Industry News

Commerce Department Announces Proposed Changes to the USML and CCL Lists

July 25, 2011


At the Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) Annual Update Conference in Washington DC on July 19, 2011, Commerce Department Secretary Gary Locke announced that the government had issued a proposed rule to transfer less sensitive military items from the U.S. Munitions List (USML) to the Commerce Control List (CCL). The notice proposes how items on the USML, which the President says no longer warrant control under the Arms Export Control Act (AECA), would be controlled under the Export Administration Regulations (EAR). This proposed shift in jurisdiction is a part of a larger export reform effort, which aims to create a single, tiered, “positive” export control list. BIS is requesting comments on the proposed rule by September 13, 2011.

BIS published the Proposed Revisions to the Export Administration Regulations (EAR): Control of Items the President Determines No Longer Warrant Control Under the United States Munitions List (USML), in the Federal Register (76 FR 41958), on July 15, 2011. The Federal Register notice proposes a new regulatory construct for the transfer of items on the USML that, in accordance with section 38(f) of the AECA, the President determines no longer warrant control under the AECA. Control of these items would be covered under the EAR once congressional notification requirements have been met and corresponding amendments to the International Traffic in Arms Regulations and its USML, as well as the EAR and its CCL, have been completed. The rule further proposes the transfer of certain items from the USML Category VII to the CCL, as well as amending the EAR to establish a process for making certain items moved from the USML to the CCL eligible for License Exception Strategic Trade Authorization. In addition, the notice proposes EAR amendments such as creating new definitions of relevant terms, including “specially designed,” “end items,” “parts,” and “components.” Finally, the notice proposes establishing a new holding Export Control Classification Number (ECCN) for items that warrant a significant level of control but are not otherwise classified on the CCL.

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