The Senate on May 8 confirmed Judith DelZoppo Pryor, Spencer Bachus and Kimberly Reed to the board of directors of the Export-Import Bank of the United States. Pryor and Bachus will serve as board members and Reed will serve as the bank’s president. Pryor and Reed serve terms through Jan. 20, 2021; Bachus' term is through Jan. 20, 2023. The confirmations gave the bank enough directors for a quorum to approve transactions of more than $10 million (see 1905070009). The U.S. Chamber of Commerce praised the confirmations in a May 8 statement: “Their confirmation restores Ex-Im to full functionality and will allow the Bank to get back to its critical mission of supporting U.S. exporters.”
The Department of Justice issued an updated guidance for corporate compliance programs, describing how “well-designed” programs should work and detailing what Justice expects from those programs, the department said in an April 30 press release. The 19-page guide aims to “harmonize” compliance guidance with standards from other departments, DOJ said, while “providing additional context to the multifactor analysis of a company’s compliance program.”
The Senate voted to close the debate on nominees for the Export-Import Bank of the United States’ board of directors on May 3, clearing the way for their confirmation, according to a press release from the Aerospace Industries Association. The nominees would give the bank enough directors for a quorum to approve transactions of more than $10 million, according to the release: “Should the nominees be confirmed, the Bank will be fully functional for the first time in four years.”
The National Shooting Sports Foundation supports President Donald Trump's plans to withdraw from the Arms Trade Treaty (see 1904260063), the group said in a news release. "The treaty was intended to control the international trade in firearms under the guise of protecting human rights," the group said. "The National Shooting Sports Foundation strongly opposed the treaty as it would have exposed the firearms and ammunition industry to a confusing web of international regulations that would not have contributed to curbing illegal arms trafficking, protecting human rights or guaranteeing the rights of United States citizens." The international sales of arms are still "highly regulated by U.S. law and this action has no effect upon these stringent export controls," the group said.
The Department of Justice is drawing closer to completing regulations for the Foreign Investment Risk Review Modernization Act of 2018, Deputy Assistant Attorney General Adam Hickey said, and is “working closely” with the Treasury Department to develop regulations for the “expanded authority” it grants the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS). Speaking at the National Conference on CFIUS and Team Telecom on April 24, Hickey presented FIRRMA and CFIUS as making the U.S. a more “attractive” alternative for investment than China while criticizing that country’s “foreign ownership restrictions, joint venture requirements” and “vague” approval processes that allow the Chinese government to “pressure [U.S. companies] to transfer their technology as a condition of market access.”