The Census Bureau and the Bureau of Industry and Security are continuing to try to make progress on their long-awaited routed export rule, a Census official said this week.
The Bureau of Industry and Security is crafting a new interim final rule titled “Export Control Framework for Artificial Intelligence Diffusion.” BIS sent the rule for interagency review on Dec. 9. The agency didn’t release more information.
The Bureau of Industry and Security is adding eight companies to the Entity List that it said are “enabling human rights violations,” including by supplying sensitive technology or military items to the Chinese, Russian and Myanmar militaries. The additions, outlined in a final rule released Dec. 10 and effective Dec. 11, target technology companies and supplier firms based in each of those three countries.
Companies should expect the U.S. government to continue to prioritize enforcement of export controls in the coming months, including by issuing new penalties for export violations, said Matthew Axelrod, the Bureau of Industry and Security’s top export enforcement official. He also revealed that BIS is using a new tool to better screen foreign parties listed on license applications, and he said a recent shift in how the agency uses metrics has allowed it to devote more attention to cases involving the most sensitive technology.
The Bureau of Industry and Security again renewed temporary denial orders for two Russian airlines that it said continue to illegally operate aircraft on flights into and out of Russia. The agency renewed denial orders for Siberian Airlines and Nordwind Airlines for one year from Dec. 6, saying they continue to "act in blatant disregard for U.S. export controls and the terms of previously issued TDOs," including by operating flights between Russia and Thailand, China, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan and Turkey. BIS last renewed the orders in December 2023 (see 2312130011).
The U.S. and Latvian governments last week gathered officials from the U.K., Canada, the EU and Ukraine to discuss export controls and sanctions in Latvia, including how those measures are affecting Russia, the Latvian government said in a news release.
The U.S. should continue working with allies to restrict sales of advanced semiconductors and semiconductor tools to China after the Biden administration leaves next month, Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo said. But she also said she hopes the Trump administration prioritizes tools other than export controls and tariffs to counter China, and she warned against a potential decoupling of the two economies.
The Bureau of Industry and Security on Dec. 11 will add eight companies to the Entity List for “enabling human rights violations,” including by supplying sensitive technology or military items to foreign governments that are subject to strict license requirements. The entities are located in Myanmar, China and Russia, the agency said in a final rule released Dec. 10. They will be subject to license requirements for all items subject to the Export Administration Regulations, and licenses will be reviewed under a presumption of denial.
The Bureau of Industry and Security is seeking public comments on the impact of the Chemical Weapons Convention on commercial activities during 2024. The agency is specifically looking for feedback on how those activities involving Schedule 1 chemicals were affected to determine whether CWC decisions "harmed" the “legitimate commercial activities and interests of chemical, biotechnology, and pharmaceutical firms” this year. Comments are due by Jan. 8.
Nearly half of U.S. companies surveyed by the Bureau of Industry and Security this year said they didn’t know whether their products contained any Chinese-made, mature-node semiconductors, BIS said in a summary of those survey results released Dec. 6.