[Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: William J. Clinton (1996, Book II)]
[October 12, 1996]
[Pages 1832-1833]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]



Letter to Congressional Leaders Transmitting an Executive Order To 
Revise Procedures for Processing Export License Applications
October 12, 1996

Dear Mr. Speaker:  (Dear Mr. President:)
    In order to take additional steps with respect to the national 
emergency described and declared in Executive Order 12924 of August 19, 
1994, and continued on August 15, 1995, and August 14, 1996, 
necessitated by the expiration of the Export Administration Act on 
August 20, 1994, I hereby report to the Congress that pursuant to 
section 204(b) of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, 50 
U.S.C. 1703(b) (``the Act''), I have today exercised the authority 
granted by the Act to issue an Executive order (a copy of which is 
attached) to revise the existing procedures for processing export 
license applications submitted to the Department of Commerce.
    The new Executive order relates to my decision to transfer certain 
commercial communications satellites and jet engine hot-section 
technology from the United States Munitions List

[[Page 1833]]

administered by the Department of State to the Commerce Control List 
administered by the Department of Commerce. Specifically, when I made 
that decision I also decided to amend Executive Order 12981 of December 
5, 1995, which set forth procedures for the interagency review and 
disposition of dual-use export license applications.
    The new Executive order is designed to provide that the first-level 
license determination for the affected commercial communications 
satellites and jet engine hot-section technology would be made by 
majority vote, instead of by the Chair of the Operating Committee of the 
Advisory Committee on Export Policy. This change assures that national 
security and foreign policy considerations will be fully taken into 
account with respect to license processing in these two sectors.
        Sincerely,

                                                      William J. Clinton

Note: Identical letters were sent to Newt Gingrich, Speaker of the House 
of Representatives, and Albert Gore, Jr., President of the Senate. This 
letter was released by the Office of the Press Secretary on October 15. 
The Executive order of October 12 is listed in Appendix D at the end of 
this volume.