State Dept Concludes $36M Settlement Resolving Export Violations by General Electric Company
Summary
The U.S. Department of State concluded an administrative settlement with General Electric Company (GE Aerospace) for 116 violations of the Arms Export Control Act and the International Traffic in Arms Regulations. The settlement addresses unauthorized exports of technical data to China, violations of defense trade controls authorizations, unauthorized exports of defense articles, and failure to report material changes to ITAR registration. GE Aerospace will pay a $36 million civil penalty, with $18 million suspended contingent on compliance measures.
What changed
The Department of State concluded a 36-month Consent Agreement with GE Aerospace resolving 116 ITAR violations under ITAR § 128.11. The violations included unauthorized exports of technical data to the People's Republic of China, violations of authorization terms across multiple countries, unauthorized defense article exports to two countries, and failure to report material changes to ITAR registration.
Affected parties in the defense and aerospace manufacturing sectors should note that voluntary disclosure and full cooperation with the Department's review can result in significant penalty mitigation—GE Aerospace's cooperation contributed to the $18 million suspension. Companies must ensure proper authorization for all defense article exports, implement robust ITAR compliance programs, and promptly report material changes to registration. The settlement underscores the Department's commitment to export controls as a matter of national security and foreign policy.
What to do next
- Pay $36 million civil penalty
- Engage external Special Compliance Officer for at least 24 months
- Complete at least one external audit of ITAR compliance program
- Implement additional compliance measures per Consent Agreement
Penalties
$36 million civil penalty total; $18 million suspended contingent on completion of Department-approved remedial compliance measures
Archived snapshot
Apr 18, 2026GovPing captured this document from the original source. If the source has since changed or been removed, this is the text as it existed at that time.
Home Office of the Spokesperson Press Releases … U.S. Department of State Concludes $36 Million Settlement Resolving Export Violations by General Electric Company hide
U.S. Department of State Concludes $36 Million Settlement Resolving Export Violations by General Electric Company
Media Note
April 17, 2026
The U.S. Department of State has concluded an administrative settlement with General Electric Company (GE Aerospace) to resolve 116 violations of the Arms Export Control Act (AECA), 22 U.S.C. § 2751 et seq., and the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR), 22 C.F.R. parts 120-130. The Department of State and GE Aerospace reached this settlement following an extensive compliance review by the Office of Defense Trade Controls Compliance in the Department’s Bureau of Political-Military Affairs.
The administrative settlement between the Department of State and GE Aerospace, concluded pursuant to ITAR § 128.11, addresses multiple categories of ITAR violations, including GE Aerospace’s unauthorized exports of technical data to the People’s Republic of China; violations of terms, conditions, and provisos of several Directorate of Defense Trade Controls authorizations involving various countries; unauthorized exports of defense articles to two countries; and failure to report material changes to its ITAR registration.
GE Aerospace voluntarily disclosed all the alleged violations, a substantial portion of which predate 2023. GE Aerospace also fully cooperated with the Department’s review of this matter and has implemented numerous improvements to its ITAR compliance program since the conduct at issue.
Under the terms of the 36-month Consent Agreement, GE Aerospace will pay a civil penalty of $36 million. The Department has agreed to suspend $18 million of this amount on the condition that the funds will be used for the Department-approved Consent Agreement’s remedial compliance measures to strengthen GE Aerospace’s compliance program. In addition, for an initial period of at least 24 months, GE Aerospace will engage an external Special Compliance Officer to oversee the Consent Agreement, which will also require at least one external audit of its ITAR compliance program and implementation of additional compliance measures.
This settlement demonstrates the Department’s role in furthering the national security and foreign policy of the United States by controlling the export of defense articles. The settlement also highlights the importance of exporting defense articles pursuant only to appropriate authorization from the Department.
The Consent Agreement and related documents will be available for public inspection in the Public Reading Room of the Department of State and on the Penalties and Oversights Agreements section of the DDTC’s website.
For additional information, please contact the Office of the Under Secretary for Arms Control and Internal Security at TOutreachPM@state.gov.
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Arms Control and Nonproliferation Bureau of Political-Military Affairs Office of the Spokesperson
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