II 

118TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 3431 

To amend the Tariff Act of 1930 to strengthen the authorities of U.S. 

Customs and Border Protection to enforce the customs and trade laws 

of the United States, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

DECEMBER 7, 2023 

Mr. CASSIDY (for himself and Mr. WHITEHOUSE) introduced the following bill; 

which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance 

A BILL 

To amend the Tariff Act of 1930 to strengthen the authorities of U.S. Customs and Border Protection to enforce 

the customs and trade laws of the United States, and 

for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

4 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

5 ‘‘Customs Modernization Act of 2023’’. 

6 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 

7 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

TITLE I—IMPROVED COLLECTION AND USE OF INFORMATION 


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Sec. 101. Modification of requirements for filing of entry documentation. 

Sec. 102. Expansion of recordkeeping requirements relating to importation. 

Sec. 103. Expansion of authority of U.S. Customs and Border Protection to obtain information relating to importation and trade enforcement. 

Sec. 104. Use of mandatory advance electronic information for cargo. 

TITLE II—STRENGTHENED ENFORCEMENT OF IMPORT AND 

EXPORT PROHIBITIONS 

Sec. 201. Examination and testing of merchandise that infringes intellectual 

property rights. 

Sec. 202. Seizure and forfeiture and disposition of, and expanded liability for, 

merchandise bearing a counterfeit mark or infringing a copyright. 

Sec. 203. Summary forfeiture of certain merchandise. 

TITLE III—LIABILITY FOR VIOLATIONS OF CUSTOMS AND TRADE 

LAWS 

Sec. 301. Expansion of liability for certain violations of arrival, reporting, 

entry, and clearance requirements. 

Sec. 302. Modification of standards and penalties for fraud and negligence. 

Sec. 303. Expansion of liability for aiding unlawful importation and exportation. 

Sec. 304. Procedures for investigating claims of evasion of antidumping and 

countervailing duty orders. 

Sec. 305. Obstruction of investigations. 

Sec. 306. Modification of bonding requirements. 

Sec. 307. Treatment of importations involving suspended or debarred persons. 

TITLE IV—ADMINISTRATIVE EXEMPTIONS FROM DUTIES 

Sec. 401. Collection and use of data relating to eligibility for administrative exemption to duties. 

Sec. 402. Streamlined disposition of merchandise subject to administrative exemptions. 

TITLE V—OTHER MATTERS 

Sec. 501. Protests against decisions of U.S. Customs and Border Protection. 

Sec. 502. Reduction of administrative burdens. 

Sec. 503. Authority to conduct communications electronically. 

Sec. 504. Disclosure of vessel, aircraft, or vehicle manifest information. 


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1 TITLE I—IMPROVED COLLEC2 TION AND USE OF INFORMA3 TION 

4 SEC. 101. MODIFICATION OF REQUIREMENTS FOR FILING 

5 OF ENTRY DOCUMENTATION. 

6 (a) ELECTRONIC FILING.—Section 484(a) of the 

7 Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1484(a)) is amended— 

8 (1) in paragraph (1)— 

9 (A) in the matter preceding subparagraph 

10 (A)— 

11 (i) by inserting ‘‘with respect to mer12 chandise’’ after ‘‘paragraph (2)(B)’’; and 

13 (ii) by inserting after ‘‘reasonable 

14 care’’ the following: ‘‘make entry therefor 

15 by filing with U.S. Customs and Border 

16 Protection, pursuant to an authorized elec17 tronic data interchange system’’; 

18 (B) in subparagraph (A)— 

19 (i) by striking ‘‘make entry’’ and all 

20 that follows through ‘‘interchange system, 

21 such’’ and inserting ‘‘such documentation 

22 or’’; and 

23 (ii) by striking the semicolon and in24 serting ‘‘; and’’; and 

25 (C) in subparagraph (B)— 


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1 (i) by striking ‘‘complete the entry’’ 

2 and all that follows through ‘‘with the Cus3 toms Service’’; and 

4 (ii) by striking ‘‘, pursuant to an elec5 tronic data interchange system, such 

6 other’’; 

7 (2) in paragraph (2)— 

8 (A) in subparagraph (A)— 

9 (i) in the second sentence, by striking 

10 ‘‘regulations shall provide’’ and inserting 

11 ‘‘regulations may provide’’; and 

12 (ii) in the third sentence, by striking 

13 ‘‘paragraph (1)(A)’’ and inserting ‘‘para14 graph (1)’’; and 

15 (B) in subparagraph (B), in the first sen16 tence, by striking ‘‘filed or electronically trans17 mitted’’ and inserting ‘‘electronically filed’’; and 

18 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

19 ‘‘(3) EXEMPTIONS FROM ELECTRONIC FILING

20 REQUIREMENT.—The Secretary may, for such rea21 sons as the Secretary deems necessary, exempt the 

22 filing of documentation or information required 

23 under this section from the requirement that the 

24 documentation or information be filed through an 

25 authorized electronic data interchange system, inVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:19 Dec 16, 2023 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3431.IS S3431

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1 cluding by providing for temporary exemptions to 

2 that requirement.’’. 

3 (b) PROVISION OF ADVANCE INFORMATION.—Section 

4 484(a)(2) of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended by sub5 section (a)(2), is further amended by adding at the end 

6 the following: 

7 ‘‘(D) PROVISION OF ADVANCE INFORMATION.— 

8 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Upon request by a 

9 party that would qualify as an importer of 

10 record or an authorized agent of that party and 

11 under such regulations as the Secretary may 

12 prescribe, U.S. Customs and Border Protection 

13 may— 

14 ‘‘(I) permit the party or agent, or a 

15 party other than the party or agent, to 

16 provide to U.S. Customs and Border Pro17 tection documentation or information with 

18 respect to merchandise in advance of entry 

19 of the merchandise; and 

20 ‘‘(II) permit the importer of record to, 

21 using reasonable care, convert that docu22 mentation or information into a filing 

23 under subparagraph (B), subject to the 

24 certification requirement under subsection 

25 (d). 


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1 ‘‘(ii) TYPE OF DOCUMENTATION OR INFOR2 MATION AND USAGE.—Documentation or infor3 mation with respect to merchandise provided to 

4 U.S. Customs and Border Protection pursuant 

5 to regulations prescribed by the Secretary 

6 under clause (i) may be used by U.S. Customs 

7 and Border Protection for any lawful purpose. 

8 ‘‘(iii) ACCURACY OF DOCUMENTATION AND

9 INFORMATION.— 

10 ‘‘(I) IN GENERAL.—A party providing 

11 documentation or information under clause 

12 (i)(I) shall ensure that the documentation 

13 or information is true and correct to the 

14 best of the knowledge and belief of the 

15 party, subject to any penalties authorized 

16 by law. 

17 ‘‘(II) EXCEPTION.—The Secretary 

18 shall, in the regulations prescribed under 

19 clause (i), permit a party to provide to 

20 U.S. Customs and Border Protection docu21 mentation or information under clause 

22 (i)(I) on the basis of the reasonable belief 

23 of the party that the documentation or in24 formation is true and correct if the party 


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1 is not reasonably able to verify the docu2 mentation or information. 

3 ‘‘(iv) CIVIL PENALTY.— 

4 ‘‘(I) IN GENERAL.—Any person who 

5 violates the regulations prescribed under 

6 this subparagraph is liable for a civil pen7 alty in an amount not to exceed— 

8 ‘‘(aa) $5,000 for the first viola9 tion; and 

10 ‘‘(bb) $10,000 for each subse11 quent violation. 

12 ‘‘(II) ASSESSMENT PER UNIT.—A 

13 penalty imposed under this clause shall be 

14 assessed per item on the bill of lading. 

15 ‘‘(III) ADDITIONAL PENALTIES.—A 

16 penalty imposed under this clause may be 

17 in addition to any other penalty provided 

18 by law. 

19 ‘‘(IV) REMISSION; MITIGATION.—A 

20 penalty imposed under this clause may be 

21 remitted or mitigated, as appropriate, 

22 under section 618. 

23 ‘‘(v) REGULATIONS.—Except with respect 

24 to merchandise the importation of which into 

25 the United States is prohibited or merchandise 


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1 subject to a presumption of inadmissibility by 

2 operation of law, the Secretary, in promulgating 

3 such regulations as may be necessary to carry 

4 out the provisions of this subparagraph, shall 

5 give due consideration, where appropriate, with 

6 respect to the manner in which documentation 

7 or information that is provided to U.S. Customs 

8 and Border Protection prior to entry of the 

9 merchandise to which the documentation or in10 formation relates, and pursuant to such regula11 tions, will support trade facilitation (as defined 

12 in section 2 of the Trade Facilitation and 

13 Trade Enforcement Act of 2015 (19 U.S.C. 

14 4301)), including whether such documentation 

15 or information would— 

16 ‘‘(I) facilitate the priority processing 

17 and expedited release of merchandise from 

18 customs custody; 

19 ‘‘(II) reduce redundancies in the trade 

20 data that parties in a supply chain are re21 quired to provide; and 

22 ‘‘(III) allow for the opportunity to re23 solve requests for additional information 

24 prior to departure or arrival of the mer25 chandise. 


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1 ‘‘(vi) DEFINITION.—In this subparagraph, 

2 the terms ‘provide’, ‘providing’, and ‘provision’, 

3 with respect to documentation or information 

4 provided to U.S. Customs and Border Protec5 tion, include— 

6 ‘‘(I) the submission or transmission of 

7 the documentation or information; 

8 ‘‘(II) the provision of the documenta9 tion or information in a manner that is 

10 progressive over time, as long as such pro11 vision concludes prior to conversion into an 

12 entry filing under subparagraph (B), and 

13 may include documentation or information 

14 that is also provided to U.S. Customs and 

15 Border Protection pursuant to other re16 quirements or authorities; and 

17 ‘‘(III) otherwise making available to 

18 U.S. Customs and Border Protection the 

19 documentation or information in accord20 ance with such terms and conditions as the 

21 Secretary may by regulation prescribe.’’. 

22 (c) RELEASE OF MERCHANDISE.—Section 484(c) of 

23 the Tariff Act of 1930 is amended to read as follows: 

24 ‘‘(c) RELEASE OF MERCHANDISE.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—U.S. Customs and Border 

2 Protection may permit the entry and release of mer3 chandise from customs custody in accordance with 

4 such regulations as the Secretary may prescribe. 

