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[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 5374 Introduced in House (IH)]

<DOC>

118th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 5374

   To provide for export approvals for high-performance computers to 
                                 India.

_______________________________________________________________________

                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           September 8, 2023

  Mr. Meeks (for himself and Mr. Barr) introduced the following bill; 
         which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL

 
   To provide for export approvals for high-performance computers to 
                                 India.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Technology Exports to India Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds the following:
            (1) In 2016, the United States designated India a U.S. 
        Major Defense Partner, providing it access to a wide range of 
        military and dual-use items regulated by the Department of 
        Commerce.
            (2) For items controlled for national security reasons by 
        the Department of Commerce, India is subject to a general 
        policy of approval for licenses for civil or military end uses 
        in India or for the Government of India so long as the items 
        are not for nuclear, missile or chemical or biological 
        activities.
            (3) However, currently the export of high-performance 
        computers meeting certain specifications to India requires 
        authorization of the United States Government under section 
        1211 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 
        1998 (50 U.S.C. App. 2404 note).
            (4) Under Department of Commerce regulations, the 
        restricted high-performance computers include such commodities 
        as digital computers, electronic assemblies, and related 
        equipment controlled under Export Control Classification (ECCN) 
        4A003.
            (5) Destination countries listed as ``Computer Tier 3'' 
        eligible countries in section 740.7(d) of title 15 of the Code 
        of Federal Regulations, such as India, cannot receive such 
        commodities, software, or technology without a Department of 
        Commerce license, with limited exceptions for deemed exports.
            (6) The Bureau of Industry and Security of the Department 
        of Commerce has issued only a few licenses for exports of such 
        commodities to India.
            (7) The President does not currently have the authority to 
        remove or delete India from the excluded ``Computer Tier 3'' 
        eligible countries list.
            (8) In January 2023, the United States and India announced 
        the elevation of a strategic partnership with an initiative on 
        critical and emerging technology (iCET).
            (9) As part of this initiative, the United States and India 
        emphasized a commitment to resolving issues related to 
        regulatory barriers to jointly strengthen our innovation 
        landscape, increase defense cooperation and develop resilient 
        supply chains.

SEC. 3. SENSE OF CONGRESS.

    It is the sense of Congress that--
            (1) greater technological and defense cooperation with 
        India is critical to tackling shared geopolitical and security 
        challenges;
            (2) it is important to reduce regulatory barriers to 
        technological cooperation with India in ways that enhance our 
        national security and advance strategic priorities;
            (3) providing the President with the flexibility to export 
        high-performance computers to India would bolster United 
        States-India technological cooperation and demonstrate 
        Congress's commitment to India as a strategic partner; and
            (4) removing India from the ``Computer Tier 3'' eligible 
        countries list in section 740.7(d) of title 15 of the Code of 
        Federal Regulations would help to strengthen the bilateral 
        relationship.

SEC. 4. EXPORT APPROVALS FOR HIGH-PERFORMANCE COMPUTERS TO INDIA.

    Section 1211(e)(3) of the National Defense Authorization Act for 
Fiscal Year 1998 (50 U.S.C. App. 2404 note) is amended--
            (1) by striking ``A country'' and inserting the following:
                    ``(A) In general.--A country'';
            (2) by striking ``(A) the country'' and inserting the 
        following:
                            ``(i) the country'';
            (3) by striking ``(B) the country'' and inserting the 
        following:
                            ``(ii) the country''; and
            (4) by adding at the end the following:
                    ``(B) Exception.--Notwithstanding subparagraph (A), 
                a country may be removed from the list of covered 
                countries under subsection (b) if the Department of 
                Defense, the Department of State, and the Department of 
                Commerce recognize the status of the country as a 
                `Major Defense Partner' pursuant to section 1258(b) of 
                the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 
                2018 (22 U.S.C. 2751 note).''.
                                 <all>
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