FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel and Commissioner Brendan Carr propose ensuring that wireless equipment authorizations are not compromised by entities that have been found to pose national security concerns. If adopted by a vote of the full Commission at its next monthly meeting, the bipartisan proposal would ensure that telecommunications certification bodies and test labs that certify wireless devices for the U.S. market are not influenced by untrustworthy actors, according to the agency.
The Commission’s senior leaders seek to strengthen the integrity of the FCC’s equipment authorization program and build a more secure and resilient supply chain that resists evolving national security threats. For example, last week, the Commission denied the ability of the Huawei test lab to participate in the equipment authorization program. U.S. national security partners declared that Huawei poses a unique threat to the security and integrity of our nation’s communications networks and supply chains, Inside Towers reported.
The new proceeding would permanently ban Huawei and other entities on the FCC’s Covered List from playing any role in the equipment authorization program. It would also provide the agency and national security partners the necessary tools to safeguard this process.
“Communications networks are a part of everything we do, and it’s why their security matters more than ever before,” said Rosenworcel. “So we must ensure that our equipment authorization program and those entrusted with administering it can rise to the challenge posed by persistent and ever-changing security and supply chain threats.”
Carr said the proposal represents another step in the FCC’s work to advance the security of America’s communications networks. “It does so by proposing to ensure that the test labs and certification bodies that review electronic devices for compliance with FCC requirements are themselves trustworthy actors that the FCC can rely on.”
In implementing the Secure Equipment Act of 2021, the FCC adopted new equipment authorization security rules that prohibit authorization of communications equipment that has been determined to pose an unacceptable risk to national security. These rules place significant responsibilities on entities to which the Commission has delegated responsibilities for authorizing wireless devices for sale in the U.S., namely telecommunications certification bodies (TCBs) and measurement facilities (test labs).
The Commission’s equipment authorization program reviews wireless devices prior to sale in the U.S. to ensure they abide by Commission power and spectrum band requirements. The FCC’s Office of Engineering and Technology oversees the program and authorizes test labs and TCBs as primary testers and certifiers of equipment. The proposal would ensure that those labs and certifiers meet and are accountable for strict national security criteria.
Rosenworcel circulated the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) to her colleagues yesterday. The NPRM proposes prohibiting the equipment authorization program working with any lab or certification body with direct or indirect ownership or control by any entity on the Covered List. To implement this prohibition, it proposes a 10 percent ownership or control threshold and a five percent reporting threshold. It also seeks comment on whether and how the Commission should consider national security determinations made in other Executive Branch agency lists in establishing eligibility qualifications for FCC recognition of a TCB or a test lab in its equipment authorization program.
By Leslie Stimson, Inside Towers Washington Bureau Chief
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