Cornhusker State News

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Deb Fischer (R-Neb.), a member of the Senate Commerce Committee and a senior member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, spoke on the Senate floor today about her legislation to address a $3.08 billion shortfall in the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC) Rip and Replace Program. The program reimburses smaller communications service providers for the costs of removing and replacing risky Chinese network equipment. Failure to address the funding shortfall would harm national security and be particularly devastating for small carriers and the largely rural communities they serve. 

In a recent letter to congressional appropriators and authorizers, FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel noted the importance of fully funding the Rip and Replace program.  

Following is a transcript of Senator Fischer’s remarks as prepared for delivery:

Mr. President,

Over a decade ago, when President Obama was in office and Apple’s iPad was just hitting the market, our intelligence agencies began to notice a disturbing pattern.

Chinese-made communications equipment was multiplying across our country, placed on top of cell towers throughout the rural Midwest.

Equipment made by Chinese state-backed companies like Huawei and ZTE spread across my own home state of Nebraska, as well as nearby Colorado and Montana.

Curiously, these technologies were clustering near critical military locations in midwestern states. Nebraska is home to sensitive areas like Offutt Air Force Base and a number of nuclear missile silos.

Well, the FBI looked into it. And they discovered that at least one Chinese company — Huawei — was regularly selling its equipment to rural providers at cheap prices that appeared unprofitable.

But once installed, the equipment would be located right next to American military assets.

The Chinese Communist Party is actively seeking ways to disrupt Department of Defense communications. This is why we cannot allow communications equipment made in China next door to our military sites.

Mr. President, this is just one example of the pervasive threat Chinese-made equipment in our communications networks poses to our national security.

We know that the Chinese Communist Party intends to exploit these vulnerabilities for all kinds of activities, including espionage.

That’s why in 2020, the Federal Communications Commission banned the use of its funds to expand or maintain networks containing any Huawei or ZTE equipment. Since then, the Commission banned all equipment authorizations for several Chinese tech firms that post threats to national security — blocking their imports and sale.

We also passed a law in Congress approving $1.9 billion to secure our communications infrastructure — to rip out the Chinese network gear and replace it with secure equipment.

It’s been years, but not all of this dangerous Chinese gear has been replaced. Approximately 24,000 pieces of Chinese-made equipment remain in 8,400 different locations across our country. Nearly all of the 85 companies approved by the FCC are still waiting for federal reimbursement money, because they aren’t able to pay to replace these technologies without help.

The FCC’s program is facing a budget shortfall of $3.08 billion. The sum of money we first approved based on initial estimates is not going to cut it.

That financial uncertainty means smaller, regional carriers — after being mandated by the federal government to rip out this equipment — won’t receive the money they need to replace high-risk Chinese tech.

I’ve heard from rural carriers that this leaves them with two main options:

One, to go out of business.

Or two, to never replace the equipment after removing it, and instead reduce the size of their wireless networks.

Either option would be devastating for communities, especially those in rural areas. We need more, not less, connectivity. And we need more, not fewer, jobs.

That’s true not just in Nebraska, but across the country.

Think about it. If these carriers go out of business or reduce coverage, that will leave thousands of residents without wireless services — services that are essential for work, emergencies, and life in the 21st century. People traveling through these areas often won’t have service, either.

Mr. President, addressing this funding shortfall is urgent. The FCC has a July 15th deadline by which reimbursement requests are due. If Congress doesn’t act quickly to fix this issue before the July deadline, there won’t be enough funds to cover costs. This would impact communities in 49 — 49! — states, plus U.S. territories.

Without action now, we face incomplete removal of high-risk Chinese equipment from U.S. networks — wasting the money Congress already passed.

I’ve introduced the Defend Our Networks Act to remedy this problem. Protecting our national security is vital, and it’s also vital that we ensure the government’s response to protect our security doesn’t put smaller companies out of business.

The Defend Our Networks Act does both. It would allocate $3.08 billion of unobligated COVID-19 emergency relief funds to the rip and replace program. That’s only three percent of the unobligated emergency funds.

I introduced this bill with my colleague Senator Hickenlooper because securing our communications infrastructure is a national, bipartisan issue. The FCC commissioners, including Chairwoman Rosenworcel, have come out in strong support, demonstrating the importance of getting this done. Just a week ago, I had the opportunity to question Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo about this problem, and she agreed that we need to address it immediately.

Over the coming weeks, I expect we’ll continue to gain more bipartisan momentum. I will continue to push for the swift passage of the Defend Our Networks Act, even as standalone legislation.

Spy balloons and secret police stations have recently reminded us of the Chinese Communist Party’s sly and underhanded espionage tactics. If we can’t competently remove risky Chinese telecommunications equipment, how can the American people expect us to defend them from the threats China poses?

We did the right thing when we passed the Secure and Trusted Communications Networks Act to establish the rip and replace program. Now let’s do the right thing by completing the funding so we can follow through on what we said we would do.

Thank you. I yield the floor. 

Original source can be found here.