This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER

contains notices to the public of the proposed

issuance of rules and regulations. The

purpose of these notices is to give interested

persons an opportunity to participate in the

rule making prior to the adoption of the final

rules.

Proposed Rules Federal Register

55764

Vol. 62, No. 208

Tuesday, October 28, 1997

DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY

Customs Service

19 CFR Part 192

RIN 1515–AC19

Exportation of Used Motor Vehicles

AGENCY: U.S. Customs Service,

Department of the Treasury.

ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking.

SUMMARY: This document proposes

amendments to the Customs Regulations

which relate to the exportation of used

self-propelled vehicles. These

amendments are being proposed to

clarify the intent of the regulations and

provide for uniformity and standardized

procedures. They are also being

proposed to conform the regulations to

legislation which was enacted since the

regulations were originally written. The

overall objective of the proposed

amendments is to more efficiently and

effectively deter the export of stolen

vehicles.

DATES: Comments must be received on

or before December 29, 1997.

ADDRESSES: Comments (preferably in

triplicate) may be submitted to

Regulations Branch, Office of

Regulations and Rulings, U.S. Customs

Service, 1300 Pennsylvania Avenue,

N.W., 3rd Floor, Washington, D.C.

20229, and may be inspected at the

same location.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Hugh Austin, Outbound Process, Office

of Field Operations, 202–927–3735.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

Part 192 of the Customs Regulations

(19 CFR Part 192) was established by the

publication of T.D. 89–46 on April 18,

1989. These regulations implemented a

provision of the Trade and Tariff Act of

1984 (19 U.S.C. 1627a) concerning the

unlawful exportation of used selfpropelled vehicles. Generally, that

statute provides for civil penalties for

the knowing importation or exportation,

or attempted importation or exportation,

of stolen self-propelled vehicles or

equipment or any similar activity with

respect to any self-propelled vehicle or

part of such vehicle from which the

vehicle identification number (VIN) has

been removed, obliterated, tampered

with or altered. The statute also directs

that regulations be prescribed by the

Secretary of the Treasury with regard to

the procedures for the lawful

exportation of used self-propelled

vehicles. In implementing the existing

regulations, both Customs and the

public have encountered several

difficulties which this proposed

amendment to the regulations is

intended to resolve.

Proposed Amendments

The first proposed amendment to the

existing regulations is to require the

presentation to Customs of the original

or certified copy of a title as proof of

ownership of the vehicle to be exported.

This is intended to eliminate a situation

where there is a conflict between

differences over a certified and a

notarized copy of a title and the validity

of each type of document. Certified

copies can only be obtained from

official issuing authorities. While the

current regulations do not specifically

address notarized copies, the proposed

amendments explicitly disallow the use

of notarized copies as proof of

ownership. Customs field offices are

currently accepting a variety of

paperwork to establish ownership of

vehicles presented for export. There is

no national standard. Because all 50

states now have title laws, requiring the

presentation of a title to show

ownership will provide the field with a

standard. By requiring that the

documents be certified by the issuing

authority, and not merely notarized,

Customs will have a greater assurance of

the authenticity of the documentation.

In instances when a vehicle owned by

a foreign national and registered in a

foreign country is being exported, where

no title is available, Customs will

require production of satisfactory proof

of ownership by the exporter.

Realizing that there are instances

where a party purchases a ‘‘new’’ car

from a dealer and then immediately

exports it without registering it in any

state, and thus never receives a title in

a state, Customs is making a provision

for that situation by adding a document

known as a ‘‘manufacturer’s statement

of origin’’ to the list of items which

Customs will accept as proof of

ownership. In those instances where a

vehicle’s purchaser does not intend to

operate the vehicle in the U.S., Customs

does not want to unnecessarily burden

him by requiring that he obtain a state

title. The manufacturer’s statement of

origin can provide a clear chain of

possession from the manufacturer

through the dealership to the present

owner/exporter.

Leased and Liened Vehicles

Today, there are many vehicles being

operated legally in the United States by

people who do not have title to the

vehicle. Since the original regulations in

this area were issued, there has been a

significant increase in the number of

vehicles which are ‘‘on the road’’ by

virtue of a lease rather than a sale. In

instances where a vehicle has been

leased to an operator, the title to the

vehicle is never intended to pass to the

operator, because the right to use the

vehicle will revert to the owner upon

termination of the lease. Another

instance of legal operation of a vehicle

by one not in possession of a title occurs

when a vehicle is purchased on time.

