The State and Commerce Departments published concurrent final rules that transfer certain use items from the U.S. Munitions List (USML) Category XI (Military Electronics) to the Commerce Control List (CCL). The final rules also make changes to controls for wing-folding systems in Category VIII, and make conforming changes to Categories VIII and XIX of the USML. With these final rules, the Obama administration has published revisions to 15 of the 21 USML categories as part of its Export Control Reform initiative.

The Commerce Department’s Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) asked the public for comments on specific examples of civil uses of Monolithic Microwave Integrated Circuit (MMIC) power amplifiers and discrete microwave transistors, both of which operate at frequencies exceeding 2.7 GHz. BIS is also requesting comment on civil uses of certain bi-static and multi-static radar that passively detects or tracks objects using radio frequency transmissions, such as commercial radio or television stations. The comments are due by Aug. 29. The agency expects that no “unclassified” MMIC power amplifiers or discrete microwave transistors will be controlled on the U.S. Munitions List, after a rule to amend the Wassenaar Arrangement on Export Controls for Conventional Arms and Dual-Use Goods and Technologies, and a tandem State Department and BIS rule take effect. The State and BIS rules to transfer USML Category XI (Military Electronics) will take effect in December.

The Commerce (here) and State (here) Departments published concurrent final rules to transfer dual-use items from U.S. Munitions List Category XI (Military Electronics) to the Commerce Control List as part of Export Control Reform. The rules are effective Dec. 30, aside from minor changes that take effect upon publication in the Federal Register. Details of the final rules will be published in International Trade Today in a future issue.

The U.S. Census Bureau on June 20 released trouble-shooting techniques to resolve frequent Fatal Error notification issues in the Automated Export System (AES). Fatal Errors occur when a shipment is rejected.

MINNEAPOLIS -- The transfer of items from the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) to the Export Administration Regulations (EAR) through Export Control Reform is presenting formidable enforcement challenges, but the Departments of State and Commerce are largely on the same page with their approaches, said Commerce Assistant Secretary for Export Enforcement David Mills on June 18 at the American Association of Exporters and Importers annual conference. The Export Enforcement Coordination Center and Information Triage Unit, two multi-agency control initiatives launched in 2012 (here), are increasingly fostering interagency collaboration and communication when active investigations into sanctions violations and control evasions are underway, he added. The enhanced coordination is helping to facilitate license processing, said Mills.

The Export-Import (Ex-Im) Bank facilitates increased U.S. exports, but simultaneously damages U.S. industry by allowing foreign companies access to U.S. products on more favorable terms than domestic companies can get, said CATO Institute director of Herbert A. Stiefel Center for Trade Policy Studies Dan Ikenson in a June 19 op-ed in The Hill. The credit agency provides financing for foreign companies to buy exported U.S. products. But that financing goes to competitors of U.S. companies, such as Air India and the mining company Cliffs Natural Resources, and U.S. financial institutions are unable to offer the same terms to domestic industry. Therefore, U.S. industry often suffers from growth of foreign competitor industry, said Ikenson. “This adverse downstream effect is not exceptional. It is the rule. Consider that Ex-Im subsidized $168 billion of exports sales between 2007 and 2013, through loans, loan guarantees, and the provision of insurance and working capital,” said Ikenson. “Nearly two-thirds ($107 billion) of those expenditures were for the purpose of facilitating exports of manufactured products.” The House Financial Services Committee will hold a June 25 hearing on the bank's reauthorization.

The Export Control Reform rule set to revise the U.S. Munitions List (USML) and place some dual use items in new “600 series” Export Control Classification Numbers (ECCNs) on the Commerce Control List (CCL) on July 1 will require exporters to make several changes to Automated Export System filing, the Census Bureau said in a June 3 release. This final rule was published on Jan. 2 (see 14010302). The following Export Control Classification Numbers will be added to AES reference tables: 0A604, 0A614, 0B604, 0B614, 0D604, 0D614, 0E604, 0E614, 1A613, 1B608, 1B613, 1C608, 1D608, 1D613, 1E608, 1E613, 9A604, 9B604, 9D604, and 9E604.

The Commerce Department’s Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) issued a final rule to correct and clarify six Export Control Reform final rules published in 2013 and early 2014. BIS is correcting all six rules in one final rule in order to minimize the number of correction rules the public must review and because this rule involves similar corrections and clarifications, said BIS in issuing in the rule. The six final rules addressed are as follows:

The Commerce and State Departments released their respective spring 2014 regulatory agendas for the 2014 calendar year. The Commerce Department’s Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) and the State Department say they are planning several more rules related to export control reform, including more rules to transfer items from the U.S. Munitions List to the Commerce Control List and a clarification of U.S. principal party in interest responsibilities in routed export transactions.

Secretary of Commerce Penny Pritzker unveiled the next step of the National Export Initiative (NEI) during a May 13 event hosted by Atlantic Media. The initiative aims to help U.S. firms locate customers and identify markets abroad, while helping to finance export orders, said Pritzker. She said the administration would work with trade partners to adopt best practices that facilitate commerce. "For example, we’re holding more workshops for customs officials in Guatemala, Peru and the Dominican Republic," she said. Pritzker also reiterated the administration's commitment to complete the Automated Commercial Environment (ACE) by 2016.