Combat the next recession . Well, this is something that researchers are looking at and are talking about. And for the reasons you gave, i think it is an appropriate subject for research and for consideration if we remain on a low Interest Rate environment for a very long period of time. Its not something the fomc is actively considering. Not at this time. Are you open to it . At the moment i think its not a priority for us to consider that right now, but i would not i would not say never, that its not something i think its appropriate for researchers to consider the cost and benefits of it carefully. Its not something were actively looking at but i wouldnt say its something we could never look at. We are focused on trying to achieve our 2 objective. We want to emphasize 2 is not a ceiling on the inflation rate, its the target where we would like to be that inflation can be above and below 2 at different times. We dont expect to always be there. I think weve realized are you concerned . The basis of my question is you dont have enough bullets in your most powerful weapon. Are you not concerned at all . I am concerned, and i gave a speech at jackson hole that address this is issue. First of all, i think we may be required to use the same kinds of tools we used during the crisis in the event of future downturn and i emphasized that, that those need to be permanent parts of our arsenal. Beyond that, its important to do research on further things. I emphasized congress should also consider whattist role should be. Thank you. Last time you were here i asked you when does america get a raise . When does what . When does america get a raise. I want to go down this road with you again briefly. Obviously the economy is moving, although not there in a healthy direction. Car sales are up, home sales are up. Median Household Income was up fairly materially. Wage growth still stuck, i think, at about 2 1 2 . Even in the last weak recovery wage growth was 4 . Chairman yellen, when does america get a wage . Wage growth has increased a little bit. I think as the recovery progresses we will see some more pick up in wages. But productivity growth is a very important determination of real wage growth or inflation adjusted wage growth. If nominal wage growth were to pick up and inflation picked up in tandem, that wouldnt be a real wage increase. What we want to see is wages going up without its involving inflation going up. Ultimately, the size of those paycheck increases in the long run are driven by productivity growth. Productivity growth has been very low. And i think thats one of the things that is holding down the improvement in living standards. So we are seeing some signs of a pick up, but ultimately if productivity growth doesnt pick up, faster nominal wage growth would prove to be inflationary. Thats a fundamental driver. What would u 6 currently stuck at 9. 7. I dont have a definition. Its higher than it was before the crisis, even though u3 is down to normal levels. I think that does signify some time expired. Chair recognizes gentleman from pennsylvania. Thank you, chairman. I want to touch on one thing following up on mr. Mulvaneys question. I think you testified needing Legal Authority in the event the fed wanted to purchase corporate equities. Yes. I said we do not have. You would need additionally before you did something. Same hold true for Corporate Bonds . Yes. We cannot. Im concerned about the level of influence fsb has on fsoc designation process. In a letter to g23 finance minister and Central Bank Governors mark kearney made clear members had a, quote, ongoing commitment to implement fsbs policies and that, quote, full, consistent and prompt implementation was section. So many dismissed as incobbs convention proceeds, fsoc operates in the spirit of the words. Three identified as gsiis have also been designated by fsoc for fed supervision. With that in mind i wanted to ask you a few questions about fsb and fsoc decision making. What is the role of the u. S. Members of fsb in considering whether to designate Insurance Companies under the gsii process . Well, a number of agencies take part in in fsb, Federal Reserve, all members of fsb and engage in their work. Under f sflt b charter countries commitment to standards. What steps has u. S. Taken for fsb, u. S. Insurance companies as systemically important . None, because fsb designation have no impact in the United States and United States have to go through own rule making process. Fsoc is separate and focused on slightly Different Things than fsb analysis and entirely separate processes. Did the Federal Reserve support fsb and metlife as gsiis before fsoc designated them . The Federal Reserve only joined aias that played a role here in 2013. And to the best of my knowledge, we didnt participate in their analysis with the basis for original designations. But the Federal Reserve does participate with the fsb, yes . We may we do participate in the fsb. In the process of fsb designating these as gsii, what would the Federal Reserves position have been . I believe that the i have to check this out. I believe the fsoc designations of these firms occurred before the final designations by fsb but i have to look at that more carefully. We want to follow up on that. My understanding it happened fsb designated they will and fsoc designated them. It seems if you agree to designate a u. S. Company as global significant under fsb regime, that would end up influencing the Company Designated as systemically important within the United States. Wouldnt you agree with that . Well, as i said, the fsoc process is separate. I believe that the fsoc designations took place before the list of gsiis was put out. Could an fsb gsii designation be considered an other risk factor under section 17 of the dodd frank act . Im sorry some of could an fsb gsi designation, if fsb des nays Insurance Company as gsii, could that designation