A bill that could lead to a TikTok ban is gaining momentum in Congress. Here’s what to know.

Washington — A renewed push concentrating on TikTok is gaining momentum on Capitol Hill, the place a number of earlier efforts to ban the extensively common video-sharing app over issues about its mother or father firm’s ties to China have stalled previously.

Owned by the China-based firm ByteDance, TikTok is likely one of the most generally used apps within the U.S., with greater than 150 million month-to-month customers. Its meteoric rise over the previous a number of years has been accompanied by warnings from nationwide safety officers and lawmakers that China’s communist authorities might acquire entry to its huge trove of information and use that info to spy on Individuals.

Whereas earlier proposals to ban the app have largely stalled or run into authorized points, the newest push appears to be gaining steam amongst lawmakers and within the White Home. Here is what to know in regards to the new laws:

What’s the new TikTok invoice, and what would it not do?

The 12-page invoice, often called the Defending Individuals from Overseas Adversary Managed Functions Act, goals to “defend the nationwide safety of the US from the menace posed by international adversary managed purposes” like TikTok.

If handed and signed into regulation, it will make it unlawful to distribute apps developed by ByteDance, its subsidiaries and different corporations “managed by a international adversary,” until the corporate offloads the app inside 180 days.

In impact, the invoice would give ByteDance a selection: both promote TikTok earlier than the six-month deadline, or retain management and be banned from U.S. app shops and web-hosting companies.

Rep. Mike Gallagher, a Wisconsin Republican who leads the Home Choose Committee on the Chinese language Communist Celebration, mentioned Wednesday that the brand new invoice would alleviate nationwide safety issues whereas defending Individuals’ free speech rights.

“In the event you worth your private freedom and privateness on-line, in case you care about Individuals’ nationwide safety at residence, and sure, even if you’d like TikTok to stay round in the US, this invoice gives the one actual step towards every of these objectives,” mentioned Gallagher, who launched the invoice with Illinois Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi, the highest Democrat on the China committee.

Gallagher mentioned it “gives the one path for the app to proceed its operations in the US with out threatening Individuals’ on-line freedom, privateness and safety.” 

Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers, who leads the Power and Commerce Committee, mentioned throughout Thursday’s markup that the invoice doesn’t give the present or future administrations “a clean test” to “ban no matter apps they need.” 

“The menace to nationwide safety should be effectively documented, the general public should be notified and the data should be introduced to Congress, at which level the president might make a dedication {that a} international adversary managed utility should be divested or face prohibition in the US,” the Washington Republican mentioned. “This prohibition can solely be utilized to purposes managed by a international adversary.” 

Why does Congress wish to ban TikTok?

Lawmakers from each events have repeatedly expressed issues that TikTok may very well be pressured at hand over the information it collects on thousands and thousands of American customers to the Chinese language authorities, which might in flip use it for espionage functions. They’ve additionally warned that the app may very well be used to unfold propaganda and misinformation. 

“America’s foremost adversary has no enterprise controlling a dominant media platform in the US. TikTok’s time in the US is over until it ends its relationship with CCP-controlled ByteDance,” Gallagher mentioned in a press release saying the laws, referring to the Chinese language Communist Celebration.

TikTok has denied that it shares info with the Chinese language authorities, although its CEO acknowledged to Congress final yr that TikTok had collected location knowledge on U.S. customers previously, and mentioned some historic knowledge was nonetheless saved in servers that may very well be accessed by engineers from ByteDance. U.S. officers have mentioned that Chinese language regulation requires the corporate, which is predicated in Beijing, to make the app’s knowledge obtainable to the CCP.

Then-President Donald Trump signed an government order in 2020 that will have blocked the app within the U.S. ByteDance reached an settlement with Oracle and Walmart to type a U.S.-based firm to evade the ban, however these plans, and Trump’s order, had been placed on maintain throughout an ensuing authorized battle. Shortly after President Biden took workplace in 2021, he revoked Trump’s government order so his administration might conduct its personal safety evaluation.

The renewed push by lawmakers to drive ByteDance to promote has attracted a variety of cosponsors throughout the political spectrum.

GOP Rep. Elise Stefanik of New York, the chair of the Home Republican Convention, mentioned that the app is “Communist Chinese language malware that’s poisoning the minds of our subsequent era and giving the CCP unfettered entry to troves of Individuals’ knowledge.”

Democratic Rep. Seth Moulton of Massachusetts mentioned that “[e]nsuring that international adversaries shouldn’t have the power to manage what we see and listen to on-line is a crucial piece of what ought to be a bipartisan effort to make social media safer for all Individuals.”

