Title 19—Customs Duties--Volume 1
PART 161—GENERAL ENFORCEMENT PROVISIONS
§ 161.0   Scope.
This part provides general information concerning Customs enforcement of certain import and export laws administered by other federal agencies, the filing of offers in compromise of government claims, the eligibility of individuals for informant compensation, and the filing of claims for informant compensation.
§ 161.2   Enforcement for other agencies.
(a) Laws enforced by Customs Service for administering agencies. Some of the laws enforced in whole or in part by the Customs Service for administering agencies are:
(1) Importations and exportations of arms, ammunition, implements of war, helium gas, and other munitions of war are governed by laws administered by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms and Department of State;
(2) Importations and exportations of controlled substances are governed by laws administered by the Drug Enforcement Administration of the Department of Justice;
(3) Importations, exportations, and transactions involving identified goods, services, and technology with any of those countries designated as subject to economic sanctions under the laws and regulations administered by the Office of Foreign Assets Control of the Department of the Treasury.
(4) Importations and exportations of atomic energy source material, fissionable material, and equipment and devices for utilizing or producing fissionable material are subject to laws administered by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission; and
(5) The exportation of articles, other than those previously mentioned herein, are subject to requirements of laws administered by the Department of Commerce.
(b) Seizure for violation of law. When articles are imported or are intended to be, are being, or have been exported from the United States in violation of law, such articles and any vessel, vehicle, or aircraft knowingly used in their transportation shall be seized and proceeded against.
§ 161.5   Compromise of Government claims.
(a) Offer. An offer made pursuant to section 617, Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (19 U.S.C. 1617), in compromise of a Government claim arising under the Customs laws and the terms upon which it is made shall be stated in writing addressed to the Commissioner of Customs. The offer shall be limited to the civil liability of the proponent in the matter which is the subject of the Government's claim.
(b) Deposit of specific sum tendered. No offer in which a specific sum of money is tendered in compromise of a Government claim under the Customs laws will be considered by the Commissioner of Customs until due notice is received that such sum has been properly deposited in the name of the person submitting the offer with the Treasurer of the United States or a Federal Reserve bank. A proponent at a distance from a Federal Reserve bank may perfect his offer by tendering a bank draft for the amount of the offer payable to the Secretary of the Treasury for collection and deposit. If the offer is rejected, the money will be returned to the proponent.
§ 161.12   Eligibility for compensation.
In accordance with section 619, Tariff Act of 1930, as amended (19 U.S.C. 1619), any person not an employee or officer of the United States who either furnishes original information concerning any fraud upon the customs revenue or any violation, perpetrated or contemplated, of the customs or navigation laws or any other laws administered or enforced by Customs, or detects and seizes any item subject to seizure and forfeiture under the customs or navigationlaws or other laws enforced by Customs and reports the same to a Customs officer, may file a claim for compensation, provided there is a net amount recovered from such detection and seizure or such information, unless other laws specify different procedures. Any employee or officer of the United States who receives, accepts, or contracts for any portion of such compensation, either directly or indirectly, is subject to criminal prosecution and civil liability as provided by 19 U.S.C. 1620.
§ 161.14   Advising informant of entitlement.
Any Customs officer who receives information shall advise the informant that, in the event of a recovery, he may be entitled to compensation. He shall also advise the informant that, if the informant has executed a stipulation to that effect, any amount received by the informant in the form of purchase of evidence or purchase of information will be deducted from any compensation which may be awarded.
§ 161.15   Confidentiality for informant.
The name and address of the informant must be kept confidential. No files or information will be revealed which might aid in the unauthorized identification of an informant. Pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 552(b)(7)(D), specific informant records that are exempt from disclosure are those that could reasonably be expected to disclose the identity of a confidential source, including a state, local, or foreign authority or any private institution which furnished information on a confidential basis, and, in the case of a record or information compiled by a criminal law enforcement authority in the course of a criminal investigation, or by an agency conducting a lawful national security intelligence investigation, information furnished by a confidential source. Informant records maintained by CBP under an informant's name or personal identifier that are requested by a third party according to the informant's name or personal identifier are not subject to the disclosure requirements of 5 U.S.C. 552(a), unless the informant's status as an informant has been officially confirmed.
The name and address of the informant shall be kept confidential. No files or information shall be revealed which might aid in the unauthorized identification of an informant. Release of information is governed by §§ 103.12(g)(4) and 103.12(i) of this chapter.
§ 161.16   Filing a claim for informant compensation.
(a) Limitations on claims. Pursuant to 19 U.S.C. 1619, an informant may be paid up to 25 percent of the net recovery to the government from duties withheld; from any fine (civil or criminal), forfeited bail bond, penalty, or forfeiture incurred; or, if the forfeiture is remitted, from the monetary penalty recovered for remission of the forfeiture. The amount of the award paid to informants must not exceed $250,000 for any one case, regardless of the number of recoveries that result from the information furnished; however, no claim of less than $100 will be paid.
(b) Filing of claim. A claim must be filed, in duplicate, on DHS Form 4623 with the Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Homeland Security Investigations, who will make a recommendation on the form as to approval and the amount of the award. The Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Homeland Security Investigations will forward the form to the Center director, who will make a recommendation on the form as to approval and the amount of the award. The Center director shall forward the form to CBP Headquarters for action. If for any reason a claim has not been transmitted by the Center director, the claimant may apply directly to CBP Headquarters.