The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service is seeking comments on a proposed rule to amend regulations governing its Agricultural Quarantine and Inspection (AQI) program user fees. APHIS and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Customs and Border Protection jointly administer the AQI program, which assures that cargo and passenger baggage entering the country is inspected for plant pests and potential sources of animal diseases that could affect U.S. agriculture, trade and commerce. Foreign pests and diseases can be devastating to U.S. agriculture and the broader U.S. economy, and the AQI program is highly successful at preventing such disruptions.
Fees for the AQI program were last updated in 2015, based on fiscal years (FY) FY 2010 through FY 2012 cost data, which puts them more than a decade behind today’s circumstances. The outdated fee structure, combined with recent changes in international travel and shipping, mean that current fees do not generate enough revenue to cover the costs of the AQI services provided.