S. 4570

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 4570 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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119th CONGRESS
2d Session
S. 4570

To incentivize, streamline, and sustain United States foreign 
government partner procurement of United States-origin cyber and 
digital technologies.

_______________________________________________________________________

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

May 19, 2026

Mrs. Shaheen (for herself and Mr. Ricketts) introduced the following 
bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Foreign 
Relations

_______________________________________________________________________

A BILL

To incentivize, streamline, and sustain United States foreign 
government partner procurement of United States-origin cyber and 
digital technologies.

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 ``U.S. Technology Procurement and 
Access to Trusted Hardware Act'' or the ``U.S. Tech PATH Act''.

SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

In this Act:
(1) Appropriate congressional committees.--The term 
``appropriate congressional committees'' means--
(A) the Committee on Foreign Relations in the 
Senate; and
(B) the Committee on Foreign Affairs in the House 
of Representatives.
(2) Foreign country of concern.--The term ``foreign country 
of concern'' has the meaning given the term ``covered nation'' 
in section 4872(f) of title 10, United States Code.
(3) Foreign government partner.--The term ``foreign 
government partner'' includes international organizations.
(4) International organizations.--The term ``international 
organizations'' has the meaning given the term in section 1 of 
the International Organizations Immunities Act (22 U.S.C. 288).
(5) Trusted cyber and digital technologies.--The term 
``trusted cyber and digital technologies'' means technologies, 
including equipment, services, hardware, or software used in 
information and communications technology networks, for which 
the Secretary of State, in coordination with the Secretary of 
Commerce, has determined--
(A) the provider, supplier, or manufacturer is not 
owned by, controlled by, or subject to the influence of 
a foreign country of concern; and
(B) do not pose an unacceptable risk to the 
national security of the United States or the security 
and safety of United States persons.
(6) Pax silica initiative.--The term ``Pax Silica 
initiative'' refers to the Department of State-led diplomatic, 
economic security, and supply chain initiative, announced on 
December 11, 2025, to strengthen cooperation among the United 
States, allied countries, partner countries, industry, and 
other relevant stakeholders for the purpose of developing and 
securing trusted supply chains and infrastructure necessary for 
artificial intelligence, semiconductors, advanced 
manufacturing, and other technologies determined by the 
Secretary of State to be essential to United States national 
security, economic security, and technological competitiveness.

SEC. 3. SENSE OF CONGRESS.

(a) Sense of Congress.--It is the sense of Congress that--
(1) foreign government partners are increasingly turning 
towards strategic competitors like the People's Republic of 
China to procure cyber and digital technologies due to their 
low-cost, acceptable efficiency, and associated training and 
maintenance;
(2) foreign government partner procurement of cyber and 
digital technologies from suppliers aligned with strategic 
competitors of the United States poses significant and distinct 
risks, including--
(A) supply chain vulnerabilities created by 
dependence on strategic competitors whose governments 
may compel access to data, networks, or systems, 
undermining the cybersecurity and strategic autonomy of 
the procuring government;
(B) the erosion of interoperability and alignment 
with United States cybersecurity frameworks, standards, 
and best practices, reducing the ability of foreign 
government partners to operate securely alongside 
United States systems and those of United States 
allies; and
(C) the adoption of digital governance practices 
that are inconsistent with United States economic and 
national security interests;
(3) United States foreign government partners consistently 
signal strong demand for cyber and digital technologies from 
trusted United States suppliers;
(4) United States initiatives such as Pax Silica should 
facilitate technology procurements by building enduring 
technology partnerships between foreign government partners and 
United States suppliers, including by--
(A) assisting foreign government partners in 
navigating regulatory, logistical, and technical 
hurdles to cyber and digital technology procurement;
(B) providing foreign government partners with 
strategic direction from the United States Government;
(C) incorporating foreign government partner needs 
into program development from the outset; and
(D) maintaining long-term engagement with foreign 
government partners throughout the procurement cycle of 
trusted cyber and digital technologies; and
(5) as the United States seeks to maintain its global 
competitive edge in critical and emerging technologies, 
including artificial intelligence, advanced telecommunications, 
and robotics, it is in the interest of the United States 
Government to establish policies and procedures that streamline 
foreign government partners' ability to procure trusted and 
reliable technologies from the United States and United States 
allies and partners.

