The Bureau of Industry and Security revoked export privileges for a North Carolina man after he illegally exported firearms and ammunition to Honduras, BIS said in a May 27 order. Chris Rodriguez was convicted Oct. 18, 2019, for violating the Arms Export Control Act when he tried to ship 27 firearms and “hundreds” of rounds of ammunition without the required State Department licenses. Rodriguez was sentenced to 18 months in prison, three years of supervised release and a $100 fine. BIS also revoked his export privileges for seven years from the date of his conviction, and revoked any BIS-issued licenses in which he had an interest at the time of his conviction.
The Bureau of Industry and Security fined a U.S. laser manufacturer $350,000 for illegally exporting laser systems to China, according to a May 28 order. The company, New York-based Photonics Industries International, exported more than 20 “RGH-1064-30 picosecond laser systems” to China in 2014 and failed to apply for the required licenses, which violated the Export Administration Regulations.
The Bureau of Industry and Security fined a Dubai company $25,000 for violating the Export Administration Regulations when it exported “powder grade nickel” to the United Arab Emirates, according to a May 28 order. The company, Alsima Middle East General Trading, submitted false and misleading statements to BIS in its license application for the export, the agency said.
The Bureau of Industry and Security added eight entities to the Entity List for their involvement in nuclear proliferation activities and issued several other revisions, one correction and one removal from the Entity List and Military End User List. The eight entities, located in Pakistan and the United Arab Emirates, include laboratory equipment providers, engineering companies and electronics makers. They will face a license requirement for all items subject to the Export Administration Regulations, and BIS will impose a license review policy of presumption of denial. No license exceptions will be available. The changes take effect June 1.
Export controls over 3D-printed guns were moved from the Commerce Department to the State Department following a court’s decision this week to officially waive a preliminary injunction that had blocked the transfer (see 2105030021).
The Bureau of Industry and Security added eight entities to the Entity List for their involvement in nuclear proliferation activities. The entities, located in Pakistan and the United Arab Emirates, will face a license requirement for all items subject to the Export Administration Regulations, and BIS will impose a license review policy of presumption of denial.
The Bureau of Industry and Security revoked export privileges for an Iranian businessman for illegally exporting carbon fiber from the U.S. to Iran, BIS said in a May 24 order. Behzad Pourghannad was convicted Nov. 12, 2019, for violating the International Emergency Economic Powers Act after he worked with others to export the carbon fiber to Iran from third countries using falsified documents and front companies (see 1911150023). Pourghannad was sentenced to 20 months in prison and a $100 fine. BIS also revoked his export privileges for 10 years from the date of his conviction, and revoked any BIS-issued licenses in which he had an interest at the time of his conviction.
Sen. Ben Sasse, R-Neb., introduced an amendment May 25 to the Endless Frontier Act that would withhold the additional funding in the bill until the Commerce Department “completes the identification of emerging and foundational technologies as required under section 1758(a) of the Export Control Reform Act.” The Bureau of Industry and Security has identified dozens of emerging technologies but has not identified any foundational technologies (see 2104070026).
U.S. companies that sell defense products or services to foreign countries or entities must report all offsets agreements greater than $5 million to the Bureau of Industry and Security by June 15, the agency said in a May 25 notice. Companies also must report information on offsets transactions completed “in performance of existing offsets commitments for which offsets credit” of $250,000 or more “has been claimed from the foreign representative,” the notice said. Commerce is asking for reports of offsets agreements that took place during the 2020 calendar year.
The Semiconductor Industry Association hired Meghan Biery, previously the senior national security policy adviser at the Bureau of Industry and Security, as director of global technology and security policy, the SIA said in a May 24 news release. “A seasoned policy practitioner with high-level experience in technology security, export control, and related issues, Meghan Biery will be a strong and capable advocate for our industry’s interests in Washington and around the world," SIA CEO John Neuffer said.