[Congressional Record Volume 166, Number 203 (Wednesday, December 2, 2020)]
[House]
[Page H6041]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                 HOLDING FOREIGN COMPANIES ACCOUNTABLE

  (Mr. BARR asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. BARR. Madam Speaker, I rise in strong support of S. 945, the 
Holding Foreign Companies Accountable Act.
  The United States has the most robust, liquid, and advanced capital 
markets in the world. Companies from around the globe flock to the U.S. 
capital markets to fund their businesses.
  However, to participate in our markets, companies need to play by our 
rules, and Chinese firms listed on American exchanges are the worst and 
most frequent violators of the rules.
  Gone are the days when we can sit idly by and let Chinese firms, many 
with strong ties to the Chinese Communist Party, participate in our 
markets at the expense of protection for everyday investors.
  Most publicly traded firms are audited by public accounting firms 
which, in turn, are overseen by the PCAOB. This gives investors 
confidence that the books are accurate. China, however, refuses to let 
the PCAOB review its auditors.
  The results are that investors lack confidence in the validity and 
reliability of a company's financial data. Worse, thousands of 
investors are defrauded. And the worst case scenario, American savers 
are funding Chinese state-owned enterprises which are fueling China's 
civil-military fusion and, in some cases, directly financing China's 
military space and cyberspace buildup, threatening U.S. national 
security.
  As a member of the China Task Force, I strongly support this 
legislation. I urge this body to pass it. And we can no longer allow 
China to take advantage of our rules and defraud our investors.

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