5 ‘‘(2) LIABILITY OF CUSTOMS OFFICERS.—No 

6 employee of U.S. Customs and Border Protection 

7 shall be liable to any person with respect to the de8 livery of merchandise released from customs custody 

9 in accordance with regulations prescribed under 

10 paragraph (1).’’. 

11 (d) CERTIFICATION OF ENTRY FILINGS.—Section 

12 484(d) of the Tariff Act of 1930 is amended— 

13 (1) in the subsection heading, by striking 

14 ‘‘SIGNING’’ and inserting ‘‘CERTIFICATION’’; 

15 (2) in paragraph (1)— 

16 (A) by striking ‘‘Entries shall be’’ and all 

17 that follows through ‘‘transmission of data’’ 

18 and inserting ‘‘Each filing under subsection 

19 (a)(2)(B)’’; 

20 (B) by striking ‘‘his agent’’ and inserting 

21 ‘‘an agent of the importer of record’’; 

22 (C) by striking ‘‘his knowledge and belief’’ 

23 and inserting ‘‘the knowledge and belief of the 

24 importer of record or agent’’; and 


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1 (D) by striking ‘‘The entry shall’’ and in2 serting ‘‘If exempt from electronic filing, the 

3 entry shall be signed by the importer of record 

4 or agent. The entry shall’’; and 

5 (3) in paragraph (2)— 

6 (A) by striking ‘‘imported merchandise 

7 bears’’ and inserting the following: ‘‘imported 

8 merchandise— 

9 ‘‘(A) bears’’; 

10 (B) by striking the period at the end and 

11 inserting ‘‘; or’’; and 

12 (C) by adding at the end the following: 

13 ‘‘(B) infringes a copyright in violation of sec14 tion 602 of title 17, United States Code.’’. 

15 (e) TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

16 Section 484 of the Tariff Act of 1930, as amended by this 

17 section, is further amended— 

18 (1) in subsection (b)(1), in the third sentence, 

19 by striking ‘‘subsection (a)(1)(B)’’ and inserting 

20 ‘‘subsection (a)(1)’’; 

21 (2) by striking ‘‘the Bureau of Customs and 

22 Border Protection’’ each place it appears and insert23 ing ‘‘U.S. Customs and Border Protection’’; and 


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1 (3) by striking ‘‘the Customs Service’’ each 

2 place it appears and inserting ‘‘U.S. Customs and 

3 Border Protection’’. 

4 SEC. 102. EXPANSION OF RECORDKEEPING REQUIREMENTS 

5 RELATING TO IMPORTATION. 

6 Section 508(a) of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 

7 1508(a)) is amended— 

8 (1) in paragraph (1)(B), by inserting ‘‘, directs, 

9 or facilitates’’ after ‘‘causes’’; 

10 (2) in paragraph (2), by striking ‘‘; or’’ and in11 serting a semicolon; 

12 (3) in paragraph (3)— 

13 (A) by striking ‘‘person whose’’ and insert14 ing the following: ‘‘person— 

15 ‘‘(A) whose’’; 

16 (B) by striking the semicolon and inserting 

17 ‘‘; or’’; and 

18 (C) by adding at the end the following: 

19 ‘‘(B) that submits, transmits, or otherwise 

20 makes available or visible to U.S. Customs and 

21 Border Protection documentation or informa22 tion under the customs and trade laws of the 

23 United States (as defined in section 2 of the 

24 Trade Facilitation and Trade Enforcement Act 

25 of 2015 (19 U.S.C. 4301)) administered by 


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1 U.S. Customs and Border Protection or U.S. 

2 Immigration and Customs Enforcement; or’’; 

3 (4) by inserting after paragraph (3) the fol4 lowing: 

5 ‘‘(4) owner or operator of a commercial or mar6 keting platform or marketplace, including an elec7 tronic commerce platform or marketplace, through 

8 which merchandise that is imported into the United 

9 States is offered for sale or purchase within the 

10 United States;’’; and 

11 (5) in the flush text following paragraph (4), as 

12 so inserted, by striking subparagraph (A) and insert13 ing the following: 

14 ‘‘(A) pertain to— 

15 ‘‘(i) any such activity; 

16 ‘‘(ii) the role of the party in a transaction 

17 resulting in the sale or purchase of imported 

18 merchandise within the United States; or 

19 ‘‘(iii) the information contained in the 

20 records required by the customs and trade laws 

21 of the United States in connection with any 

22 such activity or transaction; and’’. 


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1 SEC. 103. EXPANSION OF AUTHORITY OF U.S. CUSTOMS AND 

2 BORDER PROTECTION TO OBTAIN INFORMA3 TION RELATING TO IMPORTATION AND 

4 TRADE ENFORCEMENT. 

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 509(a) of the Tariff Act 

6 of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1509(a)) is amended— 

7 (1) in the matter preceding paragraph (1), by 

8 striking ‘‘insuring’’ and all that follows through 

9 ‘‘charge)’’ and inserting the following: ‘‘ensuring 

10 compliance with the customs and trade laws of the 

11 United States (as defined in section 2 of the Trade 

12 Facilitation and Trade Enforcement Act of 2015 (19 

13 U.S.C. 4301)) administered by U.S. Customs and 

14 Border Protection or U.S. Immigration and Customs 

15 Enforcement, the Secretary (but no delegate of the 

16 Secretary below the rank of port director, director of 

17 a Center of Excellence and Expertise, field director 

18 of regulatory audit, or special agent in charge)’’; 

19 (2) in paragraph (1)— 

20 (A) in the matter preceding subparagraph 

21 (A), by striking ‘‘except that’’ and inserting 

22 ‘‘and’’; 

23 (B) in subparagraph (A), by striking ‘‘by 

24 law’’ and all that follows through ‘‘Customs 

25 Service within’’ and inserting the following: ‘‘to 

26 be kept under section 508, the record shall be 


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1 provided to the agency demanding the record 

2 within’’; and 

3 (C) in subparagraph (B), by striking ‘‘the 

4 demand’’ and all that follows and inserting the 

5 following: ‘‘the demand— 

6 ‘‘(i) the person may be subject to pen7 alty under subsection (g); and 

8 ‘‘(ii) if U.S. Customs and Border Pro9 tection determines that the person has 

10 failed to make reasonable efforts to comply 

11 with the demand, U.S. Customs and Bor12 der Protection may use, in selecting from 

13 among the facts otherwise available, an in14 ference that is adverse to the interests of 

15 the person in— 

16 ‘‘(I) ascertaining the correctness 

17 of any entry; and 

18 ‘‘(II) determining the liability of 

19 any person for— 

20 ‘‘(aa) fines and penalties; 

21 and 

22 ‘‘(bb) duty, fees, and taxes 

23 that may be due to the United 

24 States.’’; and 

25 (3) in paragraph (2)— 


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1 (A) in subparagraph (A)— 

2 (i) by redesignating clauses (ii), (iii), 

3 and (iv) as clauses (iii), (iv), and (v), re4 spectively, and by moving such clauses, as 

5 so redesignated, 2 ems to the left; 

6 (ii) by striking ‘‘(A) the person who— 

7 ’’ and all that follows through ‘‘Act),’’ and 

8 inserting the following: 

9 ‘‘(A)(i) a person that imported, or know10 ingly caused to be imported, merchandise into 

11 the customs territory of the United States, or 

12 participated in, facilitated, or was otherwise 

13 knowingly connected or related to the importa14 tion of merchandise; 

15 ‘‘(ii) a vehicle producer whose good is sub16 ject to a claim of preferential tariff treatment 

17 under the USMCA (as defined in section 3 of 

18 the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement 

19 Implementation Act (19 U.S.C. 4502)),’’; 

20 (iii) in clause (iii), as redesignated by 

21 clause (i), by inserting ‘‘a person that’’ be22 fore ‘‘exported merchandise’’; 

23 (iv) in clause (iv), as so redesig24 nated— 


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1 (I) by inserting ‘‘a person that’’ 

2 before ‘‘transported’’; and 

3 (II) by striking ‘‘storage, or’’ and 

4 inserting ‘‘storage,’’; 

5 (v) in clause (v), as so redesignated— 

6 (I) by inserting ‘‘a person that’’ 

7 before ‘‘filed’’; and 

8 (II) by striking ‘‘the Customs 

9 Service;’’ and inserting the following: 

10 ‘‘U.S. Customs and Border Protec11 tion, or submitted, transmitted, or 

12 otherwise made available or visible to 

13 U.S. Customs and Border Protection 

14 documentation or information under 

15 the customs and trade laws of the 

16 United States (as defined in section 2 

17 of the Trade Facilitation and Trade 

18 Enforcement Act of 2015 (19 U.S.C. 

19 4301)) administered by U.S. Customs 

20 and Border Protection or U.S. Immi21 gration and Customs Enforcement, 

22 or’’; and 

23 (vi) by adding at the end the fol24 lowing: 


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1 ‘‘(v) an owner or operator of a commercial 

2 or marketing platform or marketplace through 

3 which merchandise that is imported into the 

4 United States is offered for sale or purchase 

5 within the United States;’’; and 

6 (B) in the flush text following subpara7 graph (D), by striking ‘‘records, as defined in 

8 subsection (d)(1)(A)’’ and inserting ‘‘records, 

9 which may include records defined in subsection 

10 (d)(1)(A)’’. 

