US House Panel Leaders Push Bipartisan Bill to Overhaul FCC's Covered List

Leaders of the US House Energy and Commerce Committee have introduced bipartisan legislation aimed at revamping a national security mechanism the Federal Communications Commission uses to block equipment from Chinese manufacturers.

Representative Brett Guthrie, the panel's Republican chair, and Representative Frank Pallone, its senior Democrat, announced the proposal in a joint statement. The measure would alter the process by which items are placed on the FCC's so-called Covered List and expand the role of other government agencies in that decision-making.

The Covered List has served as the basis for restrictions on a range of Chinese-made products, including drones, robots, routers and power inverters. Under the lawmakers' plan, the procedures for adding equipment to the list would be revised, and additional federal bodies would be given a greater say in the process.

The proposal reflects continuing congressional attention to the security of telecommunications and technology supply chains, and to the tools regulators use to keep certain foreign-made gear out of US networks and markets.