Page 74 - The CFIUS Book

THE CFIUS BOOK
Triage Questions and the typically short timeframe within which to respond, it is advisable for applicants to prepare draft responses concurrently with their underlying FCC application(s).
4.2.3. National Security and Law Enforcement Implications
In the event Team Telecom determines that an application impacts national security or law enforcement – for instance, by giving a foreign party access to critical network infrastructure or sensitive information – Team Telecom will often require the parties to enter into a “Network Security Agreement” (NSA, and sometimes referred to as a National Security Agreement) or by requiring a Letter of Assurance from the applicant while its license application remains under review by the FCC.98 The FCC’s grant of the license then becomes conditional on the foreign company complying with the terms of the NSA or LOA.
NSAs can impose a number of requirements on the foreign company, potentially including the following:
l Maintenance of infrastructure and consumer data on U.S. soil
l Handling of surveillance requests by the U.S. Government
l A comprehensive description of the foreign company’s network and telecommunications architecture
l NoticeorpreapprovalbytheU.S.Governmentforcertainequipmentpurchases, government site inspections, and/or ongoing audit and reporting requirements by the company to the U.S. Government.99
Therefore, NSAs allow Team Telecom to regulate foreign communications carriers indirectly through the FCC’s licensing authority and executive legal power.100
Once its review is complete, Team Telecom publicly notifies the FCC of its recommendation by either (1) filing a withdrawal of its request to defer Commission action on an application or (2) by advising the FCC that it has no objection to the grant of application so long as the applicant complies with the terms of the relevant NSA or LOA. Team Telecom may also request denial of an application on national security or law enforcement grounds, but there are no known examples where Team Telecom has requested a denial of an application.101 In practice, issues arising from Team Telecom review are typically mitigated through an NSA or LOA. In cases where the foreign
74