Most often, in that situation, title is

retained by the finance company until

the note is paid, at which time the title

will be transferred to the owner/

operator. In recent years, Customs has

seen an increase in the frequency in

which either leased or liened vehicles

are attempted to be exported without

the knowledge or authorization of the

actual title holder—the owner or the

lien-holder. If the potential exporter

keeps either the lease or note payments

current until after the vehicle is

exported, a check to see whether the

vehicle is stolen at the time of export

will not reveal anything suspicious.

This is because, at the time of

exportation, the vehicle is not yet

stolen. Once the vehicle has been taken

out of the reach of the lienholder or

owner, payments are stopped and the

theft takes place. In order to prevent this

from happening as easily as it does now,

Customs is proposing to amend the

regulations to require that a party

attempting to export a vehicle that is

either leased or is subject to a lien

present a letter from the lienholder or

owner stating that they have knowledge
Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 208 / Tuesday, October 28, 1997 / Proposed Rules 55765

of and authorize the exportation of the

vehicle.

Other Areas of Clarification

There are certain other areas where

the current regulations have caused

some uncertainty among groups or

individuals, which this document

proposes to clarify. In § 192.2(b) of the

current regulations, the phrase ‘‘in other

cases’’ appears at the beginning of the

second sentence. Customs proposes to

change the phrase to read ‘‘in cases

other than automobiles, trucks, vans,

minivans, motorcycles, and buses’’. This

proposal is being made because some

situations have developed where

exporters and Customs field locations

have interpreted the current phrase ‘‘in

other cases’’ to mean situations in

which individuals may present other

types of documentation to prove

ownership.

It is further proposed to amend

§ 192.2(b) by changing the word

‘‘available’’ to ‘‘required’’ in the phrase

‘‘or other document if a certificate of

title is not available as a result of a state

regulatory requirement’’. This change is

being made to mandate presentation of

titles at exportation if titles are required

in the state in which the vehicle was

purchased. All states require titles.

However, some states only require titles

for vehicles if they are of a certain age.

Older vehicles, depending on the state,

may or may not require titles. If the state

does not require a title, then acceptable

documentation for Customs export

purposes would include a bill of sale.

Because of their growing popularity,

and to prevent any misunderstanding

about the intended coverage of the

scope of vehicles intended to be covered

by the regulation, the proposed

regulation expressly includes vans and

minivans as types of vehicles intended

to be covered by the regulation.

Time and Place of Presentation

In an attempt to resolve some

uncertainty which has arisen in the

implementation of § 192.2(c) of the

current regulations, which deals with

the time when the required

documentation must be presented,

Customs is proposing the following

amendments.

The current regulation states that the

documentation must be presented at

least 3 days prior to the lading or

exportation of the vehicle. Questions

have arisen whether that phrase meant

calendar or business days. Those

questions were made moot, however, by

enactment of the Anti Car Theft Act of

1992. That Act amended the Tariff Act

of 1930 by adding a new section, 19

U.S.C. 1646c, which requires that all

persons or entities exporting used

automobiles provide to Customs both

the vehicle identification numbers and

proof of ownership at least 72 hours

before the export. In order to conform

the regulatory requirements to the law

and still provide port personnel the

opportunity to examine vehicles which

are being exported, it is proposed that

the time for required presentation of

documents in § 192.2(c) be changed to at

least 72 hours, to include not less than

2 full business days for air or sea

exports. The addition of the phrase ‘‘at

the port of exit’’ is also being proposed

as the place where documentation must

be presented. There have been instances

where documentation has been

presented at a port which is not the exit

port. The addition of this phrase is

intended to remove any opportunity for

confusion as to where the

documentation is to be produced.

Because many vehicles are exported

through land border ports, Customs is

proposing to permit exporters to

transmit copies of the required

documentation by facsimile to the port

of exit. This means that an exporter will

not have to wait at the border for 72

hours after presenting the

documentation. However, the original

documents required will need to be

presented, along with the vehicle, on

the date of exit.

