Stumbling over ITAR:
How Does Industry Cope with the Regulations?

On December 1, 2015, the Regulatory Science and Engineering Center (RSEC) at the Potomac Institute for Policy Studies held a seminar entitled, “Stumbling over ITAR: How Does Industry Cope with the Regulations?” with panelists including Ms. Lindsay Meyer (Managing Partner, Venable, LLP0, Ms. Candace Goforth (Managing Director, Goforth Trade Advisors, LLC), and Ms. Peggy Evans (Senior Fellow, Potomac Institute for Policy Studies). Dr. Robert Hummel (Senior Scientist, Potomac Institute for Policy Studies) and Dr. Charles Mueller (Director, RSEC, Potomac Institute for Policy Studies) opened up the seminar and introduced the panelists. Ms. Meyer provided a keynote speech outlining current export regulations, the agencies that control them, and recent attempts at reform of the International Traffic and Arms Regulations (ITAR).

Panelists provided a wealth of experience and a lively discussion followed the seminar and continued into informal discussions after the seminar. Overall, the current regulatory landscape on export control is arduous for both small and large business for different reasons and the new reforms have not had their intended impact. Recommendations are difficult to implement as the number of stakeholders within the government reach widely, but most agree that reform is not the answer. Rather, limiting the scope of the export control laws to only the most vital and valuable technology or wiping the slate clean and creating a more dynamic system capable of keeping pace with modern innovation is the key to easing the burden on industry and improving the U.S. standing in defense and national security issues.

RSEC plans to continue to foster discussion on this important S&T regulatory issue and is in the process of planning future seminars and workshops to identify the appropriate path forward.