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When you think the government is only looking out for itself, think again. The United States has more "watch dogs" out there looking after our well being than anyone could imagine. Under the Office of Information Technology Laboratories and Scientific Services, Customs operates eight laboratories throughout the U.S. that conduct a range of research and analysis on products imported into, and exported out of, the U.S. Below is a brief overview of the functions of each location:
CHIEF SCIENCE OFFICER: In Washington, D.C., Customs houses the Chief Science Officer (CSO) staff at the Office of Information Technology Laboratories & Sciences Services. Their main responsibility is the issuance of technical opinions to the office of Regulations and Rulings and to advise on World Customs Organization (WCO) issues. But this is only the start of Customs "watch dog" outfit. There are seven additional offices throughout the United States that perform various examinations and analyses on samples of products that are both imported into the U. S. and exported.
RESEARCH/SPRINGFIELD: Springfield, Virginia houses the Customs research laboratory which provides scientific information to Headquarters and all the field laboratories. Information includes new methods for analyzing various commodities and the evaluation of new instrumentation which will be used by the field labs. The Springfield office is also responsible for providing the technical foundation for Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) enforcement - which involves copy rights, trademarks and patents on all varieties of product.
SAN FRANCISCO: The San Francisco Laboratory serves Northern California as well as several western states. This office provides technical advice and analytical services for a large number of imported and exported commodities to Customs officials as well as other government agencies. This lab and the other five labs located across the country, insure that items coming in and going out of the U. S. are above grade. In addition to the office located in downtown San Francisco, the lab has a mobile unit for on-site examinations. This particular lab specializes in the analyzing of apparel, footwear, metal products, food and beverages. The lab also analyzes certain chemicals and various controlled substances. Special emphasis is given to the analyzing of petroleum imported into the U. S.
NEW YORK: On the other side of the country is the New York Laboratory. Among other things, this lab provides scientific advice for the ruling program, technical information on drawback cases and training in the use of the Narcotic Test Kit for Customs officers and Agents. The lab also supplies an extensive textile testing program through the use of the Textile Field Kit making sure that what is imported into the U. S. is actually what it is purported and that it isn't an inferior product. They also give special emphasis to the testing of petroleum by way of their staff of National Petroleum Chemists who are responsible for the entire East Coast's imports and exports. New York also has a mobile operation working out of the JFK and Newark airports.
CHICAGO: The Chicago laboratory assists Customs offices with determining the best ways to collect revenue, in other words import duties. Chicago also assists with the enforcement of Customs rules and regulations. Interestingly, of the 23 employees at this lab, most are chemists or analysts who actively participate in national and international scientific organizations - working to improve the various methods of analyzing all types of commodities.
NEW ORLEANS: The New Orleans lab is one of two labs that date back to the early 1900's. As with the other labs, New Orleans analyzes both imported and exported merchandise to determine if the merchandise is described correctly on the proper documentation. The New Orleans lab also provides technical support in the areas of drawback, classification issues, regulatory audit functions and criminal and civil investigations. With only a staff of fifteen, New Orleans is responsible for developing a state-of-the-art instrument that can raise fingerprints off of a multitude of objects. Once a fingerprint is captured, the machine will be able to digitize it and match the prints electronically to other prints within the database. Customs will eventually be able to match raised prints with the FBI's own automated Fingerprint Identification System (AFIS) database.
LOS ANGELES: The Los Angeles laboratory provides analyses on textiles in the form of finished wearing apparel. The lab analyzes dyed fabrics as well as hand and machine loomed garments. The core focus of the Los Angeles lab is to provide technical assistance to Customs officers relating to forensic, commercial fraud and drawback enforcement.
SAVANNAH: Lastly, there is the Savannah, Georgia laboratory which has two locations, Savannah and San Juan, Puerto Rico. The Savannah lab began as a one room "sugar operation" in the early 1900's and has grown into a 20,000 square-foot location. What is special about this lab is its close proximity to the Customs training facility at the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center (FLETC) in Glynco, Georgia. The Savannah Laboratory provides specialized technical training to Customs import specialists, inspectors, and special agents and provides support to the agency's International Customs Training program.
FEDERAL LAW ENFORCEMENT TRAINING CENTER: As for FLETC, special training is provided to Customs officials in a variety of subjects, including narcotic and other controlled substance detection. FLETC also offers a Criminal Investigator Training Program (CITP) for Customs Inspectors which is their longest running course - taking upwards of 17 weeks to complete. Of the 75 or so courses offered by FLETC, many are offered off campus at the Savannah Lab in addition to numerous other locations, but a good many are held at this facility that also houses 23 full-time government agencies.
For more information about the Office of Information Technology Laboratories and Scientific Services please visit: http://www.customs.ustreas.gov/location/labs/labs.htm
For information about the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center (FLETC) please visit: http://www.customs.gov/news/news-0227-01.htm
FBI's Automated Fingerprint Identification System (AFIS) please visit: http://www.fbi.gov/hq/cjisd/iafis.htm
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