The proposed amendments change

the terminology used in reference to the

type of non-original documents which

Customs will accept from ‘‘facsimile’’ to

‘‘copy.’’ This change is being made to

avoid confusion resulting from current

usage of the word ‘‘facsimile’’; the word

is used often interchangeably with

‘‘FAX.’’ By using the word ‘‘copy,’’

Customs wishes to clarify that it intends

to accept photocopies as well as

‘‘faxes.’’ In order that the regulations

will be consistent, it is proposed to

amend paragraph (d) by replacing the

word ‘‘facsimile’’ with the word ‘‘copy’’.

A new paragraph (e) is being

proposed which states that each Port

Director has the authority to establish a

time and place for presentation of

original documentation and inspection

of vehicles. Customs believes that in

order to implement the law, it is

necessary to impose constraints on

times when the original documentation

and vehicles will be accepted. By giving

the Port Director the authority to set

times and places for acceptance of

original documents, it is intended that

processing of exported used vehicles

will be more efficient for both Customs

and exporters in this time of limited

resources.

Comments

Before adopting this proposal,

consideration will be given to any

written comments (preferably in

triplicate) that are timely submitted to

Customs. All such comments received

from the public pursuant to this notice

of proposed rulemaking will be

available for public inspection in

accordance with the Freedom of

Information Act (5 U.S.C 552), § 1.4,

Treasury Department Regulations (31

CFR 1.4), and § 103.11(b), Customs

Regulations (19 CFR 103.11(b)), on

regular business days between the hours

of 9:00 a.m. and 4:30 p.m., at the

Regulations Branch, U.S. Customs

Service, 1300 Pennsylvania Avenue,

NW., 3rd Floor Washington, D.C.

Regulatory Flexibility Act

In so far as the proposed amendment

is intended to assist Customs exercise

its law enforcement responsibilities

with a minimum burden on legitimate

exporters of used vehicles, pursuant to

the provisions of the Regulatory

Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. 601 et seq.), it

is certified that the amendment, if

adopted, will not have a significant

economic impact on a substantial

number of small entities. Accordingly, it

is not subject to the regulatory analysis

or other requirements of 5 U.S.C. 603

and 604.

Executive Order 12866

The proposed amendment does not

meet the criteria for a ‘‘significant

regulatory action’’ under E.O. 12866.

Paperwork Reduction Act

The collection of information

contained in this rulemaking has been

submitted to the Office of Management

and Budget (OMB) in accordance with

the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995.

(44 U.S.C. 3507).

An agency may not conduct or

sponsor, and a person is not required to

respond to a collection of information

unless the collection of information

displays a valid control number.

The clarification of the collection of

information in these regulations is in

§ 192.2. All information required by this

proposed amendment is contained or

identified in the above-cited section.

This information is to be maintained

and provided in the form of documents

which are necessary to ensure that the

Customs Service will be able to

effectively administer the laws it is

charged with enforcing while, at the

same time, imposing a minimum burden

on the public it is serving. Respondents

or recordkeepers are already required by

state statute or regulation to maintain or

have most of the information covered in
55766 Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 208 / Tuesday, October 28, 1997 / Proposed Rules

this proposed regulation. The likely

respondents or recordkeepers are

business organizations and individuals,

including exporters.

Estimated total annual reporting and/

or recordkeeping burden: 83,330 hours.

Estimated average annual burden per

respondent/recordkeeper: 10 minutes.

Estimated number of respondents

and/or recordkeepers: 500,000.

Estimated annual frequency of

responses: 1.

Comments concerning the collections

of information should be sent to the

Office of Management and Budget,

Attention: Desk Officer of the

Department of the Treasury, Office of

Information and Regulatory Affairs,

Washington, D.C. 20503. A copy should

also be sent to the Regulations Branch,

Office of Regulations and Rulings, U.S.

Customs Service, 1300 Pennsylvania

Avenue, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20229.

Comments should be submitted within

the time frame that comments are due

regarding the substance of the proposal.

Comments are invited on: (a) whether

the collection of information is

necessary for the proper performance of

the functions of the agency, including

whether the information shall have

practical utility; (b) the accuracy of the

agency’s estimate of the burden of the

collection of information; (c) ways to

enhance the quality, utility, and clarity

of the information to be collected; (d)

ways to minimize the burden of the

collection of information on

respondents, including through the use

of automated collection techniques or

other forms of information technology;

and (e) estimates of capital or startup

costs and costs of operations,

maintenance, and purchase of services

to provide information.

Drafting Information

The principal author of this document

was Peter T. Lynch, Regulations Branch,

Office of Regulations and Rulings, U.S.

