[Federal Register Volume 69, Number 123 (Monday, June 28, 2004)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 36009-36011]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 04-14625]


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DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE

Bureau of Industry and Security

15 CFR Parts 738, 742, 772, and 774

[Docket No. 040614182-4182-01]
RIN 0694-AD11


Revisions to the Export Administration Regulations To Remove 
Certain Regional Stability and Crime Control License Requirements to 
New North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Member Countries

AGENCY: Bureau of Industry and Security, Commerce.

ACTION: Final rule.

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SUMMARY: The Bureau of Industry and Security maintains the Export 
Administration Regulations (EAR). This rule amends the EAR by removing 
the license requirements for certain regional stability items and for 
certain crime control items destined to Bulgaria, Estonia, Latvia, 
Lithuania, Romania, Slovakia, and Slovenia to reflect the accession of 
those countries to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) on 
March 29, 2004. In addition, this rule makes certain conforming 
corrections and clarifications.

EFFECTIVE DATES: This rule is effective: June 28, 2004.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Eileen Albanese, Director, Office of 
Exporter Services, Bureau of Industry and Security, Telephone: (202) 
482-0436.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background

    Section 742.6(a)(2) of the EAR requires a license for the export or 
reexport of certain military related items, such as military vehicles 
and certain specially designed commodities used to manufacture military 
equipment for reasons of ``regional stability'' in support of foreign 
policy. Section 742.7(a)(1)-(3) of the EAR also requires a license for 
the export or reexport of certain crime control and detection 
instruments and equipment, and related technology and software as a 
matter of foreign policy, to promote the observance of human rights 
throughout the world. The EAR do not require a license for the export 
or reexport of these items to NATO member countries. Therefore, this 
rule removes the license requirements for these items to the 7 
countries that recently joined NATO: Bulgaria, Estonia, Latvia, 
Lithuania, Romania, Slovakia, and Slovenia. This rule also removes the 
``X'' from the RS:2 column and from all CC columns for these countries 
in the Commerce Country Chart in Supplement No. 1 to part 738 of the 
EAR.
    In addition, this rule revises the definition of NATO (North 
Atlantic Treaty Organization) in part 772 of the EAR, by adding the 7 
countries that recently joined NATO, plus Czech Republic, Hungary, and 
Poland, which were inadvertently not added to the definition of NATO in 
the regulation published on March 18, 2002 (67 FR 11896). This rule 
also amends the definition of COCOM (Coordinating Committee on 
Multilateral Export Controls) by replacing the phrase ``COCOM members 
included the NATO countries, except Iceland, plus Japan and Australia'' 
with a specific list of countries that were members of COCOM, to 
clarify that the membership of NATO at the time COCOM existed was 
different than it is today.
    This rule also clarifies License Exception TSR eligibility in the 
License Exception sections of two Export Control Classification Numbers 
(ECCN) 9D018 and 9E018 in the Commerce Control List. The TSR paragraph 
for these ECCNs state, ``Yes for Australia, Japan, New Zealand, and 
NATO.'' However, TSR is only available for export and reexport to 
countries listed in Country Group B. Therefore, the statement of 
eligibility for TSR for these ECCNs will be revised to read, ``Yes for 
Australia, Japan, New Zealand, and NATO countries that are also listed 
in Country Group B of Supplement No. 1 to part 740 of the EAR.''
    Although the Export Administration Act expired on August 20, 2001, 
Executive Order 13222 of August 17, 2001 (66 FR 44025, August 22, 
2001), as extended by the Notice of August 7, 2003,(68 FR 47833, 2003 
WL 21877490), continues the Regulations in effect under the 
InternationalEmergency Economic Powers Act.

Rulemaking Requirements

    1. This final rule has been determined to be not significant for 
purposes of E.O. 12866.
    2. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, no person is 
required to respond to, nor shall any person be subject to a penalty 
for failure to comply with a collection of information, subject to the 
requirements of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. 3501 et 
seq.) (PRA), unless that collection of information displays a currently 
valid Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Control Number. This rule 
involves a collection of information subject to the PRA. This 
collection has been approved by OMB under control number 0694-0088, 
``Multi-Purpose

[[Page 36010]]

