The Professional Services Council has suggested modifications on a proposed Defense Department rule to control disclosure of unclassified technical data to the public in order to address potential overlap or clashes with existing rules as well as unintended consequences.
Alan Chvotkin, a PSC executive vice president, said in the council’s comments submitted Tuesday to the directorate for oversight and compliance within DoD’s office of the deputy chief management officer that the proposed rule does not take into account existing regulations on controlled unclassified information as well as the State Department and Commerce Department export regimes.
“[We offer] recommendations for rule changes regarding the disqualification provisions and the effect on other government-established voluntary disclosure programs, for providing time for a contractor’s remedial action, and for requiring DoD to comply with the new government-wide requirements for ‘controlled unclassified information,'” Chvotkin wrote.
He added that the council has recommended DoD to modify the provisions on the rule that disqualify a contractor from receiving controlled unclassified information based on U.S. export control law.
He said DoD should utilize the procedures of the State Department’s Directorate of Defense Trade Controls and the Commerce Department’s Bureau of Industry and Security as basis for contractor disqualification, or disqualify only the contractors that both violated export control laws and do not have the capacity to prevent the unauthorized release of technical data.
Chvotkin noted that the current language in the proposed DoD rule could cause disruptions in government voluntary disclosure programs.
The PSC comment also included recommendations for an expansion of the allotted time for remedial action before disqualification, time limits for certification of contractor qualification to receive technical data as well as alignment with the National Archives and Records Administration‘s final rule on controlled unclassified information.
