The Trump administration has withdrawn the nomination for Landon Heid to be the assistant secretary for export administration at the Bureau of Industry and Security. Steven Haines is serving in that role on an interim basis as he awaits Senate confirmation as assistant secretary for industry and analysis within the International Trade Administration, according to a BIS official. Spokespeople for BIS and the White House didn't respond to requests for comment.
The Bureau of Industry and Security is adding 32 entities to the Entity List for either circumventing export controls on China, supplying controlled items to Russia, evading BIS end-use checks or other activities that BIS said breached U.S. export rules. The additions include 23 entities located in China, along with others based in India, Singapore, Taiwan, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates, the agency said in a final rule released and effective Sept. 12. 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 or policy of denial.
The Defense Department routinely funds research by Chinese entities that the U.S. government has placed on restricted lists for their ties to China’s military or role in human rights abuses, compromising the value of those designations, the House Select Committee on China said in a new report released Sept. 5.
The Commerce Department’s spring 2025 regulatory agenda for the Bureau of Industry and Security features more than 20 new rulemakings that could introduce new or update existing export controls, including restrictions over advanced AI chips, emerging technologies, Russia-related controls and other revisions to the Export Administration Regulations.
An Estonian national was extradited to the U.S. on Aug. 28 to face charges of conspiracy to violate U.S. export controls by sourcing U.S.-made electronics for use by the Russian government and military, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of New York announced. Andrey Shevlyakov faces 18 total counts related to the international procurement scheme.
A newly required annual report to Congress on certain dual-use export license applications could cause exporters to be more cautious about seeking those licenses, a trade lawyer said in an interview.
A new law that will require the Bureau of Industry and Security to provide Congress with annual reports on certain export licensing information could lead to more "scrutiny" over BIS licensing activity, including through congressional hearings, Akin said in a client alert this week. The firm also said it could increase congressional requests to certain exporters or give rise to more legislation "regarding the scope of controls, parties to be added" to the Entity List or the Military End User List, or "requests for revocation of licenses."
The EU and the Czech Republic should reject India-based Aurobindo Pharma’s proposed $5.5 billion acquisition of Prague-based Zentiva, the Coalition for a Prosperous America said Aug. 20, arguing that the deal would threaten European pharmaceutical security because of Aurobindo’s connection to China.
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The more than $140 million U.S. penalty levied on California chip firm Cadence in July (see 2507290026) is the latest signal that companies should prepare for increasingly "aggressive" export control enforcement, especially for violators of technology controls against China, law firms said. One firm said it shows that the government expects companies to provide access to business information located in China -- even if that may violate China’s anti-foreign sanctions laws -- while another firm said it highlights the challenges companies face when determining whether a customer is a front company for a party on the Entity List.