Florida Sen. Rick Scott Intros Bill To Safeguard U.S. Power Grid from Chinese Smart Devices
Senator Rick Scott introduces the “PROTECT the Grid Act” to address the growing threat of high-wattage smart devices produced by foreign adversaries, which could be used to infiltrate and disrupt America’s electric grid.
Senator Rick Scott (R-FL) has unveiled the Protecting Remote Operations by Threatening Entities on Critical Technology for the Grid (PROTECT the Grid) Act, a new bill aimed at countering potential threats posed by smart devices manufactured or controlled by foreign adversaries, particularly Communist China.
The legislation seeks to address concerns that internet-connected appliances like smart ovens, electric vehicle chargers, and laundry machines could be compromised by Chinese Communist Party (CCP)-affiliated companies, creating a potential backdoor for the CCP to disrupt America’s electric grid.
According to Senator Scott, the bill is a critical step to prevent a “foreign dictatorship from holding American citizens hostage through their own appliances.” He emphasized that the CCP uses “every tool at its disposal to infiltrate our markets” and that this access could allow them to “flip a digital switch and plunge parts of America into chaos.”
The PROTECT the Grid Act directs the Department of Commerce to investigate the extent of the CCP’s influence through these devices and assess how they have penetrated U.S. infrastructure. It also codifies Executive Order 13873, which was signed by President Trump in 2019 and gives the Secretary of Commerce the authority to restrict or ban technology from foreign companies deemed a national security threat.
The Coalition for a Prosperous America has endorsed the legislation. Jon Toomey, the coalition’s president, stated that the bill is a “critical step toward ensuring Americans know who controls the technology in their homes” and who may be accessing their data.
This bill is the latest in a series of legislative efforts by Senator Scott to address what he views as the threat posed by Communist China. Other recent bills include measures to crack down on adversarial intelligence gathering, regulate drones and AI, and curb the CCP’s exploitation of U.S. markets.
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