BIS Under Fire as Export Rules Slow China Chip Clampdown

U.S. officials and lawmakers say the Commerce Department’s Bureau of Industry and Security is gridlocked by leadership decisions, slow rulemaking, and license backlogs, risking weaker controls on advanced chips going to China; critics allege BIS chief Jeffrey Kessler’s micromanagement and the Commerce secretary’s stance have paralyzed enforcement, while the White House defends leadership and cites a shift away from rubber-stamping licenses even as some rules lag and an eight-month gap in updating the Entity List draws bipartisan scrutiny.