Senate Passes Bipartisan Bill Cosponsored by Senator Hassan to Address Security Threat Posed by Chinese State-Backed Tech Companies

WASHINGTON – The Senate yesterday passed a bipartisan bill cosponsored by U.S. Senator Maggie Hassan to direct the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to close a loophole to better prevent telecommunications equipment manufactured and sold by companies that pose a national security threat from being deployed in the United States. The bill now heads to the President’s desk for his signature.

“To protect our communications infrastructure from companies affiliated with China’s military and security services, we need to take steps to close loopholes that allow bad actors to sell compromised equipment and services to Americans,” Senator Hassan said. “I’m glad that the Senate voted unanimously to pass this important bipartisan legislation that will help strengthen our telecommunications networks against threats to our national security, and I urge the President to swiftly sign this bill into law.”

In 2020, the FCC adopted new rules to require U.S. telecommunications carriers to rip and replace equipment provided by Huawei, ZTE, and other covered companies that pose a risk to U.S. national security. While that was an important step, those rules only apply to equipment purchased with federal funding. The very same equipment can still be used if purchased with private or non-federal government dollars. The bipartisan Secure Equipment Act closes this national security loophole by directing the FCC to clarify that it will no longer review, or approve, applications from companies on the Commission’s “Covered List” – regardless of whether federal funds were used.

Senator Hassan is working across the aisle to address the national security and economic threat posed by the Chinese government, and earlier this year she worked with her colleagues to pass bipartisan legislation to help the U.S. outcompete China. The bipartisan United States Innovation and Competition Act includes $1.5 billion for the USA Telecommunications Act, which Senator Hassan and colleagues previously passed into law, to provide funds to support research and development in Western-based alternatives to Chinese equipment providers Huawei and ZTE. Additionally, the National Defense Authorization Act for FY 2021 included two bipartisan provisions that Senator Hassan worked on to address the rise of China, including an amendment she cosponsored to help spur American-based manufacturing of semiconductors in order to increase competitiveness and decrease reliance on China. 

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