The Association of University Export Control Officers (AUECO), representing over 500 compliance professionals at more than 200 U.S. higher education institutions, submitted comments regarding the U.S. Department of Commerce’s proposed amendments to the Export Administration Regulations related to crime controls and U.S. persons controls. AUECO expresses concern that the current definitions and provisions, particularly those concerning Foreign-Security End Users (FSEUs) and analytic/data centers, are overly broad and ambiguous. They caution that the lack of clarity may unnecessarily include a wide range of organizations—and even individuals—engaged in routine monitoring activities or running data centers for non-governmental, research, or public health purposes under FSEU controls. This, they argue, could lead to a significant increase in unnecessary export license applications and delays, impeding vital international research collaborations, especially in fields such as medicine and epidemiology, without commensurate benefits to national security.
AUECO recommends that the Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) refine the definition of FSEUs to explicitly exclude organizations performing standard security or monitoring practices unrelated to governmental security functions, as well as research- and public health-focused analytic and data centers not associated with state security. Additionally, they urge BIS to provide a clear definition of "facial recognition systems" to aid exporters’ compliance and avoid misclassification. The comment letter concludes with support for regulatory aims to protect human rights and privacy but emphasizes that well-tailored, clear definitions are essential to ensure rules effectively target areas of legitimate concern without inadvertently hampering low-risk, high-value academic and research activities. The letter is endorsed by the Council on Government Relations (COGR).
