Although Federal laws restricting exports of goods and technology have been in existence since the 1940's, the federal government has increased its scrutiny of export control compliance by colleges and universities due to concerns about homeland security, proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, terrorism, and unauthorized releases of technology to U.S. economic competitors. Export control regulations cover shipment of controlled physical items, such as scientific equipment that require export licenses from the United States to a foreign country and transfers of controlled information, including technical data. The University must also comply with federal regulations when faculty and students travel to certain sanctioned or embargoed countries for purposes of teaching or performing research. This page contains resources on University policies and practices for compliance with these regulations and links to the regulations themselves.