Onondaga County promotes foreign-trade zone

Earlier this year, the U.S. Foreign-Trade Zones Board, part of the federal Department of Commerce, approved Onondaga County’s foreign-trade zone (FTZ) reorganization. The approval creates a new tool for Central New York businesses to compete globally and grow locally, the county said in a news release issued today.

“In the expanding global economy, there is increased competition for jobs, industry and capital,” Onondaga County Director of Economic Development Mary Beth Primo said in the release.  “Now, in cooperation with Customs and Border Protection, CNY companies may designate space at their existing facilities as FTZs, without relocating logistics or manufacturing operations offsite. Onondaga County’s FTZ program is designed to promote competitiveness by encouraging companies to maintain or expand their operations in Onondaga, Cayuga, Oswego, and Madison Counties.”

FTZs enable participating businesses to keep goods outside the stream of U.S. commerce until sold. The FTZ program encourages Central New York-based operations by removing certain disincentives associated with manufacturing in the United States, Onondaga County’s news release said. Area businesses may be able to save money and improve cash flow by taking advantage of key program features such as:

·         No duties are levied on goods imported into an FTZ that are later re-exported;

·         Payment delayed on goods imported into an FTZ until they enter U.S. commerce;

·         A lower tariff may be applied to goods manufactured in an FTZ if the tariff rate of the finished product is lower than the tariff rate of its components;

·         Eliminates duties on waste, scrap, and rejected or defective parts;

·         Allows for multiple customs entries to be processed on a weekly basis rather than case by case;

·         Goods may be transferred from one FTZ to another without incurring tariffs.

“Foreign-trade zones are an important resource for the business community because they allow for reductions in production, transaction and logistics related expenses while lowering effective duty rates and encouraging production closer to market,” Primo said in the release. “The Onondaga County Office of Economic Development is excited to assist regional businesses reduce costs, level the international playing field and improve our region’s global competitiveness.”

Chenango County also established a foreign-trade zone earlier this year.

Contact Rombel at arombel@cnybj.com