Overview
- The Bureau of Industry and Security launched the investigations July 1 to assess whether imports of unmanned aircraft systems and polysilicon threaten U.S. national security under Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act.
- Federal Register notices will appear July 16, opening a 21-day window for manufacturers, industry groups and other parties to file comments.
- Polysilicon is a critical material for solar panels and semiconductor production while the UAS probe covers drones, parts and components.
- By law, the Commerce Secretary must report findings and tariff recommendations within 270 days and the President then has 90 days to decide whether to impose duties.
- These probes build on earlier security-driven trade actions that targeted steel, aluminum, semiconductors and pharmaceuticals.