Two new reports document the progress that has been made on issues of perimeter security and economic competiveness between the United States and Canada. The first report, Beyond the Border Action Plan Implementation, is the first of three joint annual implementation reports to be issued, starting with 2012, to ensure transparency and accountability in the implementation of the Beyond the Border Action Plan. To advance the Beyond the Border Action Plan in 2012, Canada and the United States:

• developed and released the Joint Statement of Privacy Principles to inform and guide information sharing under the Beyond the Border Action Plan;

• achieved mutual recognition of our respective air cargo security programs for passenger aircraft, eliminating the need for rescreening except for cause;

• initiated a joint entry and exit pilot project starting with foreign nationals and permanent residents at four ports of entry on our land border whereby the record of entry into one country is shared and becomes the record of exit from the other country;

• developed an Integrated Cargo Security Strategy to address risks as early as possible associated with offshore shipments, and initiated a pilot to validate and shape the implementation of the strategy;

• initiated a one-year sector-based pilot project that provides for advance review and clearance of official certification and alternative approaches to import inspection activities;

• developed a detailed operational model for the upcoming deployment of the truck cargo facilitation pilot project;

• developed a land border traffic management guide to be implemented in the event of an emergency;

• began the first cross-border Regional Resilience Assessment Program project to improve the security of cross-border critical infrastructure;

• released a joint Cybersecurity Action Plan;

• expanded and enhanced the NEXUS trusted traveler program by providing additional benefits to members, such as access to expedited passenger screening lanes at airports in Canada, and Transportation Security Administration (TSA) Preü™ lanes in the United States;

• conducted consultations to facilitate cross-border business travel, and implemented various improvements;

• announced regularized Shiprider operations; and

• developed a joint Border Infrastructure Investment Plan.

The second report, Canada-United States Regulatory Cooperation Council (RCC) Joint Action Plan Progress Report, charts the progress in the implementation of the Action Plan. The Action Plan is designed to make it easier for firms to do business on both sides of the border. Specific examples of regulatory cooperation progress achieved over the past year include:

• the launch of pilot projects for simultaneous submissions to regulators in both countries for crop protection products;

• in the area of veterinary drugs, simultaneous reviews by regulators in both countries for three drug submissions; 

• initiation of a pilot project for the joint inspection of non-Canadian and non-U.S. flagged vessels entering the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence Seaway, focusing on security and pollution prevention, and monitoring living and working conditions for workers on these vessels; and

• discussion of common policy principles that would guide an aligned approach to the regulatory oversight of nanotechnology and nanomaterials.