H.R. 8289 — BIS Licensing Efficiency Act of 2026

This section states congressional findings concerning existing statutory, regulatory, and executive requirements for the expeditious processing of export control license applications, including a sense of Congress for generally accomplishing processing within 30 days and a 90-day deadline for resolution or referral to the President.

This section expresses the sense of Congress that (1) long export license delays at the Bureau of Industry and Security of the Department of Commerce create uncertainty for U.S. exporters and manufacturers, leading to lost business and economic harm; (2) efficient and predictable license processing is critical to U.S. technology competitiveness and global supply chain stability; (3) U.S. technology and economic leadership requires an efficient export controls system with expeditious license decisions; and (4) transparency on license review efficiency and timeliness is necessary for congressional oversight.

This section amends Section 1756 of the Export Control Reform Act of 2018 (i.e., provision governing licenses for exports, reexports, and transfers of emerging and foundational technologies) to (1) require the Secretary to make a licensing decision on applications within 90 days of submission and notify the applicant, with a status update—including reasons for delay and any needed additional information—required by 120 days if no decision is made; (2) require licensing officers with relevant subject matter expertise to conduct reviews of all such applications; and (3) redesignate subsection (e) as (g) and revise its header to “Annual report on end use checks”.

This section requires the Secretary of Commerce to submit to the House Committee on Foreign Affairs and the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs (known as the appropriate congressional committees) an initial report within 90 days of enactment—covering license applications for the export, reexport, release, and in-country transfer of items controlled under this section during the preceding one-year period—and quarterly reports thereafter covering the preceding quarter. The reports must include (1) total license applications submitted; (2) applications by status as of report date (received, on hold, referred to another agency, signed off by licensing officer, countersigned, validated); (3) licenses approved, denied, or returned without action; (4) average and median processing times overall and by end-user country, Export Control Classification Number (ECCN), and type (export, reexport, deemed export, or in-country transfer); (5) applications referred to the Departments of State, Defense, or Energy; and (6) applications pending 90 days or more, with reasons for delays (e.g., interagency referral, pre-license checks, administrative backlog). (Thus, the reports enhance congressional oversight of processing backlogs and timelines for dual-use export licenses administered by the Bureau of Industry and Security.)

This section directs the Comptroller General of the United States to commence, not later than 90 days after enactment, an audit of the Bureau of Industry and Security's (BIS) license review process under the Export Control Reform Act of 2018 to determine whether licensing decisions for the preceding calendar year were made expeditiously consistent with the Act's mandated procedures and timelines and to identify any bottlenecks affecting timing. Not later than one year after enactment, the Comptroller General must submit the audit findings to the House Committee on Foreign Affairs and the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs and post the report on a publicly available Government Accountability Office website.