Connected Vehicle National Security Review and Licensing Act

Section 1. Short title and findings. This Act may be cited as the Connected Vehicle National Security Review and Licensing Act. Congress finds that connected vehicles capable of collecting and transmitting real-time location, biometric, or other sensitive data present a risk to national security if linked to foreign adversary governments, and that existing trade and immigration law does not adequately address this risk. Section 2. Prohibition on entry. (a) The Secretary of Homeland Security, in consultation with the Secretary of Commerce and the Attorney General, shall establish a licensing program for any connected vehicle—defined as any motor vehicle with hardware or software that enables continuous internet or cellular communication—manufactured or assembled by any entity that is controlled by, organized under the laws of, or substantially owned by a foreign adversary government as designated in 15 U.S.C. 9501. (b) No connected vehicle described in subsection (a) may be imported into or sold in the United States without a license issued by the Secretary of Homeland Security. A license shall be granted only if the applying manufacturer demonstrates—through an independent security audit—that the vehicle's data collection and transmission systems are physically and logically isolated from any real-time interface with a foreign adversary's government network, and that all collected data is stored and processed within the United States or allied nations with comparable privacy protections. (c) The Secretary may issue a temporary license for testing and evaluation, or refuse a license, with written reasons. Denials shall be subject to de novo judicial review in the U.S. Court of International Trade. Section 3. Effective date and sunset. This Act shall take effect 180 days after enactment and shall expire ten years after enactment, unless reauthorized by Congress after a sunset review report from the Government Accountability Office. Section 4. Authorization and funding. There is authorized to be appropriated $50 million per fiscal year for the licensing program, to be offset by a licensing fee of no more than 0.1% of the vehicle's wholesale customs value. No additional general revenue funds shall be used. Section 5. Enforcement. The Secretary of Homeland Security may assess a civil penalty of up to $100,000 per vehicle imported or sold in violation of a license requirement. The Secretary may also seize and forfeit any vehicle imported in violation under customs laws. Whistleblowers who report violations may receive up to 15% of the penalty collected. Section 6. Supremacy and savings. This Act supersedes any inconsistent state law restricting vehicle imports only to the extent that the state law conflicts with a federal license decision. State data privacy laws remain unaffected.