A bill to bar Chinese-owned trucks from carrying U.S. Department of War (DOW) equipment has been introduced by Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AR) and Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-NY).
The legislation, dubbed the “Trucking Security and CCP Disclosure Act of 2026,” would require carriers contracted by the DOW to certify that it is “not owned or controlled by, and does not have significant business relationships with, any entity identified on the most recent list of Chinese military companies required under section 1260H of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2021.
The covered carrier would require the same certification from any subcontractor or owner-operator it engages for performance of the contract.
Supply chain and trucking industry outlet Freight Waves called attention to the largely-ignored issue of Chinese nationals illegally entering the U.S. and driving trucks without being proficient in English in January, stating that “the Chinese government can track U.S. military cargo moving on commercial freight.”
Freight Waves contributor and Department of Transportation (DOT) adviser Rob Carpenter posed the important question, “If a Chinese national can enter illegally, get work papers, obtain a CDL, and drive a commercial vehicle across state lines without anyone checking whether he can read a road sign, what’s stopping someone with actual ties to Chinese state interests from doing the same thing?”
Speaking exclusively with Breitbart News, Sen. Cotton emphasized the need to vet who the DOW entrusts to transport military technology.
“Communist China continues spying on American military technology by exploiting truck drivers handling Department of War cargo,” he said Thursday. “My bill will require anyone handling military freight to be properly vetted to ensure our adversaries cannot gain access to valuable information.”
Stefanik, who introduced the bill’s companion in the House of Representatives, added that “Most Americans would be shocked to learn that U.S. law does not already prohibit Communist China’s military from receiving transportation contracts tied to American defense projects.”
“This bicameral legislation closes that loophole by establishing a clear firewall between the Chinese Communist Party and Department of War contracts,” she continued in her statement to Breitbart News. “American tax dollars should never benefit our greatest adversary at the expense of U.S. national security.”
Olivia Rondeau is a politics reporter for Breitbart News based in Washington, DC. Find her on X/Twitter and Instagram.
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