Cybersecurity Policy Report, Draft Senate Bill Would Free TikTok From ‘Divest-or-Ban’ Law, (Aug 1, 2025)
Draft legislation that would enable TikTok to continue operating in the U.S. under the control of ByteDance Ltd. has been proposed by Sen. Ed Markey (D., Mass.).
Sen. Markey’s draft discussion bill, the TikTok Transparency and Data Security Act, would amend the Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act of 2024 to exempt TikTok from the 2024 law’s “divest-or-ban” mandate if TikTok stores all U.S. user data in the U.S. and allows researchers to examine the app’s algorithms and data.
The 2024 law—adopted by wide bipartisan majorities, signed by former President Biden, and upheld by a unanimous Supreme Court—gave ByteDance until last Jan. 19 to sell TikTok’s U.S. business to a qualified buyer—one without ties to the Chinese government.
Absent a “qualified divestiture” on that date, the law required U.S.-based app stores and web-hosting providers to stop supporting TikTok’s U.S. operations or face steep fines.
But the Trump administration has decided to delay enforcement of the divest-or-ban mandate. President Trump has issued three extensions of the sale deadline, claiming that behind-the-scenes negotiations are underway to find a U.S. owner for TikTok. The latest extension lasts until Sept. 17 (CPR, June 20).
Sen. Markey is among a handful of lawmakers who don’t want TikTok to be forced to shutter its U.S. business. In January, he introduced the Extend the TikTok Deadline Act, which would have given ByteDance more time to find a qualified U.S. buyer for TikTok (CPR, Jan. 15).
His new draft legislation, he said, addresses the two national security risks that concerned Congress: (1) surveillance of U.S. TikTok users by the Chinese government and (2) the use of the TikTok platform to disseminate Chinese propaganda.
“The TikTok Transparency and Data Security Act would eliminate the requirement that ByteDance sell TikTok’s U.S. operations or face a ban if the company (1) establishes transparency requirements about the content displayed and promoted on the application, and (2) limits foreign access to the data of TikTok’s American users. This two-pronged approach is designed to address the biggest risks from ByteDance’s ownership of TikTok,” he said in a news release.
“The TikTok Transparency and Data Security Act abandons the failed effort to force ByteDance to sell TikTok and seeks to directly address the app’s national security risks,” Sen. Markey said.
“With Trump continuing to illegally extend the divestment deadline, it’s time for Congress to reassert its legislative power, fix its mistake, and consider a new approach to TikTok,” he added. “I look forward to reviewing the feedback on this discussion draft.”
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