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Topic: OFAC

In the News (Mon 20 May 13)

EXECUTIVE POWER

Iran

ANALYSIS

Pakistan

Family compact

	OFAC Senate Testimony on Travel Related Transactions Involving Cuba
		OFAC evaluates, among other things, whether the U.S. program is structured to result in direct and individual dialogue with the Cuban people and whether the proposed activities with the Cuban people are educational in nature, such as participation in joint activities that may include seminars, lectures and workshops.
		OFAC remains committed to carrying out the President's mandate that enforcement of the Cuba embargo be enhanced under current law.
		OFAC will continue to administer and enforce the restrictions on travel-related transactions involving Cuba in a manner that is timely, fair, and consistent with that law.
	www.ibike.org /cuba/ofac/newcomb.htm (2983 words)

	[No title]
		OFAC will not accept comments accompanied by a request that all or part of the submission be treated confidentially because of its business proprietary nature or for any other reason.
		OFAC issues ``cautionary letters'' where an OFAC audit or civil investigation results in insufficient evidence to conclude that a violation appears to have occurred, but which may indicate activity that could lead to a violation in other circumstances or cause problems for future transactions.
		Cancellation of Proceedings In the absence of a settlement, OFAC generally will not cancel a penalty proposed in a prepenalty notice absent evidence substantiating that the party named in the prepenalty notice did not commit or is not responsible for the violation charged, or unless such cancellation is otherwise appropriate for policy or legal reasons.
	www.strtrade.com /wtf/source/fr1-29-03_ofac_sanctions-enforcement.txt (6494 words)

	U.S. Treasury - Office of Foreign Assets Control
		OFAC usually has the authority by means of a specific license to permit a person or entity to engage in a transaction which otherwise would be prohibited.
		OFAC is not itself a bank regulator; its basic requirement is that financial institutions not violate the laws that it administers.
		OFAC is currently working with the financial community on a pilot project to permit the filing of such reports electronically.
	www.treas.gov /offices/eotffc/ofac/faq (10952 words)

	Ontario Farm Animal Council
		The Ontario Farm Animal Council is working hard to bridge the gap between farmers and the rest of society by providing facts and addressing concerns related to animal care, environment and food safety.
		OFAC was formed in 1988 to provide reliable information on current farming and food production practices.
		OFAC represents tens of thousands of livestock and poultry farmers, associated businesses and organizations across Ontario.
	www.ofac.org (65 words)

	Congressman Howard Berman (CA28) :: Floor Statement :: Letter from Rep. Berman to Richard Newcomb, Director of OFAC
		It is in that spirit that I am writing to take strong exception to OFAC’s interpretation of that provision as it applies to activities related to the publication of manuscripts written by nationals of Iran (and other countries sanctioned under IEEPA) in scholarly journals in the United States.
		In my view, the guidance issued by OFAC on this matter — and the underlying regulations on which it is based — are clearly inconsistent with both the letter and spirit of the law.
		In this context, OFAC’s recent interpretation of Section 203(b) — as reflected in your September 30, 2003 letter regarding permissible publishing activities by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) — is patently absurd.
	www.house.gov /apps/list/speech/ca28_berman/newcomb_letter.html (563 words)

	ALERT 7
		The OFAC has a complex set of reguations concerning the required exchange of notices and responses between itself and a person accused of illegal travel-related transactions in Cuba.
		Furthermore, OFAC’s regulations regarding transactions incidental to travel, and OFAC’s demand for information pursuant to such regulations constitute discriminatory enforcement of the laws on the basis of national origin and political viewpoint, in violation of the First and Fifth Amendments to the Constitution of the United States.
		OFAC is precluded from asserting the claims set forth in the Notice by reason of the prejudice to me and to the detriment thereof, all of which has resulted from the agency’s failure to pursue said claim in a timely fashion.
	www.nlg.org /cuba/Cuba_travel_alert_7.htm (1246 words)

