Amanda Forrester / news@whmi.com

Senator Elissa Slotkin introduced her first bill to the U.S. Senate, designed to prevent Chinese vehicles from entering the country.

The bill, titled the Connected Vehicle National Security Review Act, would “formally establish a national security review process for connected vehicles and connected vehicle components manufactured by companies from China or other countries of concern,” a press release from Slotkin said.

The Department of Commerce would have the power to limit or ban the introduction of such vehicles or components from entering U.S. markets if they “pose a threat to national security.”

“I will lay down on the border to keep Chinese vehicles from entering the U.S. market,” Slotkin said. “This is my first bill I’m introducing in the Senate, and it’s for a reason. Chinese vehicles could collect huge amounts of data on America and Americans, which poses a significant national security threat. Americans’ personal data, our infrastructure, Michigan’s auto industry and auto jobs are all at stake. Chinese vehicles, which are dirt cheap thanks to state subsidies, could collect full motion video of sensitive sites, 3-D mapping and geolocation of individual drivers – all of which could be sent back to Beijing. Despite the polarization in Washington right now, protecting U.S. citizens should be nonpartisan, and I look forward to working in a bipartisan fashion to pass this legislation into law.”

According to the release, these vehicles and components pose a unique threat due to vehicles now having “information gathering technology.” Chinese vehicle sales are growing in Europe, and plans are being made to move into the North American market.

The bill would give the Department of Commerce the authority to “review – and potentially block – any sale, importation or other transaction that:

Involves a connected vehicle or component built or supplied by anyone controlled by or subject to the jurisdiction of a country of concern, including China. This includes connected vehicles and components that are manufactured by Chinese companies operating in third-party countries like Mexico; and

Presents an undue or unacceptable risk – including the risk of sabotage or subversion of other electronic systems, risk to critical infrastructure or other unacceptable risk to national security or the safety of Americans.”

The bill offers extra authority that current trade-restriction tools, such as tariffs, may not prevent such countries from establishing production in other countries and exporting to the U.S., the release said.

Slotkin said she will be introducing a similar bill that would focus on the Information and Communications Technology and Services supply chain.