[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 150 (Monday, September 19, 2022)]
[House]
[Pages H7902-H7904]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
COUNTERING UNTRUSTED TELECOMMUNICATIONS ABROAD ACT
Mr. MALINOWSKI. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the
bill (H.R. 8520) to establish certain reporting and other requirements
relating to telecommunications equipment and services produced or
provided by certain entities, and for other purposes, as amended.
The Clerk read the title of the bill.
The text of the bill is as follows:
H.R. 8520
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of
the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Countering Untrusted
Telecommunications Abroad Act''.
SEC. 2. SENSE OF CONGRESS.
It is the sense of Congress that--
(1) the national security of the United States is affected
by the telecommunications security of United States allies,
partners, and other countries around the globe;
(2) the importance of mobile and internet services makes
such services tempting and effective tools for malign
influence and economic coercion;
(3) Huawei Technologies Company and ZTE Corporation (and
any subsidiary or affiliate of either such entity) should not
serve as a vendor of telecommunications equipment or services
given the close ties to, and control over, such entities by
the People's Republic of China; and
(4) it is in the economic and national security interests
of the United States to ensure that countries around the
globe use trusted telecommunications equipment or services.
SEC. 3. REPORT ON UNTRUSTED TELECOMMUNICATIONS EQUIPMENT OR
SERVICES IN COUNTRIES WITH COLLECTIVE DEFENSE
AGREEMENT WITH UNITED STATES.
(a) Report.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the
enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter for two years,
the Secretary of State, in consultation with the Assistant
Secretary of Commerce for Communications and Information,
shall submit to the Committees on Foreign Affairs and Energy
and Commerce of the House of Representatives and the
Committees on Foreign
[[Page H7903]]
Relations and Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the
Senate a report on the prevalence of untrusted
telecommunications equipment or services in the networks of
United States allies and partners.
(b) Matters.--The report under subsection (a) shall
enumerate each United States ally or partner with respect to
which the United States has entered into a collective defense
agreement and include, for each such country, the following:
(1) A description of the presence, or lack thereof, of
untrusted telecommunications equipment or services in any 5G
network of the country.
(2) If any untrusted telecommunications equipment or
service is present in such a network--
(A) an enumeration of any mobile carriers that are using
the untrusted telecommunications equipment or service
present, and any mobile carriers that are not;
(B) a determination of whether the untrusted
telecommunications equipment or service present is in the
core or periphery of the network; and
(C) any plans by the United States ally or partner, or the
individual mobile carrier, to rip and replace the untrusted
telecommunications equipment or service present with a
trusted telecommunications equipment or service.
(3) A description of any plans by network operators to use
untrusted communications equipment or services in the
deployment of Open Radio Access Network (Open RAN)
technology, or any successor to such technology, or in future
6G networks.
SEC. 4. REPORT ON COVERED TELECOMMUNICATIONS EQUIPMENT OR
SERVICES IN UNITED STATES EMBASSIES.
(a) Findings.--Congress finds the following:
(1) The Comptroller General of the United States has
reported that 23 percent of all telecommunications device
manufacturers of the Department of State have at least one
supplier reported to be headquartered in the People's
Republic of China or the Russian Federation.
(2) The Comptroller General has reported that four percent
of all telecommunications contractors of the Department of
State have at least one supplier reported to be headquartered
in the People's Republic of China.
(b) Report.--
(1) In general.--Not later than 180 days after the date of
the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State, in
consultation with the heads of such other departments and
agencies as the Secretary determines necessary, shall submit
to the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of
Representatives and the Committee on Foreign Relations of the
Senate a report containing an assessment of the use of
covered telecommunications equipment or services in United
States embassies and by United States embassy staff and
personnel.
(2) Matters.--The report under paragraph (1) shall include
information on the following:
(A) The status of the implementation by the Secretary of
State of the prohibition under subsection (a)(1) of section
889 of the John S. McCain National Defense Authorization Act
for Fiscal Year 2019 (Public Law 115-232; 132 Stat. 1917; 41
U.S.C. 3901 note prec.) with respect to equipment, systems,
and services used at United States embassies, including--
(i) an identification of the United States embassies with
respect to which the Secretary has implemented such
prohibition, and an identification of those with respect to
which the Secretary has not implemented such prohibition, if
any;
(ii) an identification of any difficulties that have
delayed the implementation of such prohibition by the
Secretary with respect to United States embassies, such as
visibility into supply chains, costs of equipment
replacement, and plans for timely remediation;
(iii) information on any waivers that have been granted to
an entity under subsection (d) of such section 889 for
equipment, systems, or services used at United States
embassies, including a justification of why each waiver was
granted and any other information required pursuant to
paragraph (1)(B) of such subsection; and
(iv) for any entity that has sought a waiver specified in
clause (iii), the implementation status of the phase-out plan
of the entity submitted by the entity pursuant to subsection
(d) of such section 889.
