Maintaining American Superiority by Improving Export Control Transparency Act

This bill increases transparency in U.S. export controls. It makes the Department of Commerce report to Congress every year on export license requests and checks tied to high-risk foreign entities. The report must list who applied, what items they want to export, where they’re going, the value, the decision made, and details on “end-use” checks that confirm items aren’t misused. However, most of this information will not be made public, and anything that could harm an ongoing investigation must be left out. The first report is due within one year of the law taking effect, then annually.

The reports focus on “covered entities,” meaning organizations in countries under U.S. arms embargoes that are also on government restriction lists (like the Entity List or Military End-User List). This targets exports of “dual-use” items—goods with both civilian and military uses—so Congress can better monitor risks while enforcing the rules.

Key points

• Who is affected: U.S. companies seeking export licenses for items going to restricted foreign entities; federal officials overseeing export controls.
• What changes: Commerce must send Congress detailed, yearly reports on license applications and results of end-use checks for these entities; most details stay confidential from the public to protect investigations.
• When: First report within one year of enactment, then every year after, if funds are available.