11 (b) DEFINITION OF RECORDS.—Section 

12 509(d)(1)(A) of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 

13 1509(d)(1)(A)) is amended— 

14 (1) in clause (i), by striking ‘‘; or’’ and insert15 ing a semicolon; 

16 (2) in clause (ii), by striking the period at the 

17 end and inserting ‘‘; or’’; and 

18 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

19 ‘‘(iii) that pertain to nonpayment of 

20 all or a portion of any lawful duties, taxes, 

21 or fees that may be due to the United 

22 States.’’. 

23 (c) IDENTIFICATION OF RECORDS AND INFORMA24 TION.—Section 509(e) of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 

25 U.S.C. 1509(e)) is amended to read as follows: 


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1 ‘‘(e) IDENTIFICATION OF RECORDS AND INFORMA2 TION.—The Commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border 

3 Protection shall prescribe regulations identifying the 

4 records and information required to be maintained and 

5 produced under subsection (a)(1)(A).’’. 

6 (d) TECHNICAL AMENDMENTS.—Section 509 of the 

7 Tariff Act of 1930, as amended by this section, is further 

8 amended by striking ‘‘the Customs Service’’ each place it 

9 appears and inserting ‘‘U.S. Customs and Border Protec10 tion’’. 

11 SEC. 104. USE OF MANDATORY ADVANCE ELECTRONIC IN12 FORMATION FOR CARGO. 

13 Section 343 of the Customs Border Security Act of 

14 2002 (19 U.S.C. 1415) is amended— 

15 (1) in subsection (a)— 

16 (A) in paragraph (2), in the first sentence, 

17 by striking ‘‘cargo safety’’ and all that follows 

18 through ‘‘Customs Service’’ and inserting ‘‘com19 pliance with customs and trade laws of the 

20 United States (as defined in section 2 of the 

21 Trade Facilitation and Trade Enforcement Act 

22 of 2015 (19 U.S.C. 4301)) administered by 

23 U.S. Customs and Border Protection’’; and 

24 (B) in paragraph (3), by striking subpara25 graph (F) and inserting the following: 


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1 ‘‘(F)(i) Except as provided by clause (ii), 

2 the information collected pursuant to the regu3 lations may be used for any lawful purpose or 

4 reason, as determined by the Secretary. 

5 ‘‘(ii) All information collected pursuant to 

6 the regulations may be shared only in accord7 ance with the law, including section 628 of the 

8 Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1628) and regu9 lations prescribed under that section.’’; and 

10 (2) by striking ‘‘the Customs Service’’ each 

11 place it appears and inserting ‘‘U.S. Customs and 

12 Border Protection’’. 

13 TITLE II—STRENGTHENED EN14 FORCEMENT OF IMPORT AND 

15 EXPORT PROHIBITIONS 

16 SEC. 201. EXAMINATION AND TESTING OF MERCHANDISE 

17 THAT INFRINGES INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY 

18 RIGHTS. 

19 (a) EXPANSION OF INFORMATION THAT MAY BE

20 PROVIDED.—Section 628A of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 

21 U.S.C. 1628a) is amended— 

22 (1) in the section heading, by striking ‘‘EX23 CHANGE OF INFORMATION RELATED TO TRADE

24 ENFORCEMENT’’ and inserting ‘‘EXAMINATION


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1 AND TESTING OF MERCHANDISE THAT IN2 FRINGES INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS’’; 

3 (2) in subsection (a)— 

4 (A) in the matter preceding paragraph 

5 (1)— 

6 (i) by striking ‘‘suspects’’ and insert7 ing ‘‘has a reasonable suspicion’’; and 

8 (ii) by inserting after ‘‘and testing’’ 

9 the following: ‘‘, may provide to the per10 son’’; 

11 (B) in paragraph (1)— 

12 (i) by striking ‘‘shall provide to the 

13 person’’; and 

14 (ii) by striking ‘‘; and’’ and inserting 

15 a semicolon; 

16 (C) in paragraph (2)— 

17 (i) by striking ‘‘may’’ and all that fol18 lows through ‘‘the person’’ and inserting 

19 ‘‘subject to any applicable bonding require20 ments,’’; and 

21 (ii) by striking the period at the end 

22 and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

23 (D) by adding at the end the following: 

24 ‘‘(3) subject to subsection (e), nonpublic infor25 mation that has been provided to, or shared with, 


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1 U.S. Customs and Border Protection about the mer2 chandise generated by an online marketplace or 

3 other similar market platform, an express consign4 ment operator, a freight forwarder, or any other en5 tity that plays a role in the sale or importation, or 

6 facilitation of the sale or importation, of merchan7 dise into the United States.’’; and 

8 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

9 ‘‘(e) NOTIFICATION.—If U.S. Customs and Border 

10 Protection provides under subsection (a)(3) nonpublic in11 formation to a person described in subsection (b), U.S. 

12 Customs and Border Protection shall provide to that per13 son notification of the information so provided, in accord14 ance with such regulations as the Secretary may pre15 scribe.’’. 

16 (b) SHARING OF IMPORTATION DATA RELATED TO

17 TRADE ENFORCEMENT.—The Tariff Act of 1930 (19 

18 U.S.C. 1304 et seq.) is amended by inserting after section 

19 628A the following: 

20 ‘‘SEC. 628B. EXCHANGE OF SHIPMENT INFORMATION RE21 LATED TO TRADE ENFORCEMENT. 

22 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subsection (d), and 

23 pursuant to regulations prescribed by the Secretary of the 

24 Treasury, the Commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border 

25 Protection may provide information about a shipment to 


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1 a person described in subsection (b) if the Commissioner 

2 determines that— 

3 ‘‘(1) the shipment is being imported into the 

4 United States in violation of section 526(e) of this 

5 Act or section 602, 1201(a)(2), or 1201(b)(1) of 

6 title 17, United States Code; or 

7 ‘‘(2) subject to subsection (d), sharing of infor8 mation with respect to the shipment with a person 

9 described in subsection (b) would promote compli10 ance with the customs and trade laws of the United 

11 States (as defined in section 2 of the Trade Facilita12 tion and Trade Enforcement Act of 2015 (19 U.S.C. 

13 4301)). 

14 ‘‘(b) PERSON DESCRIBED.—A person described in 

15 this subsection, with respect to a shipment described in 

16 subsection (a), is— 

17 ‘‘(1) a person described in section 628A(b); 

18 ‘‘(2) an online marketplace or other similar 

19 market platform that facilitates the importation of 

20 merchandise into the United States or the sale of 

21 imported merchandise in the United States; 

22 ‘‘(3) an express consignment operator; 

23 ‘‘(4) a freight forwarder; or 


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1 ‘‘(5) any other entity that plays a role in the 

2 sale or importation, or facilitation of the sale or im3 portation, of merchandise into the United States. 

4 ‘‘(c) NOTIFICATION.—If U.S. Customs and Border 

5 Protection provides under subsection (a)(2) information to 

6 a person described in subsection (b), U.S. Customs and 

7 Border Protection shall provide to that person notification 

8 of the information so provided, in accordance with such 

9 regulations as the Secretary may prescribe. 

10 ‘‘(d) EXCEPTION.—The Commissioner may not pro11 vide information under subsection (a) to a person de12 scribed in subsection (b) if providing that information 

13 would compromise an ongoing law enforcement investiga14 tion or national security.’’. 

15 SEC. 202. SEIZURE AND FORFEITURE AND DISPOSITION OF, 

16 AND EXPANDED LIABILITY FOR, MERCHAN17 DISE BEARING A COUNTERFEIT MARK OR IN18 FRINGING A COPYRIGHT. 

19 (a) SEIZURE AND FORFEITURE AND DISPOSITION.— 

20 Section 526(e) of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 

21 1526(e)) is amended to read as follows: 

22 ‘‘(e) SEIZURE AND FORFEITURE AND DISPOSITION

23 OF MERCHANDISE BEARING A COUNTERFEIT MARK OR

24 INFRINGING A COPYRIGHT.— 


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•S 3431 IS

1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Merchandise described in 

2 paragraph (2) shall— 

3 ‘‘(A) be seized or otherwise interdicted 

4 pursuant to such regulations as the Secretary 

5 shall prescribe; and 

6 ‘‘(B) in the absence of the written consent 

7 of the owner of the mark or copyright being in8 fringed, be forfeited for violations of the cus9 toms laws. 

10 ‘‘(2) MERCHANDISE DESCRIBED.—Merchandise 

11 described in this paragraph is— 

12 ‘‘(A) merchandise bearing a counterfeit 

13 mark that is— 

14 ‘‘(i) imported into the United States 

15 in violation of the provisions of section 42 

16 of the Lanham Act (15 U.S.C. 1124); or 

17 ‘‘(ii) exported or sent from the United 

18 States or attempted to be exported or sent 

19 from the United States; or 

20 ‘‘(B) merchandise that is imported into or 

21 exported from the United States in violation of 

22 section 602 of title 17, United States Code. 

23 ‘‘(3) SUMMARY FORFEITURE.— 

24 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—In the case of mer25 chandise described in subparagraph (B)— 


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•S 3431 IS

1 ‘‘(i) such merchandise may be sum2 marily forfeited for violations of the cus3 toms laws; and 

4 ‘‘(ii) title to such merchandise shall 

5 vest immediately in the United States. 

6 ‘‘(B) MERCHANDISE DESCRIBED.—Mer7 chandise is described in this subparagraph if— 

8 ‘‘(i) the merchandise is merchandise 

9 described in paragraph (2); and 

10 ‘‘(ii)(I) in the case of merchandise 

11 being imported or attempted to be im12 ported, an administrative exemption under 

13 section 321(a)(2)(C) is claimed with re14 spect to the merchandise; or 

15 ‘‘(II) in the case of merchandise being 

16 exported or sent or attempted to be ex17 ported or sent from the United States, the 

18 aggregate value of the shipment of the 

19 merchandise at the time the merchandise 

20 is exported or sent from the United States 

21 or attempted to be exported or sent from 

22 the United States is equal to or less than 

23 $800. 

