Tightening export controls require industry awareness.U.S. export-control enforcement activities by the Departments of Commerce and State remain on the rise. By September 2006, Commerce enforcement cases already had surpassed the total number of cases in 2005. While the State Department does not publish similar statistics, the defense industry has noted more vigorous enforcement by that agency; as well. One reason for this trend is the increased interagency cooperation and information sharing See data conferencing. during export enforcement. For example, interagency intelligence reports recently led to the seizure of U.S. electronic components by the Commerce Department and Immigration immigration, entrance of a person (an alien) into a new country for the purpose of establishing permanent residence. Motives for immigration, like those for migration generally, are often economic, although religious or political factors may be very important. and Customs Enforcement. The components were supposed to be headed for the United Arab Emirates United Arab Emirates, federation of sheikhdoms (2005 est. pop. 2,563,000), c.30,000 sq mi (77,700 sq km), SE Arabia, on the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman. , but commerce officials determined they were destined des·tine tr.v. des·tined, des·tin·ing, des·tines 1. To determine beforehand; preordain: a foolish scheme destined to fail; a film destined to become a classic. 2. , instead, for Iraq, where they were to be used by insurgents Insurgents, in U.S. history, the Republican Senators and Representatives who in 1909–10 rose against the Republican standpatters controlling Congress, to oppose the Payne-Aldrich tariff and the dictatorial power of House speaker Joseph G. Cannon. in making improvised explosive devices. Export control agencies also focus on compliance relating to relating to relate prep → concernant relating to relate prep → bezüglich +gen, mit Bezug auf +acc foreign nationals in the U.S. work force. Recently, the Commerce Department proposed that the status of foreigners should be based upon country of birth, rather than nationality, triggering an outcry from U.S. business and academic communities. Business attacked the burden and cost of the proposal. Academia contended the change would impede research. Commerce has withdrawn this proposal and formed a private-sector advisory committee to review the deemed export policy. At the first meeting of the committee, Co-Chair Robert M. Gates, president of Texas A&M University, charged that the deemed export issue "strikes at the heart of scientific inquiry and economic competitiveness." The problem, Gates told reporters, "has the potential to be a very serious one." The Defense Department also weighed in on the deemed exports issue. An export of technology or controlled information 1. Information conveyed to an adversary in a deception operation to evoke desired appreciations. 2. Information and indicators deliberately conveyed or denied to foreign targets to evoke invalid official estimates that result in foreign official actions advantageous to US is deemed to take place when it is released to a foreign national within the United States United States, officially United States of America, republic (2005 est. pop. 295,734,000), 3,539,227 sq mi (9,166,598 sq km), North America. The United States is the world's third largest country in population and the fourth largest country in area. . The department previously proposed new requirements to prevent unauthorized disclosure of export-controlled information and technology under defense contracts. Many public comments to this proposal took issue with the department's attempt to craft new export-control requirements, many conflicting with existing regulations. In August, the Pentagon amended the proposal to recognize contractor responsibilities to comply with existing commerce and state regulations. However, the amended proposal also includes new Defense Federal Acquisition Regulations The Federal Acquisition Regulation (usually referred to as the FAR or F.A.R.), are a series of regulations issued by the Federal government of the United States that concern the requirements of contractors for selling to the government, the terms under which the . It also changes existing DFAR DFAR Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation DFAR DoD Federal Acquisition Regulation DFAR Deadlock-Free Adaptive Routing DFAR Dod Federal Acquisition Regulations requirements for contracts involving export-controlled information or technology and for foreign nationals' access to export-controlled information or technology related to fundamental defense research. Then comes China. While the long-standing arms embargo against China remains unchanged, in July; Commerce proposed a rule making "dual-use" exports to China--items with both commercial and military or proliferation applications--more difficult. This proposed rule would add 47 