State Contracts

Update: Idaho’s Bill to Thwart Contracts with Chinese-Owned Companies Signed Into Law

Posted on by China Tech Threat
Idaho Governor Brad Little has signed into law HB 294 that will prohibit public contracts with companies owned or operation by the People’s Republic of China (PRC). Introduced by Representatives Sage G. Dixon and Edward H. Hill, the bill received overwhelming support in the House (67-7-1) and Senate (28-7). “The most important aspect of my anti-CCP effort is now our legislators understand the threat and realize that national security begins here at the state level. This is the most critical victory here. I intend to follow up with many more initiatives next session,” Rep. Edward Hill – Idaho State Legislature China Tech Threat’s Idaho research released in February 2023 revealed that between 2015 and 2022 the state spent $33 million on Chinese… Read More

West Virginia Must Protect State Data In Addition To Land When It Comes To PRC Threats

Posted on by China Tech Threat
West Virginia State Auditor JB McCuskey recently introduced legislation to protect West Virginians and their property from the People’s Republic of China (PRC). As reported by the WTRF, this legislation proposes adding the PRC to a growing list of countries banned from buying natural resources, farmland, and property from the state of West Virginia. While this bill serves as a productive start to limiting threats from the PRC, the state of West Virginia’s data remains at risk.  China Tech Threat revealed the state of West Virginia spent $482,606 on restricted Chinese technology from Lexmark, Inc and Lenovo, Inc between 2016 and 2023. Technology products by these two Chinese government-owned technology manufacturers have been banned by U.S. military and intelligence agencies… Read More

Utah Spent $34 Million on Risky Chinese Tech, Time For State To Take Action

Posted on by China Tech Threat
In February, Utah Sen. Mitt Romney, urged the Biden Administration to implement recently passed bipartisan legislation requiring the US to develop a comprehensive strategy addressing the China threat, stating, “it drives me nuts to watch us deal with China.” This is not just an issue to be dealt with in the halls of Congress.  Between 2018 and 2021, Sen. Romney’s home state of Utah has spent more than $34 million on risky Chinese technology from Lenovo, including for the Attorney General’s Office. (Read the Fact Sheet on Utah’s spending here.) Unfortunately, Utah’s $34 million expense triples the expense from just a few years ago, when our prior report indicated that the state spent $11 million between 2016-2020. (See our March… Read More

Multiple News Outlets Describe How PRC Tech State Purchases Put All Americans at Risk

Posted on by China Tech Threat
“When it comes to defending America from the Chinese Communist Party, Sacramento and Bismarck are no less a locus of competition than Shanghai and Beijing,” China Tech Threat principal and retired U.S. Army Major General James “Spider” Marks wrote in a recent Newsweek op-ed. The column focused on China Tech Threat’s new report that details hundreds of millions of dollars in U.S. state government purchases of Chinese-owned and operated Lexmark and Lenovo equipment, which have been banned or restricted from U.S. military and national security networks.  For more on China Tech Threat’s new report, check out the Axios coverage which cited the report’s finding that as of March 2020, “only one U.S. state restricted contracts with Chinese-owned or operated tech manufacturers. Today five states have laws or restrictions governing state contracts, with 11 additional… Read More

New China Tech Threat Paper Details Hundreds of Millions of Dollars in U.S. State Government Purchases of Lexmark and Lenovo Equipment

Posted on by China Tech Threat
On Thursday, China Tech Threat released a report rife with new research into how 28 U.S. states have created massive vulnerabilities for their citizens by purchasing at least $230 million worth of technology made by Chinese-owned and operated companies Lexmark and Lenovo since 2015.  While the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is capable of exploiting many kinds of technology to spy on Americans, steal from them, or commit cyberattacks, Chinese companies are especially dangerous because of the CCP’s 2017 National Intelligence Law, which obligates Chinese companies to turn over any information Beijing demands. That puts Americans’ financial, personal, and health data at risk, in addition to sensitive organizational and government data. .kb-image_7275e7-74.kb-image-is-ratio-size, .kb-image_7275e7-74 .kb-image-is-ratio-size{max-width:400px;width:100%;}.wp-block-kadence-column .kt-inside-inner-col .kb-image_7275e7-74.kb-image-is-ratio-size, .wp-block-kadence-column .kt-inside-inner-col .kb-image_7275e7-74 .kb-image-is-ratio-size{align-self:unset;}.kb-image_7275e7-74 figure{max-width:400px;}.kb-image_7275e7-74… Read More

