May 6, 2015

The US Departments of State and Commerce recently issued proposed changes to export control regulations covering optical equipment. The public comment period ends 6 July.

Details about the proposed changes are available at these two URLs:

• https://www.federalregister.gov/articles/2015/05/05/2015-10353/revisions...
• https://www.federalregister.gov/articles/2015/05/05/2015-09673/amendment...

Some in the optics and photonics community have expressed concerns with the proposed changes. Our sister society, SPIE: The International Society for Optics and Photonics, has organized a webinar on 12 May (from 2 to 3 pm EDT) to educate the broader community about the proposed changes, and they have kindly extended the invitation to members of the AAS. Registration is now open for the SPIE webinar at https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/6797597963235453954.