Texas Exporter Settles Charges of Unlawful Exports of Chemicals

The U.S. Department of Commerce today announced that BJ Services Company USA, L.P. (BJ Services), agreed to pay a $142,450 civil penalty to settle charges that it illegally exported chemicals without Department of Commerce authorization. BJ also must perform an audit of its internal compliance program that will be submitted to the Bureau of Industry and Security’s Office of Export Enforcement.

The agreement settled charges that between October 1999 and June 2002, BJ Services made 13 exports of items controlled for chemical weapons reasons to various destinations without obtaining the required Department of Commerce export licenses.

The settlement also alleged that on 12 occasions between October 1999 and June 2002, BJ Services sold items subject to the Export Administration Regulations (EAR), with knowledge that violations were about to occur. In addition, the settlement stated that on 12 occasions between October 1999 and June 2002, BJ Services filed or caused to be filed submissions that falsely stated that the items qualified for export from the United States without a license when in fact a license was required.

The Department of Commerce administers and enforces export controls for reasons of national security, foreign policy, nonproliferation, anti-terrorism, and short supply through the EAR. Criminal prosecution and administrative sanctions can be imposed for violations of those regulations.

The investigation of the shipments at issue resulted from voluntary self-disclosures by BJ Services, which cooperated with BIS during the investigation. Self-disclosure is a mitigating factor in determining penalties for violations of the EAR.

Acting Assistant Secretary Wysong commended the Dallas Field Office of BIS’s Office of Export Enforcement for its work on this investigation.