The US Senate commerce committee passed the Connected Vehicle Security Act, a bill that would restrict the sale of connected vehicles in the United States by automakers with Chinese ownership.
The bill would bar an automaker from selling connected vehicles in the United States if Chinese groups own more than 15% of the company. Connected vehicles use hardware and software for communications.
Mercedes-Benz will be affected because Chinese companies own about 20% of the German automaker. The company had lobbied the Senate commerce committee to dilute the proposed ownership threshold.
The bill would also prohibit the import of battery systems made by CATL, a Chinese battery manufacturer.
The measure still requires approval by the full Senate. It would then need to be reconciled with any version of the legislation passed by the US House of Representatives before becoming law.