Decoupling from Foreign Adversarial Battery Dependence Act

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 8631) to prohibit the Secretary of Homeland Security from procuring certain foreign-made batteries, and for other purposes, as amended.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on H.R. 8631, the bill now under consideration.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of my bill, H.R. 8631, the Decoupling from Foreign Adversarial Battery Dependence Act.

Our world is increasingly reliant on battery technology, from the smartphones in our pockets to the energy storage systems that power our homes and businesses.

This dependence underscores a larger issue: Our Nation is becoming increasingly reliant on foreign adversarial entities for the materials and technologies that power these devices, which poses grave risk to our Nation's security and economic stability.

As it stands, Communist China produces approximately 80 percent of the world's batteries and roughly 70 percent of the world's lithium-ion batteries. These staggering numbers leave U.S. supply chains vulnerable and our Nation's security at risk.

Recently, the United States House Select Committee on Strategic Competition Between the United States and the Chinese Communist Party, a committee that I am a member of, uncovered information that revealed that at least two of the world's top battery manufacturers, CATL and Gotion High-Tech, are affiliated with Xinjiang Production and Construction Corporation, a paramilitary and CCP-owned entity that is expressly named in the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act statute due to its egregious forced labor practices.

Specifically, XPCC has been accused of assisting the CCP's policy in Xinjiang that implemented comprehensive surveillance, detention, and indoctrination that targeted Uyghur Muslims and other ethnic minority groups that the CCP is attempting to eradicate. Furthermore, XPCC utilizes forced labor practices to manufacture their wide range of products.

In addition, dependence on batteries that are manufactured in the PRC presents incredible risks to our national security. There are legitimate concerns that PRC-aligned battery companies and other similar Chinese entities could install malware and other intelligence- gathering sensors on these products, which could result in gathering sensitive information or execute a shutdown on EV charging networks and battery-energy storage systems or even disable targeted vehicles through hardware infiltration.

Last year, reports indicated that the PRC-aligned CATL installed its batteries at facilities in Florida, Virginia, Nevada, and California, as well as a solar farm on leased land inside the U.S. Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune in North Carolina. Energy-storage batteries produced by the PRC-aligned CATL at Camp Lejeune have been decommissioned, following increased pressure from Congress.

The Pentagon's decision to not only remove the PRC-aligned CATL batteries from Camp Lejeune but also to make it clear it will not buy CATL batteries because of concerns is more than adequate to demonstrate why we should not have these batteries in other parts of our critical infrastructure.

Our government should not be spending tax dollars to procure batteries from companies that profit from slave labor or provide another avenue for the CCP to expand their surveillance apparatus here in the United States homeland.

My legislation, H.R. 8631, the Decoupling from Foreign Adversarial Battery Dependence Act, is a critical first step in addressing this issue. Modeled after previous provisions included in the fiscal year 2024 NDAA, my legislation builds off these efforts and prohibits the Department of Homeland Security from procuring battery technology companies that have deep ties to the CCP and engage in human rights abuses. In doing so, this bill helps our Nation take a step to advance efforts to decouple from the PRC and safeguard critical supply chains from exploitation.

I am proud to see this bill pass out of committee in a bipartisan nature and look forward to seeing it pass the full House with a bipartisan vote.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Moolenaar).

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, we cannot continue to surrender dominance over our critical supply chains to our geopolitical rivals. Communist China will exploit any economic or security vulnerabilities that could be created from the Department of Homeland Security's reliance on lithium-ion batteries.

To put an end to this dependence and to take important steps in decoupling from the CCP, I urge a ``yes'' vote on H.R. 8631.

Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Mr. Speaker, my fellow Democrats and I strongly support the intent of this bill, which is to reduce our reliance on global adversaries and build up an industrial manufacturing base in the United States by prohibiting DHS from procuring batteries from certain Chinese companies.

I am grateful the committee included Ranking Member Thompson's amendment to the original bill, which expands the number of companies subject to the prohibition. In addition to the six Chinese companies named in the original bill, Ranking Member Thompson's amendment expands the prohibition to include any companies using Uyghur forced labor identified by the Secretary of Defense as Chinese military companies and engaging in activities contrary to U.S. national security or foreign policy interests, according to the Department of Commerce.

I also thank the committee for including Representative Suozzi's amendment, which requires DHS to produce a report on the potential impacts and costs associated with carrying out this bill before the prohibition goes into effect. The report will help DHS and Congress manage any unanticipated negative consequences from this bill.

While these amendments have made the bill better, there are lingering concerns, including how a ban on Chinese-made batteries will impact DHS' ability to buy American-made electric vehicles, since most American EV producers use Chinese-sourced batteries.

The bill could also further be improved by requiring DHS to identify ways to foster job creation and economic growth here at home and ensure the inclusion of economically disadvantaged individuals and small businesses when purchasing batteries.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time.

Republicans and Democrats alike recognize the threat posed by China and stand unified in defense of our national and homeland security.

H.R. 8631 is imperfect, but it is a step in the right direction, and I urge my colleagues to support it. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to support Representative Gimenez' Foreign Adversarial Battery Dependence Act to protect taxpayer dollars from growing our dependence on CCP-controlled battery technology.

As Representative Gimenez noted, the House Select Committee on China has investigated the world's cutting-edge battery manufacturers in China. There is indisputable evidence that two CCP-aligned battery makers, Gotion and CATL, are deeply connected to forced labor and the ongoing genocide in China. Gotion and CATL plan to build factories in the United States and thereby grow our dependence on their slave labor- tainted supply chains.

For my colleagues who care deeply about embracing next-generation energy technologies, I would just say this: We need America to lead when it comes to new energy sources, not China. We cannot lead by following. Buying Chinese technology will only dig ourselves further into dependence on the CCP.

Mr. Speaker, I urge all of my colleagues to vote in favor of this important legislation and to protect our critical supply chains.