[Congressional Record Volume 169, Number 63 (Monday, April 17, 2023)]
[House]
[Pages H1733-H1735]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
COUNTERING UNTRUSTED TELECOMMUNICATIONS ABROAD ACT
Mr. MAST. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill
(H.R. 1149) to establish certain reporting and other requirements
relating to telecommunications equipment and services produced or
provided by certain entities, and for other purposes, as amended.
The Clerk read the title of the bill.
The text of the bill is as follows:
H.R. 1149
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of
the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Countering Untrusted
Telecommunications Abroad Act''.
SEC. 2. SENSE OF CONGRESS.
It is the sense of Congress that--
(1) the national security of the United States is affected
by the telecommunications security of United States allies,
partners, and other countries around the globe;
(2) the importance of mobile and internet services makes
such services tempting and effective tools for malign
influence and economic coercion;
(3) Huawei Technologies Company and ZTE Corporation (and
any subsidiary or affiliate of either such entity) should not
serve as a vendor of telecommunications equipment or services
given the close ties to, and control over, such entities by
the People's Republic of China; and
(4) it is in the economic and national security interests
of the United States to ensure that countries around the
globe use trusted telecommunications equipment or services.
SEC. 3. REPORT ON UNTRUSTED TELECOMMUNICATIONS EQUIPMENT OR
SERVICES IN COUNTRIES WITH COLLECTIVE DEFENSE
AGREEMENT WITH UNITED STATES.
(a) Report.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the
enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter for two years,
the Secretary of State, in consultation with the Assistant
Secretary of Commerce for Communications and Information,
shall submit to the Committees on Foreign Affairs and Energy
and Commerce of the House of Representatives and the
Committees on Foreign Relations and Commerce, Science, and
Transportation of the Senate a report on the prevalence of
untrusted telecommunications equipment or services in the
networks of United States allies and partners.
(b) Matters.--The report under subsection (a) shall
enumerate each United States ally or partner with respect to
which the United States has entered into a collective defense
agreement and include, for each such country, the following:
(1) A description of the presence, or lack thereof, of
untrusted telecommunications equipment or services in any 5G
network of the country.
(2) If any untrusted telecommunications equipment or
service is present in such a network--
(A) an enumeration of any mobile carriers that are using
the untrusted telecommunications equipment or service
present, and any mobile carriers that are not;
(B) a determination of whether the untrusted
telecommunications equipment or service present is in the
core or periphery of the network; and
(C) any plans by the United States ally or partner, or the
individual mobile carrier, to rip and replace the untrusted
telecommunications equipment or service present with a
trusted telecommunications equipment or service.
(3) A description of any plans by network operators to use
untrusted communications equipment or services in the
deployment of Open Radio Access Network (Open RAN)
technology, or any successor to such technology, or in future
6G networks.
SEC. 4. REPORT ON COVERED TELECOMMUNICATIONS EQUIPMENT OR
SERVICES IN UNITED STATES EMBASSIES.
(a) Findings.--Congress finds the following:
(1) The Comptroller General of the United States has
reported that 23 percent of all telecommunications device
manufacturers of the Department of State have at least one
supplier reported to be headquartered in the People's
Republic of China or the Russian Federation.
(2) The Comptroller General has reported that four percent
of all telecommunications contractors of the Department of
State have at least one supplier reported to be headquartered
in the People's Republic of China.
(b) Report.--
(1) In general.--Not later than 180 days after the date of
the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State, in
consultation with the heads of such other departments and
agencies as the Secretary determines necessary, shall submit
to the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of
Representatives and the Committee on Foreign Relations of the
Senate a report containing an assessment of the use of
covered telecommunications equipment or services in United
States embassies and by United States embassy staff and
personnel.
