The U.S. government, together with industry, needs to set clearer guardrails around sensitive technology shipments destined to China, two panelists said during an event on export controls last week. Another panelist questioned whether the Trump administration is willing to set tougher rules, saying Beijing appears to have recently gained extra leverage and adding that the U.S. has for years failed to deter companies from flouting restrictions against China.
Companies should expect the Bureau of Industry and Security to continue a steady pace of penalties against export violators, particularly for cases involving semiconductors and other advanced technologies, said Gregory Dunlap, the former special agent in charge of the agency’s Los Angeles field office. And if Congress grants the agency’s request for more funding, Dunlap said, BIS could soon have the resources to more quickly carry out investigations and probe a greater number of exporters.
The Bureau of Industry and Security, which is seeking a major budget increase in FY 2026 (see 2505020030), would use the funding boost to add hundreds of employees to enhance its compliance and enforcement capabilities, agency head Jeffrey Kessler said June 12.
The Bureau of Industry and Security is still discussing how it wants to craft its replacement to the Biden-era AI diffusion rule, an agency official said, as well as preparing to finalize recent rules that reduced licensing requirements for exports of certain space-related items and proposed to simplify the License Exception Strategic Trade Authorization. The official also said the Trump administration is considering tweaks to export licensing, acknowledging that applications are taking longer than usual.
The Democratic leaders of two key House committees said this week they’re “deeply concerned” about the Bureau of Industry and Security potentially pivoting away from traditional export control dialogues with allies and asked BIS to respond to oversight questions before the end of next week.
The Bureau of Industry and Security officially announced this week that it plans to rescind the Biden administration’s AI diffusion export control rule and issue a “replacement rule in the future.” The agency also issued new guidance about how using Huawei Ascend chips and other Chinese chips likely violates U.S. export controls, published recommendations for companies to protect their supply chains against “diversion tactics,” and outlined the types of activities involving AI chips and AI models that may trigger a license requirement.
The Trump administration’s plans to reduce export control cooperation with allies, particularly the EU, could lead to more differences between the two jurisdictions' export systems, especially for controls targeted toward China, lawyers said this week.
James Rockas is no longer with the Bureau of Industry and Security after being appointed by the Trump administration to the position of deputy undersecretary in January, two people with knowledge of the matter said. Rockas left BIS last week and moved to the State Department, a Commerce Department spokesperson confirmed. He was replaced by Joe Bartlett, the BIS legislative affairs director.
The Semiconductor Industry Association (SIA) called on the Bureau of Industry and Security April 15 to “rethink” its "flawed" interim final rule on artificial intelligence diffusion, saying the computing chip-related export controls are so complicated and far-reaching that they will harm the long-term international competitiveness of the U.S. semiconductor industry.
The first few weeks of Undersecretary Jeffrey Kessler’s tenure at the Bureau of Industry and Security have been defined by industry uncertainty and skepticism toward career government and business officials, industry members and BIS staff said.