Legislation to safeguard national security against some foreign investments passed the Senate Friday.
The legislation, the Foreign Investment Guardrails to Help Thwart (FIGHT) China Act, would prohibit and require notification when Americans invest in certain technologies in China. The goal of the bipartisan legislation is to address the dangers such investments could pose on the country’s national and economic interests, officials said.
The bill prohibits and requires notification of American investments in certain technologies in China to address bipartisan concerns on the dangers such investments could pose to America’s national and economic interests.
“The need to address capital flowing from the U.S. to the People’s Republic of China was realized during the first Trump administration, and the FIGHT China Act presents a generational opportunity to confront the threat China poses to our national and economic security,” said U.S. Sen. John Cornyn 9R-TX), one of the bill’s sponsors. “This landmark legislation would prohibit and require notification of U.S. investments in certain technologies in China, ensuring American ingenuity, innovation, and investment do not end up in the hands of the Chinese Communist Party to be weaponized against us.”
The bill was co-sponsored by U.S. Sens. Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV), Dan Sullivan (R-AK), Chuck Schumer (D-NY), Pete Ricketts (R-NE), Andy Kim (D-NJ), Dave McCormick (R-PA), and Michael Bennet (D-CO) and Senate Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee Chairman Tim Scott (R-SC) and Ranking Member Elizabeth Warren (D-MA). The legislation passes as part of the National Defense Authorization Act.
“We have a responsibility to ensure that the United States remains the world’s leader in advanced technology. There is broad bipartisan agreement that we should be developing the most sensitive, cutting-edge technologies here at home, rather than funding their development in countries that do not share our values,” Warren said prior to the vote. “This amendment would advance that goal by codifying a program to screen specific types of U.S. investments in China and other countries of concern. It will protect our national security and help ensure that American ingenuity, innovation, and investment do not end up turbo-charging these countries’ advancements in fields like artificial intelligence, quantum computing, and microelectronics.”