BIS Issues Final Rule Making Changes to the Entity List for India
The Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) published a final rule in today's Federal Register making certain changes to the Export Administration Regulations (EAR) in order to implement the Next Steps in Strategic Partnership (NSSP) progam with India.
The final rule implements three initial steps the United States has agreed to take under the NSSP: (1) Removing the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) Headquarters in Bangalore from the Department of Commerce Entity List; (2) removing the license requirement for the seven ISRO subsidiaries listed on the Entity List for all items subject to EAR having a classification of EAR99 or a classification where the third through fifth digits of the Export Commodity Classification Number (ECCN) are "999''; and (3) establishing a presumption of approval for all items not controlled for nuclear proliferation reasons going to the "balance of plant" (i.e., power generation) portion of Indian nuclear facilities subject to International Atomic Energy Agency safeguards.
The final rule also contains one non India-related amendment to the EAR. The final rule amends section 744.1 of the EAR by revising the phrase "Exporters are" to read "The public is" in the second sentence of paragraph (c). This change was made in order to make clear the longstanding interpretation that information regarding the Entity List is intended to inform the public, not simply to inform exporters.
The complete text of the final rule can be found at the following link:
http://a257.g.akamaitech.net/7/257/2422/06jun20041800/edocket.access.gpo.gov/2004/04-21303.htm