On Wednesday October 24, President Donald Trump signed legislation that will require the U.S. Postal Service to transmit advance electronic data to U.S. Customs and Border Protection for international shipments and will strengthen the Transportation Department’s alcohol and drug testing regime for transportation workers.

The package, H.R. 6, the SUPPORT for Patients and Communities Act, includes Synthetics Trafficking and Overdose Prevention (STOP) Act provisions that will require USPS to transmit advance electronic data to CBP on at least 70 percent of international mail arriving in the United States by Dec. 31 and on 100 percent of such mail on Dec. 31, 2020, before these shipments reach the U.S. border.

The legislation requires USPS to refuse shipments for which the data is not provided and sets forth civil penalties if USPS accepts international mail shipments without the advance data starting in 2021.

Further, the law includes provisions sponsored by Sen. John Thune, R-S.D., that will expand railroad drug and alcohol testing requirements to rail mechanical employees and yardmasters, require DOT to create a publicly available database of drug and alcohol testing data, and provide increased oversight of legally required safety improvements, among other things. (Source: American Shipper – Brian Bradley)