(B) Information regarding the extent to which the digital
devices of United States embassy staff and personnel are
serviced by Huawei Technologies Company or ZTE Corporation
(or any subsidiary or affiliate of either such entity), or
any other entity headquartered in the People's Republic of
China, and an assessment of the likelihood of the
intelligence services of the People's Republic of China
gaining access to the contents and data of the digital
devices used by United States embassy personnel as a result
of any such servicing.
(C) Any other information regarding ongoing efforts to
safeguard the communications security of United States
embassies.
(3) Form.--The report under paragraph (1) shall be
submitted in unclassified form, but may include a classified
annex.
SEC. 5. SUPPORTING TRUSTED TELECOMMUNICATIONS.
(a) In General.--The Secretary of State, in consultation
with the Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Communications
and Information, shall select for the provision of support
under this section telecommunications infrastructure projects
that have the potential, as determined by the Secretary, to
promote the national security of the United States and meet
such other requirements as the Secretary may prescribe.
(b) Diplomatic and Political Support.--The Secretary of
State shall provide to each project selected under subsection
(a), as appropriate, diplomatic and political support,
including by using the diplomatic and political influence and
expertise of the Department of State to build the capacity of
countries to resolve any impediments to the development of
the project.
(c) Early Stage Project Support.--The Director of the
United States Trade and Development Agency should provide, as
appropriate, early-stage project support with respect to
projects selected under subsection (a).
SEC. 6. DISCLOSURE AND TRANSPARENCY OF UNTRUSTED
COMMUNICATIONS EQUIPMENT.
(a) In General.--Section 13 of the Securities Exchange Act
of 1934 (15 U.S.C. 78m) is amended by adding at the end the
following new subsection:
``(s) Disclosure of Certain Activities Related to Untrusted
Telecommunications Equipment.--
``(1) In general.--Each issuer required to file an annual
or quarterly report under subsection (a) shall disclose in
that report the information required in paragraph (2) if,
during the period covered by the report, the issuer or any
affiliate of the issuer used or contracted to use covered
telecommunications equipment or services.
``(2) Information required.--If an issuer or affiliate of
the issuer has engaged in an activity described in paragraph
(1), the issuer shall disclose such activity, including a
detailed description of--
``(A) whether the covered telecommunications equipment or
services are being used in a mobile network run by the
issuer, and whether those equipment or services were used in
the core or periphery of the network;
``(B) whether the covered telecommunications equipment or
services were used for cloud computing or data storage;
``(C) whether any covered telecommunications equipment or
services were replaced with other vendors; and
``(D) whether the issuer is currently engaging in
negotiations or planning to contract to use additional
covered telecommunications equipment or services.
``(3) Notice of disclosures.--If an issuer reports under
paragraph (1) that the issuer or an affiliate of the issuer
has knowingly engaged in any activity described in that
paragraph, the issuer shall separately file with the
Commission, concurrently with the annual or quarterly report
under subsection (a), a notice that the disclosure of that
activity has been included in that annual or quarterly report
that identifies the issuer and contains the information
required by paragraph (2).
``(4) Public disclosure of information.--Upon receiving a
notice under paragraph (3) that an annual or quarterly report
includes a disclosure of an activity described in paragraph
(1), the Commission shall promptly--
``(A) transmit the report to--
``(i) the President;
``(ii) the Committees on Foreign Affairs, Energy and
Commerce, and Financial Services of the House of
Representatives; and
``(iii) the Committees on Foreign Relations, Commerce,
Science, and Transportation, and Banking, Housing, and Urban
Affairs of the Senate; and
``(B) make the information provided in the disclosure and
the notice available to the public by posting the information
on the Internet website of the Commission.
``(5) Covered telecommunications equipment or service
defined.--In this subsection, the term `covered
telecommunications equipment or service' has the meaning
given to the term `covered communications equipment or
service' in section 9 of the Secure and Trusted
Communications Network Act of 2019 (47 U.S.C. 1608).''.
(b) Effective Date.--The amendment made by subsection (a)
shall take effect with respect to reports required to be
filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission after the
date that is 180 days after the date of the enactment of this
Act.