24 ‘‘(C) NOTICE.—Upon seizure of merchan25 dise described in subparagraph (B), the SecVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:19 Dec 16, 2023 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00026 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3431.IS S3431

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•S 3431 IS

1 retary shall notify the owner of the mark or 

2 copyright being infringed in such form and 

3 manner as the Secretary shall prescribe by reg4 ulation, which may include communication 

5 through an authorized electronic data inter6 change system. 

7 ‘‘(4) DISPOSITION OF MERCHANDISE.—After 

8 forfeiture of merchandise under paragraph (1)— 

9 ‘‘(A) the Secretary shall destroy the mer10 chandise; or 

11 ‘‘(B) if the merchandise is not unsafe or a 

12 hazard to health, and the Secretary has the 

13 consent of the owner of the mark or copyright 

14 being infringed, the Secretary may obliterate 

15 the mark where feasible and dispose of the mer16 chandise— 

17 ‘‘(i) by delivery to such Federal, 

18 State, and local government agencies as in 

19 the opinion of the Secretary have a need 

20 for such merchandise; 

21 ‘‘(ii) by gift to such eleemosynary in22 stitutions as in the opinion of the Sec23 retary have a need for such merchandise; 

24 or 


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•S 3431 IS

1 ‘‘(iii) more than 90 days after the 

2 date of forfeiture, by sale by U.S. Customs 

3 and Border Protection at public auction 

4 under such regulations as the Secretary 

5 prescribes, except that before making any 

6 such sale the Secretary shall determine 

7 that no Federal, State, or local government 

8 agency or eleemosynary institution has es9 tablished a need for such merchandise 

10 under clause (i) or (ii). 

11 ‘‘(5) DEFINITION.—In this subsection: 

12 ‘‘(A) COUNTERFEIT MARK.—The term 

13 ‘counterfeit mark’ means a mark that is coun14 terfeit within the meaning of section 45 of the 

15 Lanham Act (15 U.S.C. 1127). 

16 ‘‘(B) LANHAM ACT.—The term ‘Lanham 

17 Act’ means the Act entitled ‘An Act to provide 

18 for the registration and protection of trade19 marks used in commerce, to carry out the pro20 visions of certain international conventions, and 

21 for other purposes’, approved July 5, 1946 

22 (commonly known as the ‘Trademark Act of 

23 1946’ or the ‘Lanham Act’) (15 U.S.C. 1051 et 

24 seq.). 


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1 ‘‘(C) MARK.—The term ‘mark’ has the 

2 meaning given that term in section 45 of the 

3 Lanham Act (15 U.S.C. 1127).’’. 

4 (b) EXPANSION OF LIABILITY FOR IMPORTING MER5 CHANDISE BEARING A COUNTERFEIT MARK OR INFRING6 ING A COPYRIGHT.—Section 526(f) of the Tariff Act of 

7 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1526(f)) is amended— 

8 (1) in paragraph (1)— 

9 (A) by striking ‘‘assists’’ and inserting ‘‘or 

10 assists,’’; and 

11 (B) by striking ‘‘the importation’’ and all 

12 that follows through ‘‘subsection (e)’’ and in13 serting ‘‘any importation or exportation of mer14 chandise in violation of subsection (e)’’; 

15 (2) in paragraph (2), by inserting ‘‘or for the 

16 first interdiction of such merchandise for which no17 tice has been provided pursuant to such regulations 

18 as the Secretary shall prescribe,’’ after ‘‘such sei19 zure,’’; 

20 (3) in paragraph (3), by inserting ‘‘or for the 

21 second interdiction and thereafter of such merchan22 dise for which notice has been provided pursuant to 

23 such regulations as the Secretary shall prescribe,’’ 

24 after ‘‘thereafter,’’; and 


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•S 3431 IS

1 (4) in paragraph (4), by striking ‘‘the Customs 

2 Service’’ and inserting ‘‘U.S. Customs and Border 

3 Protection’’. 

4 (c) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 526 of the 

5 Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1526) is amended, in the 

6 section heading, by inserting ‘‘OR PROTECTED COPY7 RIGHTED WORK’’ after ‘‘TRADE-MARK’’. 

8 SEC. 203. SUMMARY FORFEITURE OF CERTAIN MERCHAN9 DISE. 

10 (a) MERCHANDISE IMPORTED OR EXPORTED CON11 TRARY TO LAW.—Section 596 of the Tariff Act of 1930 

12 (19 U.S.C. 1595a) is amended— 

13 (1) by adding at the end the following: 

14 ‘‘(e) SUMMARY FORFEITURE.— 

15 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Merchandise described in 

16 paragraph (2) may be summarily forfeited to the 

17 United States and title shall vest immediately in the 

18 United States. 

19 ‘‘(2) MERCHANDISE DESCRIBED.—Merchandise 

20 is described in this paragraph if— 

21 ‘‘(A)(i) in the case of merchandise being 

22 imported or attempted to be imported, an ad23 ministrative exemption under section 

24 321(a)(2)(C) is claimed with respect to the 

25 merchandise; or 


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1 ‘‘(ii) in the case of merchandise being ex2 ported or sent or attempted to be exported or 

3 sent from the United States, the aggregate 

4 value of the shipment of the merchandise at the 

5 time the merchandise is exported or sent from 

6 the United States or attempted to be exported 

7 or sent from the United States is equal to or 

8 less than $800; and 

9 ‘‘(B) the merchandise is— 

10 ‘‘(i) a controlled substance, as defined 

11 in section 102 of the Controlled Sub12 stances Act (21 U.S.C. 802), in schedule 

13 III, IV, or V under section 202 of that Act 

14 (21 U.S.C. 812), imported or exported con15 trary to law and seized under subsection 

16 (c)(1)(B) or (d); 

17 ‘‘(ii) merchandise— 

18 ‘‘(I) that is— 

19 ‘‘(aa) subject to any restric20 tion or prohibition on its impor21 tation under section 536 or 801 

22 of the Federal Food, Drug, and 

23 Cosmetic Act (21 U.S.C. 360mm 

24 and 381); and 


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1 ‘‘(bb) is not in compliance, 

2 as applicable, with the Federal 

3 Food and Drug Cosmetic Act (21 

4 U.S.C. 301 et seq.) or section 

5 351 or 361 of the Public Health 

6 Service Act (42 U.S.C. 262 and 

7 264); and 

8 ‘‘(II) seized under subsection 

9 (c)(2)(A) or (d); or 

10 ‘‘(iii) merchandise that— 

11 ‘‘(I)(aa) bears a counterfeit mark 

12 or otherwise infringes a copyright; or 

13 ‘‘(bb) is capable of circumventing 

14 technological measures for protection 

15 of a copyright; and 

16 ‘‘(II) is seized under subpara17 graph (C) or (G) of subsection (c)(2) 

18 or subsection (d). 

19 ‘‘(3) NOTICE.—In any case in which merchan20 dise is summarily forfeited pursuant to this sub21 section, U.S. Customs and Border Protection shall 

22 notify the carrier of the merchandise in such form 

23 and manner as the Secretary shall prescribe by regu24 lation, which may include communication through an 

25 authorized electronic data interchange system. 


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•S 3431 IS

1 ‘‘(4) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in 

2 this subsection may be construed to affect the dis3 cretion of the Commissioner to impose a penalty as 

4 provided by law instead of using the authority pro5 vided by paragraph (1).’’; and 

6 (2) in the section heading, by inserting ‘‘AND

7 EXPORTATION’’ after ‘‘IMPORTATION’’. 

8 (b) VESSELS, VEHICLES, AND AIRCRAFT USED TO

9 TRANSPORT MERCHANDISE ILLEGALLY.—Section 607 of 

10 the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1607) is amended— 

11 (1) in subsection (a), in the flush text following 

12 paragraph (4), by inserting ‘‘subject to subsection 

13 (d),’’ before ‘‘the appropriate customs officer’’; and 

14 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

15 ‘‘(d) SUMMARY FORFEITURE.—In the case of mer16 chandise seized under section 526(e) or subject to sum17 mary forfeiture under section 596(e)— 

18 ‘‘(1) the provisions of subsection (a) shall not 

19 apply; and 

20 ‘‘(2) the merchandise may be summarily for21 feited and title shall vest immediately in the United 

22 States pursuant to such regulations as the Secretary 

23 shall prescribe.’’. 


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1 TITLE III—LIABILITY FOR VIOLA2 TIONS OF CUSTOMS AND 

3 TRADE LAWS 

4 SEC. 301. EXPANSION OF LIABILITY FOR CERTAIN VIOLA5 TIONS OF ARRIVAL, REPORTING, ENTRY, AND 

6 CLEARANCE REQUIREMENTS. 

7 Section 436 of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 

8 1436) is amended— 

9 (1) in subsection (a)— 

10 (A) in paragraph (2), by striking ‘‘the Cus11 toms Service’’ and inserting ‘‘U.S. Customs and 

12 Border Protection’’; and 

13 (B) by striking ‘‘section 4197 of the Re14 vised Statutes of the United States (46 U.S.C. 

