Stevens, Slotkin to Introduce Legislation to Ban Chinese Connected Vehicles from Driving Over the Border Unchecked

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Michigan Congresswoman Haley Stevens and U.S. Senator Elissa Slotkin announced the Protecting America from Chinese Cars Act at the Mackinac Policy Conference on Mackinac Island, MI. The bill prevents Chinese connected vehicles from entering the U.S., including through our neighbors to the north and south. This legislation is a significant step towards protecting our national security and the U.S. auto industry.

The Chinese auto industry is heavily subsidized by the Chinese Communist Party, allowing them to undercut competitors and quickly flood new markets. We’ve seen this process play out rapidly in Europe and South America. In Mexico, Chinese vehicles have quickly gained roughly 15% market share. In January 2026, Canada announced a trade deal with China that will see Canada dramatically reduce tariffs on tens of thousands of Chinese vehicles. The threat of connected vehicles from China is now at both of our backyards, to the North and South.

For years, Stevens has made protecting the United States from the national security and economic threats posed by Chinese connected vehicles a priority. Most recently, introduced the No Chinese Cars Act to protect American automakers and Michigan jobs. This legislation would grant the United States Trade Representative (USTR) the authority to expand existing 301 tariffs on Chinese auto exports to autos arriving in the United States from other countries if those autos: are produced by a firm from a country subject to existing tariffs; and, are produced by a firm from China, Russia, Iran, or North Korea. This legislation drew support from Michauto.

"The Chinese Communist Party should never have access to sensitive information about American drivers, roads, or critical infrastructure. The Protect America from Chinese Cars Act closes dangerous loopholes that currently allow Chinese connected vehicles to enter the United States through Canada and Mexico,” said Representative Stevens. "This bill is about staying laser focused on protecting American national security and standing up for Michigan autoworkers who build the best vehicles in the world.”

“This is an economic security issue and a national security issue, and we must prevent these vehicles from driving over our border and into our communities,” said Senator Slotkin. “They’re surveillance packages on wheels – fully capable of geolocating individual drivers, collecting full-motion video, and mapping sensitive infrastructure sites, including our military. This bill builds on my bipartisan Connected Vehicle Security Act of 2026 and bans fully finished Chinese vehicles from driving over in any capacity, even just for the day.”

The Protecting America from Chinese Cars Act would prevent connected vehicles from China and other adversarial nations from entering the U.S. through the following actions:

1. Prohibits connected vehicles from China and other adversarial nations from entering the United States. This includes connected vehicles manufactured or designed in China, as well as vehicles manufactured by a Chinese company or an entity in which Chinese companies have a greater than 15% stake.
2. Establishes a process by which vehicle manufacturers can apply for a specific authorization to allow otherwise prohibited vehicles to enter the U.S. Specific authorizations could only be granted under strict conditions, with both transparency and congressional oversight.
3. Requires U.S. Customs and Border Protection to develop rules and procedures related to implementing these prohibitions, including a list of prohibited vehicles, within 90 days of the bill’s enactment.

Read the one-pager on the Protecting America from Chinese Cars Act here.

###