Acting Budget Chief Seeks Reprieve on Huawei Ban: WSJ

(Bloomberg) -- White House acting budget chief Russell T. Vought is pushing for a delay in implementing key provisions of a law that restricts the U.S. government’s business with Huawei Technologies, the WSJ reports.

• Acting director of the Office of Management and Budget, Russell T. Vought, makes request to Vice President Mike Pence and nine members of Congress citing the burdens on U.S. companies that use Huawei technology
  • Request dated June 4 asks for a delay in the implementation of portions of the National Defense Authorization Act
• Letter says the National Defense Authorization Act could lead to a “dramatic reduction” in the number of companies that would be able to supply the government, and would disproportionately affect U.S. companies in rural areas—where Huawei gear is popular—that rely on federal grants
  • Letter asks for the restrictions on contractors and on federal loan and grant recipients to take effect four years from the law’s passage, instead of the current two years, to give affected companies time to respond and give feedback
• WSJ says a Huawei spokesman declined to comment

To contact the reporter on this story: Robert Lavelle in New York at rlavelle@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Chakradhar Adusumilli at cadusumilli@bloomberg.net

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