Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 118 / Monday, June 19, 2000 / Rules and Regulations 38165

Dated: May 23, 2000.

Iain S. Baird,

Deputy Assistant Secretary for Export

Administration, Department of Commerce.

Dated: June 9, 2000.

A. Bradley Mims,

Deputy Assistant Secretary for Aviation and

International Affairs, Department of

Transportation.

[FR Doc. 00–15217 Filed 6–16–00; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4910–62–M

DEPARTMENT OF THE TREASURY

Office of Foreign Assets Control

31 CFR Part 500

Foreign Assets Control Regulations

AGENCY: Office of Foreign Assets

Control, Treasury.

ACTION: Final rule; amendments.

SUMMARY: The Office of Foreign Assets

Control of the U.S. Department of the

Treasury is amending the Foreign Assets

Control Regulations to implement the

President’s September 17, 1999,

determination to ease sanctions against

North Korea. This final rule authorizes

new financial, trade, and other

transactions with North Korea and its

nationals. An import notification and

approval procedure will be required for

all imports from North Korea. This final

rule does not unblock assets within U.S.

jurisdiction blocked prior to this time,

nor does it affect enforcement actions

with respect to prior violations of the

embargo.

EFFECTIVE DATE: June 19, 2000.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Dennis P. Wood, Chief of Compliance

Programs, tel.: 202/622–2490, Steve

Pinter, Acting Chief of Licensing, tel.:

202/622–2480, or Barbara Hammerle,

Deputy Chief Counsel, tel.: 202/622–

2410, Office of Foreign Assets Control,

Department of the Treasury,

Washington, DC 20220.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Electronic Availability

This document is available as an

electronic file on The Federal Bulletin

Board the day of publication in the

Federal Register. By modem, dial 202/

512–1387 and type ‘‘/GO FAC,’’ or call

202/512–1530 for disk or paper copies.

This file is available for downloading

without charge in ASCII and Adobe

Acrobat7 readable (*.PDF) formats. For

Internet access, the address for use with

the World Wide Web (Home Page),

Telnet, or FTP protocol is:

fedbbs.access.gpo.gov. This document

and additional information concerning

the programs of the Office of Foreign

Assets Control are available for

downloading from the Office’s Internet

Home Page: http://www.treas.gov/ofac,

or in fax form through the Office’s 24-

hour fax-on-demand service: call 202/

622–0077 using a fax machine, fax

modem, or (within the United States) a

touch-tone telephone.

Background

On September 17, 1999, the President

announced his decision to ease

economic sanctions against North Korea

in order to improve overall relations

with North Korea, to support the Agreed

Framework, and to encourage North

Korea to continue to refrain from testing

long-range missiles. Accordingly, the

Office of Foreign Assets Control is

amending the Foreign Assets Control

Regulations, 31 CFR part 500 (the

‘‘FACR’’), to add § 500.586, authorizing

new transactions involving property in

which North Korean nationals have an

interest. The effect of this amendment is

that transactions involving such

property coming within the jurisdiction

of the United States or into the

possession or control of persons subject

to the jurisdiction of the United States

after June 19, 2000 or in which an

interest of North Korea or a national

thereof arises after that time, are

authorized by general license. Newly

authorized transactions include, but are

not limited to, exportation to North

Korea, new investment, and brokering

transactions (except as otherwise

restricted under regulations

administered by other federal agencies,

e.g., the Export Administration

Regulations). Importations from North

Korea require notification to and

approval from the Office of Foreign

Assets Control for purposes of

compliance with Chapter 7 of the Arms

Export Control Act. Property blocked as

of June 16, 2000. remains blocked.

Reports due under general or specific

license must still be filed covering

activities prior to the effective date of

this rule.

Because the Regulations involve a

foreign affairs function, the provisions

of Executive Order 12866 and the

Administrative Procedure Act (5 U.S.C.

553) (the ‘‘APA’’) requiring notice of

proposed rulemaking, opportunity for

public participation, and delay in

effective date are inapplicable. Because

no notice of proposed rulemaking is

required for this rule, the Regulatory

Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. 601–612) does

not apply.

Paperwork Reduction Act

As authorized in the APA, the

Regulations are being issued without

prior notice and public comment. The

collections of information related to the

Regulations are contained in 31 CFR

part 501 (the ‘‘Reporting and Procedures

Regulations’’). Pursuant to the

Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44

U.S.C. 3507), those collections of

information have been approved by the

Office of Management and Budget

(‘‘OMB’’) under control number 1505–

0164. An agency may not conduct or

sponsor, and a person is not required to

respond to, a collection of information

unless the collection of information

displays a valid control number.

List of Subjects in 31 CFR Part 500

Administrative practice and

procedure, Banks, Banking, Foreign

investments in U.S., Foreign trade,

Securities, North Korea.

