Alejandro Mayorkas, Secretary of Homeland Security, stated that one challenge of the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA), which aims to ban imported goods created with forced labor, is the "de minimis" loophole that allows duty-free shipments from around the world to enter the U.S.
"But let me make an important point, that the UFLPA specifically is, of course, focused on the Uyghur population, but our work in combating forced labor is much more expansive than that," said Mayorkas. "And we regrettably and tragically see products produced in whole or in part by forced labor in other parts of the world. One of the challenges that we have is the de minimis exception and the exploitation of that exception. And we are working towards and hoping to receive a legislative fix to give us greater authorities to address that."
The UFLPA directs the Forced Labor Enforcement Task Force to create a new strategy to enforce the banning of imported goods created with forced labor from the People’s Republic of China, specifically in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, according to U.S. Customs and Border Protection. The UFPLA was established on December 23, 2021, and has been effective since June 21, 2022.
According to Coalition for a Prosperous America, the "de minimis" loophole allows for $800 of "duty-free shipments from around the world to enter the U.S., and these smaller shipments don’t hold the same scrutiny as ones coming from formal entry."
Statements from former detainees and reports from numerous researchers and advocacy groups have alleged that the Chinese government has put over 1 million people in detention camps in Xinjiang to perform coercive labor, Bloomberg reported.
According to bluemarble, fast fashion companies Shein and Temu keep their prices low by exploiting the de minimis loophole. Both Shein and Temu face allegations from the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party of using forced labor from Xinjiang. An "estimated 100,000 Uyghurs" and other ethnic minorities in China may be working in forced labor "re-education" camps, mainly picking cotton to make clothes. A survey conducted in 2021 found that 16% of cotton clothes in the U.S. contained cotton from Xinjiang.
Mayorkas has been DHS Secretary since February 2, 2021, according to the Department's website. He previously had a 30-year career in law enforcement and is a nationally recognized lawyer in private practice. From 2013-2016, he served as Deputy Secretary of DHS, and he was Director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services from 2009-2013.