commodities, materials, software and technology not currently controlled for exports, if destined for military end-use in China. If adopted, this rule will significantly increase the number of export licenses required for China transactions. Finally, in March, each export-control violation increased from $11,000 to $50,000. Congress is considering legislation further increasing penalties to $120,000 per violation. These developments underscore some of the complexities of the existing regulatory landscape and help explain why defense, aerospace and other high-tech exporters are prioritizing their compliance programs. In January, Doug Bain, Boeing's then-senior vice president and general counsel, in a speech to the company's leadership, identified export controls as the biggest issue facing the organization, noting: "The cultural question we need to ask is, do we view export as somebody else's problem, because 'my job is to sell product?' Or is it all of our responsibilities?" These remarks cut to the heart of the issue--making sure all levels of the exporting company understand the export control landscape. Warren E. Buffett recently observed, in his published letter to Berkshire Hathaway Managers, that the argument that "everybody else is doing it" when the "it" is not ethical could not be more wrong. This attitude obviously raises a huge red flag in the export community. Vigilance will be the hallmark in export compliance for the indefinite future. As Buffett puts it, "culture, more than rule books, determines how an organization behaves." With this in mind, take into account a company's export-compliance posture and consider the following steps: * Implement a comprehensive export-control compliance and ethics program History There has been a long history of business and government excesses and subsequent legal, public and political reaction. Response to criminal misconduct has resulted in legal sanctions, governance practices, compliance standards and cultural transformation. . * Assign senior corporate officials with responsibility for the implementation and oversight of the program. * Ensure effective communication with all employees through regular compliance training and certifications. * Establish an effective reporting system enabling all employees to flag suspicious export conduct without fear of retribution. * Implement effective disciplinary measures to cover violations. * Implement detailed export-control due-diligence requirements in mergers and acquisitions to avoid successor liability. * Include relevant export-control-compliance language in all agreements, contracts and other relevant documentation. * Periodically provide for independent audits by outside counsel and compliance experts. * Educate staff on when and how export-control-compliance personnel and counsel can and must stay current on relevant issues. * Stay abreast of export-control developments and advocate on the company's behalf in the export community. The authors are attorneys at the law firm of Greenberg Traurig LLP LLP - Lower Layer Protocol . The opinions expressed here are solely those of the authors and are not intended to provide legal advice or represent the view of NDIA NDIA National Defense Industrial Association NDIA New Doha International Airport (Qatar) or the NDIA Ethics Committee ethics committee A multidisciplinary hospital body composed of a broad spectrum of personnel–eg, physicians, nurses, social workers, priests, and others, which addresses the moral and ethical issues within the hospital. See DNR, Institutional review board. . NDIA ETHICS COMMITTEE John D. Illgen Vice President, Northrop Grumman Simulation Technologies Corporation Tofie M. Owen Jr. Senior Vice President for Corporate Development, SAIC SAIC - http://saic.com. James L. Pierce Consultant (Former Chairman & CEO (1) (Chief Executive Officer) The highest individual in command of an organization. Typically the president of the company, the CEO reports to the Chairman of the Board. , ARINC ARINC Aeronautical Radio, Inc. ARINC Aircraft Radio Incorporated ARINC Aeronautical Research Incorporated Inc.) Thomas W. Rabaut President, BAlE Systems Land and Armaments Joe R. Reeder, Esq. Attorney, Greenberg Traurig LLP Lawrence A. Skantze General Lawrence Albert Skantze is a retired United States Air Force four star general and was commander, Air Force Systems Command at Andrews Air Force Base, Maryland. Skantze was born in 1928, in the Bronx, New York. Gen., USAF (Ret.) W. John Stoddart Executive Vice President and President Defense, Oshkosh Truck Corporation William Usher Maj. Gen., USA (Ret.), President, National Correlation Working Group TRUSTEES Dr. Vincent J. Ciccone President & CEO, RASco Inc. Mary E. Lacey Program Executive Officer, National Security Personnel System James McAleese Principal, McAleese & Associates Lewis A. Palumbo Senior Vice President, U.S. Business Development, Raytheon Company |
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