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H.R. 6880 · 97th CongressIn committee

Strategic Trade Act of 1982

Latest action. Referred to subcommitteeA smaller panel inside a standing committee with jurisdiction over a slice of its subject matter. Most hearings and the first markup usually happen here.Read the full definition (opens a new tab) on International Economic Policy and Trade. · August 5, 1982

Live record from Congress.gov, updated as the official record changes.
What this bill would do
Official summary · Congressional Research Service

Strategic Trade Act of 1982 - Declares the policy of the United States with respect to export controls on strategic goods and technology. Establishes a National Security Control Agency within the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Policy to assist in carrying out the national security export control policy responsibilities of the Secretary of Defense. Requires the Secretary to appoint the Director of the Agency who shall act as the Defense Department representative to the Interagency Advisory Committee for Export Policy. Sets forth as the principal divisions of the Agency the: (1) Operations Division; (2) Compliance Division; (3) COCOM Division which shall carry out functions relating to the Coordinating Committee for Multilateral Export Controls (COCOM); (4) Licensing Division; and (5) Legal Affairs and Congressional Relations Division. Authorizes the President to delegate the authority conferred on the President by this Act. Authorizes the President, in order to carry out the national security export control policy, to impose export controls on any goods or technology subject to U.S. jurisdiction or exported by any person subject to U.S. jurisdiction. Grants the Director the right to review any export application for national security reasons. Requires the Director to notify the licensing authority whenever the Director requires any revision with respect to any goods or technology, or with respect to the countries or destinations affected by national security export controls. Requires the Director to notify the licensing authority whenever the Directory denies an export license for national security reasons. Requires the Director, in requesting regulations to carry out national security controls, to emphasize: (1) safeguards to prevent a country that poses a threat to U.S. security from diverting covered goods and technologies to military use; and (2) the need to prevent the reexport of such goods and technologies to countries that pose a threat to U.S. security. Declares that U.S. policy toward individual countries shall not be determined solely on the basis of a country's communist or noncommunist status. Sets forth other factors to be considered. Directs the President to review controls maintained cooperatively with other nations at least once every three years. Directs the President to review other controls annually. Requires the Director to establish and maintain a national security control list as a part of the commodity control list. Directs the Secretary, in consultation with the Director, to review and revise the national security control list to insure that export controls cover and control such goods and technologies and the mechanisms through which they may be effectively transferred. Makes the Secretary primarily responsible for including in the national security control list certain militarily critical technologies. Requires the Secretary to report annually to Congress on actions taken with respect to such list. Declares that a qualified general license may be required instead of a validated license for the export of goods or technology subject to national security controls except where: (1) the export of such goods or technology is restricted pursuant to a multilateral agreement which requires the approval of the parties to the agreement; or (2) the United States is seeking the agreement of other suppliers to apply comparable controls and a validated license is necessary in the Director's judgment until such agreement is reached. Requires the Director to review the foreign availability of any goods or technology the export of which requires a validated license. Requires a finding of foreign availability to be based on reliable evidence (uncorroborated representations by license applicants are not sufficient). Declares that technologies or goods subject to national security export controls which are not possessed by a nation or combination of nations threatening to national security may not be deemed to be available from foreign sources until the Secretary of State verifies that negotiations with the foreign sources have been undertaken and have failed. Directs the President to negotiate with governments of countries possessing such technologies or goods to prevent them from becoming available to hostile countries. Requires the Director to establish within the Agency a capability to monitor the foreign availability of goods or technology subject to export controls under this Act. Requires other Federal agencies responsible for export controls and the National Security Control Agency to furnish information concerning foreign availability of such goods and technology to each other if specified conditions are met. Authorizes the Director to appoint technical advisory committees to advise and assist the Director in carrying out the national security export control policy. Directs the President to enter into negotiations with the government participating in the group known as the Coordinating Committee to reach agreements: (1) to publish a list of items controlled for export by agreement of the Committee; (2) to hold periodic meetings to discuss export control policy issues; and (3) on more effective enforcement procedures. Requires U.S. nongovernmental entities which enter into a commercial agreement with the government of a foreign country to which exports are restricted for national security purposes to report the agreement to the Director. Directs the Secretary of State to negotiate with other countries regarding their cooperation in restricting the export of goods and technology. Requires the Director to work with enforcement agencies to ensure: (1) the denial of all further exports to any party or parties responsible for the diversion of U.S. exports to unauthorized uses regardless of whether such goods or technologies are available from sources outside the United States; and (2) that other appropriate steps are taken to deter further use of the previously exported goods or technology. Requires the Director to take such action when there is reliable evidence that goods or technologies which were exported subject to national security controls have been diverted to an unauthorized use and/or consignee in violation of an export license. Requires the Secretary of Commerce to refer export applications to the Director when the Director finds that it is necessary to review an application. Requires the Secretary to review only those applications where the Director has recommended that the request for export be denied or approved subject to specified conditions. Sets forth civil and criminal penalties for violations of this Act. Authorizes the head of any department or agency exercising any function under this Act to suspend the authority of any person to export or import any or all goods or technology and order the seizure of any goods or technology intended for export in violation of the suspension if, during an enforcement investigation, the agency finds that there is reason to believe there is a violation of this Act. Requires that the Secretary of the Treasury be notified of such suspension. Requires property which is the subject of a violation of this Act to be subject to forfeiture to the U.S. Government whether or not it is within the jurisdictional boundaries of the United States. Sets forth the powers of agencies to investigate possible violations of this Act. Sets forth the jurisdiction of the courts, the duties of the U.S. Attorneys, and other judicial procedures. Provides for protecting the confidentiality of information submitted in compliance with this Act. Requires the Director to try to simplify regulations issued under this Act and the commodity control list. Exempts the functions exercised under this Act from certain provisions relating to administrative procedure and judicial review. Expresses the intent of the Congress that there be public participation in the formation of regulations issued under this Act. Requires the President to coordinate the authority granted to the President under this Act with the authority provided for the control of arms exports under the Arms Export Control Act. Makes certain civil aircraft equipment which is to be exported to a country other than a controlled country subject to export controls exclusively under this Act and the Export Administration Act of 1979. Requires authorizing legislation before any appropriation can be made to the Commerce Department for expenses to carry out this Act. Authorizes appropriations to the Defense Department to carry out this Act for FY 1984 and 1985.

