On July 28, 2016, the Department of Commerce's Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) and the Department of State's Directorate of Defense Trade Controls (DDTC) issued final rules implementing revisions to U.S. export controls on toxicological agents and directed energy weapons. Specifically, BIS' final rule describes how articles that the President has determined no longer warrant control under U.S. Munitions List (USML) Category XIV (toxicological agents) and Category XVIII (directed energy weapons) are now controlled under the Export Administration Regulations' (EAR) Commerce Control List (CCL), while the DDTC's final rule accordingly amends the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) to revise corresponding USML Categories XIV and XVIII. These revisions, part of the Administration's Export Control Reform initiative, were undertaken to more accurately describe the articles in the subject categories, as well as to establish a "bright line" between the USML and the CCL for the control of these articles.
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