SEC. 4. UNITED STATES TECHNOLOGY PROCUREMENT PROGRAM.

(a) Establishment.--There is established in the Department of State 
the United States Cyber and Digital Technology Procurement Program 
(referred to in this Act as the ``Program''), which shall be 
administered by the Bureau for Cyberspace and Digital Policy, and which 
may support Pax Silica and other related initiatives. To the maximum 
extent practicable, the Program shall seek to serve as a demand-driven 
mechanism in response to cyber and digital technology needs as 
determined by the participating foreign government partner.
(b) Purposes.--The purposes of the Program shall include the 
following:
(1) To streamline foreign government partner procurement of 
trusted cyber and digital technologies, including commercial 
off-the-shelf technologies, consistent with United States 
export control laws and cybersecurity standards.
(2) To establish long-term cyber and digital technology 
procurement pipelines with United States providers, including 
after the termination of the Program.
(3) To identify the appropriate United States Government 
financing mechanisms to address challenges associated with 
affordability.
(4) To provide a comprehensive package to foreign 
government partners that eases the navigation of cyber and 
digital technology procurement requirements, technical and 
system complexity, absorptive capacity, and foreign government 
partner-specific logistical and export controls, including by--
(A) designing and implementing logistics, 
procurement, deployment, and technical knowledge-
transfer plans that enable the participating foreign 
government partner to modernize and secure systems;
(B) providing clear guidelines for United States 
and trusted foreign supplier entry and eligibility;
(C) conducting assessments related to the 
participating foreign government partner's workforce or 
technological needs, including any gaps in absorptive 
capacity, including--
(i) feasibility studies to identify, 
design, and implement the deployment of cyber 
and digital technology solutions; and
(ii) sustainability assessments to 
determine the participating foreign government 
partner's ability to procure and invest in 
trusted cyber and digital technologies, 
including the ability to sustain such 
investments in the long-term;
(D) providing capacity building to ensure that the 
participating foreign government partner obtains the 
relevant skills for requirements identification and 
assessment, integration of United States procurements 
into existing operating environments, research and 
procurement, logistics, deployment, and configuration 
to ensure a long-term arrangement with United States 
suppliers; and
(E) assisting the participating foreign government 
partner in developing a long-term strategy to procure 
and budget for trusted cyber and digital technology 
procurements, including beyond the end of the Program's 
lifecycle.
(5) To assess the risks and tradeoffs of foreign government 
partners adopting cyber and digital technologies from foreign 
countries of concern and prioritize foreign government partners 
for outreach efforts based on that risk assessment.
(c) Covered Cyber and Digital Technologies.--In implementing the 
Program, the Secretary of State shall, in coordination with the 
participating foreign government partner, prioritize the following 
cyber and digital technologies, as well as any other cyber and digital 
technologies designated by the Secretary pursuant to subsection (d):
(1) Software and its associated subscriptions and 
licensing, including--
(A) operating systems;
(B) enterprise management software;
(C) cloud-based storage solutions and compute 
access;
(D) industrial control and automation software, 
including Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition 
(SCADA), distributed control systems (DCS), and 
programmable logic controller (PLC) programming 
environments;
(E) digital twin, simulation, and modeling 
software; and
(F) cloud and edge orchestration platforms for 
robotic and operational technology (OT) device 
management.
(2) Hardware, including--
(A) processors;
(B) human-machine interfaces (HMIs) and operator 
consoles;
(C) networking equipment, including switches, 
routers, and gateways;
(D) industrial networking equipment;
(E) biotechnology equipment, including genomic 
sequencers and related hardware; and
(F) other related technologies.
(3) Cybersecurity products, including--
(A) firewalls;
(B) intrusion detection and prevention systems;
(C) Security Information and Event Management 
(SIEM) systems;
(D) threat intelligence and monitoring systems;
(E) endpoint detection systems;
(F) Security Operations Centers (SOC); and
(G) secure authentication systems.
(4) Telecommunications equipment, including--
(A) subsea fiber-optic cable and associated 
equipment;
(B) cellular equipment, including open radio access 
network (ORAN) equipment; and
(C) satellite-enabling infrastructure.
(5) Equipment and related products to enable the adoption 
of artificial intelligence (AI) solutions, including--
(A) compute;
(B) storage;
(C) memory;
(D) models, including both closed- and open-weight 
models;
(E) AI model licenses;
(F) edge AI capabilities, including next-generation 
smartphone technology and relevant mobile operating 
systems; and
(G) AI model applications.
(d) Annual Review of Covered Cyber and Digital Technologies.--The 
Secretary of State shall conduct an annual assessment to identify the 
inclusion or removal of technologies under subsection (c) based on the 
national security risk to the United States of a foreign country of 
concern gaining significant market share of such technology within a 
foreign government partner country.
(e) Risk Mitigation Requirements.--Before approving a partnership 
under the Program, the Secretary shall--
(1) conduct an assessment of technology misuse and 
diversion risks, including--
(A) the foreign government partner's export control 
enforcement capacity;
(B) the foreign government partner's history of 
technology transfer to foreign countries of concern, 
including permitting remote access to technology; and
(C) investments by foreign countries of concern in 
the foreign government partner's critical sectors;
(2) establish monitoring and mitigation requirements 
proportional to the risk assessed under paragraph (1);
(3) include end-use monitoring provisions in all Program 
agreements; and
(4) coordinate with the intelligence community and the 
Department of Defense regarding counterintelligence and 
national security risks.
