On August 7, Reps. Mike Gallagher (R-WI) and Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-IL) wrote Federal Communications Commission Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel with concerns about the security risks posed by cellular connectivity modules provided by companies subject to the jurisdiction, direction, or control of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) or the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). On September 5, the Chairwoman wrote back saying that the s approach is to “deter, defend, and develop”: deter bad actors, defend against untrusted vendors, and develop a market for trustworthy innovation. Consistent with this strategy, the FCC revoked the operating authorities of four Chinese state-owned carriers that were providing service in the US under Section 214 of the Communications Act. The FCC also adopted policies to regularly review foreign companies’ authorizations to provide telecommunications services in the US, ensuring that any authorization reflects up-to-date national security interests and is not frozen in time when Section 214 approval is granted. Additionally, the FCC has worked with our national security counterparts to publish and update the first-ever list of communications equipment and services that pose an unacceptable risk to national security. Under the Secure and Trusted Communications Networks Act, the FCC can update this list only at the direction of national security authorities—specifically the Department of Homeland Security, Department of Defense, Department of Commerce, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the Federal Acquisition Security Council. In other words, the agency cannot update this list on its own. Finally, in the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021, Congress provided $1.9 billion to support the removal of this equipment in our networks. However, this amount falls short of what is required. As I have previously noted to Congress, an additional $3.08 billion is needed to fully fund this program and support the many small and rural carriers that have deployed this equipment and need to replace it in their networks.

Since 2020, AT&T's network has seen an annual 30% increase in traffic. This is the direct result of our progress enabling standalone 5G. Many of the newest mobile devices use the 5G standalone network that we are moving thousands of customers to every day. Advancements like network slicing will bring 5G to its full potential by delivering services designed to fit a specific need, and to address use cases with functionalities that require critical network access. Our mid-band 5G spectrum (including C-Band) now covers more than 175 million people, making AT&T the largest wireless network in North America.

Infinera will join the Build America, Buy America (BABA) movement by bringing semiconductor component manufacturing to the US. Infinera is joining a cohort of equipment providers that have onshored operations as the industry prepares for $42.5 billion in Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment (BEAD) funding. To help operators comply with the BEAD's BABA requirements, Infinera will leverage its optical compound semiconductor facility in California and testing and packaging facility in Pennsylvania. The provider noted domestic semiconductor production will enable improved supply chain security and resiliency for the US telecommunication industry.