U.S. Reps. Billy Long (R-MO) and Buddy Carter (R-GA) commended the House of Representatives’ recent passage of a bipartisan bill they introduced to authorize the development of a whole-of-government strategy that would bolster the economic competitiveness of U.S. information and communications vendors and reduce their reliance on foreign resources.
“I am thrilled that this bipartisan piece of legislation has passed the House of Representatives with wide support,” Rep. Long said. “The passage of this legislation brings us one step closer to making sure our nation’s information technology supply chains are secure and free from dependence on foreign countries like China.”
The House on Oct. 20 voted 413-14 to pass the Information and Communication Technology Strategy Act, H.R. 4028, which Rep. Long sponsored in June with three original cosponsors, including Rep. Carter and U.S. Rep. Abigail Spanberger (D-VA).
“This overwhelming bipartisan vote is an important step towards re-shoring our supply chains and reducing our dependence on countries whose interests counter our own,” said Rep. Carter. “Let’s make sure it is not the last we take in this Congress or the future.”
If enacted, the measure would require the U.S. Commerce Department to submit a report to Congress one year after enactment to assess the competitiveness of information and communications technology vendors and their dependence on foreign actors; and to identify what federal resources are needed to reduce such dependence, according to a bill summary provided by the lawmakers.
“China is our adversary, plain and simple,” Rep. Carter said. “We’ve allowed ourselves to become too reliant on them and other countries for technologies and component parts critical to our national and economic security.”
The U.S. Senate will next consider the bill, which has been referred to the U.S. Senate Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee for consideration.
“We need to continue to work in a bipartisan manner to ensure that the whole-of-government strategy that is created through this legislation is properly implemented,” said Rep. Long. “I look forward to working with my colleagues in the Senate to ensure this legislation becomes law.”