You are using the word compliance while ignoring the other side of the equation, namely clearance of the individual. For an organization to be ITAR compliant, it has to ensure that access to materials that are on the USML list are only available to those eligible. Those eligible are verified through a clearance process that confirms their legal status in the US and collects sufficient evidence to demonstrate their allegiance to the US.
Ergo, legal status (ex. citizenship) is a necessary, but not sufficient, condition to gain access to ITAR materials i.e. by virtue of being a US citizen, one is not automatically entitled to access, transport or store ITAR materials.
> For an organization to be ITAR compliant, it has to ensure that access to materials that are on the USML list are only available to those eligible. Those eligible are verified through a clearance process that confirms their legal status in the US and collects sufficient evidence to demonstrate their allegiance to the US.
Can you cite this requirement? I've never heard of it and cannot find statutory support for it anywhere. The ITAR requirements seem to just differentiate between US persons and foreign persons, and require preclearance (by the DOD) if you want to provide munitions information to foreign persons. They provide no restriction on transfer to US persons.
In other words, under the law US-personhood is sufficient condition to gain access to ITAR materials. Businesses may require additional justifications (e.g. the janitor doesn't have a reason to access ITAR data), but that's beyond the legal requirements, and those cannot trump equal protection issues.
I have CGP/ITAR clearance, I can confirm this. Each individual needs to go through clearance process, and fines for transfer of ITAR material to people that don't have ITAR clearance are significant, like a milion dollars, and a year in prison PER A DOCUMENT. For a company is much more, of course.
For ITAR assessment, they are going through your employment, and financial history, criminal check in any country in which you lived in the last three years, bank accounts, and this assessment is repeated every three or four years.
For a job interview, as I didn't have clearance, I had to be escorted, and my phone's camera was covered with tape. And all this in a company that is building landing gears for mostly commercial aircaft, with a few military programs. So, nothing top secret, or high tech to be honest.
So, the idea that an asylant or refugee can work in SpaceX, with often unverifiable criminal history is insane.
Ergo, legal status (ex. citizenship) is a necessary, but not sufficient, condition to gain access to ITAR materials i.e. by virtue of being a US citizen, one is not automatically entitled to access, transport or store ITAR materials.