Text of Senate Amendment 6059

On 2026-06-24, Senator Tim Scott (R-SC) delivered a floor speech titled "Text Of Senate Amendment 6059" in the Senate.

Text of Senate Amendment 6059

Congressional Record, Volume 172 Issue 106 (Wednesday, June 24, 2026) [Congressional Record Volume 172, Number 106 (Wednesday, June 24, 2026)] [Senate] [Pages S3263-S3264] From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [ www.gpo.gov ] SA 6059. Mr. SCOTT of South Carolina (for himself and Mr. Hagerty) submitted an amendment intended to be proposed by him to the bill S. 4784, to authorize appropriations for fiscal year 2027 for military activities of the Department of Defense, for military construction, and for defense activities of the Department of Energy, to prescribe military personnel strengths for such fiscal year, and for other purposes; which was ordered to lie on the table; as follows: At the end of division A, add the following: TITLE XVII--INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATIONS TECHNOLOGY AND SERVICES SUPPLY CHAINS SEC. 1701. ASSISTANT SECRETARY OF COMMERCE FOR INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATIONS TECHNOLOGY SUPPLY CHAINS. Part III of the Export Control Reform Act of 2018 (50 U.S.C. 4851 et seq.) is amended-- (1) in the part heading, by striking ``administrative authorities'' and inserting ``organization of bureau of industry and security''; and (2) by adding at the end the following: ``SEC. 1783. ASSISTANT SECRETARY OF COMMERCE FOR INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATIONS TECHNOLOGY SUPPLY CHAINS. ``(a) In General.--The President shall appoint, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, and in addition to the Assistant Secretaries of Commerce appointed under section 1782, an Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Information and Communications Technology Supply Chains (in this section referred to as the `Assistant Secretary'), who shall report to the Under Secretary of Commerce for Industry and Security. ``(b) Responsibilities.--The Assistant Secretary shall be responsible for overseeing the Office of Information and Communications Technology and Services established by section 1784.''. SEC. 1702. OFFICE OF INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATIONS TECHNOLOGY AND SERVICES. Part III of the Export Control Reform Act of 2018, as amended by section 1701, is further amended by adding at the end the following: ``SEC. 1784. OFFICE OF INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATIONS TECHNOLOGY AND SERVICES. ``(a) Establishment.--The Secretary shall establish an Office of Information and Communications Technology and Services (in this section referred to as the `Office') within the Bureau of Industry and Security. ``(b) Organizational Structure.--The head of the Office shall report directly to the Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Information and Communications Technology Supply Chains. ``(c) Duties.--The Office shall-- ``(1) administer part IV; and ``(2) carry out such other duties as the Secretary or the Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Information and Communications Technology Supply Chains may assign. ``(d) Availability of Information to Congress.-- ``(1) In general.--Any information obtained at any time by the Office in carrying out the duties of the Office under subsection (c), including in administering part IV, shall be made available to a committee or subcommittee of Congress of appropriate jurisdiction, upon the request of the chairman or ranking minority member of the committee or subcommittee. ``(2) Prohibition on further disclosure.--No committee or subcommittee referred to in paragraph (1), or any member thereof, may disclose any information made available under paragraph (1) that is submitted on a confidential basis unless the full committee determines that the withholding of that information is contrary to the national interest.''. SEC. 1703. SECURITY OF INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATIONS TECHNOLOGY AND SERVICES SUPPLY CHAINS. (a) In General.--The Export Control Reform Act of 2018, as amended by sections 1701 and 1702, is further amended by adding at the end the following: ``PART IV--SECURITY OF INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATIONS TECHNOLOGY AND SERVICES SUPPLY CHAINS ``SEC. 1785. DEFINITIONS. ``In this part: ``(1) Appropriate congressional committees.--The term `appropriate congressional committees' means the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs of the Senate and the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives. ``(2) Country of concern.--The term `country of concern' means-- ``(A) the People's Republic of China, including the Hong Kong and Macau Special Administrative Regions; ``(B) the Republic of Cuba; ``(C) the Islamic Republic of Iran; ``(D) the Democratic People's Republic of Korea; and ``(E) the Russian Federation. ``(3) Covered icts transaction.--The term `covered ICTS transaction' means any transaction described in section 1785A(b) or a class of such transactions. ``(4) Information and communications technology or services; icts.