15 App. 91)’’ each place it appears and inserting 

16 ‘‘section 60105 of title 46, United States 

17 Code’’; 

18 (2) in subsection (b)— 

19 (A) by striking ‘‘Any master’’ and insert20 ing the following: 

21 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Any master’’; 

22 (B) by striking ‘‘or aircraft pilot’’ and in23 serting ‘‘aircraft pilot, or other person’’; and 

24 (C) by adding at the end the following: 


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•S 3431 IS

1 ‘‘(2) PROVISION OF INCORRECT INFORMA2 TION.—Any person who knowingly provides incorrect 

3 information, or provides incorrect information in de4 liberate or reckless ignorance of the truth or falsity 

5 of the information, to a person described in para6 graph (1) who is required to present or transmit 

7 that information to U.S. Customs and Border Pro8 tection pursuant to section 431, 433, or 434 of this 

9 Act or section 60105 of title 46, United States Code, 

10 is liable for a civil penalty of $5,000 for the first vio11 lation, and $10,000 for each subsequent violation.’’; 

12 and 

13 (3) in subsection (d)— 

14 (A) in the first sentence, by striking ‘‘or 

15 aircraft pilot’’ and inserting ‘‘aircraft pilot, or 

16 other person described in subsection (b)(1)’’; 

17 and 

18 (B) in the second sentence— 

19 (i) by striking ‘‘or pilot shall’’ and in20 serting ‘‘aircraft pilot, or other person de21 scribed in subsection (b)(1) may’’; and 

22 (ii) by striking ‘‘liable to’’ and insert23 ing ‘‘liable for’’. 


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•S 3431 IS

1 SEC. 302. MODIFICATION OF STANDARDS AND PENALTIES 

2 FOR FRAUD AND NEGLIGENCE. 

3 (a) STANDARDS FOR FRAUD AND NEGLIGENCE.— 

4 Section 592 of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1592) 

5 is amended— 

6 (1) in the section heading, by striking ‘‘, 

7 GROSS NEGLIGENCE,’’; and 

8 (2) in subsection (a)— 

9 (A) in paragraph (1)— 

10 (i) in the matter preceding subpara11 graph (A), by striking ‘‘, gross neg12 ligence,’’; 

13 (ii) in subparagraph (A)(ii), by strik14 ing ‘‘, or’’ and inserting a semicolon; 

15 (iii) in subparagraph (B), by striking 

16 the period at the end and inserting ‘‘; or’’; 

17 and 

18 (iv) by adding at the end the fol19 lowing: 

20 ‘‘(C) may direct or facilitate the entry or 

21 introduction of merchandise in violation of sub22 paragraph (A).’’; 

23 (B) by adding at the end the following: 

24 ‘‘(3) STANDARDS FOR FRAUD AND NEG25 LIGENCE.— 


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•S 3431 IS

1 ‘‘(A) FRAUD.—A violation of paragraph 

2 (1) is by fraud if the violation results from an 

3 act (including the transmission of a statement 

4 or document to U.S. Customs and Border Pro5 tection) or omission, done knowingly or with de6 liberate ignorance or reckless disregard of the 

7 offender’s obligations to act in accordance with 

8 applicable provisions of law. 

9 ‘‘(B) NEGLIGENCE.—A violation of para10 graph (1) is by negligence if the violation re11 sults from an act (including the transmission of 

12 a statement or document to U.S. Customs and 

13 Border Protection) or omission done through 

14 the failure to exercise the degree of reasonable 

15 care— 

16 ‘‘(i) to ensure that statements made 

17 and information provided in connection 

18 with the importation of merchandise are 

19 complete and accurate; or 

20 ‘‘(ii) to perform any material act re21 quired by the customs and trade laws of 

22 the United States (as defined in section 2 

23 of the Trade Facilitation and Trade En24 forcement Act of 2015 (19 U.S.C. 4301)) 


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1 or any regulation prescribed pursuant to 

2 such laws.’’; 

3 (3) in subsection (c)— 

4 (A) by striking paragraph (2); and 

5 (B) in paragraph (4)(B), by striking ‘‘or 

6 gross negligence’’; 

7 (4) in subsection (e)— 

8 (A) in the matter preceding paragraph (1), 

9 by inserting after ‘‘this section’’ the following: 

10 ‘‘, without regard to whether U.S. Customs and 

11 Border Protection asserts that the violation to 

12 which the penalty relates was done by fraud or 

13 negligence’’; 

14 (B) by striking paragraph (3); and 

15 (C) by redesignating paragraph (4) as 

16 paragraph (3); and 

17 (5) in subsections (f) through (l), by striking ‘‘, 

18 gross negligence,’’ each place it appears. 

19 (b) PENALTY PROCEDURES.—Section 592(b) of the 

20 Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1592(b)) is amended— 

21 (1) in paragraph (1)— 

22 (A) in subparagraph (A)— 

23 (i) in clause (ii)— 

24 (I) by striking ‘‘, or’’ and insert25 ing a comma; and 


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1 (II) by inserting before the semi2 colon the following: ‘‘, or the direction 

3 or facilitation of the entry or intro4 duction’’; 

5 (ii) in clause (v), by striking ‘‘wheth6 er’’ and all that follows through ‘‘or neg7 ligence’’ and inserting ‘‘the alleged level of 

8 culpability’’; and 

9 (B) by amending subparagraph (B) to read 

10 as follows: 

11 ‘‘(B) EXCEPTIONS.—U.S. Customs and 

12 Border Protection is not required to issue a no13 tice under subparagraph (A) if— 

14 ‘‘(i) the importation with respect to 

15 which the violation of subsection (a) occurs 

16 is noncommercial in nature, or 

17 ‘‘(ii) the amount of the penalty in the 

18 penalty claim issued under paragraph (2) 

19 is less than an amount established by the 

20 Secretary by regulation.’’; 

21 (2) by amending paragraph (2) to read as fol22 lows: 

23 ‘‘(2) PENALTY CLAIM.— 

24 ‘‘(A) DETERMINATION OF VIOLATIONS.— 

25 U.S. Customs and Border Protection shall deVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:19 Dec 16, 2023 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00039 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3431.IS S3431

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•S 3431 IS

1 termine whether any violation of subsection (a) 

2 has occurred after considering representations, 

3 if any, made by the person concerned. 

4 ‘‘(B) EFFECT OF NEGATIVE DETERMINA5 TION.—If U.S. Customs and Border Protection 

6 determines under subparagraph (A) that a per7 son described in that subparagraph did not vio8 late subsection (a), U.S. Customs and Border 

9 Protection shall promptly issue a written state10 ment of the determination to that person. 

11 ‘‘(C) EFFECT OF AFFIRMATIVE DETER12 MINATION.— 

13 ‘‘(i) ISSUANCE OF PENALTY CLAIM.— 

14 If U.S. Customs and Border Protection de15 termines under subparagraph (A) that a 

16 person described in that subparagraph vio17 lated subsection (a), U.S. Customs and 

18 Border Protection shall issue a written 

19 penalty claim to that person. 

20 ‘‘(ii) CONTENTS.—A written penalty 

21 claim issued under clause (i) with respect 

22 to a violation of subsection (a) shall speci23 fy— 


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1 ‘‘(I) the information described in 

2 clauses (i) through (vi) of paragraph 

3 (1)(A); and 

4 ‘‘(II) if a notice was issued under 

5 paragraph (1)(A) with respect to the 

6 violation, any changes to the informa7 tion described in clauses (i) through 

8 (vi) of that paragraph. 

9 ‘‘(D) OPPORTUNITY TO MAKE REPRESEN10 TATIONS.— 

11 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Except as pro12 vided by clause (iii), a person to which 

13 U.S. Customs and Border Protection 

14 issues a penalty claim under subparagraph 

15 (C) shall have a reasonable opportunity 

16 under section 618 to make representations, 

17 both oral and written, seeking remission or 

18 mitigation of the monetary penalty. 

19 ‘‘(ii) FINAL DETERMINATION.—At the 

20 conclusion of any proceeding under section 

21 618 described in clause (i), U.S. Customs 

22 and Border Protection shall provide to the 

23 person to which U.S. Customs and Border 

24 Protection issued a penalty claim a written 

25 statement (which may be issued electroniVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:19 Dec 16, 2023 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00041 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3431.IS S3431

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•S 3431 IS

1 cally) that sets forth the final determina2 tion and the findings of fact and conclu3 sions of law on which that determination is 

4 based. 

5 ‘‘(iii) VIOLATIONS BY FRAUD.—A pen6 alty for a violation of subsection (a) by 

7 fraud may be enforced in the United 

8 States Court of International Trade with9 out the issuance of a notice under para10 graph (1)(A) or an administrative pro11 ceeding under section 618.’’. 

12 (c) COURT OF INTERNATIONAL TRADE PRO13 CEEDINGS.—Section 592(e) of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 

14 U.S.C. 1592(e)) is amended— 

15 (1) in the matter preceding paragraph (1), by 

16 inserting after ‘‘under this section’’ the following: 

17 ‘‘(without regard to the level of culpability asserted 

18 by U.S. Customs and Border Protection in any pro19 ceeding under subsection (b))’’; 

20 (2) in paragraph (2), by striking the semicolon 

21 and inserting ‘‘; and’’; 

22 (3) by striking paragraph (3); and 

23 (4) by redesignating paragraph (4) as para24 graph (3). 


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•S 3431 IS

1 (d) TECHNICAL AMENDMENT.—Section 592 of the 

2 Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1592), as amended by this 

3 section, is further amended by striking ‘‘the Customs 

4 Service’’ each place it appears and inserting ‘‘U.S. Cus5 toms and Border Protection’’. 

6 SEC. 303. EXPANSION OF LIABILITY FOR AIDING UNLAW7 FUL IMPORTATION AND EXPORTATION. 

8 Section 596 of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 

9 1595a) is amended— 

10 (1) by amending subsection (b) to read as fol11 lows: 

12 ‘‘(b) PENALTY.— 

13 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A person is liable for a 

14 penalty not to exceed the domestic value of an arti15 cle or articles introduced or attempted to be intro16 duced into the United States contrary to law if the 

17 person directs, assists financially or otherwise, or is 

18 in any way concerned in— 

19 ‘‘(A) the importation, introduction, bring20 ing in, unlading, landing, removal, concealing, 

21 harboring, or subsequent transportation of the 

22 article or articles; or 

23 ‘‘(B) the attempted importation, introduc24 tion, bringing in, unlading, landing, removal, 


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1 concealing, harboring, or subsequent transpor2 tation of the article or articles. 

