Senators Target an Import Crucial to Communications Systems and Data Center Construction
The bill has AAM's endorsement.
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The bill would ban Chinese manufacturers from supplying security-sensitive equipment for government installations.
As recently as August the Trump administration was reportedly considering a ban on the import of Chinse optical transceivers, equipment essential to the build-out of data centers.
In September, Chinese-made optical transceivers avoided an outright ban. The U.S. Federal Communications Commission issued updated equipment authorization rules, and they weren’t listed among them.
Tech trade groups lobbied against the move, saying it would slow the scale-up of artificial intelligence. The data centers that power AI are big business in the United States right now; their construction is accounting for a massive, historically large share of nonresidential and industrial infrastructure in 2026, according to Construction Dive. Optical transceivers are crucial to making data centers work: These nodes allow data to travel over fiber-optic cables at the speed of light within data centers. A single “hyperscale” data center can require more than a million of them to operate. And Chinese firms, by production volume and revenue, dominate the market for them.
That’s a concern, as transceivers are vectors for espionage or malware. It’s the same kind of worry that’s part of the logic behind the Connected Vehicle Security Act (CVSA); it’s a security risk to allow products and material produced by an international rival to pervade so much of our daily infrastructure. In the case of the CVSA, it’s the operating systems of modern automobiles. In the case of Chinese optical transceivers, it’s the Securing National Security Systems from Chinese Optical Transceivers Act.
A more straightforward name wasn’t available. While not an outright ban, this bipartisan legislation in the U.S. Senate would keep Chinese optical transceivers from being used in government communications and information systems. According to its sponsor, Sen. Dave McCormick (R-Penn.), it would extend existing federal procurement restriction for semiconductors to covered optical transceivers; give suppliers five years to develop other sources; and provide a limited waiver process.
It would also direct the U.S. Department of Commerce “to assess U.S. and allied production capacity and develop a strategy to strengthen trusted optical transceiver supply chains.”
We think it’s a good idea. The Alliance for American Manufacturing (AAM) has endorsed the bill.
Said AAM President Scott Paul:
For too long, China has pursued dominance in strategically important industries while benefiting from access to markets that reinforce that position. Federal taxpayer dollars should not be used to deepen America’s dependence on Chinese manufacturers for critical technologies. Senator McCormick’s legislation sends an important signal that the United States is serious about securing strategic supply chains, rebuilding domestic manufacturing capacity, and strengthening the industrial base needed to compete and lead in the technologies of the future.
Read more about the Securing National Security Systems from Chinese Optical Transceivers Act here.
