[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 139 (Monday, September 9, 2024)]
[House]
[Pages H5058-H5060]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       COUNTERING CCP DRONES ACT

  Mr. LATTA. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill 
(H.R. 2864) to amend the Secure and Trusted Communications Networks Act 
of 2019 to provide for the addition of certain equipment and services 
produced or provided by DJI Technologies to the list of covered 
communications equipment or services published under such Act, and for 
other purposes, as amended.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                               H.R. 2864

       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 CCP Drones Act''.

     SEC. 2. ADDITION OF CERTAIN EQUIPMENT AND SERVICES OF DJI 
                   TECHNOLOGIES TO COVERED LIST.

       (a) In General.--Section 2(c) of the Secure and Trusted 
     Communications Networks Act of 2019 (47 U.S.C. 1601(c)) is 
     amended by adding at the end the following:
       ``(5) The communications equipment or service being--
       ``(A) telecommunications or video surveillance equipment 
     produced by Shenzhen Da-Jiang Innovations Sciences and 
     Technologies Company Limited (commonly known as `DJI 
     Technologies') (or any subsidiary or affiliate thereof); or
       ``(B) telecommunications or video surveillance services, 
     including software, provided by an entity described in 
     subparagraph (A) or using equipment described in such 
     subparagraph.''.
       (b) Conforming Amendments.--Section 2 of the Secure and 
     Trusted Communications Networks Act of 2019 (47 U.S.C. 1601) 
     is amended by striking ``paragraphs (1) through (4)'' each 
     place it appears and inserting ``paragraphs (1) through 
     (5)''.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Ohio (Mr. Latta) and the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Pallone) each 
will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Ohio.


                             General Leave

  Mr. LATTA. 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 in the Record on the bill.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Ohio?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. LATTA. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of this legislation, H.R. 2864, the 
Countering CCP Drones Act, led by the gentlewoman from New York (Ms. 
Stefanik).
  DJI Technologies is the largest drone manufacturer in the world. 
Their drones are used by hobbyists, public safety agencies, and private 
companies to capture images from above, protect the public, and monitor 
critical infrastructure. Despite its significant presence, DJI is based 
in China, and it has known ties with the Chinese Communist Party, which 
represents a national security risk to the United States.
  As we know, companies with ties to the CCP operate in an environment 
tightly intertwined with the Chinese Communist Government, raising 
serious concerns about the level of influence and potential for 
exploitation by the CCP.
  For example, under China's 2017 National Intelligence Law, these 
companies are required to support, provide assistance to, and cooperate 
with China's national intelligence work, wherever they operate, which 
would and could jeopardize Americans. This threat is especially 
significant with DJI given how their drones are used within the United 
States, and we must act to address this threat.
  H.R. 2864 adds telecommunications or video surveillance equipment and 
surveillance services produced or provided

[[Page H5059]]

by DJI Technologies to the FCC's covered list, which is a list of 
communications equipment or services that pose an unacceptable risk to 
national security. As a result of being placed on this list, the FCC 
could no longer authorize DJI drones going forward.
  This legislation is forward looking. It only applies to drones that 
DJI seeks FCC authorization for after this bill becomes law. It would 
not affect the authorization of drones already in use today. It is 
imperative we move forward with these efforts to remove the threat 
posed by DJI.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support H.R. 2864, and I reserve 
the balance of my time.
  Mr. PALLONE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 2864, the Countering CCP 
Drones Act. Our country's communications networks help support many 
parts of our daily lives and play an essential role across almost every 
sector of our economy. Robust networks allow Americans to have easier 
access to doctors, teachers, and job opportunities, and they are also 
vital to our Nation's critical infrastructure, public safety systems, 
supply chains, and government functions.
  This is unlikely to change anytime soon. In fact, as technology 
advances, our networks are only expected to become even more embedded 
in everyday life.
  This growing reach has made our communications networks targets that 
face constant threats from adversarial nations and others. In the last 
few months, we have seen reports that hacking groups linked to China, 
Russia, North Korea, and Iran are gaining access to our communications 
networks to conduct surveillance, collect massive amounts of data, and 
manipulate our elections.
  As a result, there is a real risk that the information that they 
collect could be used to launch cyberattacks on our critical 
infrastructure and undermine our democratic values of free speech and 
expression, as well as civil and human rights.
  Fortunately, Congress has acted with strong bipartisan support to 
bolster the defense of our communications networks. My bipartisan 
Secure and Trusted Communications Networks Act, which became law in 
2020, established a list of equipment and services that pose a national 
security risk and prevent their use in our communications networks.
  H.R. 2864 builds on that bipartisan work by adding the 
telecommunications and video surveillance equipment and services 
provided by so-called DJI Technologies, better recognized as the 
equipment and services used in their drones, to the Federal 
Communications Commission's covered list. With this action, Congress 
will ensure that future versions of DJI drones cannot be imported, 
marketed, or sold in the United States.
  DJI Technologies and its drones have repeatedly been flagged by the 
Federal Government as a national security risk. Since DJI is the global 
leader in drone manufacturing and has ties to the Chinese Communist 
Party, its drone technology and the data it collects could be exploited 
by the CCP to enable the theft of sensitive American data and 
compromise critical infrastructure in the United States.
  This is especially true given that recent figures indicate that DJI 
controls almost 90 percent of the consumer drone market in North 
America, and DJI drones are often used by local law enforcement 
agencies for public safety operations.
  With this bill, we continue our vigilance in protecting American data 
as well as our communications networks and other critical 
infrastructure from rogue nation-states.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support H.R. 2864, and I reserve 
the balance of my time.
  Mr. LATTA. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as she may consume to the 
gentlewoman from New York (Ms. Stefanik), the bill's sponsor.
  Ms. STEFANIK. Mr. Speaker, I thank the chair for yielding time.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of my bipartisan legislation, 
the Countering CCP Drones Act.
  First, I thank Chairwoman Cathy McMorris Rodgers, Chairman Latta, 
Ranking Member Pallone, and the Energy and Commerce Committee for their 
bipartisan support of this legislation and others that seek to end 
Communist China's malign influence in America.

