Development. 
   He is returning to the Houston area where he once served as director of the agency’s local laboratory that provides scientific and forensic analysis of imports for CBP officers checking for potential radiological devices, smuggling or trade violations, as well as crime scene investigations. He moved to CBP headquarters in Washington and became director of Scientific Services responsible for the agency’s entire laboratory system. Later, he served as deputy assistant director of operational support at the Department of Homeland Security’s Domestic Nuclear Detection Office.
   Fluty is responsible for the ports of Port Arthur, Beaumont, Corpus Christi, Freeport, Galveston and Houston. – Eric Kulisch

CBP plays Scrooge for Christmas tree shipment
   U.S. Customs officers, in partnership with the Consumer Product Safety Commission, in Detroit confiscated three shipments of LED lighted Christmas trees made in China after they were found to have undersized wiring and insufficient load relief that could lead to an electrical fire, CBP said Friday.
   The container with the trees entered the United States from Canada by train. The CPSC analyzed samples of the products and determined they were unsafe.
   The seizure was made possible by the Commercial Targeting and Analysis Center for Import Safety, where officials from several agencies share information and identify potential shipments that could pose a hazard to consumer health and safety. – Eric Kulisch