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Implementation of the 2008 Australia Group (AG) Intersessional Decisions; Additions to the List of States Parties to the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC)Jul 06, 2009 (Commerce Department Documents and Publications/ContentWorks via COMTEX) -- SUMMARY: The Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) is publishing this final rule to amend the Export Administration Regulations (EAR) to implement the 2008 Australia Group (AG) intersessional decisions, which were recommended at the Intersessional Implementation Meeting held at The Hague on October 8-9, 2008, and adopted under the AG intersessional silent approval procedures in December 2008. This final rule amends the EAR to reflect changes to the AG "Control List of Dual-Use Chemical Manufacturing Facilities and Equipment and Related Technology and Software" affecting valves and toxic gas monitoring systems. Consistent with these changes, this rule expands the EAR controls on valves to include those having contact surfaces lined with certain ceramic materials. In addition, this rule clarifies the types of dedicated detecting components that are subject to the EAR controls on toxic gas monitoring systems and expands these controls to include dedicated software for such systems. This rule also amends the EAR to reflect changes to the AG "Control List of Dual-Use Biological Equipment and Related Technology and Software" affecting cross (tangential) flow filtration equipment. Consistent with these changes, the rule clarifies the EAR controls on such equipment to specifically identify equipment using disposable or single-use filtration components. In addition, this rule amends the EAR to reflect changes to the AG "Guidelines for Transfers of Sensitive Chemical or Biological Items." Consistent with these changes, the rule amends the AG-related software entries in the EAR to include references to several definitions that were recently added to the AG "Guidelines." Finally, this rule amends the list of countries that currently are States Parties to the CWC by adding "Bahamas," "Dominican Republic," "Iraq," and "Lebanon," which recently became States Parties. As a result of this change, the CW (Chemical Weapons) license requirements and policies in the EAR that apply to these countries now conform with those applicable to other CWC States Parties. However, because of the special EAR controls that apply to Iraq, items controlled under the EAR for CW reasons continue to require a license for export or reexport to Iraq, or for transfer within Iraq. DATES: This rule is effective July 6, 2009. Although there is no formal comment period, public comments on this regulation are welcome on a continuing basis. ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, identified by RIN 0694-AE55, by any of the following methods: * Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov. Follow the instructions for submitting comments. * E-mail: [email protected]. Include "RIN 0694-AE55" in the subject line of the message. * Fax: (202) 482-3355. Please alert the Regulatory Policy Division, by calling (202) 482-2440, if you are faxing comments. * Mail or Hand Delivery/Courier: Willard Fisher, U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of Industry and Security, Regulatory Policy Division, 14th Street & Pennsylvania Avenue, NW., Room 2705, Washington, DC 20230, ATTN: RIN 0694-AE55. Send comments regarding this collection of information, including suggestions for reducing the burden, to Jasmeet Seehra, Office of Management and Budget (OMB), by e-mail to [email protected], or by fax to (202) 395-7285; and to the Regulatory Policy Division, Bureau of Industry and Security, Department of Commerce, 14th Street & Pennsylvania Avenue, NW., Room 2705, Washington, DC 20230. Comments on this collection of information should be submitted separately from comments on the final rule (i.e., RIN 0694-AE55)--all comments on the latter should be submitted by one of the four methods outlined above. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Theodore Curtin, Export Policy Analyst, Chemical and Biological Controls Division, Office of Nonproliferation and Treaty Compliance, Bureau of Industry and Security, Telephone: (202) 482-1975. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) is amending the Export Administration Regulations (EAR) to implement the 2008 Australia Group (AG) intersessional decisions, which were recommended at the Intersessional Implementation Meeting held at The Hague on October 8-9, 2008, and adopted under the AG intersessional silent approval procedures in December 2008. The AG is a multilateral forum, consisting of 40 participating countries, that maintains export controls on a list of chemicals, biological agents, and related equipment and technology that could be used in a chemical or biological weapons program. The AG periodically reviews items on its control list to enhance the effectiveness of participating governments' national controls and to achieve greater harmonization among these controls. The 