[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 140 (Tuesday, September 10, 2024)]
[House]
[Pages H5130-H5139]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




PROTECT AMERICA'S INNOVATION AND ECONOMIC SECURITY FROM CCP ACT OF 2024


                             General Leave

  Mr. GOODEN of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all 
Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their 
remarks and to insert extraneous material on H.R. 1398.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to House Resolution 1430 and rule 
XVIII, the Chair declares the House in the Committee of the Whole House 
on the state of the Union for the consideration of the bill, H.R. 1398.
  The Chair appoints the gentleman from Colorado (Mr. Lopez) to preside 
over the Committee of the Whole.

                              {time}  1650


                     In the Committee of the Whole

  Accordingly, the House resolved itself into the Committee of the 
Whole House on the state of the Union for the consideration of the bill 
(H.R. 1398) to establish the CCP Initiative program, and for other 
purposes, with Mr. Lopez in the chair.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The CHAIR. Pursuant to the rule, the bill is considered read the 
first time.
  General debate shall be confined to the bill and shall not exceed 1 
hour equally divided and controlled by the chair and ranking minority 
member of the Committee on the Judiciary or their respective designees.
  The gentleman from Texas (Mr. Gooden) and the gentleman from New York 
(Mr. Nadler) each will control 30 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Texas.
  Mr. GOODEN of Texas. Mr. Chair, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Chair, H.R. 1398, the Protect America's Innovation and Economic 
Security from CCP Act focuses our attention on the single greatest 
threat to the American people: the Chinese Communist Party.
  Our intelligence community has been raising these concerns for years, 
labeling China the defining threat of our generation. These concerns 
were also echoed in FBI Director Wray's testimony before our House 
Judiciary Committee back in July.
  China's multipronged war against our people, economy, and 
infrastructure has caused the CCP to infiltrate our communities, sow 
disharmony, and steal our hard-earned successes. The CCP achieves this 
by aggressively targeting and recruiting civilians to spy on other 
Chinese nationals and to steal critical data from their employers.

[[Page H5131]]

  Trade theft alone costs our economy over half a trillion dollars 
annually, with China behind most of it. This bill addresses this 
problem by creating a dedicated program under the DOJ called the CCP 
Initiative, prioritizing the focus on countering economic espionage.
  The initiative establishes an enforcement strategy to protect 
critical sectors most vulnerable to the CCP's thievery: academic 
institutions, R&D labs, and the defense industrial base.
  The rollback of the China Initiative left us lacking a dedicated 
approach and no oversight on issues of critical national interest. This 
bill fixes the administration's mistakes by adopting a clear, 
multifaceted approach. It builds a framework of multiagency cooperation 
and mutual consultation, ensuring that effective measures against our 
Nation's greatest threat are never compromised by an incompetent 
executive wing.
  To ensure DOJ's cooperation and dedication of at least some resources 
in this area, an annual reporting requirement has been included that 
secures congressional oversight and involvement. The bill also requires 
no additional funding from Congress and has a negligible impact on the 
DOJ's current budget under the program.
  I would like to underline that the worst affected by this rollback 
are people of Asian descent. People of Chinese origin in the United 
States, especially Chinese-American citizens, are identified and 
disproportionately targeted by the CCP for their schemes. The CCP 
ruthlessly targets and harasses people, especially those who refuse to 
bow down and are considered dissidents.
  Letting this continue without a strong counter leaves our people 
extremely vulnerable to the CCP's cruelty, which emboldens China. 
Passing this bill will not only counter existing cases and deter new 
attempts to infiltrate our country but also signals that the CCP's days 
of targeting our communities are over.
  Mr. Chair, I urge my colleagues to vote in favor of safeguarding our 
economy, our people, and our future against the greatest threat of our 
lifetimes. Join me in supporting H.R. 1398. I reserve the balance of my 
time.
  Mr. NADLER. Mr. Chair, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Chairman, I rise in strong opposition to H.R. 1398. This 
legislation, which would establish a so-called CCP Initiative within 
the national security division of the DOJ, is simply a rehash of the 
Trump administration's failed China Initiative by another name. 
Resurrecting this misguided program, as this bill would do, represents 
a clear step backwards.
  When the Trump Justice Department launched what it called the China 
Initiative in 2018, it claimed its purpose was to counter efforts by 
the Chinese Government to steal American intellectual property. This 
might have been a laudable goal, but what actually resulted was little 
more than a series of unsupportable cases against Chinese academics at 
the height of their careers that left their reputations in tatters.
  The government was forced to drop many of these prosecutions. Others 
failed in court. Even more were overturned on appeal. No matter how you 
look at the data, a postmortem analysis shows that the China Initiative 
was an undisputed failure. From the flimsy cases brought under this 
program to the so-called brain drain of scientists of Chinese descent 
who left American research labs, the China Initiative hurt our 
interests here at home.
  The Trump DOJ devoted significant resources to targeting professors 
of Chinese descent working in the United States, diverting crucial 
funding and personnel that could have been used to combat actual 
economic espionage and trade secret theft.

  However, the China Initiative did not just waste valuable resources. 
If you were a person of Chinese descent working in American higher 
education, you were a suspect. Rather than keeping America safe, the 
China Initiative divided workplaces, ruined careers, and contributed to 
anti-Asian hate at the height of the pandemic.
  The resulting chilling effect hampered American innovation by 
discouraging foreign talent from moving to American companies and 
disincentivizing Chinese researchers from accepting positions at our 
institutions of higher learning.
  It is foolhardy to punish China by harming American innovation, but 
by discouraging researchers from working here, that is exactly what the 
Trump administration did with the China Initiative. Countries around 
the world send their best and brightest to the United States for 
education and to perform valuable research in our academic 
institutions.
  Instead of welcoming their contributions to our economy and to our 
society, programs like the China Initiative encouraged them to take 
their training and their talents elsewhere.
  We cannot quantify those missed opportunities. There is no way to 
know what inventions never came to be, but we can realize when we made 
a mistake and move on. This bill would prevent us from doing so.
  Despite its well documented failures, reviving the China Initiative 
is a key plank of the ultraconservative Project 2025 agenda, the 
blueprint for a potential new Trump administration. Republicans cannot 
credibly argue that resurrecting this program is about keeping 
Americans and our business secrets safe because we know that racially 
profiling professors of Chinese descent was unsuccessful. It did, 
however, contribute to an us versus them mentality that divided 
Americans and heightened tensions across the country.
  It is particularly disappointing that we are engaging in this 
partisan exercise because the fact is that Democrats and Republicans 
largely agree that China poses a threat to the United States. There are 
bipartisan bills ready for markup, ones that could pass on suspension 
today, but instead the majority has chosen to take up bills that divide 
us.
  Since the end of the China Initiative, the DOJ has embraced a broader 
strategy to counter threats from hostile nations, not just China, but 
Iran, North Korea, and Russia. For example, the Disruptive Technology 
Strike Force has been lauded by both sides of the aisle for doing what 
the China Initiative failed to do. It collaborates across agencies to 
prevent nation-state actors from illicitly acquiring our most sensitive 
technology by successfully investigating and prosecuting illegal 
procurement networks.
  We are on the right path to protecting our Nation's secrets and 
keeping Americans safe. This legislation would take us in the opposite 
direction.
  I oppose this legislation. I encourage my colleagues to do the same, 
and I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. GOODEN of Texas. Mr. Chair, I have heard a lot about the ruined 
lives of intellectuals and academics. I have also heard about the 
conviction rate. It is true there were only eight convictions, but one 
of the comments made was we should focus resources on actual problems.
  What happened when we did that, when we took away this China 
Initiative and replaced it with nothing? In the last 2 years we have 
only had two convictions. Our Department of Justice has really failed 
to protect our domestic industry. It has really failed to protect those 
who have been preyed on by China, and the CCP Initiative serves to 
correct that.
  Mr. Chair, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. 
Cline).

