Sponsors (2)
The bill strengthens national-security vetting and DoD accountability for freight carriers through certifications and a registry, but does so at the cost of added compliance burdens, potential exclusion of small carriers, regulatory uncertainty that could slow logistics, and privacy risks.
Carriers that move DoD freight will be less likely to have ties to designated Chinese military companies, and a centralized registry plus certification requirements give DoD/DOT better vetting and monitoring of who transports sensitive military cargo.
DoD gains a centralized, documented compliance trail (five-year certification retention and a registry) that simplifies onboarding, aids audits, and increases accountability for carriers handling DoD shipments.
False certifications are subject to suspension, debarment, and criminal/civil penalties, deterring fraud and protecting taxpayer-funded logistics programs.
Carriers and owner-operators must perform "reasonable inquiry," register, collect certifications, and retain records, creating new compliance costs and administrative burden that raise operating expenses.
Delegating key definitions to DoD rulemaking and integrating the new requirements into approval/enforcement processes could create regulatory uncertainty, slow approvals, reduce available carriers, and cause delays or higher costs for DoD shipments.
Smaller subcontractors and owner-operators that cannot reasonably verify they lack ties to listed Chinese military companies risk being excluded from DoD freight markets, reducing competition and income opportunities.
Based on analysis of 3 sections of legislative text.
Requires carriers and contractors moving DoD cargo to certify they lack ownership/controls or significant ties to DoD-listed Chinese military companies, keep five-year records, flow certifications, and join a DoD carrier registry.
Introduced March 12, 2026 by Elise M. Stefanik · Last progress March 12, 2026
Requires motor carriers and related contractors that transport Department of Defense (DoD) cargo to certify that, after reasonable inquiry, they are not owned, controlled by, or in significant business relationships with entities on the DoD list of Chinese military companies, and to pass the same certification to subcontractors and owner-operators. It also creates a DoD national security registry for motor carriers that handle DoD freight, requires retention of certification records for five years, exposes knowingly false certifications to civil/criminal penalties and suspension/debarment, and directs DoD to issue implementing regulations within 180 days and integrate the process into existing carrier approval systems.