(f) Foreign Government Partner Contribution.--For any partnership 
with a foreign government partner under the Program, the Secretary 
shall, to the maximum extent practicable, seek to ensure cost-sharing 
with the foreign government partner to facilitate the foreign 
government partner's long-term buy-in and sustained procurements of 
cyber and digital technologies.
(g) Additional Interagency Coordination.--In implementing the 
Program, to address challenges associated with affordability, 
financing, technical evaluations, procurement requirements, and long-
term capacity building, the Secretary of State shall, on a case-by-case 
basis, coordinate, as appropriate, with the relevant Federal agencies, 
including the Department of Commerce, the Department of Homeland 
Security, the Export-Import Bank of the United States, the United 
States International Development Finance Cooperation, and the United 
States Trade and Development Agency.
(h) Use of Funds.--Funds made available to carry out the Program 
shall be used--
(1) to provide assistance or financing--
(A) to foreign government partner civilian 
government agencies; or
(B) to law enforcement or military agencies, only 
if such entities are the owners and operators of the 
foreign government partner's civilian critical 
infrastructure; and
(2) to develop blended finance mechanisms, co-developed 
with the participating foreign government partner, that 
partners with fund managers, project developers, third-party 
investors, infrastructure providers, and other private partners 
to advance the objections outlined in subsection (b).
(i) Partner Disqualification.--
(1) Prohibition on the use of funds.--No funds shall be 
made available under this Act to--
(A) a foreign country of concern; or
(B) any country, entity, or person--
(i) upon which sanctions are imposed by the 
United States Department of the Treasury; or
(ii) that is an entity or person on the 
Entity List maintained by the Bureau of 
Industry and Security of the Department of 
Commerce and set forth in Supplement No. 4 to 
part 744 of title 14, Code of Federal 
Regulations.
(2) Vetting.--The Secretary of State shall vet foreign 
government partners to determine whether there is credible 
information that such partner--
(A) has committed serious human rights abuses or 
engaged in corruption, as defined by section 1 of 
Executive Order 13818 (50 U.S.C. 1701 note; relating to 
blocking the property of persons involved in serious 
human rights abuse or corruption), or is determined to 
be ineligible for assistance pursuant to section 620M 
of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 
2378d); and
(B) uses or is likely to use technologies outlined 
in subsection (c) and supported by this Act to engage 
in--
(i) violations of human rights;
(ii) targeted or bulk surveillance in 
violation of rule of law principles or 
fundamental freedoms;
(iii) the monitoring of journalists, 
activists, human rights defenders, opposition 
parties, or political dissidents;
(iv) internet shutdowns or to limit or 
control elections or protests;
(v) political censorship or the targeting 
and suppression of political speech or 
political opponents;
(vi) denial of access to technology or 
services based on race, ethnicity, gender, 
religion, or other discriminatory factors; and
(vii) acts of transnational repression.
(3) Disqualification.--Any foreign government partner 
determined by the Secretary of State to engage in the 
activities described in paragraph (2)(B) shall be ineligible 
for support or assistance under this Act.
(j) Regional Technology Officers.--The Secretary of State shall, to 
the maximum extent practicable, leverage the Department of State's 
Regional Technology Officer Program, pursuant to section 9508 of the 
Department of State Authorization Act of 2022 (22 U.S.C. 10305), to 
assist United States overseas missions in identifying foreign 
government partners to participate in the Program.
(k) Foreign Commercial Officers.--As appropriate, the Secretary of 
State shall, in coordination with the Secretary of Commerce, seek to 
leverage the Foreign Commercial Officer Program to assist United States 
overseas missions in identifying foreign government partners to 
participate in the Program.
(l) Congressional Notification Requirement.--Not later than 15 days 
before amounts from the Cyberspace, Digital Connectivity, and Related 
Technologies (CDT) Fund are obligated for purposes of carrying out this 
section, the Secretary of State shall submit notification of such 
obligation to--
(1) the Committee on Foreign Relations in the Senate;
(2) the Committee on Appropriations of the Senate;
(3) the Committee on Foreign Affairs in the House of 
Representatives; and
(4) the Committee on Appropriations of the House of 
Representatives.
(m) Annual Report.--Not later than one year after the date of the 
enactment of this Act and annually thereafter, the Secretary of State, 
in coordination with the Secretary of Commerce, shall submit to the 
appropriate congressional committees a report that includes--
(1) a complete list of participating foreign government 
partners in the Program;
(2) progress and results achieved in the previous calendar 
year;
(3) the overall amount of purchases or investments each 
foreign government partner has made since initial participation 
in the Program;
(4) specific cyber and digital technologies provided to 
participating foreign government partners, including--
(A) the name of the provider company or companies;
(B) the total value of the procurements;
(C) description of the capability; and
(D) how the procured capability addresses the 
original request submitted by the foreign government 
partner, if applicable;
(5) next steps for each participating foreign government 
partner in their respective Program pipeline;
(6) any challenges for a foreign government partner's 
participation in the Program, including how those challenges 
are being addressed; and
(7) how risks related to technology transfer, if 
applicable, are being mitigated.
(n) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized to be 
appropriated $500,000,000 for fiscal year 2026 through fiscal year 2031 
to the Cyberspace, Digital Connectivity, and Related Technologies (CDT) 
Fund under section 592 of the Foreign Assistance Act for Fiscal Year 
1961 (22 U.S.C. 2349cc-1) for purposes of carrying out this section.
(o) Sunset.--The Program and its associated authorities established 
under this section shall terminate on the date that is eight years 
after the date of the enactment of this Act.