                              {time}  1700

  Mr. CLINE. Mr. Chair, I thank the gentleman from Texas for offering 
the bill, and I rise in support of it.
  The ranking member of the committee indicated that we are moving in 
the right direction, but in looking at the numbers coming out of this 
Justice Department, this Biden-Harris Justice Department, it is clear 
that we are not moving in the right direction. It is clear that we are 
not moving at all. We are standing still.
  According to the Department of Justice, approximately 80 percent of 
all economic espionage cases prosecuted by DOJ involved theft of trade 
secrets by the Chinese Government or its instrumentalities or agents.
  Approximately 60 percent of all trade secret misappropriation cases 
brought in the United States have a nexus to the People's Republic of 
China under the CCP.
  This is a strategic and intentional campaign by the CCP of 
intellectual property theft against the United States that has an 
annual cost estimated at approximately $500 billion.

[[Page H5132]]

  During the Trump administration, the DOJ established the China 
Initiative within the Department to address the risks posed by the CCP 
and to prioritize prosecution of IP theft cases.
  Despite the success of the China Initiative, the Biden administration 
bowed to pressure from radical leftists and canceled the program, and 
although they continue to claim that they have stood up a new program, 
it has not reached the successes of the China Initiative. In fact, the 
DOJ opened zero new economic espionage cases in 2022.
  I am concerned by this administration's approach to IP theft and 
economic espionage by the CCP. In fact, under current law, spies 
operating on behalf of the CCP who have been expelled from the U.S. can 
immediately reapply for visas. The CCP exploits this loophole as part 
of their whole-of-nation approach to steal sensitive information from 
American companies and universities. I have a bill to close this 
loophole, and I thank my colleague, Mr. Gooden, for cosponsoring it.
  As the cosponsor of the bill before us today, I believe it is 
important that we statutorily require that the DOJ resumes its 
important work that was being conducted by the DOJ's China Initiative 
during the Trump administration. I support this legislation.
  Mr. NADLER. Mr. Chair, I yield 2 minutes to the distinguished 
gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Johnson), a member of the committee.
  Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia. Mr. Chair, we have seen this movie before, 
and it did not end well.
  On the Courts, Intellectual Property, and the Internet Subcommittee 
where I am ranking member, we have discussed with real concern economic 
espionage and theft of trade secrets by the Government of China. While 
we have legitimate concerns, this bill is a foolish attempt and a 
damaging way to address those concerns.
  The Department of Justice already had a China Initiative from 2018 to 
2022. It failed to achieve any convictions related to economic 
espionage or trade secrets, yet it did cause significant real-world 
harm.
  Many academics faced long-term personal and professional damage, and 
there was a chilling effect on researchers of Chinese descent. Chinese-
American scientists, American citizens, mind you, reported that fear of 
discrimination kept them from pursuing cutting-edge research and made 
them avoid Federal grant applications. That chilling effect spread 
beyond Chinese and Chinese-American professionals.
  A 2021 survey of thousands of physicists found that 43 percent of 
early career researchers believed that the U.S. was unwelcoming for 
international students and scholars.
  America has thrived because it has been a land of innovation, and the 
China Initiative stifled that innovation.
  Wisely, DOJ canceled that program in 2022. It was a failure then and 
it would be a failure now. Let's leave it in the past where it belongs.
  Mr. GOODEN of Texas. Mr. Chair, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  I want to say first, the current DOJ, the Biden DOJ, performed their 
own review, and they found not a single case was handled or considered 
with bias or prejudice. They concluded that all decisions were borne 
out of genuine national security concerns. That is in response to this 
claim that lives have been ruined and that these were racist pursuits.
  The other thing I want to say is this bill is race, gender, and 
nationality neutral. Investigations are conducted based on the factual 
reality of the situation.
  Foreign nationals tend to favor recruiting people of their own 
origin, and that is especially so with the CCP. A full review by the 
current DOJ--again, this is the Biden DOJ--found not one case of bias 
or prejudice.
  Everything we have heard today about all these racist pursuits were 
based in bad intentions, which was actually unfounded and proven 
incorrect by the current Biden DOJ. They said that there was not one 
single case of bias or prejudice.
  Mr. Chair, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. NADLER. Mr. Chair, I yield 2 minutes to the distinguished 
gentlewoman from California (Ms. Chu).
  Ms. CHU. As chair of the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus, 
I rise in strong opposition to the deceptively named Protect America's 
Innovation and Economic Security from CCP Act. It brings back the 
shameful China Initiative, which is the new McCarthyism.
  Rather than protecting America's innovation, this bill would hurt it 
with a Trump-era China Initiative, a program that assumed that 
researchers and scholars in America should be investigated if they had 
a nexus with China, such as being born there or having relatives from 
there. They targeted them and arrested them, but here is what you need 
to know: Most of the cases overwhelmingly failed to prosecute actual 
cases of economic espionage or trade secret theft. Nearly all cases had 
no connection to national security or espionage but rather paperwork 
mistakes. Many cases were dropped or withdrawn without explanation.
  For so many researchers and professors, the damage was already done. 
By racially profiling innocent Asian-American scientists because of 
their ethnicity, the China Initiative ruined their reputations, 
finances, and lives. They were traumatized, arrested in front of their 
families, fired, and went into deep debt.
  McCarthyism had deadly effects in the 1950s, and so does the China 
Initiative, harming our country's competitive edge by casting a 
chilling effect on our academic community. Let me be clear. While we 
all want to stop American secrets from being stolen, investigations 
should be based on evidence of criminal activity, not race and 
ethnicity.
  This bill brings back the shameful mistakes of the China Initiative. 
It would stoke anti-Asian xenophobia, and it would hurt American 
innovation by contributing to the reverse brain drain of talent from 
the U.S. to the PRC from which only the CCP itself stands to benefit.
  I urge my colleagues to vote ``no.''
  Mr. GOODEN of Texas. Mr. Chair, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  I would think the Chair of the Congressional Asian Pacific American 
Caucus would want to stand against China with me, but I will do it 
alone on behalf of those who are willing to stand up against the 
Chinese Communist Party.
  I denounce everything that has been said about this bill being 
racist. I absolutely denounce the false claims of racism. They are 
baseless.
  I actually join with the Biden DOJ in saying that with the Trump 
prosecutions there was no bias, there was no racism. I actually would 
like to stand up for Chinese-American citizens that are being 
prosecuted, persecuted, searched after, and in some cases destroyed 
while some of our friends across the aisle do nothing. They get on the 
mike and say you guys are racist for pushing this legislation, and I 
think folks are tired of it. I really do.
  I am really tired of seeing Chinese police stations in cities across 
our Nation. I am really tired of turning on the news and seeing that a 
spy in the New York Governor's office has been signing orders and doing 
all kinds of stuff in the name of the Chinese Communist Party. I am 
really tired of hearing stories about American citizens, Chinese-
American citizens, living here--these are our people, these are our 
people--being persecuted by the Chinese Communist Party. That is what 
this bill seeks to do.
  You can get up here and say this is racist and the last 
administration wasn't successful, but the facts are Republicans want to 
do something. We want to stand up to China, and we want to stand up for 
the Chinese-American citizens who in many cases are seeing their 
Representatives get on the microphone and say, you know what, we are 
not going to do anything. We are going to say that China is a threat, 
but we are not going to support any legislation that would do something 
about it.
  I am really excited about this bill. I am even more excited about the 
Trump administration that is coming up because we are going to really 
go after China. Chinese Americans across the United States should 
really, really be excited about Donald Trump taking over as President 
because they will finally have an advocate in the White House after 4 
years of being disregarded.
  Mr. Chair, I reserve the balance of my time.