SEC. 7. DEFINITIONS.
In this Act:
(1) Covered telecommunications equipment or service;
untrusted telecommunications equipment or service.--The terms
``covered telecommunications equipment or service'' and
``untrusted telecommunications equipment or service'' have
the meaning given to the term ``covered communications
equipment or service'' in section 9 of the Secure and Trusted
Communications Network Act of 2019 (47 U.S.C. 1608).
(2) Trusted telecommunications equipment or service.--The
term ``trusted telecommunications equipment or service''
means any telecommunications equipment or service that is not
a covered telecommunications equipment or service.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from New
Jersey (Mr. Malinowski) and the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Smith)
each will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Malinowski).
[[Page H7904]]
General Leave
Mr. MALINOWSKI. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members
have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and
include extraneous material on H.R. 8520.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from New Jersey?
There was no objection.
Mr. MALINOWSKI. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may
consume.
Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of H.R. 8520, the Countering
Untrusted Telecommunications Act.
Imagine the following: A senior official for a NATO ally of the
United States transmits a vital national security matter to his
country's embassy here in Washington, but before the call even reaches
the embassy, it is intercepted by Chinese spyware, which transmits the
call to Beijing. Before our officials even hear the top-secret message,
CCP officials have captured and recorded the information.
Threats like this are very real and on the rise. Even here in the
United States, intelligence and defense officials are concerned that
telecommunications equipment made by the company Huawei could capture
communications about our nuclear arsenal.
Around the world, the problem is worse. Many of our partners and
allies have all of their major cell phone networks backed by unsafe
equipment giving the PRC and its friends backdoor access to our private
communications. Many countries, replete with this unsafe equipment,
have mutual defense treaties with the United States.
The Countering Untrusted Telecommunications Act would be a crucial
tool to address these security issues.
First, it would require the State Department to ensure that the
Department itself is not relying on unsafe equipment at our embassies
around the world.
Second, it would require a comprehensive report on the
telecommunications security of all countries with which the United
States has a mutual defense treaty.
Third, it authorizes our State Department to provide diplomatic
support for telecommunications projects and pushes our United States
Trade and Development Agency to finance important projects in this
area.
Finally, it requires mobile network operators listed on American
stock exchanges to disclose whether they have Huawei, ZTE, or other
unsafe equipment in their networks. Currently, many network operators
fail to disclose this information despite existing sanctions against
Huawei. This provision would be beneficial for our national security
but also crucial for investors and shareholders in these companies.
I thank Representatives Wild and Wagner for their important work on
this bill, and I urge all of my colleagues to join me in supporting
this legislation.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of this bill,
and I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, the Countering Untrusted Telecommunications Abroad Act
requires the State Department to conduct a report on the presence and
risks posed by any Chinese telecommunications vendor like Huawei or ZTE
in the networks of defense-allied countries.
It also requires the General Accountability Office, or GAO, to report
on Chinese and Russian telecom suppliers serving U.S. embassies
overseas.
Finally, it tasks the State Department with identifying telecom
infrastructure projects that will strengthen U.S. national security,
and with helping countries currently being serviced by Chinese vendors
to build capacity for replacing those vendors.
I would hope by now that most U.S. officials understand the threats
to U.S. national security posed by tech companies controlled by the
Chinese Communist Party, like Huawei. But we must also ensure that our
allies and partners are not duped by the seemingly low cost of telecom
services provided by state-backed countries. While seemingly cheap, the
real cost lies in giving the CCP control over all of your
telecommunications data, which they will use to spread their malign
influence globally.
So I support the bill strongly, and I yield back the balance of my
time.
Mr. MALINOWSKI. Mr. Speaker, I am prepared to close, and I yield
myself the balance of my time.
Mr. Speaker, H.R. 8520, the Countering Untrusted Telecommunications
Act is an important initiative in finding and addressing American
vulnerabilities to cyber spying and espionage, particularly in our
communications with partners and allies whose unsecure networks may
provide backdoor access to these increasing threats.
I, once again, thank Representatives Wild and Wagner for their
tremendous work in advancing this bill and their commitment to
protecting our national security from cyber and security threats. I
hope my colleagues will join us in supporting this bill.
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 New Jersey (Mr. Malinowski) that the House suspend the
rules and pass the bill, H.R. 8520, as amended.
The question was taken.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds
being in the affirmative, the ayes have it.
Mr. ROSENDALE. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.
The yeas and nays were ordered.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX, further
proceedings on this motion will be postponed.
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