Congress restricts broadband funding tied to foreign-owned cable suppliers.
H.R. 9541 — FIREWALL Act · Filed by Gus Bilirakis (R-FL) · 2 cosponsors · Introduced Jun 30, 2026 · Referred to committee
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What it does
This bill prohibits the FCC and NTIA from giving federal funds to individuals or entities that buy fiber-optic cable from companies owned or controlled by countries of concern (as defined in existing defense law). The ban takes effect 90 days after enactment and applies to purchases made on or after that date.
Why we flagged it
The bill's operative mechanism is a conditional restriction on federal telecommunications funding tied to supplier ownership/control, designed to enforce national-security supply-chain policy rather than to regulate the cable itself or the purchasing entity's conduct.
What the text implies
- The definition of 'country of concern' is delegated to section 4872(f) of title 10 (defense law), meaning the list of restricted nations is not stated in this bill and may be updated administratively without legislative amendment.
- The restriction applies to any entity receiving FCC/NTIA funds, including state/local broadband programs, rural cooperatives, and tribal entities—potentially affecting federal broadband-deployment initiatives if suppliers are limited.
The full analysis lists 4 implications of this text.
Who stands to gain
U.S. fiber-optic cable manufacturers; Allied-nation cable suppliers; Telecommunications equipment vendors not subject to the restriction