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United States Congress Will Vote on American COMPETE Act to ‘Beat China’ in Blockchain Technology

The House of Representatives will vote for the first time on a bill that specifically aims to ensure the United States remains competitive with China in the race for blockchain and technological supremacy when it meets via webinar to discuss the American COMPETE act.

The American Competitiveness of a More Productive Emerging Tech Economy Act (American COMPETE Act) was introduced just last week Sept. 1 and will be discussed in the House Energy and Commerce Committee markup hearing today, Sep 9.

The bill has been expeditiously put before the House of Representatives and was sponsored by Congressman Bobby Rush (D-IL) and Congresswoman Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA) along with 12 other Co-Sponsor. The bill calls for the Department of Commerce and Federal Trade Commission to research and advance blockchain technology implementation and development in the United States.

As the China-US tech cold war heats up, the United States COMPETE act bill expands to the study of all disruptive and emerging technologies including the Internet of Things (IoT), Artificial Intelligence (AI), and quantum computing.

The bill calls on the Commerce and Federal Trade Commission to make four key recommendations to Congress—how to accelerate the development of blockchain in the United States; to devise a national strategy to advance the US business sectors global position; advice on ways to secure the marketplace and supply chain of blockchain from foreign actors; and recommendations on legislation that could promote faster adoption of the blockchain technology.

As reported by Forbes on Sep 8, McMorris Rodgers highlighted it was critical to ‘Beat China’ through this strategy as they cannot compete with China at its own game of subsidizing its tech companies. She said:

“As we have seen in past global crises and in recent months, the Chinese Communist Party will do whatever it takes to get ahead by stealing, cheating, and subsidizing their State-Owned Enterprises. We cannot out subsidize China or beat them at their own game, nor should we.”

US-China Blockchain Race

As reported by Blockchain.News on May 22, Lawmakers in the US have been coaxing the federal government to consider a national blockchain strategy for regulation and growth, citing China’s Blockchain Service Network as an example.

China, for all purposes, is currently leading the world in blockchain study, framework, and regulation. Highlights include the creation of a national blockchain strategy (BSN), pilot projects on digital currencies, and dedicating entire areas towards DLT research and development.

China’s state-backed Blockchain-based Service Network (BSN) has been rapidly advancing in 2020 and has already integrated with six public blockchains including Tezos, NEO, Nervos, EOS, IRISnet and Ethereum. By opening the national blockchain platform to allow developers around the world to experiment at a subsidized low cost, the United States could fall even further behind in the current tech cold war.

The United States COMPETE act aims to rapidly improve the American position in the race for blockchain dominance.

US Legislators Approve Digital Taxonomy and American COMPETE Blockchain Bills in Tech Race with China

US lawmakers approved two bills, the American COMPETE Act and the Digital Taxonomy Act, raising the stakes in an active race against China for innovation in the blockchain and technological development sector.

Lawmakers push for blockchain advancement

The two bills proposed will then go on to the US House of Representatives for a vote. Through a webinar moderated by the Chamber of Digital Commerce, the American Competitiveness of a More Productive Emerging Tech Economy Act (American COMPETE act) was discussed. The legislative act advocated for research and development for the purposes of furthering blockchain technology implementations in the United States. It appealed to the Department of Commerce and Federal Trade Commission (FTC) at a crucial time, as China-US tensions continue to escalate due in their emerging tech cold war.

Through the American COMPETE act, US lawmakers wish to further research on all disruptive and emerging technologies, including the Internet of Things (IoT), Artificial Intelligence (AI), and quantum computing. The bill has been advocated for by Democratic Representative Darren Soto and his co-sponsors.

Digital Taxonomy Act

In addition to passing the American COMPETE Act, the Committee on Energy and Commerce also approved the Digital Taxonomy Act. If the bill passes in US Congress, the Department of Commerce and the FTC would be given the green light to research and report on the state of blockchain technology in the country. In addition, it would enable the Federal Trade Commission to propose regulatory measures regarding digital token transactions, as well as monitor illicit crypto activities.

Will China be the first to deploy a functional CBDC?

US lawmakers have been pushing for a national blockchain development strategy with the federal US government for quite some time, using China’s Blockchain Service Network as a reference to back the argument that the country needed innovative technological implementations.

China is currently in the lead in the blockchain sector, in terms of research, framework, and regulation. A national blockchain strategy has already been implemented by the economical giant, with a State Blockchain Service Network (BSN). Pilot projects on digital currencies are also in the works, as China is reported to be in the final steps of implementing their digital currency electronic payment (DCEP), stating that it will be ready in the upcoming months.

Ripple co-founder Chris Larsen has said that China has placed itself in the optimal position to become the global financial leader, through a series of strategic long-term developments. The Chairman had disclosed in the past:

“China should make the US paranoid about maintaining our lead. It has already achieved near-universal use of digital payments domestically through financial tech giants such as Alipay and WeChat, and it’s on the cusp of issuing a state-controlled digital currency-the digital Yuan.”

With the American COMPETE act and the Digital Taxonomy Act, the US is aiming to advance in the race for global blockchain dominance.

US House of Representatives Passes Blockchain Innovation Act On to the Senate

Two bills introduced by Representative Darren Soto—the Digital Taxonomy Act and the Blockchain Innovation Act—are now making their way to the Senate after being approved in the House of Representatives.

The two acts have been updated into the Consumer Safety Technology Act (H.R. 8128), which is a bill directing the Consumer Product Safety Commission to explore applications for AI earlier this month. The Bill is now headed for the Senate for the final vote.

What Do the Blockchain Bills Mean?

Essentially if the bills are passed, they aim to protect the public from scams and illegitimate projects—leveraging blockchain technology to combat fraud.

Specifically, the Digital Taxonomy Act (H.R.2154) provides clarity on the definitions of two terms—’digital asset’ and ‘digital unit’—and place a burden on the Federal Trade Commission to prevent unfair trade practices of both aspects. In addition, the Blockchain Innovation Act (H.R. 8153) also requires the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to research and present information on how blockchain can be leveraged in consumer protection.

The two bills were introduced by Rep. Darren Soto (D-FL) and have been rolled into the Consumer Safety Technology Act which was introduced by Rep. Jerry McNerny (D-CA)—which as mentioned pertains to using AI in consumer safety inspections.

The act highlights that remaining competitive with digital tokens and blockchain is critical to maintain American innovation, and obligated the FTC to provide further recommendations limit the abuse of the technology while allowing the United States to remain competitive.

Congressman Darren Soto said in a release:

“As lawmakers, it’s our duty to ensure the United States continues to lead in blockchain technology […] The Digital Taxonomy Act adds greater jurisdictional clarity for a strong digital asset market in the United States.”

Rep. Darren Soto has attempted to introduce or co-sponsor multiple blockchain bills pertaining to digital assets, but so far all bills have had a very hard time making their way through the house.

On the success of passing the two bills, Soto said:

“The study mandated by the Blockchain Innovation Act is a starting point meant to give government agencies a chance to make recommendations before any bills pass with a regulatory effect[…] These recommendations will perform an educational function to Members of Congress and will pave the way for more actionable blockchain-focused legislation.”