Industry and Security Bureau October 2006 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) is requesting public comments on the effectiveness of its licensing procedures as defined in the Export Administration Regulations for the export of agricultural commodities to Cuba. BIS will include a description of these comments in its biennial report to the Congress, as required by the Trade Sanctions Reform and Export Enhancement Act of 2000 (Pub. L. 106-387), as amended.

On June 14, 2002, the Bureau of Industry and Security (``BIS'') published a notice in the Federal Register that set forth a list of persons in foreign countries who were parties to past export transactions where pre-license checks or post-shipment verifications could not be conducted for reasons outside the control of the U.S. Government (``Unverified List''). Additionally, on July 16, 2004, BIS published a notice in the Federal Register that advised exporters that the Unverified List would also include persons in foreign countries in transactions where BIS is not able to verify the existence or authenticity of the end-user, intermediate consignee, ultimate consignee, or other party to the transaction. Those notices advised exporters that the involvement of a listed person as a party to a proposed transaction constitutes a ``red flag'' as described in the guidance set forth in Supplement No. 3 to 15 CFR part 732, requiring heightened scrutiny by the exporter before proceeding with such a transaction. This notice adds fourteen entities to the Unverified List. The entities are: Semicom Technology International LLC, in the UAE, Amiran Trading Company in the UAE, Sarelica (Sar Elica) FZC in the UAE, Fuchs Oil Middle East in the UAE, Parto Abgardan in the UAE, Vitaswiss Limited in the UAE, Al-Thamin General Trading LLC, in the UAE, Reza Nezam Trading in the UAE, Davood Khosrojerdi, dba Al Musafer Tourism and Cargo in the UAE, Part Tech Co., in the UAE, Bazar Trading Co., in the UAE, Al Aarif Factory Equipment Trading LLC in the UAE, Centre Bright Company in Hong Kong, and IC Trading Ltd., in Russia.

This notice is to advise the public that the National Defense Stockpile Market Impact Committee, co-chaired by the Departments of Commerce and State, is seeking public comments on the potential market impact of the proposed disposal levels of excess materials for the Fiscal Year (FY) 2008 Annual Materials Plan.

The Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) is publishing this proposed rule to amend the Chemical Weapons Convention Regulations (CWCR) to expedite the collection of information concerning the inspection status of plant sites that produce unscheduled discrete organic chemicals (UDOCs) subject to the declaration requirements of the CWCR, to clarify the scope of the CWCR records review and recordkeeping requirements, and to update the maximum civil penalty that may be imposed for violations of the CWCR restrictions on imports of CWC Schedule 1 and Schedule 2 chemicals. The CWCR include requirements to declare certain activities, involving scheduled chemicals and UDOCs, and to provide access for on-site verification by international inspectors of certain declared facilities in the United States. Specifically, this proposed rule would amend the CWCR by revising the annual declaration requirements for UDOCs to allow a ``declared'' plant site currently subject to inspection, which anticipates that its production of UDOCs during the current calendar year will be below the inspection threshold level indicated in the CWCR, to submit a Change in Inspection Status Form to BIS by December 15th of the current calendar year. In addition, any such UDOC plant site containing at least one plant that anticipates producing an individual PSF chemical (i.e., a UDOC containing the elements phosphorus, sulfur or fluorine) in quantities that exceed the declaration threshold for such chemicals would have the option of submitting its Annual Declaration on Past Activities, in lieu of a Change in Inspection Status Form, by December 15th of the current calendar year. Otherwise, the CWCR require that the Annual Declaration on Past Activities be submitted by February 28th of the following year. The information provided to BIS, as a result of this change, would ensure that the plant site would not be subject to inspection during the first 90 days of the next calendar year (i.e., the year after the UDOC activities took place), which is the period when the United States compiles its annual declaration on past activities for submission to the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW). In addition, this information would strengthen the verification regime of the CWC by allowing the OPCW to schedule inspections, on a year-round basis, of those UDOC facilities in the United States that meet or exceed the inspection threshold level indicated in the CWCR. This proposed rule would also amend the CWCR by revising the records review provisions to clarify that a facility must provide the OPCW Inspection Team with access to all supporting materials and documentation used by the facility to prepare declarations and to otherwise comply with the CWCR, including records related to activities that have taken place at the facility since the beginning of the previous calendar year (i.e., up to and including the date of the inspection), even if the facility has not submitted its current year Annual Declaration on Past Activities to BIS at the time the inspection takes place. In addition, this rule would revise the CWCR records review and recordkeeping requirements to clarify that the types of records that are subject to these requirements include all supporting materials and documentation associated with the movement into, around, and from the facility of declared chemicals and their feedstock or any product chemicals formed from such chemicals and feedstock. The purpose of this clarification would be to ensure that the CWCR records review and recordkeeping requirements fully conform with the inspection aims described in the inspection provisions of the CWCR, which include verifying the absence of Schedule 1 chemicals and the non-diversion of Schedule 1 and Schedule 2 chemicals. Finally, this rule would amend the enforcement provisions of the CWCR to increase the maximum civil penalty that may be imposed for violations of the CWCR restrictions on imports of CWC Schedule 1 or Schedule 2 chemicals from $11,000 to $50,000 to reflect amendments to the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) made by the USA PATRIOT Improvement and Reauthorization Act of 2005, which was enacted on March 9, 2006.