[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 8288 Introduced in House (IH)]

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119th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 8288

 To amend the Export Control Reform Act of 2018 to provide assistance 
                     for compliance with that Act.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             April 15, 2026

  Mr. Amo (for himself and Mr. Shreve) introduced the following bill; 
         which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To amend the Export Control Reform Act of 2018 to provide assistance 
                     for compliance with that Act.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Strengthening Export Controls 
Compliance Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds the following:
            (1) The Export Control Reform Act of 2018 calls on the 
        Secretary of Commerce ``to establish a system to provide United 
        States persons with assistance in complying with'' United 
        States export controls as well as ``keep the public 
        appropriately apprised of changes in policy, regulations, and 
        procedures'' established under that Act.
            (2) The Export Control Reform Act of 2018 also calls on the 
        Secretary of Commerce to report annually to Congress on 
        ``efforts to provide exporters with compliance assistance, 
        including specific actions to assist small- and medium-sized 
        businesses''.
            (3) The Bureau of Industry and Security also generally 
        holds an annual update conference on export controls to 
        increase the public's and industry's understanding of United 
        States export controls policies, as well as provide compliance 
        guidance and regulatory updates.

SEC. 3. SENSE OF CONGRESS.

    It is the sense of Congress that--
            (1) it is critical for the national security and 
        technological leadership of the United States that the Bureau 
        of Industry and Security of the Department of Commerce 
        consistently inform and educate United States businesses on 
        evolving export control regulations and their implementation; 
        and
            (2) seminars and trainings offered by the Bureau of 
        Industry and Security can serve as a valuable resource for 
        United States businesses, especially small- and medium-sized 
        enterprises, that do not have large compliance departments.

SEC. 4. COMPLIANCE ASSISTANCE.

    Section 1757 of the Export Control Reform Act of 2018 (50 U.S.C. 
4816) is amended by striking subsection (c) and inserting the 
following:
    ``(c) Assistance for U.S. Industry.--
            ``(1) Industry outreach plan.--Every two years, the 
        President shall develop and submit to Congress a plan to assist 
        United States persons, especially small- and medium-sized 
        United States businesses, in export licensing and other 
        processes under this part. The plan should include the 
        following:
                    ``(A) Arrangements for the Department of Commerce 
                to provide counseling to United States persons on 
                filing applications and related submissions, including 
                identifying items controlled under this part.
                    ``(B) Proposals for virtual and in-person 
                trainings, seminars, and conferences to educate United 
                States businesses on export controls, Bureau of 
                Industry and Security licensing procedures, and related 
                obligations.
                    ``(C) Other activities to facilitate compliance by 
                United States businesses, including review of company 
                compliance plans, follow-up on license conditions, and 
                company specific consultations on specific issues.
            ``(2) Annual conference.--The Secretary shall host an 
        annual conference, to be known as the `Update Conference on 
        Export Controls and Policy', to provide compliance assistance 
        and policy updates to industry and other stakeholders. The 
        conference should be listed on the Bureau of Industry and 
        Security's website and open to anyone from the general public.
            ``(3) Compliance assistance for new rules.--Prior to the 
        promulgation of major new rules to carry out this part, the 
        Bureau of Industry and Security shall carry out dedicated 
        public and industry outreach to share details with respect to 
        the intent and implementation of the rule, with the goal of 
        strengthening compliance.''.

SEC. 5. AMENDMENTS TO THE ANNUAL REPORT.

    Section 1765(a) of the Export Control Reform Act of 2018 (50 U.S.C. 
4824(a)) is amended--
            (1) in the matter preceding paragraph (1), by striking ``a 
        review of'';
            (2) in paragraph (4), insert ``a detailed list of'' before 
        ``efforts'';
            (3) in paragraph (8), strike ``and'' at the end;
            (4) in paragraph (9), by striking the period at the end and 
        inserting ``; and''; and
            (5) by adding at the end the following:
            ``(10) information on the number of Advisory Opinion and 
        Commodity Classification requests, including--
                    ``(A) the number of requests submitted;
                    ``(B) the number of Advisory Opinion or Commodity 
                Classifications issued as a result of the requests 
                submitted under subparagraph (A);
                    ``(C) the average processing times for each 
                category of request; and
                    ``(D) the number of redacted Advisory Opinions of 
                general applicability posted.''.
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