surreycrv

My comment to him was about the amount, some 12 bottles iirc, that he hoped the inspection would miss. pretty much the dictionary definition of the act of smuggling, to not declare what you are importing. Contraband is what those goods would be called.

it was funny to watch him get all nittery and then blow it by not looking up the word he tried to interweb refute.

catocony

State laws are completely irrelevant when it comes to CBP.

Further, while you might not be able to purchase grain alcohol or certain types of beer in some states, it's not illegal to possess or consume it in those states. It's just not legally for sale.

DaveBlaine

It can be, depending on your age.

It's all semantics which is really what the whole thread has turned in to.

sethb

Actually, they aren't. CBP will enforce the laws of the state you're entering.

Blogndog

then i guess you've never worked on auto electrics

DaveBlaine

Ohhhh, I'm busted. Got me there brah.

catocony

Can you cite an example of Customs not allowing an arriving passenger to bring in alcohol just because it's not available for sale in whatever state the arriving airport is in?

sethb

There are cases of Customs limiting the amount of alcohol a passenger could bring in to the amount allowed in the arrival state, which was less than federal law allows. I read about that because there was a major complaint due to the flight being diverted (the intended destination allowed a larger quantity than the diverted-to state did).

But that was many years ago.

See https://help.cbp.gov/app/answers/det...r-personal-use for the official statement of policy, including "Most States restrictions on the amount of alcohol that can be brought into that State apply only to residents of that State. Usually people transiting a state are not subject to those restrictions, but sometimes regulations change,"

chx1975

Good gracious, reading this thread, I hope I am never stopped at the border, I have a $600-new-bought-for-$400 monitor, a $200 keyboard, three desktop tripods (two for the keyboard halves, one for the monitor), a decent RX 100 II camera, 1-2 laptops (OK, OK only one most of the time, I do not want to go excessive :P ), 2-3 mobile phones (all of them crap), a tablet, an ebook reader, enough cables to hang myself from it if someone asks where is this all from

FredAnderssen

Even worse if they want to access your data, and you don't let them.

jphripjah

There's not much they can do if you refuse to give them access to your data. At least in the Ninth Circuit, and arguably everywhere, they need reasonable suspicion of criminal activity to then seize it and try to break the password. That's a pretty high burden, the officer will need approval from a supervisor or perhaps higher, and they are not going to seize your device and waste their geek squad's time trying to de-encrypt it out of spite, unless they have good reason to believe there really is something bad on there.

Blogndog

Somewhat OT, but I've always been curious about how sales tax works aboard Amtrak trains. AFAIK, there is no sales tax charged for items sold on board a train, although I would assume that they would technically need to charge the rate for whatever state the train happened to be in at the time. Is there some sort of federal law that exempts Amtrak?

oliver2002

https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/49/24301

FlyingHoustonian

There is another thread on this topic here that I cannot find via search that gets into more details, but CBP does follow state laws for alcohol; in fact the prohibition of alcohol in the constitution gives the states much power with regard to some aspects alcohol instead of the feds. IIRC it is not the arriving airport but the destination or home of record of the pax involved.

I have seen CBP report pax in Texas, as just one example, to make them pay state duty, and in Pennsylvania seen them admonish and confiscate a liquor item due to state laws.

https://help.cbp.gov/app/answers/det...RlXyp3bQ%3D%3D
This covers shipping importing but also applies at airports:
"Please be aware that State ABC laws govern how much alcohol a person may import into their state without a license and those laws are enforced by CBP. You must check with the state ABC board where your shipment will enter the country to determine their limits."

https://help.cbp.gov/app/answers/det...free-exemption
"Most States restrictions on the amount of alcohol that can be brought into that State apply only to residents of that State. Usually people transiting a state are not subject to those restrictions, but sometimes regulations change, and if this is a matter of utmost importance to you, you can check with the state Alcohol Beverage Control Board where you will be arriving to find out what their policies are.

There is no federal limit on the amount of alcohol a traveler may import into the U.S. for personal use, however, large quantities might raise the suspicion that the importation is for commercial purposes, and a CBP officer could require the importer to obtain an Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) import license (which is required for all commercial importations) before releasing it. A general rule of thumb is that 1 case of alcohol is a personal use quantity - although travelers are still subject to state restrictions which may allow less."

Boggie Dog

Not claiming to be a Constitutional expert so would you please point out that passage please?