Customs published the proposed rule in the August 8 edition of the Federal Register; 78 comments were received. As a result of these comments, Customs made some amendments to the original proposal to create the "secure portals." For example, the final regulation exempts carriers of bulk cargo, delays enforcement actions of the provisions for 60 days after the rule's effective date, and offers major assurances to protect the confidentiality of manifests. The new rule will require ships to transmit to Customs, preferably in electronic form, accurate, complete, detailed lists of their cargo no more than 24 hours before loading at a foreign port.

Using a multi-layered approach--a step-by-step program of succeeding lines of defense--Customs is targeting and fixing every possible fissure in border security. By enlisting all possible methods and developing new ones, by engaging every Customs employee in every vocational discipline, Customs is protecting our country from the introduction of nuclear weapons, dirty bombs, weapons of mass destruction, and terrorists who would smuggle themselves inside cargo, as some have already tried to do.

The Container Security Initiative (CSI) was the first, comprehensive measure to protect the United States and containerized sea cargo from terrorists and their implements. CSI mandates that vessel cargo manifests be presented to U.S. Customs before ships depart from foreign ports. The new 24-hour rule is the latest buttress to that global security measure, as some 50 percent of the value of all U.S. imports arrives through America's seaports.

Advance information is the lifeblood of CSI, and this new regulation will supply it. The new rule will apply to all cargo shipped to the United States from all seaports, whether they are CSI participants or not.

The rule will eliminate incomplete or vague descriptions of cargo-terms like FAK for "freight of all kinds," or STC for "said to contain." It will also change the common practice by carriers of revising and correcting manifests after a ship has sailed for the United States.

The final rule also includes the provision that shippers send a separate list of all foreign cargo on board that is not destined for unloading in the United States but that will remain on board the vessel while in an American port.

The new rule will foster quicker release of cargo, a major benefit to shippers and their customers, once it arrives in the United States. And, greatly aware that the new regulation may still be a work in progress, as terrorism is always taking a different form, Commissioner Robert Bonner has asked Customs to appoint a special advisory committee that will maintain an open dialogue with the trade. "It is imperative that the trade community and Customs work together to ensure the safety of our citizens and the security of our trade," says Bonner.