The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) recently issued a proposed rule and a notice of future of rulemaking under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (“CERCLA”) regarding standards for “all appropriate inquiry,” which are important to a variety of businesses, especially those engaged in real estate transactions ...
The Internal Revenue Service recently issued Revenue Ruling 2002-83 dealing with like-kind exchanges between related parties and unrelated qualified intermediaries ...
Department of Justice/Immigration and Naturalization Service: * INS has temporarily lowered its filing fees for certain petitions/applications. The fee change is due to a provision of the Homeland Security Act of 2002 requiring the elimination of a surcharge the INS previously attached in order to fund asylum and refugee services, fee exemptions and fee waivers ...
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the Corps of Engineers recently issued an Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking regarding the definition of “waters of the United States,” which was published in the Federal Register on January 15, 2003. EPA and the Corps will be accepting comments that the agencies will use in developing rules clarifying what waters are subject to regulation under the Clean Water Act ...
Department of Justice/Immigration and Naturalization Service: * DOJ is implementing the National Security Entry-Exit Registration System (NSEERS) to enable the government to track the approximately 35 million non-immigrants who enter the U.S. each year. As part of NSEERS, certain non-immigrants will continue to register at a port-of-entry upon admission to the U.S. Other non-immigrants who were admitted to the U.S ...
Homeland Security Act of 2002: * On November 25, 2002, President Bush signed the “Homeland Security Act of 2002” into law, which establishes the Department of Homeland Security and includes provisions which may significantly alter the visa issuance process at U.S. Consulate/Embassy posts and adjudication of INS petitions. We will continue to provide updates as information becomes available. Department of State: * DOS issued a Worldwide Caution on November 20 reminding the country that U.S ...
In our October 22, 2002 Alert, we discussed the importance of the new compliance history rules of the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (“TCEQ”). Basically, a company’s compliance history will affect permitting, availability of innovative programs, and enforcement, including unannounced inspections. Be alert that the TCEQ compliance history rules ignore traditional distinctions between mergers and assets acquisitions involving successor liability ...
In our October 22, 2002 Alert, we discussed the importance of the new compliance history rules of the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (“TCEQ”). Basically, a company’s compliance history will affect permitting, availability of innovative programs, and enforcement, including unannounced inspections. Be alert that the TCEQ compliance history rules ignore traditional distinctions between mergers and assets acquisitions involving successor liability ...
Department of State: * U.S. Consulate Ciudad Juarez, Mexico will no longer process Third Country National visa applications as of November 1, 2002. Only residents of the consular district and Third Country Nationals with FM2/3 visas will be allowed to apply. * DOS non-immigrant visa application fee will increase to $100.00 effective November 1, 2002 ...
Department of State: * DOS issued a Worldwide Caution on September 9, 2002 advising of the continuing threat of terrorist actions, which may target civilians and include suicide operations. DOS also indicates terrorist groups may seek softer targets including foreign facilities where American citizens are generally known to congregate or visit, such as clubs, restaurants, places of worship, schools or outdoor recreation events ...
Department of State: * DOS has released the instructions for the 2004 diversity immigrant visa program. The congressionally mandated program is a lottery for 50,000 permanent residence visas. Applicants must meet strict eligibility criteria. Instructions have been issued by the DOS at www.travel.state.gov/DV2004.html * Jordanians are now eligible for E treaty trader/treaty investor visas upon the basis of reciprocity secured by the United States-Jordan Free Trade Area Implementation Act ...
Every company with operations or sales overseas should carefully consider whether it has effective policies and procedures in place that adequately manage the company’s risks under the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (“FCPA”). Recently, The Wall Street Journal reported that Enron Corp. is the target of a new U.S. Department of Justice criminal investigation involving allegations of FCPA violations ...
Department of State: * Nationals of the twenty-six countries subject to additional DOS consular scrutiny are experiencing lengthy delays in the processing of nonimmigrant visa applications. For example, the U.S. Consulate in Paris is unable to specify how long its additional administrative processing will take for these cases, and the previously indicated time frame of 30 days is no longer applicable ...
