http://www.bis.doc.gov/press/2002/CommerceRenamesAgencyBIS.html
Commerce Department Renames Agency
"Bureau of Industry and Security"
The Commerce Department today announced that the Bureau of Export Administration is being renamed the "Bureau of Industry and Security" (BIS) to reflect more accurately the broad scope of the agency's responsibilities.
Commerce Under Secretary Kenneth I. Juster, who heads the Bureau, explained: "The Bureau of Industry and Security serves the public in many ways where industry and national security intersect, including not just export licensing and enforcement, but also defense trade advocacy and critical infrastructure protection."
"The new name better reflects the breadth of the Bureau's activities in the spheres of national, homeland, economic, and cyber security," Juster said.
Administering export controls on dual-use items remains a core BIS responsibility, but the Bureau also coordinates all of the Department's homeland security activities, leads the federal government's outreach to the private sector regarding critical infrastructure protection and cyber security, and assists U.S. industry in complying with the Chemical Weapons Convention and other international arms agreements. The agency also spearheads the Department of Commerce's efforts in defense trade advocacy and monitors the health of the U.S. defense-industrial base.
The new name will help the Bureau to communicate with and serve the American public at a time when both security and economic issues have never been more important.
The Bureau of Industry and Security, which includes the Critical Infrastructure Assurance Office, (CIAO) is headquartered in Washington, D.C. and has 10 field offices nationwide. The change in name does not substantively affect its activities, nor those of its sister organization, the International Trade Administration, which remains responsible for the Department's trade promotion and policy activities.