The Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) under the U.S. Department of Commerce recently announced an administrative settlement of $54,000 with Princeton University for potential export violations that the university self-disclosed.   What can the research compliance and academic community learn from this case?  #1:  It’s Not Just Biologicals The root of the export controls enforcement case is that Princeton University did not have the required BIS export licenses before shipping various strains and recombinants of animal pathogens to various international destinations.  Th ..read more

Co-Author, Allen A. DiPalma, Senior Consultant at Traliance Lemonade and summertime.  They go hand-in-hand like the export controls regulations and contract terms.  Many people likely find it more relaxing to sit down with a cool glass of lemonade on a hot summer day versus analyze Federal Register Notices.  We’re here to make the connection between export controls and contracts a bit easier to tackle.  This article will explain 6 actions you can take to get a handle on contract terms and conditions that can significantly affect the export controls requirements that your un ..read more

Co-Author, Cynthia Roberts, Senior Consultant at Traliance   How many times do export controls compliance leaders hear “Why? That doesn’t make sense”?  The simple response is that it doesn’t need to make sense.  The U.S. government’s export controls regulations are…well, regulations.  When working overseas or with foreign national personnel in the U.S., you need to understand the export controls rules, deemed export rules, and how they apply to your organization.  The longer answer is that there is a broader motivation and international root to the U.S. export controls ..read more

Lead Author:  Allen A. DiPalma, Senior Consultant at Traliance Background: NSPM-33 Starting in January 2021 with the release of National Security Presidential Memorandum 33 (NSPM-33), the federal government set in motion a coordinated approach to improving research security within the U.S. research enterprise. The original NSPM-33 memo was directed at federal agencies and was augmented a year later through the release of implementation guidance issued by the National Science and Technology Council (NSTC) through its Joint Committee on the Research Environment (JCORE). The JCORE NSPM-33 Im ..read more

Co-Author, Cynthia Roberts, Senior Consultant at Traliance Export controls trivia time! Which of the following reasons is sufficient to exclude an item from coverage under U.S. export control regulations? A) The item is not located in the U.S. B) The item was not made in the U.S. C) The item was not made in the U.S. and is not located in the U.S. D) None of the above. To the surprise of many, the correct answer is (D) None of the above.  Although most of the Export Administration Regulations (EAR) focus on U.S. exports, it also covers diverse activities including transfers of certain fore ..read more

Amid heightened geopolitical tensions between the United States and China, we are devoting two articles to helping the academic and research  organizations dissect 6 of the essential items under the new U.S. export controls related to China. In Part 1, we explored the complexities created by the new Commerce Department requirements. In Part 2, we will further expand on BIS’ activities and navigate the additional requirements of OFAC and the Department of Defense. We will also cover some enforcement cases to help illustrate what the authorities expect from organizations and their employees ..read more

The past couple of years have been tumultuous for U.S.-Sino relations, affecting export controls compliance needs and beyond. 2020 was a year that reshaped the political landscape between the U.S. and China. The Trump administration took no less than 210 public actions related to the People’s Republic of China (PRC). The actions involved at least ten departments supporting what the Trump administration called a “whole-of-government approach” to counter a wide range of national security threats posed by the policies and practices of the PRC government. In January 2021, the ties between the ..read more

The U.S. and its allies have enforced the broadest package of sanctions and export controls on Russia, Belarus, and two occupied regions in Ukraine (Donetsk and Luhansk) to stop the invasion of Ukraine. The U.S., U.K., and the European Union have decided to unleash wide, novel, and plurilateral punitive measures targeting Russia and Belarus. Australia, Japan, Canada, New Zealand, and South Korea have also imposed restrictions, and governments, including Singapore and Taiwan, have signaled they will support the new sanctions. Combined, these restrictions are possibly the strictest measures ever ..read more

This article is about an unusual combination:  sanctions and optimism.  I am focusing on economic sanctions with optimism that international travel and international research endeavors will rebound when the world can look at the COVID pandemic in the rearview mirror.  In the “normal” pre-COVID environment, we had seen consistent interest from U.S. universities in legally engaging in activities related to Cuba or Cuban nationals.  The reality that the U.S. government has put Cuba under sanctions longer than any other country in the world has served as an important regulatory ..read more

As we each continuously define our own new normal and learn to navigate it, I was reflecting on all the ways the day-to-day issues have changed in the world of research compliance.  This includes, but stretches beyond, export controls compliance.   Below are 5 ways university research compliance has been affected by COVID and the new work environment.  The varied nature of this list reminds us that export compliance, research compliance, and research security overall impact all parts of university operations.   While international travel has become much less of an issu ..read more