Findlay Times

The U.S. House of Representatives has unanimously passed Congressman Bob Latta's (OH-05) Removing Our Unsecure Technologies to Ensure Reliability and Security (ROUTERS) Act. This legislation aims to protect American communications networks from technology controlled by foreign adversaries, including routers, modems, or devices that combine both.

Latta collaborated with Senator Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), who introduced companion legislation in the U.S. Senate. Both lawmakers also authored an op-ed in The Washington Times emphasizing the necessity of advancing their ROUTERS Act.

"As communist China seeks to undermine our people, workforce, and nation, House Republicans are working to curtail their malign influence," Latta stated. "I'm encouraged my ROUTERS Act was unanimously approved by the U.S. House today because it will protect Americans from cyber threats posed by foreign-adversary controlled technology. I'd like to thank Energy & Commerce Committee Chair Rodgers for her leadership in helping to move this bill through our committee, and I'm proud to work with Senator Blackburn who is leading the companion bill in the Senate. We now urge Senate leadership to take up our solution to protect Americans and send it to the President's desk to be signed into law."

Energy & Commerce Chair Cathy McMorris Rodgers commented on the significance of secure communications networks: “Secure communications networks are crucial for protecting America’s economic competitiveness and national security. I thank Rep. Latta for his bipartisan legislation that will help us better understand potential vulnerabilities in our routers and modems, making our networks more resilient against potential attacks by our adversaries.”

Senator Blackburn highlighted the widespread use of wireless routers: "Tens of millions of families and small businesses across the country use wireless routers as their primary access point to the Internet," she said. "Many of these routers are susceptible to infiltration by foreign actors, including China, jeopardizing our national security and exposing our country to serious danger. I am pleased to see that this bill passed the House, and I urge Leader Schumer to quickly take up this bill."

The ROUTERS Act mandates that the Assistant Secretary for Communications and Information at the Department of Commerce conduct a study on national security risks associated with routers, modems, or combination devices designed, developed, manufactured, or supplied by entities owned or controlled by countries such as China, Russia, Iran, North Korea, Cuba, or Venezuela.