Department of State: * DOS indicated it plans to end the visa and passport exemptions for Commonwealth Citizens residing in Canada. Currently, citizens of British Commonwealth countries are not required to obtain nonimmigrant visas to enter the United States and do not need passports if they enter the U.S. from a Western Hemisphere country. New regulations would end the current visa and passport exemptions for these individuals ...
In the Fall of 2000, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (the “Federal Circuit”) issued a decision known to patent attorneys as “Festo.” Critics argued that Festo retroactively and severely restricted a patent holder’s rights, while proponents argued that the decision created more certainty when trying to decide whether a patent was infringed, thus significantly reducing the cost of patent litigation ...
Department of State: * DOS Visa Revalidation Unit is rejecting cases subject to the 30-day “Condor” security check. Certain responses on the supplemental visa application Form DS-157 trigger the 30-day “Condor” security check. Applicants receiving rejections for this reason must apply for the visa outside of the U.S. and will be subject to the 30-day “Condor” security check. Due to security issues, the DOS cannot divulge the basis for “Condor” triggering responses ...
1. APPLICATIONS FOR THE MACT HAMMER PERMIT DUE MAY 15, 2002 Section 112(j) of the federal Clean Air Act requires that major sources of hazardous air pollutants (HAP) submit an application for a Title V Operating Permit Revision if the source is a member of a source category for which the federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has not adopted a Maximum Achievable Control Technology (MACT) standard within 18 months after the deadline for development of that standard ...
Department of State: ∙ DOS issued public announcements for Peru, Nepal, and the Philippines alerting U.S. citizens to the general security environment, the continued potential for violence, and the possibility of terrorist activity directed at American interests in the regions. ∙ DOS issued a travel warning for Israel, the West Bank, and Gaza due to deteriorating security situations ...
Introduction A. Changes Since September 11. The events of September 11 have brought about an unprecedented surge of change in laws and regulations related to international trade and other aspects of global business. Companies would be well-advised to update and upgrade their trade compliance, internal monitoring and management systems to accommodate the changes that have already occurred and those yet to come. The U.S ...
4th Edition of the Haynes and Boone, Employment Law Desk Reference Guide Chapter Summary The employment of foreign nationals will require a company to follow the rules and regulations of several federal agencies, including the Immigration and Naturalization Service, Department of Labor and Department of State. Employers should be versed in U.S ...
Department of State American Citizen Services: ∙ DOS issued a Worldwide Caution on March 17 stating that the attack on worshippers at the Protestant International Church in Islamabad underlines the growing possibility that as security is increased at official U.S. facilities, terrorists and their sympathizers will seek softer targets. ∙ DOS American Citizen Services will soon begin issuing U.S. passports with new security features to those U.S ...
If you are a building owner planning any renovation or demolition, under a new Texas law, you must demonstrate that you have an asbestos survey before your city will issue a building permit for the project. Asbestos surveys by licensed asbestos inspectors have been a requirement for public buildings for some time; the new statute is intended to publicize and enforce that requirement. Each city has its own requirements for what must be shown to get a permit ...
Introduction 1. Background of the Foreign Investment Law and Regulations. Consistent with NAFTA, Mexico enacted a Foreign Investment Law (FIL), effective March 20, 1998, which abolishes restrictions of foreign investment in most areas. The Regulations of the FIL, effective on September, 1998, were also enacted to provide legal certainty to foreign investors. 2. General Rule: 100% of Foreign Investment Participation ...
According to the fourth quarter 2001 report of Lodging Econometrics, the accelerated decline in the operating performance of the lodging industry will continue until the middle of the first quarter of 2002 due to the events of September 11, 2001, and the recession. Further, while the operating performance of the lodging industry may show signs of improvement by September of 2002, the effects of that improvement may not be felt until the first quarter of 2003 ...
On January 9, 2002, in Chao v. Mallard Bay Drilling, Inc., the United States Supreme Court concluded that the Occupational Safety and Health Administration's ("OSHA") authority to maintain workplace safety for "uninspected" vessels (such as offshore drilling rigs) is not pre-empted by the Coast Guard's power to control maritime operations ...
