[House Document 116-148]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
116th Congress, 2d Session - - - - - - - - - House Document 116-148
ADDRESSING THE THREAT POSED BY TIKTOK, AND TAKING ADDITIONAL STEPS TO
ADDRESS THE NATIONAL EMERGENCY WITH RESPECT TO THE INFORMATION AND
COMMUNICATIONS TECHNOLOGY AND SERVICES SUPPLY CHAIN
__________
COMMUNICATION
from
THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES
transmitting
AN EXECUTIVE ORDER THAT TAKES ADDITIONAL STEPS TO DEAL WITH THE
NATIONAL EMERGENCY WITH RESPECT TO THE INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATIONS
TECHNOLOGY AND SERVICES SUPPLY CHAIN DECLARED IN EXECUTIVE ORDER 13873
OF MAY 15, 2020, PURSUANT TO 50 U.S.C. 1703(b); PUBLIC LAW 95-223, SEC.
204(b); (91 STAT. 1627) AND 50 U.S.C. 1641(b); PUBLIC LAW 94-412, SEC.
401(b); (90 STAT. 1257)
[GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
August 14, 2020.--Referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs and
ordered to be printed
________
U.S. GOVERNMENT PUBLISHING OFFICE
99-011 WASHINGTON : 2020
The White House,
Washington, August 6, 2020.
Hon. Michael R. Pence,
President of the Senate,
Washington, DC.
Dear Madam Speaker: Pursuant to the International Emergency
Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.) (IEEPA), the
National Emergencies Act (50 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.), and section
301 of title 3, United States Code, I hereby report that I have
issued an Executive Order (the ``order'') that takes additional
steps to deal with the national emergency with respect to the
information and communications technology and services supply
chain declared in Executive Order 13873 of May 15, 2019
(Securing the Information and Communications Technology and
Services Supply Chain). Specifically, the spread in the United
States of mobile applications developed and owned by companies
in the People's Republic of China (China) continues to threaten
the national security, foreign policy, and economy of the
United States. At this time, the order takes action to address
one mobile application in particular, TikTok.
TikTok, a video-sharing mobile application owned by the
Chinese company ByteDance Ltd., automatically captures vast
swaths of information from its users. This data collection
threatens to allow the Chinese Communist Party access to
Americans' personal and proprietary information--potentially
allowing China to track the locations of Federal employees and
contractors, build dossiers of personal information for
blackmail, and conduct corporate espionage. TikTok also
reportedly censors content that the Chinese Communist Party
deems politically sensitive, such as content concerning
protests in Hong Kong and China's treatment of Uyghurs and
other Muslim minorities. TikTok may also be used for
disinformation campaigns that benefit the Chinese Communist
Party.
To deal with this threat, the order prohibits, beginning 45
days after the date of this order, to the extent permitted
under applicable law, any transaction by any person, or with
respect to any property, subject to the jurisdiction of the
United States, with ByteDance Ltd. (a.k.a. Zijie Tiaodong),
Beijing, China, or its subsidiaries, in which any such company
has any interest, as identified by the Secretary of Commerce
(Secretary). The Secretary will identify the transactions
subject to this prohibition 45 days after the date of the
order.
I have delegated to the Secretary the authority to take
such actions, including adopting appropriate rules and
regulations, and to employ all powers granted to the President
by IEEPA as may be necessary to implement the order. The order
also directs all department and agencies to take all
appropriate measures within their authority to implement the
order.
I am enclosing a copy of the order I have issued.
Sincerely,
Donald J. Trump.
Executive Order
----------
Addressing the Threat Posed by TikTok, and Taking Additional Steps To
Address the National Emergency With Respect to the Information and
Communications Technology and Services Supply Chain
By the authority vested in me as President by the
Constitution and the laws of the United States of America,
including the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (50
U.S.C. 1701 et seq.) (IEEPA), the National Emergencies Act (50
U.S.C. 1601 et seq.), and section 301 of title 3, United States
Code,
I, DONALD J. TRUMP, President of the United States of
America, find that additional steps must be taken to deal with
the national emergency with respect to the information and
communications technology and services supply chain declared in
Executive Order 13873 of May 15, 2019 (Securing the Information
and Communications Technology and Services Supply Chain).
