§4331 Interagency Import Safety Working Group

Summary

Creates an interagency Import Safety Working Group made up of certain federal officials or their designees. The Secretary of Homeland Security will be the chair and the Secretary of Health and Human Services will be the vice chair. Other members include the Secretaries of the Treasury, Commerce, and Agriculture; the U.S. Trade Representative; the Director of the Office of Management and Budget; the FDA Commissioner; the U.S. Customs and Border Protection Commissioner; the Consumer Product Safety Commission Chair; the Director of ICE; and any other agency heads the President names. The group must help write and advise on a joint import safety rapid response plan. It must regularly check whether federal plans, practices, and resources keep imported goods safe and help them enter the country quickly, cut down duplicate work across agencies, and recommend extra actions while considering impacts on businesses. It must review how foreign governments and manufacturers cooperate on inspections and certification. It must identify best practices for U.S. importers (like inspecting foreign factories, checking goods before export or U.S. distribution, and protecting the international supply chain), and find ways for federal, state, local agencies and port authorities to coordinate better. It must also suggest steps to make importers more accountable and to increase foreign agencies’ engagement.