The Foreign Trade Zones Board issued the following notices for Jan. 4:

The Bureau of Industry and Security is publishing a correction to the Commerce Control List at 15 CFR Part 774, in Category 9, Export Control Classification Number 9E003 (here), and a correction to the Entity List under 15 CFR Part 774 Supplement No. 4 (here).

The Foreign Trade Zones Board issued the following notices for Dec. 29:

The Foreign Trade Zones Board issued the following notices for Dec. 28:

The Bureau of Industry and Security added 16 people to its Entity List to ensure the effectiveness of sanctions on Russia for "violating international law and fueling the conflict in eastern Ukraine," it said (here). The rule will take effect Dec. 28. The Entity List identifies entities and other people "reasonably believed" to be involved in, or that "pose a significant risk of being or becoming involved in" activities contrary to U.S. national security or foreign policy, said BIS.

The Bureau of Industry and Security proposed a new guidance on charging and penalty determinations in settlement of administrative enforcement cases, which would amend Part 766 Supplement No. 1 under the Export Administration Regulations, and will accept public comments on the proposed change until Feb. 26 (here). The proposed changes are meant to make administrative penalties more predictable to the public and aligned with those ordered by the Office of Foreign Assets Control, it said. The guidelines would define factors by which violations could be identified as "egregious" or "non-egregious," and help clarify the base penalty amount likely to apply in an enforcement case. Further, factors would be divided into: (1) "aggravating factors," implying willfulness or recklessness; (2) general factors that could be considered aggravating or mitigating depending on the circumstances, which would look at both the absence or presence and adequacy of an internal compliance program; and (3) "mitigating factors," such as remedial measures taken; and (4) other relevant factors on a case-by-case basis.

The Foreign Trade Zones Board issued the following notices for Dec. 23:

The Foreign Trade Zones Board issued the following notices for Dec. 22:

The Foreign Trade Zones Board issued the following notices for Dec. 17:

The Commerce Department set the 12-month 2016 value-added tariff preference level for certain apparel imported directly from Haiti (HTS 9820.61.25 for entry specific claims or 9820.61.30 for aggregate claims) eligible to receive duty-free treatment under the Haitian Hemispheric Opportunity Through Partnership for Encouragement Act (HOPE) (here). For the one-year period beginning on Dec. 20, 2015 and extending through Dec. 19, 2016, the recalculated quantity of imports eligible for preferential treatment under the value-added TPL is 350,962,661square meters equivalent (SME), an increase of nearly 20 million SME over 2015 levels. Apparel articles entered in excess of this TPL will be subject to otherwise applicable duty rates.