Amendment to the Lacey Act November 13, 2008

Like Minds Think A Like!  Will my overseas partners understand the importance of providing the required information needed to make a proper declaration under the amended Lacey Act?

United Kingdom

United States

Poland

Greece

Ireland

What is the Lacey Act  The Lacey Act, first enacted in 1900 and significantly amended in 1981, is the United States oldest wildlife protection statute.  The act combats trafficking in “illegal” wildlife, fish, and plants.  The Food, Conservation, and Energy Act of 2008, also known as “The Farm Bill”, effective May 22, 2008, amended the Lacey Act by expanding its protection to a broader range of plant and plant products.  The act as amended is designed to stem the flow of goods made from illegally harvested wood and document the foreign sources of wood- based products to help with compliance and target conservation efforts at affected areas.

Scope of the Amendment to the Lacey Act  Prior to the recent amendment, the Lacey Act did not apply to all international traffickers of plants including timber and associated wood products.  The Lacey Act now makes it unlawful to import, export, transport, sell, receive, acquire, or purchase in interstate or foreign commerce any plant (includes roots, seeds, parts, and products thereof, including trees), with some limited exceptions, taken in violation of the laws of a U.S. State, federal, American tribal, or any foreign law that protects plants.  The Lacey Act also makes it unlawful to make or submit any false record, account or label for, or any false identification of, any plant.

Responsible Government Agencies  The Department of Agriculture, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, (USDA/APHIS) is the agency responsible for the rulemaking.  Customs and Border Protections (CBP) has been granted the authority to enforce the statute at ports of entry.  The USDA/APHIS is working with a large interagency group composed of representatives from U.S. Forest Service, CBP, U.S. Trade Representative (USTR), U.S. Department of State, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Council of Environmental Quality, and the Department of Commerce to implement the new provisions.

Complying with the Requirements Under the Amended Lacey Act  As of December 15, 2008, importers are required to submit a declaration at the time of release for certain plants and plant products. The declaration must contain, among other things, the scientific name (genus and species) of the plant, value of importation, quantity of the plant, and the name of country of origin from which the plant was harvested.  However, this requirement will be phased-in slowly, with the initial commodities (classified in Chapters 44 and 6: wood, articles of wood and live trees, plants, bulbs etc.) requiring a declaration no earlier than April 1, 2009.

Compliance with the Lacey Act Continued  As of April 1, 2009 CBP is expected to complete the necessary changes to automated systems to capture the declaration information electronically and avoid the need for a paper declaration.  Due to the scope and significant impact of the new requirements (up to 80% of importations), affected products classified under the remaining chapters of the Harmonized Tariff Schedule (HTS) shall be phased in over time.

Violations of the Lacy Act Violations of the Lacey Act provisions may be prosecuted in three basic ways: 1) Civil- monetary penalties. 2) Criminal-fines and penalties and potential incarceration; or 3) Forfeiture  No agencies with Lacey Act enforcement authority will bring prosecution or forfeiture actions before the electronic system for data collection is available (April 1, 2009 or after).  A notice will be published in the Federal Register announcing the specific dates in which enforcement of the declaration requirements will begin once the electronic system is near completion.

Additional Information  Web Sites    Local Contact at JFK Airport Robert Redes, Assistant Chief Trade Branch C

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