be considered an other riskrelated factor under section 113 of dodd frank act . Not to the best of my knowledge. Yield back, mr. Chairman. Time of the gentleman has expired. Id like to thank our witness for her testimony today. All members will have five legislative days within which to submit additional written questions for the witness to the chair, which would be forwarded to the witness for her response. I would ask our witness to respond promptly as you are able. Without objection members will have five legislative days to submit extraneous records to the chair for inclusion in the record. This hearing stands adjourned. Cspan3 live on Cyber Threats to voting and whether they are vulnerable to hacking. Oversight subcommittee on Information Technology will hear from officials with the department of homeland security. The u. S. Election Assistance Commission and georgias top election official. That starts 2 00 p. M. Eastern live here on cspan3. Leading up to tuesdays debates between senator tim kaine and governor mike pence, we look at past Vice President ial debates on cspan starting with 1984 between george h. W. Bush and geraldine fer ara. You can walk around saying things are great. If thats what weve been hearing, weve been hearing that on the commercials for months, i expect the americans to believe that. Ill become a onewoman cheering squad and well start tonight. They delivered 21 1 2 Interest Rates. They delivered what they call malaise. They delivered Interest Rates right off the charts. They delivered take home pays, checks that are shrinking and weve delivered optimism. 1988 debate with senator dan quayle and texas senator lloyd benson. I have far more experience than many others that sought Vice President of this country. I have as much experience in the congress as jack kennedy did when he sought the presidency. Senator, i served with jack kennedy, i knew jack kennedy. Jack kennedy was a friend of mine. Senator, youre no jack kennedy. The 2008 Vice President ial debate between delaware senator joe biden and Alaska Governor sarah palin. Lets commit our selves, every day American People, joe sixpack, hockey moms across the nation. I think we need to band together and say never again. The middle class need relief, tax relief. They need it now. They need help now. The focus will change with barack obama. Watch saturday night at 8 00 eastern on cspan and watch any time cspan. Org and listen 8 00 p. M. Eastern on cspan radio app. U. S. Customs and border commissioner Gil Kerlikowske testified on capitol hill yesterday about challenges to enforcing u. S. Customs and trade laws. This hearing on trade is just over an hour. Good morning. The subcommittee will come to order. Welcome to the ways and means trade subcommittee hearing often enforcement of trade laws. Id like to expend a special welcome, warm welcome, to the honorable Gil Kerlikowske. I think most members know gil and i were partners in the city of seattle a number of years ago. Years ago. Gil was the police chief in seattle, and i was the sheriff in king county, which is seattle is the county seat for king county. So we partnered on lots of things prior to coming to the jobs back here that we hold in washington, d. C. Its been a pleasure working with gil and to have him here this morning. As you know, hes the commissioner of the u. S. Customs and border protection. And brings a lot of experiences with him that helps him lead that team. Today were going to talk about robust enforcement of our trade agreements and trade laws. They are essential to ensuring american businesses and workers are treated fairly by our trading partners. Strong trade enforcement goes hand in hand with the opening of new markets through trade agreements. Its part of our commitment to the American People that we dont just assign trade agreements and let our manufacturers, farmers, Service Providers and workers fend for themselves. If foreign competitors dont play by the rules and ignore their obligations, we will call them out. U. S. Customs and border protection, cbp, plays a key role in ensuring our trade agreements and our trade laws are enforced. And that legitimate trade is facilitated. Customs serves as the nuts and bolts of trade. And a strong Customs Service is vital to our competitiveness, safety and security. Over the years, the volume and complexity of trade has grown, and the challenges that we confront such as stopping the invasion of antidumping and countervailing duties and protecting u. S. Intellectual Property Rights have grown as well. As we face increasing competition around the world, we must keep legitimate trade flowing by focusing on our enforcement efforts of high risk trade. The trade facilitation and trade enforcement act, or the customs bill, which became law earlier this year, was the result of many years of hard work and commitment by the members of this committee on both sides of the aisle. In it, we established the Necessary Balance between trade and facilitation and trade enforcement that will help american businesses succeed and keep us competitive. Streamlining legitimate trade will increase u. S. Competitiveness in the global marketplace and create jobs here at home. The customs bill reduces paperwork burdens for low Value Shipments by increasing the de minimus threshold where paperwork is not required from 200 to 800 as well as for the u. S. Goods returned and for residue of bulk cargo contained in tankers. These improvements save time and money for our small, medium and Large Businesses that drive our economy. The customs bill also modernizes and simplifies duty draw back. A popular Job Creating Program in place since 1879. To increase accountability, the customs bill also strengthens and establishes reporting requirements for existing cbp trade facilitation programs such as the centers for excellence and expertise, trusted trade programs and the automated commercial