(2) Matters.--The report under paragraph (1) shall include
information on the following:
(A) The status of the implementation by the Secretary of
State of the prohibition under subsection (a)(1) of section
889 of the John S. McCain National Defense Authorization Act
for Fiscal Year 2019 (Public Law 115-232; 132 Stat. 1917; 41
U.S.C. 3901 note prec.) with respect to equipment, systems,
and services used at United States embassies, including--
(i) an identification of the United States embassies with
respect to which the Secretary has implemented such
prohibition, and an identification of those with respect to
which the Secretary has not implemented such prohibition, if
any;
(ii) an identification of any difficulties that have
delayed the implementation of such prohibition by the
Secretary with respect to United States embassies, such as
visibility into supply chains, costs of equipment
replacement, and plans for timely remediation;
(iii) information on any waivers that have been granted to
an entity under subsection (d) of such section 889 for
equipment, systems, or services used at United States
embassies, including a justification of why each waiver was
granted and any other information required pursuant to
paragraph (1)(B) of such subsection; and
(iv) for any entity that has sought a waiver specified in
clause (iii), the implementation status of the phase-out plan
of the entity submitted by the entity pursuant to subsection
(d) of such section 889.
(B) Information regarding the extent to which the digital
devices of United States embassy staff and personnel are
serviced by Huawei Technologies Company or ZTE Corporation
(or any subsidiary or affiliate of either such entity), or
any other entity headquartered in the People's Republic of
China, and an assessment of the likelihood of the
intelligence services of the People's Republic of China
gaining access to the contents and data of the digital
devices used by United States embassy personnel as a result
of any such servicing.
(C) Any other information regarding ongoing efforts to
safeguard the communications security of United States
embassies.
(3) Form.--The report under paragraph (1) shall be
submitted in unclassified form, but may include a classified
annex.
SEC. 5. SUPPORTING TRUSTED TELECOMMUNICATIONS.
(a) In General.--The Secretary of State, in consultation
with the Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Communications
and Information, shall select for the provision of support
under this section telecommunications infrastructure projects
that have the potential, as determined by the Secretary, to
promote the national security of the United States and meet
such other requirements as the Secretary may prescribe.
(b) Diplomatic and Political Support.--The Secretary of
State shall provide to each project selected under subsection
(a), as appropriate, diplomatic and political support,
including by using the diplomatic and political influence and
expertise of the Department of State to build the capacity of
countries to resolve any impediments to the development of
the project.
(c) Early Stage Project Support.--The Director of the
United States Trade and Development Agency should provide, as
appropriate, early-stage project support with respect to
projects selected under subsection (a).
SEC. 6. DEFINITIONS.
In this Act:
(1) Covered telecommunications equipment or service;
untrusted telecommunications equipment or service.--The terms
``covered telecommunications equipment or service'' and
``untrusted telecommunications equipment or service'' have
the meaning given to the term ``covered communications
equipment or service'' in section 9 of the Secure and Trusted
Communications Network Act of 2019 (47 U.S.C. 1608).
(2) Trusted telecommunications equipment or service.--The
term ``trusted telecommunications equipment or service''
means any telecommunications equipment or service that is not
a covered telecommunications equipment or service.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from
Florida (Mr. Mast) and the gentleman from New York (Mr. Meeks) each
will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Florida.
General Leave
Mr. MAST. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may
have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and
include extraneous material on this measure.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from Florida?
There was no objection.
Mr. MAST. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 1149, Countering Untrusted
Telecommunications Abroad Act.
The Chinese Communist Party, as we all know, weaponizes every tool at
its disposal, whether it is intellectual
[[Page H1734]]
property, a balloon, or a social media app. That is why it is no
surprise that CCP-controlled companies like Huawei pose risks to our
national security and why it is important that we do not allow
ourselves or our allies or partners to be duped by the seemingly low-
cost, state-backed telecom companies like Huawei.
It might seem cheap, but the fact is the cost is much higher than
many realize. You pay by allowing the CCP to control all of your
telecommunications data, which, as history has shown, it can and will
use against you. China has made no bones about that.
What does this bill do? It requires, number one, the State Department
to conduct a risk assessment and report to Congress on the presence of
any untrusted telecommunications equipment or vendors like Huawei in
the networks of defense-allied countries.
Number two, it requires the Government Accountability Office to
report on Chinese and Russian telecom suppliers serving U.S. embassies
overseas.
Number three, finally, the bill tasks the State Department with
identifying telecom infrastructure projects that would strengthen U.S.
national security.
Three worthy goals.