[[Page H5133]]

  

  Mr. NADLER. Mr. Chair, I have two comments before I call on the next 
speaker. Number one, I wouldn't count on the next Trump 
administration--maybe, but I wouldn't count on it.
  Number two, during the Trump administration, anti-Asian crimes 
spiked, and as I recall, we passed an anti-Asian crimes bill, which was 
signed into law by President Biden.
  Mr. Chair, I yield 2 minutes to the distinguished gentleman from 
Texas (Mr. Veasey).
  Mr. VEASEY. Mr. Chair, I rise today to oppose the consideration of 
H.R. 1398, the Protect America's Innovation and Economic Security from 
the CCP Act.
  This bill aims to combat Chinese espionage, protect intellectual 
property and trade secrets, and monitor threats to U.S. infrastructure 
posed by China.
  While these are very important goals--I don't want anyone to be 
mistaken--the program this bill lays out closely mirrors a Trump 
administration program called the China Initiative, which targeted 
academics at American institutions for crimes allegedly related to 
economic espionage.
  Despite the initiative's goal of combating that espionage, no one was 
convicted or even charged with spying in any China Initiative case.
  However, what the program did do was stoke a lot of fear in the 
Asian-American communities and contributed to a rise in anti-Asian 
hate, something that I think that all of us, regardless of party, 
should be against.
  For this reason, at the appropriate time, I will offer a motion to 
recommit this bill back to committee. If the House rules permitted, I 
would have offered the motion with an important amendment to this bill.
  My amendment would be composed of H.R. 3130, the Protecting Election 
Administration from Interference Act which I co-led with my good friend 
Colin Allred, also from north Texas.
  What this bill would do is strengthen our democracy by establishing 
greater safeguards against potential election subversion efforts, 
something that unfortunately became very real, as most of us recall, in 
January 2021.
  It would ensure that elections and vote counting are performed 
fairly, transparently, and without partisan influence.
  The bill expands crucial protections for election administrators 
engaged in vote counting, canvassing, and election certification. It 
also allows a framework for punishment for people who seek to 
intimidate, threaten, or coerce election workers.
  The CHAIR. The time of the gentleman has expired.
  Mr. NADLER. Mr. Chair, I yield the gentleman an additional 1 minute.
  Mr. VEASEY. Mr. Chair, the bill also expands protections for election 
administrators, again, that are engaged in vote counting, canvassing, 
and election certification. It allows for a framework of punishment for 
people that seek to intimidate these workers.
  The bill also recognizes missing pieces from existing law in terms of 
protections for digital election records. In an increasingly 
technological world that we all live in, we must keep our laws up to 
date with the times.
  Mr. Chair, I hope my colleagues will join me in voting for the motion 
to recommit, and I include in the Record the text of the amendment.

       Mr. Veasey moves to recommit the bill H.R. 1398 to the 
     Committee on the Judiciary with instructions to report the 
     same back to the House forthwith, with the following 
     amendment:
       Strike the text and insert the following:

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``Protecting Election 
     Administration from Interference Act of 2023''.

     SEC. 2. ENHANCEMENT OF PROTECTIONS FOR ELECTION RECORDS, 
                   PAPERS, AND EQUIPMENT.

       (a) Preservation of Records, Paper, and Equipment.--Section 
     301 of the Civil Rights Act of 1960 (52 U.S.C. 20701) is 
     amended--
       (1) by striking ``Every officer'' and inserting the 
     following:
       ``(a) In General.--Every officer'';
       (2) by striking ``records and papers'' and inserting 
     ``records (including electronic records), papers, and 
     election equipment'' each place the term appears;
       (3) by striking ``record or paper'' and inserting ``record 
     (including electronic record), paper, or election 
     equipment'';
       (4) by inserting ``(but only under the direct 
     administrative supervision of an election officer). 
     Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, the 
     paper record of a voter's cast ballot shall remain the 
     official record of the cast ballot for purposes of this 
     title'' after ``upon such custodian'';
       (5) by inserting ``, or acts in reckless disregard of,'' 
     after ``fails to comply with''; and
       (6) by inserting after subsection (a) the following:
       ``(b) Election Equipment.--The requirement in subsection 
     (a) to preserve election equipment shall not be construed to 
     prevent the reuse of such equipment in any election that 
     takes place within twenty-two months of a Federal election 
     described in subsection (a), provided that all electronic 
     records, files, and data from such equipment related to such 
     Federal election are retained and preserved.
       ``(c) Guidance.--Not later than 1 year after the date of 
     the enactment of this subsection, the Director of the 
     Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency of the 
     Department of Homeland Security, in consultation with the 
     Election Assistance Commission and the Attorney General, 
     shall issue guidance regarding compliance with subsections 
     (a) and (b), including minimum standards and best practices 
     for retaining and preserving records (including electronic 
     records), papers, and election equipment in compliance with 
     subsections (a) and (b). Such guidance shall also include 
     protocols for enabling the observation of the preservation, 
     security, and transfer of records (including electronic 
     records), papers, and election equipment described in 
     subsection (a) by the Attorney General and by a 
     representative of each party, as defined by the Attorney 
     General.''.
       (b) Penalty.--Section 302 of the Civil Rights Act of 1960 
     (52 U.S.C. 20702) is amended--
       (1) by inserting ``, or whose reckless disregard of section 
     301 results in the theft, destruction, concealment, 
     mutilation, or alteration of,'' after ``or alters''; and
       (2) by striking ``record or paper'' and inserting ``record 
     (including electronic record), paper, or election 
     equipment''.
       (c) Inspection, Reproduction, and Copying.--Section 303 of 
     the Civil Rights Act of 1960 (52 U.S.C. 20703) is amended by 
     striking ``record or paper'' and inserting ``record 
     (including electronic record), paper, or election equipment'' 
     each place the term appears.
       (d) Nondisclosure.--Section 304 of the Civil Rights Act of 
     1960 (52 U.S.C. 20704) is amended by striking ``record or 
     paper'' and inserting ``record (including electronic record), 
     paper, or election equipment''.
       (e) Jurisdiction to Compel Production.--Section 305 of the 
     Civil Rights Act of 1960 (52 U.S.C. 20705) is amended by 
     striking ``record or paper'' and inserting ``record 
     (including electronic record), paper, or election equipment'' 
     each place the term appears.

     SEC. 3. JUDICIAL REVIEW FOR ELECTION RECORDS.

       Title III of the Civil Rights Act of 1960 (52 U.S.C. 20701 
     et seq.), is amended--
       (1) by redesignating section 306 as section 307; and
       (2) by inserting after section 305 the following:

     ``SEC. 306. JUDICIAL REVIEW TO ENSURE COMPLIANCE.

       ``(a) Right of Action.--The Attorney General, a 
     representative of the Attorney General, or a candidate in a 
     Federal election described in section 301 may bring an action 
     in the district court of the United States for the judicial 
     district in which a record (including electronic record), 
     paper, or election equipment is located, or in the United 
     States District Court for the District of Columbia, to compel 
     compliance with the requirements of section 301.
       ``(b) Duty to Expedite.--It shall be the duty of the court 
     to advance on the docket, and to expedite to the greatest 
     possible extent the disposition of, the action and appeal 
     under this section.''.

     SEC. 4. CRIMINAL PENALTIES FOR INTIMIDATION OF TABULATION, 
                   CANVASS, OR CERTIFICATION EFFORTS.

       Section 12(1) of the National Voter Registration Act of 
     1993 (52 U.S.C. 20511(1)) is amended--
       (1) in subparagraph (B), by striking ``or'' at the end; and
       (2) by adding at the end the following:
       ``(D) processing or scanning ballots, or tabulating, 
     canvassing, or certifying voting results; or''.

  Mr. GOODEN of Texas. Mr. Chair, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. NADLER. Mr. Chair, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from 
Illinois (Mr. Krishnamoorthi).

