JIG ASKS CONGRESS TO PRESS FOR CUSTOMS REFORMS

JIG ASKS CONGRESS TO PRESS FOR CUSTOMS REFORMS    The Joint Industry Group wants the 107th Congress to hold a series of oversight hearings to find ways to improve Customs procedures so that they fit into modern shipper supply chains.
   The Washington-based industry group made its request in a letter late last week to members of the House Ways and Means and Senate Finance Committees, and to the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Treasury, Postal and General Government and the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Treasury and General Government.
   “Our Customs systems should reflect our trade priorities,” said James Clawson, secretariat of JIG. “It doesn’t make sense to promote trade with one hand and complicate logistics at our borders with the other.”
   JIG praised Congress for its commitment to start funding Customs’ future computer system, the Automated Commercial Environment. But automation is only a piece of what needs to be improved at Customs.
   “U.S. companies have reengineered their supply chains to take full advantage of the global economy. E-commerce, streamlined supply-chains, and just-in-time delivery, now commonplace in U.S. business, depend upon the smooth movement of goods,” the group said. “However, Customs procedures that have been in place for 200 years now pose a logistical nightmare for 21st century companies. U.S. companies, their employees, and their customers pay a high price when global supply chains are broken by outmoded rules and bureaucratic delays.”