U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) extended the compliance date for implementation of the Free And Secure Trade (FAST) Card requirement for Border Release Advance Screening and Selectivity (BRASS) shipment drivers to May 1, 2005. The enforcement date, for this component of the Trade Act of 2002 requirements, was scheduled to begin on Jan. 31, 2005, for the first group of 40 ports.

     The BRASS program is an automated system designed to expedite the processing of certain repetitively shipped products. BRASS is a voluntary system that requires the entry filer to submit an application for participation to Customs identifying required information. Shipper/manufacturers, importers, entry filers and products, in combination, must be approved to participate in BRASS. Approved participants are assigned a unique identifying code for use in BRASS transactions.

     As a temporary accommodation for the Trade Act of 2002, which requires the advance transmission of electronic cargo information, CBP allowed truck carriers carrying BRASS merchandise to utilize only drivers who are registered under the FAST program and carrying a FAST driver card. To participate in the FAST program, drivers must undergo a background check and be admissible to the U.S. and Canada. If approved, the driver is issued a FAST driver card which provides such benefits as expedited processing and the use of a dedicated FAST lane where available.

     For BRASS shipments being imported from Mexico, the driver must have in his possession a valid FAST card and be admissible into the United States.

     CBP has been conducting an extensive marketing and outreach since the spring of 2004 informing both carriers and commercial truck drivers of this new requirement. During the months of December 2004 and January 2005, 20,000 FAST commercial driver applications have been submitted.

     The surge in FAST driver applications has exceeded the capacity of the FAST processing center to process the applications leading to delays and backlogs in the application process. In addition, there are approximately 15,000 conditionally approved drivers that have not completed the interview process to receive their cards. Based on the size of the backlog of applications CBP will delay the enforcement of this requirement.

     The FAST Processing Center and enrollment centers will be provided assistance to eliminate the backlog and process the applications within 90 days. For all affected ports, CBP will begin enforcement of the FAST card requirement for BRASS shipments on May 1, 2005. The ports of Eastport, Idaho; International Falls and Grand Portage, Minnesota; and Jackman, Maine, continue to be exempted until publication of a Federal Register Notice.

     Trucks that arrived at the affected ports between Jan. 31, 2005, and May 1, 2005, with BRASS shipments and are operated by a driver that does not possess a valid FAST driver identification card received informed compliance notices.

ACE requirement dropped

     In a separate development, CBP recently announced in the Federal Register the elimination of the Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism (C-TPAT) requirement to establish an account or participate in any Automated Commercial Environment (ACE) tests, effective immediately. This action is intended to increase the usage of ACE, the new commercial trade processing system being developed by CBP to enhance border security and expedite legitimate trade.

     “This in no way indicates that the support of CBP management for the C-TPAT program has diminished,” said Assistant Commissioner Jayson P. Ahern, Office of Field Operations. “C-TPAT participants will continue to realize specific benefits such as reduced examinations. Removal of the C-TPAT requirement for participation in ACE is intended to increase the usage of ACE so as to further streamline the commercial importation process, which will benefit both the importing community and CBP.”

     The ACE will replace the current paper dependent and transaction oriented import system, the Automated Commercial System (ACS). The ACE will revolutionize how CBP processes goods imported into the United States by providing an integrated, fully automated information system to enable the efficient collection, processing, and analysis of commercial import and export data.

     Importers, brokers and carriers are encouraged to apply for ACE accounts as soon as possible to ensure smooth operations when ACE participation is eventually made mandatory.

     “As part of the process of making ACE the mandatory system of record throughout CBP, we need to make it accessible to as many people as possible,” said Acting Assistant Commissioner Rod MacDonald, Office of Information and Technology. “Easing the requirements will allow ACE to expand quickly.”

     The CBP transition to account-based processing was launched in October 2003 with the ACE Secure Data Portal. This customized web page provides a single on-line access point to CBP systems. Periodic payment and statement features were introduced in June 2004. In December 2004, the first land border port was transitioned to ACE in Blaine, Wash.

     In January, CBP reinstated testing of the Automated Commercial Environment and its commercial truck processing capabilities at the port of Blaine. The initial pilot found technical problems that resulted in lengthy system response times and usability issues. After three weeks of testing, the pilot was suspended to correct these problems and to install software upgrades.

     In December, two electronic or e-Manifests were submitted through the ACE Secure Data Portal in Blaine, the first truck manifests ever submitted electronically. There are nearly 400 importer, broker, and carrier accounts, representing more than 30 percent of the total value of fiscal year 2003 imports.

     Truck carriers are encouraged to establish ACE truck carrier accounts and become certified to use the Electronic Data Interchange messaging system for electronic truck manifests to ensure smooth border operations when these capabilities are eventually mandated.

     Preparations for ACE transitions at additional ports are progressing. Schedules and the port locations will be announced at a later date. Over the next year, CBP plans to deploy ACE to all land border ports-of-entry that process commercial traffic.

     For information about how to establish an ACE account, e-mail CBP at acenow@dhs.gov. Also, check for the latest updates for ACE application information on the CBP Web site at www.cbp.gov/modernization/ Click on the logo or Modernization & ACE.