The State Department’s Directorate of Defense Trade Controls is seeking public comments on an information collection involving notices of “material change” to a DDTC-registered company. Any company making or marketing items controlled under the International Traffic in Arms Regulations and registered with DDTC must notify the agency “in the event of a change in registration information,” or if the company is a party to an ITAR-related merger, acquisition or divestiture, DDTC said. The agency said it needs this information “to ensure registration records are accurate and to determine whether the transaction is in compliance with the regulations.” Comments are due March 18.
The State Department’s Directorate of Defense Trade Controls is working on a new final rule that could add to its list of proscribed countries under the International Traffic in Arms Regulations. Those countries are generally subject to an export license review policy of denial. DDTC sent the rule for interagency review Jan. 12.
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The State Department is adjusting its civil monetary penalties for inflation, the agency said in a notice released Jan. 4. The new amounts, which include revised maximum penalties for violations of the International Traffic in Arms Regulations and the Arms Export Control Act, will apply only to penalties assessed on or after Jan. 5, the agency said.
The State Department’s recently published fall 2023 regulatory agenda mentions rules that will update defense export controls and make other changes and clarifications to the International Traffic in Arms Regulations.
The Commerce Department published its fall 2023 regulatory agenda for the Bureau of Industry and Security, including proposed rules involving its export controls for semiconductors and semiconductor equipment.
The State Department’s Directorate of Defense Trade Controls may be delayed in responding to queries sent to its help desk and response team this week as it catches up to industry inquiries submitted during the holidays, the agency said. Because of the government closure Dec. 25 “and depending on volume of inquires received, responses may be delayed through the following week,” DDTC said. “The processing of classified provisos for delivery may also be delayed.”
An Oakland, California, resident pleaded guilty last week to illegally exporting firearms and other defense items, including night vision goggles. DOJ said Fares Abdo Al Eyani tried to ship the items to Oman from the Port of Oakland in 2019, but U.S. law enforcement stopped the shipment from leaving the country.
The State Department completed an interagency review Dec. 15 for a final rule that could make revisions to the U.S. Munitions List. The rule would amend the International Traffic in Arms Regulations by removing certain high-energy storage capacitors from USML Category XI and “clearly identify” the capacitors that remain controlled in that category. The rule is expected to finalize an April interim final rule that removed export controls from certain high-energy storage capacitors (see 2304260017). The agency first sent the rule for review Oct. 13 (see 2310160008).
The Census Bureau published a set of questions and answers to provide more guidance for Automated Export System users trying to determine how to report the Ultimate Consignee in their Electronic Export Information (see 2310110044 and 2309080052). The Dec. 13 guidance answers questions on items involving ultimate consignees and routed export transactions, transactions that involve a license exception, how Census determines changes in the characteristics of an export that may add value to the item, transactions subject to the International Traffic in Arms Regulations, and more.