SEC. 5. OFFICE OF UNITED STATES TECHNOLOGY PROCUREMENT.

(a) Designation of Responsibility.--The Secretary of State shall 
designate an existing office within the Bureau for Cyberspace and 
Digital Policy of the Department of State, or newly establish an Office 
of United States Technology Procurement (referred to in this Act as the 
``Office''), which shall be responsible for administering the Program.
(b) Personnel.--
(1) Composition.--The Office shall be comprised of a 
Director, a Deputy Director, and such other staff as the 
Secretary deems appropriate.
(2) Staffing.--The Office shall include personnel with 
expertise or experience in performing the following functions:
(A) Grant design and management.
(B) Program monitoring, evaluation, and learning.
(3) Director.--The Director of the Office shall fulfill the 
following responsibilities:
(A) Identify, on an annual basis, specific 
strategic priorities for the Program consistent with 
United States national security priorities and 
objectives.
(B) In coordination with the other relevant 
officials, select and approve all partnerships with 
foreign government partners under the Program.
(C) Conduct oversight, monitoring, and evaluation 
of the effectiveness of the Program, including long-
term outcome assessments, to ensure the Program 
advances United States foreign policy and national 
security interests and to ensure monitoring, 
evaluation, and learning results directly inform future 
grant decisions.
(D) Ensure, to the maximum extent practicable, that 
all Program activities are carried out in coordination 
with other Federal efforts to promote the United States 
technology stack overseas.
(E) Compiling and submitting the list required by 
section 4(m).
(4) Deputy director.--The Deputy Director of the Office may 
have responsibility for policy and programming to assist the 
Director, particularly with respect to coordination with other 
United States departments and agencies.
(c) Special Hiring Authorities.--For the two years following the 
date of the enactment of this Act for the purposes of supporting the 
Director in carrying out the responsibilities of the Office as defined 
in subsection (b)(3), the Secretary of State may--
(1) appoint up to 10 employees to positions without regard 
to the provisions of subchapter 1 of chapter 33 of title 5, 
United States Code, regarding appointments in the competitive 
service; and
(2) fix the rates of basic pay of such employees without 
regard to chapter 51 and subchapter III of chapter 53 of such 
title regarding classification and General Schedule pay rates, 
provided that the rates for such positions do not exceed the 
annual rate of basic pay in effect for a position at level IV 
of the Executive Schedule under section 5315 of title 5, United 
States Code.
(d) Authorization of Appropriations.--There is authorized to be 
appropriated $2,000,000 for fiscal years 2026 through 2028 for the 
purposes of implementing the Office.