environment. These programs cut the red tape in government, reward businesses for good citizenship and streamline trade. The customs bill reporting requirements allow us to do our job as the committee of oversight, of ensuring that cbp stays on track with these programs, strengthening enforcement of u. S. Trade laws is the other major pillar of this customs bill. Enforcing u. S. Intellectual Property Rights and antidumping and countervailing laws prevents our competitors from gaining an edge by cheating. The customs bill establishes tools for cbp and holds it accountable to clamp down on invasion evasion of antidumping and countervailing duties. Enhanced targeting of highrisk shipments by requiring information from brokers and strengthen internal controls over new imports. To protect intellectual property, the customs bill requires the cbp to provide right holders with samples to help them determine if imported products are counterfeit. I want to congratulate my fellow subcommittee members and thank them for their hard work on the customs bill. Former trade subcommittee chairman teaberry who led our efforts together with chairman brady. Dr. Vistani for his tireless efforts on the enforce and protect act. Mr. Marchand for his work on reducing paperwork burdens for residue in instruments on international traffic. Mr. Young for his good work on his de minimus bill and the efforts to require country of origin markings on certain goods which is common sense approach to increasing transparency. Mr. Jason smith and ms. Sanchez were also very constructive in working on the enforce protect act. We also worked closely with mr. Blumenauer, mr. Kind and others on the Enforcement Fund and they joined several members in combat force labor. And Ranking Member rangel was instrumental with regard to so many of the trade decisions. Today well have an important discussion about cbps efforts to implement this you critical law which if carried out effectively will enhance our competitiveness, level the Playing Field for our businesses and prevent our competitors from gaining an unfair advantage. Just on another note, mr. Rangel, our witness today has to catch an airplane. So were going to be going to threeminute questions. I yield to the Ranking Member for his opening statement. Thank you, mr. Chairman, for calling this hearing. Commissioner, we recognize your tremendous responsibilities and we are here to help for you to point out how you can be more helpful especially during crises that were going through. We all are concerned about the forced child labor law. We understand there hasnt been enforcement over 16 years. Antidumping and intellectual property, the chairman has actually covered that. We recognize that you have to leave. We will keep our questions short and hope that you might do the same with your responses to facilitate your departure. And we join with you in support of the hearing, and how we can be legislatively helpful to you, chairman. I yield back. Thank you mr. Rangel. As i said, today were joined by one witness, commissioner of u. S. Customs and border protection, mr. Gil kerlikowske. And as i said, were going to limit questions to three minutes. Hes going to shorten his opening statement, and mr. Kerlikowske, you are recognized. [ inaudible ] check your microphone. Am i on . Okay. Chairman reichert, Ranking Member rangel, members of the subcommittee, its an honor to be here with all of you. And its an honor to talk about cbps role in enforcing what is an incredibly immense and complex area of u. S. Trade. We enforce 500 laws and regulations on behalf of 47 federal agencies. After the irs, we collect more money from the federal treasury than any other organization. And we understand and recognize the importance of our enforcement efforts and enforcement has been my entire background before coming to cbp. Illegal and fraudulent trade practices threatened our economic competitiveness, the livelihood of american workers, and consumer safety. I certainly want to thank the members of congress, and particularly this committee, for the trade facilitation and trade enforcement act. Cbp has been around since 2003 and has never been authorized. And now having the authorization and our regulations and rules all located in one place along with our increased Enforcement Authority is a huge milestone for us. The numerous parts of the act are complex. Were very engaged in fulfilling every measure of the act and the number of reports that congress has required. And during the entire time that this process went on, i think the collaboration and the cooperation of the subject Matter Experts that cbp has in trade have been very important. We have prioritized the policy, legal decisions, changing resources within our organization to meet this law, and thats been very important to us also. The chairman mentioned a number of the changes. De minimus, the fact that you have approved a group of individuals that report to or work with the commissioner regularly that represent the trade stakeholders, and thats all been important. I certainly acknowledge, despite our best efforts, that were delinquent in some areas of the deadlines on the act. But were working diligently to put all of that into place. Going from not having authorization in 2003 to having this is a great step forward. So thank you. Thank you. And well go to questions quickly. Just a couple from me. The customs bill provides cbp with new tools to better enforce ipr, enhances opportunities for collaboration with rights holders in the United States and expands cbps seizure Forfeiture Authority to cover unlawful circumvention devices and strengthens to stop counterfeiting at the source. Can you tell us what cbp has been doing to implement these measures and how theyre assisting you in your efforts to protect intellectual Property Rights . I think the most important thing on the intellectual Property Rights is the fact that