Written by analysts at the Congressional Research Service and published on Congress.gov, not by Civibrief. Summarized at the "Introduced in House" stage on July 28, 1982. It describes the bill, it is not the legal text.

Status
Introduced
July 28, 1982
In committee
August 5, 1982
Passed a chamber
Cleared Congress
Enacted
Where this sits in the process
Common questions
Composed from the official record
Where is it in the process, and what happens next?

4 steps remain before this bill could become law.

The record's latest action, on August 5, 1982: Referred to Subcommittee on International Economic Policy and Trade.

  1. Clearing the committees it was referred to, and being scheduled for a floor vote
  2. Passage by the House
  3. Passage by the Senate
  4. The President's signature. If the President vetoes it, two-thirds of both chambers must vote to override.
How likely is it to become law?

Civibrief does not forecast outcomes and this page has no opinion about this one. What the record supports is a base rate, which is a fact about the whole pile, not a prediction about this measure.

In the 97th Congress (1981-82), 473 of the 11,489 bills and joint resolutions introduced became law, about 4.1 percent. That count covers every measure at every stage, including the many that never left committee.

This one is not there yet: 4 steps are still outstanding, listed above.

Has anyone actually voted on it?

No. No roll call in this Congress cites this measure. That is the ordinary outcome: most measures never reach a recorded floor vote, and a committee ends most of them simply by not acting.

A vote is not the only thing that happens to a measure. Hearings, markups, and referrals are all recorded actions, and none of them is a vote of the full chamber.

Who is behind it?

BEVERLY BYRON (D-MD) introduced it on July 28, 1982, and 6 members have since signed on as cosponsors.

They come from both major parties: 3 Democrats, 3 Republicans.

Cosponsoring is a formal signature on the text. It is not a commitment to vote for the measure, it does not bind anyone's party, and a long list of cosponsors is a measure of attention rather than of prospects.

How long has it been in play?

It was introduced on July 28, 1982, 16163 days ago. The most recent recorded action was 16155 days ago, on August 5, 1982.

Measures do not carry over. Anything the 97th Congress has not finished by January 3, 1983 dies when the term ends, and has to be introduced again from the start in the next Congress.

Every answer above is assembled from this measure's own record on Congress.gov and from published counts of what Congress has passed before. Civibrief does not predict outcomes and takes no position on any measure.

Vote history

  1. House
    In committee, no floor vote yet
  2. Senate
    Awaits House passage
  3. President
    Awaits both chambers
No recorded votes yet
No roll call in this Congress cites this bill. Most bills die in committee without ever reaching a recorded floor vote.