Jessica Lewis, who leads the State Department’s Bureau of Political-Military Affairs, will leave the government this month, Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced July 9. Lewis worked on a range of defense trade issues during her three years with the State Department, including the Biden administration's revamped arms transfer policies (see 2302230049 and 2111040056) and its efforts to harmonize defense export controls with Australia and the U.K. as part of the AUKUS partnership (see 2305240061 and 2309270007). Blinken said Lewis is returning "to private life."
A Hallandale, Florida, resident was charged on July 2 with smuggling controlled goods into Russia from the U.S. Kirill Gordei, president of Florida-based freight forwarding company Apelsin Logistics, faces three counts -- conspiracy to commit offenses against the U.S., smuggling goods from the U.S. and exporting a spectrometer, a controlled item, unlawfully -- DOJ announced. A Belarus citizen and U.S. permanent resident, Gordei faces maximums of five, 10 and 20 years in prison for the charges, respectively.
The Census Bureau on July 1 updated its tables of Schedule B and Harmonized Tariff Schedule codes that are no longer valid for the Automated Export System, the agency said in an email to industry. AES will accept shipments with outdated codes during a 30-day grace period that began when the codes expired June 30, Census said. Reporting an outdated code after the grace period will “result in a fatal error.”
The Bureau of Industry and Security denied, revoked or didn't take action on about one-third of all license applications involving Chinese companies on the Entity List between 2018 and 2023, according to a snapshot of licensing data released by BIS July 2.
The Bureau of Industry and Security this week added six entities to the Entity List for either helping to train China’s military, evading U.S. government end-use checks or shipping export-controlled items to Russia. The agency also updated its Unverified List, adding 13 new parties and removing eight others, including one Russian company that it transferred to the Entity List earlier this year. Both rules took effect July 3.
The Bureau of Industry and Security on July 1 updated its “Don’t Let This Happen to You!” guidance, a 78-page compilation of enforcement cases involving criminal and administrative export violations. Added cases involve violations of U.S. antiboycott regulations, firearms export violations, export violations related to China and Iran, noncompliance with a BIS settlement agreement, and a recent voluntary disclosure submitted by Indiana University involving illegal exports of genetically modified fruit flies (see 2406250022). “Exporters are encouraged to review the publication, which provides useful illustrations of the type of conduct that gets companies and universities in trouble,” BIS said.
The Federal Maritime Commission is looking to revoke a Miami freight forwarder’s ocean transportation intermediary license after its owners illegally exported nearly 600 stolen outboard motors from the U.S., including by providing false shipping documents to CBP. The company, Netcycle Trading, told the FMC it should be allowed to keep the license, but the FMC is asking its administrative law judge to rule against the forwarder after its president submitted “misleading” comments to the commission that downplayed her role in the scheme.
The Bureau of Industry and Security will add six entities to the Entity List and update its Unverified List to include 13 new parties and remove eight others, the agency said in a pair of rules released July 2 and effective July 3.
The Census Bureau is adding EUKOR Car Carriers to its list of carriers participating in the ACE Electronic Export Manifest pilot for vessel cargo, CBP said in a June 27 CSMS message. The carrier is “submitting 100%” EEM and will “not be required to submit the CF 1302A -- Cargo Declaration -- Outward with Commercial Forms, in the Document Image System (DIS) or directly to the port of departure in paper form.”
Exporters must submit electronic export information in the Automated Export System when using the Drug Enforcement Administration’s Form 486 for exports of certain chemicals, the Census Bureau said in a June 27 email to industry. The agency said “it has come to U.S. Census Bureau’s attention that DEA considers DEA Form 486 to be an export permit, and therefore, filing EEI is required.” Census will work with DEA to revise Foreign Trade Regulations “to ensure any DEA permit or declaration that requires prior registration or notification with the DEA requires filing,” the agency said. “In the meantime, please ensure that all exports involving a DEA Form 486 have an associated EEI filing completed, regardless of value and destination.”