3 ‘‘(2) SEIZURE NOT REQUIRED.—The penalty 

4 specified in paragraph (1) applies with respect to a 

5 person described in that paragraph without regard 

6 to whether the article or articles described in that 

7 paragraph were seized.’’; 

8 (2) in subsection (d)— 

9 (A) by striking ‘‘Merchandise exported’’ 

10 and inserting the following: ‘‘MERCHANDISE

11 EXPORTED CONTRARY TO LAW.— 

12 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Merchandise exported’’; 

13 (B) by striking ‘‘shall’’ and inserting 

14 ‘‘may’’; and 

15 (C) by adding at the end the following: 

16 ‘‘(2) PENALTY.— 

17 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—A person that directs, 

18 assists financially or otherwise, or is in any way 

19 concerned in, the exportation or sending from 

20 the United States or the attempted exportation 

21 or sending from the United States of merchan22 dise contrary to law is liable for a penalty not 

23 to exceed the export value of the merchandise. 

24 ‘‘(B) SEIZURE NOT REQUIRED.—The pen25 alty specified in subparagraph (A) applies with 


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•S 3431 IS

1 respect to a person described in that subpara2 graph without regard to whether the merchan3 dise exported or sent or attempted to be ex4 ported or sent from the United States contrary 

5 to law was seized.’’; and 

6 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

7 ‘‘(e) DISCRETION OF SECRETARY TO IMPOSE PEN8 ALTIES.—For any violation for which merchandise may be 

9 seized and forfeited under this section, the Secretary re10 tains discretion to assess a penalty as provided by law, 

11 including a penalty pursuant to subsection (b) or (d), as 

12 appropriate, instead of seizure and forfeiture.’’. 

13 SEC. 304. PROCEDURES FOR INVESTIGATING CLAIMS OF 

14 EVASION OF ANTIDUMPING AND COUNTER15 VAILING DUTY ORDERS. 

16 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 517(b) of the Tariff Act 

17 of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1517(b)) is amended— 

18 (1) in paragraph (2), in the matter preceding 

19 subparagraph (A), by striking ‘‘a person has entered 

20 covered merchandise’’ and inserting ‘‘covered mer21 chandise has been entered’’; and 

22 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

23 ‘‘(8) IDENTIFICATION OF IMPORTER.—If the 

24 Commissioner determines under subsection (e) that 

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1 chandise was entered into the customs territory of 

2 the United States through evasion, the identity of 

3 the importer of the covered merchandise shall not be 

4 considered confidential information that is protected 

5 from public disclosure, regardless of whether the al6 legation described in paragraph (2) identifies the im7 porter. 

8 ‘‘(9) ADDITION OF IMPORTERS TO INVESTIGA9 TIONS.—The Commissioner may, at any time while 

10 conducting an investigation under paragraph (1), ex11 pand the investigation to include an additional im12 porter if the Commissioner determines that there is 

13 reasonable suspicion that the additional importer is 

14 engaged in the same or similar conduct as an im15 porter previously subject to the investigation.’’. 

16 (b) TECHNICAL CORRECTION.—Section 

17 517(d)(1)(B)(ii) of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 

18 1517(d)(1)(B)(ii)) is amended by striking ‘‘subsection 

19 (e)(1)’’ and inserting ‘‘subsection (e)(2)’’. 

20 SEC. 305. OBSTRUCTION OF INVESTIGATIONS. 

21 Section 592 of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 

22 1592), as amended by section 302, is further amended by 

23 adding at the end the following: 

24 ‘‘(m) OBSTRUCTION OF INVESTIGATIONS.— 


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•S 3431 IS

1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—No person, with the intent 

2 of avoiding payment of a duty, tax, fee, or penalty 

3 owed or obstructing or influencing the investigation 

4 or proper administration of any investigation by 

5 U.S. Customs and Border Protection into the pay6 ment of a duty, tax, fee, or penalty owed, may alter, 

7 destroy, mutilate, conceal, cover up, falsify, or make 

8 a false entry in any record, document, or tangible 

9 object, or transfer, or otherwise conceal or disguise 

10 funds or assets. 

11 ‘‘(2) PENALTY.— 

12 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—A person that violates 

13 paragraph (1) is liable for a civil penalty in an 

14 amount not to exceed the greater of— 

15 ‘‘(i) the value of any concealed funds 

16 or altered assets; or 

17 ‘‘(ii) an amount that is 3 times the 

18 amount of the duty, tax, fee, or penalty de19 scribed in paragraph (1). 

20 ‘‘(B) ADVERSE INFERENCE.—The Com21 missioner of U.S. Customs and Border Protec22 tion may make an inference that is adverse to 

23 the interests of a person that violates para24 graph (1) in any investigation into the payment 


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1 of a duty, tax, fee, or penalty described in that 

2 paragraph. 

3 ‘‘(3) STANDARD OF PROOF AT COURT OF

4 INTERNATIONAL TRADE.—In any action at the 

5 United States Court of International Trade relating 

6 to a violation of paragraph (1), the United States 

7 shall have the burden of proof to establish the act 

8 or omission constituting the violation by clear and 

9 convincing evidence.’’. 

10 SEC. 306. MODIFICATION OF BONDING REQUIREMENTS. 

11 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 623 of the Tariff Act of 

12 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1623) is amended— 

13 (1) in subsection (b)— 

14 (A) in paragraph (1)— 

15 (i) by striking ‘‘of penalty thereof’’ 

16 and inserting ‘‘of the bond’’; 

17 (ii) by striking ‘‘paragraph 4’’ and in18 serting ‘‘paragraph (4)’’; and 

19 (iii) by striking ‘‘penalty of such 

20 bond’’ and inserting ‘‘amount of such 

21 bond’’; and 

22 (B) in paragraph (2), by inserting before 

23 the end period the following: ‘‘, and make rules 

24 and regulations for the disclosure of informa25 tion or records to, and the collection of informaVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:19 Dec 16, 2023 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00048 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3431.IS S3431

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1 tion or records from, sureties approved under 

2 this paragraph, without regard to any other 

3 provision of statute or regulation, including sec4 tion 1905 of title 18, United States Code, and 

5 section 552a of title 5, United States Code 

6 (commonly known as the ‘Privacy Act of 

7 1974’)’’; 

8 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

9 ‘‘(f) INTEREST DUE TO DEFAULT ON BOND.—If any 

10 amount due to the United States under a bond is not paid 

11 in full by the date the amount is due, the unpaid balance 

12 under the bond shall bear interest until the full balance 

13 under the bond is paid, in accordance with such regula14 tions and at such rate as the Secretary of the Treasury 

15 may prescribe. Interest charged under this subsection 

16 shall be without regard to the limit of liability of the bond 

17 and shall not be charged against the bond. 

18 ‘‘(g) NOTICE TO PERSON FROM WHOM A BOND IS

19 REQUIRED.— 

20 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—U.S. Customs and Border 

21 Protection shall give notice to a person from which 

22 a bond is required under this section of the condi23 tions, form, manner of filing or transmission, 

24 amount, and reason for the amount of the bond in 


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1 accordance with regulations prescribed by the Sec2 retary of the Treasury. 

3 ‘‘(2) FORM OF NOTICE.—U.S. Customs and 

4 Border Protection may provide notice under para5 graph (1) by publishing the notice to the public in6 stead of providing the notice directly to a person de7 scribed in paragraph (1). 

8 ‘‘(h) REVIEW OF BOND REQUIREMENTS.— 

9 ‘‘(1) ADMINISTRATIVE REVIEW.— 

10 ‘‘(A) APPEAL.—A person from which a 

11 bond is required under this section may, not 

12 later than 30 days after the later of the date 

13 on which notice is provided under subsection (g) 

14 or the date on which the bond is required, ap15 peal the bond requirement in accordance with 

16 regulations prescribed by the Secretary of the 

17 Treasury. 

18 ‘‘(B) NOTICE.—The Secretary shall pro19 vide notice to a person that filed an appeal 

20 under subparagraph (A)— 

21 ‘‘(i) of the decision with respect to the 

22 appeal in the form and manner prescribed 

23 by the Secretary; and 

24 ‘‘(ii) if the appeal is denied, including 

25 a statement of the reasons for the denial. 


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1 ‘‘(2) REVIEW BY THE COURT OF INTER2 NATIONAL TRADE.— 

3 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—In the case of an ap4 peal filed under paragraph (1) that is denied in 

5 whole or in part, the person that filed the ap6 peal may file a civil action in the Court of 

7 International Trade to contest the denial. 

8 ‘‘(B) REVIEW BY COURT.—The Court 

9 shall— 

10 ‘‘(i) review the action on the basis of 

11 the record before the official deciding the 

12 appeal at the time the appeal was decided; 

13 and 

14 ‘‘(ii) set aside and remand a decision 

15 with respect to an appeal filed under para16 graph (1) that the Court finds to be an 

17 abuse of discretion.’’; and 

18 (3) by striking ‘‘the Customs Service’’ each 

19 place it appears and inserting ‘‘U.S. Customs and 

20 Border Protection’’. 

21 (b) EXCLUSIVE JURISDICTION OF COURT OF INTER22 NATIONAL TRADE.—Section 1581 of title 28, United 

23 States Code, is amended by adding at the end of the fol24 lowing: 


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1 ‘‘(k) The Court of International Trade shall have ex2 clusive jurisdiction of any civil action commenced under 

3 section 623 of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1623).’’. 

4 (c) SCOPE AND STANDARD OF REVIEW BY COURT OF

5 INTERNATIONAL TRADE.—Section 2640 of title 28, 

6 United States Code, is amended— 

7 (1) by redesignating subsection (e) as sub8 section (f); and 

9 (2) by inserting after subsection (d) the fol10 lowing: 

11 ‘‘(e) In any civil action commenced in the Court of 

12 International Trade under section 623 of the Tariff Act 

13 of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1623), the court shall review the mat14 ter as specified in subsection (h) of such section.’’. 

