Washington, D.C. — House Energy and Commerce Committee Chair Cathy McMorris Rodgers delivered the following opening remarks at today’s Innovation, Data, and Commerce Subcommittee legislative hearing titled "Mapping America’s Supply Chains: Solutions to Unleash Innovation, Boost Economic Resilience, and Beat China." 

AMERICAN LEADERSHIP DEPENDS ON INNOVATION 

"America’s economic leadership to beat China depends on our ability to innovate and maintain strong, reliable supply chains.  

"The COVID-19 pandemic exposed how fragile our supply chains are.   

"Hospitals were short on ventilators and personal protective equipment. People were unable to find basic necessities, like food, medicine, baby formula, and hand sanitizer.  

"And manufacturers experienced shortages of critical semiconductor chips, which help power our cars and home appliances.  

"We learned how easy it is to become over reliant on adversaries like China.  

"We cannot make the same mistake when it comes to our supply chains for emerging technologies. Our national and economic security depends on American technological leadership." 

SECURING AMERICAN TECH LEADERSHIP  

"As last week’s Senate summit on artificial intelligence made clear, A.I. has become a top priority for lawmakers.  

"A recent Commerce Department report—which was required by legislation from this Committee—stressed that, in order to lead in A.I. and other technologies, the U.S. needs a national data privacy and security framework.  

"I agree that this is key, not just for A.I., but for American tech leadership more broadly, which is why we’ve been working on legislation to protect people’s information online and prevent China from surveilling and manipulating Americans.  

"In order to make sure these technologies are developed here in the U.S., we also need to embrace innovation and entrepreneurship.  

"That’s the American way.  

"We'll never out-subsidize China, nor should we even attempt to. Trying to do so will waste taxpayer dollars, hurt small businesses and startups, and cede our leadership and technology future to the Chinese Communist Party.  

"To grow the economy, boost American jobs, and ensure the U.S.—not China—is developing these technologies of the future.  

"We need solutions that unleash innovation and spur investment in these key technologies." 

COMPETE 2.0  

"The bills we’re discussing today will help achieve this goal.  

"Three years ago, Committee Republicans authored legislative proposals to secure American leadership in emerging technologies critical to our long-term global competitiveness, like artificial intelligence, blockchain, and the ‘Internet of Things.’  

"Several of these proposals became the bipartisan American COMPETE Act of 2020." 

STRONG SUPPLY CHAINS ENSURE SAFETY 

"If we fail to adequately secure our supply chains, the technologies we rely on every day will be vulnerable to malicious actors and adversaries like China who want to use these technologies to exploit and surveil Americans and their families.   

"That includes our homes, cars, phones. Nearly every moment of every day could be accessible by China or other bad actors.  

"A regime like the CCP, which suppresses free speech, surveils its own citizens to control them, and commits countless human rights abuses, should not control our tech future.  

"We saw this when China-based Huawei infiltrated our communications networks.  

"And we’re seeing how interested China is in testing their self-drive technologies on American roads.  

"We must ensure the technologies of tomorrow are developed in an ecosystem that promotes America’s values and protects American data and our privacy.  

"I look forward to today’s discussion and would like to yield the balance of my time to Dr. Bucshon to discuss his legislation on supply chain mapping and resiliency.”