we cochair or have the deputies position in the intellectual Property RightsEnforcement Center that is run by immigration and customs enforcement. Well over 20 federal agencies sit in that one location and work very hard to target what may, in fact, be a counterfeit or intellectual Property Rights violation. I think the highlight that i saw over the christmastime was, in fact, a very dangerous product, hoverboards. Certainly dangerous if you try to get on at my age and balance on one, but what i would really see is the fact that the underwriters laboratorys seal, they were, in fact, counterfeit seals. We saw well over 50 fires that have occurred as a result of these. Working with Consumer Product safety, we worked very hard to make sure that kids didnt get those gifts, that perhaps they were expecting. Thats just one example. I know there are a number of other examples where id emphasize to you all that collaboration and a close working partnership with other federal agencies is absolutely critical to us doing our job. Could you also update us on the status on regulation of sea circumnavigation devices called for in the bill . I know thats under review. I know that were working hard with members to produce not just that information, but also the information that is certainly necessary for some of the other reports. And id be happy to make sure that we provide an update to your staff on that. Okay. And lastly, you did mention that you recognize that youre a little behind some of the reporting requirements. Do you have any sort of plan to make sure that because its one of the ways this committee stays in touch with whats happening within your organization. Were interested in your work in particular. And seeing these reporting requirements established in the customs bill implemented, how have you progressed and proceeded forward with the policy that addresses that . So our office of trade put together a spreadsheet that actually shows all of the requirements that we have to meet, whether it is in reporting or rules that need to be promulgated. Regulations. Training and information that needs to be that needs to be communicated to congress. When we not only put together that spreadsheet about where we were on each one of these requirements, we also took a look at what are the most important, according to Staff Members and others and triage those. I would tell you that were well on the way. A number of things have already been implemented, and people have been shifted to deal with these responsibilities. But i would tell you that were well on the way before the end of this calendar year to be able to have the majority of these reports, regulations, requirements in place. And we will be more than happy to keep your staffs aware of this. Our progress. So knowing you personally, i know today we have your commitment that we will have those reports. Thank you. Mr. Neil, youre recognized. Thank you mr. Chairman. Commissioner, each day 125 americans are dying from drugrelated overdoses, and its acute in parts of massachusetts, particularly in the old cities. Many of these victims are succumbing to powerful synthetic drugs like fentanyl which are as you and i both know, hundreds of times more potent than heroin. The toll these drugs are taking is alarming and unprecedented, and i joined pat teaberry to offer a bipartisan effort to hopefully stem this growing epidemic. Stopping these drugs from coming through the borders, as you know, is a priority. The synthetics trafficking and overdose preventions act is designed to prevent dangerous synthetic drugs from being shipped through your borders. It would require shipments from Foreign Countries through our postal system to provide electronic advance data such as who and where it is coming from, who it is going to, where its going and whats in it before they cross our borders. Having this information in advance will enable cbp to better target potential illegal packages and keep these dangerous drugs from ending up in the hands of drug traffickers who do great harm to our communities. Congress wants to give you the tools to stop these drugs from crossing our borders. Would you agree, perhaps, this bill could be very help full and there are more tools you might suggest to us at this moment that can provide better help to get the job done and help fight now whats become a National Issue . Congressman, i really appreciate the effort that members of congress, and i participated in three field hearings on heroin and fentanyl issues around the country, from arizona to massachusetts. So i know that this is a significant issue. As you know from some of our reporting, our seizures of fentanyl at the borders, particularly at the ports of entry, have increased dramatically. We still have, of course, that unknown issue about the fentanyl shipped from overseas and comes in through the air cargo. Having a manifest in advance to be able to target, rather than just the random selection that goes on now and with the explosion and increase in air cargo, that information would be helpful. Id be happy to continue to work with you and the members of the members of the committee and the subcommittee to make sure if there are additional tools needed. The difficulties with fentanyl in trying to detect it and the dangers to enforcement personnel. I think fentanyl is a tremendous threat not only to the populous but Law Enforcement personnel. Thank you very much for the work youre doing on that. A colleague recently said before fentanyl is treated that if a dog or Police Officer were to sniff it in its rawest form, it could kill them . Very much so. Thats why we dont train canines because of that. Also fentanyl, when you look at it in the hospice or hospital setting, the fentanyl patches are absorbed through the skin as very, very powerful painkillers. Raw fentanyl that comes into contact through nasal passages or skin absorption can be very