Federal Communications Commission FCC 23-28 STATEMENT OF CHAIRWOMAN JESSICA ROSENWORCEL Re: Review of International Section 214 Authorizations to Assess Evolving National Security, Law Enforcement, Foreign Policy, and Trade Policy Risks, IB Docket No. 23-119; Amendment of the Schedule of Application Fees Set Forth in Sections 1.1102 through 1.1109 of the Commission’s Rules, MD Docket No. 23-134, Order and Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (April 20, 2023). The first duty of the public servant is public safety. At the Federal Communications Commission, that means that we have an obligation to help ensure the safety of our Nation’s communications networks. This responsibility never ends because the threats to network security are always evolving. It is vitally important that the agency’s policies keep pace. That sounds simple, but in practice it is not always easy. This is especially true when it comes to licensing, where historically our practice has been to freeze national security and law enforcement assessments on the day a license is granted. Nearly three years ago the United States Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Government Affairs Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations released a report on threats to United States networks from Chinese government-owned carriers. In it, they highlighted how the grant of authority to operate international communications in the United States is typically a one-and-done activity. In other words, once a Commission license is granted, little is done to revisit the authority and safeguard our networks against evolving threats over time. Today there is nothing in our rules that requires the Commission to generally reassess a foreign carrier’s authorization to provide service. This is in stark contrast to most other authorizations granted by the agency that must be considered on a periodic basis. That is why the Subcommittee recommended requiring some form of regular review of Section 214 authorizations to account for evolving national security risks. This was a good idea then and it is a good idea now. So today we launch a rulemaking to explore this concept along with other improvements to our Section 214 rules. I believe we can modernize our process to address these concerns while ensuring that we honor the expectations of Section 214 license holders so that the United States remains a safe and attractive place to do business. This rulemaking sets us on that path. This is just the latest step in our comprehensive approach to addressing network security in a modern way. It is fundamentally a strategy to deter, defend, and develop: deter bad actors, defend against untrusted vendors, and develop a market for trustworthy innovation. By doing this, we are working to help improve communications security at home and shine as an example for the rest of the world. That’s why it’s fitting that this is the first effort from our newly-established Office of International Affairs. Thank you to those at the agency who worked on this rulemaking, including Denise Coca, Kate Collins, Ghalia Estaiteyeh, Francis Gutierrez, Desiree Hanssen, Karen Johnson, Gabrielle Kim, David Krech, Arthur Lechtman, Ron Marcelo, Sumita Mukhoty, Kathryn O’Brien, Tom Sullivan, Svantje Swider, and Michele Wu-Bailey from the Office of International Affairs; Adrienne McNeil and Troy Tanner from the Space Bureau; Justin Cain, Kenneth Carlberg, Shawn Cochran, Michael Connelly, Kurian Jacob, Deb Jordan, Lauren Kravetz, Haille Laws, Nicole McGinnis, Zenji Nakazawa, Erika Olsen, Austin Randazzo, Jim Schlichting, Chris Smeenk, and James Wiley from the Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau; Pam Arluk, Matthew G. Baker, Michele Berlove, Elizabeth Drogula, Jodie Griffin, Trent Harkrader, Heather Hendrickson, Melissa Droller Kirkel, Jodie May, Jordan Marie Reth, Rodney McDonald, Conor O'Donovan, and Terri Natoli from the Wireline Competition Bureau; Kim Cook, Hunter Deeley, Loyaan Egal, Georgina Feigen, Pamela Gallant, Pam Kane, Kalun Lee, Jeremy Marcus, Ryan McDonald, and Victoria Randazzo from the Enforcement Bureau; Andrew Manley, Alexander Sanjenis, and Holly Saurer from the Media Bureau; Garnet Hanly, Kari Hicks, Ethan Jeans, Joyce Jones, Paul Malmud, Roger Noel, Thomas Reed, Jennifer Salhus, Blaise Scinto, and Joel Taubenblatt from the Wireless Telecommunications Bureau; Peter Alexander, Chelsea Fallon, Catherine Matraves, Giulia McHenry, Steven Rosenberg, Donald Stockdale, Emily Talaga, and Aleks Yankelevich from the Office of Economics and Analytics; Regina Brown and Roland Helvajian of the Office of the Managing Director; Cara Grayer and Joy Ragsdale from the Office of Communications Business Opportunities; and Jim Bird, Sarah Citrin, Matthew Dunne, Michele Ellison, Andrea Kearney, Andrea Kelly, Doug Klein, David Konczal, Jacob Lewis, Marcus Maher, Wisam Naoum, Scott Noveck, Bill Richardson, Joel Rabinovitz, Royce Sherlock, Jeffrey Steinberg, and Elliot Tarloff from the Office of General Counsel. 2