To enhance U.S. and allied restrictions on dual-use exports, the Biden administration’s FY 2025 budget request, unveiled March 11, would provide $223 million for the Bureau of Industry and Security, up 17%, or $32 million, from the FY 2024 enacted level of $191 million, the Commerce Department said.
DOJ officials said they have seen a rise in voluntary self-disclosures in recent months, including for possible violations of export controls and sanctions. They also stressed that the agency is continuing to double down on its enforcement resources, including by hiring more prosecutors and starting a new whistleblower initiative to better incentivize tips about corporate wrongdoing.
A federal grand jury indicted Chinese national Linwei Ding, also known as Leon Ding, for allegedly stealing trade secrets on artificial intelligence technology from Google, DOJ announced March 6. Ding, who was residing in California, purportedly transferred the trade secrets from "Google's network to his personal account while secretly affiliating himself with" Chinese companies in the AI industry.
U.S. sanctions and export control agencies this week warned foreign companies about the risks they may face for poor compliance with U.S. trade rules, saying the government can pursue civil and criminal penalties against businesses for a range of transactions that take place outside U.S. borders. The new “tri-seal compliance note” published by DOJ, the Commerce Department and the Treasury Department includes a list of activities that most commonly place foreign firms at risk, outlines how U.S. export licensing requirements can apply to shipments through third countries, and summarizes recent enforcement actions taken by all three agencies to punish violators.
Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., who chairs the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, has asked the Commerce Department for several types of information to help his panel better understand how Russia overcame export controls and sanctions to obtain U.S. technology for its military.
U.S. companies that sell defense products or services to foreign countries or entities must report all offsets agreements greater than $5 million to the Bureau of Industry and Security by June 15, the agency said in a notice. Companies also must report information on offsets transactions completed “in performance of existing offsets commitments for which offsets credit” of $250,000 or more “has been claimed from the foreign representative,” the notice said. Commerce is asking for reports of offsets transactions that took place during calendar year 2023.
The compromise six-bill appropriations package that congressional negotiators unveiled March 3 contains $191 million for the Bureau of Industry and Security in FY 2024, the same as the FY 2023 enacted level and $31 million below the Biden administration’s request.
Companies should continue to see more Chinese additions to the U.S. Entity List this year, although Russia sanctions likely will continue to dominate the government’s time and resources, trade lawyers said this week.
New regulations that the Commerce Department is considering for commercial gun export licenses would “devastate” the American firearms industry by imposing overly burdensome requirements, Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, and 11 other Republican senators told the agency.
The U.S. announced a new set of sweeping Russia-related export controls and sanctions last week to mark the two-year anniversary of Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine and to respond to Russian opposition figure Alexei Navalny's death in prison. The measures include nearly 100 additions to the Commerce Department’s Entity List, more than 500 sanctions designations by the Treasury and State departments and new government guidance, including a new business advisory to warn companies about Russia-related compliance risks.