POLITICO MORNING CYBERSECURITY: FOREIGN THREATS

The House Energy & Commerce panel dives into network security today as lawmakers raise alarms over Chinese tech increasingly woven into U.S. networks. But efforts to root out equipment from foreign adversaries like Huawei and ZTE are hitting roadblocks, with telecoms decrying Congress’ failure to fully fund a Federal Communications Commission rip-and-replace program.

“While there has been real progress in the past few years at improving network security, the

United States has only begun to grapple with the broad set of digital vulnerabilities,” James

Lewis, senior vice president at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, will say, per a

copy of his prepared remarks.

— Leg on deck: Lawmakers will debate bills aimed at hardening networks against Beijing,

including a bipartisan measure from Reps. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.) and Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) to

publish a list of every FCC license-holder tied to China, Iran, North Korea and other foreign

adversaries.

— Rip-and-replace: But the lack of funding for replacing risky gear is overshadowing the

legislative pushes.

The FCC’s reimbursement program to help carriers remove and swap out existing equipment has

been hobbled by a $3 billion shortfall. That’s left many telecoms unable to meet deadlines to

finish the job, with Nokia among those warning lawmakers that slowed reimbursement is

hampering efforts and could degrade network performance.

— The stats: Nearly half of reimbursement recipients cited insufficient funds as an obstacle to

completing the swap-out, according to the FCC’s January update. The agency said only five

firms have finished so far.

— Eyes on 6G: Today’s hearing will also spotlight jockeying between the U.S. and China over

6G.

One of the measures being discussed, from subcommittee ranking member Doris Matsui

(D-Calif.), would direct the FCC to establish a task force focused on developing and

advancing 6G technology.

Witness Lindsay Gorman of the German Marshall Fund will tell lawmakers that Beijing’s

inclusion of 6G in its latest five-year plan underscores the need for Washington to take the lead

on developing the next-gen technology. She’ll push for U.S. investment in R&D and global

collaboration to prevent China from dominating the space.

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