2008 AG intersessional decisions included changes to the AG "Control List of Dual-Use Chemical Manufacturing Facilities and Equipment and Related Technology and Software" affecting valves and toxic gas monitoring systems. Consistent with these changes, this rule amends Export Control Classification Number (ECCN) 2B350 on the Commerce Control List (CCL) (Supplement No. 1 to Part 774 of the EAR) by revising the controls on valves described in ECCN 2B350.g to include any such valves (including casings or preformed casing liners designed for such valves) that are made from any of the following ceramic materials: (1) Silicon carbide with a purity of 80% or more by weight; (2) aluminum oxide (alumina) with a purity of 99.9% or more by weight; or (3) zirconium oxide (zirconia). This rule also amends ECCN 2B351 on the CCL, which controls certain toxic gas monitoring systems, to specify the types of dedicated detecting components therefor that are controlled under this ECCN (i.e., detectors, sensor devices, and replaceable sensor cartridges). In addition, this rule adds a new ECCN 2D351 to control dedicated software for toxic gas monitoring systems and their dedicated detecting components controlled under ECCN 2B351. Software controlled under this new ECCN requires a license for destinations indicated under CB Column 2 and/or AT Column 1 on the Commerce Country Chart (Supplement No. 1 to Part 738 of the EAR). The rule also makes two related conforming changes by: (1) Amending ECCN 2E001 (technology for the "development" of most 2A, 2B, or 2D items) to add a reference to new ECCN 2D351 under the CB controls paragraph in the License Requirements section of the ECCN and (2) adding a reference to new ECCN 2D351 in Section 742.2(a)(2) of the EAR, which identifies those items that require a license to destinations indicated under CB Column 2 on the Commerce Country Chart. The 2008 AG intersessional decisions also included changes to the AG "Control List of Dual-Use Biological Equipment and Related Technology and Software" affecting cross (tangential) flow filtration equipment. Consistent with these changes, the rule amends ECCN 2B352 on the CCL by revising the controls on cross (tangential) flow filtration equipment described in ECCN 2B352.d to specifically identify any such equipment using disposable or single-use filtration components as subject to control. In addition, the 2008 AG intersessional decisions included changes to the AG "Guidelines for Transfers of Sensitive Chemical or Biological Items." As a result of these decisions, the AG "Guidelines" were revised to include definitions for "software," "program," and "microprogram," as well as language indicating that software identified on the AG Common Control Lists does not include mass market software, i.e., software that: (i) Is generally available to the public by being sold from stock at retail selling points, without restriction, by means of over-the-counter transactions, mail order transactions, electronic transactions, or telephone call transactions and (ii) is designed for installation by the user without further substantial support by the supplier. Since the three definitions that were added to the AG "Guidelines" are currently found in Section 772.1 of the EAR, this rule simply adds a reference to the definitions in the "Related Definitions" paragraph for ECCN 1D390 /1/ on the CCL, which controls "software" for process control that is specifically configured to control or initiate "production" of chemicals controlled by 1C350, and new ECCN 2D351, which controls dedicated software for toxic gas monitoring systems and their dedicated components controlled under ECCN 2B351. This rule does not include in either of these two ECCNs a mass market software exclusion, as described in the AG "Guidelines," because the General Technology Note (Note 2) in Supplement No. 2 to Part 774 of the EAR contains an identical mass market software exclusion, which is available for all software on the CCL (except encryption software controlled for "EI" reasons) under License Exception TSU, and which applies to all destinations, except those identified in Country Group E:1. Note that software that is eligible for the mass market exemption under License Exception TSU is distinct from publicly available software described in Section 734.3(b)(3) of the EAR, since the latter is not subject to the EAR while the former continues to be subject to the EAR. FOOTNOTE 1 Process control software in ECCN 1D390 is not included on the AG "Control List of Dual-Use Chemical Manufacturing Facilities and Equipment and Related Technology and Software." However, BIS controls such software consistent with the chemical/biological (CB) controls described in Section 742.2(a)(2) of the EAR. END FOOTNOTE --This is a summary of a Federal Register article originally published on the page number listed below-- Final rule. CFR Part: "15 CFR Parts 742, 745, and 774" RIN Number: "RIN 0694-AE55" Citation: "74 FR 31850" Document Number: "Docket No. 090113021-9025-01" Federal Register Page Number: "31850" "Rules and Regulations" |