livingston
20×102mm Vulcan
The Defense Distributed Settlement Isn’t a Done Deal…Here’s What’s Next
What exactly happened with the lawsuit that Cody Wilson’s Defense Distributed (DD) filed against the State Department? Specifically, why did the State Department settle the case to allow DD to put its files for 3D printed firearms on its website, DEFCAD?
The Agreement
The State Department stated that the DEFCAD files posted by DD are exempt from the licensing requirements of the Arms Export Control Act’s implementing regulations known as the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR). In the settlement, State only said that the files are exempt, but didn’t give a reason or criteria to define the exemption.
Instead, the State Department agreed to publish the rationale and definitions of the exemption in a public rule making. That implies DD’s lawsuit triggered a new type of exemption for the public sharing of non-military weapon designs and information.
Under 22 CFR 125.4 (b) the State Department lists exemptions from ITAR. It is interesting that subsections (b) (1) through (12) detail very specific reasons for exemption, but subsection (13) basically reads that something is exempt from ITAR if the State Department says so.
We will all take the win for an exemption, but that sort of ambiguity is dangerous.
Free Speech
In its settlement with Defense Distributed, the State Department said that it would draft a new federal rule in the Federal Register to exclude the type of technical data that Defense Distributed put on DEFCAD. The new rule may explain why the State Department agreed to settle and permit publicly sharing the weapon design information published by DD.
Drafting a new rule can take weeks, months, or even years. According to the settlement, while the State Department is drafting the rule, it will put an announcement on its website that the State Department is temporarily permitting public sharing of DD’s files.
More at ...
The Defense Distributed Settlement Isn't a Done Deal...Here's What's Next - The Truth About Guns
What exactly happened with the lawsuit that Cody Wilson’s Defense Distributed (DD) filed against the State Department? Specifically, why did the State Department settle the case to allow DD to put its files for 3D printed firearms on its website, DEFCAD?
The Agreement
The State Department stated that the DEFCAD files posted by DD are exempt from the licensing requirements of the Arms Export Control Act’s implementing regulations known as the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR). In the settlement, State only said that the files are exempt, but didn’t give a reason or criteria to define the exemption.
Instead, the State Department agreed to publish the rationale and definitions of the exemption in a public rule making. That implies DD’s lawsuit triggered a new type of exemption for the public sharing of non-military weapon designs and information.
Under 22 CFR 125.4 (b) the State Department lists exemptions from ITAR. It is interesting that subsections (b) (1) through (12) detail very specific reasons for exemption, but subsection (13) basically reads that something is exempt from ITAR if the State Department says so.
We will all take the win for an exemption, but that sort of ambiguity is dangerous.
Free Speech
In its settlement with Defense Distributed, the State Department said that it would draft a new federal rule in the Federal Register to exclude the type of technical data that Defense Distributed put on DEFCAD. The new rule may explain why the State Department agreed to settle and permit publicly sharing the weapon design information published by DD.
Drafting a new rule can take weeks, months, or even years. According to the settlement, while the State Department is drafting the rule, it will put an announcement on its website that the State Department is temporarily permitting public sharing of DD’s files.
More at ...
The Defense Distributed Settlement Isn't a Done Deal...Here's What's Next - The Truth About Guns