dangerous to personnel. Of course, the other part is the department of state working closely with the countries where we know that this is illegally manufactured and then shipped. And we had some success on synthetic drugs, working with the government of china a few years ago when i had a different job in the administration. But fentanyl, your recognition of the significant danger that you just mentioned is an important one for us to consider. That he have you meche. Thank you, mr. Chairman. Mr. Smith, youre recognized. Thank you, mr. Chairman, and thank you, commissioner, for being here. Thank you for the service of the men and women of customs and Border Patrol or border protection, im sorry. Obviously, the tasks in front of your agency are important from keeping us safe from terrorists to leveling the Playing Field commercially for u. S. Industry to compete on a level Playing Field. So we thank you for your service. You mention in your testimony that cbp enforces u. S. Trade agreement commitments. So i would ask that with china currently negotiating the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership with 16 countries in the pacific region, what would you say is at stake from an enforcement perspective, should the u. S. Fail to act on trade agreements moving forward . So one of the most important things that we recognize and do is, frankly, on the trade enforcement issues, were the pointy end of the spear. When it comes to the negotiation and discussion and work with members of congress on trade agreements, we take the advice, although we have embedded someone with the ustr and ambassador fromans office. We try to judge all the information that comes to us as these discussions and negotiation occur. We try to make sure our point of view, which is how is this going to be enforced, and what are we going to be able to do to enforce it, is absolutely critical. We recognize that we not only have that Border Security responsibility, but we also recognize the Economic Security responsibility that we have. And when the chairman and i were in seattle and you would see that port, you knew how important it was to facilitate, particularly exports of produce from Washington State to make sure that it got out. So we will work closely with congress. Well work closely with the ustr who is the lead on this, along with the department of commerce to make sure that the enforcement priorities are recognized and that we have the tools and the capacity to be able to do our job. Thank you. But do you see lost opportunity if we fail to take action on trade agreements moving forward . Its kind of its a bit out of my portfolio and a bit out of my lane. We tell the people, again, with ambassador froman and the ustr, we tell them what we need and whats important for us to be able to do the enforcement. We also let them know that we have to be able to be in a position to expedite cargo coming into the country safely and expedite our exports safely. But when it comes to that area for me that is more of the political decision, im kind of out of the politics and im in the enforcement business. All right. Thank you commissioner. I yield back. Mr. Blumenauer, youre recognized. Thank you, mr. Chairman. Welcome, mr. Commissioner. Thank you. I want to follow up a little bit. You alluded to the fact that enforcement is complicated. It involves numerous agencies. You have a piece of the pie, not all of it. I would note that this committee has been aggressive in trying to advance a trade Enforcement Trust Fund so that there would be resources, at least in the house side. Theres 15 million to try and enhance that effort. I assume a portion of which could be made available to you, if it were actually brought to bear. Is that your understanding . It is my understanding. And the working relationships since the ustr oversees that part but the working relationship with ustr and their recognition of our needs is one i believe they are well aware of. And the support weve received from ambassador froman is very helpful. Im hopeful our subcommittee might be able to encourage that. The senate is awol in terms of additional resources, which i think we all agree is necessary to be able to make sure we get full benefit of the trade agreements we have. One of the areas that is cloudy for me, ive spent a fair amount of time working on enforcement provisions dealing with illegal logging. You dont have full thrust with lacy act provisions. But you folks are involved with illegally harvested timber on its way to the United States, recently shipments that have been intercepted. Could you speak a little bit to how were proceeding with that and what, if anything, in addition would help with you your piece of that responsibili responsibility. One of the things ive done successfully is the support of congress. I know there will be questions about this later is the single window or single portal when it comes to trade. But that has actually forced us to be a bit of convener and collaborator with all those different federal agencies. Frankly with 60,000 employees, we have more boots on the ground than usda and a number of the other enforcement provisions. You know, im very familiar with the incident from last december involving peruvian lumber and the fact how that was brought to our attention. And i appreciate your recognition that usda, in fact, is the primary Enforcement Authority, but with a number of people that we have at our ports of entry and the amount of information that we collect on cargo and our National Targeting Center makes a huge difference. So, one, we could not have had better cooperation and collaboration, whether its on educating us about steel, and the dumping of steel or the alleged dumping of steel. And also on timber also. Mr. Chairman, i appreciate that. I see my time expired. Very quickly. But this is an area that i hope that we again might explore. Weve got several agencies that