2019-24800. Agency Information Collection Activities: 321 E-Commerce Data Pilot

AGENCY:

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), Department of Homeland Security.

ACTION:

30-Day notice and request for comments; New collection of information.

SUMMARY:

The Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Customs and Border Protection will be submitting the following information collection request to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and approval in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA). The information collection is published in the Federal Register to obtain comments from the public and affected agencies.

DATES:

Comments are encouraged and must be submitted no later than December 16, 2019 to be assured of consideration.

ADDRESSES:

Interested persons are invited to submit written comments on this proposed information collection to the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, Office of Management and Budget. Comments should be addressed to the OMB Desk Officer for Customs and Border Protection, Department of Homeland Security, and sent via electronic mail to [e-mail].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Requests for additional PRA information should be directed to Seth Renkema, Chief, Economic Impact Analysis Branch, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Office of Trade, Regulations and Rulings, 90 K Street NE, 10th Floor, Washington, DC 20229-1177, Telephone number 202-325-0056 or via email [e-mail]. Please note that the contact information provided here is solely for questions regarding this notice. Individuals seeking information about other CBP programs should contact the CBP National Customer Service Center at 877-227-5511, (TTY) 1-800-877-8339, or CBP website at https://www.cbp .gov/.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

CBP invites the general public and other Federal agencies to comment on the proposed and/or continuing information collections pursuant to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.). This proposed information collection was previously published in the Federal Register (84 FR 48363) on September 13, 2019, allowing for a 60-day comment period. This notice allows for an additional 30 days for public comments. This process is conducted in accordance with 5 CFR 1320.8. Written comments and suggestions from the public and affected agencies should address one or more of the following four points: (1) Whether the proposed collection of information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the agency, including whether the information will have practical utility; (2) the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden of the proposed collection of information, including the validity of the methodology and assumptions used; (3) suggestions to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and (4) suggestions to minimize the burden of the collection of information on those who are to respond, including through the use of appropriate automated, electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection techniques or other forms of information technology, e.g., permitting electronic submission of responses. The comments that are submitted will be summarized and included in the request for approval. All comments will become a matter of public record.

Overview of This Information Collection

Title: 321 E-Commerce Data Pilot.

OMB Number: 1651-NEW.

Form number: N/A.

Current Actions: This submission is being made to obtain an OMB control number for this Information Collection Request and to expand the respondent group of the recent 321 Data Pilot test notice on July 23, 2019 (84 FR 35405) which was limited to nine respondents.

Type of Review: New.

Affected Public: Businesses.

Abstract: CBP faces significant challenges in targeting Section 321 shipments, while still maintaining the clearance speeds the private sector has come to expect. This is because CBP does not receive adequate advance information in order to effectively and efficiently assess the security risk of the approximately 1.8 million Section 321 shipments that arrive each day. This pilot is conducted pursuant to 19 CFR 101.9(a), which authorizes the Commissioner to impose requirements different from those specified in the CBP regulations for the purposes of conducting a test program or procedure designed to evaluate the effectiveness of new technology or operational procedures regarding the processing of passengers, vessels, or merchandise.

In the e-commerce environment, traditionally regulated parties, such as carriers, are unlikely to possess all of the information relating to a shipment's supply chain. While CBP receives some advance electronic data for Section 321 shipments from air, rail, and truck carriers (and certain other parties in limited circumstances) as mandated by current regulations, the transmitted data often does not adequately identify the entity causing the shipment to cross the border, the final recipient, or the contents of the package. Consequently, CBP may not receive any advance information on the entity actually causing the shipment to travel to the United States, such as the seller or manufacturer. Some carriers may not have this information because sellers on e-commerce platforms often contract with other entities to act as the seller. Similarly, for the consignee's name and address, a carrier might transmit information for the domestic deconsolidator, which will not allow CBP to identify in advance of arrival, the final recipient of the merchandise in the United States. With the growth of e-commerce, shipments are increasingly subject to these complex transactions, where information about the shipment is limited. As a result, CBP is less able to effectively target or identify high-risk shipments in the e-commerce environment and CBP Officers must use additional time and resources to inspect Section 321 shipments upon arrival.

