The White House has established a committee for assessing foreign participation in the US telecom services sector. With this done, the Federal Communications Commission said it will move forward with its own rulemaking on reforming the foreign ownership review process.
FCC chairman Ajit Pai noted that the FCC, as it demonstrated last year when it rejected the China Mobile application, “will not hesitate” to protect its networks from foreign threats but that it also wants to welcome “beneficial” investment investments: “We believe that this Executive Order [signed by President Donald Trump] will allow us to process such applications more quickly,” Pai said.
Role of the new evaluation committee
The committee, funded by the Department of Justice, will receive license applications from companies wishing to provide US services. It will review the applications and see if there are any risks to national security or law enforcement interests. If it proposes mitigation measures, it will then monitor compliance. The committee may recommend the FCC modify a license upon compliance with any mitigation measures. It will also monitor mitigation measures imposed by the FCC as a condition on a license.
Members of the commitee
The White House said the new committee will be include the Secretary of Defense, the Attorney General, the Secretary of Homeland Security, and the head of any other executive department or agency, or any assistant to the president, that the president deems appropriate. The Attorney General will chair the committee, and advisors will include the Secretary of State, the Secretary of the Treasury, the Secretary of Commerce, the Director of the Office of Management and Budget, the US Trade Representative, the Director of National Intelligence, the Administrator of General Services, the assistant to the president for national security affairs, the assistant to the president for science and technology policy, the chair of the Council of Economic Advisors, and any other assistant the president wants present.An Intelligence Community liaison, designated by the Director of National intelligence, will also support the committee.
