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Buffalo FTZ Applies for Streamlined Subzone Procedures
November 19, 2014 |Commerce Dept.

The County of Erie has submitted an application to the Foreign-Trade Zones Board to reorganize the Buffalo-area FTZ 23 under the Alternative Site Framework, said the FTZ Board in a Federal Register notice (here). Under the reorganization, the service area would cover Erie County, New York. The Alternative Site Framework streamlines processes for designation of new FTZ subzones and usage driven sites within the service area by allowing companies to request zone status through the relatively simple "minor boundary modification" process. Comments on the application are due by Jan. 20.

BIS Asks for Comments on 'Schedule 1' Chemical Sales and Purchases
November 18, 2014 |Commerce Dept.

The Bureau of Industry and Security is asking for industry comments on the impact of chemical weapons regulations, drawn from the Chemical Weapons Convention, on commercial sale and purchase of certain chemicals in 2014 (here). The U.S. is one of 175 countries that are party to the convention (here). The BIS request focuses on commercial sale of “Schedule 1” items, which are chemicals considered a high risk in relation to the convention’s goal of eliminating chemical weapons. The Export Administration Regulations scale back the use and sale of these chemicals. BIS will allow industry stakeholders to comment through Dec. 19. BIS encourages stakeholders to submit comments to willard.fisher@bis.doc.gov.

Commerce Slaps Export Ban Over Aircraft Equipment Sales to Iran
November 12, 2014 |Commerce Dept.

The Commerce Department slapped a ten-year ban on export privileges for Mohammad Hakin Hashemi for exporting aircraft parts from the U.S. to Iran without a go ahead from the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Controls (here). The ban takes effect retroactively on Dec. 16, 2013, the date of Hashemi’s conviction in a California district court. Commerce revoked all licenses granted to Hashemi at the time of his conviction. Hashemi is also barred from any involvement in U.S. export activity. BIS said Hashemi's last known address is in London.

Commerce Department Makes Export Control Reform Clarifications for Spacecraft
November 12, 2014 |Commerce Dept.

The Bureau of Industry and Security amended the Export Administration Regulations to clarify a recent rule that transferred items from U.S. Munitions List Category XV (Spacecraft Systems and Associated Equipment) to the Commerce Control List as part of the Obama administration's Export Control Reform (here). The State and Commerce departments finalized the rule in May, and significant portions went into force on Nov. 10 (see 14051224). This Nov. 12 final rule makes only minor clarifications and corrections to the May 13 final rule. This clarification also says compliance with current law on the Destination Control Statement (here) is enough to meet the requirements for shipments that include items subject to both the Export Administration Regulations and the International Traffic in Arms Regulations.

BIS Amends Regs to Limit Military Exports to Venezuela
November 12, 2014 |Commerce Dept.

The Bureau of Industry and Security amended the Export Administration Regulations to further control the export of military and dual-use items to Venezuela in a rebuke of the Venezuelan military’s crackdown on political protests earlier in 2014 (here). The final rule subjects Venezuela to the same controls imposed initially on China in 2007, but extended to Russia in 2014. The controls restrict certain exports to “military end users” or for “military end use.” The term “military end user” means armed forces, police units and intelligence services, as well as supporters of these entities and some other branches of government. The new restrictions do not apply to contracts signed before Nov. 7.

Commerce's Selig Touts Colombia Economic Gains, Infrastructure Boosts
November 7, 2014 |Commerce Dept.

U.S. trade with Latin America is continuing to increase rapidly after accumulating a 70 percent increase in two-way trade since 2009, and Colombia in particular is poised to become a critical partner as that economy skyrockets, said Commerce Undersecretary for International Trade Stefan Selig in Nov. 6 remarks in Bogota (here). The U.S.-Colombia free trade agreement is boosting Colombian exports into the U.S. market, said Selig, adding that an infrastructure revolution in that country will help to grow domestic production and facilitate more foreign commerce. “We all know that Colombia is currently undergoing the largest infrastructure overhaul in the history of the country,” said Selig. “This ambitious plan will look to create up to 5,000 kilometers of road and up to 1,000 kilometers of railroads.”