Agency Information Collection Activities; New Collection of Information; Forced Labor Allegation Portal/Forced Labor Portal, 83032-83033 [2024-23778]

Agencies

• DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY
• U.S. Customs and Border Protection

[Federal Register Volume 89, Number 199 (Tuesday, October 15, 2024)]
[Notices]
[Pages 83032-83033]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2024-23778]


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DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY

U.S. Customs and Border Protection

[OMB Control Number 1651-0NEW]


Agency Information Collection Activities; New Collection of 
Information; Forced Labor Allegation Portal/Forced Labor Portal

AGENCY: U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), Department of 
Homeland Security.

ACTION: 30-Day notice and request for comments.

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SUMMARY: The Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Customs and Border 
Protection (CBP) will be submitting the following information 
collection request to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for 
review and approval in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 
1995 (PRA). The information collection is published in the Federal 
Register to obtain comments from the public and affected agencies.

DATES: Comments are encouraged and must be submitted (no later than 
November 14, 2024) to be assured of consideration.

ADDRESSES: Written comments and/or suggestions regarding the item(s) 
contained in this notice should be sent within 30 days of publication 
of this notice to www.reginfo.gov/public/do/PRAMain. Please submit 
written comments and/or suggestions in English. Find this particular 
information collection by selecting ``Currently under 30-day Review--
Open for Public Comments'' or by using the search function.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Requests for additional PRA 
information should be directed to Seth Renkema, Chief, Economic Impact 
Analysis Branch, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Office of Trade, 
Regulations and Rulings, 90 K Street NE, 10th Floor, Washington, DC 
20229-1177, Telephone number 202-325-0056 or via email 
[email protected]. Please note that the contact information provided 
here is solely for questions regarding this notice. Individuals seeking 
information about other CBP programs should contact the CBP National 
Customer Service Center at 877-227-5511, (TTY) 1-800-877-8339, or CBP 
website at https://www.cbp.gov/.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: CBP invites the general public and other 
Federal agencies to comment on the proposed and/or continuing 
information collections pursuant to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 
(44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.). This proposed information collection was 
previously published in the Federal Register (89 FR 24482) on April 08, 
2024, allowing for a 60-day comment period. This notice allows for an 
additional 30 days for public comments. This process is conducted in 
accordance with 5 CFR 1320.8. Written comments and suggestions from the 
public and affected agencies should address one or more of the 
following four points: (1) whether the proposed collection of 
information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of 
the agency, including whether the information will have practical 
utility; (2) the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden of the 
proposed collection of information, including the validity of the 
methodology and assumptions used; (3) suggestions to enhance the 
quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and 
(4) suggestions to minimize the burden of the collection of information 
on those who are to respond, including through the use of appropriate 
automated, electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection 
techniques or other forms of information technology, e.g., permitting 
electronic submission of responses. The comments that are submitted 
will be summarized and included in the request for approval. All 
comments will become a matter of public record.

Overview of This Information Collection

    Title: Forced Labor Allegation Portal/Forced Labor Portal.
    OMB Number: 1651-0NEW.
    Form Number: N/A.
    Current Actions: New collection of information.
    Type of Review: New collection of information.
    Affected Public: Businesses, Individuals.
    Abstract: U.S. Customs and Borders Protection (CBP) has created a 
new Forced Labor Allegation Portal and Forced Labor Portal. Currently, 
information regarding potential forced labor and trade violations are 
electronically submitted via the e-Allegations website at: https://www.cbp.gov/trade/e-allegations/.
    Submissions from petitioners for revocation and modification 
requests are submitted by email to [email protected] (and through 
the BOX program and the Case Management System--CMS). Exception review 
information is sent to [email protected] mailbox via email with 
multiple zip files.
    Applicability review information is sent to various ports of entry 
or any of

