US lawmakers propose reforms to FCC list restricting Chinese tech

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Republican chair of the US House Energy and Commerce Committee and the panel's top Democrat are introducing bipartisan legislation to reform a national security tool used by the Federal Communications Commission to restrict Chinese technology equipment. The FCC's so-called "Covered List" has been used to bar Chinese drones, robots, routers, power inverters and other equipment from Chinese companies. Republican Representative Brett Guthrie and Democratic Representative Frank Pallone said in a joint statement that their legislation would change the process for adding products to the list and give other government agencies a greater role in making those decisions. The proposed changes come as US policymakers continue to scrutinise Chinese technology products on national security grounds.