Saturday Compliance News - Around the World

/ Global Compliance Solutions Group LLC/

GCSG's Weekly Compliance News feature is a compilation of some of the previous weeks interesting trade compliance, anti-bribery/corruption, fraud, and due diligence news bites, from around the world.

Are CEOs Less Ethical Than in the Past? | Strategy + Business

"The job of a CEO at a large publicly held company may seem to be quite comfortable - high pay, excellent benefits, elevated social status, and access to private jets.  But the comfortable perch is increasingly becoming a hot seat, especially when CEOs and their employees cross red lines." (Click here for the article) - Global

What if BREXIT Happened Without an Exit Deal? | Stratfor

"Negotiators for the UK and the EU are racing the clock to reach agreements on a long list of remaining issues before the UK formally leaves the bloc..." (Click here for the article) - UK, European Union

Texas jury indicts Arkema, two executives over chemical releases | Reuters

"A Texas grand jury on Friday indicted chemicals manufacturer Arkema North America and two of its executives for releasing emissions that allegedly endangered the public after a 2017 hurricane." (Click here for the article) - USA

OFAC Sanctions Russian Bank for Moving North Korean Cash | RegTech Post

"The Office of Foreign Assets Control has named Russia's Commercial Bank Agrosoyuz as a Specially Designated National, for moving funds for a DPRK bank, and for two front companies acting for the North Korean Government." (Click here for the article) - Russia, North Korea, USA

US elevates India to most-important allies list  | The Economic Times

"In a big boost to India, the US has eased the export restrictions for high-technology product sales to India by designating it as a Strategic Trade Authorization-1 country, the only South Asian nation to be on the 36 countries list." (Click here for the article) - India, USA

EU Privacy Becomes Excuse to Withhold in US Bribery Probes | Bloomberg Law

"Companies are improperly using the European Union's fairly new privacy standards as the scapegoat for why they can't disclose documents to the US government during foreign bribery investigations..." (Click here for the article) - European Union, USA

CNPC refutes subsidiary's role in 1MDB money-laundering scandal | South China Morning Post

"China Petroleum Pipeline Engineering, a unit of China's state-owned oil and gas giant China National Petroleum Corp, had refuted a media report that money paid for its pipeline projects in Malaysia was diverted to third-party Cayman Islands companies involved in money laundering." (Click here for the article) - China, Malaysia, Cayman Islands, UAE

DEA and CBP Announce Joint Trade Webinar for June 20

/ Global Compliance Solutions Group LLC/

The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) will host a webinar on June 20, 2017.  The webinar will cover the updated Import and Export regulations for Controlled Substances and Listed Chemicals.  The U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) will also be in attendance.   

Click here to register for the webinar.  Click here for the webinar announcement.

US Attorney General Issues Charging and Sentencing Principles

/ Global Compliance Solutions Group LLC/

On Friday, May 12 US Attorney General Jeff Sessions issued a memorandum providing charging and sentencing principles for the US Department of Justice (DOJ).  The DOJ in its press release said "This policy was formulated after extensive consultation with Assistant U.S. Attorneys at both trial and appellate level, as well as U.S. Attorneys and Main Justice Attorneys.  It ensures that the Department enforces the law fairly and consistently, advances public safety and promotes respect for our legal system."

The guiding principles within the memo include:

  • Prosecutors should charge and pursue the most serious, readily provable offense
  • Prosecutors must disclose to the sentencing court all facts that impact the sentencing guidelines or mandatory minimum sentences, and should in all cases seek a reasonable sentence under the factors in 18 U.S.C. § 3553

In addition, the memo rescinds any previous policy of the DOJ that is inconsistent with the above guiding principles.

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DEA delays effective date of final rule revising Import/Export Requirements

/ Global Compliance Solutions Group LLC/

The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) published a final rule on January 30, 2017 (81 FR 8688-8689)  which delays the effective date of their December 30, 2016 final rule (81 FR 96992-97044) that amended export/import requirements for Tableting and Encapsulating machines, Controlled Substances, and Listed Chemicals as well as domestic transactions for Listed Chemicals and Tableting and Encapsulating Machines.  

The federal register notice states the temporary delay allows "Department of Justice officials an opportunity to review any potential questions of fact, law and policy raised by this regulation, consistent with the Chief of Staff's memorandum of January 20, 2017."  Click here for the January 20, 2017 Memorandum for the Heads of Executive Departments and Agencies from Reince Priebus, Assistant to the President and Chief of Staff. 

This final rule is effective January 30, 2017 and temporarily delays the December final rule until March 21, 2017.  In addition, the required compliance date has now been moved from June 28, 2017 until July 31, 2017.

For more information on the specific changes finalized in the December rule, click here to read the earlier post by GCSG related to the proposed rule (81 FR 63575-63631). 

 

DEA Proposes to designate Alpha-Phenylacetoacetonitrile as a List I Precursor Chemical

/ Global Compliance Solutions Group LLC/

On Monday, December 12, 2016 the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) published a proposed rule (81 FR 89402-89407) which would designate the chemical Alpha-Phenylacetoacetonitrile (APAAN) and its salts, optical isomers, and salts of optical isomers, as a List I Chemical.  APAAN can be used in the illicit manufacture of phenylacetone, methamphetamine, and amphetamine.  The DEA did not propose a regulatory threshold for APAAN, so all transactions of APAAN would be regulated.

Designation as a List I Chemical will require manufacturers, importers, exporters, and distributors of APAAN to obtain a registration as well as comply with all applicable security, know-your-customer, import, export, recordkeeping, and reporting requirements associated with a List I Chemical. 

APAAN also goes by: 1-cyano-1-phenylpropan-2-one; 2-phenylacetoacetonitrile, 2-acetyl-2-phenylacetonitrile; alpha-acetyl-benzene acetonitrile; phenyl aceto-acetonitrile; [alpha] - acetylphenylacetonitrile; and 3-oxo-2-phenylbutanenitrile and it's CAS Number is 4468-48-8.

If you are a manufacturer, importer, exporter, or distributor of APAAN and would like more information on how this may impact your operations, please contact GCSG here.   

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