Extension of Comment Period For Jones Act Proposed Revocations and Modifications

On January 18, 2017, CBP published in the Customs Bulletin (Vol. 51, No. 3, at p. 1),a notice of proposed modification and revocation of ruling letters relating to CBP’s application of the Jones Act, providing for comments to be submitted on or before February 17, 2017. CBP has extended the comment period to April 18, 2017 as set forth in the Customs Bulletin on February 8, 2017. In that Bulletin, CBP seeks comments on whether a further extension of the comment period beyond April 18 is warranted. CBP notes that the email address for submission of comments set forth in the January 18 notice is incorrect; the correct address is cbppublicationresponse@cbp.dhs.gov.

Comments received in response to the CBP Proposed Modification and Revocation of Ruling Letters Relating to Customs Application of the Jones Act to the Transportation of Certain Merchandise and Equipment between Coastwise Points:

Many respondents submitted the following identical response:

Dear US Customs and Border Protection: I am writing today to strongly urge you to REJECT the Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Agency's proposed modifications and revocations related to the use of Jones Act vessels in offshore oil and natural gas activities on January 18, 2017.____The proposed modifications and revocations will have a wide range of repercussions on American oil and gas production in the Gulf of Mexico, but also supported employment, gross domestic product, as well as government revenue. __ __If the proposed changes are accepted, cumulative spending on offshore oil and natural gas development in the Gulf of Mexico OCS will decrease in the range of $5.4 billion (15 percent) per year. With the decreased spending come the loss of 30 thousand jobs in 2017 and an average decreased employment of over 80 thousand jobs from 2017 to 2030.____Altering the Jones Act in this way would also mean an average loss of $1.9 billion of government revenue per year from 2017 to 2030, placing additional strain on already overly burdened government budgets to maintain public projects and works. ____It would be a terrible mistake to allow the proposed changes to be adopted. Once again, I urge you to reject the CBP's proposed modifications and revocations related to the use of Jones Act.

Date:	Number of Respondents (*Refer to the first attachment by date below for names)
04/12/2017	123
04/13/2017	694
04/14/2017	117
04/15/17-04/16/17	39
04/17/17	1289
04/18/17	179