--The terms `information and communications technology or services' and `ICTS' mean any hardware, software, connected software applications, or other product or service primarily intended to fulfill or enable the function of information or data processing, storage, retrieval, or communication by electronic means, including through transmission, storage, or display. ``(5) Open-source software.--The term `open -source software' means software for which the human-readable source code is available in its entirety for use, study, reuse, modification, enhancement, and redistribution by the users of the software. ``SEC. 1785A. PROHIBITION ON TRANSACTIONS THAT THREATEN SECURITY OF INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATIONS TECHNOLOGY AND SERVICES SUPPLY CHAINS. ``(a) In General.--Except as otherwise specifically provided in this part, a transaction described in subsection (b) is prohibited. ``(b) Transactions Described.--A transaction described in this subsection is any acquisition, importation, transfer, installation, dealing in, or use of any information and communications technology or service by any person, or with respect to any property, subject to the jurisdiction of the United States, if the Secretary, in consultation with the heads of the relevant Federal agencies, has determined that the transaction-- ``(1) involves information and communications technology or services designed, developed, manufactured, or supplied by persons owned by, controlled by, or subject to the jurisdiction or direction of a country of concern; and ``(2)(A) poses an undue risk of sabotage to or subversion of the design, integrity, manufacturing, production, distribution, installation, operation, or maintenance of information and communications technology or services in the United States; ``(B) poses an undue risk of catastrophic effects on the security or resiliency of United States critical infrastructure or the digital economy of the United States; or ``(C) otherwise poses an unacceptable risk to the national security of the United States or the security and safety of United States persons. ``(c) Exception for Information and Informational Materials.--The prohibition under subsection (a) shall not include a prohibition intended to prevent the importation from any country, or the exportation to any country, whether commercial or otherwise, of any expressive materials, including-- ``(1) publications, films, posters, photographs, artworks, news wire feeds, digital streaming content, podcasts, social media posts, blogs, online news articles, and other electronically distributed media; and ``(2) items and transactions described in section 203(b) of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1702(b)). ``(d) Exception for Open-source Software.--The prohibition under subsection (a) does not include a prohibition on transactions specifically intended to provide the public with access to open-source software. ``(e) Effect on Contracts and Permits.--The prohibition under subsection (a) applies notwithstanding any contract entered into or license or permit granted before the date of the enactment of this part. ``SEC. 1785B. AUTHORIZATION TO PRESCRIBE REGULATIONS WITH RESPECT TO COVERED ICTS TRANSACTIONS AND PERSONS AND JURISDICTIONS OF CONCERN. ``If Secretary determines that, for certain classes of covered ICTS transactions, the prohibition under subsection (a) of section 1785A may not effectively address the undue or unacceptable risks described in subsection (b)(2) of that section, the Secretary may-- ``(1) prescribe regulations that-- ``(A) identify particular covered ICTS transactions or persons or jurisdictions of concern that pose such a risk; [[Page S3264]] ``(B) impose mitigation measures and prohibitions to address the risk posed by such transactions, persons, or jurisdictions; ``(C) establish criteria by which particular covered ICTS transactions or particular classes of participants in the covered ICTS transaction supply chain may be recognized as categorically included in or as categorically excluded from mitigation measures or prohibitions imposed under subparagraph (B); ``(D) establish particular classes of covered ICTS transactions or parties to such transactions that are required to abide by such mitigation measures and prohibitions; and ``(E) establish procedures to authorize or license transactions otherwise prohibited pursuant to a regulation prescribed under this section; and ``(2) prescribe such other regulations as the Secretary determines to be necessary or appropriate to address the undue or unacceptable risks described in section 1785A(b)(2). ``SEC. 1785C. ADMINISTRATION. ``(a) In General.--The head of the Office of Information and Communications Technology and Services established under section 1784 (in this section referred to as the `head of the Office') shall administer this part. ``(b) Mitigation and Approval of Covered ICTS Transactions.--The head of the Office, in consultation with the heads of the relevant Federal agencies, may-- ``(1) design, negotiate, and impose mitigation measures with respect to a covered ICTS transaction; and ``(2) approve the transaction if those measures are implemented. ``(c) Regulations.--The Secretary, acting through the h