15 SEC. 307. TREATMENT OF IMPORTATIONS INVOLVING SUS16 PENDED OR DEBARRED PERSONS. 

17 (a) IMPORTER OF RECORD PROGRAM.—Section 

18 114(b) of the Trade Facilitation and Trade Enforcement 

19 Act of 2015 (19 U.S.C. 4320(b)) is amended— 

20 (1) in paragraph (4), by striking ‘‘; and’’ and 

21 inserting a semicolon; 

22 (2) in paragraph (5), by striking the period at 

23 the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

24 (3) by adding at the end the following: 


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1 ‘‘(6) takes measures to protect the integrity of 

2 the program, including by— 

3 ‘‘(A) assessing the role and circumstances 

4 of importers that are identified with active ex5 clusion records in the System for Award Man6 agement Exclusions (as defined in section 

7 180.945 of title 2, Code of Federal Regulations 

8 (or any corresponding similar regulation)) or 

9 any successor system; 

10 ‘‘(B) facilitating cross-referencing of im11 porter of record numbers with active exclusion 

12 records in the System for Award Management 

13 Exclusions or any successor system; and 

14 ‘‘(C) providing an opportunity for import15 ers described in subparagraph (A) to dem16 onstrate to the satisfaction of U.S. Customs 

17 and Border Protection, in accordance with such 

18 regulations as the Secretary may prescribe, that 

19 they are sufficiently responsible to act as im20 porters of record.’’. 

21 (b) ENTRY UNDER REGULATIONS.—Section 

22 498(a)(1) of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19U.S.C. 1498(a)(1)) 

23 is amended— 

24 (1) in subparagraph (A), by striking ‘‘; or’’ and 

25 inserting a semicolon; 


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1 (2) in subparagraph (B), by striking the semi2 colon and inserting ‘‘; or’’; and 

3 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

4 ‘‘(C) the importation is caused or facili5 tated by a person identified with an active ex6 clusion record in the System for Award Man7 agement Exclusions (as defined in section 

8 180.945 of title 2, Code of Federal Regulations 

9 (or any corresponding similar regulation)) or 

10 any successor system;’’. 

11 TITLE IV—ADMINISTRATIVE 

12 EXEMPTIONS FROM DUTIES 

13 SEC. 401. COLLECTION AND USE OF DATA RELATING TO 

14 ELIGIBILITY FOR ADMINISTRATIVE EXEMP15 TION TO DUTIES. 

16 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 321 of the Tariff Act of 

17 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1321) is amended by adding at the end 

18 the following: 

19 ‘‘(c) SUBMISSION OF DOCUMENTATION AND INFOR20 MATION.— 

21 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary may pre22 scribe regulations for the provision to U.S. Customs 

23 and Border Protection, separate from any entry fil24 ing, of such documentation or information as the 

25 Secretary determines to be reasonably necessary for 


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1 U.S. Customs and Border Protection to determine 

2 the eligibility of an article for an administrative ex3 emption under subsection (a)(2). 

4 ‘‘(2) TYPE OF DOCUMENTATION OR INFORMA5 TION.—Documentation or information with respect 

6 to an article provided to U.S. Customs and Border 

7 Protection pursuant to regulations prescribed by the 

8 Secretary under paragraph (1) may include docu9 mentation or information related to an offer for sale 

10 or purchase or subsequent sale, purchase, transpor11 tation, importation, or warehousing of the article, in12 cluding documentation or information related to the 

13 offering of the article for sale or purchase within the 

14 United States through a commercial or marketing 

15 platform (including an electronic commerce platform 

16 or marketplace). 

17 ‘‘(3) PARTIES PROVIDING INFORMATION.—The 

18 Secretary may provide, in the regulations prescribed 

19 under paragraph (1), for the provision of informa20 tion or documentation with respect to an article by 

21 a party other than a party qualified to make entry 

22 of the article pursuant to regulations prescribed 

23 under section 498. 

24 ‘‘(4) ACCURACY OF DOCUMENTATION AND IN25 FORMATION.— 


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1 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—A party providing doc2 umentation or information under paragraph (1) 

3 shall ensure that the documentation or informa4 tion is true and correct to the best of the 

5 knowledge and belief of the party, subject to 

6 any penalties authorized by law. 

7 ‘‘(B) EXCEPTION.—The Secretary shall, in 

8 the regulations prescribed under paragraph (1), 

9 permit a party to provide to U.S. Customs and 

10 Border Protection documentation or informa11 tion under paragraph (1) on the basis of the 

12 reasonable belief of the party that the docu13 mentation or information is true and correct if 

14 the party is not reasonably able to verify the 

15 documentation or information. 

16 ‘‘(5) USE OF DOCUMENTATION AND INFORMA17 TION.—Documentation or information with respect 

18 to an article provided to U.S. Customs and Border 

19 Protection pursuant to regulations prescribed by the 

20 Secretary under paragraph (1) may be used by U.S. 

21 Customs and Border Protection for any lawful pur22 pose. 

23 ‘‘(6) CIVIL PENALTY.— 

24 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Any person who vio25 lates the regulations prescribed under paraVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:19 Dec 16, 2023 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00056 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3431.IS S3431

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1 graph (1) with respect to an article is liable for 

2 a civil penalty in an amount not to exceed the 

3 amount that is 3 times the amount of the duty 

4 applicable to the article. 

5 ‘‘(B) ASSESSMENT OF PENALTIES.—A 

6 penalty imposed under this subsection shall be 

7 assessed per person, per article, per entry, and 

8 per day. 

9 ‘‘(C) ADDITIONAL PENALTIES.—A penalty 

10 imposed under this subsection may be in addi11 tion to any other penalty provided by law. 

12 ‘‘(D) REMISSION; MITIGATION.—A penalty 

13 imposed under this subsection may be remitted 

14 or mitigated, as appropriate, under section 618. 

15 ‘‘(7) DEFINITION.—In this subsection, the 

16 terms ‘provide’, ‘providing’, and ‘provision’, with re17 spect to documentation or information provided to 

18 U.S. Customs and Border Protection, include— 

19 ‘‘(A) the submission or transmission of the 

20 documentation or information; and 

21 ‘‘(B) otherwise making available to U.S. 

22 Customs and Border Protection the documenta23 tion or information in accordance with such 

24 terms and conditions as the Secretary may by 

25 regulation prescribe.’’. 


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1 (b) REGULATIONS.—Section 498 of the Tariff Act of 

2 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1498)— 

3 (1) in subsection (a), by striking paragraph 

4 (12) and inserting the following: 

5 ‘‘(12) Subject to subsection (c), articles eligible 

6 for an administrative exemption under section 

7 321(a)(2)(C).’’; and 

8 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

9 ‘‘(c) REQUIREMENTS WITH RESPECT TO ARTICLES

10 ELIGIBLE FOR ADMINISTRATIVE EXEMPTIONS.—In pre11 scribing rules and regulations under subsection (a)(12) 

12 with respect to articles eligible for an administrative ex13 emption under section 321(a)(2)(C), the Secretary shall 

14 require that, when such an article is entered, the required 

15 documentation or information be filed or electronically 

16 transmitted by— 

17 ‘‘(1) one of the parties qualifying to make 

18 entry, as specified by the Secretary by regulation; or 

19 ‘‘(2) a customs broker (as defined in section 

20 641(a)) designated by a party described in subpara21 graph (A).’’. 


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1 SEC. 402. STREAMLINED DISPOSITION OF MERCHANDISE 

2 SUBJECT TO ADMINISTRATIVE EXEMPTIONS. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 499 of the Tariff Act of 

4 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1499) is amended by adding at the end 

5 the following: 

6 ‘‘(d) SPECIAL RULES FOR MERCHANDISE SUBJECT

7 TO ADMINISTRATIVE EXEMPTIONS.— 

8 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In the case of detained 

9 merchandise subject to an administrative exemption 

10 under section 321(a)(2)(C), the following shall 

11 apply: 

12 ‘‘(A) U.S. Customs and Border Protection 

13 shall provide notice under subsection (c)(2) to 

14 the importer and each other party that appears 

15 to have an interest in the merchandise, based 

16 on information reasonably available to U.S. 

17 Customs and Border Protection, in such form 

18 and manner as the Secretary shall by regulation 

19 prescribe. 

20 ‘‘(B) The notice required under subsection 

21 (c)(2) shall include, in addition to the informa22 tion required by subparagraphs (A) through (E) 

23 of that subsection, notice that the party may 

24 voluntarily abandon the merchandise. 

25 ‘‘(C) If U.S. Customs and Border Protec26 tion does not receive a response to the notice 


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1 under subsection (c)(2) from a party by the 

2 date that is 15 days after the date of the no3 tice— 

4 ‘‘(i) the merchandise shall be deemed 

5 abandoned; 

6 ‘‘(ii) title to the merchandise shall be 

7 vested in the United States; and 

8 ‘‘(iii) the merchandise shall be dis9 posed of in accordance with law. 

10 ‘‘(2) NONAPPLICABILITY OF PROVISION RELAT11 ING TO FAILURE TO MAKE DETERMINATION.—Sub12 section (c)(5) does not apply with respect to de13 tained merchandise subject to an administrative ex14 emption under section 321(a)(2)(C).’’. 