SEC. 6. EXPANDING NECESSARY TECHNOLOGY AND RELATED EXPERTISE AT UNITED 
STATES OVERSEAS MISSIONS.

(a) Sense of Congress.--It is the sense of Congress that, for the 
United States Government to successfully implement the Program, it is 
vital that the United States recruit and retain the necessary talent to 
facilitate such partnerships.
(b) In General.--The Secretary of State shall, to the maximum 
extent possible, take measures to ensure that United States overseas 
missions in countries that are participating in the Program host at 
least one full-time personnel with demonstrated proficiency in matters 
related to cybersecurity, technology, and other related expertise to 
sufficiently carry out the Program.

SEC. 7. EXTENDING AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS FOR THE REGIONAL 
TECHNOLOGY OFFICER PROGRAM.

Subsection (d) of section 9508 of the Department of State 
Authorization Act of 2022 (22 U.S.C. 10305) is amended by striking 
``2027'' and inserting ``2032''.

SEC. 8. PRESERVING MARKET-BASED COMPETITION FOR CYBER AND DIGITAL 
TECHNOLOGIES.

(a) Statement of Policy.--It is the policy of the United States to 
support market-based mechanisms for the export and adoption of United 
States cyber and digital technologies abroad, and to oppose state-
directed or state-controlled economic models that risk to displace or 
crowd out private-sector competition in cyber and digital technology 
markets.
(b) In General.--Nothing in this Act shall be construed to permit 
the Secretary of State, in coordination with other relevant Federal 
agencies, in carrying out the program outlined in section 4(a)--
(1) to unduly interfere with, or seek to substitute for, 
market-based competition among United States cyber and digital 
technology providers;
(2) to condition access to program support on the 
acceptance of commercial terms, partnerships, or business 
arrangements that United States cyber and digital technology 
providers would not voluntarily accept in an arm's length 
commercial transaction; or
(3) to require foreign government partners to receive 
approval from the United States Government for procurements 
from United States cyber and digital technology providers 
pursued outside the Program, except as otherwise required by 
any other regulations or Federal law.
(c) Cyber and Digital Technology Small Business Owners.--
Notwithstanding subsection (a), in carrying out the Program, the 
Secretary of State may provide targeted assistance, including capacity-
building support and the facilitation of foreign government partner 
engagement, to United States small businesses and companies that lack 
the global reach, existing relationships, or resources to compete 
independently in foreign government partner procurement markets, 
provided that such assistance does not confer an unfair competitive 
advantage over other United States cyber and digital technology 
providers.

SEC. 9. GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY OFFICE REPORT.

Not later than one year after the date of the enactment of this 
Act, and not less frequently than every two years until the termination 
of the Program's authorities, the Comptroller General of the United 
States shall conduct and submit to the appropriate congressional 
committees a review of the Program. The review shall include an 
assessment of the Department of State's implementation of the Program, 
including--
(1) the Department of State's capacity to implement the 
Program, including personnel and budgetary resources;
(2) whether the Department of State has established the 
necessary processes and procedures to successfully achieve the 
Program objectives outlined in section 4;
(3) the Department of State's ability to conduct 
appropriate monitoring and evaluation of Program 
implementation;
(4) any technologies added or removed from the list under 
section 4(c) of covered cyber and digital technologies; and
(5) any other elements deemed necessary by the Comptroller 
General of the United States.
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