[Federal Register Volume 60, Number 148 (Wednesday, August 2, 1995)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 39255-39257]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 95-18952]
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DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY
Office of Foreign Assets Control
31 CFR Part 515
Cuban Assets Control Regulations; Information and Informational
Materials
AGENCY: Office of Foreign Assets Control, Treasury.
ACTION: Final rule; amendments.
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SUMMARY: The Treasury Department is amending the Cuban Assets Control
Regulations (the ``Regulations'') to bring the Regulations into
conformity with amendments to the Trading with the Enemy Act concerning
information and informational materials included in the Foreign
Relations Authorization Act, Fiscal Years 1994 and 1995.
EFFECTIVE DATE: August 2, 1995.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Steven I. Pinter, Chief of Licensing,
tel.: 202/622-2480, or William B. Hoffman, Chief Counsel, tel.: 202/
622-2410, Office of Foreign Assets Control, Department of the Treasury,
Washington, DC 20220.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Electronic Availability
This document is available as an electronic file on The Federal
Bulletin Board the day of publication in the Federal Register. By modem
dial 202/512-1387 and type ``/GO/FAC'' or call 202/512-1530 for disks
or paper copies. This file is available for downloading in WordPerfect
5.1, ASCII, and Postscript formats. The document is also accessible for
downloading in ASCII format without charge from Treasury's Electronic
Library (``TEL'') in the ``Business, Trade and Labor Mall'' of the
FedWorld bulletin board. By modem dial 703/321-3339, and select self-
expanding file ``T11FR00.EXE'' in TEL. For Internet access, use one of
the following protocols: Telnet = fedworld.gov (192.239.93.3); World
Wide Web (Home Page) = http://www.fedworld.gov; FTP = ftp.fedworld.gov
(192.239.92.205).
Background
Section 525 (b) of the Foreign Relations Authorization Act, Fiscal
Years 1994 and 1995, Pub. L. 103-236, 108 Stat. 474, amended section
5(b)(4) of the Trading with the Enemy Act, 50 U.S.C. App. 1-44
(``TWEA''), to expand the list of items considered to be information or
informational materials to include compact discs, CD ROMs, artworks,
and news wire feeds. In addition, section 5(b)(4) of TWEA, as
[[Page 39256]]
amended, exempts from the authority granted to the President the
authority to regulate or prohibit, directly or indirectly, the
importation from any country or the exportation to any country, whether
commercial or otherwise, of information or informational materials,
regardless of format or medium of transmission.
Section 515.206 of the Regulations is amended to reflect the
exemption that applies to transactions concerning information and
informational materials. The definition of the term ``information or
informational materials'' contained in Sec. 515.332 is amended to
conform the section to amended section 5(b)(4) of TWEA. Conforming
amendments are also made to Sec. 515.545, which authorizes transactions
related to the importation and exportation of information and
informational materials. Section 515.570, which authorizes the
importation of paintings and drawings, is removed from the Regulations
because the exemption contained in Sec. 515.206, as amended, makes this
separate authorization unnecessary.
Section 515.542, which concerns authorization for
telecommunications is revised to generally license certain forms of
telecommunications services between Cuba and the United States. The
provision of, and payments for, telecommunications services between
Cuba and the United States are governed exclusively by section 1705 of
the Cuban Democracy Act, 22 U.S.C. 6001-6010 (``CDA''). That section
authorizes such services, but permits the regulation of payments to
Cuba for telecommunications. The CDA provision on telecommunications
preempts the provisions of TWEA on information and informational
materials to the extent that the provisions are inconsistent. The
general license contained in Sec. 515.542(b) authorizes the provision
of telecommunications services between Cuba and the United States.
Consistent with the authority provided in the CDA, Sec. 515.542(c)
requires the obtaining of specific licenses on a case-by-case basis as
a condition for any full or partial payments to Cuba arising out of
telecommunications services between the United States and Cuba.
Because the Regulations involve a foreign affairs function,
Executive Order 12866 and the provisions of the Administrative
Procedure Act, 5 U.S.C. 553, requiring notice of proposed rulemaking,
opportunity for public participation, and delay in effective date, are
inapplicable. Because no notice of proposed rulemaking is required for
this rule, the Regulatory Flexibility Act, 5 U.S.C. 601-612, does not
apply.
List of Subjects in 31 CFR Part 515
Administrative practice and procedure, Air carriers, Banks,
banking, Cuba, Currency, Estates, Exports, Fines and penalties, Foreign
investment in the United States, Foreign trade, Imports, Informational
materials, Publications, Reporting and recordkeeping requirements,
Securities, Shipping, Travel restrictions, Trusts and trustees,
Vessels.
