IIB 

115TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 5788 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JUNE 18, 2018 

Received; read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance 

AN ACT 

To provide for the processing by U.S. Customs and Border 

Protection of certain international mail shipments and 

to require the provision of advance electronic information 

on international mail shipments of mail, 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, 


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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

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

3 ‘‘Synthetics Trafficking and Overdose Prevention Act of 

4 2018’’ or ‘‘STOP Act of 2018’’. 

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

6 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

Sec. 2. Customs fees. 

Sec. 3. Mandatory advance electronic information for postal shipments. 

Sec. 4. International postal agreements. 

Sec. 5. Cost recoupment. 

Sec. 6. Development of technology to detect illicit narcotics. 

Sec. 7. Civil penalties for postal shipments. 

Sec. 8. Report on violations of arrival, reporting, entry, and clearance requirements and falsity or lack of manifest. 

Sec. 9. Effective date; regulations. 

7 SEC. 2. CUSTOMS FEES. 

8 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 13031(b)(9) of the Con9 solidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1985 (19 

10 U.S.C. 58c(b)(9)) is amended by adding at the end the 

11 following: 

12 ‘‘(D)(i) With respect to the processing of items 

13 that are sent to the United States through the inter14 national postal network by ‘Inbound Express Mail 

15 service’ or ‘Inbound EMS’ (as that service is de16 scribed in the mail classification schedule referred to 

17 in section 3631 of title 39, United States Code), the 

18 following payments are required: 

19 ‘‘(I) $1 per Inbound EMS item. 


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1 ‘‘(II) If an Inbound EMS item is formally 

2 entered, the fee provided for under subsection 

3 (a)(9), if applicable. 

4 ‘‘(ii) Notwithstanding section 451 of the Tariff 

5 Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1451), the payments re6 quired by clause (i), as allocated pursuant to clause 

7 (iii)(I), shall be the only payments required for reim8 bursement of U.S. Customs and Border Protection 

9 for customs services provided in connection with the 

10 processing of an Inbound EMS item. 

11 ‘‘(iii)(I) The payments required by clause (i)(I) 

12 shall be allocated as follows: 

13 ‘‘(aa) 50 percent of the amount of the pay14 ments shall be paid on a quarterly basis by the 

15 United States Postal Service to the Commis16 sioner of U.S. Customs and Border Protection 

17 in accordance with regulations prescribed by the 

18 Secretary of the Treasury to reimburse U.S. 

19 Customs and Border Protection for customs 

20 services provided in connection with the proc21 essing of Inbound EMS items. 

22 ‘‘(bb) 50 percent of the amount of the pay23 ments shall be retained by the Postal Service to 

24 reimburse the Postal Service for services proVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:17 Jun 19, 2018 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5788.RFS H5788

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1 vided in connection with the customs processing 

2 of Inbound EMS items. 

3 ‘‘(II) Payments received by U.S. Customs and 

4 Border Protection under subclause (I)(aa) shall, in 

5 accordance with section 524 of the Tariff Act of 

6 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1524), be deposited in the Customs 

7 User Fee Account and used to directly reimburse 

8 each appropriation for the amount paid out of that 

9 appropriation for the costs incurred in providing 

10 services to international mail facilities. Amounts de11 posited in accordance with the preceding sentence 

12 shall be available until expended for the provision of 

13 such services. 

14 ‘‘(III) Payments retained by the Postal Service 

15 under subclause (I)(bb) shall be used to directly re16 imburse the Postal Service for the costs incurred in 

17 providing services in connection with the customs 

18 processing of Inbound EMS items. 

19 ‘‘(iv) Beginning in fiscal year 2021, the Sec20 retary, in consultation with the Postmaster General, 

21 may adjust, not more frequently than once each fis22 cal year, the amount described in clause (i)(I) to an 

23 amount commensurate with the costs of services pro24 vided in connection with the customs processing of 

25 Inbound EMS items, consistent with the obligations 


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1 of the United States under international agree2 ments.’’. 

