Protecting Against National Security Threats to the Communications Supply Chain Through the Equipment Authorization Program

Document 2026-16197 is a Proposed Rule published by the Federal Communications Commission in the Federal Register on August 7, 2026. The Federal Communications Commission (Commission or FCC) issues a Third Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking seeking comment on a broad set of additional measures to strengthen the security and integrity of its equipment authorization program. The measures include bifurcating the Covered List into producer/provider-based and production location-based categories; addressing "white labeling" of covered equipment; hardware and software bill of materials (HBOM/SBOM) disclosure requirements; further prohibitions or presumptions against authorizing equipment containing Covered List components or software; certification requirements for devices in Covered List sectors; reforms to equipment importation, marketing, and pre-authorization operation rules; restrictions on use of the FCC logo; streamlined revocation procedures; codification of permissive-change waivers for software, firmware, and hardware updates to covered equipment; codified definitions for UAS, UAS critical components, and routers; term limits on equipment authorizations; registration of Supplier's Declaration of Conformity (SDoC) devices; modernization of the Commission's equipment authorization database; updates to submarine cable Covered List rules; and a proposal to require a U.S.-based liable party for FCC-certified equipment. View the original at https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2026/08/07/2026-16197/protecting-against-national-security-threats-to-the-communications-supply-chain-through-the.

No. Document 2026-16197 is not classified as economically significant under Executive Order 12866. Economically significant rules require OIRA review and are estimated to have impacts of $100 million or more per year.