For the reasons set forth in the preamble, 31 CFR part 515 is
amended as set forth below:
PART 515--CUBAN ASSETS CONTROL REGULATIONS
1. The authority citation for part 515 continues to read as
follows:
Authority: 50 U.S.C. App. 1-44; 22 U.S.C. 6001-6010; 22 U.S.C.
2370(a); Proc. 3447, 27 FR 1085, 3 CFR, 1959-1963 Comp., p. 157;
E.O. 9193, 7 FR 5205, 3 CFR, 1938-1943 Comp., p. 1147; E.O. 9989, 13
FR 4891, 3 CFR, 1943-1948 Comp., p. 748; E.O. 12854, 58 FR 36587, 3
CFR, 1993 Comp., p. 614.
Subpart B--Prohibitions
2. Section 515.206 is amended by revising the references to
Sec. 515.550 to read Sec. 515.545 in Examples 2, 3, and 4; by removing
paragraph (b) and redesignating paragraphs (c),(d), and (e) as
paragraphs (b),(c), and (d) respectively; by adding the words,
``information or'' before the words, ``informational materials,'' each
time they are used in redesignated paragraph (b) and Example 3; by
removing the word ``synchronization'' and the comma following it from
Example 4; and by revising the section heading and paragraph (a) to
read as follows:
Sec. 515.206 Exemption of information and informational materials.
(a) The importation from any country and the exportation to any
country of information or informational materials as defined in
Sec. 515.332, whether commercial or otherwise, regardless of format or
medium of transmission, are exempt from the prohibitions and
regulations of this part except for payments owed to Cuba for
telecommunications services between Cuba and the United States, which
are subject to the provisions of Sec. 515.542.
* * * * *
Subpart C--General Definitions
3. Section 515.332 is revised to read as follows:
Sec. 515.332 Information and informational materials.
(a) For purposes of this part, the term information and
informational materials means:
(1) Publications, films, posters, phonograph records, photographs,
microfilms, microfiche, tapes, compact disks, CD ROMs, artworks, news
wire feeds, and other information and informational articles.
(2) To be considered informational materials, artworks must be
classified under Chapter subheadings 9701, 9702, or 9703 of the
Harmonized Tariff Schedule of the United States.
(b) The term information and informational materials does not
include items:
(1) That would be controlled for export pursuant to section 5 of
the Export Administration Act of 1979, 50 U.S.C. App. 2401-2420 (1993)
(the ``EAA''), or section 6 of the EAA to the extent that such controls
promote nonproliferation of antiterrorism policies of the United
States, including ``software'' that is not ``publicly available'' as
these terms are defined in 15 CFR Parts 779 and 799.1 (1994); or
(2) With respect to which acts are prohibited by 18 U.S.C. chapter
37.
Subpart E--Licenses, Authorizations, and Statements of Licensing
Policy
4. The section heading and paragraphs (b) and (c) of Sec. 515.542
are revised to read as follows:
Sec. 515.542 Telecommunications, information, and informational
materials.
* * * * *
(b) Except as provided in paragraph (c) of this section, all
transactions incident to the use of cables, satellite channels, radio
signals, or other means of telecommunications for the provision of
telecommunications services between Cuba and the United States,
including telephone, telegraph and similar services, and the
transmission of radio and television broadcasts and news wire feeds
between Cuba and the United States, are authorized.
(c) Full or partial payments owed to Cuba as a result of
telecommunications services authorized in paragraph (b) of this section
are prohibited unless authorized pursuant to specific licenses, which
will be issued on a case-by-case basis provided such payments are
determined to be consistent with the public interest and the foreign
policy of the United States.
5. The section heading and paragraph (a) of Sec. 515.545 are
revised to read as follows:
[[Page 39257]]
Sec. 515.545 Transactions related to information and informational
materials.
(a) Except as provided in Sec. 515.542(c), all financial and other
transactions directly incident to the importation or exportation of
information or informational materials are authorized.
* * * * *
Sec. 515.570 [Removed]
6. Section 515.570 is removed.
Dated: July 14, 1995.
R. Richard Newcomb,
Director, Office of Foreign Assets Control.
Approved: July 18, 1995.
John P. Simpson,
Deputy Assistant Secretary (Regulatory, Tariff & Trade Enforcement).
[FR Doc. 95-18952 Filed 7-28-95; 12:34 pm]
BILLING CODE 4810-25-F