Tomorrow, the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs is scheduled to hold a hearing entitled “CFIUS Reform: Administration Perspectives on the Essential Elements.”
The Administration supports House and Senate passage of S. 2098/H.R. 4311, the Foreign Investment Risk Review Modernization Act (FIRRMA). Modernizing the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) in line with FIRRMA would achieve the twin aims of protecting national security and preserving the longstanding United States open investment policy.
The United States has long been the world’s premier destination for international investment. Foreign investment provides significant economic benefits to the United States for American workers and families in terms of job creation, promotion of exports, research and development, and overall productivity of United States firms. FIRRMA, by modernizing CFIUS, would strengthen our ability to protect national security and enhance confidence in our longstanding open investment policy.
At its core, FIRRMA would expand the scope of transactions reviewable by CFIUS to more effectively address national security concerns that fall outside the current scope of CFIUS review. FIRRMA would allow CFIUS, which was last updated 10 years ago, to adjust its procedures to ensure that the process is tailored, efficient, effective, and administrable. Additionally, FIRRMA would require an assessment of the resources necessary for CFIUS to sustain its critical work, and would both establish a CFIUS Fund and permit filing fees to help achieve that end.
In supporting Congress’s efforts to modernize CFIUS through FIRRMA, the Administration looks forward to working with the relevant committees of jurisdiction on the legislation to ensure it achieves the intended effect, including protecting our national security from emerging risks while maintaining an open investment policy.