3 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—Section 13031(a) 

4 of the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act 

5 of 1985 (19 U.S.C. 58c(a)) is amended— 

6 (1) in paragraph (6), by inserting ‘‘(other than 

7 an item subject to a fee under subsection 

8 (b)(9)(D))’’ after ‘‘customs officer’’; and 

9 (2) in paragraph (10)— 

10 (A) in subparagraph (C), in the matter 

11 preceding clause (i), by inserting ‘‘(other than 

12 Inbound EMS items described in subsection 

13 (b)(9)(D))’’ after ‘‘release’’; and 

14 (B) in the flush at the end, by inserting 

15 ‘‘or of Inbound EMS items described in sub16 section (b)(9)(D),’’ after ‘‘(C),’’. 

17 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

18 this section shall take effect on January 1, 2020. 

19 SEC. 3. MANDATORY ADVANCE ELECTRONIC INFORMATION 

20 FOR POSTAL SHIPMENTS. 

21 (a) MANDATORY ADVANCE ELECTRONIC INFORMA22 TION.— 

23 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 343(a)(3)(K) of the 

24 Trade Act of 2002 (Public Law 107–210; 19 U.S.C. 

25 2071 note) is amended to read as follows: 


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1 ‘‘(K)(i) The Secretary shall prescribe regu2 lations requiring the United States Postal Serv3 ice to transmit the information described in 

4 paragraphs (1) and (2) to the Commissioner of 

5 U.S. Customs and Border Protection for inter6 national mail shipments by the Postal Service 

7 (including shipments to the Postal Service from 

8 foreign postal operators that are transported by 

9 private carrier) consistent with the require10 ments of this subparagraph. 

11 ‘‘(ii) In prescribing regulations under 

12 clause (i), the Secretary shall impose require13 ments for the transmission to the Commissioner 

14 of information described in paragraphs (1) and 

15 (2) for mail shipments described in clause (i) 

16 that are comparable to the requirements for the 

17 transmission of such information imposed on 

18 similar non-mail shipments of cargo, taking into 

19 account the parameters set forth in subpara20 graphs (A) through (J). 

21 ‘‘(iii) The regulations prescribed under 

22 clause (i) shall require the transmission of the 

23 information described in paragraphs (1) and (2) 

24 with respect to a shipment as soon as pracVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:17 Jun 19, 2018 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5788.RFS H5788

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1 ticable in relation to the transportation of the 

2 shipment, consistent with subparagraph (H). 

3 ‘‘(iv) Regulations prescribed under clause 

4 (i) shall allow for the requirements for the 

5 transmission to the Commissioner of informa6 tion described in paragraphs (1) and (2) for 

7 mail shipments described in clause (i) to be im8 plemented in phases, as appropriate, by— 

9 ‘‘(I) setting incremental targets for in10 creasing the percentage of such shipments 

11 for which information is required to be 

12 transmitted to the Commissioner; and 

13 ‘‘(II) taking into consideration— 

14 ‘‘(aa) the risk posed by such 

15 shipments; 

16 ‘‘(bb) the volume of mail shipped 

17 to the United States by or through a 

18 particular country; and 

19 ‘‘(cc) the capacities of foreign 

20 postal operators to provide that infor21 mation to the Postal Service. 

22 ‘‘(v)(I) Notwithstanding clause (iv), the 

23 Postal Service shall, not later than December 

24 31, 2018, arrange for the transmission to the 

25 Commissioner of the information described in 


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1 paragraphs (1) and (2) for not less than 70 

2 percent of the aggregate number of mail ship3 ments, including 100 percent of mail shipments 

4 from the People’s Republic of China, described 

5 in clause (i). 

6 ‘‘(II) If the requirements of subclause (I) 

7 are not met, the Comptroller General of the 

8 United States shall submit to the appropriate 

9 congressional committees, not later than June 

10 30, 2019, a report— 

11 ‘‘(aa) assessing the reasons for the 

12 failure to meet those requirements; and 

13 ‘‘(bb) identifying recommendations to 

14 improve the collection by the Postal Serv15 ice of the information described in para16 graphs (1) and (2). 

