We use cookies to give you the best online experience. By using our website you agree to our use of cookies in accordance with our cookie policy. Learn more here.Close Me
Keywords: US Congress, 2012 deadline,
Miscellaneous Tariff Bill, MTB
On March 30, 2012, the Senate Finance Committee and the House
Ways and Means Committee announced the time frame and requirements
for Members of Congress to introduce bills to be included in the
Miscellaneous Tariff Bill (MTB). MTBs offer importers an
opportunity to save substantial amounts in customs duties for as
long as three years. In order to qualify for a duty suspension or
reduction, a proposed tariff modification must: (i) be
non-controversial (i.e., not generate an objection from another
Member or a domestic producer), (ii) cost under $500,000 per year
in loss of revenue to the US Treasury, and (iii) be administrable
by US Customs and Border Protection.
In order to be included in the MTB, a bill must be:
A new temporary duty suspension or duty reduction on one
product or item;
An extension of an existing temporary duty suspension or duty
reduction on one product or item; or
A technical correction.
A duty suspension occurs when the duty rate is temporarily
reduced to zero, whereas a duty reduction occurs when a duty rate
is temporarily reduced but remains greater than zero.
After individual MTBs are introduced, they will undergo a
vetting process that includes posting for public comment, an
assessment by the Congressional Budget Office of the potential
revenue loss, and a review by the Department of Commerce, the
International Trade Commission, and other government agencies. All
individual bills that are approved through the vetting process will
be aggregated into a single bill which must be passed by Congress.
The most recently passed MTB included duty suspensions and
reductions on more than 700 products covering a wide range of
industries.
The deadline to submit individual tariff suspension bills is
April 30, 2012. The MTB process is an opportunity
for companies that imports goods to potentially reduce their import
duty burden.
In addition, current duty suspensions in effect under the
previous MTB expire on December 31, 2012. Any importer currently
benefitting from these duty suspensions must work with Congress to
introduce a new bill extending the duty suspension under the new
MTB.
In order to ensure that it qualifies for the MTB, an importer
must:
Review its imported products to make sure that they are
eligible for a duty suspension under the MTB;
Work closely with the US Senate and/or staff in crafting the
individual suspension bill for its products; and
Communicate with the International Trade Commission, the
Department of Commerce, and Customs and Border Protection to
address any issues arising from the review process.
Mayer Brown is a global legal services provider
comprising legal practices that are separate entities (the
"Mayer Brown Practices"). The Mayer Brown Practices are:
Mayer Brown LLP and Mayer Brown Europe – Brussels LLP,
both limited liability partnerships established in Illinois USA;
Mayer Brown International LLP, a limited liability partnership
incorporated in England and Wales (authorized and regulated by the
Solicitors Regulation Authority and registered in England and Wales
number OC 303359); Mayer Brown, a SELAS established in France;
Mayer Brown JSM, a Hong Kong partnership and its associated
entities in Asia; and Tauil & Chequer Advogados, a Brazilian
law partnership with which Mayer Brown is associated. "Mayer
Brown" and the Mayer Brown logo are the trademarks of the
Mayer Brown Practices in their respective
jurisdictions.
This
Mayer Brown article provides information and comments on legal
issues and developments of interest. The foregoing is not a
comprehensive treatment of the subject matter covered and is not
intended to provide legal advice. Readers should seek specific
legal advice before taking any action with respect to the matters
discussed herein.
To print this article, all you need is to be registered on Mondaq.com.
Click to Login as an existing user or Register so you can print this article.
A U.S. Appellate court has ruled the former female manager of the Hofstra University football team can’t sue the school, even though repeated sexual harassment by players created a hostile work environment.
On April 16, 2013, the United States District Court for the District of New Hampshire unsealed an "Information" filed by the New Hampshire U.S. Attorney's office against Frank Ku and Danny Hsu, who reside in California.
After an almost 10-year investigation, on May 29, 2013, Total, S.A., the French petroleum company, entered into a deferred prosecution agreement with the US Department of Justice.
On May 30, 2013, the US Treasury Department, Office of Foreign Assets Control issued General License D under the Iranian Transactions and Sanctions Regulations.
On Tuesday, January 2, 2013 President Obama signed into law the FY 2013 National Defense Authorization Act (the "FY 2013 NDAA"), a large legislative package that includes the Iran Freedom and Counter-Proliferation Act of 2012 (the "IFCPA") -- the fourth major legislative expansion of US sanctions against Iran in just the past two years.
On April 11, 2013, the US State Department, Directorate of Trade Controls, issued a final rule amending the International Traffic in Arms Regulations to implement the Defense Trade Cooperation Treaty between the United States and Australia.
