In a significant win for KCMA members, President Donald J. Trump on June 3 signed “Strengthening Customs Enforcement,” an executive order that represents the most significant overhaul of importer accountability in years.
The order reflects a growing, bipartisan recognition that domestic manufacturers need real protection from trade crimes. Through our partnership with the Coalition for a Prosperous America and the Alliance for Trade EnforcementNOW, KCMA has worked to make the case that closing enforcement loopholes is critical to the health of the domestic cabinet industry.
The Coalition for a Prosperous America summarizes the key provisions in its press release. The order:
- Bars foreign importers of record (IORs) from using the informal-entry process for low-value shipments, closing a channel that foreign sellers have exploited to flood the market while facing minimal penalty exposure;
- Prohibits foreign IORs from relying on continuous bonds for formal entry and requires them to be CTPAT-validated or to file through a CTPAT-validated U.S. customs broker;
- Raises minimum bond coverage and requires importers of record to maintain a minimum level of tangible domestic assets;
- Requires beneficial-ownership, business-affiliation, and domestic-asset disclosures, and directs CBP to scrub the IOR registry and assign risk-based tiers;
- Establishes a “good standing” requirement and bars bad actors — including those caught importing fentanyl, nitazenes, and precursor chemicals — from importing at all;
- Sets a penalty floor of not less than 50 percent of the assessed penalty and eliminates mitigation for repeat offenders;
- Prioritizes enforcement against forced labor, misclassification, undervaluation, and illegal transshipment, including Enforce and Protect Act (EAPA) investigations; and
- Requires foreign exporters to provide CBP the same documentation they filed with their own country’s customs administration — a powerful new tool against undervaluation and origin fraud. Progress on the PAIL Act
Progress on the PAIL Act
The executive order is not the only front where this fight is advancing. KCMA has worked extensively on the Protecting American Industry and Labor from International Trade Crimes Act (PAIL, H.R. 1869), legislation that would strengthen the Department of Justice’s ability to investigate and prosecute trade-related crimes. The bill directs DOJ to establish a dedicated task force within its Criminal Division, coordinated closely with Homeland Security Investigations and U.S. Customs and Border Protection. The legislation also directs the DOJ to develop training programs for law enforcement agencies—like Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP)—to better identify and handle trade crimes.
The bill is designed to close loopholes exploited by foreign actors—particularly related to tariff evasion, smuggling, and trade-based money laundering—to level the playing field for American businesses.
Introduced by Congresswoman Ashley Hinson (R-IA) with Congressman John Moolenaar (R-MI), PAIL has drawn broad bipartisan support. On June 3 — the same day the executive order was signed — the House Judiciary Committee voted unanimously, 23–0, to advance the bill. Representatives Hinson and Moolenaar have been the driving force behind this effort and deserve enormous credit for moving it forward.
Other Trade Developments Worth Watching
Beyond the executive order and PAIL, two other trade developments this month are worth flagging for members, even though KCMA was not directly involved in either.
New Senate Bill Targets Chinese Subsidies
Senators Ruben Gallego (D-AZ) and Pete Ricketts (R-NE) have introduced the China Subsidy Response and Export Competitiveness Act of 2026, a bipartisan bill that would amend the Export-Import Bank Act of 1945 to give the United States stronger tools to compete with Chinese government subsidies. The bill would broaden where Ex-Im Bank financing can be applied — extending guarantee coverage to domestic programs rather than foreign business alone — and would significantly expand the Bank’s China and Transformational Exports Program.
Most notably, the bill would remove the current limitation that confines the program to countering only Chinese “export” subsidies, allowing the Bank to push back against any Chinese government subsidies — including domestic ones that undercut U.S. competitiveness. It would also add printed circuit boards and medical manufacturing to the list of strategically protected industries, which already includes semiconductors and other critical sectors. While the cabinet industry is not a named target of the legislation, the bill reflects a broader, bipartisan appetite in Congress for confronting the kind of state-backed subsidization that has long distorted markets for wood products and other manufactured goods.
Duties on Chinese Wood Mouldings and Millwork to Remain in Place
In a related win for domestic wood products manufacturers, the U.S. International Trade Commission determined on June 12 that revoking the existing countervailing and antidumping duty orders on wood mouldings and millwork products from China would likely lead to the continuation or recurrence of material injury within a reasonably foreseeable time. As a result, the duty orders on these imports will remain in place. Chair Amy A. Karpel and Commissioners David S. Johanson and Jason E. Kearns all voted in the affirmative.
The decision came through the five-year “sunset” review process required under the Uruguay Round Agreements Act, which directs the Department of Commerce to revoke such orders after five years unless Commerce and the USITC find that revocation would likely lead to renewed dumping or subsidies and renewed material injury. The reviews were instituted in January 2026, and in April the Commission opted for expedited reviews after finding adequate interest from domestic parties. The Commission’s full public report is expected to be available on the USITC website by July 22, 2026. Keeping these orders in force preserves an important measure of protection for the broader domestic wood products supply chain.
Section 232 Tariffs on Lumber, Timber, and Derivatives Update
The American Kitchen Cabinet Alliance (AKCA) continues to work with the Trump Administration and Members of Congress to secure higher tariffs on imported cabinets and component parts. AKCA will keep members updated as new developments occur.
What This Means for Our Members
Taken together, the executive order, the momentum behind PAIL, and the broader wave of trade enforcement activity in Congress and at the trade agencies mark real progress toward a level playing field for domestic cabinet manufacturers. This progress is a credit to the members who shared their data and experience, and to the champions in Congress who carried this fight forward. KCMA will continue to press for full implementation of the executive order and passage of the PAIL Act, monitor related developments like the Gallego-Ricketts bill and the millwork duty orders, and keep you updated every step of the way.