CBP anticipates that Section 321 shipments will continue to grow quickly. Accordingly, CBP is initiating this voluntary Section 321 Data Pilot to test the feasibility of obtaining advance information from regulated and non-regulated entities, such as online marketplaces, as well as requiring additional advance data elements. This test will enable CBP to assess the ability of online marketplaces to transmit information to CBP that enables CBP to better use resources used in inspecting and processing these shipments and better understand the operation of online marketplaces. Additionally, CBP is testing whether the transmission of additional advance data, beyond the data elements currently required for shipments arriving by air, truck, or rail, will enable CBP to more accurately and efficiently target Section 321 shipments. Pursuant to this test, participants will provide information that identifies the entity causing the shipment to cross the border, the ultimate recipient, and the product in the shipment with greater specificity, in advance. CBP will test the feasibility of using the additional data elements, transmitted by multiple entities for a single shipment, to segment risk. In sum, the pilot will enable CBP to determine if requiring additional data and involving non-regulated entities will enable CBP to address the threats and complexities resulting from the vast increase in Section 321 shipments, while facilitating cross-border e-commerce.

Participants in the Section 321 Data Pilot must transmit certain information for any Section 321 shipments destined for the United States for which the participant has information. The required data elements differ slightly depending on what entity is transmitting the data. In general, the required data relates to the entity initiating the shipment (e.g., the entity causing the shipment to cross the border, such as the seller, manufacturer, or shipper), the product in the package, the listed marketplace price, and the final recipient (e.g., the final entity to possess the shipment in the United States). The data elements are as follow.

1. All participants. All participants, regardless of filer type, must electronically transmit the following elements:

• Originator Code of the Participant (assigned by CBP)
• Participant Filer Type (e.g., carrier or online marketplace)
• One or more of the following:

○ Shipment Tracking Number

○ House Bill Number

○ Master Bill Number

• Mode of Transportation (e.g., air, truck, rail, or ocean)

2. Participating carriers. In addition to the data elements listed above in paragraph 1, participating carriers must also electronically transmit the following data elements:

• Shipment Initiator Name and Address (e.g., the entity that causes the movement of a shipment, which may be a seller, shipper, or manufacturer, but not a foreign consolidator)
• Final Deliver to Party Name and Address (e.g., the final entity to receive the shipment once it arrives in the United States, which may be a final purchaser or a warehouse, but not a domestic deconsolidator)
• Enhanced Product Description (e.g., a description of a product shipped to the United States more detailed than the description on the manifest, which should, if applicable, reflect the advertised retail description of the product as listed on an online marketplace)
• Shipment Security Scan (air carriers only) (e.g., verification that a foreign security scan for the shipment has been completed such as an x-ray image or other security screening report)
• Known Carrier Customer Flag (e.g., an indicator that identifies a shipper as a repeat customer that has consistently paid all required fees and does not have any known trade violations)

3. Participating online marketplaces. In addition to the data elements listed above in paragraph 1, participating online marketplaces must electronically submit the following data elements:

• Seller Name and Address (e.g., an international or domestic company that sells products on marketplaces and other websites), and, if applicable, Shipment Initiator Name and Address (as defined in Section II.A.2)
• Final Deliver to Party Name and Address (as defined in Section II.A.2)
• Known Marketplace Seller Flag (e.g., an indicator provided by a marketplace that identifies a seller as an entity vetted by the marketplace and has no known trade violations)
• Marketplace Seller Account Number/Seller ID (e.g., the unique identifier a marketplace assigns to sellers)
• Buyer Name and Address, if applicable (e.g., the purchaser of a good from an online marketplace. This entity is not always the same as the final deliver to party.)
• Product Picture (e.g., picture of the product presented on an online marketplace), Link to Product Listing (e.g., an active and direct link to the listing of a specific product on an online marketplace), or Enhanced Product Description (as defined in Section II.A.2)
• Listed Price on Marketplace (e.g., the retail price of a product that a seller lists while advertising on an online marketplace. For auction marketplaces, this price is the price of final sale.)

Different entities may transmit different data elements for the same shipment. In addition to the above required data elements, participants may voluntarily provide the following optional data elements:

• HTS Number;
• Retail Price in Export Country;
• Shipper Name;
• Shipper Address;
• Shipper Phone Number;
• Shipper Email Address;
• Shipment Initiator Phone Number;
• Consignee Name;
• Consignee Address;
• Consignee Phone Number;
• Consignee Email Address;
• Marketplace Name;
• Buyer Account Number;
• Buyer Address;
• Seller Phone Number;
• Buyer Phone Number;
• Marketplace website;
• Buyer Name;
• Buyer Confirmation Number;
• Buyer Email Address;
• Carrier Name;
• Known Carrier Customer;
• Merchandise/Product Weight; and,
• Merchandise/Product Quantity.
• Listed Price on Marketplace.

Estimated Number of Respondents: 20.

Estimated Number of Annual Responses per Respondent: 70,000.

Estimated Number of Total Annual Responses: 1,400,000.

Estimated Time per Response: 5 seconds.

Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours: 1,944.

Dated: November 12, 2019.

Seth D. Renkema,

Branch Chief, Economic Impact Analysis Branch, U.S. Customs and Border Protection.