The United States has to be a leader on this front. We need to help
our allies and our partners end their dependence on problematic
companies like Huawei that are in the pocket of our adversaries. It
makes no sense whatsoever.
Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman from Pennsylvania (Ms. Wild) for
her leadership on this issue and for working together on this important
bill, which deserves our unanimous support, in my opinion.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
House of Representatives,
Committee on Financial Services,
Washington, DC, March 14, 2023.
Hon. Michael McCaul,
Chairman, Committee on Foreign Affairs,
House of Representatives, Washington, DC.
Dear Chairman McCaul: Thank you for consulting with the
Committee on Financial Services regarding H.R. 1149, the
Countering Untrusted Telecommunications Abroad Act. I agree
that the Committee shall be discharged from further
consideration of the bill so that it may proceed
expeditiously to the House Floor. The Committee takes this
action with the mutual understanding that, by foregoing
consideration of H.R. 1149 at this time, we do not waive any
jurisdiction over the subject matter contained in this or
similar legislation, and that the Committee will be
appropriately consulted and involved on this or similar
legislation as it moves forward. The Committee also reserves
the right to see appointment of an appropriate number of
conferees to any conference with the Senate involving this or
similar legislation, and we request your support for any such
request.
Finally, as you mentioned in your letter, I ask that a copy
of our exchange of letters on this bill be included in your
Committee's report to accompany the legislation, as well as
in the Congressional Record during floor consideration
thereof.
Sincerely,
Patrick McHenry,
Chairman,
Committee on Financial Services.
____
House of Representatives,
Committee on Foreign Affairs,
Washington, DC, March 14, 2023.
Hon. Patrick McHenry,
Chairman, Committee on Financial Services,
Washington, DC.
Dear Chairman McHenry: Thank you for consulting with the
Foreign Affairs Committee and agreeing to be discharged from
further consideration of H.R. 1149, Countering Untrusted
Telecommunications Abroad Act, so that the measure may
proceed expeditiously to the House floor. The suspension text
incorporates edits you have requested to portions of the bill
within your committee's jurisdiction.
I agree that your forgoing further action on this measure
does not in any way diminish or alter the jurisdiction of
your committee, or prejudice its jurisdictional prerogatives
on this measure or similar legislation in the future. I would
support your effort to seek appointment of an appropriate
number of conferees from your committee to any House-Senate
conference on this legislation.
I will seek to place our letters on H.R. 1149 into the
Congressional Record during floor consideration. I appreciate
your cooperation regarding this legislation and look forward
to continuing to work together as this measure moves through
the legislative process.
Sincerely,
Michael T. McCaul,
Chairman.
Mr. MEEKS. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of the Countering Untrusted
Telecommunications Abroad Act, and I thank Representative Susan Wild
for her strong leadership on this very important piece of legislation.
Telecommunications security is a pillar of our national security. If
an adversary can partially or fully shut down your mobile network, then
they have tremendous leverage over your diplomatic, economic, and
security matters. If an adversary can tap into your networks through
back doors built into network equipment, then phone calls on national
security matters can and will be surveilled.
Given these dangerous vulnerabilities, it is crucial that Congress
and the executive branch fully understand the risks.
The Countering Untrusted Telecommunications Abroad Act will require
additional reporting and analysis on the safety of our communications
in embassies around the globe where, by necessity, communications will
often need to be routed through equipment produced by PRC companies
like Huawei and ZTE.
The legislation also calls for reporting on the use of unsafe
telecommunication equipment by countries with whom we have mutual
security pacts. We need to be able to communicate securely with our
allies and partners around the world. Crucially, the legislation also
authorizes the State Department to engage in telecommunications
security activities.
Notably, one section of the bill, unfortunately, was removed from the
version of this legislation that passed the House overwhelmingly last
Congress and that passed out of the Foreign Affairs Committee earlier
this year. That section would require publicly traded
telecommunications operators to disclose their use of unsafe PRC
telecommunications equipment.
I know, and I believe, that this is important information for
investors to know, given the sanctions and export controls currently
imposed on these vendors. It is also crucial national security
information.
Unfortunately, the Financial Services majority asked us to remove
this section due to their disposition against explicit additional
securities disclosure requirements.
