A BILL has been introduced in the US Senate to re-authorise the 2006 SAFE Port Act that includes a provision to suspend the July 2012 deadline for scanning all ocean containers before they board a US-bound ships as long as certain conditions are met.

Since lawmakers included the 100 per cent scanning provision in the 9/11 Implementation Act four years ago they have come to the realisation that forcing inspections at foreign ports is impractical and costly, according to American Shipper. The sponsors of the proposed reauthorisation bill, Senators Susan Collins, R-Maine, and Patty Murray, D-Wash. who are the authors of the original SAFE Port Act, which waives the congressional mandate for 100 per cent screening by July 2012, if the Department of Homeland Security Secretary certifies that all risk-based layers of security are in place and working well.

It reported that scanning every container would not be required if the SAFE Port update is introduced in Senate; US Customs conducts revalidations every four years of companies in the Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism; the Container Security Initiative is operating at all high-risk overseas ports; all US-bound containers are analysed for risk; all high-risk containers are inspected overseas before arrival; and the customs' Automated Targeting System is shown to have improved.

It said that "customs is already carrying out many of the listed measures, but the bill would put the weight of Congress' behind them."

The Journal of Commerce reported that since the Democrats took control of the House in 2007, Customs and Border Protection and the Department of Homeland Security have argued that the technology does not exist to scan all ocean containers.

The 100 per cent effort was "misguided and provides a false sense of security," Senator Collins was quoted as saying. "It would also impose onerous restrictions on the flow of commerce, costing billions with little additional security benefit."

The bill would provide C-TPAT members with new benefits, including security training and improved information sharing between customs and industry about terrorist threats, said the Journal.

It also said the SAFE Port Reauthorisation Act calls for funding the port security grant programme at US$300 million a year for five years.