On February 15, 2018, the House Foreign Affairs Committee announced that its Chairman, Ed Royce (R-CA) and its Ranking Member, Eliot Engel (D-NY), introduced bipartisan legislation to modernize U.S. export control regulations of dual-use items. According to the announcement, the Export Control Reform Act of 2018 (H.R. 5040) will help ensure the U.S. maintains its technological advantage in science, engineering, manufacturing and other industries critical to our national and economic security. The bill represents the first real push to establish permanent export controls since the Cold War-era Export Administration Act of 1979 (EAA) lapsed in 2001.
Specifically, the Export Control Reform Act of 2018 (H.R. 5040):
- Repeals the lapsed EAA and replaces it with a modern, permanent statutory authority to better regulate U.S. dual-use and Department of Commerce-licensed military exports.
- Requires that export controls ensure continued U.S. leadership in science, technology, engineering, manufacturing and other sectors.
- Provides new authority to identify and appropriately control critical emerging technologies.
- Supports U.S. diplomatic efforts to promote greater international coordination and cooperation on export controls.
A section-by-section summary of the bill is available here.
