Title: Preventing China from Exploiting COVID–19 Act
Policy area: Armed Forces and National Security

Summary:
Preventing China from Exploiting COVID-19 Act
This bill directs the Office of the Director of National Intelligence to report to Congress on efforts by China's government to exploit the COVID-19 (i.e., coronavirus disease 2019) pandemic to advance its national security and foreign policy interests.
The report shall contain elements including (1) an assessment of Chinese government efforts to retaliate against countries seeking an inquiry into China's role in the spread of COVID-19, (2) a description of Chinese economic aid or medical assistance to countries affected by COVID-19 and how such activities may affect Chinese and U.S. foreign policy interests, and (3) an identification of different ways the Chinese government may be using the global disruption caused by COVID-19 to more aggressively pursue long-standing domestic and foreign policy objectives.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 7484 Introduced in House (IH)]

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116th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 7484

To direct the Director of National Intelligence to submit to Congress a 
  report on efforts by the People's Republic of China to exploit the 
 COVID-19 pandemic to advance the national security and foreign policy 
                          interests of China.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                              July 2, 2020

 Ms. Kendra S. Horn of Oklahoma (for herself, Mrs. Murphy of Florida, 
   Mr. Rose of New York, Mr. O'Halleran, Mr. Case, Mr. McAdams, Mr. 
   Correa, Mr. Golden, Mr. Brindisi, Mr. Crist, and Mr. Cunningham) 
  introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Permanent 
                    Select Committee on Intelligence

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To direct the Director of National Intelligence to submit to Congress a 
  report on efforts by the People's Republic of China to exploit the 
 COVID-19 pandemic to advance the national security and foreign policy 
                          interests of China.

    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 ``Preventing China from Exploiting 
COVID-19 Act''.

SEC. 2. REPORT ON EFFORTS BY CHINA TO EXPLOIT COVID-19 PANDEMIC TO 
              ADVANCE NATIONAL SECURITY AND FOREIGN POLICY INTERESTS OF 
              CHINA.

    (a) Report.--Not later than 90 days after the date of the enactment 
of this Act, the Director of National Intelligence, in coordination 
with the Secretary of State, the Secretary of Defense, and the 
Secretary of Homeland Security, shall submit to the appropriate 
congressional committees, and make publicly available on the internet 
website of the Director, a report on efforts by the People's Republic 
of China to exploit the COVID-19 pandemic to advance the national 
security and foreign policy interests of China in ways that undermine 
the interests of the United States, allies and partners of the United 
States, and the rules-based international order.
    (b) Elements.--The report under subsection (a) shall include the 
following:
            (1) An assessment of--
                    (A) the tactics and techniques used by China to 
                obstruct or retaliate against countries, such as 
                Australia, that have sought a full and fair inquiry 
                into the role of China in the emergence and spread of 
                COVID-19; and
                    (B) the motivations of China for undertaking such 
                obstruction or retaliation.
            (2) A description of activities undertaken by China, 
        including with respect to cyber-theft, intended to licitly or 
        illicitly acquire information and intellectual property in the 
        possession of non-Chinese governments and businesses relating 
        to COVID-19 testing, treatment, and vaccines.
            (3) An assessment of whether the activities described under 
        paragraph (2) violate the commitment of China under the 
        cybersecurity agreement entered into by China and the United 
        States in 2015 to refrain from conducting or supporting cyber-
        enabled economic espionage.
            (4) An assessment of the manner by which China seeks to 
        advance the foreign policy interests of China by providing 
        economic aid or medical equipment to countries adversely 
        affected by COVID-19 and a discussion of the degree to which 
        such aid renders recipient countries more likely to adopt 
        positions favorable to the interests of China or detrimental to 
        the interests of the United States.
            (5) An assessment of--
                    (A) the effects of the pledged economic support by 
                China to international organizations, such as the World 
                Health Organization; and
                    (B) whether, and in what manner, China uses such 
                support to induce such organizations to take actions 
                favorable to the interests of China or detrimental to 
                the interests of the United States.
            (6) An identification of the different ways in which China 
        is using, or may be planning to use, the global disruption and 
        distraction associated with the COVID-19 pandemic as an 
        opportunity to more aggressively pursue longstanding domestic 
        and foreign policy objectives, including the objectives of 
        China with respect to Hong Kong, Taiwan, Xinjiang, and 
        territorial disputes.
            (7) An assessment of--
                    (A) the means and methods by which China 
                disseminates misinformation, whether overtly or 
                covertly, about COVID-19, including on United States-
                based social media platforms or through other English 
                language-based media; and
                    (B) the motivations of China for disseminating such 
                misinformation and a description of how the departments 
                and agencies of the Federal Government are 
                collaborating to track, analyze, and respond to such 
                dissemination.
            (8) An overarching assessment of--
                    (A) how the activities of China described in this 
                subsection collectively further the national interests 
                of China; and
                    (B) the extent to which such activities constitute 
                a continuation of the longstanding practices of China 
                or are an evolution of the foreign policy behavior of 
                China.
    (c) Form.--The report under subsection (a) shall be submitted in 
unclassified form without any designation relating to dissemination 
control, but the report submitted to the appropriate congressional 
committees may include a classified annex.
    (d) Appropriate Congressional Committees Defined.--In this section, 
the term ``appropriate congressional committees'' means the following:
            (1) the Committee on Appropriations, the Committee on Armed 
        Services, the Committee on Foreign Affairs, the Committee on 
        Homeland Security, and the Permanent Select Committee on 
        Intelligence of the House of Representatives; and
            (6) the Committee on Appropriations, the Committee on Armed 
        Services, the Committee on Foreign Relations, the Committee on 
        Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, and the Select 
        Committee on Intelligence of the Senate.
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