[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 8689 Introduced in House (IH)]
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119th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 8689
To authorize to be established an Office of Export Controls and Border
Security within the Bureau of Arms Control and Nonproliferation of the
Department of State, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
May 7, 2026
Mr. Jackson of Texas introduced the following bill; which was referred
to the Committee on Foreign Affairs
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To authorize to be established an Office of Export Controls and Border
Security within the Bureau of Arms Control and Nonproliferation of the
Department of State, and for other purposes.
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 ``Strategic Export Controls and Border
Security Enhancement Act''.
SEC. 2. SENSE OF CONGRESS.
It is the sense of Congress that the Department of State plays a
central role in advancing the foreign policy and national security
interests of the United States by--
(1) engaging in diplomacy to promote compliance with United
States nonproliferation objectives and to strengthen
responsible trade in strategic and dual-use items;
(2) strengthening cooperation with allies, partners, and
multilateral institutions to prevent the proliferation of
weapons of mass destruction and related materials and
technologies, including their delivery systems, through
implementation of export controls and enhanced border security
and customs enforcement;
(3) enhancing the capacity of foreign governments in
developing and implementing strategic trade control systems
consistent with United States foreign policy objectives and
national security; and
(4) supporting an Office of Export Controls and Border
Security within the Bureau of Arms Control and Nonproliferation
of the Department of State as a core instrument of United
States nonproliferation, export control, and border security
assistance, including by sustaining cooperation in priority
regions to strengthen strategic trade controls, customs
enforcement capacity, and interdiction of proliferation-
sensitive goods and related technologies, including dual-use
items.
SEC. 3. OFFICE OF EXPORT CONTROLS AND BORDER SECURITY.
(a) Establishment.--There is authorized to be established, within
the Bureau of Arms Control and Nonproliferation of the Department of
State, an Office of Export Controls and Border Security, (in this Act
referred to as the ``Office''), to perform such functions as the Under
Secretary for Arms Control and International Security, or a designee,
may prescribe.
(b) Purpose.--The purpose of the Office program shall be to advance
United States foreign policy and national security objectives by
strengthening the capabilities of partner countries to protect United
States-origin critical technologies and proliferation-sensitive goods
and related technologies, including dual-use items, from diversion,
unauthorized transfer, or misuse.
(c) Activities.--In carrying out the purpose described under
subsection (b), the Office should, as appropriate--
(1) support the development and implementation of legal and
regulatory frameworks, licensing systems, and enforcement
capabilities governing the export, reexport, and in-country
transfer of proliferation-sensitive goods and related
technologies, including dual-use items;
(2) strengthen partner country capacity to prevent
diversion, unauthorized transfer, or misuse of proliferation-
sensitive goods and related technologies, including dual-use
items, end-uses and end-users that the Office determines may
increase the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and
related materials and technologies;
(3) enhance the ability of partner countries to detect and
interdict diversion, unauthorized transfer, or misuse of
proliferation-sensitive goods and related technologies,
including dual-use items, at borders, ports of entry, and other
transit points, including through training, technical
assistance, and the provision of appropriate equipment;
(4) assist in--
(A) securing international trade of goods that may
increase the proliferation of weapons of mass
destruction and related materials and technologies; and
(B) disrupting networks that may increase the
proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and
related materials and technologies; and
(5) carry out such other activities as the Under Secretary
for Arms Control and International Security determines
appropriate to advance the purposes of the Office.
SEC. 4. EXPORT CONTROLS AND BORDER SECURITY STRATEGY.
(a) In General.--The Secretary of State, acting through the Office
of Export Controls and Border Security, and in consultation with the
heads of each other relevant Federal department or agency the Secretary
determines appropriate, shall develop and implement a strategy to align
and enhance United States foreign assistance in export controls to
strengthen their effectiveness, reduce evasion risks, prevent
diversion, unauthorized transfer, or misuse of proliferation-sensitive
goods and related technologies, including dual-use items, and promote
secure and resilient global supply chains.
(b) Elements.--The strategy should include, as appropriate--
(1) coordination across any other relevant Federal
department or agency to ensure alignment with respect to export
controls and border security programs;
(2) coordination with interagency and foreign government
assistance programs, to identify and address gaps in global
export controls enforcement that may be exploited by state and
non-state actors, and to strengthen border security, customs
enforcement, and controls at ports of entry;
(3) identification of priority regions, countries, and
transit hubs where the risk of diversion, unauthorized
transfer, or misuse of proliferation-sensitive goods and
related technologies is significant to inform cooperation under
this section;
(4) engagement with allies, partners, and multilateral
entities to promote interoperable border security standards,
customs modernization, secure trade corridors, and regional
cooperation, in coordination with other Bureaus of the
Department of State, including the Bureau of International
Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs and the Bureau of
International Organizations; and
(5) use of artificial intelligence tools, and other
advanced analytics tools to enhance the effectiveness of the
Office's activities, including risk identification and support
for customs enforcement in recipient countries.
(c) Report to Congress.--Not later than 180 days after the date of
enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State, in consultation with the
heads of other relevant Federal departments or agencies, shall submit
to the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives and
the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate a report containing
the results of the strategy.
(d) Form of Report.--The strategy shall be submitted in
unclassified form, but may include a classified annex if necessary to
protect national security interests.
(e) Intra-Departmental Coordination.--
(1) In general.--The Secretary of State may establish
procedures to ensure the coordination, integration, and
deconfliction of border security assistance programs conducted
by--
(A) the Bureau of International Narcotics and Law
Enforcement Affairs;
(B) the Bureau of Counterterrorism;
(C) the Bureau of Arms Control and
Nonproliferation; and
(D) any other relevant bureau or office of the
Department of State the Secretary determines is engaged
in such activities.
(2) Elements.--The procedures under this subsection should
include, as appropriate, measures to--
(A) align assistance programs with United States
foreign policy and national security objectives, while
seeking to minimize potential duplication;
(B) establish mechanisms for joint planning,
deconfliction, implementation, and evaluation of border
security and export control assistance programs, where
appropriate;
(C) promote efficient use of resources, including
coordination of training, equipment, and capacity-
building activities in support of United States foreign
policy and national security objectives; and
(D) require periodic review of any potential
overlapping activities of programs in priority regions.
SEC. 5. DEFINITIONS.
In this Act:
(1) The term ``proliferation-sensitive goods and related
technologies'' means items, materials, software, or technology
that could contribute to the development, production,
acquisition, stockpiling, or use of weapons of mass destruction
or their means of delivery, or that otherwise present a risk of
diversion or misuse for proliferation purposes.
(2) The term ``dual-use'' has the meaning given in section
1742 of the Export Control Reform Act of 2018 (50 U.S.C. 4801).
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