Specifically, the spread in the United States of mobile
applications developed and owned by companies in the People's
Republic of China (China) continues to threaten the national
security, foreign policy, and economy of the United States. At
this time, action must be taken to address the threat posed by
one mobile application in particular, TikTok.
TikTok, a video-sharing mobile application owned by the
Chinese company ByteDance Ltd., has reportedly been downloaded
over 175 million times in the United States and over one
billion times globally. TikTok automatically captures vast
swaths of information from its users, including Internet and
other network activity information such as location data and
browsing and search histories. This data collection threatens
to allow the Chinese Communist Party access to Americans'
personal and proprietary information--potentially allowing
China to track the locations of Federal employees and
contractors, build dossiers of personal information for
blackmail, and conduct corporate espionage.
TikTok also reportedly censors content that the Chinese
Communist Party deems politically sensitive, such as content
concerning protests in Hong Kong and China's treatment of
Uyghurs and other Muslim minorities. This mobile application
may also be used for disinformation campaigns that benefit the
Chinese Communist Party, such as when TikTok videos spread
debunked conspiracy theories about the origins of the 2019
Novel Coronavirus.
These risks are real. The Department of Homeland Security,
Transportation Security Administration, and the United States
Armed Forces have already banned the use of TikTok on Federal
Government phones. The Government of India recently banned the
use of TikTok and other Chinese mobile applications throughout
the country; in a statement, India's Ministry of Electronics
and Information Technology asserted that they were ``stealing
and surreptitiously transmitting users' data in an unauthorized
manner to servers which have locations outside India.''
American companies and organizations have begun banning TikTok
on their devices. The United States must take aggressive action
against the owners of TikTok to protect our national security.
Accordingly, I hereby order:
Section 1. (a) The following actions shall be prohibited
beginning 45 days after the date of this order, to the extent
permitted under applicable law: any transaction by any person,
or with respect to any property, subject to the jurisdiction of
the United States, with ByteDance Ltd. (a.k.a. Zijie Tiaodong),
Beijing, China, or its subsidiaries, in which any such company
has any interest, as identified by the Secretary of Commerce
(Secretary) under section 1(c) of this order.
(b) The prohibition in subsection (a) of this section
applies except to the extent provided by statutes, or in
regulations, orders, directives, or licenses that may be issued
pursuant to this order, and notwithstanding any contract
entered into or any license or permit granted before the date
of this order.
(c) 45 days after the date of this order, the Secretary
shall identify the transactions subject to subsection (a) of
this section.
Sec. 2. (a) Any transaction by a United States person or
within the United States that evades or avoids, has the purpose
of evading or avoiding, causes a violation of, or attempts to
violate the prohibition set forth in this order is prohibited.
(b) Any conspiracy formed to violate any of the
prohibitions set forth in this order is prohibited.
Sec. 3. For the purposes of this order:
(a) the term ``person'' means an individual or entity;
(b) the term ``entity'' means a government or
instrumentality of such government, partnership, association,
trust, joint venture, corporation, group, subgroup, or other
organization, including an international organization; and
(c) the term ``United States person'' means any United
States citizen, permanent resident alien, entity organized
under the laws of the United States or any jurisdiction within
the United States (including foreign branches), or any person
in the United States.
Sec. 4. The Secretary is hereby authorized to take such
actions, including adopting rules and regulations, and to
employ all powers granted to me by IEEPA as may be necessary to
implement this order. The Secretary may, consistent with
applicable law, redelegate any of these functions within the
Department of Commerce. All departments and agencies of the
United States shall take all appropriate measures within their
authority to implement this order.
Sec. 5. General Provisions. (a) Nothing in this order shall
be construed to impair or otherwise affect:
(i) the authority granted by law to an executive
department, agency, or the head thereof; or
(ii) the functions of the Director of the Office of
Management and Budget relating to budgetary,
administrative, or legislative proposals.
(b) This order shall be implemented consistent with
applicable law and subject to the availability of
appropriations.
(c) This order is not intended to, and does not, create any
right or benefit, substantive or procedural, enforceable at law
or in equity by any party against the United States, its
departments, agencies, or entities, its officers, employees, or
agents, or any other person.
Donald J. Trump.
The White House, August 6, 2020.
[all]