Report from Washington, D.C.
Final Rules Modernizing Export Controls for Spacecraft Released
Written by: developer
On May 13, the State Department and Commerce Department published their interim final export control rules on spacecraft and related components that will allow for the transfer of commercial communication satellites and some remote sensing satellites from the more restrictive U.S. Munitions List (USML) to the Commerce Control List (CCL).
The new regulations will go into effect six months after their May 13 publication. The six month wait period will allow for effected manufacturers, suppliers and customers to update their internal licensing and compliance systems. In addition, during the six month waiting period, the U.S. government will revisit a rule that keeps remote sensing systems with apertures greater than 35 centimeters on the USML. Industry is hopeful that the U.S. Government will increase that aperture limit.
This article is part of Space Watch: June 2014 (Volume: 13, Issue: 6).