Congressman John R. Moolenaar | Rep. John R. Moolenaar Official U.S House Headshot
Congressman John R. Moolenaar | Rep. John R. Moolenaar Official U.S House Headshot
In a recent move, Congressman John Moolenaar, a member of the Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), has successfully pushed for legislation to fund the Department of Energy (DOE) for 2024. The bill, which passed the House of Representatives, includes a policy authored by Moolenaar that prohibits the DOE from providing research funding or contracts to companies that collaborate with the CCP and other adversaries of the United States.
Explaining the rationale behind the policy, Moolenaar stated, "It is unacceptable that research funding is going to companies that work with the CCP. So I wrote this new policy to help stop it. Our country is in a competition against the CCP and we must make sure research and innovation funded by the American people benefits America and not China. Companies, including Gotion Inc., that are directly linked to the CCP have no business receiving federal research funding."
Moolenaar introduced the policy during the House Appropriations Committee's deliberation of the bill back in June. The approved version of the policy can be accessed here.
One of the companies affected by this policy is Gotion Inc. In March, Chuck Thelen, the Vice President of Gotion North America, acknowledged that his company is currently under contract with the Department of Energy as part of the U.S. Advanced Battery Consortium. However, Gotion Inc. is a subsidiary of Gotion High Tech, a China-based company that has established a joint venture with a Chinese military company known to support China's military, intelligence, and security apparatuses. Gotion Inc. has explicitly declared in its Foreign Agents Registration Act filing that it is "wholly owned and controlled by" Gotion High Tech.
This legislative move by Congressman Moolenaar demonstrates a clear commitment to ensuring that taxpayer-funded research and innovation remain within the boundaries of national interest. By prohibiting federal research funding to companies affiliated with the CCP, Moolenaar aims to safeguard American competitiveness and ensure that the American people's resources are directed towards projects that benefit the United States and not its adversaries.
Click this link to access more information: https://moolenaar.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/moolenaar-leads-house-banning-tax-dollars-gotion-research
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