                              {time}  1630

  Additionally, I will thank my colleague, Majority Leader Scalise, for 
bringing these bills to the floor that clearly demonstrate that House 
Republicans will continue to lead in countering Communist China.
  The Chinese Communist Party is working to undermine American 
sovereignty by forcing Americans to rely and depend on unsecure 
Communist Chinese technology.
  Nowhere is this more evident than in the drone industry.
  In 2015, the CCP launched the ``Made in China 2025'' initiative, 
which leveraged aggressive subsidies, direct CCP investment, and unfair 
trade practices to artificially drive down the cost of Chinese-
manufactured drones undercutting American companies and ensuring the 
rest of the world was forced to rely on Communist China for unsecured 
drone technology.
  Due to these authoritarian policies, America has been flooded with 
drones manufactured by the CCP-controlled drone company DJI.
  Allowing artificially cheap DJI drones to monopolize our skies has 
decimated American drone manufacturing and given our greatest strategic 
adversary eyes in our skies.
  Over the last 7 years, the U.S. Government has publicly confirmed 
time and time again that DJI drones are being used to collect 
information on U.S. critical infrastructure and pose significant risks 
to U.S. national security.
  Moreover, DJI is on the U.S. Department of Defense's list of Chinese 
military companies because it directly advances the modernization 
efforts of the People's Liberation Army. Not only does DJI improve the 
equipment of our greatest strategic adversary, which could one day be 
used against U.S. servicemembers, they also actively aid the CCP in 
carrying out genocidal crimes against ethnic minorities.
  It is past time we end Communist China's role as the world's drone 
factory.
  My legislation, the Countering CCP Drones Act, will place DJI on the 
FCC's covered list, which will prohibit new models of DJI drones from 
operating in America. This will initiate a much-needed transition 
period to improve the competitiveness of U.S. drone companies, remove 
Chinese spy drones from our skies, and end our reliance on CCP-
manufactured drones.
  For too long, we have allowed Communist China leverage over our 
critical industries through their malign drone monopoly. As drones 
become increasingly integrated into our military, law enforcement, 
agriculture, and critical infrastructure, the U.S. must build our 
domestic manufacturing capabilities.
  Make no mistake, Communist China will use the successes of its ``Made 
in China 2025'' initiative to undercut American global leadership and 
domestic security. We have 3 months to reverse the course of these 
successes. The passage of my Countering CCP Drones Act is a critical 
step in that direction.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge all of my colleagues to join me in supporting 
this bill.
  Mr. PALLONE. Mr. Speaker, I have no additional speakers, and I 
reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. LATTA. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from 
Michigan (Mr. Moolenaar).
  Mr. MOOLENAAR. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of Conference Chair 
Stefanik's bill, the Countering CCP Drones Act. This bill would add 
Chinese drone company DJI to the FCC covered list, meaning that any 
future models of DJI drones would be prohibited from operating on U.S. 
telecommunications infrastructure.
  DJI poses a real national security risk to the United States given 
its deep partnership with the Chinese military, its expressed 
allegiance to the Chinese Communist Party, and its surveillance 
technology operating across U.S. soil. What is more, that very same 
technology equips the CCP's genocide of the Uyghur people in Xinjiang.
  Understanding these risks, the Pentagon placed DJI on its blacklist 
as a Chinese military company. The Treasury Department forbids 
Americans from investing in DJI. The Commerce Department restricts U.S. 
companies

[[Page H5060]]

from exporting technology to DJI. It is time for Congress to do its 
part and to start winding down DJI's presence in the United States.
  Mr. PALLONE. Mr. Speaker, I simply urge support for this legislation 
on a bipartisan basis, and I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. LATTA. Mr. Speaker, I further urge support of H.R. 2864. This 
bill, again, came out of the Energy and Commerce Committee 43-0, and I 
urge passage of the legislation.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from Ohio (Mr. Latta) that the House suspend the rules and 
pass the bill, H.R. 2864, as amended.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the 
rules were suspended and the bill, as amended, was passed.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

                          ____________________