A US regulator voted Thursday to advance a proposal that would effectively bar Chinese labs from testing electronic devices ranging from smartphones to cameras for use in the United States.
The move, which the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) says aims to “prioritize national security,” comes a year after the agency adopted rules to ban test labs “owned or controlled by foreign adversaries.”
The latest measure, if green-lit, appears to expand the earlier restriction.
Around 75 percent of certified devices in the United States are tested in recognized labs in China, the FCC estimates.
The latest proposal bans recognition of test labs and certification bodies in countries that do not have a mutual recognition agreement with the United States, or other comparable reciprocal trade agreement, the FCC said.
China does not have such a pact with the FCC, according to its website.
If approved, products tested and certified in such labs would be phased out over two years after final rules are implemented.
The regulator has been taking steps to separate Chinese entities from US supply chains.
In March, the FCC barred authorizations of new consumer routers made in foreign countries, also on national security grounds.
Companies would have to seek exemptions for their new router models from US authorities.
On Thursday, the FCC said it also adopted an order to create a fast-track review process for devices tested in trusted labs, namely those in the United States or “reciprocal international locations.”
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