§7542 — Title 10 Armed Forces | U.S. Code

Summary

The law stops the Department of Defense from using its money to give a foreign country the full technical blueprints or data for a weapon made or developed at a U.S. arsenal, or to help a foreign country make that weapon. The Army can make an exception only if the foreign country is considered friendly (the Secretary of Defense decides after talking with the Secretary of State), the Secretary of the Army finds the transfer would clearly help keep the cannon-making ability at that arsenal, the transfer would not give away unique arsenal technology (unless allowed under rules below), and the Secretary of Defense signs a formal agreement with the foreign country. The agreement must be either a Government-to-Government memorandum or a cooperative project under existing export law. It must say what data or help will be given, require that the foreign-made production be shared with the U.S. arsenal, stop the foreign country from passing the U.S. data or products to others (with limited exceptions), and let the Department of Defense watch and get reports. Unique technology can be licensed nonexclusively for a fee that goes to the arsenal for upgrades. Transfers can also be allowed if the item came from a joint U.S.-foreign project or if the President follows required export steps and tells Congress it helps U.S. cannon production. The Army must tell Congress about each agreement and report every six months. "Arsenal" means a government-owned, government-operated plant that makes large-caliber cannon.

Title 10, §7542

Armed Forces — Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)Funds appropriated to the Department of Defense may not be used—

(1)to transfer to a foreign country a technical data package for a defense item being manufactured or developed in an arsenal; or

(2)to assist a foreign country in producing such a defense item.

(b)The Secretary of the Army may use funds appropriated to the Department of Defense to transfer a technical data package, or to provide assistance, described in subsection (a) if—

(1)the transfer or provision of assistance is to a friendly foreign country (as determined by the Secretary of Defense in consultation with the Secretary of State);

(2)the Secretary of the Army determines that such action—

(A)would have a clear benefit to the preservation of the production base for the production of cannon at the arsenal concerned; and

(B)would not transfer technology (including production techniques) considered unique to the arsenal concerned, except as provided in subsection (e); and

(3)the Secretary of Defense enters into an agreement with the country concerned described in subsection (c) or (d).

(c)An agreement under this subsection shall be in the form of a Government-to-Government Memorandum of Understanding and shall include provisions that—

(1)prescribe the content of the technical data package or assistance to be transferred to the foreign country participating in the agreement;

(2)require that production by the participating foreign country of the defense item to which the technical data package or assistance relates be shared with the arsenal concerned;

(3)subject to such exceptions as may be approved under subsection (f), prohibit transfer by the participating foreign country to a third party or country of—

(A)any defense article, technical data package, technology, or assistance provided by the United States under the agreement; and

(B)any defense article produced by the participating foreign country under the agreement; and

(4)require the Secretary of Defense to monitor compliance with the agreement and the participating foreign country to report periodically to the Secretary of Defense concerning the agreement.

(d)An agreement under this subsection is a cooperative project agreement under section 27 of the Arms Export Control Act (22 U.S.C. 2767) which includes provisions that—

(1)for development phases describe the technical data to be transferred and for the production phase prescribe the content of the technical data package or assistance to be transferred to the foreign country participating in the agreement;

(2)require that at least the United States production of the defense item to which the technical data package or assistance relates be carried out by the arsenal concerned; and

(3)require the Secretary of Defense to monitor compliance with the agreement.

(e)The limitation in subsection (b)(2)(B) shall not apply if the technology (or production technique) transferred is subject to nonexclusive license and payment of any negotiated licensing fee or royalty that reflects the cost of development, implementation, and prove-out of the technology or production technique. Any negotiated license fee or royalty shall be placed in the operating fund of the arsenal concerned for the purpose of capital investment and technology development at that arsenal.

(f)A transfer described in subsection (c)(3) may be made if—

(1)the defense article, technical data package, or technology to be transferred is a product of a cooperative research and development program or a cooperative project in which the United States and the participating foreign country were partners; or

(2)the President—

(A)complies with all requirements of section 3(d) of the Arms Export Control Act (22 U.S.C. 2753(d)) with respect to such transfer; and

(B)certifies to Congress, before the transfer, that the transfer would provide a clear benefit to the production base of the United States for large-caliber cannon.