17 ‘‘(vi)(I) Notwithstanding clause (iv), the 

18 Postal Service shall, not later than December 

19 31, 2020, arrange for the transmission to the 

20 Commissioner of the information described in 

21 paragraphs (1) and (2) for 100 percent of the 

22 aggregate number of mail shipments described 

23 in clause (i). 

24 ‘‘(II) The Commissioner, in consultation 

25 with the Postmaster General, may determine to 


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1 exclude a country from the requirement de2 scribed in subclause (I) to transmit information 

3 for mail shipments described in clause (i) from 

4 the country if the Commissioner determines 

5 that the country— 

6 ‘‘(aa) does not have the capacity to 

7 collect and transmit such information; 

8 ‘‘(bb) represents a low risk for mail 

9 shipments that violate relevant United 

10 States laws and regulations; and 

11 ‘‘(cc) accounts for low volumes of mail 

12 shipments that can be effectively screened 

13 for compliance with relevant United States 

14 laws and regulations through an alternate 

15 means. 

16 ‘‘(III) The Commissioner shall, at a min17 imum on an annual basis, re-evaluate any de18 termination made under subclause (II) to ex19 clude a country from the requirement described 

20 in subclause (I). If, at any time, the Commis21 sioner determines that a country no longer 

22 meets the requirements under subclause (II), 

23 the Commissioner may not further exclude the 

24 country from the requirement described in sub25 clause (I). 


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1 ‘‘(IV) The Commissioner shall, on an an2 nual basis, submit to the appropriate congres3 sional committees— 

4 ‘‘(aa) a list of countries with respect 

5 to which the Commissioner has made a de6 termination under subclause (II) to exclude 

7 the countries from the requirement de8 scribed in subclause (I); and 

9 ‘‘(bb) information used to support 

10 such determination with respect to such 

11 countries. 

12 ‘‘(vii)(I) The Postmaster General shall, in 

13 consultation with the Commissioner, refuse any 

14 shipments received after December 31, 2020, 

15 for which the information described in para16 graphs (1) and (2) is not transmitted as re17 quired under this subparagraph, except as pro18 vided in subclause (II). 

19 ‘‘(II) If remedial action is warranted in 

20 lieu of refusal of shipments pursuant to sub21 clause (I), the Postmaster General and the 

22 Commissioner shall take remedial action with 

23 respect to the shipments, including destruction, 

24 seizure, controlled delivery or other law enforce25 ment initiatives, or correction of the failure to 


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1 provide the information described in paragraphs 

2 (1) and (2) with respect to the shipments. 

3 ‘‘(viii) Nothing in this subparagraph shall 

4 be construed to limit the authority of the Sec5 retary to obtain information relating to inter6 national mail shipments from private carriers or 

7 other appropriate parties. 

8 ‘‘(ix) In this subparagraph, the term ‘ap9 propriate congressional committees’ means— 

10 ‘‘(I) the Committee on Finance and 

11 the Committee on Homeland Security and 

12 Governmental Affairs of the Senate; and 

13 ‘‘(II) the Committee on Ways and 

14 Means, the Committee on Oversight and 

15 Government Reform, and the Committee 

16 on Homeland Security of the House of 

17 Representatives.’’. 

18 (2) JOINT STRATEGIC PLAN ON MANDATORY

19 ADVANCE INFORMATION.—Not later than 60 days 

20 after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Sec21 retary of Homeland Security and the Postmaster 

22 General shall develop and submit to the appropriate 

23 congressional committees a joint strategic plan de24 tailing specific performance measures for achiev25 ing— 


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1 (A) the transmission of information as re2 quired by section 343(a)(3)(K) of the Trade 

3 Act of 2002, as amended by paragraph (1); and 

4 (B) the presentation by the Postal Service 

5 to U.S. Customs and Border Protection of all 

6 mail targeted by U.S. Customs and Border Pro7 tection for inspection. 

