Home / October 2025 CBLE / Question 13

Responsible supervision and control: the question CBP voided (all examinees got credit)

October 2025 examBroker ComplianceQuestion 13 of 80

In transacting customs business, licensed customs brokers must exercise responsible supervision and control. CBP's determination of what is necessary to perform and maintain responsible supervision and control will vary depending upon the circumstances in each instance. Regardless of the circumstances, which ONE of the following factors is a mandatory requirement for licensed customs brokers to exercise responsible supervision and control when conducting customs business?

What happened

CBP's answer key for this question reads "All examinees granted credit." Every choice was scored correct.

Why the question was flawed

19 CFR 111.28(a): Responsible supervision and control… A sole proprietorship, partnership, association, or corporation must employ a sufficient number of licensed brokers relative to the job complexity, similarity of subordinate tasks, physical proximity of subordinates, abilities and skills of employees, and abilities and skills of the managers. While the determination of what is necessary … will vary depending upon the circumstances in each instance, factors which CBP may consider in its discretion and to the extent any are relevant include, but are not limited to: (1) The training provided to broker employees; … (5) The level of access broker employees have to current editions of CBP regulations …; … (8) The frequency of audits and reviews …

The question asks for the one mandatory requirement "regardless of the circumstances." Training (B), access to regulations (C) and audits (A) are listed as discretionary factors CBP may consider. The "sufficient number of licensed brokers" requirement (D) is phrased as a must, but what counts as "sufficient" depends on the circumstances, which conflicts with the question's "regardless of the circumstances" wording. That ambiguity is the likely reason CBP voided it.

Tip
Know the structure of § 111.28(a): one "must" (employ enough licensed brokers for the workload) followed by a non-exhaustive list of "may consider" factors: training, instructions, volume, reject rates, access to regulations, supervisory visits, audits, timeliness and responsiveness.

Source: CBP October 2025 CBLE answer key ("All examinees granted credit"); 19 CFR 111.28(a) (eCFR).

CBP answer key: All examinees granted creditSource: CBP past exams ↗