compliance letter

Sample Compliance Letter
To: P.I.
From: Carol Welt, Executive Director
Antje Harnisch, Manager of Contract Services
Re: Award from: Sponsor
Purchase Order #:
Proposal #:
$100,000; star date – end date
Date: February 1, 2005
The sponsored research project identified above involves the use of Export-Controlled
Information as defined in the Export Administration Regulations, as outlined in more detail in
the attached document on the handling of export-controlled information. Non-compliance with
these federal regulations carries severe penalties.
The following restrictions and requirements apply to your above-referenced project.
Publication
Sponsor Purchase Order Article 10 restricts the publication of research results. Sponsor requires
prior review and approval of any proposed publication or presentation. Sponsor can screen the
publication for the inadvertent disclosure of proprietary and export-controlled information. You
cannot publish or present any of your results before you have received Sponsor approval.
Foreign Nationals
You have stated that the only person working on the project in addition to you and Co-PI is
Student A. Student A is a non-resident alien from foreign country B, and she has been approved
by Sponsor to work on this project. You will inform OSP of any change in her immigration
status. Moreover, any proposed change of personnel requires OSP review and approval.
Graduate Student Participation
Because there is the possibility that work cannot be published, student participation on this
project is limited to a one-time, six months period. The work performed on this project cannot
be part of the student’s thesis or dissertation. The student will sign a letter agreeing to these
provisions.
Disclosure of Information
You, Co-PI, and Student A may not disclose controlled technical information by any method to a
foreign national in the U.S. or abroad without a license from the Department of Commerce or the
Department of State. Methods of disclosure include, but are not limited to, fax, telephone
discussions, e-mail communications, computer data disclosures, face-to-face discussions,
training sessions, and tours that involve visual inspections. You may not discuss the work or
resulting data in group meetings. Progress on this project shall be discussed only in private
between you, Co-PI, and Student A. Moreover, you shall protect the data by securing the
hardware in a locked cabinet and shall save all data to separate disks, which shall also be secured
in a locked cabinet. In addition, when not securely stored, any hardware or information provided
by Sponsor and any data generated relating to this purchase order shall remain in the direct
control of you, Co-PI, or Student A at all times.
Separates letters describing requirements and responsibilities under the above-referenced
contract will be signed by Co-PI and Student A.
Please sign below that you agree to comply with the provisions outlined in this letter and in the
attached document. If you have any questions, please contact me.
Certification. I hereby certify that I have read and understand this letter and the attached
document on the handling of export-controlled information. I understand that I could be held
personally liable if I unlawfully disclose, regardless of form or format, Export-Controlled
Information to unauthorized persons.
Signature: _________________________________________ Date: _______________
UNIVERSITY OF CONNECTICUT
THE HANDLING OF EXPORT-CONTROLLED INFORMATION
Overview. The sponsored research project identified below may involve the use of Export-Controlled
Information (defined below). As a result, the project implicates the International Traffic in Arms
Regulations (ITAR) [under the jurisdiction of the State Department] and possibly the Export
Administration Regulations (EAR) [under the jurisdiction of the Department of Commerce]. It is
unlawful under the ITAR to send or take export-controlled information out of the U.S., disclose, orally or
visually, or transfer export-controlled information to a foreign person inside or outside the U.S. A foreign
person is a person who is not a U.S. citizen or permanent resident alien of the U.S. The law makes no
exceptions for foreign graduate students.
In general, Export-Controlled Information means activities, items and information related to the design,
development, engineering, manufacture, production, assembly, testing, repair, maintenance, operation,
modification, demilitarization, destruction, processing or use of items with a capacity for substantial
military application utility. Export-controlled information does not include basic marketing information
on function or purpose, general system descriptions, or information concerning general scientific,
mathematical or engineering principles commonly taught in schools, colleges and universities or
information in the public domain. It does not matter if the actual intended use of Export-Controlled
Information is military or civil in nature.
Reasonable Care. Researchers may be held personally liable for violations of the ITAR ,EAR and
OFAC. As a result, they should exercise care in using and sharing Export-Controlled Information with
others and in entering into financial transactions with foreign nationals. For example, PIs should identify
whom among proposed research assistants and collaborators are foreign persons. Unless the governing
agency grants a license authorizing those persons access to Export-Controlled Information, a prerequisite
to accessing it is a security clearance. In the absence of that clearance, PIs should not leave Export-
Controlled Information unattended. They should clearly identify Export-Controlled Information and make
only that documented number of copies of the material as is absolutely necessary. PIs also should store
Export-Controlled Information in a locked file cabinet or drawer or under password protected computer
files. Finally, PIs should avoid moving the information from one location to another.
Penalties. The penalty for unlawful export and disclosure of Export-Controlled Information under the
ITAR is up to two (2) years imprisonment and/or a fine of one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000), and
unlawful export and disclosure of information controlled under the EAR, the greater of (i) a fine of up to
one million dollars ($1,000,000) or (ii) five times the value of the exports for a corporation and
imprisonment of up to ten (10) years and/or a fine of up to two hundred fifty thousand dollars ($250,000)
for an individual. Violations of sanctions against certain countries governed by OFAC may result in
imprisonment of up to twelve (12) years and fines up to one million dollars ($1,000,000). All of these
fines and penalties are cumulative.

compliance letter

[Current Date]

[Vendor]
[Address]
[City, ST zip]

Dear Mr./Ms. [Vendor Contact]:

As part of the University of Alabama’s Year 2000 Project, we are identifying all hardware, software, and firmware resources and assessing them for Year 2000 compliance. We define a product as being Year 2000 compliant when functionality is not affected by dates prior to, during, and after the year 2000. In particular:

• No value for current date will cause any interruption in operation.
• Date-based functionality must behave consistently for dates prior to, during, and after year 2000.
• In all interfaces and data storage, the century in any date must be specified either explicitly or by unambiguous algorithms or inferencing rules.
• Year 2000 must be recognized as a leap year.

Currently, we have identified (one/several) of your product(s) as part of our inventory.

Vendor:
Product ID:
Make/Model:
Description:

We need your help and cooperation in determining the compliance status of (this/these) product(s). Please return the compliance information to [Contact Person] by [Date]. If it is more convenient, you can fax the response to [Contact Person] at [205-348-fax#] or send an E-Mail to [Contact.Person@ua.edu].

Thank you for your prompt attention to this matter. If you have any questions about this request, please contact me at [205-348-xxxx].

Sincerely,

 

[Contact Person]
[title]
[department]
The University of Alabama