15 (b) TECHNICAL AMENDMENTS.—Section 499 of the 

16 Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1499) is amended— 

17 (1) in subsection (b)— 

18 (A) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘Cus19 toms Service laboratories’’ and inserting ‘‘lab20 oratories of U.S. Customs and Border Protec21 tion’’; 

22 (B) in paragraph (3), by striking ‘‘a Cus23 toms Service laboratory’’ and inserting ‘‘a lab24 oratory of U.S. Customs and Border Protec25 tion’’; 


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1 (2) by striking ‘‘The Customs Service’’ each 

2 place it appears and inserting ‘‘U.S. Customs and 

3 Border Protection’’; and 

4 (3) by striking ‘‘the Customs Service’’ each 

5 place it appears and inserting ‘‘U.S. Customs and 

6 Border Protection’’. 

7 TITLE V—OTHER MATTERS 

8 SEC. 501. PROTESTS AGAINST DECISIONS OF U.S. CUSTOMS 

9 AND BORDER PROTECTION. 

10 (a) CERTAIN DETERMINATIONS OF U.S. CUSTOMS

11 AND BORDER PROTECTION NOT SUBJECT TO ADMINIS12 TRATIVE PROTEST.— 

13 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 514 of the Tariff 

14 Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1514) is amended— 

15 (A) in subsection (a)(4), by striking ‘‘ex16 cept a determination appealable under section 

17 337 of this Act’’ and inserting ‘‘except any ex18 clusion of merchandise from entry or delivery or 

19 a demand for redelivery to customs custody on 

20 the basis of an order of the United States 

21 International Trade Commission issued under 

22 section 337 of this Act’’; and 

23 (B) by amending subsection (b) to read as 

24 follows: 


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1 ‘‘(b) FINALITY UNLESS APPEALED TO COURT OF

2 INTERNATIONAL TRADE.—With respect to determinations 

3 made under section 303 or title VII that are reviewable 

4 under section 516A, or determinations made under section 

5 517 that are reviewable under section 517(g), determina6 tions of U.S. Customs and Border Protection are final and 

7 conclusive upon all persons (including the United States 

8 and any officer thereof) unless a civil action contesting 

9 a determination listed in section 516A(a) or made under 

10 section 517 is commenced in the United States Court of 

11 International Trade, or review by a binational panel of a 

12 determination to which section 516A(g)(2) applies is com13 menced pursuant to section 516A(g).’’. 

14 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—Section 

15 517(h) of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 

16 1517(h)) is amended— 

17 (A) by striking ‘‘No determination’’ and 

18 inserting the following: 

19 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para20 graph (2), no determination’’; and 

21 (B) by adding at the end the following: 

22 ‘‘(2) EXCEPTION.—Any liquidation or reliquida23 tion of an entry in accordance with a determination 

24 under subsection (c) or review under subsection (f), 


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1 if applicable, is not subject to protest under section 

2 514.’’. 

3 (b) ELECTRONIC NOTIFICATION.—Section 514(c)(3) 

4 of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1514(c)(3)) is 

5 amended, in the flush text following subparagraph (B), by 

6 inserting ‘‘or electronic transmission’’ after ‘‘mailing’’. 

7 (c) TECHNICAL AMENDMENTS.—Section 514 of the 

8 Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1514) is amended— 

9 (1) in the section heading, by striking ‘‘THE

10 CUSTOMS SERVICE’’ and inserting ‘‘U.S. CUS11 TOMS AND BORDER PROTECTION’’; and 

12 (2) by striking ‘‘the Customs Service’’ each 

13 place it appears and inserting ‘‘U.S. Customs and 

14 Border Protection’’. 

15 SEC. 502. REDUCTION OF ADMINISTRATIVE BURDENS. 

16 (a) SUBMISSION OF REQUESTS FOR ACCELERATED

17 DISPOSITION OF PROTESTS.—Section 515(b) of the Tariff 

18 Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1515(b)) is amended— 

19 (1) in the first sentence, by inserting after 

20 ‘‘mailed by certified or registered mail to the appro21 priate customs officer’’ the following: ‘‘, or trans22 mitted electronically pursuant to an electronic data 

23 interchange system, in accordance with regulations 

24 prescribed by the Secretary,’’; and 

25 (2) in the second sentence— 


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1 (A) by inserting after ‘‘the date of mailing 

2 by certified or registered mail’’ the following: 

3 ‘‘or the date of transmission pursuant to an 

4 electronic interchange system’’; and 

5 (B) by inserting ‘‘or transmission’’ after 

6 ‘‘following mailing’’. 

7 (b) MODIFICATION OF REQUIREMENTS FOR FILING

8 OF OFFICIAL DOCUMENTS IN ACTIONS BEFORE COURT

9 OF INTERNATIONAL TRADE.— 

10 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 2635 of title 28, 

11 United States Code, is amended— 

12 (A) by striking subsection (a); and 

13 (B) by redesignating subsections (b), (c), 

14 and (d), as subsections (a), (b), and (c), respec15 tively. 

16 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 

17 641(e)(1) of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 

18 1641(e)(1)) is amended by striking ‘‘section 

19 2635(d)’’ and inserting ‘‘section 2635(c)’’. 

20 (c) PUBLICATION OF DECISIONS OF COURT OF

21 INTERNATIONAL TRADE.— 

22 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 257 of title 28, 

23 United States Code, is amended— 

24 (A) in the section heading, by striking 

25 ‘‘Publication of decisions’’ and inserting 


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1 ‘‘Preservation and sharing of deci2 sions’’; and 

3 (B) by striking the third sentence. 

4 (2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sec5 tions at the beginning of chapter 11 of title 28, 

6 United States Code, is amended by striking the item 

7 relating to section 257 and inserting the following: 

‘‘257. Preservation and sharing of decisions.’’. 

8 SEC. 503. AUTHORITY TO CONDUCT COMMUNICATIONS 

9 ELECTRONICALLY. 

10 Section 624 of the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 

11 1624) is amended— 

12 (1) by striking ‘‘authorized to make’’ and in13 serting the following: ‘‘authorized— 

14 ‘‘(1) to make’’; 

15 (2) by striking the period at the end and insert16 ing ‘‘; and’’; and 

17 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

18 ‘‘(2) notwithstanding any other provision of 

19 law, to provide any notice or communication re20 quired by this Act by electronic transmission instead 

21 of any other means.’’. 


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1 SEC. 504. DISCLOSURE OF VESSEL, AIRCRAFT, OR VEHICLE 

2 MANIFEST INFORMATION. 

3 (a) EXPANSION AND CLARIFICATION OF DISCLOSURE

4 REQUIREMENT.—Section 431 of the Tariff Act of 1930 

5 (19 U.S.C. 1431) is amended— 

6 (1) in subsection (a), by striking ‘‘section 4197 

7 of the Revised Statutes of the United States (46 

8 U.S.C. App. 91)’’ and inserting ‘‘section 60105 of 

9 title 46, United States Code, and every aircraft or 

10 vehicle arriving in the United States for which a 

11 manifest is required by U.S. Customs and Border 

12 Protection,’’; and 

13 (2) in subsection (c)(1)— 

14 (A) in the matter preceding subparagraph 

15 (A), by striking ‘‘subparagraph (2)’’ and all 

16 that follows through ‘‘shall be available’’ and 

17 inserting ‘‘paragraph (2), the following informa18 tion, when contained in a vessel, aircraft, or ve19 hicle manifest, shall be available’’; 

20 (B) in subparagraph (B), by inserting be21 fore the end period the following: ‘‘and the sub22 headings of the Harmonized Tariff Schedule of 

23 the United States under which the cargo is 

24 classifiable’’; and 

25 (C) by striking subparagraph (G) and in26 serting the following: 


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1 ‘‘(G) The country in which the cargo was pro2 duced and the last country through which the cargo 

3 was transported.’’. 

4 (b) PROTECTION OF PERSONALLY IDENTIFIABLE IN5 FORMATION.—Section 431(c) of the Tariff Act of 1930 

6 (19 U.S.C. 1431(c)) is amended— 

7 (1) in paragraph (2)— 

8 (A) by redesignating subparagraphs (A) 

9 and (B) as clauses (i) and (ii), respectively; 

10 (B) by inserting ‘‘(A)’’ after ‘‘(2)’’; and 

11 (C) by adding at the end the following: 

12 ‘‘(B) The Secretary shall ensure that the fol13 lowing information is removed from any manifest 

14 signed, produced, delivered, or electronically trans15 mitted under this section before access to the mani16 fest is provided to the public: 

17 ‘‘(i) Social Security numbers. 

18 ‘‘(ii) Passport numbers. 

19 ‘‘(iii) Dates of birth. 

20 ‘‘(iv) Personal phone numbers. 

21 ‘‘(v) Personal email addresses. 

22 ‘‘(vi) Driver’s license and State identifica23 tion numbers. 


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1 ‘‘(vii) Residential addresses that are not 

2 the primary address of the trade or business 

3 (excluding ZIP Codes). 

4 ‘‘(viii) Names of individuals who are end5 consumers. 

6 ‘‘(C) Nothing in this paragraph may be con7 strued to permit the removal from a manifest 

8 signed, produced, delivered, or electronically trans9 mitted under this section of the name, address, or 

10 identification number of a business, except as pro11 vided by section 103.31(d) of title 19, Code of Fed12 eral Regulations (or a successor regulation).’’; and 

13 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

14 ‘‘(4) Each manifest signed, produced, delivered, or 

15 electronically transmitted under this section shall include 

16 a checkbox to indicate whether the shipment is going to 

17 a private individual or a business.’’. 

18 (c) TECHNICAL AMENDMENTS.—Section 431 of the 

19 Tariff Act of 1930, as amended by this section, is further 

20 amended— 

21 (1) in subsection (b), in the fourth sentence, by 

22 striking ‘‘The Customs Service’’ and inserting ‘‘U.S. 

23 Customs and Border Protection’’; and 


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1 (2) by striking ‘‘the Customs Service’’ each 

2 place it appears and inserting ‘‘U.S. Customs and 

3 Border Protection’’. 

4 (d) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

5 this section shall take effect on the date that is 30 days 

6 after the date of the enactment of this Act. 

Æ 


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