House Passes Cuellar Bill to Spur American Leadership on 5G Technology
Written by Post Public Information Representative, Jul 18, 2022, 0 Comments
Courtesy Dana Youngetob,
Washington, DC – The House of Representatives passed U.S. Congressman Henry Cuellar’s (TX-28) bipartisan legislation to increase America’s global leadership on 5G technology and provide an alternative to China’s dangerous state-run companies, which currently dominate the 5G market.
The bipartisan bill named the Promoting United States International Leadership in 5G Act of 2021, sponsored by Cuellar, Congressmen Michael McCaul (R-TX), Guy Reschenthaler (R-PA), and James Langevin (D-RI) brings a whole-of-government approach to competing with China to better protect our privacy, assets, allies, and stakeholders.
“Leadership in 5G must be a national priority,” said Congressman Cuellar. “This legislation calls for the Secretary of State to provide assistance to 5G entities and greater coordination between allies to ensure the U.S. is at the head of the table when setting international standards.
I am committed to enhancing our leadership on 5G to grow our economy and connect our families, communities, and businesses during this pandemic and beyond.”
China is the most active espionage power when it comes to industrial espionage, theft of intellectual property, and actions against groups or countries that the regime perceives as threatening.
Once China’s 5G technology has been installed in a country, China owns that nation’s data – including the personal information of its people – bringing unacceptable national security risk and endangering allied information-sharing. Chinese technology companies are beholden to the Communist Party and required by law to obey its directives, increasing the risk of 5G companies using the technology for malign purposes.
Cuellar and McCaul’s bill will help the United States counter China’s aggressive 5G expansion around the world by increasing U.S. leadership and participation at international standards setting bodies for 5G.
The bill will provide a whole-of-government approach to assess the security risks posed by China in 5G and seeks to increase cooperation between the U.S. and its allies and partners in not only identifying those risks, but to also countering them. Further, the bill requires the State Department to come up with a strategy for diplomatic engagement with our allies and partners, like Japan and the Five Eyes, to share security risk information and methods for mitigating those risks. It also requires the State Department to work with our allies and partners to increase engagement at the international standards setting bodies.
Furthermore, the bill will help increase America’s economic competitiveness in the world. Market analysis shows 5G technologies could create up to three million new American jobs and add over $500 billion to the country’s gross domestic product.
