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CIVIC HERALD
HR 1717 · 119th Congress · HouseIn committee

Communications Security Act

In plain language: This bill directs the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to establish a permanent advisory council tasked with protecting the nation's phone, mobile, and internet networks from cyber threats, technical breakdowns, and foreign interference. The panel will include representatives from telecom companies, research groups, and federal, state, local, and tribal governments, while strictly barring any entity tied to a foreign adversary or deemed a national security risk. Every two years, the council must publish public reports detailing recommendations to make communications infrastructure more secure and reliable.

Provisional: our plain-language summary, pending review.

Provisionalunreviewed: impact, issue tags, provisions, stakeholders, summary
People affected—The operative text establishes an internal federal advisory council and does not provide figures for an affected population.
Fiscal magnitude—The operative text does not authorize a specific dollar appropriation, grant, or fee.
Reach14provisional · pending reviewrigor: heuristic llm
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Issues

What this bill touches.

Internet & broadband+12Role of government+14Ethics & oversight+10

The sign shows the bill's direction on each issue (+ toward, − away); the number is its magnitude. Color never encodes good or bad, and never party.

Who it affects

Who it helps · who it burdens.

Who it helps

  • Communications industry companies, academic institutions, and public interest groupsGain formal advisory representation to the FCC on communications network security, reliability, and interoperability through two-year appointments to the council (Sec. 2(b)(2)(A), (B), (b)(4)).provisional
  • State, local, and Tribal governmentsGuaranteed at least one representative each on the council advising the FCC on communications network security, reliability, and interoperability (Sec. 2(b)(2)(C)).provisional

Who it burdens

  • Federal Communications Commission (FCC)Must establish or designate an advisory council within 90 days, appoint members, receive biennial reports, and publish the council's reports on the agency website (Sec. 2(a), (b)(1), (c)(2)).provisional

Who opposes it

  • Foreign-influenced or national security threat entitiesExplicitly barred from participating or having representatives appointed to the FCC's communications security advisory council (Sec. 2(b)(2)(A), (B), (e)(4)).provisional

Dollar-level funding (FEC sector totals) is coming in a later phase.

What it does

The provisions, in plain language.

  1. Requires the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to establish an advisory council—or designate an existing advisory committee—within 90 days to advise on the security, reliability, and interoperability of communications networks.

    Sec. 2(a)provisional

  2. Directs the FCC Chair to appoint qualified council members for two-year terms from the communications industry, academia, public interest groups, and federal, state, local, and tribal governments, while barring any entities determined to be foreign-controlled or national security threats.

    Sec. 2(b)provisional

  3. Requires the council to submit reports and recommendations to the FCC Chair at least every two years on improving communications network security, reliability, and interoperability.

    Sec. 2(c)(1)provisional

How your members of Congress line up

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Timeline

How it moved.

  1. Jul 16, 2025Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
  2. Jul 15, 2025Motion to reconsider laid on the table Agreed to without objection.
  3. Jul 15, 2025On motion to suspend the rules and pass the bill Agreed to by the Yeas and Nays: (2/3 required): 380 - 33 (Roll no. 196). (text: 7/14/2025 CR 3218-3219)
  4. Jul 15, 2025Passed/agreed to in House: On motion to suspend the rules and pass the bill Agreed to by the Yeas and Nays: (2/3 required): 380 - 33 (Roll no. 196).
  5. Jul 10, 2025Reported by the Committee on Energy and Commerce. H. Rept. 119-194.
  6. Jul 10, 2025Reported by the Committee on Energy and Commerce. H. Rept. 119-194.
  7. Apr 8, 2025Ordered to be Reported by the Yeas and Nays: 50 - 1.
  8. Feb 27, 2025Introduced in House
  9. Feb 27, 2025Introduced in House

The original text

Read it for yourself.

Read the original text →

Sources & provenance

Congress.govrefreshed 9 days ago

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