                              {time}  1715

  Mr. KRISHNAMOORTHI. Mr. Chair, today I rise in opposition to the 
partisan H.R. 1398. Unfortunately, this new ``CCP initiative'' that 
this bill creates is simply a knockoff version of the China Initiative 
created by Donald Trump which was notorious for racially profiling 
researchers of Asian descent.
  Of the individuals charged under that initiative, the vast majority 
of cases did not result in a finding of guilt. The lives of far too 
many of those charged but not convicted of a crime were ruined simply 
because they were ``researching while Chinese.''
  The China Initiative was not only weak, it was pernicious and wrong.
  The current administration shut down the China Initiative and in its 
place stood up a new task force which has effectively cracked down, 
among

[[Page H5134]]

other things, crimes involving CCP's theft of U.S. AI and missile 
detection technology.
  Another way we can protect our security is to pass the bipartisan, 
bicameral international trade crimes bill that I introduced alongside 
my colleagues on the Select Committee on the CCP. This bill creates a 
new unit at Department of Justice to criminally prosecute trade crimes 
committed by the CCP and others which seriously harm our innovators, 
companies, and workers.
  It is essential that we confront the CCP's economic threat. There is 
a legitimate competition that we must win against the CCP, but H.R. 
1398 does not take the initiative in doing so.
  Mr. Chair, I strongly urge my colleagues to vote ``no'' on 1398.
  Mr. NADLER. Mr. Chair, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. GOODEN of Texas. Mr. Chair, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. NADLER. Mr. Chair, I yield 2 minutes to the distinguished 
gentlewoman from Hawaii (Ms. Tokuda).
  Ms. TOKUDA. Mr. Chair, there is no denial that the CCP has worked for 
decades to steal our intellectual property and research in critical 
technologies. We should be here today finding real solutions, not 
putting up false choices to combat those efforts and defend our 
national security.
  Instead, Republicans are obsessed with starting a racially charged 
witch hunt against Asian Americans across the country. They want to 
revive the Trump administration's failed China Initiative, which 
overwhelmingly targeted people of Chinese descent, destroying careers 
and spreading fear.
  Despite years of damage, with Asian Americans across the country have 
been telling us that the China Initiative was racially profiling them 
and infringing on their civil rights, yet House Republicans' proposal 
for a restarted CCP initiative includes no language that would address 
those concerns. I filed an amendment to try and address this issue, but 
House Republicans refused to allow my amendment to be considered.
  In their single-minded focus on the CCP, they have forgotten the 
lessons of our country's history in targeting Asian Americans and the 
lives that have been destroyed as a result of it.
  According to a recent national academic survey, 86 percent have said 
that it is harder to recruit international students than just 5 years 
ago, 72 percent do not feel safe as an academic researcher, and 61 
percent have thought of leaving the U.S. altogether.
  We already know the harmful, chilling impacts of the China Initiative 
on our scientific enterprise and ultimately our national security. For 
years, the CCP has been focused on recruiting scientific talent. Thanks 
to the CCP initiative's reverse brain drain, we are now driving our 
best scientists straight into the arms of the CCP.
  The bottom line is that this bill is not just unnecessary, it 
undermines and destroys our research competitiveness and our national 
security. It is harmful to the civil rights that generations of Asian 
Americans have fought so hard to defend. I find it amusing that my 
colleague on the other side of the aisle feels that Republicans and 
Trump did so much for our Chinese Americans. From what I saw and what I 
felt as an Asian-American woman all we got from Trump was xenophobia, 
anti-Asian hate and racism. We are not going to go back. We will not be 
revictimized again, and it is downright un-American.
  Mr. Chair, I urge my colleagues to stand for Asian Americans across 
the country and vote against this egregious bill.
  Mr. NADLER. Mr. Chair, I reserve the balance of my time.
  The CHAIR. Members are reminded to refrain from engaging in 
personalities toward nominees for the Office of President.
  Mr. GOODEN of Texas. Mr. Chair, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Mr. Chair, I am sorry that my colleagues are amused because 
Republicans are horrified. We are sickened by what China is doing to 
Chinese Americans. If the Asian Pacific American Caucus would love to 
put their sign up there while they denounce this fantastic bill, if 
they would like a member of their caucus who will fight for and on 
behalf of Chinese-American citizens, then I would be happy to join. Get 
me an application. However, until that happens, until all Members of 
this Chamber wake up and realize that China is the real threat here and 
realize that the main talking point, what they do as they come, and any 
time someone stands up against China, they start playing the race card 
because they know if they play the race card, they will get folks to 
shut up.
  China just loves it. I am sure they are watching this debate in 
Beijing and laughing every time someone gets up and calls this policy 
racist. I am sure they are just loving it to see folks get up and talk 
about the China Initiative that the Biden DOJ so fantastically got rid 
of and what a success it was for China.
  The Biden DOJ has even said since then that there was no bias and 
there was no racism.
  So everything we are hearing today is just false. I am not going to 
call someone a liar, but I am going to tell you that what we are 
hearing today, Mr. Chair, is false. I heard from Mr. Nadler before he 
reserved a while ago. He said crimes against Asian Americans were up in 
the Trump era.

  What person with a brain in America thinks that Donald Trump is the 
reason crime is up anywhere?
  Joe Biden is the reason, and Kamala Harris is the reason that crime 
is through the roof in this Nation. Americans are unsafe.
  Mr. Nadler said: I wouldn't count on a Trump victory.
  Frankly, I am not going to count on anything in the days we live in, 
but I can count on the American people to not hold Donald Trump 
responsible for the crime epidemic that we are experiencing in this 
Nation.
  I am baffled by the opposition to this bill and the silliness on the 
other side that insinuates Donald Trump as somehow behind some kind of 
crime spike. Give me a break. The American people know who is behind 
this crime, and they are going to watch her talk about it tonight. If 
she won't talk about it, then I hope Mr. President, Donald Trump, will, 
as I know all Americans believe he is the one to stand against this 
spike in crime that I am so happy Democrats acknowledge exist.
  Mr. Chair, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. NADLER. Mr. Chair, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Chair, it has been said that figures don't lie but liars figure. 
The figures are very clear. Crime has gone down under the Biden 
administration. I don't care what anybody in this Chamber says. Those 
are the statistics. Consult the FBI and crime statistics. Crime has 
gone down every single year since the Biden administration took office. 
No one can debate that, at least no one can debate that if you believe 
the FBI statistics or any other statistics, unless you are getting your 
information from the Trump campaign or from Project 2025 or other less 
than honest sources.
  Having said that, I urge the defeat of this bill, and I reserve the 
balance of my time.
  Mr. GOODEN of Texas. Mr. Chair, I will just say this: If you believe 
that crime is down under Joe Biden, then you probably believe the 
border is secure.
  Mr. Chair, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. NADLER. Mr. Chair, I yield myself the balance of my time to 
close.
  Mr. Chairman, using fear and division for political benefit while 
pushing policies that hurt American innovation and American ideals is 
irresponsible and dangerous. However, that is exactly what we are doing 
here today.
  The China Initiative was a divisive program that made Americans 
afraid of one another and produced zero benefits. Donald Trump and the 
MAGA movement had 4 years to come up with new policy solutions, but 
they decided to play politics instead.
  Just last week, we learned that the Russian Government was paying 
conservative influencers in an attempt to manipulate our elections. We 
also know that they are not the only hostile foreign nation trying to 
do so.
  We should be working to address that threat. We should be working to 
protect our elections. Instead, we are taking part in a partisan 
exercise that does nothing except take our eye off the ball to the real 
dangers to our people, our government, and our businesses.

