New Bill Mandates Detailed Export Reports to Congress, But Public Access Stays Limited

A piece of legislation called the "Maintaining American Superiority by Improving Export Control Transparency Act" is looking to tighten the leash on how certain U.S. exports are tracked. It does this by amending the Export Control Reform Act of 2018, requiring the Secretary (think Commerce or State) to deliver an annual report to key House and Senate committees. This report will break down license applications and other authorizations for sending controlled items to specific foreign entities, aiming to give lawmakers a clearer view of where sensitive U.S. goods and technology are headed.

Unpacking the Annual Export Briefing for Congress

So, what's in this yearly download for Congress? It's pretty comprehensive. For every license application involving these designated "covered entities," the report must lay out the applicant's name, a description of the item (including its official Export Control Classification Number, or ECCN, which is like a specific ID code for products), the end-user's name and location, the item's estimated value, the decision on the application (approved or denied), and the date it was submitted. The report also needs to cover the details of any "end-use checks" – these are basically verifications to ensure that an exported item is being used for its stated, legitimate purpose and hasn't been diverted for other, potentially problematic, uses. Essentially, Congress would get a detailed ledger of these sensitive export transactions.

Zooming In: Who Are These 'Covered Entities'?

The bill specifically targets exports to what it terms "covered entities." This isn't about tracking every widget sold internationally. Instead, it focuses on entities that meet two criteria: first, they must be located in a country listed in "Country Group D:5" under federal regulations – these are generally countries subject to a U.S. arms embargo. Second, the entity itself must be on either the "Entity List" (found in Supplement No. 4 to part 744 of the Export Administration Regulations), which includes foreign parties believed to be involved in activities contrary to U.S. national security or foreign policy, or the "Military End-User (MEU) List" (Supplement No. 7 to part 744), which identifies known military end-users. So, the spotlight is firmly on exports to organizations in specific countries that are already on the U.S. government's radar for security or policy reasons.

A Tale of Two Transparencies: What Congress Sees vs. What the Public Knows

Here’s the kicker: while Congress gets this granular detail, the bill explicitly states that most of this information – everything except for aggregate statistics – is exempt from public disclosure under section 1761(h)(1) of the Export Control Reform Act. This means that while lawmakers will receive a much more detailed accounting, the general public won't get to see the specifics of who is shipping what to whom. You'll get the overall numbers, but the individual transaction details will remain confidential. The bill also includes a provision to ensure that information that could compromise ongoing investigations is kept out of the congressional reports. So, while the act aims to improve transparency for congressional oversight – a key part of holding the export control system accountable – it doesn't extend that same level of transparency to the public eye for these specific deals.