Transfer Gun Export Control Authority Back to State Dept., Lawmaker Says
The Biden administration should reverse a 2020 rule that transferred export controls over certain defense items from the State Department to the Commerce Department (see 2001170030), said Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass. She said the transfer has allowed the U.S. to approve more weapons sales overseas, contributing to violent crime and corruption.
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“Weapons sales have gone up dramatically,” Warren said during a Senate Banking Committee hearing last week, calling it a “huge boon” for the gun industry. She said Commerce approved $15.7 billion in weapons sales in the first 16 months after the transfer took effect, while the State Department approved $12 billion “on average in the same time period.” Since 2020, she added, Commerce has rejected less than 1% of those license applications.
It “sounds a lot like the Commerce Department is rubber-stamping these license applications, including to places like Mexico, where corruption puts these weapons in the hands of criminals,” Warren said. “The Commerce Department is helping put more assault weapons in more hands and this needs to stop.”
BIS Undersecretary Alan Estevez, who was testifying on export controls during the hearing, said those approved sales include exports to Ukraine, which needs weapons to fight against Russia. He also said the State Department provides input on the licensing decisions. “There's an interagency process that approves gun licensing,” Estevez said. “It’s not just the Commerce Department.”
But Warren said there is a clear correlation between the 2020 transfer of export control authorities and an increase in U.S. weapons exports. “Authority was transferred to the Commerce Department, and what has happened is that it has a minuscule disapproval rate and the weapons sales have gone up,” she said. “It's time to put overseas gun sales back in the hands of the State Department, where someone can exercise better judgment over this.”
Other lawmakers, including Sen. Bob Menendez, D-N.J., have pushed President Joe Biden to follow through on a campaign promise to return the authority back to the State Department. Menendez for months held up the Senate confirmation of Estevez after the then-nominee declined to take a stance on the weapons transfer rule (see 2109210058, 2201050023 and 2204010006). During last week’s hearing, Estevez said he had no update on whether the reversal will occur.
He noted, however, a recent BIS rule that introduced a congressional notification requirement for certain firearms exports (see 2205310027). Under the rule, which takes effect July 18, the agency will notify Congress of certain semiautomatic firearms shipments valued at $4 million or more and destined to certain countries. During the hearing, Menendez pointed out that although Congress will be made aware of the shipments, it won’t be able to disapprove any sales.