House Lawmakers Introduce Bill Offering Refunds to Small Companies Moving Away From Huawei Tech

House Lawmakers Introduce Bill Offering Refunds to Small Companies Moving Away From Huawei Tech

The bill is part of an ongoing saga between China-based Huawei and the federal government, which believes Huawei is collaborating with Chinese spying efforts.

A bipartisan group of House legislators are seeking to set aside $1 billion to help small and rural companies remove Huawei technology from the American telecommunications industry.

On Tuesday, several lawmakers on the House Energy and Commerce Committee, including chairman Frank Pallone (D-New Jersey), introduced the Secure and Trusted Communications Networks Act, a bill that could have significant repercussions for the security and video surveillance industries. The committee will hold a hearing on the measure on Friday.

In addition to refunding small and rural businesses making the switch from Huawei to other technology providers, the bill would require the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to publish a list of communications service or equipment providers that pose national security risks. Those risks would be determined by “expert federal authorities” outside of the FCC, according to the bill.

From there, companies would be banned from using federal funds to buy communications equipment or services from any company identified as a national security risk to U.S. communications networks.

Read more: ONVIF Suspends Huawei

“America’s wireless future depends on our networks being secure from malicious foreign interference,” Pallone wrote in a joint statement with Ranking Member Greg Walden, a Republican from Oregon, along with other colleagues on the committee. “Our telecommunications companies rely heavily on equipment manufactured and provided by foreign companies that, in some cases, as with companies such as Huawei and its affiliates, can pose a significant threat to America’s commercial and security interests.”

The proposed legislation comes after President Trump signed an executive order in May allowing the federal government to block sales of Huawei equipment to American companies, according to The Washington Post. Huawei has been accused of working in tandem with the Chinese government to spy on American companies and infiltrate the U.S. telecommunications infrastructure.

The bill continues the saga between Huawei and the U.S. government, which has had important consequences for security providers. Huawei’s HiSilicon is used in many IP cameras and recorders, and security companies now must contend with transitioning to new technology if they hope to keep and land federal contracts.

In their statement, Pallone and his House colleagues said that the move is necessary to protect U.S. communications networks from “foreign adversaries.”

“We must get this done to protect our national security,” they wrote.

About the Author

Haley Samsel is an Associate Content Editor for the Infrastructure Solutions Group at 1105 Media.

Featured

  • The Future is Happening Outside the Cloud

    For years, the cloud has captivated the physical security industry. And for good reason. Remote access, elastic scalability and simplified maintenance reshaped how we think about deploying and managing systems. But as the number of cameras grows and resolutions push from HD to 4K and beyond, the cloud’s limits are becoming unavoidable. Bandwidth bottlenecks. Latency lags. Rising storage costs. These are not abstract concerns. Read Now

  • The Impact of Convergence Between IT and Physical Security

    For years, the worlds of physical security and information technology (IT) remained separate. While they shared common goals and interests, they often worked in silos. Read Now

  • Unlocking Trustworthy AI: Building Transparency in Security Governance

    In situations where AI supports important security tasks like leading investigations and detecting threats and anomalies, transparency is essential. When an incident occurs, investigators must trace the logic behind each automated response to confirm its validity or spot errors. Demanding interpretable AI turns opaque “black boxes” into accountable partners that enhance, rather than compromise, organizational defense. Read Now

  • Seeking Innovative Solutions

    Denial, Anger, Bargaining, Depression and Acceptance. You may recognize these terms as the “5 Phases” of a grieving process, but they could easily describe the phases one goes through before adopting any new or emerging innovation or technology, especially in a highly risk-averse industry like security. However, the desire for convenience in all aspects of modern life is finally beginning to turn the tide from old school hardware as the go-to towards more user-friendly, yet still secure, door solutions. Read Now

  • Where AI Meets Human Judgment

    Artificial intelligence is everywhere these days. It is driving business growth, shaping consumer experiences, and showing up in places most of us never imagined just a few years ago. Read Now

New Products

  • QCS7230 System-on-Chip (SoC)

    QCS7230 System-on-Chip (SoC)

    The latest Qualcomm® Vision Intelligence Platform offers next-generation smart camera IoT solutions to improve safety and security across enterprises, cities and spaces. The Vision Intelligence Platform was expanded in March 2022 with the introduction of the QCS7230 System-on-Chip (SoC), which delivers superior artificial intelligence (AI) inferencing at the edge.

  • AC Nio

    AC Nio

    Aiphone, a leading international manufacturer of intercom, access control, and emergency communication products, has introduced the AC Nio, its access control management software, an important addition to its new line of access control solutions.

  • EasyGate SPT and SPD

    EasyGate SPT SPD

    Security solutions do not have to be ordinary, let alone unattractive. Having renewed their best-selling speed gates, Cominfo has once again demonstrated their Art of Security philosophy in practice — and confirmed their position as an industry-leading manufacturers of premium speed gates and turnstiles.