U.S. Trade Representative Kirk and Congressman Kissell met with local business leaders to discuss trade-related topics from intellectual property rights to USTR’s enforcement efforts regarding imports of Chinese tires. Kirk also answered questions on how exports can foster job creation for North Carolina’s businesses.
On July 16, 2010, the State Department again updated and extended its travel warning for Mexico in order to inform U.S. citizens traveling to and living in Mexico of concerns about the security situation there.
The National Association of Manufacturers issued a policy paper entitled “Manufacturing Strategy for Jobs and a Competitive America” in June 2010. Its policy paper laid out its arguments for less taxation, a pro-growth regulatory environment, the defense of U.S. intellectual property (IP), and the modernization of the U.S. export system, among other goals.
The Office of Foreign Assets Control has issued its civil penalties enforcement information for July 15, 2010. Agar Corporation, Inc. was assessed $860,000 for violating the Sudanese Sanctions Regulations.
The California Attorney General, the Center for Environmental Health (CEH), the city of Los Angeles and Solano County have finalized legal agreements to end health threats from lead in artificial turf with Field Turf, the nation's leading maker and installer of artificial turf fields, and Beaulieu Group, the leading supplier of indoor/outdoor grass to retailers including Home Depot, Ace Hardware and others. The agreements set a legal limit of no more than 50 parts per million of lead in turf sold in California; previous CEH testing found more than 300 times that amount of lead in one FieldTurf product. Last year, AstroTurf became the first company to agree to legally binding limits on lead in turf. The agreement with AstroTurf calls for the company to meet the 50 ppm lead limit in California as of June 15, 2010.
The Food Safety Inspection Service is announcing its 2010 International Microbiology Laboratory Training Seminar and the International Residue Laboratory Training Seminars. The purpose of these seminars is to familiarize international government laboratory officials with laboratory testing methods and procedures used by FSIS to assure that the nation's meat, poultry and egg products are safe and wholesome. These seminars will be held on Sep 13-17, 2010 (Microbiology) in Athens, GA, Sep 21-23, 2010 (Residue) in St. Louis, MO, and Sep 27-28, 2010 (Residue) in Alameda, CA.
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives announced that the Prevent All Cigarette Trafficking Act of 2009 went into effect on June 29, 2010. ATF is currently working to publish an interpretive rule on this new PACT Act.