The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service has issued a final rule, effective November 12, 2010, which amends the regulations concerning the importation of citrus fruit to remove certain restrictions on the importation of Unshu oranges from the Republic of Korea that are no longer necessary, which includes removing requirements for the fruit to be grown in specified canker-free export areas and for joint inspection in the groves and packinghouses by the Government of Korea and APHIS.
The Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service has issued a proposed rule to amend the regulations concerning the importation of fruits and vegetables to allow the importation of fresh shepherd’s purse with roots from the Republic of Korea into the U.S. under a combination of mitigations to reduce the risk of introducing plant pests, under certain conditions. Comments are due by December 13, 2010.
The National Association of Manufacturers states that the signature of the European Union - South Korea free trade agreement is a stark reminder of how manufacturing in the U.S. is suffering as our competitors move forward. NAM urged the Administration to move faster on the U.S.-Korea FTA and to accelerate efforts to negotiate the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP), praising the inclusion of Malaysia in the negotiations.
On October 5, 2010, APHIS updated its CITES I-II-III Timber Species Manual. This Manual provides CBP and PPQ personnel with guidelines for the import, re-export, violation, seizure, and forfeiture of CITES Appendix I, Appendix II, and Appendix III protected timber species.
The American Apparel and Footwear Association has issued a statement applauding the Department of Labor’s announcement of a $2 million grant to implement the International Labor Organization's (ILO) Better Work program in Nicaragua.
The Food Safety and Inspection Service has issued updated versions of its list of Mexico (October 5, 2010) firms eligible to export meat and poultry to the U.S.
FSIS has provided updated information for the export of U.S. meat and poultry to the following country:
The California Air Resources Board (CARB) is scheduled to hold a public workshop on October 12, 2010 at the Port of Long Beach to discuss proposed amendments to air-quality regulations affecting oceangoing vessels traveling near the California coast. A live webcast will be available at www.polb.com/webcast.
The Department of Defense announces that the Civilian Agency Acquisition Council and the Defense Acquisition Regulations Council are proposing to amend the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) to revise 48 CFR 25.702, Prohibition on contracting with entities that conduct restricted business operations in Sudan, to add specific criteria that an agency must address in a waiver request and a waiver consultation process regarding foreign policy aspects of the waiver request for consultations. Comments are due by December 6, 2010.
The State Department has designated Jemaah Islamiya (JI and other aliases) as a Foreign Terrorist Organization pursuant to Section 219 of the Immigration and Nationality Act, as amended.