8 (b) CAPACITY BUILDING.— 

9 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 343(a) of the Trade 

10 Act of 2002 (Public Law 107–210; 19 U.S.C. 2071 

11 note) is amended by adding at the end the following: 

12 ‘‘(5) CAPACITY BUILDING.— 

13 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary, with 

14 the concurrence of the Secretary of State, and 

15 in coordination with the Postmaster General 

16 and the heads of other Federal agencies, as ap17 propriate, may provide technical assistance, 

18 equipment, technology, and training to enhance 

19 the capacity of foreign postal operators— 

20 ‘‘(i) to gather and provide the infor21 mation required by paragraph (3)(K); and 

22 ‘‘(ii) to otherwise gather and provide 

23 postal shipment information related to— 

24 ‘‘(I) terrorism; 


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1 ‘‘(II) items the importation or in2 troduction of which into the United 

3 States is prohibited or restricted, in4 cluding controlled substances; and 

5 ‘‘(III) such other concerns as the 

6 Secretary determines appropriate. 

7 ‘‘(B) PROVISION OF EQUIPMENT AND

8 TECHNOLOGY.—With respect to the provision of 

9 equipment and technology under subparagraph 

10 (A), the Secretary may lease, loan, provide, or 

11 otherwise assist in the deployment of such 

12 equipment and technology under such terms 

13 and conditions as the Secretary may prescribe, 

14 including nonreimbursable loans or the transfer 

15 of ownership of equipment and technology.’’. 

16 (2) JOINT STRATEGIC PLAN ON CAPACITY

17 BUILDING.—Not later than one year after the date 

18 of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Home19 land Security and the Postmaster General shall, in 

20 consultation with the Secretary of State, jointly de21 velop and submit to the appropriate congressional 

22 committees a joint strategic plan— 

23 (A) detailing the extent to which U.S. Cus24 toms and Border Protection and the United 

25 States Postal Service are engaged in capacity 


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1 building efforts under section 343(a)(5) of the 

2 Trade Act of 2002, as added by paragraph (1); 

3 (B) describing plans for future capacity 

4 building efforts; and 

5 (C) assessing how capacity building has in6 creased the ability of U.S. Customs and Border 

7 Protection and the Postal Service to advance 

8 the goals of this Act and the amendments made 

9 by this Act. 

10 (c) REPORT AND CONSULTATIONS BY SECRETARY OF

11 HOMELAND SECURITY AND POSTMASTER GENERAL.— 

12 (1) REPORT.—Not later than 180 days after 

13 the date of the enactment of this Act, and annually 

14 thereafter until 3 years after the Postmaster Gen15 eral has met the requirement under clause (vi) of 

16 subparagraph (K) of section 343(a)(3) of the Trade 

17 Act of 2002, as amended by subsection (a)(1), the 

18 Secretary of Homeland Security and the Postmaster 

19 General shall, in consultation with the Secretary of 

20 State, jointly submit to the appropriate congres21 sional committees a report on compliance with that 

22 subparagraph that includes the following: 

23 (A) An assessment of the status of the reg24 ulations required to be promulgated under that 

25 subparagraph. 


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1 (B) An update regarding new and existing 

2 agreements reached with foreign postal opera3 tors for the transmission of the information re4 quired by that subparagraph. 

5 (C) A summary of deliberations between 

6 the United States Postal Service and foreign 

7 postal operators with respect to issues relating 

8 to the transmission of that information. 

9 (D) A summary of the progress made in 

10 achieving the transmission of that information 

11 for the percentage of shipments required by 

12 that subparagraph. 

13 (E) An assessment of the quality of that 

14 information being received by foreign postal op15 erators, as determined by the Secretary of 

16 Homeland Security, and actions taken to im17 prove the quality of that information. 

18 (F) A summary of policies established by 

19 the Universal Postal Union that may affect the 

20 ability of the Postmaster General to obtain the 

21 transmission of that information. 

