WASHINGTON, DC—Today Rep. Scott Franklin (FL-18) issued the following statement regarding his vote on H.R. 7521, the Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act:

“Contrary to popular belief, this bill is not a “ban” on TikTok. It simply requires TikTok to divest from ownership by a U.S. foreign adversary within 180 days. The debate surrounding this bill addresses a larger question: should any app, which deals in large amounts of Americans’ sensitive personal information be allowed to be owned by countries of concern?  Of course not.

“The Chinese Communist Party will stop at nothing to undermine U.S. world leadership and achieve global military and economic dominance. This includes the covert targeting, surveilling and influencing of Americans. We now know the CCP is not just gathering Americans’ personal data, but potentially manipulating it to control the content TikTok users see and condition their response. Congress has a duty to mitigate risks associated with foreign-owned companies accessing sensitive data of American citizens. This bill is a necessary step to address legitimate concerns about data privacy and national security. I’m pleased this critical bill passed the House with broad, bipartisan support. I urge the Senate to swiftly adopt the measure.”

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