are struggling with making sure that a provision in existing trade agreement is honored. And im hopeful that we can continue to work with our witness and others to see if we can sort that out to make it work better. Thank you, mr. Blumenauer. Dr. Boustany. You are recognized. Thank you, mr. Chairman. Welcome, commissioner. As we have sought American Leadership in creating rulesbased trading system, enforcement clearly is important, which is why i worked very hard over a number of years to give you the protect act which provided a full array of tools so you could be much more effective and aggressive going after abuses. One of my priorities was section 605. I know youre aware of it. Weve spoken about it before. And this was to undo a great injustice that came about because of inaction at customs and border protection. With respect to crawfish producers and other small producers across our country, honey, mushrooms, garlic. Under the law, weve seen crawfish producers entitled to antidumping as a result of dumped crawfish from china, well over 100 million in abuses in duties owed. Unfortunately, slow enforcement from cbp, unjustifiable delays from Insurance Companies that post these bonds. These collections are still under way and going painfully slow. We finally had a little breakthrough with 6 million collect freddie one Insurance Company. And instead of turning over that money to these crawfish producers who are going out of business, cbp chose, instead, to deduct 90 of that to pay itself interest. Section 605 was designed by myself and senator thune to stop that and to assure that these poor producers who are going out of business are paid what they are owed under american law. And, yet, i understand now, cbp is simply ignoring this section 605 as written and putting its own wishful analysis in place to continue to hold on to this interest. Frankly, thats unacceptable. And im not going to let up until this abuse is corrected. A couple of things id mention on that. It wasnt until in fact, the crawfish producers and the others came to washington, d. C. , asked to meet with me and we sat down that i had the recognition and the information, the fact that when we collect those interest duties, that the interest went back under the law, under the existing law then that the interest went back to cbp. I said when i was a police chief, if you were the victim of a crime and the perpetrator had to pay a fine, the fine shouldnt go for the police department. The fine should go back to the victim. Thats been changed. And a lot of progress has been made. I was proud and pleased to see the 6 million. I would tell you theres another substantial amount of money that is in the works also to go back. The one thing where i think there is certainly some disagreement, and i understand that its in litigation right now is how far back the understanding is that Interest Payments would be, in fact, returned to a victim. Its also a bit of a technological problem because we have to figure out in those fines and information collected what was interest versus what was the penalty. And not all of our systems are frankly that accurate and that flexible to go back x number of years. If you think about where we are and the money coming to us instead of going to the victim, if you think about our interest now and working very hard and, in fact, weve even gone to a Collection Agency to look at a Collection Agency that could do a better job of trying to go after the money that weve been unsuccessfully attempting to get. So i think were pretty close, but i understand your frustration and i recognize it. Thank you. Im going to stay on this. We want as prompt an action as possible. This has to be resolved because, if america is going to lead in trade, we have to have enforcement of our laws. And they have to be enforced with the intent that congress lays out. Thank you. My time has expired. Thank you. Mr. Kind, youre recognized. Thank you, mr. Chairman. Commissioner kerlikowske, first of all, i want to commend you. I worked hard to get involved in trade enforcement, shutting down loophole on Child Exploitation act. Since its enactment in february, under your leadership, the Agency Brought for Enforcement Actions already on that front. And for 85 years, there was a prohibition against it. Because of a loophole, it was seldom enforced. Now youre taking that tool and running with it. I commend you for doing so. My question is, how pervasive do you think this problem is . How many more future actions before you answer that, can i also get your opinion, because its my sense that in those bilateral, multilateral trade agreements we have with other nations, those countries tend to act like better actors when it comes to playing by the rules, not trying to cheat, living up to the standards and values that were include in those agreements as opposed to nations we dont have any trade agreement with. Is that an accurate description of what you see out there . I think what ive seen is the leadership that the United States, and i lead the delegation to the world customs organization, 180 members. And what weve tried to communicate to customs organizations all over the world is that they need to have this recognition and understanding of about the importance of facilitating lawful trade but also the importance of doing enforcement. I think in far in too many countries that ive seen, the issue is always around how much money can customs collect, versus what is their enforcement posture. Because it costs it takes people to do the enforcement, and it costs money. So i would tell you that i think weve made some progress in that particular area. Its hard for me to judge exactly the forced labor and child labor issues and prison labor because one of the things that we did was to reach out and gather as many of the nongovernmental organizations who exist within those countries. They are frankly the eyes and ears