22 (G) A summary of the use of technology to 

23 detect illicit synthetic opioids and other illegal 

24 substances in international mail parcels and 


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1 planned acquisitions and advancements in such 

2 technology. 

3 (H) Such other information as the Sec4 retary of Homeland Security and the Post5 master General consider appropriate with re6 spect to obtaining the transmission of informa7 tion required by that subparagraph. 

8 (2) CONSULTATIONS.—Not later than 180 days 

9 after the date of the enactment of this Act, and 

10 every 180 days thereafter until the Postmaster Gen11 eral has met the requirement under clause (vi) of 

12 section 343(a)(3)(K) of the Trade Act of 2002, as 

13 amended by subsection (a)(1), to arrange for the 

14 transmission of information with respect to 100 per15 cent of the aggregate number of mail shipments de16 scribed in clause (i) of that section, the Secretary of 

17 Homeland Security and the Postmaster General 

18 shall provide briefings to the appropriate congres19 sional committees on the progress made in achieving 

20 the transmission of that information for that per21 centage of shipments. 

22 (d) GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY OFFICE RE23 PORT.—Not later than June 30, 2019, the Comptroller 

24 General of the United States shall submit to the appro25 priate congressional committees a report— 


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1 (1) assessing the progress of the United States 

2 Postal Service in achieving the transmission of the 

3 information required by subparagraph (K) of section 

4 343(a)(3) of the Trade Act of 2002, as amended by 

5 subsection (a)(1), for the percentage of shipments 

6 required by that subparagraph; 

7 (2) assessing the quality of the information re8 ceived from foreign postal operators for targeting 

9 purposes; 

10 (3) assessing the specific percentage of targeted 

11 mail presented by the Postal Service to U.S. Cus12 toms and Border Protection for inspection; 

13 (4) describing the costs of collecting the infor14 mation required by such subparagraph (K) from for15 eign postal operators and the costs of implementing 

16 the use of that information; 

17 (5) assessing the benefits of receiving that in18 formation with respect to international mail ship19 ments; 

20 (6) assessing the feasibility of assessing a cus21 toms fee under section 13031(b)(9) of the Consoli22 dated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1985, 

23 as amended by section 2, on international mail ship24 ments other than Inbound Express Mail service in a 


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1 manner consistent with the obligations of the United 

2 States under international agreements; and 

3 (7) identifying recommendations, including rec4 ommendations for legislation, to improve the compli5 ance of the Postal Service with such subparagraph 

6 (K), including an assessment of whether the detec7 tion of illicit synthetic opioids in the international 

8 mail would be improved by— 

9 (A) requiring the Postal Service to serve as 

10 the consignee for international mail shipments 

11 containing goods; or 

12 (B) designating a customs broker to act as 

13 an importer of record for international mail 

14 shipments containing goods. 

15 (e) TECHNICAL CORRECTION.—Section 343 of the 

16 Trade Act of 2002 (Public Law 107–210; 19 U.S.C. 2071 

17 note) is amended in the section heading by striking ‘‘AD18 VANCED’’ and inserting ‘‘ADVANCE’’. 

19 (f) APPROPRIATE CONGRESSIONAL COMMITTEES DE20 FINED.—In this section, the term ‘‘appropriate congres21 sional committees’’ means— 

22 (1) the Committee on Finance and the Com23 mittee on Homeland Security and Governmental Af24 fairs of the Senate; and 


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1 (2) the Committee on Ways and Means, the 

2 Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, 

3 and the Committee on Homeland Security of the 

4 House of Representatives. 

5 SEC. 4. INTERNATIONAL POSTAL AGREEMENTS. 

6 (a) EXISTING AGREEMENTS.— 

7 (1) IN GENERAL.—In the event that any provi8 sion of this Act, or any amendment made by this 

9 Act, is determined to be in violation of obligations 

10 of the United States under any postal treaty, con11 vention, or other international agreement related to 

12 international postal services, or any amendment to 

13 such an agreement, the Secretary of State should 

14 negotiate to amend the relevant provisions of the 

15 agreement so that the United States is no longer in 

16 violation of the agreement. 

