The United States Customs Service oversees all import and export activity to ensure that international trade activity complies with U.S. laws and regulations. Most Americans’ images of the Customs Service are the signs and questionnaires filled out when returning to the country from abroad, but the Customs Service has many other roles and responsibilities, which have changed over time. The Customs Service collects revenues, guards against smuggling, and is responsible for
• assessing and collecting customs duties, excise taxes, fees, and penalties due on imported PRODUCTs
• searching for and seizing contraband, particularly illegal drugs and banned products or materials
• processing persons, baggage, mail, and cargo coming into and out of the country
• detecting and apprehending people engaged in fraudulent practices
• enforcing U.S. laws intended to prevent illegal trade practices including those involving INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY, rights violations, and anti-DUMPING laws
• enforcing restrictions on EXPORTING of critical technology, money laundering, and weapons
• collecting international trade data
• enforcing other agency statutes related to motor vehicle safety, emission controls, water pollution standards, pesticide controls, and endangered wildlife
The Customs Service has a long history, having been established by the fifth act of Congress in 1789. For over 100 years, customs-duty revenues funded virtually all of federal government activity. Today many EMERGING MARKETS depend on customs duties to fund government spending. Often, control of IMPORTS is one of the few parts of an economy that can be closely monitored and then taxed. In the United States, customs revenue represents only a small percentage of total tax revenue, having been replaced with taxes on INCOME (primarily personal-income and SOCIAL SECURITY taxes). The United States is a leading force in reducing TARIFFs among countries around the world, pursuing a goal of increased world trade through reduced TRADE BARRIERS.