House passes bills to gain upper hand in race to 5G

Source: The Hill Published: Jan. 8 2020 Author: Emily Birnbaum

The House on Wednesday passed a slew of bills aimed at giving the U.S. a leg up over China in the race to implement the super-fast next-generation wireless networks known as 5G.

The trio of bipartisan bills, which passed the House near-unanimously, would funnel U.S. government resources into steering international wireless policy while securing the burgeoning networks against cyberattacks and foreign influence.

The legislation comes as the U.S. works to win the "race to 5G," which will enable a generation of Internet-connected devices and offer mobile data speeds up to 100 times what is currently possible. Congress and the Trump administration have been working to diminish the power of Chinese telecommunications companies currently dominating the 5G industry while pouring more money into efforts to build out the networks in the U.S.

“All three of these bills are important for securing America’s wireless future, and we hope they won’t languish in the Senate," Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-N.J.) and communications subcommittee Chairman Mike Doyle (D-Pa.) said in a statement.