Cybersecurity Policy Report, House Subcommittee Approves Bills on Chinese Robots, Robocalls, Communications Security, (Sep 2, 2026)

By Lynn Stanton

The House communications and technology subcommittee yesterday approved by voice vote bipartisan bills dealing with network security and robocalls with little to no concerns expressed about the bills in their current forms, although the subcommittee did adopt, with no discussion, an amendment in the nature of a substitute (AINS) for the AI for Secure Networks Act (HR 7294).

The Guarding the U.S. against Adversarial Robotics Dominance (GUARD) Act (HR 9129), which was introduced by Reps. John Moolenaar (R., Mich.), chairman of the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party, and Jennifer McClellan (D., Va.), would add “adversary-produced” humanoid and quadruped robots the FCC deems to be security risks to the agency’s “covered list” of products prohibited from entering the U.S.

“The GUARD Act levels the playing field against China and ensures we have a homegrown, world-leading robotics industry in America,” Rep. Moolenaar said. “Right now, the CCP is working to bankrupt American robot makers while its own industry races ahead. Chinese robots are not benign technologies, but a calculated bid to harm us from within and they must be banned to protect Americans.”

The Foreign Robocall Elimination Act (HR 6152), which was introduced by Reps. Addison McDowell (R., N.C.) and Kelly Morrison (D., Minn.), would direct the FCC to establish an interagency task force on unlawful robocalls and authorize the FCC to require the posting of bonds up to $100,000 by companies seeking to file a certification in the agency’s Robocall Mitigation Database (RMD) if deemed necessary to preserve the integrity of the RMD.

The AI for Secure Networks Act (HR 7294), which was introduced by Reps. Robert Menendez (D., N.J.) and August Pfluger (R., Texas), would require the National Telecommunications and Information Administration to conduct a study of the impacts of artificial intelligence (AI) on the security of telecommunications networks, including how AI could be used to improve networks and security.

Rep. Pfluger offered an AINS for his bill that he said would “keep the core of the bill fully intact” while expanding the scope of the required report to cover emergency alerting and public safety networks and how to secure the AI networks themselves through benchmarking and guard rails.

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