Legislation that would invest about $1 billion to invest in 5G technology and innovation was introduced in the U.S. Senate this week.
The Utilizing Strategic Allied (USA) Telecommunications Act would encourage competition with Chinese provider Huawei by accelerating the development of an open-architecture model (known as O-RAN) that would allow for American innovators to enter the market for specific network components rather than having to compete with Huawei.
Huawei, which is subsidized by China’s government and the Chinese Communist Party, is poised to become the leading commercial provider of 5G. This will present unacceptable risks to national security interests and the integrity of information networks globally, the lawmakers said.
“We are at a critical point in history for defining the future of the U.S.-China relationship in the 21st century, and we cannot allow Chinese state-directed telecommunications companies to surpass American competitors,” Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL), one of the billʻs sponsors, said. “It is not only in our national security interests to support American competition in the 5G market, but it is also in our economic interests to continue to build and support an economy that leverages American strengths and creates American jobs in the industries of the future without relying on malign Chinese state-directed actors like Huawei and ZTE.”
The bill was sponsored by Sens. Rubio, Mark Warner (D-VA), Richard Burr (R-NC), Bob Menendez (D-NJ), Michael Bennet (D-CO), and John Cornyn (R-TX).
“Every month that the U.S. does nothing, Huawei stands poised to become the cheapest, fastest, most ubiquitous global provider of 5G, while U.S. and Western companies and workers lose out on market share and jobs. Widespread adoption of 5G technology has the potential to unleash sweeping effects for the future of internet-connected devices, individual data security, and national security. It is imperative that Congress address the complex security and competitiveness challenges that Chinese-directed telecommunication companies pose,” Warner said.
Specifically, the bill would require the Federal Communications Commission to direct at least $750 million, or up to 5 percent of annual auction proceeds, from new auctioned spectrum licenses to create an O-RAN R&D Fund. The fund would be invested in open-architecture, software-based wireless technologies. The fund would be managed by the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA), with input from the FCC, Defense Advanced Research Project Agency, and National Institute of Standards and Technology. The legislation would also create a $500 million Multilateral Telecommunications Security Fund to accelerate the adoption of secure equipment globally and encourage multilateral participation.
“We should not accept a world that is forced to rely on Chinese telecommunication companies to unlock the benefits of 5G and next-generation wireless technologies,” Bennet said. “It is imperative for America’s competitiveness and security that we develop alternatives for U.S. and foreign network operators. This $1 billion investment will send a strong, bipartisan signal that the United States is committed to developing viable, secure, and cutting-edge alternatives to China’s 5G technology while eliminating dependence on technology that poses real security threats.”