17 (2) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this 

18 subsection shall be construed to permit delay in the 

19 implementation of this Act or any amendment made 

20 by this Act. 

21 (b) FUTURE AGREEMENTS.— 

22 (1) CONSULTATIONS.—Before entering into, on 

23 or after the date of the enactment of this Act, any 

24 postal treaty, convention, or other international 

25 agreement related to international postal services, or 


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1 any amendment to such an agreement, that is re2 lated to the ability of the United States to secure 

3 the provision of advance electronic information by 

4 foreign postal operators, the Secretary of State 

5 should consult with the appropriate congressional 

6 committees (as defined in section 3(f)). 

7 (2) EXPEDITED NEGOTIATION OF NEW AGREE8 MENT.—To the extent that any new postal treaty, 

9 convention, or other international agreement related 

10 to international postal services would improve the 

11 ability of the United States to secure the provision 

12 of advance electronic information by foreign postal 

13 operators as required by regulations prescribed 

14 under section 343(a)(3)(K) of the Trade Act of 

15 2002, as amended by section 3(a)(1), the Secretary 

16 of State should expeditiously conclude such an 

17 agreement. 

18 SEC. 5. COST RECOUPMENT. 

19 (a) IN GENERAL.—The United States Postal Service 

20 shall, to the extent practicable and otherwise recoverable 

21 by law, ensure that all costs associated with complying 

22 with this Act and amendments made by this Act are 

23 charged directly to foreign shippers or foreign postal oper24 ators. 


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1 (b) COSTS NOT CONSIDERED REVENUE.—The recov2 ery of costs under subsection (a) shall not be deemed rev3 enue for purposes of subchapter I and II of chapter 36 

4 of title 39, United States Code, or regulations prescribed 

5 under that chapter. 

6 SEC. 6. DEVELOPMENT OF TECHNOLOGY TO DETECT IL7 LICIT NARCOTICS. 

8 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Postmaster General and the 

9 Commissioner of U.S. Customs and Border Protection, in 

10 coordination with the heads of other agencies as appro11 priate, shall collaborate to identify and develop technology 

12 for the detection of illicit fentanyl, other synthetic opioids, 

13 and other narcotics and psychoactive substances entering 

14 the United States by mail. 

15 (b) OUTREACH TO PRIVATE SECTOR.—The Post16 master General and the Commissioner shall conduct out17 reach to private sector entities to gather information re18 garding the current state of technology to identify areas 

19 for innovation relating to the detection of illicit fentanyl, 

20 other synthetic opioids, and other narcotics and 

21 psychoactive substances entering the United States. 

22 SEC. 7. CIVIL PENALTIES FOR POSTAL SHIPMENTS. 

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

24 1436) is amended by adding at the end the following new 

25 subsection: 


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1 ‘‘(e) CIVIL PENALTIES FOR POSTAL SHIPMENTS.— 

2 ‘‘(1) CIVIL PENALTY.—A civil penalty shall be 

3 imposed against the United States Postal Service if 

4 the Postal Service accepts a shipment in violation of 

5 section 343(a)(3)(K)(vii)(I) of the Trade Act of 

6 2002. 

7 ‘‘(2) MODIFICATION OF CIVIL PENALTY.— 

8 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—U.S. Customs and 

9 Border Protection shall reduce or dismiss a civil 

10 penalty imposed pursuant to paragraph (1) if 

11 U.S. Customs and Border Protection deter12 mines that the United States Postal Service— 

13 ‘‘(i) has a low error rate in compliance 

14 with section 343(a)(3)(K) of the Trade Act 

15 of 2002; 

16 ‘‘(ii) is cooperating with U.S. Customs 

17 and Border Protection with respect to the 

18 violation of section 343(a)(3)(K)(vii)(I) of 

19 the Trade Act of 2002; or 

20 ‘‘(iii) has taken remedial action to 

21 prevent future violations of section 

22 343(a)(3)(K)(vii)(I) of the Trade Act of 

23 2002. 

