When a brownout occurs, as has happened several times during the last year, Customs reverts to using paper documentation, which takes longer than using the computerized system. But Congress has failed to allocate funds for ACE during the past two budget cycles. A trade group called the Coalition for Customs Automation Funding is trying to build support for ACE as Congress considers the administration's fiscal 2001 budget. The coalition and Rep. Steven Kuykendall, R-Calif., organized a meeting Friday to air the problems that face importers, exporters, port authorities, manufacturers and retailers.
Some companies face disruption in manufacturing if there are delays at the border.
General Motors Corp. If shipments of parts from Mexico and Canada are delayed, GM must stop production of cars, he said. Under ACS, border clearance for a truck carrying parts to GM plants takes three to four hours. ACE would slash that to just 15 seconds. We can't get it to high enough of a priority. There's a lot of finger-pointing going on.