[[Page H5135]]

  There is so much we could do together. Under the Biden-Harris 
administration we enacted the bipartisan Chips and Science Act which 
has sparked tremendous investment in domestic manufacturing of computer 
chips crucial to national security. That is what actual leadership and 
that is what actual policy solutions look like. Unfortunately, 
Republicans have chosen the politics of division.
  Instead of looking forward and developing new strategies for taking 
on the threats that face this Nation, the Republican majority wants to 
take us back to the failed policies of the past. The Chinese Government 
poses real threats, but this bill would do nothing to address them 
while setting back our efforts to take meaningful action.
  The China Initiative failed to address any of the actual threats 
posed by the Chinese Government and only succeeded in ruining the 
careers of academics and scientists of Chinese descent while stifling 
American innovation.
  Mr. Chair, I urge my colleagues to oppose this legislation, and I 
yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. GOODEN of Texas. Mr. Chair, I yield myself the balance of my 
time.
  Mr. Chair, fear and division is what the Chinese Communist Party 
hopes that we will become all about.
  This bill seeks to stop China and the Chinese Communist Party's 
efforts to destroy this Nation. That is their ultimate goal. Every time 
a Member of Congress gets up and says that any effort to defeat China 
is a racist effort is really unfortunate.
  However, I do believe that common sense will prevail. I do believe we 
will pass this tomorrow, and I want to thank everyone for their 
support.
  This bill is an important tool. It is one of many tools we are 
passing this week.
  We are spreading the word and sharing with the American people that 
Republicans are serious about standing up to China, that Donald Trump 
is serious about standing up to China. Despite the fact that we have 
taken the last 4 years off and let China climb ahead, and we have 
opened our borders and said send as many millions of folks that you 
want, I do believe the American people deserve better, and I think they 
will vote for better. We have let the crime rate spike, we have just 
let it happen, and it is a real shame.
  Mr. Chair, I appreciate my colleagues' consideration, I urge a 
``yes'' vote, and I yield back the balance of my time.
  The CHAIR. All time for general debate has expired.
  Pursuant to the rule, the bill shall be considered for amendment 
under the 5-minute rule.
  In lieu of the amendment in the nature of a substitute recommended by 
the Committee on the Judiciary, printed in the bill, an amendment in 
the nature of a substitute consisting of the text of Rules Committee 
Print 118-45, shall be considered as adopted.
  The bill, as amended, shall be considered as the original bill for 
the purpose of further amendment under the 5-minute rule and shall be 
considered as read.
  The text of the bill, as amended, is as follows:

                               H.R. 1398

       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 ``Protect America's Innovation 
     and Economic Security from CCP Act of 2024''.

     SEC. 2. CCP INITIATIVE.

       (a) Establishment.--There is established in the National 
     Security Division of the Department of Justice the CCP 
     Initiative to--
       (1) counter nation-state threats to the United States;
       (2) curb spying by the Chinese Communist Party on United 
     States intellectual property and academic institutions in the 
     United States;
       (3) develop an enforcement strategy concerning 
     nontraditional collectors, including researchers in labs, 
     universities, and the defense industrial base, that are being 
     used to transfer technology contrary to United States 
     interests;
       (4) implement the Foreign Investment Risk Review 
     Modernization Act of 2018 (title XVII of division A of the 
     John S. McCain National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal 
     Year 2019 (Public Law 115-232; 132 Stat. 2173)) for the 
     Department of Justice, including by working with the 
     Department of the Treasury to develop regulations under that 
     Act;
       (5) identify cases under the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act 
     of 1977 (Public Law 95-213; 91 Stat. 1494) involving Chinese 
     companies that compete with United States businesses; and
       (6) prioritize--
       (A) identifying and prosecuting those engaged in trade 
     secret theft, hacking, and economic espionage; and
       (B) protecting the critical infrastructure in the United 
     States against external threats through foreign direct 
     investment and supply chain compromises.
       (b) Consultation.--In executing the CCP Initiative's 
     objectives as set forth in subsection (a), the Attorney 
     General, acting through the Assistant Attorney General for 
     National Security, shall consult with relevant components of 
     the Department of Justice as necessary, and coordinate 
     activities with the Federal Bureau of Investigation and any 
     other Federal agency as necessary.
       (c) Requirement.--Under the CCP Initiative--
       (1) the Initiative shall be separate from and not under the 
     authority or discretion of any other Department of Justice 
     initiative dedicated to countering nation-state threats; and
       (2) all resources used for the CCP Initiative shall solely 
     be set aside for the CCP Initiative and shall not be combined 
     to support any other Department of Justice program, including 
     other programs and initiatives dedicated to countering 
     nation-state threats.
       (d) Annual Report.--The Attorney General shall submit 
     annually a written report to the Committee on Homeland 
     Security and Governmental Affairs and the Committee on the 
     Judiciary of the Senate, and the Committee on Homeland 
     Security and the Committee on the Judiciary of the House of 
     Representatives, on the progress and challenges of the CCP 
     Initiative over the preceding year, including--
       (1) its progress in accomplishing the objectives set forth 
     in subsection (a);
       (2) the amount and sufficiency of resources provided to, 
     and expended by, the CCP Initiative;
       (3) the level and effectiveness of coordination with the 
     Federal Bureau of Investigation and other Federal agencies;
       (4) the status of efforts by the Chinese Communist Party to 
     engage in trade secret theft, hacking, and economic 
     espionage; and
       (5) the impact of the CCP Initiative on those efforts of 
     the Chinese Communist Party.
       (e) Sunset.--This Act shall take effect on the date of 
     enactment of this Act and cease to be in effect on the date 
     that is 6 years after that date.
       (f) Severability.--If any provision of this Act, or the 
     application of such provision to any person or circumstance, 
     is held to be unconstitutional, the remainder of this Act, 
     and the application of the provisions of such to any person 
     or circumstance, shall not be affected thereby.
  The CHAIR. No further amendment to the bill, as amended, shall be in 
order except those printed in part A of House Report 118-656. Each such 
further amendment may be offered only in the order printed in the 
report, by a Member designated in the report, shall be considered read, 
shall be debatable for the time specified in the report equally divided 
and controlled by the proponent and an opponent, shall not be subject 
to amendment, and shall not be subject to a demand for division of the 
question.


               Amendment No. 1 Offered by Mr. Gottheimer

  The CHAIR. It is now in order to consider amendment No. 1 printed in 
part A of House Report 118-656.
  Mr. GOTTHEIMER. Mr. Chair, I have an amendment at the desk.
  The CHAIR. The Clerk will designate the amendment.
  The text of the amendment is as follows:

       Page 4, line 6, strike ``and'' at the end.
       Page 4, line 8, strike the period at the end and insert ``; 
     and''.
       Page 4, insert after line 8 the following:
       (6) the level and effectiveness of coordination and 
     information sharing between Government agencies and private 
     companies about economic espionage threats.

  The CHAIR. Pursuant to House Resolution 1430, the gentleman from New 
Jersey (Mr. Gottheimer) and a Member opposed each will control 5 
minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from New Jersey.
  Mr. GOTTHEIMER. Mr. Chair, I rise in support of my amendment, which 
would require the Department of Justice's report, as mandated under 
this bill, to examine public-private sector coordination regarding 
economic espionage threats.
  According to the Center for Strategic and International Studies, 
there have been 224 documented cases of Chinese espionage directed at 
the United States since 2000, and that doesn't even count the more than 
1,200 cases of intellectual property theft lawsuits brought by American 
companies against Chinese stakeholders. These tactics cost Americans 
billions, yes, billions with a b, each year.
  Individuals tied to the Chinese Government have been caught spying on 
companies that are producing our Nation's critical infrastructure. In 
2022, a Chinese national was convicted of spying while working as an 
engineer at General Electric. Back in 2024, the Department of Justice 
charged five Chinese military hackers for spying on U.S. Steel, 
Westinghouse Electric, and more.

[[Page H5136]]

  From energy to consumer electronics to advanced technologies, CCP-
backed individuals aim to steal secrets that give Chinese industry a 
leg up over American industry and undermine our country and economy.
  This espionage is as much a national security threat as it is an 
economic issue. As a member of both the Intelligence and Financial 
Services Committees, I believe it is critical that the public and 
private sectors work together to detect, coordinate, and develop 
responses to espionage.
  Private-sector companies are the hardest hit by this espionage, and 
they have been on the front lines of responding to breaches and 
hackers. We in the Federal Government have much to gain by coordinating 
with the private sector.
  With this amendment, we are making it clear that protecting American 
innovation is a team effort. We need everyone, business leaders, the 
intelligence community, lawmakers, and researchers, working together to 
stop economic espionage, maintain America's economic leadership, and 
guarantee our national security.
  Mr. Chair, I urge my colleagues to join me in supporting this 
commonsense amendment, and I reserve the balance of my time.

