By David Shepardson
WASHINGTON, July 8 (Reuters) – The U.S. Senate Commerce Committee will vote on July 15 on bipartisan legislation to toughen a U.S. government ban on Chinese automakers entering the American market.
Republican Senator Bernie Moreno of Ohio and Democratic Senator Elissa Slotkin of Michigan proposed legislation in April to codify a regulation imposed by the Biden administration that effectively bans all Chinese automakers from selling passenger vehicles in the U.S. and takes other steps to prevent China from entering the U.S. light-duty market.
Last month, Polestar said it was forced by the Trump administration to stop selling vehicles in the United States beginning in the 2027 model year as Washington ramps up its crackdown on Chinese vehicles.
House lawmakers have introduced a similar version of the Senate bill. The legislation would ban vehicles designed in China if they had advanced connectivity as well as vehicle software.
The Biden administration imposed sweeping regulations in January 2025 that sought to ban Chinese automakers from selling passenger vehicles in the U.S., citing national security concerns linked to the ability of vehicles to collect sensitive data on American owners.
In March, auto trade groups representing nearly all major car companies — including the Detroit Three, Volkswagen, Hyundai and Toyota, parts manufacturers, auto dealers and others — urged the U.S. government to keep out Chinese carmakers, citing “serious concerns about China’s ongoing efforts to dominate global automotive manufacturing and to gain access to the U.S. market.”
They added China poses “a direct threat to America’s global competitiveness, national security, and automotive industrial base.”
Chinese autos face high tariffs, but U.S. consumers have become more interested in the vehicles, recent surveys show, and lower-priced Chinese EVs have gained significant market share in Mexico and Europe.
In January, President Donald Trump said he was open to Chinese automakers building vehicles in the U.S. but no change on auto policy was announced after a Trump-Xi summit in May.
The Chinese Embassy in Washington has repeatedly opposed U.S. measures to crack down on Chinese vehicles.
(Reporting by David Shepardson; Editing by Nia Williams and Sonali Paul)
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