A powerful House committee advanced a bill on Thursday that could potentially lead to a nationwide ban against TikTok. Lawmakers are renewing their challenge to the popular social media app. The move highlights concerns that TikTok may pose a spying risk linked to the Chinese government.
The measure passed unanimously through the House Energy and Commerce Committee. It would bar TikTok from US app stores. The condition for TikTok’s presence is its swift separation from its China-linked parent company, ByteDance. Approximately 170 million Americans currently use TikTok.
If passed, the bill would mandate ByteDance to sell TikTok within 165 days, approximately five months. Failure to divest within the stipulated period would render TikTok unavailable for download on platforms like Apple and Google.
The bill extends similar restrictions to other apps owned by “foreign adversary companies.” The measure underscores concerns regarding national security and data privacy associated with such apps.
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This legislation represents the most assertive action against TikTok from a congressional committee since CEO Shou Chew’s testimony. Last year, Chew assured lawmakers that TikTok posed no risk to Americans. The bill reflects ongoing concerns about the app’s potential impact on national security and user privacy.
“Today, we will take the first step in creating long-overdue laws to protect Americans from the threat posed by apps controlled by our adversaries, and to send a very strong message that the US will always stand up for our values and freedom,” said Washington Republican Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers, the panel’s chair.
New Jersey Representative Frank Pallone, the ranking Democrat, likened the bill to past endeavors to regulate American airwaves. Pallone drew on testimony from national security officials during a closed-door session earlier that day to support his comparison.
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“I take the concerns raised by the intelligence community this morning very seriously,” Pallone said. “They have asked Congress to give them more authority to act in these narrowly defined situations, and I believe that this bill will do that.”
The bill received bipartisan support when introduced earlier in the week by Wisconsin Republican Rep. Mike Gallagher and Illinois Democratic Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi. It also garnered backing from the White House and House Speaker Mike Johnson.
House Majority Leader Steve Scalise announced that the legislation will proceed to a floor vote next week after clearing the committee. However, its future in the Senate is uncertain, as there is no equivalent bill. The Senate Commerce Committee Chair Maria Cantwell has not firmly committed to advancing the proposal.
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Senate Commerce Committee Chair Maria Cantwell expressed her intention to discuss with colleagues to find a constitutional path forward that safeguards civil liberties. In the same session, House lawmakers unanimously advanced a second bill aimed at restricting US companies. This is from selling Americans’ personal information to foreign adversaries.
Officials have highlighted the commercial availability of US citizens’ data as a national security concern, with the US government and domestic law enforcement agencies known to purchase such data from commercial brokers.
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