                              {time}  1730

  Mr. GOODEN of Texas. Mr. Chair, I claim the time in opposition, even 
though I am not opposed to the amendment.
  The CHAIR. Without objection, the gentleman is recognized for 5 
minutes.
  Mr. GOODEN of Texas. Mr. Chair, the amendment would require the 
annual report to Congress in this bill to include a description of the 
level and effectiveness of coordination and information sharing between 
government entities and private companies about economic espionage 
threats.
  American companies and innovation have led the way for over a 
century, and the first line of defense to preventing economic espionage 
and intellectual property theft is the vigilance of the owners of this 
property. Including this information in the report will ensure that 
Congress can adequately oversee the CCP Initiative and ensure that it 
is meeting its objectives.
  Mr. Chair, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. GOTTHEIMER. Mr. Chair, I yield back the balance of my time.
  The CHAIR. The question is on the amendment offered by the gentleman 
from New Jersey (Mr. Gottheimer).
  The amendment was agreed to.


               Amendment No. 2 Offered by Mr. Gottheimer

  The CHAIR. It is now in order to consider amendment No. 2 printed in 
part A of House Report 118-656.
  Mr. GOTTHEIMER. Mr. Chair, I have an amendment at the desk.
  The CHAIR. The Clerk will designate the amendment.
  The text of the amendment is as follows:

       Page 4, line 4, insert ``and the financial intelligence 
     capabilities of'' after ``the status of efforts by''.

  The CHAIR. Pursuant to House Resolution 1430, the gentleman from New 
Jersey (Mr. Gottheimer) and a Member opposed each will control 5 
minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from New Jersey.
  Mr. GOTTHEIMER. Mr. Chair, I rise in support of my amendment, which 
would require the Department of Justice report, as mandated under this 
bill, to examine the Chinese Communist Party's financial intelligence 
capabilities and, more broadly, the role of China's intelligence 
agencies and economic espionage.
  Let me start by outlining the scope of the problem. China is the main 
source of economic espionage against the United States. About 80 
percent of the economic espionage cases that the Department of Justice 
prosecutes involve China and its affiliates. Anything that we can do to 
monitor the Chinese intelligence ecosystem will help in our fight to 
stop economic espionage here at home.
  As a member of the House Committee on Financial Services and the 
Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, I am keenly aware of the 
public-private sector fusion in China. Because of its 2017 intelligence 
law, the CCP and Chinese intelligence agencies have disproportionate 
power over the country's industry. As we have seen with TikTok, 
industry and government are working in concert, at the direction and 
funding of the CCP, to undermine our country.
  Chinese intelligence agencies are the linchpin to understand the 
coordinated campaign to steal and profit from American trade secrets. 
That is precisely why I have offered my amendment. We need the United 
States Federal Government to monitor these agencies' role in economic 
espionage.
  Maintaining America's economic competitiveness is something that we 
can all agree on. I urge my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to 
support this amendment so that we can get a fuller picture of Chinese 
intelligence agencies' role in economic espionage and actually stop 
them in the process.
  Mr. Chair, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. GOODEN of Texas. Mr. Chair, I claim the time in opposition, even 
though I am not opposed to the amendment.
  The CHAIR. Without objection, the gentleman is recognized for 5 
minutes.
  There was no objection.
  Mr. GOODEN of Texas. Mr. Chair, this amendment would require the 
annual report to Congress in this bill to include a description of the 
CCP's financial intelligence capabilities.
  The CCP has decided that the fastest way to catch up to the 
technological leadership of the United States is to steal U.S. 
intellectual property. This theft is not only an economic issue but 
also a national security issue.
  Technological success often leads to financial success. By engaging 
in financial intelligence activities, the CCP can ascertain which 
companies and entities have the most valuable intellectual property.
  To appropriately counter the economic and national security threats 
posed by the CCP, we need to understand their ability to conduct 
financial intelligence activities.
  Mr. Chair, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. GOTTHEIMER. Mr. Chair, I thank Mr. Gooden for the support of 
these two amendments, and I yield back the balance of my time.
  The CHAIR. The question is on the amendment offered by the gentleman 
from New Jersey (Mr. Gottheimer).
  The amendment was agreed to.


                Amendment No. 3 Offered by Mr. Molinaro

  The CHAIR. It is now in order to consider amendment No. 3 printed in 
part A of House Report 118-656.
  Mr. MOLINARO. Mr. Chair, I have an amendment at the desk.
  The CHAIR. The Clerk will designate the amendment.
  The text of the amendment is as follows:

       Page 4, line 6, strike ``and'' at the end.
       Page 4, line 8, strike the period at the end and insert ``; 
     and''.
       Page 4, insert after line 8 the following:
       (6) an assessment of the economic loss to the United States 
     as a result of hacking and trade secret theft by the Chinese 
     Communist Party.

  The CHAIR. Pursuant to House Resolution 1430, the gentleman from New 
York (Mr. Molinaro) and a Member opposed each will control 5 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from New York.
  Mr. MOLINARO. Mr. Chair, you pronounced my name better than my own 
grandmother.
  Mr. Chair, the underlying bill, the Protect America's Innovation and 
Economic Security from CCP Act of 2024, importantly counters the 
Chinese Communist Party's illegal and grossly unethical practice of 
stealing trade secrets, economic espionage, and hacking against 
American companies.
  The bill does this, as we note, by establishing a special office at 
the Department of Justice whose sole purpose is to identify and 
prosecute those who engage in this illegal behavior. The office will 
also work to protect critical infrastructure in the United States 
against external threats from China.
  The bill also requires a report from the Attorney General to 
Congress. My amendment includes in this report an assessment of the 
economic loss to the United States as a result of hacking and trade 
secret theft by China.
  We currently don't have an accurate number as to how much economic 
damage the Chinese Communist Party has caused the United States through 
economic espionage, hacking, and intellectual property theft. My 
amendment will allow us to quantify the true monetary toll China is 
causing to our economy and our businesses and allow us to

[[Page H5137]]

see how impactful this underlying legislation really is.
  The United States is the biggest economy in the world because we 
encourage innovation and entrepreneurship. China doesn't and instead 
relies on stealing our innovations, our ideas, for their benefit. This 
amendment will highlight just how damaging China is to our economy.
  Mr. Chair, I urge my colleagues to adopt this amendment, and I 
reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. NADLER. Mr. Chair, I claim the time in opposition, even though I 
am not opposed to the amendment.
  The CHAIR. Without objection, the gentleman from New York is 
recognized for 5 minutes.
  There was no objection.
  Mr. NADLER. Mr. Chair, this amendment would add to the annual report 
a study on the impact of hacking and trade secret theft by the PRC on 
the United States economy.
  If anything, this amendment highlights the magnitude of agreement 
between Republicans and Democrats on the danger from the Government of 
China to our economy and our security. I have no problem with the 
Department of Justice increasing its reporting to us. I, too, would 
like to know how hacking by PRC-affiliated groups impacts the United 
States economy.
  For that matter, I would like to know how it impacts our elections 
and our national security, too. If this bill only consisted of its 
annual report section, we could all agree and move on. Agreement, 
however, is not a possibility under this partisan exercise.
  The China Initiative is part of the Trump Project 2025 agenda not 
because of its potential for good bipartisan work, but, rather, when 
the China Initiative was an active program, it divided Americans and 
encouraged foreign scientists to leave our research labs.
  This bill would do the same, and improving the reporting section 
unfortunately will not change that.
  Mr. Chair, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. MOLINARO. Mr. Chair, I appreciate my colleague's support of my 
amendment. I look forward to bipartisan support of the bill in chief, 
and I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. NADLER. Mr. Chair, I yield back the balance of my time.
  The CHAIR. The question is on the amendment offered by the gentleman 
from New York (Mr. Molinaro).
  The amendment was agreed to.


