[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 139 (Monday, September 9, 2024)]
[House]
[Pages H5086-H5088]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                 SECURING GLOBAL TELECOMMUNICATIONS ACT

  Mrs. RADEWAGEN. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the 
bill (H.R. 4741) to require the development of a strategy to promote 
the use of secure telecommunications infrastructure worldwide, and for 
other purposes.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                               H.R. 4741

       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 ``Securing Global 
     Telecommunications Act''.

     SEC. 2. SENSE OF CONGRESS.

       It is the sense of Congress as follows:
       (1) The United States Government should promote and take 
     steps to ensure American leadership in strategic technology 
     industries, including telecommunications infrastructure and 
     other information and communications technologies.
       (2) The expansive presence of companies linked to the 
     Chinese Communist Party, such as Huawei, in global mobile 
     networks and the national security implications thereof, such 
     as the ability of the People's Republic of China to 
     exfiltrate the information flowing through those networks and 
     shut off countries' internet access, demonstrates the 
     importance of the United States remaining at the 
     technological frontier and the dire consequences of falling 
     behind.
       (3) The significant cost of countering Huawei's market 
     leadership in telecommunications infrastructure around the 
     world underscores the urgency of supporting the 
     competitiveness of United States companies in next-generation 
     information and communication technology.
       (4) To remain a leader at the International 
     Telecommunication Union (ITU) and preserve the ITU's 
     technical integrity, the United States must work with 
     emerging economies and developing nations to bolster global 
     telecommunications security and protect American national 
     security interests.
       (5) Multilateral cooperation with like-minded partners and 
     allies is critical to carry out the significant effort of 
     financing and promoting secure networks around the world and 
     to achieve market leadership of trusted vendors in this 
     sector.

     SEC. 3. STRATEGY FOR SECURING GLOBAL TELECOMMUNICATIONS 
                   INFRASTRUCTURE.

       (a) Strategy Required.--Not later than 90 days after the 
     date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State 
     shall develop and submit to the Committees on Foreign Affairs 
     of the House of Representatives and Energy and Commerce and 
     the Committees on Foreign Relations and Commerce, Science, 
     and Transportation and of the Senate a strategy, to be known 
     as the ``Strategy to Secure Global Telecommunications 
     Infrastructure'' (referred to in this Act as the 
     ``Strategy''), to promote the use of secure telecommunication 
     infrastructure in countries other than the United States.
       (b) Consultation Required.--The Secretary of State shall 
     consult with the President of the Export-Import Bank of the

[[Page H5087]]

     United States, the Chief Executive Officer of the Development 
     Finance Corporation, the Administrator of the United States 
     Agency for International Development, the Director of the 
     Trade and Development Agency, the Chair of the Federal 
     Communications Commission, and the Assistant Secretary of 
     Commerce for Communications and Information, in developing 
     the Strategy, which shall consist of an approach led by the 
     Department of State using the policy tools, and informed by 
     the technical expertise, of the other Federal entities so 
     consulted to achieve the goal described in subsection (a).
       (c) Elements.--The Strategy shall also include sections on 
     each of the following:
       (1) Mobile networks, including a description of efforts by 
     countries other than the United States to--
       (A) promote trusted Open RAN technologies while protecting 
     against any security risks posed by untrusted vendors in Open 
     RAN networks;
       (B) use financing mechanisms to assist ``rip-and-replace'' 
     projects and to incentivize countries to choose trusted 
     equipment vendors;
       (C) bolster multilateral cooperation, especially with 
     developing countries and emerging economies, to promote the 
     deployment of trusted wireless networks worldwide; and
       (D) collaborate with trusted private sector companies to 
     counter Chinese market leadership in the telecom equipment 
     industry.
       (2) Data centers, including a description of efforts to--
       (A) utilize financing mechanisms to incentivize countries 
     other than the United States to choose trusted data center 
     providers; and
       (B) bolster multilateral cooperation, especially with 
     developing countries and emerging economies, to promote the 
     deployment of trusted data centers worldwide.
       (3) Sixth (and future) generation technologies (6G), 
     including a description of efforts to--
       (A) deepen cooperation with like-minded countries to 
     promote United States and allied market leadership in 6G 
     networks and technologies; and
       (B) increase buy-in from developing countries and emerging 
     countries on trusted technologies.
       (4) Low-Earth orbit satellites, aerostats, and 
     stratospheric balloons, including a description of efforts to 
     work with trusted private sector companies to retain the 
     ability to quickly provide internet connection in response to 
     emergency situations.

     SEC. 4. REPORT ON MALIGN INFLUENCE AT THE INTERNATIONAL 
                   TELECOMMUNICATION UNION.

       (a) Report.--Not later than 90 days after the date of the 
     enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State shall develop 
     and 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 the Senate a report on Russian and Chinese 
     strategies and efforts--
       (1) to expand the mandate of the International 
     Telecommunication Union (ITU) to cover internet governance 
     policy; and
       (2) to advance other actions favorable to authoritarian 
     interests and/or hostile to fair, industry-led processes.
       (b) Elements.--The report required by subsection (a) shall 
     also identify efforts by China and Russia--
       (1) to increase the ITU's jurisdiction over internet 
     governance and to propose internet governance standards at 
     the ITU;
       (2) to leverage their private sector actors to advance 
     their national interests through the ITU, including--
       (A) encouraging Chinese and Russian companies to leverage 
     their market power to pressure other member countries to 
     deliver favorable decisions on ITU elections; and
       (B) China's efforts to leverage Huawei's role as the 
     primary telecommunications equipment and services provider 
     for many developing countries to compel such countries to 
     deliver favorable decisions on standards proposals, election 
     victories, candidate selection, and other levers of power at 
     the ITU; and
       (3) to use the influence of Chinese and Russian nationals 
     serving in the ITU to advantage the companies, standards 
     decisions, and candidates that advance the CCP and Kremlin's 
     interests.
       (c) Form.--The report required by this section shall be 
     submitted in unclassified form, but may include a classified 
     annex.