24 ‘‘(B) WRITTEN NOTIFICATION.—U.S. Cus25 toms and Border Protection shall issue a writVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:17 Jun 19, 2018 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00022 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5788.RFS H5788

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1 ten notification to the Postal Service with re2 spect to each exercise of the authority of sub3 paragraph (A) to reduce or dismiss a civil pen4 alty imposed pursuant to paragraph (1). 

5 ‘‘(3) ONGOING LACK OF COMPLIANCE.—If U.S. 

6 Customs and Border Protection determines that the 

7 United States Postal Service— 

8 ‘‘(A) has repeatedly committed violations 

9 of section 343(a)(3)(K)(vii)(I) of the Trade Act 

10 of 2002, 

11 ‘‘(B) has failed to cooperate with U.S. 

12 Customs and Border Protection with respect to 

13 violations of section 343(a)(3)(K)(vii)(I) of the 

14 Trade Act of 2002, and 

15 ‘‘(C) has an increasing error rate in com16 pliance with section 343(a)(3)(K) of the Trade 

17 Act of 2002, 

18 civil penalties may be imposed against the United 

19 States Postal Service until corrective action, satis20 factory to U.S. Customs and Border Protection, is 

21 taken.’’. 


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1 SEC. 8. REPORT ON VIOLATIONS OF ARRIVAL, REPORTING, 

2 ENTRY, AND CLEARANCE REQUIREMENTS 

3 AND FALSITY OR LACK OF MANIFEST. 

4 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Commissioner of U.S. Cus5 toms and Border Protection shall submit to the appro6 priate congressional committees an annual report that 

7 contains the information described in subsection (b) with 

8 respect to each violation of section 436 of the Tariff Act 

9 of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1436), as amended by section 7, and 

10 section 584 of such Act (19 U.S.C. 1584) that occurred 

11 during the previous year. 

12 (b) INFORMATION DESCRIBED.—The information de13 scribed in this subsection is the following: 

14 (1) The name and address of the violator. 

15 (2) The specific violation that was committed. 

16 (3) The location or port of entry through which 

17 the items were transported. 

18 (4) An inventory of the items seized, including 

19 a description of the items and the quantity seized. 

20 (5) The location from which the items origi21 nated. 

22 (6) The entity responsible for the apprehension 

23 or seizure, organized by location or port of entry. 

24 (7) The amount of penalties assessed by U.S. 

25 Customs and Border Protection, organized by name 

26 of the violator and location or port of entry. 


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1 (8) The amount of penalties that U.S. Customs 

2 and Border Protection could have levied, organized 

3 by name of the violator and location or port of entry. 

4 (9) The rationale for negotiating lower pen5 alties, organized by name of the violator and location 

6 or port of entry. 

7 (c) APPROPRIATE CONGRESSIONAL COMMITTEES DE8 FINED.—In this section, the term ‘‘appropriate congres9 sional committees’’ means— 

10 (1) the Committee on Finance and the Com11 mittee on Homeland Security and Governmental Af12 fairs of the Senate; and 

13 (2) the Committee on Ways and Means, the 

14 Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, 

15 and the Committee on Homeland Security of the 

16 House of Representatives. 

17 SEC. 9. EFFECTIVE DATE; REGULATIONS. 

18 (a) EFFECTIVE DATE.—This Act and the amend19 ments made by this Act (other than the amendments made 

20 by section 2) shall take effect on the date of the enactment 

21 of this Act. 

22 (b) REGULATIONS.—Not later than one year after the 

23 date of the enactment of this Act, such regulations as are 


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26 

HR 5788 RFS

1 necessary to carry out this Act and the amendments made 

2 by this Act shall be prescribed. 

Passed the House of Representatives June 14, 2018. 

Attest: KAREN L. HAAS, 

Clerk. 


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