 March 2019 - Info Expeditor | ||
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 27th Annual PCC Mission to DC! Sunday March 31, 2019 through Tuesday April 2, 2019 CBFANC President Chris Ramos will lead the CBFANC delegation to the Mission in DC, where our fellow brokers and forwarders will meet with top leadership of CBP, FDA, the FMC and others. Also, our delegation will spend an entire day making calls on The Hill to speak with our members of Congress and convey our concerns about the critical issues facing our industry. Over 40 members of the 5 local associations of the PCC - Pacific Coast Council of Customs Brokers and Freight Forwarders will attend the Mission this year. If there was ever a time for brokers and forwarders to come to DC, it's this spring!
Reports from the CBFANC delegation about this year's PCC Mission will be published in next month's newsletter. |
WILL THE PORT OF OAKLAND PLAY BALL?
How will the old ball game play out for the Port of Oakland?
The Port and a Ballpark? : In November 2018, the As announced their interest in Howard Terminal for their new home base. Even though the As had considered Laney College and the soon to be vacated Coliseum sites, it appears a waterfront and downtown locale is the dreamy ideal for a Major League Baseball ballpark--complete with glorious views and sunshine promises for adjacent housing development. Many promises are being pitched to City of Oakland. Some area businesses started dreaming of MLB game day crowds. However, a stadium at Howard Terminal will not be good for the city and port of Oakland. People are worried about the detrimental impact on the operation of the Port of Oakland due to the proposed, drastic transformation of adjacent area. With the SF Giants (now Oracle) Ballpark as an example, surely the Howard Terminal stadium and housing project will mirror the transformation that took place in the San Francisco’s China Basin and adjoining neighborhoods. This vision causes some Oakland residents to voice concerns about the gentrification that will inevitably follow such a project. And, how will the glamorous waterfront ball park development project coexist with a fully functioning and vital maritime port right next door? Howard Terminal is NOT a good choice for a new home for the Oakland As.
To be or not to be...a functioning maritime Port? (an OpEd): The CBFANC board strongly believes that the Port of Oakland should focus on maritime business!. CBFANC has joined PMSA, AgTC and others to voice our concerns on keeping the Port area for commercial maritime use. As Oakland is a major international gateway, the turning basin near Howard Terminal is needed for cargo ships, not pleasure craft. As if managing port congestion is not difficult enough, game day traffic will be a nightmare and new, additional housing developments would impede truck routes 24/7. Attention should also be given to the railroad tracks and general traffic/parking concerns that currently exist at the Port of Oakland. Workarounds such a gondola system to ferry thousands of people to the ball park for every game is not only impractical, it will add tens of millions of dollars to the cost. In recent years our home port has overcome a number of challenges and the Port is finally realizing progress with good labor relations and night gates. The trajectory and benefits of the Port’s ongoing investment into infrastructure would be lost with the further encroachment of urban/housing and the placement of a major recreational venue nearby. Additionally, CBFANC shares the concerns of Oakland residents’ about the abandonment of the current As stadium and coliseum area--a location already blessed with public transportation and infrastructure that can support such a major facility. The ballpark supporters have a lovely, sunny vision of urban development for the City of Oakland, but their transformation of Howard Terminal into a waterfront ballpark throws a major league curve ball to the Port of Oakland’s sustainability as a maritime operation. Yes, build it and MLB fans will come. But at what cost to the residents and the economic engine known as the Port of Oakland? The below links provide additional information.
https://newballpark.org/
https://www.americanshipper.com/news/shipper-group-opposes-ballpark-at-port-of-oakland?autonumber=847059
The Port and a Ballpark? : In November 2018, the As announced their interest in Howard Terminal for their new home base. Even though the As had considered Laney College and the soon to be vacated Coliseum sites, it appears a waterfront and downtown locale is the dreamy ideal for a Major League Baseball ballpark--complete with glorious views and sunshine promises for adjacent housing development. Many promises are being pitched to City of Oakland. Some area businesses started dreaming of MLB game day crowds. However, a stadium at Howard Terminal will not be good for the city and port of Oakland. People are worried about the detrimental impact on the operation of the Port of Oakland due to the proposed, drastic transformation of adjacent area. With the SF Giants (now Oracle) Ballpark as an example, surely the Howard Terminal stadium and housing project will mirror the transformation that took place in the San Francisco’s China Basin and adjoining neighborhoods. This vision causes some Oakland residents to voice concerns about the gentrification that will inevitably follow such a project. And, how will the glamorous waterfront ball park development project coexist with a fully functioning and vital maritime port right next door? Howard Terminal is NOT a good choice for a new home for the Oakland As.
