§4332 Joint Import Safety Rapid Response Plan

Summary

The Secretary of Homeland Security must, by December 31, 2016, work with the interagency Import Safety Working Group to create a joint import safety rapid response plan. The plan must tell U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) how to act and coordinate the federal response when cargo or goods coming into the United States are found to threaten consumer health or safety, and how to recover or lessen the effects after such an incident. The plan must explain the legal authorities and roles of CBP and other federal agencies, the response steps CBP will use, and the actions to resume imports after an incident. It must also include exercises carried out with federal, State, local, and private partners. The Secretary must review and update the plan after those exercises. Exercises must be done periodically at ports of entry across the country, include ports of different sizes and locations, use current risk assessments, follow the National Incident Management System, the National Response Plan, the National Infrastructure Protection Plan, the National Preparedness Guidelines, the Maritime Transportation System Security Plan, and other DHS initiatives, and develop measures for how quickly imports can resume. Tests must use clear objective measures and produce specific recommendations or best practices. Those recommendations must be shared with the Import Safety Working Group and, when appropriate, with State, local, and tribal governments, foreign governments, and private sector entities, and used to update the plan.