on the ground. And we needed to make it easier, and we needed to welcome the information that they would give us about what is a potential violation. And as you know, theres only a reasonable suspicion standard. It wasnt a probable cause standard. We can take action on a less critical amount of information, and ive made it clear to everyone in our organization that we do need to take the action once we reach that threshold of reasonable suspicion. What about the distinction as far as those nations that we have trade agreement with versus the vast majority we dont as far as compliance and playing by the rules . You know, i dont have an opinion. I have a list of the number of free trade agreements we have, but i have never really given it the analysis about whether or not they are greater at playing by the rules. Im sure theres some real experts that can inform you. Thank you. Thank you, mr. Chairman. Thank you. Mr. Paulson. Thank you, mr. Chairman and commissioner, thanks for being here. A key component of customs modernization is ids, International Trade data, that single window. These systems are going to help provide Customs Border patrol and other federal agencies to improve the realtime information on imports and manual processes get streamlined, automated in 200 different paper forms are end up being eliminated. A. C. E. Has been in development for a long period of time, but i want to commend cbp for the Great Strides youve made in the last couple of years towards implementation. I know, although your efforts are to be commended, there are some minnesota businesses that ive had contact with that continue to express some concerns about the implementation process because large companies, of course, are able to be in a position where they can absorb large losses that may result in a shipment that gets held up at the border. Due to a technical issue with a. C. E. But the Smaller Companies that operate on a relatively thin margin, they dont have that same luxury. Can i just have your commitment or can you chat about how youll continue to work with the trade community and partner with Government Agencies as that rollout goes forward to make sure its smooth . Sure. Part of the fact that in our authorization, that you have affirmed that there will be a Standing Committee that will report with or to the commissioner that represents trade stakeholders. Freight forwarders, importers, business people, manufacturers, et cetera. Weve had that in place for a number of years, but frankly, a change in administration could have done away with that. The fact that is in the law now, i think is one very helpful. So four times a year for two days each, we get direct feedback from the people that are doing the work. And weve had great participation in that. I would commit to you two things. One is that we are very intent, and after all of the platforms that have been launched, that that have been launched that a. C. E. Will be a running, a viable commercial entity for both the private sector and also for government by the end of this calendar year. And we appreciate the support from congress for all of the work. And if you go back, you know, even when we were working through some of the more difficult platforms, we ended up having daily phone calls with well over 100 participants, including the Small Business people, to make sure they were getting their questions answered and to make sure that we were doing our job of telling them, well, where are we with the implementation. So thank you. Good. Thank you, mr. Chairman. Mr. Paskrel. Thank you, mr. Chairman. American companies that invest in designing in marketing valid products are losing sales and seeing their brands tarnished by manufactured products that violate United States law. Im pleased that the customs bill we passed earlier this year included several provisions to strengthen intellectual Property Rights enforcement at the border. Including raising the enforcement priority for counterfeit products. So we dont want open borders to people. And we dont want open borders to products. Yet thats exactly whats going on here in terms of products. Given this enforcement prioritization for counterfeit products, can you outline the screening process for packages marked as gifts . And can you share any new steps to cvp is taking to enhance enforcement in the area . I can. I think there are several things i cant give you the specific information on the gift issue. And i think youre mostly talking about that air cargo environment and the mail environment. Ill be the very first to admit to you that given the explosion of ecommerce and air cargo, this is one that were working on very closely. Having manifest information in advance is certainly going to be an issue thats critically important. Having enough people at the locations, at fed ex and u. P. S. And frankly at our five International Mail facilities is also important. And the fact that u. P. S. And fed ex have been incredibly good partners in putting forward Enforcement Funds and essentially boots on the ground to assist us. The intellectual Property Rights center for the targeting is very important. And about two weeks ago we cut the ribbon on the new National Targeting Center for cbp, which has been mentioned. Im making progress. Thank you. Im very concerned about the staffing shortfall at cvp. Thats very dangerous. You know, we have four borders. You would think youre listening to the congress we only have one border, the rio grande river, thats it. We have ports in new jersey that are facing increased wait times for incoming shipments. The staffing, how would this impact staffing shortages that you have . And are there are things that you can do to address the shortfall . So were very disappointed that, one, we havent been able to hire with the money that Congress Gave us a number of years ago after working closely with members to show that when you put people on