To be or not to be...a functioning maritime Port? (an OpEd): The CBFANC board strongly believes that the Port of Oakland should focus on maritime business!. CBFANC has joined PMSA, AgTC and others to voice our concerns on keeping the Port area for commercial maritime use. As Oakland is a major international gateway, the turning basin near Howard Terminal is needed for cargo ships, not pleasure craft. As if managing port congestion is not difficult enough, game day traffic will be a nightmare and new, additional housing developments would impede truck routes 24/7. Attention should also be given to the railroad tracks and general traffic/parking concerns that currently exist at the Port of Oakland. Workarounds such a gondola system to ferry thousands of people to the ball park for every game is not only impractical, it will add tens of millions of dollars to the cost. In recent years our home port has overcome a number of challenges and the Port is finally realizing progress with good labor relations and night gates. The trajectory and benefits of the Port’s ongoing investment into infrastructure would be lost with the further encroachment of urban/housing and the placement of a major recreational venue nearby. Additionally, CBFANC shares the concerns of Oakland residents’ about the abandonment of the current As stadium and coliseum area--a location already blessed with public transportation and infrastructure that can support such a major facility. The ballpark supporters have a lovely, sunny vision of urban development for the City of Oakland, but their transformation of Howard Terminal into a waterfront ballpark throws a major league curve ball to the Port of Oakland’s sustainability as a maritime operation. Yes, build it and MLB fans will come. But at what cost to the residents and the economic engine known as the Port of Oakland? The below links provide additional information.
https://newballpark.org/
https://www.americanshipper.com/news/shipper-group-opposes-ballpark-at-port-of-oakland?autonumber=847059
read more...
Meet your CBFANC Board and Officers
Every month we will feature a profile of one or two members from the CBFANC Board of Directors and Officers. They will be asked to respond to a list of questions. Our "targets" this issue are CBFANC 2nd VP Jayson Gispan of Flexport, and Board Member Evey Hwang of AG Customs Brokerage.
read more...
New Improved CF5106
CBP Implements New Importer Identity Form (CBP Form 5106)
U. S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), after several years of development, implemented the revised CBP Form 5106, Importer Identity Form, on March 16, 2019. CBP envisions most filings will be made using the electronic “Create/Revise Importer Identity Form” function in ACE, although paper filings will continue to be accepted. Legacy functions in ABI have been discontinued, and legacy importer accounts will be converted to ACE as part of the deployment of the ACE function.
U. S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), after several years of development, implemented the revised CBP Form 5106, Importer Identity Form, on March 16, 2019. CBP envisions most filings will be made using the electronic “Create/Revise Importer Identity Form” function in ACE, although paper filings will continue to be accepted. Legacy functions in ABI have been discontinued, and legacy importer accounts will be converted to ACE as part of the deployment of the ACE function.
read more...
More News from CBFANC Ocean Committee
ELD and Trucking: Enforcement has started and penalties are now a reality for truckers. Any hours of service over is being monitored and generating penalties…electronically. Yet another concern for sustainability for our trucking partners.
Port Numbers: 2018 was the year of Tariffs – steel/aluminum and China – inducing additional volumes to ports as shippers attempted to get ahead of each Tariff increase. Like LA/LB, Oakland suffered its share of fluxes in port congestion. Resulting chassis dwell times made matters worse. With January and February container decreases, Everport has finally unburied itself from their congestion situation. Another nice update from recent Truck Work Group meeting: Per Zak Adami, Yard and Gate Manager, effective immediately, “empty in appointments are no longer required when also taking a load out as part of the same transaction. Dual transactions will only require an appointment for the import, but no longer for the empty in. Exports, however, will still require appointments regardless of whether they are part of a dual move or solo.”
Port of Oakland newsletter:
https://content.govdelivery.com/attachments/CAPOAK/2019/03/15/file_attachments/1174176/Maritime%20Newsletter%20-%20March%202019.pdf