Industry urged the Obama administration to waive the proposed 180-day implementation period for the proposed move of spacecraft, including satellites, from category VI of the U.S. Munitions List (USML) to the Commerce Control List (CCL). Associations such as the National Foreign Trade Council (NFTC) said that the proposed rules for spacecraft and related items (see 13052318), published May 24, would bring “clarity to a field of regulation” while enhancing competitiveness in technology sectors. However, NFTC said that the effective date should be “significantly shortened.”

The Export-Import Bank of the United States (Ex-Im Bank) said July 9 it will loan $108 million to Transnet SOC Limited (Transnet), a company based in South Africa, to support the purchase of 53 American-made GE locomotives. Along with another transaction from February 2011 for the sale of 47 GE locomotive kits, Ex-Im Bank will provide a total of $230 million in financing and support the purchase of 100 GE locomotives.

The Commerce and State Departments finalized on July 8 the second set of concurrent rules that transfer equipment to the Commerce Control List from the United States Munitions List (USML), as part of President Obama’s Export Control Reform (ECR) initiative. The final rules transfer military vehicles, vessels of war, auxiliary and miscellaneous items, and submersible vessels and oceanographic equipment, that the Obama administration said no longer require strict USML controls. Set to take effect in 180 days on Jan. 6, 2014, the rules revise USML Categories VII, VI, XX and XIII and create new CCL “600 series” Export Control Classification Numbers (ECCN) for the transferred items.

The Bureau of Industry and Security will hold seminars to inform the public on export control requirements on September 10-11 in Smithfield, RI (here) and Milpitas, CA (here). BIS officials will conduct a separate one day seminar in Milpitas, CA on September 12. The two-day seminars are designed for those that need a comprehensive understanding of export controls under the Bureau’s Export Administration Regulations (EAR), BIS said. The seminars will discuss items and activities subject to EAR and the required licensing, among other things. The one-day seminar will focus on EAR encryption provisions. For information on the Bureau’s seminar program, contact Outreach and Educational Services Division at OESDSeminar@bis.doc.gov or (202) 482-6031.

The State Department loosened International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) controls on export of firearms and components to Canada. Exports of firearms and components with a wholesale value of under $500 for use by the Canadian government will be allowed without a license, said the State Department. Exports of some components of firearms valued at under $500 to Canada will also be allowed without a license, even if not destined for the government, as long as the export is for Canadian end use, it said. The ITAR changes bring the regulations in line with provisions of a 2012 law that prohibits license requirements on such exports. The amendments are effective July 8.

The Commerce Department’s Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) released rule changes on July 5 for export controls on certain military vehicles, water vessels and related items that will now be transferred to the Commerce Control List (CCL) from the United States Munitions List (USML) (here). The State Department concurrently published a rule revising USML Categories VII, VI, XX, and XIII that oversee equipment the president determines warrant USML control (here). Set to become final July 8 and take effect 180 days later, the rules are a part of President Obama’s Export Control Reform (ECR) Initiative.

The Bureau of Industry and Security’s Sensors and Instrumentation Technical Advisory Committee scheduled a partially closed meeting July 30 in Washington D.C. The agenda includes remarks from the Bureau of Industry and Security management, industry presentations and matters of new business. The public portion of the meeting is open via teleconference to 20 participants on a first come, first serve basis. To join the conference, contact Yvette Springer at Yvette.Springer@bis.doc.gov by July 23. There will be a limited number of seats available at the meeting. No reservations are accepted.

The Bureau of Industry and Security’s Emerging Technology and Research Advisory Committee plans a partially closed meeting July 18 in Washington D.C. The agenda includes discussion on recent activities in the scientific community, new technologies and the foreign patent process and technologies submitted for consideration by ETRAC members. There will also be a presentation to BIS officials on technologies submitted by ETRAC members and a question and answer session. The public portion of the meeting is open via teleconference to 40 participants on a first come, first serve basis. To join the conference, contact Yvette Springer at Yvette.Springer@bis.doc.gov by July 11. There will be a limited number of seats available at the meeting. No reservations are accepted.

The U.S. Postal Service will resume delivery of First Class mail to the U.S. Census Bureau’s Foreign Trade Division, the Bureau said July 1 in a bulletin. The postal service had discontinued delivery June 24 (see 13062413). First class mail should be available by July 8, the bulletin said. The Census Bureau didn't comment.

The Bureau of Industry and Security made several corrections to its June 5 final rule implementing changes to export controls on chemicals and biological agents agreed to at the Australia Group (see 13060406). The changes affect the rule’s description of the Australia Group amendments (but not the actual regulations) for ECCN 1C351. BIS is also correcting changes it made to the Export Administration Regulations for ECCN 2B352.