On July 25, 2024, U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Chairman of the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, delivered an opening statement at a hearing titled “Advancing National Security through Export Controls, Investment Security, and the Defense Production.”
Senator Brown emphasized the current geopolitical challenges faced by the United States, including Russia's invasion of Ukraine and conflicts in the Middle East. He highlighted concerns about China's military capabilities being bolstered with assistance from American corporations and tax dollars.
“For too long, our government was willfully blind to the threat China posed,” Brown stated. He criticized multinational corporations for outsourcing production and technology to China without sufficient safeguards.
Brown stressed the importance of proactive measures to protect national and economic security, stating that these two issues are closely connected. He pointed out that hostile governments increasingly use American technology for destructive purposes and called for stronger oversight to prevent this.
“It is the U.S. government’s job to police the flow of sensitive and so-called ‘dual-use technologies’ – technologies that can be used for both military and civilian purposes,” he said.
He referenced recent international efforts such as NATO's call for China to cease support for Russia's war effort and the G7 Summit’s commitment to implementing export controls and foreign investment screening.
Brown noted ongoing efforts by U.S. agencies like the Departments of Commerce and Treasury to expand controls on semiconductors and establish an outbound investment program aimed at curbing investments that could enhance China's military capabilities.
He also highlighted a proposed rule expanding the Committee on Foreign Investment in the U.S.’s authority to review foreign real estate investments near military bases.
As part of bolstering domestic capabilities, Brown mentioned Ohio's Air Force Research Lab at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base as a key player in leveraging the Defense Production Act (DPA) for national security. The DPA allows prioritizing critical materials and increasing domestic productive capacity to address industrial shortfalls.
Brown concluded by urging Congress to explore new ways for the DPA to support American industrial capabilities as part of its reauthorization process. He underscored recent legislative efforts such as passing the CHIPS Act, Science Act, Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, and increased funding for strategic investments using the DPA but insisted more needs to be done.
The hearing aimed to discuss coordination with international partners on export controls and investment security policies while considering steps Congress could take to strengthen these authorities.