Commerce Drafts Rule to Address US Participation in Standards Setting Bodies

The Commerce Department has drafted a regulation that will address the ability of U.S. companies to participate in 5G standards setting bodies involving Huawei, a top Commerce official said. The rule is still being discussed within Commerce and has not yet been cleared for interagency review, Matt Borman, Commerce’s deputy assistant secretary for export administration, said during an April 29 Information Systems Technical Advisory Committee meeting.

Borman said the rule “will go a long way” toward addressing concerns from lawmakers and industry, who say that export controls are hindering U.S. participation at standards setting bodies and ceding 5G technology leadership to Huawei (see 2004150077). ”That's what this draft reg is looking to get at,” Borman said. “We certainly don’t want a situation where U.S. companies refrain from participating and then leave the standards field open to Huawei and other companies.” Borman did not provide a timeline for when the rule might be published.

Commerce's Bureau of Industry and Security is continuing to process license applications for exports to Huawei, Borman added, but he declined to comment on the agency’s future plans for the company. The administration is reportedly considering export restrictions on Huawei and other Chinese companies that could further block them from buying U.S. semiconductors (see 2004070024). The agency has also asked industry for feedback on future temporary general license extensions for Huawei (see 2003260007). “There's still a review as to whether additional regulatory steps will be taken vis-a-vis Huawei, but those are still kind of under review internally,” Borman said. “So that's as much as I can say on that.”