Gerry Horner, Chief of the Trade Regulations Branch at the US Census Bureau, gave the committee an update on two Notices of Proposed Rulemaking: the Routed Export Transaction rule, published prior to 2019, and the Country of Origin data element, released in December 2021.
Commerce's Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) issued a Temporary Denial Order (TDO) against three individuals and four companies implicated in illicitly supplying the Russian military with U.S.-sourced micro-electronics having significant military applications.
U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo concluded a four-day visit to China this week, meeting with her counterpart, Chinese Commerce Minister Wang Wentao. The trip aimed to revive economic dialogue between the world's two largest economies, despite persistent tensions over trade issues and national security. According to a statement from the Chinese Commerce Ministry on Thursday, China has urged the U.S. to extend "equal treatment" to Chinese companies investing in the United States. "China demands the U.S. give equal treatment to Chinese enterprises investing in the U.S. in terms of market access, regulatory enforcement, public procurement, and policy support," said Shu Jueting, a commerce ministry spokesperson. China also raised "serious concerns" over the U.S. imposition of Section 301 tariffs, describing them as "discriminatory."
Under the newly adopted § 766.24(d)(1), BIS is now permitted to request the Assistant Secretary for Export Enforcement to extend an existing TDO for up to one year, a substantial extension from the previous 180-day limit. This enhanced provision is triggered in cases where a subject party has exhibited a pattern of repeated and ongoing violations of the EAR, thereby justifying the need for a more protracted control mechanism.
The Regulations and Procedures Technical Advisory Committee (RPTAC) will meet September 12, 2023, 9:00 a.m., Eastern Daylight Time, in the Herbert C. Hoover Building, Room 3884, 1401 Constitution …
After complaining since at least 2005 that "we really need to do something about ITAR. It is really hurting U.S. industry,” and citing export controls for not hiring eligible non-citizens, South African immigrant Elon Musk's company SpaceX has been sued by the Justice Department for employment discrimination. The United States Department of Justice has filed a lawsuit against Space Exploration Technologies Corp. (SpaceX) for discriminating against asylees and refugees in its hiring process. The lawsuit contends that from September 2018 to May 2022, SpaceX deliberately discouraged such individuals from applying for positions within the company, violating the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA).
In a sign that more rigorous policies to ensure host country cooperation are bearing fruit, Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security announced that 33 parties will be removed from the Unverified List, 27 of which are based in the People’s Republic of China (PRC) with others located in Indonesia, Pakistan, Singapore, Turkey, and the United Arab Emirates. BIS is taking this action because it was able to establish the bona fides – i.e., legitimacy and reliability relating to the end use or end user of items subject to the Export Administration Regulations (EAR) – of these parties through the successful completion of end-use checks.
Republican leaders from the House and Senate wrote Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo urging her to repudiate negotiations with the PRC on Export Controls before her visit to the country later this month. Rep. Mike Gallagher (R-WI) Chair of the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party, Rep Michael McCaul (R-TX) Chair of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, Senator Bill Hagerty (R-TN), Ranking Member of the Senate Banking Subcommittee on National Security and International Trade and Finance, and Rep Young Kim (R-CA) Chair of the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on the Indo-Pacific wrote a letter to Ms. Raimondo after press reports indicated she is considering joining the Chinese government in a "working group" on the topic after her trip to China later this month.
The Bureau of Industry & Security published an advisory opinion on the release of licensed technology to employees of the foreign subsidiary while on temporary work assignment at the home office. No additional deemed export license is required for these employees, while any new “technology” or “software” that is either “released” to those employees in the United States or created in the United States that is not authorized by the existing BIS license would require a new export license or other authorization from BIS.
Consistent with U.S. commitments as a participating country in the Nuclear Suppliers Group, this rule revises five existing Export Control Classification Numbers (ECCNs) under the Commerce Control List (CCL). These changes protect U.S. nuclear nonproliferation interests, while aligning the EAR with the control text agreed to by participating governments (PGs).
For Review and Approval; Comment Request; Simple Network Application Process and Form Number(s): BIS-748P, BIS-748P-A, BIS-748P-B. Public comments were previously requested via the Federal Register on June 12, 2023, during a 60-day comment period. This notice allows for an additional 30 days for public comments
On August 16, 2023 the Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) published orders denying export privileges to the following four individuals:
Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) is amending the Export Administration Regulations (EAR) by adding additional nuclear nonproliferation controls on China and Macau, effective August 11, 2023. This change specifically applies to items controlled for Nuclear Nonproliferation (NP) column 2 reasons for control. These controls enhance U.S. Government efforts to monitor the export of these items and to ensure they are only being used in peaceful activities such as commercial nuclear power generation, medical developments, production of or use in medicine, and non-military industries.
The government’s Trade Advisory Committees are unfairly skewed toward big business, giving short shrift to labor and environmental concerns, according to Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass) and Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash). “Allowing corporate interests to continue to dominate the trade advisory committee system clearly harms workers, consumers, and small businesses, the lawmakers wrote in a letter to US Trade Representative Katherine Tai, Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo.
Bureau of Industry and Security, Department of Commerce published a request for comment on the Additional Protocol to the United States—International Atomic Energy Agency Safeguards The Additional Protocol requires the United States to submit declaration forms to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) on a number of commercial nuclear and nuclear-related items, materials, and activities that may be used for peaceful nuclear purposes, but also would be necessary elements for a nuclear weapons program.
Commerce's Bureau of Industry and Security, Commerce Department is calling for comments on the Five-Year Records Retention Requirement for Export Transactions and Boycott Actions. Public comments were previously requested via the Federal Register on April 5, 2023, during a 60-day comment period. This notice allows for an additional 30 days for public comments.
Chinese cloud computing companies could pose a threat to US national security, Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo told a Senate panel Wednesday. She promised to review a request made by a group of Republican senators to add companies like Huawei Cloud and Alibaba Cloud to Commerce’s Entity List, which would subject the firms to US export controls.
The Materials and Equipment Technical Advisory Committee will meet on May 11, 2023, 10:00 a.m., The Transportation and Related Equipment Technical Advisory Committee will meet on May 10, 2023, 9:30 a.m.
Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) has imposed a $300 million civil penalty on Seagate Technology LLC and its Singapore subsidiary for alleged violations of U.S. export controls related to selling hard disk drives (HDDs) to Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd. This penalty is the largest standalone administrative penalty in BIS history and includes a multi-year audit requirement and a five-year suspended Denial Order.
Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Export Enforcement Matt Axelrod issued an update to prior guidance on voluntary self-disclosure of possible violations of Export Administration Regulations (EAR) and disclosures about possible EAR violations by others. The most significant change is that while self-disclosure continues to be considered a mitigating factor, the policy now clarifies that deliberate non-disclosure of significant violations will be considered an aggravating factor, increasing potential penalties.
