On May 4, the U.S. and the European Union formally signed a Mutual Recognition Decision to harmonize their cargo security programs. This agreement will lower costs, increase efficiency, and improve security throughout the global supply chain.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Acting Commissioner David Aguilar and European Union Taxation and Customs Union Directorate (TAXUD) Director-General Heinz Zourek signed the decision after a roundtable discussion with members of the trade community.

When the agreement is implemented, both U.S. and EU customs authorities will treat members of the U.S. Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism (C-TPAT) and the EU’s Authorized Economic Operator (AEO) program the same. The target date for implementation is January 2013.

C-TPAT is a voluntary government-business initiative to build cooperative relationships that strengthen and improve overall international supply chain and U.S. border security. AEO is a foreign partnership program that is used as a risk-assessment tool to decrease redundancy and duplication efforts. Around 5,000 companies are approved as Authorized Economic Operators within the EU, and more than 10,000 companies are certified under C-TPAT in the United States.

“Today’s decision on the mutual recognition of the EU and U.S. trade partnership programmes is a win-win achievement: It will save time and money for trusted operators on both sides of the Atlantic while it will allow customs authorities to concentrate their resources on risky consignments and better facilitate legitimate trade,” said Director-General Zourek in a press release.

Lauren Airey is director of trade facilitation policy, National Association of Manufacturers.

The Defense Department released a report today assessing the risk of transferring satellites and space-related items from the U.S. Munitions List (USML).  The so-called “1248 Report” was requested from the Secretaries of State and Defense in Section 1248 of the National Defense Authorization Act for FY 2010. The White House also issued a Fact Sheet on the report.

An excerpt:

“For the sake of national and economic security, the Departments recommend that authority to determine the appropriate export control status of satellites and space-related items be returned to the President. Specifically: The President should be authorized to determine the export control jurisdiction status of satellites and related items; and The Department of Defense should be authorized to determine the need to apply special export controls to U.S. companies providing technical services in support of foreign satellite or launch vehicle development and associated launch operations, and to be reimbursed as appropriate.”

Appendix 1 of the report includes a draft proposal of USML Category XV (Satellite and Related Items), and Appendix 2 includes a draft proposal for CCL ECCN 9X515 (Spacecraft and Related Commodities). These two proposals will need legislation to be enacted.

This issue was examined by the House Foreign Affairs Committee in February, with testimony by the Aerospace Industries Association and Satellite Industry Association. Earlier this year, AIA released a study on satellite export policy that outlined the case for modernized export controls on satellites and related components.

Rep. Howard Berman and Rep. Don Manzullo also introduced legislation (H.R. 3288) last fall that would allow the president to shift satellites from the USML to the CCL. (continue reading…)

The Senate Banking Committee approved legislation today to reauthorize the U.S. Export-Import Bank through 2015. The reauthorization measure, which was approved by a voice vote, would gradually increase the loan ceiling to $140 billion. In addition to increasing the Bank’s exposure cap, the bill would also direct the Bank to review its current domestic content requirements, with due consideration for maintaining and creating jobs in the United States, and encourage the Bank to increase financing of exports for renewable energy and energy efficient technologies.

Ex-Im Bank, which is self-sustaining, provides financing to U.S. exporters through direct loans, guarantees and payment insurance. Last year alone, Ex-Im authorized more than $26 billion in exports that supported an estimated 230,000 jobs at more than 3,300 companies across the country. 

Additionally, more than 80 percent of Ex-Im Bank’s transactions directly involve small businesses. Congress must swiftly move to reauthorize the Ex-Im Bank before it expires on September 30.

Lauren Airey is director of trade facilitation policy, National Association of Manufacturers.

Every single day, manufacturers in the U.S. are up against a wide range of competitors in the global marketplace. Many of these overseas competitors, using significant government support, are aggressively pursuing a global competitive advantage and the jobs that go with it. As a result, the playing field is tilted against us and we are losing jobs. 

One of the most important tools we have to offset this disadvantage and grow exports and jobs is the U.S. Export-Import Bank (Ex-Im), and we strongly urge Congress to reauthorize the Bank without delay.  And – get this – the bank makes money for U.S. taxpayers.  Of all the job stimulus programs, the Ex-Im Bank doesn’t cost the taxpayer a dime. Congress should vote as soon as possible to reauthorize Ex-Im.

For the U.S. to grow manufacturing jobs, we must rely on exports to faster-growing markets around the world. In short, exports equal jobs. And unfortunately for our jobs outlook, the United States is falling behind its competitors on the export front. In 2000, the U.S. share of global exports of manufactured goods was 13.8 percent. By 2009, our share had fallen to 8.6 percent. If we had just maintained our market share, U.S. exports in 2009 would have been $435 billion higher. The Commerce Department estimates that every $1 billion increase in exports would create or support 6,250 additional jobs, so that $435 billion jump translates to more than 2.7 million jobs.

One reason that the U.S. is losing valuable market share is that other countries do a better job of securing market access and providing support to their exporters – including financial support. While the United States is still the world’s largest manufacturer, we lack the export drive of our major competitors. In fact, the United States exports less than half as much of its manufacturing output as the global average. (continue reading…)

Two U.S. manufacturers testified today about the significance of exports to manufacturing growth and the important role of the Ex-Im Bank. The hearing, titled “Stakeholder Perspectives on Reauthorization of the Export-Import Bank of the United States,” was held by the Senate Banking Committee’s Subcommittee on Security and International Trade and Finance. The Ex-Im Bank will need to be reauthorized by Congress before its current authorization expires on Sept. 30, 2011.

Noteworthy testimony from the hearing came fom David Ickert, Vice President of Air Tractor Inc., who described how export growth correlated directly with the company’s employment increases. At the end of 2007, Air Tractor had 165 employees and 36 percent of its sales were export sales. In 2010, the company had 220 employees and export sales accounted for 56 percent of sales volume. Air Tractor has used Ex-Im’s medium term credit insurance to secure more than 80 export sales since 1995, and the company expects to complete 30 such deals in 2011. From Ickert’s testimony:

“The growth of exports has been a significant contributor to the job growth of Air Tractor in recent years. The growth of exports at Air Tractor is a direct result of Ex-Im having programs such as the Medium Term Credit Insurance program that we could access to provide financing for our end user customers outside of the United States.” (continue reading…)