                Amendment No. 4 Offered by Mr. Molinaro

  The CHAIR. It is now in order to consider amendment No. 4 printed in 
part A of House Report 118-656.
  Mr. MOLINARO. Mr. Chair, I have an amendment at the desk.
  The CHAIR. The Clerk will designate the amendment.
  The text of the amendment is as follows:

       Page 2, line 16, strike ``and'' at the end.
       Page 2, line 20, strike the period at the end and insert 
     ``; and''.
       Page 2, insert after line 20, the following:
       (C) identifying Chinese Communist Party theft of 
     intellectual property from small businesses.

  The CHAIR. Pursuant to House Resolution 1430, the gentleman from New 
York (Mr. Molinaro) and a Member opposed each will control 5 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from New York.
  Mr. MOLINARO. Mr. Chair, my amendment at the desk adds a requirement 
to the bill in chief that the Department of Justice identifies all 
cases of intellectual property theft of American small businesses by 
the Chinese Communist Party. Even in upstate New York, we have 
businesses that have reported firsthand how their innovations have been 
completely stolen by the Chinese Communist Party.
  Now, just because China doesn't believe in capitalism doesn't mean 
they can steal our Nation's best and brightest ideas and the hard work 
of good Americans, all of this created through the opportunities of 
capitalism and what capitalism provides.
  This amendment will help us better understand the true scope to which 
China is harming our small businesses and our economy and will provide 
us with information needed to best target the criminal actors behind 
these cowardly crimes.
  Mr. Chair, I urge my colleagues to adopt the amendment, and I reserve 
the balance of my time.
  Mr. NADLER. Mr. Chair, I claim the time in opposition, even though I 
am not opposed to the amendment.
  The CHAIR. Without objection, the gentleman from New York is 
recognized for 5 minutes.
  There was no objection.
  Mr. NADLER. Mr. Chair, this amendment would require agencies to 
identify intellectual property theft of small businesses by the CCP. I 
have no concerns with adding this to the legislation, and I agree that 
it is important that we root out instances of intellectual property 
theft of small businesses.
  Unfortunately, adding this provision to H.R. 1398 does not make small 
businesses any safer from IP theft by the Government of China. In fact, 
it puts them in even more danger.
  Since the end of the China Initiative, the Department of Justice has 
implemented the Strategy for Countering Nation-State Threats and the 
Disruptive Technology Strike Force, which have been effective at 
rooting out economic espionage and trade theft by nation-states, 
including China.
  The China Initiative was a total failure. Adding this well-
intentioned amendment to Frankenstein's monster is not going to make 
this program less of a failure when we resurrect it.
  Moreover, by requiring the DOJ to create a duplicate program and then 
attempting to impose limitations on the use of resources, this bill 
dilutes and ultimately reduces the ability of prosecutors and 
investigators to respond to the range of foreign threats faced by the 
United States.
  Again, I support this amendment and the spirit with which it is 
offered, even though it would not improve the underlying bill.
  Mr. Chair, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. MOLINARO. Mr. Chair, I appreciate my colleague's full-throated 
endorsement of my amendment, and I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. NADLER. Mr. Chair, I yield back the balance of my time.
  The CHAIR. The question is on the amendment offered by the gentleman 
from New York (Mr. Molinaro).
  The amendment was agreed to.


                  Amendment No. 5 Offered by Mr. Mills

  The CHAIR. It is now in order to consider amendment No. 5 printed in 
part A of House Report 118-656.
  Mr. MILLS. Mr. Chair, I rise as the designee for the gentleman from 
Florida (Mr. Donalds), and I have an amendment at the desk.
  The CHAIR. The Clerk will designate the amendment.
  The text of the amendment is as follows:

       Page 4, line 6, strike ``; and'' and insert a semicolon.
       Page 4, after line 6, insert the following (and redesignate 
     accordingly):
       (_) an analysis of the use of unmanned aircraft and 
     associated elements (including communication links and the 
     components that control the unmanned aircraft required for 
     the operator to operate safely and efficiently in the 
     national airspace system) by the CCP; and

  The CHAIR. Pursuant to House Resolution 1430, the gentleman from 
Florida (Mr. Mills) and a Member opposed each will control 5 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Florida.
  Mr. MILLS. Mr. Chair, I thank the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Gooden) 
for crafting this legislation that protects America's innovation and 
economic security from CCP activity.
  I rise today in support of this bill, as well as to offer an 
amendment on behalf of Congressman Byron Donalds, my fellow Florida 
man.
  This amendment would modify the underlying bill to include an 
analysis of the national security risks of the CCP's unmanned aircraft 
and associated elements in the national airspace system.
  Chinese drones are accounting for about 70 percent of the global 
drone market and 90 percent of the U.S. drone market. Additionally, 
Chinese drones have actively been undercutting U.S. Government 
contracts and U.S. companies by at least 50 percent.
  Federal, State, and local governments use these Chinese drones for 
activities that include highly sensitive information for evaluating 
critical infrastructure and military operations.
  Data stored from Chinese drones are subject to Chinese cybersecurity 
law, which requires New York operators to store select data within 
China and allows Chinese authorities to receive critical data 
notification.

[[Page H5138]]

  China also dominates in critical manufacturing parts, including the 
semiconductors and communications equipment that are found in almost 
every drone today.
  China has been known to have the capabilities to track and affect 
flights of the CCP drones, which could become problematic even to 
American aircraft.
  If you haven't picked it up yet, the Chinese drones are a major 
national and economic security risk to the United States. This 
amendment will provide a crucial analysis of CCP unmanned aircraft and 
associated elements in the national airspace system, which will enable 
the United States to craft solutions to defend ourselves from these 
national and economic risks.

                              {time}  1745

  Congressman Donalds is right to be concerned with the proliferation 
of Chinese drone technology and the security threats which they pose. I 
am proud to offer this amendment on behalf of the gentleman from 
Florida (Mr. Donalds), and I urge all Members who want to protect 
America's innovation and economic security to join me in supporting it 
and the underlying legislation.
  Mr. Chair, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. NADLER. Mr. Chairman, I claim the time in opposition to the 
amendment, even though I am not opposed to it.
  The CHAIR. Without objection, the gentleman from New York is 
recognized for 5 minutes.
  There was no objection.
  Mr. NADLER. Mr. Chairman, this amendment would require an analysis of 
the use of unmanned aircraft by the PRC, as well as related elements, 
such as communication links and components required to operate safely 
and efficiently in national airspace.
  I appreciate that the gentleman from Florida is curious about spying 
by the PRC in the United States. I think we all are. As with all of 
these other amendments, even if, by themselves, they were a good or 
even just neutral idea, they cannot make the China Initiative redux any 
better. I have said this repeatedly throughout this process. We agree 
on the threat from the government of China, so what is the purpose of 
bringing up a bill that divides us?
  I would also note that the investigation into the PRC's use of CUAS 
to spy on the United States is being conducted by multiple agencies, 
including the Pentagon, the Department of Homeland Security, and the 
FBI.
  Some Republicans in Congress have fought to defund the FBI and CISA 
over the past 2 years. Agencies that are working to counter nation-
state threats are the very same ones that some of my colleagues across 
the aisle want to destroy.
  If we want to keep America safe and our economy strong, the best 
action we can take is to fund the government entirely and in a 
bipartisan fashion, but, instead, we are here in this Chamber playing 
politics instead.
  Mr. Chair, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. MILLS. Mr. Chair, I thank the gentleman from New York (Mr. 
Nadler) for his support, endorsement, and also understanding that I 
hear what the gentleman is saying, but I say one thing: We must be 
reminded of the China Initiative established in 2018, which was 
eliminated by the Biden-Harris administration in February of 2022, 
where over $500 billion prior to that had been stolen by the Chinese 
CCP and the PRC.
  I want to caution the fact that support for H.R. 1398 does, in fact, 
help us and is not considered to be an anti-Asian bill, as Members on 
the other side of the aisle tried to establish.
  Mr. Chair, I yield back the balance of my time.
  The CHAIR. The question is on the amendment offered by the gentleman 
from Florida (Mr. Mills).
  The amendment was agreed to.


