Overview
On October 23, the US Department of Energy (DOE) adopted as final, with changes, a rule amending the Department of Energy Acquisition Regulation (DEAR) to add clauses regarding applicable export control requirements for DOE contracts. The rule recognizes contractor responsibilities to comply with all applicable export control laws and regulations in the performance of DOE contracts and prescribes Export Clauses to address these responsibilities. We covered DOE’s 2013 proposed rule in a prior advisory; the final rule excludes the proposed rule’s “Export Restriction Notice” requirement, but otherwise substantially adopts the proposed rule. This means that DOE's treatment of export controls in the government contracting process is similar to DoD’s approach in the DFARS, i.e., a clause that reminds contractors (and subcontractors) of their responsibilities, directs them to the relevant agencies with jurisdiction over export controls (or sanctions) for any clarifications or queries, and notes that Contracting Officers are not responsible for export control determinations.
