McCaul Report Calls for Export Control Reform

A report by the House Foreign Affairs Committee highlights shortcomings in the U.S. export control system and calls for reforms, legislative and administrative.   Drawing extensively on the work of former Defense Department Export Control Official Stephen Coonen, the report offers a preview of the reception BIS officials can expect in next week's hearing.

"Both the Trump and Biden administrations, principally from the White House, have rightly begun exerting more control over the Commerce Department’s Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS). However, no administration will be able to fully leverage the power of export controls to protect U.S. national security without Congressional action. Now, Congress must solidify the efforts of successive administrations so our future will be better secured," the authors assert.

Central to the committee's findings is the concern that BIS, under the Commerce Department, has been too lenient in granting licenses for dual-use technology transfers to China, failing to adequately consider the likelihood of military or surveillance use.