board at cvp they actually help to make money for this country by speeding things through. We are a Law Enforcement organization. We are not about to reduce our stringent hiring standards. And i havent spoken to a local police chief or sheriff or federal Law Enforcement official that has not expressed difficulty hiring. But were working very closely. And i think the bright spot is one with the military because were now accepting, and i was just down in ft. Bliss to recruit people, were now looking for people to leave one uniform and come into another uniform, come in out of the military. And also reducing the amount of processing time. Because there are a lot of Jobs Available for qualified people. And weve gone from over 400 days of processing time, way, way too long, down to about 160 days. So we are making progress. And were going to do our very best to use the appropriated funds that congress has given us to hire up to the number that they are authorized. Mr. Chairman, in conclusion, i would really since we worked very close on Public Safety issues, i would really ask you to take a look at the number of personnel that they have and the more responsibilities that have been given to them now that weve discovered also that we have three other borders. Right. We need to take a very extended look at this. And i would trust your judgment. Thank you. Well, mr. Pascrell and i share the Law Enforcement caucus together. And as the commissioner said, sheriffs and Police Chiefs across the country are having the same problem that his agencys having, and thats finding, first of all, people who want to come into Law Enforcement positions. Secondly, not only finding people who have the desire, but who have the qualifications. And i commend the commissioner for making a statement that there is no way that hes going to lower his standards. And i think that should hold true for Law Enforcement agencies across the country. So appreciate your concern. And, yes, i look forward to working with you on this through the caucus. Mr. Mehan. Thank you, mr. Chairman. Thank you, commissioner, for your long service to Law Enforcement. And i thank you for your efforts in working so quickly to help draft an interim guidance with respect to the enforce and protect act. Were already seeing some cases that are being prosecuted or investigated. And i think thats very, very helpful. But as you know, were getting a lot of activity on the part of those who find ways to circumvent the process. When i was a United States attorney, we worked and im glad to hear you talk about collaboration with other partners. One of the most effective things we had to use the federal laws to enforce violations were things like key tam laws and others which invited the participation of interested parties. And actually the investigative resources we were then allowed and able to work with. When i looked at your efforts with respect to the drafting of the interim final rule, you narrowly defined it parties to the investigation more narrowly than i would expect it would be. Can you look at that and determine whether we ought not have a larger classification of those who can participate in as a, quote, parties to the investigation . I think were going to have an awful lot of resources that could be available to help us get around this. Congressman, i appreciate your recognition, particularly of keytam cases. And i meet regularly with the u. S. Attorneys. Particularly the u. S. Attorneys that are border u. S. Attorneys. Were a huge part of their portfolio. And the keytam cases are not, as a u. S. Attorney, theyre not always the one thats going to get any headlines. And number two, they can be very labor intensive. So weve done a couple things. One is we have some real subject Matter Experts in these cases. And we want to be able to hand to an ausa, an assistant u. S. Attorney on a silver platter a case already put together and make it easy for them. The other thing ive done is to whether call the District Attorney in new york or former u. S. Attorney in los angeles when they have made those kinds of trade cases, ive called them up to congratulate them and to tell them how much we appreciate their work. Ill be happy to take to go back and take a look at the recognition that you had. My time is limited, so i want to ask one more question with respect to specific importers. Part of the problem we see, particularly in the steel industry, is the ability for importers to go through third parties, dump into another country and then get that steel into the United States. And one of the problems with steel, but it can be any number of products, is the requirement that we go back more specifically and identify the country of origin. And it works against the ability to have more of a deterrent effect. Can you see if theres any ability to drop the requirement for allegations to identify a specific importer to be able to to police this kind of circumvention . Sure. Id be happy to look at that. I would also tell you weve made significant improvements with our Laboratory Sciences division to be able to test steel regardless whether it comes from mexico or canada or another country, to be able to determine the country of origin. And in fact whether as the wall street journal just recently reported on some allegations and concerns about aluminum and steel in mexico. Right. Were our scientists are better at determining that country of origin now. Thank you, mr. Chairman. I yield back. Mr. Dau get. Thank you, mr. Commissioner. Aware one year ago today 71 containers filled with amazon rain forest timber, enough estimated to cover a number of football fields, almost 4 Million Pounds of timber arrived from peru in the port of houston, texas. And based on specific actual information, customs properly used its Legal Authority to exclude that shipment for 30 days, did it not . Yes, we did. And that specific actual information came from the