The Environmental Protection Agency
The Environmental Protection Agency exists to protect human health and the environment, and working together with other federal agencies, the EPA establishes and enforces health and environmental standards for both domestically produced and imported products. Federal laws enforced by the EPA include: the Clean Air Act (CAA); the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA); the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA); the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FFDCA); and the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA).
On a global scale, the EPA works international organizations, including the United Nations, to establish international environmental standards not only to make trade easier by harmonizing trade regulations, but to combat world-wide pollution, and to promote safety in goods sold in every country. As part of its efforts, the EPA seeks to cut back importing from national trading partners that fail to meet U.S. safety and environmental quality standards.
The Department of Transportation
The Department of Transportation, through a variety of agencies under its masthead, regulates imports through a number of safety regulations:
- Requiring imported motor vehicles, rail cars, and their parts and equipment comply with U.S. safety standards;
- Requiring imported, hazardous materials to meet specific labeling, packaging, and transport regulations; and
- Requiring imported aviation products meet applicable U.S. standards for design and performance.
Agencies operating within the Department of Transportation that impact importing and international trade include:
- Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) - all imported aircraft, their parts and equipment must meet FAA import requirements; and
- National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) - imports must meet the federal motor vehicle safety standards issues by this agency.
Product Example: Automobiles, Vans, Trucks, and SUVs
Almost every single car, van, truck, and sport utility vehicle bought in a foreign country and imported to the U.S. must be modified to meet American standards. The vehicles must meet the fuel-emission requirements of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the safety, bumper, and theft-prevention standards of the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT), as well as assorted federal laws, such as the Clean Air Act.
Passenger vehicles can be imported without alteration, on the condition that they will be modified within a specific time frame. They will be exported or destroyed, however, if the modifications are not found legally acceptable, and a bond may be required upon entry until these modification conditions have been met. Additionally, imported vehicles that do meet all U.S. requirements may nevertheless be subject to additional EPA requirements, depending where it has been driven prior to import (driven in some countries means additional protections exist).
For clients involved in the business of importing vehicles, violations of EPA or DOT rules and regulations can have devastating consequences. Civil fines, as well as seizing of the vehicles themselves, can fatally injure the most longstanding and established import enterprise.
Product Example: Imported Food
Under the Federal Food, Drugs & Chemical Act, the EPA sets maximum residue limits (“tolerances”) for the amount of pesticides found in both domestic and imported food. Outside the tolerance, and the imported food is deemed unsafe by EPA standards.
Imported food found to be unsafe will be seized by the U.S. Customs & Border Patrol, with the actual violation of the FFDCA being enforced by either the Food & Drug Administration (FDA) or the U.S. Department of Agriculture, depending upon the particular circumstance. Violations can include not only seizing of the product, but both civil and criminal fines and penalties.
For more information:
Environmental Protection Agency, www.epa.gov
Department of Transportation, www.dot.gov
Office of Vehicle Safety Compliance, National Highway Traffic & Safety Association, Department of Transportation, www.nhtsa.dot.gov
U.S. Customs & Border Protection, www.cbp.gov