     SEC. 5. REPORT ON MULTILATERAL COORDINATION.

       Not later than 90 days after the date of the enactment of 
     this Act, the Secretary of State, in coordination with the 
     President of the Export-Import Bank of the United States, the 
     Administrator for the United States Agency on International 
     Development, the Chief Executive Officer of the Development 
     Finance Corporation, the Chair of the Federal Communications 
     Commission, and the Assistant Secretary of Commerce for 
     Communications and Information, shall develop and submit to 
     the Committees on Foreign Affairs and Energy and Commerce and 
     of the House of Representatives and the Committees Foreign 
     Relations and on Commerce, Science, and Transportation and of 
     the Senate a report that identifies opportunities for greater 
     collaboration with allies and partners to promote secure 
     information and communications technology infrastructure in 
     countries other than the United States, including through--
       (1) joint financing efforts to help trusted vendors win 
     bids to build out information and communications technology 
     (ICT) infrastructure;
       (2) incorporating ICT focuses into allies' and partners' 
     international development finance initiatives; and
       (3) diplomatic coordination to emphasize the importance of 
     secure telecommunications infrastructure to countries using 
     untrusted providers.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentlewoman from 
American Samoa (Mrs. Radewagen) and the gentlewoman from North Carolina 
(Ms. Manning) each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from American Samoa.


                             General Leave

  Mrs. RADEWAGEN. 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 
gentlewoman from American Samoa?
  There was no objection.
  Mrs. RADEWAGEN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 4741, the Securing Global 
Telecommunications Act, introduced by my colleague from North Carolina, 
Congresswoman Manning, and the gentlewoman from California, 
Congresswoman Young Kim.
  Telecommunications, including 5G, are critical to U.S. national 
security. The United States cannot let Chinese military companies, like 
Huawei, attempt to dominate this sector through unfair trading 
practices, including IP theft and illegal subsidies.
  Because of the CCP military-civil fusion strategy, we know that any 
valuable information flowing through a Huawei network can and will be 
sent to the CCP and its military.
  The United States and our partners and allies must lead in the 
development of this technology and set the rules of the road at 
multilateral bodies, such as the International Telecommunication Union. 
Cooperation among partner and allied countries is critical for ensuring 
that trusted vendors are the backbone for this infrastructure.
  The Securing Global Telecommunications Act will help us outcompete 
the CCP in this foundational technology. This bill requires the 
Secretary of State to develop a strategy to promote secure 
telecommunication infrastructure globally, including mobile networks, 
data centers, and 6G and beyond.
  It also requires reports on how the CCP and Russia are undermining 
the ITU and how we are coordinating with partners and allies to 
counteract their malign influence. The United States cannot sit back 
and allow a CCP military company to build the networks that carry the 
world's data.
  For these reasons, I urge my colleagues to support the Securing 
Global Telecommunications Act, and I reserve the balance of my time.
  Ms. MANNING. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of H.R. 4741, and 
I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, the Securing Global Telecommunications Act, bipartisan 
legislation that I introduced with Representative Young Kim of 
California, will preserve America's global leadership in tech and 
telecom and protect the safety and integrity of our networks.

                              {time}  1945

  Mr. Speaker, the devices we use every day, cell phones, tablets, and 
computers, connect to increasingly advanced mobile networks that depend 
upon a nearly invisible set of internationally agreed-upon standards.
  However, in recent years, our adversaries and competitors, Russia and 
China, have tried to maximize their influence over international bodies 
like the International Telecommunication Union, the ITU, to shape new 
technology standards to their liking. They are determined to dominate 
the future of critical technologies, like 5G and AI, by giving their 
companies, such as Huawei and ZTE, an unfair advantage. This effort 
goes beyond boosting their businesses. It is about controlling a 
strategic domain, which could threaten our own security.
  Failing to secure our communications infrastructure and networks 
could open the door to data theft, surveillance, and malicious threats 
against Americans.

[[Page H5088]]

  That is why the U.S. and our allies must remain alert to this 
pressing threat and work together to counter it. We must also make it 
easier to deploy more secure and reliable tech and telecom 
infrastructure.
  That is exactly what my bipartisan bill would address. It would 
require a comprehensive strategy for securing global telecom 
infrastructure worldwide, crack down on Russian and Chinese malign 
influence at the ITU, and support greater cooperation with our allies 
to promote and finance secure networks and trusted vendors.
  By taking these measures, we can shore up our critical 
vulnerabilities and counter our adversaries' strategic technology 
goals.
  Mr. Speaker, in closing, our adversaries believe they can achieve 
undue influence over international telecom infrastructure and technical 
standards. This bill would help stop them.
  I encourage all my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to join me 
in voting to support it, and I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mrs. RADEWAGEN. I yield myself the balance of my time.
  In closing, I thank Congresswoman Manning and Congresswoman Young Kim 
for leading this bipartisan effort to take on Huawei and other CCP 
companies. I urge all Members to support H.R. 4741, and I yield back 
the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentlewoman from American Samoa (Mrs. Radewagen) that the House suspend 
the rules and pass the bill, H.R. 4741.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the 
rules were suspended and the bill was passed.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

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