Overview
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) announced it will hold a vote on April 30 on a proposal to prohibit laboratories in China from testing electronic devices such as smartphones, cameras and computers intended for use in the United States. The measure would broaden a prior FCC action that focused on labs owned or controlled by the Chinese government.
Background on prior actions
Last year the FCC moved to ban testing of U.S. electronics by labs owned or controlled by the Chinese government, an action that resulted in 23 specific labs being barred. Despite that step, the agency says a substantial majority of China-based test facilities remain active in testing U.S. electronics.
Scale of testing in China
The FCC has estimated that about 75% of all electronics are tested in labs located in China. That concentration is central to the agency's rationale for expanding the prohibition to cover all Chinese labs, rather than only those with government ownership or control.
Procedural steps before a final ban
Before moving to a final vote to bar all China-based testing, the FCC said it will separately vote to adopt a streamlined approval process for devices that are tested in U.S. laboratories or in labs from countries that the agency considers not to pose national security risks. The planned April 30 vote will occur after the FCC considers public comments on the proposal.
Related enforcement and import actions
This proposal follows a series of recent FCC measures aimed at Chinese technology and equipment. On a recent Friday, the FCC proposed barring the import of Chinese equipment from a set of manufacturers after earlier moves in 2022 limited approvals for new models from those companies. In 2021 the FCC added telecommunications and video surveillance equipment made by Huawei, ZTE, Hytera, Hikvision and Dahua to its list of companies posing U.S. national security risks.
The agency said it was proposing to block imports of equipment from the listed firms that had been approved for sale in the U.S. prior to the 2022 order. Hikvision publicly stated its opposition to what it described as an attempt to retroactively remove prior lawful authorizations.
Additional recent FCC steps include a December ban on imports of new models of Chinese drones and, in the preceding month, a ban on imports of new models of Chinese-made consumer routers, the devices that connect computers, phones and smart devices to the internet. The FCC has also taken prior action to bar some Chinese companies from providing telecommunications services in the United States on national security grounds.
Official responses and next steps
The Chinese embassy in Washington did not immediately comment on the FCC's announcement. The agency will review public comments and proceed toward a final determination following the scheduled vote at the end of April.
Summary of vote timeline and scope:
- April 30 - FCC to vote on proposal to ban all Chinese labs from testing U.S.-bound electronics.
- Prior step - separate vote to adopt a streamlined approval route for devices tested in U.S. or allied-country labs.
- Context - earlier bans included 23 government-owned or controlled Chinese labs and restrictions on imports and approvals for certain Chinese manufacturers.