While I accept their jurisdictional claim, the disclosure
requirements in this legislation were modeled after a Republican bill
on Iran, and I believe they would provide important information for
investors and bolster national security. Representative Wild is not
pushing immediate, aggressive sanctions. The removed section
represented a sensible, middle-ground approach.
Given the widespread bipartisan agreement on many issues pertaining
to China, I look forward to working with all of my colleagues across
the aisle on both committees to find a mutually agreeable solution to
this issue.
Even with the financial disclosures removed, though, the Countering
Untrusted Telecommunications Abroad Act is important legislation that
will move the ball forward on telecommunication security matters.
Mr. Speaker, I urge all of my colleagues to support this legislation,
and I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. MAST. Mr. Speaker, I continue to reserve the balance of my time.
{time} 1715
Mr. MEEKS. Mr. Speaker, I yield 4 minutes to the gentlewoman from
Pennsylvania (Ms. Wild), the author of this bill.
Ms. WILD. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 1149, the Countering
Untrusted Telecommunications Abroad Act. I first thank my colleague
from the other side of the aisle, Representative Radewagen, for co-
leading this legislation.
This bill is proof and evidence that when it comes to national and
economic security challenges, we can find common ground.
The purpose of the bill is simple: To investigate and respond to
vulnerabilities caused by Chinese telecommunications companies in
United States embassies overseas and among our close allies.
For far too long, the world has stood by as Chinese telecoms giants
have operated as vehicles for the Chinese Communist Party to commit
horrific human rights violations against the Uyghur people, to conduct
mass surveillance and espionage, and to supply
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technology to other repressive regimes around the world.
This bill takes critical steps to ensure that our telecommunications
infrastructure requires the State Department to report on the United
States collective defense allies that use untrusted telecommunication
equipment or services in their 5G networks. Further, it mandates a
report on telecommunication vulnerabilities in United States embassies
overseas. Finally, it directs the Secretary of State to identify key
telecommunications infrastructure projects designed to promote United
States national security.
Securing these networks is imperative when it comes to national
security and human rights, as well as for our economic security.
This legislation will help us ensure that the telecoms infrastructure
of our country and our allies is secure and effective.
The Countering Untrusted Telecommunications Abroad Act enjoyed
overwhelming bipartisan support in the 117th Congress and passed the
House by a resounding margin last September.
I urge my colleagues to reaffirm our commitment to securing our
telecommunications network by again voting ``yes'' on H.R. 1149.
Mr. MAST. Mr. Speaker, I have no further speakers, and I reserve the
balance of my time.
Mr. MEEKS. Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I
yield myself the balance of my time for the purpose of closing.
Mr. Speaker, Congresswoman Wild's very important legislation, the
Countering Untrusted Telecommunications Abroad Act, will take tangible
steps to improve our telecommunications security and, thereby, our
national security.
I appreciate the bipartisan nature with which we have dealt with this
bill in the 117th Congress and now are dealing with it in the 118th
Congress, working collectively together for our national security.
I believe that this bill should have every Member's support, and I
urge them to vote for the Countering Untrusted Telecommunications
Abroad Act.
Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. MAST. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time.
Mr. Speaker, telecommunications and the secure transfer of electronic
data are absolutely critical. I don't think I have met somebody that
disagrees with that in today's world. They are critical to our national
security and to our economic well-being.
We don't want to get on a website that we think is unsecure. We don't
want to reply to a text that we think comes from an untrusted number.
We cannot afford the vulnerability that comes from giving control of
this technology to the Chinese Communist Party or other malign actors.
H.R. 1149 will help us get a handle on those vulnerabilities, forcing
the Department of State to formulate an effective response.
Again, I thank Ms. Wild for introducing this measure. I urge
unanimous support for this bill, and I yield back the balance of my
time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the
gentleman from Florida (Mr. Mast) that the House suspend the rules and
pass the bill, H.R. 1149, as amended.
The question was taken.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds
being in the affirmative, the ayes have it.
Mr. MAST. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.
The yeas and nays were ordered.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX, further
proceedings on this motion will be postponed.
____________________