Is TikTok going to be banned?

It is too quickly to say. The invoice would nonetheless have to cross each the Home and the Senate, and be signed into regulation by the president. If it does develop into regulation, ByteDance would have six months to promote earlier than any ban would take impact.

Lawmakers who help the laws say they do not take into account it to be a ban on TikTok, because it might proceed to function within the U.S. if ByteDance divests. Krishnamoorthi mentioned the invoice presents “a selection for ByteDance.”

“We implore ByteDance to promote TikTok,” he mentioned on the information convention unveiling the invoice. 

The White Home shared an identical sentiment on Wednesday. Administration officers gave lawmakers technical assist to craft the invoice.

“We do not see this as banning these apps. That is not what that is,” White Home press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre advised reporters, saying the invoice would guarantee “possession is not within the arms of those that might do us hurt or hurt. That is about our nationwide safety, clearly.”

Jean-Pierre additionally steered the laws might not but stand as much as authorized scrutiny, however that the president is open to finally supporting it. 

“As soon as it will get to a spot the place we predict … it is on authorized standing, and it is in a spot the place it will probably get out of Congress, then the president would signal it. However, we have to proceed to work on it,” she mentioned. 

The app is already prohibited on federal authorities units. In 2022, Congress banned the app from being downloaded on authorities units. The U.S. army prohibited it years earlier. 

Dozens of states have additionally banned the platform on government-issued units, main a lot of public universities to limit entry to TikTok on campus to adjust to these legal guidelines. Montana turned the primary state to cross an outright ban in Might, however a federal choose briefly blocked the regulation from taking impact in January, saying it was unconstitutional.

What’s TikTok saying in regards to the invoice?

A spokesperson for TikTok equated it to “an outright ban,” saying it will “trample the First Modification rights of 170 million Individuals and deprive 5 million small companies of a platform they depend on to develop and create jobs.” 

TikTok despatched an alert to customers urging them to contact their lawmakers to inform them to vote towards the invoice. The app requested customers for his or her ZIP code to search for their representatives’ telephone numbers and immediate them to name.

“Cease a TikTok shutdown,” the discover mentioned. “Converse up now — earlier than your authorities strips 170 million Individuals of their Constitutional proper to free expression. This may harm thousands and thousands of companies, destroy the livelihoods of numerous creators throughout the nation, and deny artists an viewers.” 

Gallagher advised reporters Thursday that members’ workplaces had been getting “a whole lot of calls,” with their telephones ringing “off the hook.” His workplace mentioned in a press release that the alert “misrepresents the invoice as a ‘ban’ on TikTok in a blatant strain marketing campaign to intimidate members.”

Hannah Kelley, a analysis affiliate on the Heart for a New American Safety, a Washington assume tank, mentioned the argument about whether or not or not the invoice constitutes a ban can go each methods. 

“The fact is that there’s an underlying ultimatum,” she mentioned. “You possibly can select to divest or not divest, however there’s going to be one thing that snaps into place based mostly in your resolution.”  

What occurs subsequent?

The Home Power and Commerce Committee shortly and unanimously superior the invoice on Thursday afternoon. It is unclear if it has sufficient help proper now to cross the complete Home, however Speaker Mike Johnson, a Louisiana Republican, mentioned it has his backing. 

If it does, it will then head to the Senate. A bipartisan invoice often called the RESTRICT Act that will have given the Biden administration energy to ban the app stalled final yr within the higher chamber.

Gallagher mentioned he hopes to vote “as shortly as doable,” and mentioned he helps “no matter probably the most expeditious path to the ground is.” The Wisconsin Republican added that he has heard “a whole lot of curiosity, eagerness to introduce a companion piece of laws” within the Senate, and mentioned he hopes senators will “act swiftly.”

The invoice would probably face a authorized problem from ByteDance, which sued the Trump administration over its try to ban TikTok in 2020.

Kelley mentioned she would not be shocked if this invoice bumped into most of the identical obstacles because the RESTRICT Act, which might have given the Commerce Division authority to ban or limit know-how coming from U.S. adversaries, together with China. Critics questioned whether or not the invoice, which didn’t goal TikTok particularly, would threaten freedom of speech or increase authorities surveillance. 

However Kelley mentioned the present laws additionally has the potential to progress additional than the RESTRICT Act as a result of “it is a bit more surgical.” 

“It is a little bit extra focused in direction of TikTok,” she mentioned. “It nonetheless leaves the door open for giving the president the authority to make these designations round different firms which can be tied to different international governments. However proper now, the intent is to essentially go after the ByteDance-TikTok dynamic and make some headway there.” 

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