Bureau of Industry and Security May 2015 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

This proposed rule would revise the destination control statement in the Export Administration Regulations (EAR) to harmonize the statement required for the export of items subject to the EAR with the destination control statement in the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR). This proposed rule is published in conjunction with the publication of a Department of State, Directorate of Defense Trade Controls proposed rule revising the destination control statement in the ITAR. Both proposed rules being published today by the Departments of Commerce and State are part of the President's Export Control Reform Initiative. This proposed rule is also part of Commerce's retrospective regulatory review plan under Executive Order (E.O.) 13563 (see the SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION for availability of the plan).

The Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) issues this final rule to amend the Export Administration Regulations (EAR) to facilitate Internet-based communications with persons in the Crimea region of Ukraine. This final rule allows exports or reexports without a license to the Crimea region of Ukraine of software that is necessary to enable the exchange of personal communications over the Internet, provided that such software is designated EAR99, or is classified as mass market software under Export Control Classification Number (ECCN) 5D992.c of the EAR, and provided further that such software is widely available to the public at no cost to the user. This final rule is being published simultaneously with the Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) issuance of General License No. 9, which authorizes the export or reexport from the United States or by U.S. persons to the Crimea region of Ukraine of certain services and software incident to the exchange of personal communications over the Internet. This action is consistent with the U.S. Government's policy to promote personal communications between the people in Crimea and the outside world. Lastly, this final rule makes clarifications to the EAR with respect to the addition of the Crimea region of Ukraine provisions in a final rule published on January, 29, 2015, to the EAR. These clarifications are in response to requests that BIS received for guidance on applying these provisions.

The Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) maintains, as part of its Export Administration Regulations (EAR), the Commerce Control List (CCL), which identifies certain of the items subject to Department of Commerce jurisdiction. This final rule revises the CCL to implement changes made to the Wassenaar Arrangement's List of Dual-Use Goods and Technologies (Wassenaar List) maintained and agreed to by governments participating in the Wassenaar Arrangement on Export Controls for Conventional Arms and Dual-Use Goods and Technologies (Wassenaar Arrangement, or WA) at the December 2014 WA Plenary Meeting (the Plenary). The twentieth Plenary meeting of the Wassenaar Arrangement was held in Vienna on 2 to 3 December 2014. The Wassenaar Arrangement advocates implementation of effective export controls on strategic items with the objective of improving regional and international security and stability. Wassenaar Participating States agreed to new export controls in a number of areas, including spacecraft equipment (Category 9) and technology for fly-by-wire/flight-by-light systems (Category 7), while texts for the control of machine tools (Category 2) and optical equipment for military utility and fiber laser components (Category 6) were substantially revised. In addition, significant reviews of several categories resulted in the deletion of obsolete controls relating to vessels (Category 8) and in refined controls on Unmanned Aerial VehiclesUAVs (Category 9), specifically taking note of the substantial progress of technology in that area. Wassenaar Participating States modified controls in a number of other areas, such as equipment for production of electronic devices (Category 3), certain telecommunications equipment where encryption and other ``information security'' functionality is limited to operations, administration, or maintenance (OAM) tasks (Category 5P2), and general purpose computers or servers where standard ``information security'' functionality is provided by embedded mass market microprocessors (CPUs) or operating systems (also Category 5P2). This rule amends the CCL by implementing the changes agreed to by the WA at the Plenary by revising 42 Export Control Classification Numbers (ECCNs), adding one ECCN and removing one ECCN, as well as amending the General Technology Note, WA reporting requirements, adding seven (7) definitions and revising six (6) definitions in the EAR. This rule also revises 3 ECCNs to add License Exception CIV eligibility for Anisotropic plasma dry etching equipment and related software and technology for the development and production of this equipment, as a result of BIS' foreign availability assessment. Country Group A column 1, the Coordinating Committee (CoCom) member countries, is replaced with the successor national security export regime the Wassenaar Arrangement Participating States. In addition, the second national security column and the second regional stability column of the Commerce Country Chart are amended to harmonize with each other, as well as make changes based on the risk of diversion to unauthorized end user, end uses or destinations.

The Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) proposes to implement the agreements by the Wassenaar Arrangement (WA) at the Plenary meeting in December 2013 with regard to systems, equipment or components specially designed for the generation, operation or delivery of, or communication with, intrusion software; software specially designed or modified for the development or production of such systems, equipment or components; software specially designed for the generation, operation or delivery of, or communication with, intrusion software; technology required for the development of intrusion software; Internet Protocol (IP) network communications surveillance systems or equipment and test, inspection, production equipment, specially designed components therefor, and development and production software and technology therefor. BIS proposes a license requirement for the export, reexport, or transfer (in-country) of these cybersecurity items to all destinations, except Canada. Although these cybersecurity capabilities were not previously designated for export control, many of these items have been controlled for their ``information security'' functionality, including encryption and cryptanalysis. This rule thus continues applicable Encryption Items (EI) registration and review requirements, while setting forth proposed license review policies and special submission requirements to address the new cybersecurity controls, including submission of a letter of explanation with regard to the technical capabilities of the cybersecurity items. BIS also proposes to add the definition of ``intrusion software'' to the definition section of the EAR pursuant to the WA 2013 agreements.