Carr Creates FCC Council for National Security
The FCC has created an internal, multi-bureau national security taskforce “to promote America’s national security and counter foreign adversaries, particularly the threats posed by the People’s Republic of China (PRC) and Chinese Communist Party (CCP),” said FCC Chairman Brendan Carr in a news release Thursday. Called the Council for National Security, the group will include members from eight bureaus and FCC offices. Carr’s national security counsel, Adam Chan, will lead the group, the release said. It didn't specify which bureaus and offices will be involved, and the agency didn’t immediately respond to questions about the group's makeup or whether it will hold public meetings.
Sign up for a free preview to unlock the rest of this article
Communications Daily is required reading for senior executives at top telecom corporations, law firms, lobbying organizations, associations and government agencies (including the FCC). Join them today!
“Today, the country faces a persistent and constant threat from foreign adversaries, particularly the CCP,” said Carr in the release. “Because these threats now cut across a range of sectors that the FCC regulates, it is important that the FCC’s national security efforts pull resources from a variety of FCC organizations.”
In her own release, Commissioner Anna Gomez said she supports “any effort to bring together expertise within the FCC, in partnership with other federal agencies and international partners, to strengthen our country’s defense against evolving security risks. I look forward to working with my colleagues to ensure that politics does not interfere with our mission to safeguard our communications infrastructure, protect consumers, and ensure the resilience of our nation's networks against emerging threats.”
Carr's release listed the council’s goals as reducing trade and supply chain dependencies on foreign adversaries, mitigating American vulnerability to foreign cyberattacks and surveillance, and winning “the strategic competition with China over critical technologies.” The council “will facilitate the Chairman’s ability to implement a comprehensive national security agenda and facilitate the Commission’s engagement with national security partners across the Executive Branch and in Congress.”