Georgia State Rep Calls on Department to Implement Law That Restricts Use of Risky Chinese Tech

Posted on by China Tech Threat
Georgia has emerged as an early leader in passing policies restricting Chinese tech infiltration. In the latest action, Georgia State Rep. Martin Momtahan who authored Georgia’s law that prohibits enterprises owned or operated by the People’s Republic of China from submitting bids for state contracts (SB 346) this week issued a letter to Georgia’s Department of Administrative Services urging the law to be enforced. Since Governor Kemp signed the bill into law in May 2022, other states have followed and have taken action. In September, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis released Executive Order 22-216 directing his state’s Department of Management Services to counter Chinese tech threats. In addition, several other states are also currently considering legislation to prohibit the use of restricted Chinese technology.… Read More

COMING SOON: China Tech Threat to Release New Report on U.S. State Contracts with Chinese Tech Companies

Posted on by China Tech Threat
On Thursday February 23rd China Tech Threat will release an update to our March 2020 paper detailing U.S. state government contracts worth tens of millions of dollars to buy products from Lenovo and Lexmark, which are Chinese government-owned technology companies restricted by U.S. defense and intelligence agencies, as noted in an August 2019 Pentagon report. We will provide revised data detailing purchases from state agencies in approximately half of U.S. states. Entities such as various states’ Board of Fingerprinting, State Police, Department of Elections, State Supreme Court, Department of Public Safety, the Legislature, the Military Division, and the National Guard Armory have all purchased dangerous Chinese technology. (We plan to release the remaining states on a rolling basis this spring.)… Read More

Florida’s Continued Aggressive Action To Counter Chinese Government Intrusion

Posted on by China Tech Threat
During a recent news conference, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis drew fresh attention to his Executive Order (22-216) to combat Chinese intrusion and infiltration in the Sunshine State. He announced his administration is looking into banning China from purchasing not only farmland but any property in Florida. “If you look at the Chinese Communist Party, they’ve been very active throughout the Western Hemisphere in gobbling up land and investing in different things.” A critical component of his executive order is the restrictions on government contracts with companies owned by or controlled by foreign countries of concern if the contract provides access to Floridians’ personal information. “We want all of your information secured,” he explained. “So this is things like social security numbers,… Read More

Georgetown’s CSET Scrutinizes State Spending on Banned Foreign Tech Threats

Posted on by China Tech Threat
CSET Joins Heritage and China Tech Threat in Calling for State Procurement Restrictions In July 2019, the Department of Defense Inspector General published a report exposing $30+ million in military spending on commercial over-the-shelf products such as Lexmark printers and Lenovo computers. These companies are dangerous, among other reasons, because they give the Chinese government a potential access point to sensitive data. Early the next year, China Tech Threat conducted a thorough review of state contracts and spending on both companies, confirming that about 40 states purchased products from Lenovo and Lexmark. Today Georgetown University’s Center for Security and Emerging Technology (CSET) published a new study that extends and expands on China Tech Threat’s earlier work. “Banned in D.C.: Examining… Read More

Dr. Layton, Rep. Momtahan Join Rep. Fine to Discuss the Perils of State Contracts in Miami

Posted on by China Tech Threat
The James Madison Institute – Florida’s top  think tank – hosted their annual Tech Summit in Miami  with a dozen distinguished speakers including Miami Mayor Francis Suarez and former FCC Chairman Ajit Pai. To address the growing China Tech Threat, Dr. Roslyn Layton was joined by Georgia Rep. Martin Momtahan and Florida Rep. Randy Fine. Dr. Layton set the tone, explaining that the separation of federal and state governments, while a prized feature of American governance, creates an opportunity for our adversaries. Recent stories in Fox News and the Associated Press demonstrate that the Chinese Community Party actively targets state and local American legislators and has already successfully hacked six state governments. Rep. Fine, a former Harvard economics instructor, cautioned… Read More