Congressman John Moolenaar Chairman of the Select Committee on the CCP | Official U.S. House headshot
Congressman John Moolenaar Chairman of the Select Committee on the CCP | Official U.S. House headshot
Chairman John Moolenaar and Ranking Member Raja Krishnamoorthi of the House Select Committee on the Strategic Competition Between the United States and the Chinese Communist Party have reached out to major semiconductor manufacturing equipment companies. They are seeking information about these companies' sales to China. The lawmakers expressed concerns over the increasing presence of American, Japanese, and Dutch semiconductor equipment in China, which could potentially aid the People's Liberation Army in advancing its chip-making capabilities.
The inquiry was directed at industry leaders such as KLA, Applied Materials, Lam Research, Tokyo Electron, and ASML. In their letters, Moolenaar and Krishnamoorthi stated that these firms possess crucial information that could shed light on the flow of semiconductor manufacturing equipment to China. "Alarming reports show the PRC now purchases more semiconductor manufacturing equipment than the United States, South Korea, and Taiwan combined," they wrote. They warned that this trend might not only support China's military efforts but also enhance its position in fields like artificial intelligence.
The lawmakers acknowledged some industry perspectives that suggest limiting U.S. export controls could benefit competitiveness but argued otherwise. "Enhanced export controls simply are not mutually exclusive with a robust and thriving SME industry," they noted.
To gain further insights, Moolenaar and Krishnamoorthi posed several questions to these companies regarding their revenue from China for fiscal years 2022 through 2024, details on transactions subject to U.S. export licenses, interactions with entities on various U.S. government lists, and their global manufacturing footprint.
They also requested information on U.S. export license applications since January 2021 and data on SME equipment shipments to China from any subsidiaries worldwide.
The inquiry seeks to understand how many employees are involved in export control compliance work related to China and any plans for offshoring production.
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