Application,'' which carries a burden hour estimate of 58 minutes for a 
manual or electronic submission. Send comments regarding these burden 
estimates or any other aspect of these collections of information, 
including suggestions for reducing the burden, to OMB Desk Officer, New 
Executive Office Building, Washington, DC 20503; and to the Office of 
Administration , Bureau of Industry and Security, Department of 
Commerce, 14th and Pennsylvania Avenue, NW., Room 6883, Washington, DC 
20230.
    3. This rule does not contain policies with Federalism implications 
as that term is defined under E.O. 13132.
    4. The provisions of the Administrative Procedure Act (5 U.S.C. 
553) requiring notice of proposed rulemaking, the opportunity for 
public participation, and a delay in effective date, are inapplicable 
because this regulation involves a military and foreign affairs 
function of the UnitedStates (5 U.S.C. 553(a)(1)). Further, no other 
law requires that a notice of proposed rulemaking and an opportunity 
for public comment be given for this final rule. Because a notice of 
proposed rulemaking and an opportunity for public comment are not 
required to be given for this rule under the Administrative Procedure 
Act or by any other law, the analytical requirements of the Regulatory 
Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. 601 et seq.) are not applicable. Therefore, 
this regulation is issued in final form. Although there is no formal 
comment period, public comments on this regulation are welcome on a 
continuing basis. Comments should be submitted Sharron Cook, Office of 
Exporter Services, Bureau of Industry and Security, Department of 
Commerce, P.O. Box 273, Washington, DC 20044.

List of Subjects in 15 CFR Parts 738, 742, 772, and 774

    Exports, Foreign trade.


0
Accordingly, parts 738, 742, 772, and 774 of the Export Administration 
Regulations (15 CFR parts 730-799) are amended as follows:

PART 738--[AMENDED]

0
1. The authority citation for 15 CFR part 738 is revised to read as 
follows:

    Authority: 50 U.S.C. app. 2401 et seq.; 50 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.; 
10 U.S.C. 7420; 10 U.S.C. 7430(e); 18 U.S.C. 2510 et seq.; 22 U.S.C. 
287c; 22 U.S.C. 3201 et seq.; 22 U.S.C. 6004; 30 U.S.C. 185(s), 
185(u); 42 U.S.C. 2139a; 42 U.S.C. 6212; 43 U.S.C. 1354; 46 U.S.C. 
app. 466c; 50 U.S.C. app. 5; Sec. 901-911, Pub. L. 106-387; Sec. 
221, Pub. L. 107-56; E.O. 13026, 61 FR 58767, 3 CFR, 1996 Comp., p. 
228; E.O. 13222, 66 FR 44025, 3 CFR, 2001 Comp., p. 783; Notice of 
August 7, 2003, 68 FR 47833, .3 CFR, 2003 Comp., p. 328.
0
2. Supplement No. 1 to part 738 is amended by revising the entries for 
``Bulgaria,'' ``Estonia,'', ``Latvia,'' Lithuania,'' ``Romania,'' 
``Slovakia,'' and ``Slovenia'' to read as follows:

                                                                            Commerce Country Chart--Reason for Control
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                              Chemical &  biologival        Nuclear          National        Missile       Regional       Firearms         Crime  control       Anti-  terrorism
                                                     weapons           nonproliferation      security         tech         stability     convention --------------------------------------------
                 Countries                 ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                             CB  1    CB  2    CB  3    NP  1    NP  2    NS  1    NS  2      MT  1     RS  1    RS  2      FC  1     CC  1    CC  2    CC  3    AT  1    AT  2
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 
                                                                                          * * * * * * *
Bulgaria..................................       X   .......  .......  .......  .......       X        X   ..........  .......  .......  ..........  .......  .......  .......  .......  .......
 
                                                                                          * * * * * * *
Estonia...................................       X        X   .......       X   .......       X        X           X        X   .......  ..........  .......  .......  .......  .......  .......
 
                                                                                          * * * * * * *
Latvia....................................       X        X   .......  .......       X        X        X   ..........  .......  .......  ..........  .......  .......  .......  .......  .......
 
                                                                                          * * * * * * *
Lithuania.................................       X        X   .......       X   .......       X        X           X        X   .......  ..........  .......  .......  .......  .......  .......
 
                                                                                          * * * * * * *
Romania...................................       X   .......  .......  .......  .......       X        X           X        X   .......  ..........  .......  .......  .......  .......  .......
 
                                                                                          * * * * * * *
Slovakia..................................       X   .......  .......  .......  .......       X        X           X        X   .......  ..........  .......  .......  .......  .......  .......
Slovenia..................................       X        X   .......  .......  .......       X        X           X        X   .......  ..........  .......  .......  .......  .......  .......
 
                                                                                          * * * * * * *
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PART 742--[AMENDED]

0
3. The authority citation for 15 CFR part 742 is revised to read as 
follows:

    Authority: 50 U.S.C. app. 2401 et seq.; 50 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.; 
18 U.S.C. 2510 et seq.; 22 U.S.C. 3201 et seq.; 42 U.S.C. 2139a; 
Sec. 901-911, Pub. L. 106-387; Sec. 221, Pub. L. 107-56; E.O. 12058, 
43 FR 20947, 3 CFR, 1978 Comp., p. 179; E.O. 12851, 58 FR 33181, 3 
CFR, 1993 Comp., p. 608; E.O. 12938, 59 FR 59099, 3 CFR, 1994 Comp., 
p. 950; E.O. 13026, 61 FR 58767, 3 CFR, 1996 Comp., p. 228; E.O. 
13222, 66 FR 44025, 3 CFR, 2001 Comp., p. 783; Notice of October 29, 
2003, 68 FR 62209, 3 CFR, 2003 Comp., p. 347; Notice of August 7, 
2003, 68 FR 47833, 3 CFR, 2003 Comp., p. 328.


