Bipartisan bill proposes new White House office to fight Chinese technology threats

A pair of senators on Friday introduced bipartisan legislation that would establish a new federal office focused on combatting Chinese and other foreign threats to U.S. technology, including supply chain risks and technology theft.  

Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.), vice chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, and Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), also a member of the panel, said that creating the Office of Critical Technology and Security at the White House would help coordinate efforts to protect technology across the federal government.

{mosads}The office would also coordinate with the private sector, federal and state tech and telecom regulators, international partners and allies, and other relevant organizations.

“It is clear that China is determined to use every tool in its arsenal to surpass the United States technologically and dominate us economically,” Warner, a former telecommunications executive, said in a statement. “We need a whole-of-government technology strategy to protect U.S. competitiveness in emerging and dual-use technologies and address the Chinese threat by combating technology transfer from the United States.”

Rubio also warned that China continues to be a sophisticated foreign threat to the U.S.

“China continues to conduct a coordinated assault on U.S. intellectual property, U.S. businesses, and our government networks and information with the full backing of the Chinese Communist Party,” Rubio said in a statement.

“The United States needs a more coordinated approach to directly counter this critical threat and ensure we better protect U.S. technology. We must continue to do everything possible to prevent foreign theft of our technology, and interference in our networks and critical infrastructure. By establishing the Office of Critical Technologies and Security, this bill will help protect the United States by streamlining efforts across the government,” he continued.