PART 500—FOREIGN ASSETS

CONTROL REGULATIONS

1. The authority citation for part 500

continues to read as follows:

Authority: 50 U.S.C. App. 1–44; E.O. 9193,

3 CFR, 1938–1943 Comp., p. 1174; E.O. 9989,

3 CFR, 1943–1948 Comp., p. 748.

Subpart E—Licenses, Authorizations

and Statements of Licensing Policy

2. Section 500.533 is revised to read

as follows:

§ 500.533 Exportations, reexportations,

and incidental transactions.

(a) All transactions ordinarily

incident to the exportation of goods,

software, or technology (including

technical data) from the United States or

reexportation of U.S.-origin goods,

software, or technology from a foreign

country to any person in a designated

foreign country or to the government of

a designated foreign country, are hereby

authorized, provided that the

exportation or reexportation is licensed

or otherwise authorized by the

Department of Commerce under the

Export Administration Regulations (15

CFR parts 730–799).

(b) The general license does not

authorize the financing of any

transaction from a blocked account.

Note to § 500.533: See note to § 500.586(b).

3. Section 500.586 is added to subpart

E to read as follows:

§ 500.586 Authorization of new

transactions concerning certain North

Korean property.

(a) Subject to the limitations in

paragraph (b) of this section,

38166 Federal Register / Vol. 65, No. 118 / Monday, June 19, 2000 / Rules and Regulations

transactions in which North Korea or a

national thereof has an interest are

authorized where:

(1) The property comes within the

jurisdiction of the United States or into

the control or possession of a person

subject to the jurisdiction of the United

States on or after June 19, 2000; or

(2) The interest in the property of

North Korea or a North Korean national

arises on or after June 19, 2000.

(b)(1) Unless otherwise authorized by

the Office of Foreign Assets Control, all

property and interests in property of

North Korea or its nationals that were

blocked pursuant to subpart B of this

part as of June 16, 2000, remain blocked

and subject to the prohibitions and

requirements of this part;

(2)(i) The importation of products into

the United States from North Korea

requires approval from the Office of

Foreign Assets Control. The person

seeking to import products into the

United States must provide information

relevant to the determination whether

the product was produced by

(A) A foreign person whose actions

triggered import sanctions under

sections 73 and 74 of the Arms Export

Control Act;

(B) An activity of the government of

North Korea relating to the development

or production of any missile equipment

or technology; or

(C) An activity of the government of

North Korea affecting the development

or production of electronics, space

systems or equipment, and military

aircraft.

(ii) Those seeking to import products

from North Korea into the United States

must submit all available information

satisfying the requirements of paragraph

(b)(2)(i) of this section; the name,

address, telephone number, facsimile

number, and e-mail address of the

importer; a description of the product to

be imported, including quantity and

cost; the name and address of the

producer of the product; the name of the

location where the product was

produced; and the name and address of

the North Korean exporter. Requests for

import review should be submitted by

mail to North Korea Unit, Office of

Foreign Assets Control, U.S. Department

of the Treasury, 1500 Pennsylvania

Avenue, NW, Annex, Washington, DC

20220. Upon review of the submitted

information, the Office of Foreign Assets

Control will issue a letter indicating the

results of the review to the person

seeking to import the product.

(3) Except as authorized by § 500.580

or unless otherwise authorized by the

Office of Foreign Assets Control,

persons subject to the jurisdiction of the

United States are prohibited from

engaging in any transfer from the

government of North Korea:

(i) Constituting a donation to a person

subject to the jurisdiction of the United

States; or

(ii) With respect to which a person

subject to the jurisdiction of the United

States knows (including knowledge

based on advice from an agent of the

United States Government), or has

reasonable cause to believe, that the

transfer poses a risk of furthering

terrorist acts in the United States.

(4) This section does not affect any

open enforcement action initiated by the

U.S. government prior to June 19, 2000

or any seizure, forfeiture, penalty, or

liquidated damages case that is

considered closed in accordance with

U.S. Customs or other agency

regulations. This section also does not

authorize the importation into the

United States of goods that are under

seizure or detention by U.S. Customs

officials pursuant to Customs laws or

other applicable provision of law, until

any applicable penalties, charges, duties

or other conditions are satisfied. This

section does not authorize importation

into the United States of goods for

which forfeiture proceedings have been

commenced or of goods that have been

forfeited to the U.S. Government, other

than though U.S. Customs disposition

by selling at auction.

Note to § 500.586(b): The exportation and

reexportation of items may be subject to

license application requirements under

regulations administered by other federal

agencies (see e.g., the Export Administration

Regulations administered by the Department

of Commerce). Section 500.533 of this part

continues to provide authority for

transactions incident to the exportation and

reexportation of items authorized by the

Department of Commerce. It should also be

noted that the shipment of strategic goods

from a foreign country to North Korea by

persons subject to the jurisdiction of the

United States remains prohibited by 31 CFR

part 505. The application requirements for a

specific license relating to such goods are

found in 31 CFR 501.801.

Dated: June 13, 2000.

R. Richard Newcomb,

Director, Office of Foreign Assets Control.

Approved: June 13, 2000.

Elisabeth A. Bresee,

Assistant Secretary (Enforcement),

Department of the Treasury.

[FR Doc. 00–15390 Filed 6–16–00; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 4810–25–P