	June 2004 OFAC Cuba Regulations
		New OFAC regulations implementing the travel-related and remittances recommendations of the May 2004 Report to the President from the Commission for Assistance to a Free Cuba will be published in the Federal Register, with an effective date of June 30, 2004.
		OFAC now considers this a prohibited dealing in property in which Cuba has an interest.
		The new rule eliminates the general license and requires a specific license issued by OFAC that will only authorize travel-related transactions incident to visits to members of the traveler's "immediate family" once per three-year period, measured from the last departure from Cuba, for no more than 14 days.
	www.ffrd.org /cuba/june04regs.htm (750 words)

	The Scientist :: Publishers sue US OFAC, Sep. 28, 2004
		The publishers complain that OFAC has issued contradictory rulings over the past year that make it unclear how much editing constitutes "substantive alterations." "The confusion has a chilling effect on nonprofits who don't want to be sued or prosecuted," Davis said.
		This past April, OFAC reversed itself, saying that the editing by IEEE was not a substantive alteration.
		Then in July, OFAC issued a ruling that Davis said is the most contradictory yet, because it greatly expands the freedom to edit as compared to the earlier rulings, which still stand.
	www.biomedcentral.com /news/20040928/03 (838 words)

	OFAC PRONOUNCEMENT (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-11-07)
		We appreciate that OFAC's response to IEEE's license application affirmed that IEEE's peer review and style- and copy-editorial processes are exempt from current restrictions imposed on trade with embargoed countries because they have been determined to be within the scope of the Berman Amendment exemption from such restrictions, as implemented through OFAC's regulatory enforcement.
		Most importantly, OFAC's response remains anchored in its imposition of conditions on eligibility for the statutory exemption embodied by the Berman Amendment despite the fact that such qualifying conditions have no foundation in either statutory language or legislative history of that exemption.
		Thus, its approval of IEEE's particular practices indicates that OFAC intends to continue to assert licensing authority over publishing activities-authority that we believe is denied to it by the express language of the Berman Amendment, as well as the First Amendment's protection of the freedom of the press.
	www.pen.org /freedom/pressrel/ofac_april2004.html (224 words)

	Materials for Suit
		September 26, 2003 OFAC ruling on exchange of information between Iranian and U.S. authors
		July 6, 2004 OFAC ruling on translation project grants
		July 19, 2004 OFAC ruling on newspaper Op-Eds
	www.aaupnet.org /ofac (510 words)

	CubaCentral :: Cuba obsession weakens U.S. effort (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-11-07)
		OFAC, the office charged with tracking terrorism and enforcing sanctions programs -- including the sanctions against Iraq that we now believe Saddam Hussein succeeded in getting around -- employs some 120 hard-working, dedicated people.
		Since 1990, OFAC has opened just 93 enforcement investigations related to terrorism, and since 1994, it has collected $9,425 in fines for violations related to terrorism financing.
		During the same time frames, OFAC opened 10,683 enforcement cases against the Cuba embargo, and it has collected a whopping $8 million in fines for the embargo violations.
	www.cubacentral.com /todaysnewsdetail.cfm?ID=262 (781 words)

	Words Without Borders -> Doors, Windows, and the Office of Foreign Assets Control
		In another ruling later that month, OFAC stated that an U.S. entity could not publish a book written by an Iranian living in Iran because “inherent in the publication of a book are marketing, distribution, artistic, advertising and other services not exempt from” the OFAC regulations.
		In response, an OFAC official stated that there was a standing exemption from the OFAC regulations for Cuban literature—an exception which, if it actually existed, would indeed have been bizarre (why Cuban literature alone and not Iranian, Sudanese or North Korean?).
		Settlement talks between OFAC and PEN’s lawyers continue, but the most likely outcome appears to be that the suit will be dismissed without prejudice—which, at least, means that it can be brought again at some future point.
	www.wordswithoutborders.org /article.php?lab=EAllen (2357 words)

