U.S. Supply Chain Security Review Act of 2023

Floor Speech

Today, I rise in support of my bill, H.R. 3395, the U.S. Supply Chain Security Review Act. I thank Coast Guard and Maritime Transformation Committee Chair Webster for his support on this legislation.

Securing our maritime supply chain is critically important to American consumers and to our economic resilience. COVID-19, Russia's war of aggression in Ukraine, and the increasing economic and security challenges from the Chinese Communist Party emphasize the need for the United States to better understand the influence, incentives, and dependencies at critical nodes in our supply chains, especially our ports.

The U.S. Supply Chain Security Review Act would direct the Federal Maritime Commission to work with an independent academic or federally funded research center to evaluate the ownership of marine terminals at the 15 largest U.S. container ports.

This study will consider the changes in ownership of marine terminals in these ports over the last 10 years, as well as any announced ownership changes anticipated in 2023 or 2024, with a specific focus on ownership by Chinese or Russian entities. These ports are critical to our economic and national security, and it is imperative that we have a real-time understanding of who is in charge.

The study will also examine the amount of Federal grant funds that have gone to ports and marine terminals wholly or partially owned by foreign entities and a detailed analysis on the foreign operational control of these marine terminals.

Lastly, the study will offer recommendations on policies to prevent malign foreign ownership of ports and terminal operators, whether ownership of the port gives the foreign entity unique access to operational technology and information, or if foreign ownership of the entity could have an impact on our supply chains.

Understanding how our supply chains are and will be impacted by foreign ownership of marine terminals is a key aspect of our economic competition and will help the United States develop supply chains that are resilient against adversaries.

This bipartisan legislation passed unanimously out of the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, and I thank Chair Graves and Ranking Member Larsen for their leadership and support on this important issue.

I urge my colleagues to support this legislation so we can begin to address this critical issue and ensure the security of our maritime supply chains.

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Mr. AUCHINCLOSS. Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support H.R. 3395, and I yield back the balance of my time.

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