On September 6, 2012, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) issued a press release announcing that the Automotive and Aerospace Center of Excellence and Expertise (CEE) was opened in Detroit on Tuesday, September 4th, in an effort to provide uniformity for importers within this industry.

In the press release, CBP explains that these CEE centers "offer one-stop processing to lower the trade’s cost of business, provide greater consistency and predictability and enhance CBP enforcement efforts. ... The centers represent CBP’s expanded focus on “Trade in the 21st Century,” transforming customs procedures to align with modern business. By having the centers focus on industry-specific issues, CBP is able to provide tailored support to unique trading environments."

Some of the functions of the CEE listed in the release are:

• Answer questions related to Auto & Aerospace
• Provide information and develop trade facilitation strategies
• Serve as a single point of processing for importers enrolled in the Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism (C-TPAT) and Importer Self Assessment (ISA) programs.

There are two other CEEs currently open, the Pharmaceutical CEE in New York, and the Electronics CEE in Los Angeles. The next center, focused on Petroleum, Natural Gas and Minerals, is scheduled to open at the end of the month in Houston.

The full text of the press release is available online here.