                  Amendment No. 6 Offered by Mr. Mills

  The CHAIR. It is now in order to consider amendment No. 6 printed in 
part A of House Report 118-656.
  Mr. MILLS. Mr. Chair, I have an amendment at the desk.
  The CHAIR. The Clerk will designate the amendment.
  The text of the amendment is as follows:
       Page 2, line 12, strike ``and'' at the end.
       Page 2, line 20, strike the period at the end and insert 
     ``; and''.
       Page 2, insert after line 20 the following:
       (7) investigate investments made by Chinese companies 
     included on the Entity List maintained by the Bureau of 
     Industry and Security of the Department of Commerce or the 
     People's Republic of China Military Companies list maintained 
     by the Department of Defense, and report to the Secretary of 
     Commerce and the Secretary of Defense on any findings of such 
     investigations, including findings related to subsidiaries or 
     other entities controlled by such companies, whether or not 
     such subsidiaries or other entities are registered in or 
     operate in the People's Republic of China.

  The CHAIR. Pursuant to House Resolution 1430, the gentleman from 
Florida (Mr. Mills) and a Member opposed each will control 5 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Florida.
  Mr. MILLS. Mr. Chairman, I thank, once again, the gentleman from 
Texas (Mr. Gooden), for yielding me the time and putting together this 
important bill, the Protect America's Innovation and Economic Security 
from CCP Act.
  Mr. Chair, I rise today in support of this legislation as well as to 
offer an amendment to it.
  As has been noted, the annual cost of intellectual property theft is 
estimated to be around $500 billion annually. What are we doing about 
it?
  The Trump administration created a program to counteract this 
espionage and prosecute individuals that were taking advantage of 
American ingenuity and innovation. However, the Biden-Harris 
administration canceled yet another program that was working.
  It is ironic how this has happened so many times, Mr. Chairman. Trump 
policies at the border are keeping Americans safe; we better cancel 
them.
  Trump policies are working to grow the economy and people's 
paychecks; we better cancel them.
  Trump policies are promoting peace around the world. We can't have 
that.
  Following the Biden-Harris shutdown of the Chinese Initiative, there 
were zero, I repeat, zero, new economic espionage cases that were 
opened in 2022. It reminds me of the progressive DAs in Democrat-run 
cities that have stopped prosecuting crimes and that are saying: Look, 
crime is down. You are safe with me now.
  Well, we are not safe in this country, Mr. Chairman, nor are we safe 
from the threats abroad with the Biden-Harris administration.
  My amendment is very straightforward. When the DOJ prosecutes bad 
actors linked to the Chinese Communist Party, and they certainly will, 
they are directed to share that information with the Department of 
Defense and the Department of Commerce so they can update their 
blacklist and further protect American companies.
  This includes down to the subsidiary level where CCP entities get 
caught trying to evade detection through corporate proxies. For 
example, we have seen, when the Aviation Industry Corporation of China, 
also called AVIC, and the China Airborne Missile Academy was placed on 
the DOD's Chinese military companies list. While the DOD and defense 
contractors are prohibited from acquiring materials from AVIC, 
equipment made by the sanctioned company continues to find its way into 
our defense supply chains through a subsidiary company and part of 
AVIC.
  This abuse is not specific to any one company or any one subsidiary, 
but it is a tactic utilized by the CCP to obscure its economic warfare 
and to fog financial connections.
  We simply can't allow this, Mr. Chairman. I urge adoption of this 
amendment and the underlying bill to better protect America, Americans, 
and American interests.
  Mr. Chair, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. NADLER. Mr. Chairman, I claim the time in opposition to the 
amendment.
  The CHAIR. Without objection, the gentleman from New York is 
recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. NADLER. Mr. Chair, this amendment would require prosecutors to 
investigate investments made by Chinese companies and subsidiaries 
listed on the Bureau of Industry and Security's Entity List and the 
DOD's PRC Military Companies List.
  Mr. Chair, I oppose this amendment primarily because the language 
here exemplifies the broader problem with

[[Page H5139]]

the entire legislation. By requiring an agency to investigate certain 
parties, the China Initiative did not give prosecutors leeway to 
prioritize cases or to choose where to expend resources. This all-or-
nothing approach resulted in a culture of fear in research labs across 
America with few successful prosecutions to show for it.
  This approach is what led to investigations of grant applications for 
paperwork errors. Rather than looking for the individuals seeking to 
commit trade crimes, the requirement to investigate relegated many DOJ 
prosecutors to the role of meter maids handing out parking tickets.
  Mr. Chair, I am also opposed to this amendment because we already do 
something very similar. The Committee on Foreign Investment in the 
United States already looks at all pending Chinese investments into the 
United States.
  This amendment would duplicate this work, causing a further strain on 
the limited resources available at the Department of Justice.
  Finally, the language is unclear as to the limit of these 
investigations. This broad mandate for investigations into existing 
investments without any clear objective, again, could lead to the kind 
of overreach the original China Initiative suffered from.
  Mr. Chair, I oppose this amendment and encourage my colleagues to do 
the same, and I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. MILLS. Mr. Chair, I appreciate the gentleman from New York (Mr. 
Nadler) sharing his concerns. I argue that whatever the 2018 China 
Initiative had actually rendered with regards to the amount of 
investigations or findings is still far better than what the Biden-
Harris administration has done, where they have had zero, Mr. Chairman, 
since 2022, when they canceled this.
  I also remind everyone that this is a simple thing for us. What are 
we asking for here? We are asking for the DOJ to do their job, to 
prosecute bad actors of the Chinese Communist Party, not something that 
seems unreasonable, and to direct the shared information to the 
Department of Defense and the Department of Commerce.
  Mr. Chair, if CFIUS works so well, then I would have argued that they 
would have blocked the sale of U.S. Steel to Nippon Steel to allow us 
to have an actual advantage and control our resources and economic 
capabilities, but they don't.
  That is why I offer this amendment in an area to ensure that those 
companies that have been blacklisted can no longer circumvent the 
system and that the Department of Defense and the Department of 
Commerce are aware of the investigations that should be held by the 
Department of Justice.
  Mr. Chair, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. NADLER. Mr. Chair, I yield back the balance of my time.
  The CHAIR. The question is on the amendment offered by the gentleman 
from Florida (Mr. Mills).
  The amendment was agreed to.
  The CHAIR. There being no further amendment, under the rule, the 
Committee rises.
  Accordingly, the Committee rose; and the Speaker pro tempore (Ms. 
Maloy) having assumed the chair, Mr. Lopez, Chair of the Committee of 
the Whole House on the state of the Union, reported that that 
Committee, having had under consideration the bill (H.R. 1398) to 
establish the CCP Initiative program, and for other purposes, and, 
pursuant to House Resolution 1430, reports the bill, as amended by that 
resolution, back to the House with sundry further amendments adopted in 
the Committee of the Whole.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under the rule, the previous question is 
ordered.
  Is a separate vote demanded on any amendment reported from the 
Committee of the Whole?
  If not, the Chair will put them en gros.
  The amendments were agreed to.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the engrossment and third 
reading of the bill.
  The bill was ordered to be engrossed and read a third time, and was 
read the third time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 1(c) of rule XIX, further 
consideration of H.R. 1398 is postponed.

                          ____________________