	U.S. Treasury - Office of Foreign Assets Control
		The Office of Foreign Assets Control ("OFAC") of the US Department of the Treasury administers and enforces economic and trade sanctions based on US foreign policy and national security goals against targeted foreign countries, terrorists, international narcotics traffickers, and those engaged in activities related to the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction.
		OFAC acts under Presidential wartime and national emergency powers, as well as authority granted by specific legislation, to impose controls on transactions and freeze foreign assets under US jurisdiction.
		Many of the sanctions are based on United Nations and other international mandates, are multilateral in scope, and involve close cooperation with allied governments.
	www.treas.gov /offices/enforcement/ofac (133 words)

	Welcome to OFAC!
		OFAC is a self-paced web-based training program based on the renowned Elected Officials Guide series produced by the Government Finance Officers Association, and which covers issues in government finance and accounting.
		At $75 for the entire course, OFAC is destined to become an inexpensive and preferred option for training for local officials.
		The OFAC program consists of ten chapters which cover topics such as procurement, internal controls and fraud prevention, investing and multi-year budgeting.
	www.ohfac.com (177 words)

	OFAC - Ontario Animal Agriculture Photo Library (Site not responding. Last check: 2007-11-07)
		Contact OFAC (info@ofac.org) for further information or to request a particular photo that doesn't appear on the site.
		The Ontario Farm Animal Council (OFAC) is a registered non-profit educational organization.
		OFAC represents Ontario's 35,000 livestock and poultry farmers, plus many other agri-food groups and businesses involved in animal agriculture and food production.
	www.farmissues.com /photos (291 words)

	The Scientist :: OFAC reverses embargo ruling, Dec. 16, 2004
		The Treasury Department said it acted "to further promote the free flow of information around the world and to ensure the voices of dissidents and others living in Cuba, Iran, and Sudan are heard," according to an anonymous Treasury official speaking through a spokesperson.
		But Edward Davis, one of the publishers' attorneys, said yesterday that the publishers are not yet ready to drop their lawsuit, filed September 27, because the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), by granting a general license, continues to assert that it can regulate informational materials.
		Last April, OFAC reauthorized IEEE—but not American publishers in general—to edit manuscripts from embargoed nations and to provide some services to them.
	www.biomedcentral.com /news/20041216/02 (731 words)

	IEEE Petition: Information &News Updates
		In December 2002, IEEE asked OFAC (the Office of Foreign Assets Control, an administration under the direct responsibility of the US President, that supervises the trade embargoes edicted by the US administration) to clarify the rules they had to apply with regards to editorial restraints for authors from Iran.
		The OFAC letter to IEEE is worth reading; it is an extraordinary display of Kafka-style prose, that brings us back to the dark ages of the Soviet regime.
		OFAC has informed the IEEE that peer review, editing and publishing of scientific manuscripts submitted by authors living in embargoed countries is not subjected to any restrictions imposed by the US government, because it is protected by the Berman amendment (see above).
	www.csam.ucl.ac.be /~gevers/Petition_News.html (2334 words)

	OFAC Revises Rule Restricting Publishing Activities
		The U.S. Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) has issued a new rule clarifying the extent to which publishing activities with persons in Cuba, Iran and Sudan are authorized, notwithstanding the U.S. embargoes against those countries.
		The action addresses a series of issues that have come to the attention of the Treasury during the past year.
		"OFAC's previous guidance was interpreted by some as discouraging the publication of dissident speech from within these oppressive regimes.
	www.writenews.com /2005/010705_treasurydept_foreign_books.htm (377 words)

	Instant OFAC - Free OFAC SDN search and OFAC check online
		OFAC is the Office of Foreign Asset Control, part of the U.S. Department of Treasury.
		OFAC is responsible for administering and enforcing economic and trade sanctions against certain nations, entities and individuals.
		OFAC maintains a listing of these restricted counter parties in a document called the "Specially Designated Nationals List" (SDN).
	www.instantofac.com (531 words)

	Source Media Press Release
		TransUnion OFAC Advisor is a screening solution that provides credit grantors with a simple, automatic method for use in complying with new federal regulations as set forth in the USA PATRIOT Act.
		TransUnion OFAC Advisor is designed to minimize the number of 'false positives' using unique matching logic.
		FACFilter™, TFP's OFAC Entity Screening application, provides users the ability to effectively screen client data in batch or real-time operational environments in a manner that maximizes their ability to accurately identify OFAC-related risks, while minimizing the number of false positives that might otherwise be experienced in this process.
	www.sourcemedia.com /pressreleases/2002archives/20020918TFPTU.html (539 words)