0
4. Section 742.6 is amended by revising paragraph (a)(2) to read as 
follows:


Sec.  742.6  Regional Stability.

    (a) * * *
    (2) As indicated in the CCL and in RS Column 2 of the Country Chart 
(see Supplement No. 1 to part 738 of the EAR), a license is required to 
any destination except Australia, Japan, New Zealand, and countries in 
the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) for items described on 
the CCL under ECCNs 0A918, 0E918, 2A983, 2D983, 2E983, 8A918, and for 
military vehicles and certain commodities (specially designed) used to 
manufacture military equipment, described on the CCL in ECCNs 0A018.c, 
1B018.a, 2B018, and 9A018.a and .b.
* * * * *

PART 772--[AMENDED]

0
4. The authority citation for 15 CFR part 772 is revised to read as 
follows:

    Authority: 50 U.S.C. app. 2401 et seq.; 50 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.; 
E.O. 13222, 66 FR 44025,

[[Page 36011]]

3 CFR, 2001 Comp., p. 783; Notice of August 7, 2003, 68 FR 47833, 3 
CFR, 2003 Comp., p. 328.


0
5. Section 772.1 is amended by revising the definitions for ``COCOM 
(Coordinating Committee on Multilateral Export Controls)'' and ``NATO 
(North Atlantic Treaty Organization)'' to read as follows:


Sec.  772.1  Definitions of Terms as Used in the Export Administration 
Regulations (EAR).

* * * * *
    COCOM (Coordinating Committee on Multilateral Export Controls). A 
multilateral organization that cooperated in restricting strategic 
exports to controlled countries. COCOM was officially disbanded on 
March 31, 1994. COCOM members included: Australia, Belgium, Canada, 
Denmark, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Japan, Luxembourg, 
Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Turkey, United Kingdom, and 
United States.
* * * * *
    NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization). A strategic defensive 
organization that consists of the following member nations: Belgium, 
Bulgaria, Canada, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, France, Germany, 
Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, the 
Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, 
Spain, Turkey, the United Kingdom, and the United States.
* * * * *

PART 774--[AMENDED]

0
6. The authority citation for 15 CFR part 774 is revised to read as 
follows:

    Authority: 50 U.S.C. app. 2401 et seq.; 50 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.; 
10 U.S.C. 7420; 10 U.S.C. 7430(e); 18 U.S.C. 2510 et seq.; 22 U.S.C. 
287c, 22 U.S.C. 3201 et seq., 22 U.S.C. 6004; 30 U.S.C. 185(s), 
185(u); 42 U.S.C. 2139a; 42 U.S.C. 6212; 43 U.S.C. 1354; 46 U.S.C. 
app. 466c; 50 U.S.C. app. 5; Sec. 901-911, Pub. L. 106-387; Sec. 
221, Pub. L. 107-56; E.O. 13026, 61 FR 58767, 3 CFR, 1996 Comp., p. 
228; E.O. 13222, 66 FR 44025, 3 CFR, 2001 Comp., p. 783; Notice of 
August 7, 2003, 68 FR 47833, 3 CFR, 2003 Comp., p. 328.


0
7. In Supplement No. 1 to part 774, Category 9 ``Propulsion Systems, 
Space Vehicles and Related Equipment'', ECCNs 9D018 and 9E018 are 
amended by revising the ``TSR'' entry in the License Exception sections 
to read as follows:


9D018  ``Software'' for the ``use'' of equipment controlled by 9A018.

* * * * *

License Exceptions

    CIV: * * *
    TSR: Yes for Australia, Japan, New Zealand, and NATO countries that 
are also listed in Country Group B of Supplement No. 1 to part 740 of 
the EAR.
* * * * *


9E018  ``Technology'' for the ``development'', ``production'', or 
``use'' of equipment controlled by 9A018.

* * * * *

License Exceptions

    CIV: * * *
    TSR: Yes for Australia, Japan, New Zealand, and NATO countries that 
are also listed in Country Group B of Supplement No. 1 to part 740 of 
the EAR.
* * * * *

    Dated: June 17, 2004.
Peter Lichtenbaum,
Assistant Secretary for Export Administration.
[FR Doc. 04-14625 Filed 6-25-04; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 3510-33-P