BIS: National Security and Critical Technology Assessments

The Commerce Department's Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) is requesting public input on the renewal of its information collection program supporting national security and critical technology assessments of the U.S. industrial base.

The request, published today in the Federal Register [Docket No. 2025-10763], invites comments for 60 days on BIS’s ongoing effort to gather data from private industry under OMB Control Number 0694-0119. The assessments inform federal policy planning, research and development initiatives, and supply chain resilience efforts under authorities granted by Section 705 of the Defense Production Act of 1950 and Executive Orders 12656 and 13603.

Background

The BIS industrial base assessment program supports interagency efforts to monitor, sustain, and modernize domestic production capabilities for technologies vital to U.S. economic and national security. Originally developed to assess defense-related supply chains during the Cold War, the program has evolved to cover a wide range of sectors, including semiconductors, aerospace, batteries, rare earth elements, telecommunications, and medical equipment.

Assessments are conducted in coordination with agencies such as the Department of Defense (including the Office of Industrial Base Policy), the Department of Homeland Security, and NASA. Survey data is used to identify supply chain bottlenecks, capacity limitations, foreign dependencies, and workforce issues. These findings often inform executive actions, legislative proposals, and investment decisions through the Defense Production Act and related authorities.

In recent years, BIS has used this authority to examine industrial vulnerabilities exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic, evaluate capacity for electric vehicle battery production, and support the CHIPS and Science Act’s implementation.

The current program affects approximately 28,000 respondents across the U.S. industrial base, with each response requiring an estimated 8 to 14 hours. BIS anticipates a total annual burden of 308,000 hours. No direct cost is expected for the public.

BIS is soliciting comments to evaluate:
• The necessity and utility of the collection;
• The accuracy of estimated burdens;
• Ways to enhance data quality and utility;
• Methods to minimize reporting burdens, including use of automated tools.

Further details are available at: https://federalregister.gov/d/2025-10763.

National Security and Critical Technology Assessments of the U.S. Industrial Base