Washington — U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) Acting Commissioner David V. Aguilar announced today the expansion of the Centers of Excellence and Expertise (CEE), which will create a center for Automotive and Aerospace in Detroit and one for Petroleum, Natural Gas and Minerals in Houston.

These virtual centers will provide 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.

“I am proud to announce the expansion of this initiative. These centers bring all of CBP’s trade expertise to bear on a single industry in one strategic location,” said Acting Commissioner Aguilar. “They provide tailored support to increase uniformity across ports of entry, facilitate the timely resolution of trade compliance issues nationwide, and strengthen critical agency knowledge of key industry practices.”

The CEEs will bring all of CBP's trade expertise to bear on a single industry in a strategic location. They will be staffed with numerous trade positions using account management principles that are able to authoritatively facilitate trade issues. The CEEs will also serve as resources to the broader trade community and to CBP’s U.S. government partners.

Center personnel will answer questions, provide information and develop trade facilitation strategies to address uniformity and compliance concerns. They will also serve as a single point of processing for businesses enrolled in CBP’s trusted shipper programs: the Customs-Trade Partnership Against Terrorism (C-TPAT) and Importer Self-Assessment (ISA).

U.S. Customs and Border Protection is the unified border agency within the Department of Homeland Security charged with the management, control and protection of our nation's borders at and between the official ports of entry. CBP is charged with keeping terrorists and terrorist weapons out of the country while enforcing hundreds of U.S. laws.