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HR 9430, introduced in the 119th Congress, would condition certain federal grants on recipients discontinuing use of unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) manufactured in specified foreign countries and direct tariff revenues toward strengthening domestic UAS production. The bill also aims to enhance law enforcement security by reducing reliance on foreign-produced drones. It has been referred to the House Judiciary Committee and the House Energy and Commerce Committee.
The bill enters the 119th Congress as bipartisan pressure to restrict Chinese UAS access to US government-adjacent operations has intensified following prior legislative cycles targeting DJI and other manufacturers under the FY2020 NDAA and subsequent executive actions. The structural driver is concern over data security and supply-chain dependency in Chinese-manufactured drones used by state, local, and federal public-safety entities. Prior Congresses have passed procurement-side restrictions; this bill attempts to extend that logic to the grant-recipient layer.
The bill draws on a durable bipartisan coalition around Chinese technology restriction that has anchored UAS security legislation since at least 2019, including congressional defense hawks and domestic drone industry advocates seeking market access. Cross-pressure comes from state and local government associations whose fleets rely heavily on lower-cost Chinese-manufactured UAS and who face compliance cost burdens if grant conditionality is enacted. No named industry association or congressional caucus is identified in the record.
The bill targets China (HS 8806) and is consistent with a broader US policy pattern of restricting Chinese-origin technology in government-adjacent operations. China could characterize the measure as a WTO-inconsistent subsidy or technical barrier, though domestic procurement and grant conditionality have historically survived WTO scrutiny when framed as national security measures under GATS Article XIV bis or GATT Article XXI.