{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://www.fischer.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news?ID=0EE2CAC7-F62C-4628-A739-6A23D89BA8F5", "Fischer, Colleagues Demand Answers on Chinese Intel Centers Inside U.S.", "2023-07-10", "2023", "2023-07", "Republican", "Senate", "NE", "Deb Fischer", "F000463", "www.fischer.senate.gov", "fischer", "https://www.fischer.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 U.S. Senator Deb Fischer (R-Neb.) joined nine of her Senate colleagues in sending a letter to U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland demanding answers regarding reports of Chinese intelligence outposts operating inside the United States, including Nebraska. The letter was led by U.S. Senator Ted Budd (R-N.C.).\n\n\u201cWe write to express our grave concerns regarding reports of \u2018Overseas Chinese Service Centers\u2019 (OCSCs) operated by an intelligence service of the People\u2019s Republic of China (PRC) in conjunction with the PRC\u2019s national police force,\u201d the Senators wrote.\n\n\u201cThe ongoing discovery of additional OCSCs raises the question of whether DOJ\u2019s response sufficiently addresses the threat, particularly because OCSCs have openly operated for several years and their activities have been reportedly documented in Chinese state media and social media posts. The DOJ must ensure that our adversaries such as the CCP are not operating intelligence operations or engaging in repression on U.S. soil,\u201d the Senators continued.\n\nIn addition to Senators Fischer and Budd, the letter was co-signed by U.S. Senators Pete Ricketts (R-Neb.), Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), Ted Cruz (R-Texas), John Cornyn (R-Texas), Eric Schmitt (R-Mo.), Josh Hawley (R-Mo.), Mike Lee (R-Utah), and Mitt Romney (R-Utah).\n\nRead the full letter here or below.\n\nWe write to express our grave concerns regarding reports of \u201cOverseas Chinese Service Centers\u201d (OCSCs) operated by an intelligence service of the People\u2019s Republic of China (PRC) in conjunction with the PRC\u2019s national police force. One such OCSC is reportedly housed at the Carolinas Chinese Chamber of Commerce in Charlotte, North Carolina, and the other centers are collocated with nonprofits in San Francisco, California; Houston, Texas; Omaha, Nebraska; St. Paul, Minnesota; Salt Lake City, Utah; and St. Louis, Missouri. These seven OCSCs have reportedly been openly operating for several years and were established throughout the U.S. during this past decade; for example, the Charlotte OCSC was first announced in 2017.\n\nAccording to this report, OCSCs are run by the Chinese Communist Party\u2019s (CCP) United Front Work Department (UFWD), which the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission has identified as a \u201cChinese intelligence service\u201d in its annual report to Congress. Further, the report states that U.S.-based OCSC representatives met with officials of the PRC\u2019s national police force, the Ministry of Public Security (MPS), on a trip to China to discuss the use of technology to conduct \u201ccross-border remote justice services\u201d overseas. The Department of Justice (DOJ) has warned that MPS conducts covert \u201cintelligence and national security operations far beyond China\u2019s borders,\u201d including \u201cillicit, transnational repression schemes\u201d on U.S. soil.\n\nFurther, the ongoing discovery of additional OCSCs raises the question of whether DOJ\u2019s response sufficiently addresses the threat, particularly because OCSCs have openly operated for several years and their activities have been reportedly documented in Chinese state media and social media posts. The DOJ must ensure that our adversaries such as the CCP are not operating intelligence operations or engaging in repression on U.S. soil.\n\nDue to the serious nature of this issue, we request that DOJ brief the undersigned Senators or their staff, and to respond to the following questions by July 31, 2023:\n\nDoes DOJ assess that any of the seven aforementioned OCSCs is engaging in any illegal activity? If so, please describe this illegal activity.\n\nWhat action, investigative or otherwise, is DOJ taking in relation to the seven aforementioned OCSCs?\n\nIs DOJ aware of additional OCSCs or similar PRC facilities operating in the U.S. that have not been previously acknowledged by DOJ? If so, please identify and describe them.\n\nWhat actions will DOJ undertake to ensure that it has identified every OCSC or similar PRC facility in the U.S.?\n\nWhat actions will DOJ take to ensure that the PRC does not establish additional OCSCs or similar facilities in the U.S.?", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-06T18:25:20Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://www.fischer.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/news?ID=0EE2CAC7-F62C-4628-A739-6A23D89BA8F5"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.3743990566581488, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}