(g)(1)The Secretary of the Army shall submit to Congress a notice of each agreement entered into under this section.

(2)The Secretary shall submit to Congress a semi-annual report on the operation of this section and of agreements entered into under this section.

(h)In this section, the term “arsenal” means a Government-owned, Government-operated defense plant that manufactures large-caliber cannon.

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

Codification Pub. L. 99–591 is a corrected version of Pub. L. 99–500. Pub. L. 99–500, Pub. L. 99–591, and Pub. L. 99–661 added identical sections.

Prior Provisions

A prior section 7542 was renumbered section 8762 of this title.

Amendments

2018—Pub. L. 115–232 renumbered section 4542 of this title as this section. 1991—Subsec. (b)(1). Pub. L. 102–190, § 1086(a), substituted “friendly foreign country” for “member nation of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization or a country designated as a major non-NATO ally”. Subsec. (c)(3). Pub. L. 102–190, §§ 1061(a)(24)(A), 1086(b)(1), amended par. (3) identically, substituting “subsection (f)” for “subsection (d)” in introductory provisions. Subsec. (f). Pub. L. 102–190, §§ 1061(a)(24)(B), 1086(b)(2), amended subsec. identically, substituting “subsection (c)(3)” for “subsection (b)(3)” in introductory provisions. 1989—Subsec. (b)(1). Pub. L. 101–189, § 806(a)(1), substituted “a member nation of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization or a country designated as a major non-NATO ally” for “a friendly foreign country”. Subsec. (b)(2)(B). Pub. L. 101–189, § 806(a)(2), inserted “, except as provided in subsection (e)” after “arsenal concerned”. Subsec. (b)(3). Pub. L. 101–189, § 806(a)(3), inserted “or (d)” after “subsection (c)”. Subsecs. (d), (e). Pub. L. 101–189, § 806(b)(2), added subsecs. (d) and (e). Former subsecs. (d) and (e) redesignated (f) and (g), respectively. Subsec. (f). Pub. L. 101–189, § 806(b)(1), redesignated subsec. (d) as (f). Former subsec. (f) redesignated (h). Subsec. (f)(1). Pub. L. 101–189, § 806(c), inserted “or a cooperative project” after “cooperative research and development program”. Subsecs. (g), (h). Pub. L. 101–189, § 806(b)(1), redesignated subsecs. (e) and (f) as (g) and (h), respectively.

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Effective Date

of 2018 AmendmentAmendment by Pub. L. 115–232 effective Feb. 1, 2019, with provision for the coordination of

Amendments

and special rule for certain redesignations, see section 800 of Pub. L. 115–232, set out as a note preceding section 3001 of this title.

Effective Date

Pub. L. 99–500, § 101(c) [title IX, § 9036(c)], Oct. 18, 1986, 100 Stat. 1783–82, 1783–108, Pub. L. 99–591, § 101(c) [title IX, § 9036(c)], Oct. 30, 1986, 100 Stat. 3341–82, 3341–108, and Pub. L. 99–661, div. A, title XII, § 1203(b), Nov. 14, 1986, 100 Stat. 3969, provided that: “section 4542 [now 7542] of title 10, United States Code, as added by subsection (a), shall apply with respect to funds appropriated for fiscal years after fiscal year 1986.” Rule of

Construction

for Duplicate Authorization and Appropriation Provisions of Public Laws 99–500, 99–591, and 99–661For rule of

Construction

for certain duplicate provisions of Public Laws 99–500, 99–591, and 99–661, see Pub. L. 100–26, § 6, Apr. 21, 1987, 101 Stat. 274, set out as a note under section 101 of this title.

§7542 Technical data packages for large-caliber cannon: prohibition on transfers to foreign countries; exception

Summary

Title 10, §7542

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

Prior Provisions

Amendments

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Effective Date

Amendments

Effective Date

Construction

Construction

Citations & Metadata