	OFAC Update - Mary Beth Guard
		OFAC's hotline averages 1,000 calls per week with at least $1 million and sometimes as much as $35 million in appropriately interdicted items each week.
		In one recent case, OFAC worked with a US bank to block a wire transfer for close to $100,000 originating from a suspect and going to an organization associated with a Specially Designated Global Terrorist organization which OFAC had named.
		OFAC plans to publish treatises on its Website that discuss OFAC's licensing practices with regard to various categories of commercial and financial transactions.
	www.bankersonline.com /compliance/ci-ofaccalls.html (357 words)

	OFAC Home
		Our monthly meetings are open to the public and OFAC welcomes volunteers to assist with our various projects.
		Included in last year's (2003) fall forum was a visit to Petrie Island where participants toured the Nature Centre, enjoyed a presentation called Petrie through the Seasons, and were guided along one of the many trails.
		In early November (2003), OFAC members hiked the Beaver Pond-Kizell Drain area of Kanata.
	www.ottawaforests.ca (328 words)

	U.S. Treasury - Recent OFAC Actions: 07/30/2004
		OFAC is also issuing General License No. 1 under Executive Order 13315 to allow certain transactions related to Iraq under that Executive Order.
		All OFAC licenses for the exportation or reexportation of goods, software or technology to Iraq issued pursuant to part 575 shall remain valid until the expiration date stated in the license, or if no expiration date is provided in the license, until July 30, 2005.
		All OFAC license applications pending but not acted upon before July 30, 2004, will be returned to applicants and applicants will be required to resubmit them to the Department of Commerce using the appropriate Department of Commerce forms.
	www.treas.gov /offices/eotffc/ofac/actions/20040730.html (9270 words)

	Publishers and authors file suit against Treasury Department
		Representatives of the plaintiffs' organizations expressed frustration over a series of OFAC rulings that have created uncertainty and confusion among publishers fearful of incurring prison sentences of up to 10 years or fines of up to $1,000,000 per violation.
		Those rulings and the regulations they interpret mandate that Americans (1) may not enter into transactions for works not yet fully completed, (2) may not provide "substantive or artistic alterations or enhancements" to the works, and (3) may not promote or market either new or previously existing works from the affected countries.
		Since the effect of these OFAC regulations became clear late in 2003, publishers, authors, and public interest groups have pursued a number of paths to making OFAC enforcement consistent with the protection for "information and informational materials" mandated by Congress in the Berman Amendment and the Free Trade In Ideas Amendment.
	www.eurekalert.org /pub_releases/2004-09/jws-paa092704.php (909 words)

	U.S.-Cuba Trade and Economic Council, Inc./1999 Commercial Highlights
		Although the officially stated reason for the visit is “humanitarian,” the original purpose and the current purpose of the visit is to identify opportunities, to solidify existing relationships, and to expand existing relationships for Illinois-based companies, educational institutions, philanthropic organizations, cultural organizations, and religious groups.
		This visit also the first occasion that the OFAC has permitted a spouse (the wife of the governor) to participate where the spouse has no specific function that would generally be considered to be licensable by the OFAC.
		This is the first OFAC license issued to a United States-based company having a claim registered with the Foreign Claims Settlement Commission in Washington, D.C., for the specific purpose of authorizing representatives of the claimant to visit the Republic of Cuba to visually inspect the claim.
	www.cubatrade.org /99hlights.html (10012 words)

	FDIC: FIL-136-2004: Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons
		On December 16, 2004, the Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) added several entries to its list of Specially Designated National and Blocked Persons (SDNs).
		OFAC has asked that we distribute the information to all FDIC-supervised institutions so records can be checked for accounts that are required to be blocked.
		OFAC information also may be found on the Internet at http://www.treas.gov/offices/enforcement/ofac/.
	www.fdic.gov /news/news/financial/2004/fil13604.html (217 words)

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