[[Page 83033]]

the ten Centers of Excellence and Expertise via email with multiple zip 
files or shared secured folders.
    U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) enforces section 307 of 
the Tariff Act of 1930 (19 U.S.C. 1307), which states that ``all goods, 
wares, articles, and merchandise mined, produced, or manufactured 
wholly or in part in any foreign country by convict labor or/and forced 
labor or/and indentured labor under penal sanctions shall not be 
entitled to entry at any of the ports of the United States, and the 
importation thereof is hereby prohibited . . .''
    In addition, the Trade Facilitation and Trade Enforcement Act of 
2015 (TFTEA) (Pub. L. 114-125), signed into law on February 24, 2016, 
removed the ``consumptive demand clause'' for the enforcement of 19 
U.S.C. 1307, and mandated CBP to create a division to oversee forced 
labor enforcement and create a process for the investigation of 
allegations.
    CBP also enforces the Countering America's Adversaries Through 
Sanctions Act (CAATSA) (Pub. L. 115-44 (August 2, 2017), (22 U.S.C. 
9241a)) where goods produced by North Korean nationals or citizens are 
presumed to be produced under forced labor and are prohibited from 
entering the U.S. commerce under 19 U.S.C. 1307.
    Recently, the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA) (Pub. L. 
117-78 (December 23, 2021)) established that any goods produced wholly 
or in part in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (XUAR) of China, or 
by entities on the UFLPA Entity List are presumed to be made with 
forced labor and thus prohibited from importation into the U.S. under 
19 U.S.C. 1307. This law allows for the collection of supply chain 
documentation to substantiate that forced labor was not used in the 
production of imported goods under an exception review or UFLPA does 
not apply to the detained shipment under an applicability review.
    Sections 12.42 through 12.45 of title 19 of the Code of Federal 
Regulations (CFR) contain methods for CBP to collect information on 
forced labor, conduct investigations, and initiate withhold release 
orders (WRO) or findings to enforce 19 U.S.C. 1307 as well as allow for 
the collection of information from importers on detained shipments for 
admissibility review under a WRO.
    Individuals, companies (domestic and international), civil society 
organizations, and nongovernmental organizations may submit allegations 
of forced labor, request for admissibility, applicability, and 
exception reviews with CBP under these laws and regulations.
    The new Forced Labor Allegation Portal and the Forced Labor Portal 
will consolidate the various above-mentioned methods of submission into 
one centralized location, increasing efficiency and reducing the burden 
of collection to both CBP and the public.
    Type of Information Collection: Allegations.
    Estimated Number of Respondents: 200.
    Estimated Number of Annual Responses per Respondent: 1.
    Estimated Number of Total Annual Responses: 200.
    Estimated Time per Response: 10 minutes.
    Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours: 34.

    Type of Information Collection: WRO Admissibility Reviews.
    Estimated Number of Respondents: 1,900.
    Estimated Number of Annual Responses per Respondent: 1.
    Estimated Number of Total Annual Responses: 1,900.
    Estimated Time per Response: 30 minutes.
    Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours: 950.

    Type of Information Collection: Modifications/Revocations.
    Estimated Number of Respondents: 25.
    Estimated Number of Annual Responses per Respondent: 1.
    Estimated Number of Total Annual Responses: 25.
    Estimated Time per Response: 10 minutes.
    Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours: 4.

    Type of Information Collection: UFLPA Exception Requests.
    Estimated Number of Respondents: 4.
    Estimated Number of Annual Responses per Respondent: 1.
    Estimated Number of Total Annual Responses: 4.
    Estimated Time per Response: 30 minutes.
    Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours: 2.

    Type of Information Collection: UFLPA Applicability Reviews.
    Estimated Number of Respondents: 1,500.
    Estimated Number of Annual Responses per Respondent: 10.
    Estimated Number of Total Annual Responses: 15,000.
    Estimated Time per Response: 30 minutes.
    Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours: 7,500.

    Type of Information Collection: CAATSA Exception Reviews.
    Estimated Number of Respondents: 2.
    Estimated Number of Annual Responses per Respondent: 1.
    Estimated Number of Total Annual Responses: 2.
    Estimated Time per Response: 10 minutes.
    Estimated Total Annual Burden Hours: 0.33.

    Dated: October 9, 2024.
Seth D. Renkema,
Branch Chief, Economic Impact Analysis Branch, U.S. Customs and Border 
Protection.
[FR Doc. 2024-23778 Filed 10-11-24; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 9111-14-P