WASHINGTON — Two dozen groups representing some of the biggest U.S. companies urged the Commerce Department on Friday to scrap a proposal to tighten national security controls on exports to China and start over.
"Our fundamental view is the regulation should be withdrawn and reconsidered in its entirety after thorough consultation with exporters," the coalition of manufacturers, software companies and technology industry groups said in a letter to the department's Bureau of Industry and Security.
The groups, however, also suggested changes to the proposed regulation that would make it "clearer, simpler and less burdensome with respect to the national security decisions that company employees must make."
U.S. companies fear that the proposal would give foreign competitors a big advantage in China's fast-growing market.
The security bureau issued the proposed regulation July 6 with the aim of strengthening a longtime U.S. policy of blocking exports that would allow China to enhance its military capability.