Customs Service. However, personnel

from other offices participated in its

development.

List of Subjects in 19 CFR Part 192

Customs duties and inspection,

Exports, Motor vehicles, Penalties.

Proposed Amendments

It is proposed to amend Part 192,

Customs Regulations (19 CFR Part 192),

as set forth below:

PART 192—EXPORT CONTROL

1. The authority citation for Part 192,

Customs Regulations (19 CFR Part 192),

is proposed to be revised to read as

follows:

Authority: 19 U.S.C. 66, 1624, 1627a,

1646a, 1646c.

2. It is proposed to amend § 192.2 by

revising paragraphs (b), (c) and (d) and

adding a new paragraph (e) to read as

follows:

§ 192.2 Requirements for exportation.

* * * * *

(b) Documentation required. (1) For

certain registered vehicles owned by the

exporter. In the case of automobiles,

trucks, vans, minivans, motorcycles and

buses owned by the exporter and

registered in any state of the United

States, the following documentation is

required to be presented at the port of

exit:

(i) An original or certified copy of the

Certificate of Title from a state issuing

authority. A notarized copy of the

Certificate of Title is not acceptable; and

(ii) Two copies of the original or

certified copy of the Certificate of Title.

(2) For certain vehicles purchased

with the intention of exportation. In the

case of automobiles, trucks, vans,

minivans, motorcycles and buses

purchased from a dealer and not

registered in any state of the United

States because of plans to immediately

export, an original manufacturer’s

statement of origin and two copies of

the manufacturer’s statement of origin

are required to be presented at the port

of exit.

(3) For certain vehicles where a

Certificate of Title is not required as a

result of state or foreign country

requirements. In the case of

automobiles, trucks, vans, minivans,

motorcycles and buses owned by a

foreign national and registered in a

foreign country or instances in which a

state does not require a Certificate of

Title, an original document that

provides satisfactory proof of ownership

by the exporter and two copies of that

document are required to be presented

at the port of exit.

(4) For certain leased or liened

vehicles. In the case of automobiles,

trucks, vans, minivans, motorcycles and

buses that are leased or on which there

is a lien, a letter from the lienholder or,

if leased, the owner stating that the

lienholder or owner agrees that the

vehicle may be exported is required to

be presented at the port of exit. The

letter must include the name, address

and telephone number of the lienholder

or owner and must include the Vehicle

Identification Number of the vehicle.

(5) For other self-propelled vehicles.

In the case of self-propelled motorized

vehicles other than automobiles, trucks,

vans, minivans, motorcycles, and buses,

an original or certified Certificate of

Title, memorandum of ownership, or

right of possession, or any other

document sufficient to prove lawful

ownership, such as an original bill of

sale or an original sales invoice, as well

as 2 copies of the document, shall be

presented.

(c) When presented. (1) Exportation

by vessel or aircraft. If the vehicle is to

be transported by vessel or aircraft, all

documentation and the vehicle must be

presented to Customs at the port of exit

at least 72 hours, to include not less

than 2 full business days, prior to lading

in accordance with such directives as

may be issued by the Port Director

pursuant to paragraph (e) of this part.

(2) Exportation at land border port. If

the vehicle is to be transported by rail,

highway, or under its own power,

copies of the required documentation

may be sent or transmitted to the port

of exit in a manner so that they will

arrive at least 72 hours prior to the

intended time of exportation. The

original documents need to be presented

at time of exit along with the vehicle.

The vehicle and original documentation

shall be presented at the port of

exportation in accordance with such

directives as may be issued by the Port

Director pursuant to paragraph (e) of

this part.

(d) Authentication of documentation.

Customs shall authenticate both copies

of the documents submitted, one of

which shall remain in the possession of

the exporter and one of which shall be

collected by Customs. Authentication

will include the stamping of the copies

of the documents with the date and time

of presentation of the documents. The

authenticated copy of the document will

be the only acceptable evidence from

the exporter of compliance with the

requirements of this section.

(e) Time and place of document

presentation. Each Port Director shall

establish and publicize the hours and

location at which original

documentation required by this section

will be received and the hours and place

for presentation of the vehicle.

George J. Weise,

Commissioner of Customs.

Approved: September 24, 1997.

John P. Simpson,

Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Treasury.

[FR Doc. 97–28490 Filed 10–27–97; 8:45 am]

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