Senate OKs Secure 5G and Beyond Act; More Bills Eyed for Later

Questions about how to neutralize security risks allegedly posed by Chinese telecom equipment makers Huawei and ZTE dominated discussion during the hearing that was held before the 5G proposal got Senate OK. Communications Subcommittee Chairman John Thune, R-S.D., and others are increasing pressure on the U.K. government to undo its recent decision to allow equipment from Huawei on “non-core” parts of its communications infrastructure (see 2001280074).

President Donald Trump is poised to sign HR-4998 “with some fanfare in the next few days,” said Senate Commerce Chairman Roger Wicker, R-Miss. The bill, which the Senate passed last week (see 2002270070), would allocate at least $1 billion to help U.S. communications providers remove from their networks Chinese equipment determined to threaten national security. The House passed HR-4998 in December (see 1912160052). The White House didn’t comment.

Imminent enactment of HR-4998 “is a meaningful step forward in safeguarding the security of the nation’s communications systems,” but “the unfortunate reality is that our networks have already been compromised by foreign adversaries,” Wicker said. “We need to do more to shore up our own network defenses against hackers and state-sponsored actors, especially in our nation’s rural and underserved communities. This effort will require the development of a comprehensive strategy to secure the telecommunications supply chain.” Huawei and CTA pushed back this week in reply comments related to the FCC's November supply chain rules (see 2003040030).

Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, continued Wednesday to question whether the funding floor of $1 billion included in HR-4998 would be enough to fund replacing suspect equipment. Lee previously blocked (see 1912190068) efforts to advance the bill over objections to differences in funding language between that measure and the Senate Commerce-cleared alternative U.S. 5G Leadership Act (S-1625). “It’s really difficult to actually know” whether the $1 billion figure included in HR-4998 and proposed in the FCC’s supply chain rules (see 1911220033) are enough, testified Competitive Carriers Association CEO Steven Berry. HR-4998 allows identifying additional funding needs later, he said.

Senate Commerce ranking member Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., believes “eliminating the threat posed” by suspect equipment “is the highest priority.” But “we need to make sure we are a loud voice across the globe for no government backdoors” into networks, she said. “It’s an imperative that the U.S. and its allies foster a truly secure, diverse and reliable supply chain” for telecom equipment, including by implementing “a broader strategic plan” for 5G and “build a forceful global coalition” in favor of ensuring network security.

Cantwell and others teased the coming Senate passage of S-893. The House passed HR-2881 in January (see 2001080002). “Hopefully, we’ll see more details” on Senate action on S-893 soon, Cantwell said. Ericsson North America Head of Security-Network Product Solutions Jason Boswell highlighted S-893 as one of several legislative “opportunities to build on the momentum” generated by passage of HR-4998.

Lead S-893 sponsor Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, told us he believes the bill is now in a “pretty good place" after work with the White House and others on potential changes. "Hopefully, we’ll be in a position to move quickly” to enact the measure, he said.

UK Concerns

Thune intends “to introduce legislation this week to ensure the security of our communications infrastructure is a clear negotiating objective of U.S. trade policy.” Unfair “trade practices of communications equipment suppliers owned or controlled by a foreign government should not be tolerated,” Thune said.

U.S. telecom security should be “at the forefront” in negotiations on “future trade agreements” with the U.K. and other countries, Thune said. Center for Strategic and International Studies Technology Policy Program Director James Lewis said Thune’s coming bill is “long overdue. It's essential. Of course, it should be part of the discussion with our allies and partners, and in fact in any trade agreement.”

Thune was among 20 senators who signed a letter urging Parliament “revisit” its partial ban of Huawei products from the country’s telecom infrastructure, “take steps to mitigate the risks of Huawei, and work in close partnership with the U.S. on such efforts.” Some Conservative members of Parliament are fomenting a revolt over the partial ban despite members of Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s cabinet promising it will eventually move to phase out Huawei and other high-risk 5G equipment suppliers.

“We understand the challenges the U.K. faces regarding a lack of diverse, secure, and affordable suppliers,” Thune and the other senators wrote the House of Commons. “These are challenges we also face here in the United States. However, the security and integrity of our telecommunications infrastructure cannot be compromised for convenience.” Other senators signing the letter include Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y.; Intelligence Committee Chairman Richard Burr, R-N.C.; ranking member Mark Warner, D-Va.; and seven other Commerce members. They are Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn.; Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn.; Ted Cruz, R-Texas; Ed Markey, D-Mass.; Jerry Moran, R-Kan.; Rick Scott, R-Fla.; and Todd Young, R-Ind.

Wicker and others questioned whether Ericsson, Nokia or others could be an effective equipment supplier alternative to Huawei. “The absence of a viable and affordable American or European alternative for end-to-end telecommunications components, including radios, chips, software, and devices, has enabled Huawei to increase its global influence,” Wicker said.

Sen. Cory Gardner, R-Colo., pressed Boswell and Nokia Americas Chief Technology Officer Mike Murphy on whether their products made for U.S. use were manufactured or developed at the companies’ China-based facilities. Ericsson “doesn’t have production in China for the U.S. market,” Boswell said. “All of our software from a development standpoint funnels through Sweden,” and is scanned and verified. Nokia has a footprint in China but “no equipment that is manufactured in China” for U.S. use, Murphy said. Nokia conducts R&D in China and ensures its employees maintain the same ethical standards as those elsewhere.

USA Telecom Act

The Utilizing Strategic Allied Telecommunications Act (S-3189) got both support and opposition during the Senate Commerce hearing. The Warner-led bill would require the FCC to direct at least $750 million, or up to 5 percent in annual spectrum auction proceeds, to create an NTIA-managed open radio access network R&D fund to spur movement to open-architecture, software-based wireless technologies. The measure would also create a $500 million multilateral telecom security fund (see 2001140067).

S-3189 "suggests restricting” funding for secure telecom equipment “on the condition that the relevant carrier must develop and submit a plan certifying that it will migrate to an open solution within seven years, Murphy said. While "the intent of that bill is to encourage U.S.-based 5G entrepreneurship, its timing brings with it some practical challenges." There's “limited maturity in both O-RAN and radio access network virtualization," he said. Putting "these burdens on rural carriers, the least capable of being early adopters, would be unreasonable."

S-3189 is “a good starting point for further discussion” on ways to “encourage increased investments in 5G infrastructure and to facilitate continued innovation throughout the 5G ecosystem,” said Intel General Manager-Next Generation and Standards Asha Keddy. AT&T, Verizon and Juniper Networks wrote Wicker and Cantwell before the hearing urging Senate Commerce to take up S-3189.

“The bill recognizes that greater virtualization, network disaggregation, and a transition to more open network architectures can catalyze greater competition with Huawei globally -- while playing to longstanding U.S. strengths,” wrote Verizon Senior Vice President-Federal Government Relations Robert Fisher and AT&T Executive Vice President-Federal Relations Tim McKone. S-3189 “recognizes that, in addition to core supply chain security issues, there are associated factors that will impact global 5G deployment, wrote Juniper Chief Product Office Manoj Leelanivas. "The bill would improve significantly the Nation’s 5G posture.”