Strategic Export Controls and Border Security Enhancement Act

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 8689 Introduced in House (IH)]

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119th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 8689

To authorize to be established an Office of Export Controls and Border
Security within the Bureau of Arms Control and Nonproliferation of the
              Department of State, and for other purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                              May 7, 2026

Mr. Jackson of Texas introduced the following bill; which was referred
                  to the Committee on Foreign Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL

To authorize to be established an Office of Export Controls and Border
Security within the Bureau of Arms Control and Nonproliferation of the
              Department of State, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Strategic Export Controls and Border
Security Enhancement Act''.

SEC. 2. SENSE OF CONGRESS.

    It is the sense of Congress that the Department of State plays a
central role in advancing the foreign policy and national security
interests of the United States by--
            (1) engaging in diplomacy to promote compliance with United
        States nonproliferation objectives and to strengthen
        responsible trade in strategic and dual-use items;
            (2) strengthening cooperation with allies, partners, and
        multilateral institutions to prevent the proliferation of
        weapons of mass destruction and related materials and
        technologies, including their delivery systems, through
        implementation of export controls and enhanced border security
        and customs enforcement;
            (3) enhancing the capacity of foreign governments in
        developing and implementing strategic trade control systems
        consistent with United States foreign policy objectives and
        national security; and
            (4) supporting an Office of Export Controls and Border
        Security within the Bureau of Arms Control and Nonproliferation
        of the Department of State as a core instrument of United
        States nonproliferation, export control, and border security
        assistance, including by sustaining cooperation in priority
        regions to strengthen strategic trade controls, customs
        enforcement capacity, and interdiction of proliferation-
        sensitive goods and related technologies, including dual-use
        items.

SEC. 3. OFFICE OF EXPORT CONTROLS AND BORDER SECURITY.

    (a) Establishment.--There is authorized to be established, within
the Bureau of Arms Control and Nonproliferation of the Department of
State, an Office of Export Controls and Border Security, (in this Act
referred to as the ``Office''), to perform such functions as the Under
Secretary for Arms Control and International Security, or a designee,
may prescribe.
    (b) Purpose.--The purpose of the Office program shall be to advance
United States foreign policy and national security objectives by
strengthening the capabilities of partner countries to protect United
States-origin critical technologies and proliferation-sensitive goods
and related technologies, including dual-use items, from diversion,
unauthorized transfer, or misuse.
    (c) Activities.--In carrying out the purpose described under
subsection (b), the Office should, as appropriate--
            (1) support the development and implementation of legal and
        regulatory frameworks, licensing systems, and enforcement
        capabilities governing the export, reexport, and in-country
        transfer of proliferation-sensitive goods and related
        technologies, including dual-use items;
            (2) strengthen partner country capacity to prevent
        diversion, unauthorized transfer, or misuse of proliferation-
        sensitive goods and related technologies, including dual-use
        items, end-uses and end-users that the Office determines may
        increase the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and
        related materials and technologies;
            (3) enhance the ability of partner countries to detect and
        interdict diversion, unauthorized transfer, or misuse of
        proliferation-sensitive goods and related technologies,
        including dual-use items, at borders, ports of entry, and other
        transit points, including through training, technical
        assistance, and the provision of appropriate equipment;
            (4) assist in--
                    (A) securing international trade of goods that may
                increase the proliferation of weapons of mass
                destruction and related materials and technologies; and
                    (B) disrupting networks that may increase the
                proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and
                related materials and technologies; and
            (5) carry out such other activities as the Under Secretary
        for Arms Control and International Security determines
        appropriate to advance the purposes of the Office.

SEC. 4. EXPORT CONTROLS AND BORDER SECURITY STRATEGY.

    (a) In General.--The Secretary of State, acting through the Office
of Export Controls and Border Security, and in consultation with the
heads of each other relevant Federal department or agency the Secretary
determines appropriate, shall develop and implement a strategy to align
and enhance United States foreign assistance in export controls to
strengthen their effectiveness, reduce evasion risks, prevent
diversion, unauthorized transfer, or misuse of proliferation-sensitive
goods and related technologies, including dual-use items, and promote
secure and resilient global supply chains.
    (b) Elements.--The strategy should include, as appropriate--
            (1) coordination across any other relevant Federal
        department or agency to ensure alignment with respect to export
        controls and border security programs;
            (2) coordination with interagency and foreign government
        assistance programs, to identify and address gaps in global
        export controls enforcement that may be exploited by state and
        non-state actors, and to strengthen border security, customs
        enforcement, and controls at ports of entry;
            (3) identification of priority regions, countries, and
        transit hubs where the risk of diversion, unauthorized
        transfer, or misuse of proliferation-sensitive goods and
        related technologies is significant to inform cooperation under
        this section;
            (4) engagement with allies, partners, and multilateral
        entities to promote interoperable border security standards,
        customs modernization, secure trade corridors, and regional
        cooperation, in coordination with other Bureaus of the
        Department of State, including the Bureau of International
        Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs and the Bureau of
        International Organizations; and
            (5) use of artificial intelligence tools, and other
        advanced analytics tools to enhance the effectiveness of the
        Office's activities, including risk identification and support
        for customs enforcement in recipient countries.
    (c) Report to Congress.--Not later than 180 days after the date of
enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State, in consultation with the
heads of other relevant Federal departments or agencies, shall submit
to the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives and
the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate a report containing
the results of the strategy.
    (d) Form of Report.--The strategy shall be submitted in
unclassified form, but may include a classified annex if necessary to
protect national security interests.
    (e) Intra-Departmental Coordination.--
            (1) In general.--The Secretary of State may establish
        procedures to ensure the coordination, integration, and
        deconfliction of border security assistance programs conducted
        by--
                    (A) the Bureau of International Narcotics and Law
                Enforcement Affairs;
                    (B) the Bureau of Counterterrorism;
                    (C) the Bureau of Arms Control and
                Nonproliferation; and
                    (D) any other relevant bureau or office of the
                Department of State the Secretary determines is engaged
                in such activities.
            (2) Elements.--The procedures under this subsection should
        include, as appropriate, measures to--
                    (A) align assistance programs with United States
                foreign policy and national security objectives, while
                seeking to minimize potential duplication;
                    (B) establish mechanisms for joint planning,
                deconfliction, implementation, and evaluation of border
                security and export control assistance programs, where
                appropriate;
                    (C) promote efficient use of resources, including
                coordination of training, equipment, and capacity-
                building activities in support of United States foreign
                policy and national security objectives; and
                    (D) require periodic review of any potential
                overlapping activities of programs in priority regions.

SEC. 5. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) The term ``proliferation-sensitive goods and related
        technologies'' means items, materials, software, or technology
        that could contribute to the development, production,
        acquisition, stockpiling, or use of weapons of mass destruction
        or their means of delivery, or that otherwise present a risk of
        diversion or misuse for proliferation purposes.
            (2) The term ``dual-use'' has the meaning given in section
        1742 of the Export Control Reform Act of 2018 (50 U.S.C. 4801).
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