Why It Matters

The House Subcommittee on Communications and Technology will markup six bills on Tuesday, September 1 that address interconnected threats to broadband infrastructure, network security, and consumer protection. The legislation addresses supply chain vulnerabilities, foreign robocalls, and artificial intelligence in telecommunications systems.

The Bills Under Consideration

The Subcommittee will consider six measures: H.R. 2805 (PLAN for Broadband Act); H.R. 4950 (Data BRIDGE Act), H.R. 6152 (Foreign Robocall Elimination Act); H.R. 7294 (AI for Secure Networks Act); H.R. 8255 (SAT Streamlining Act); and H.R. 9129 (GUARD Act).

These bills address distinct but overlapping policy areas.

The PLAN for Broadband Act aims to improve planning and coordination for broadband deployment, and the Data BRIDGE Act addresses data-sharing or data infrastructure to support broadband network deployment and connectivity.

The Foreign Robocall Elimination Act targets a persistent consumer threat. According to a recent Congressional Research Service report, scammers continue to adapt by using internet-based calling systems and AI to circumvent robocall enforcement, even as the FCC has issued hundreds of millions of dollars in enforcement actions against illegal robocallers and mandated blocking of illegal international robocall traffic.

The GUARD Act, introduced on June 3, and the SAT Streamlining Act round out the agenda. The SAT Streamlining Act has bipartisan Senate backing from Senate Commerce Committee Chairman Ted Cruz (R-TX) and Sen. Peter Welch (D-VT).

Supply Chain and National Security

The FCC has placed Chinese humanoid and quadruped robots on a national security Covered List, citing documented backdoors in Unitree hardware deployed at MIT, Princeton, and Carnegie institutions. The FCC described the backdoors as a supply chain vulnerability that presents an immediate national security threat and an unacceptable cybersecurity and safety risk. China criticized the FCC ban on Chinese humanoid and quadruped robots on July 29. Rep. John Moolenaar (R-MI-4) has stated that robots made by China are a threat to national security, critical infrastructure, and American workers because they contain backdoors that can be hijacked for espionage.

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