{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://www.rickscott.senate.gov/2025/9/sens-rick-scott-blackburn-and-moreno-write-to-treasury-sec-calling-for-immediate-delisting-of-communist-china-s-hesai", "Sens. Rick Scott, Blackburn, and Moreno Write to Treasury & SEC Calling for Immediate Delisting of Communist China\u2019s Hesai", "2025-09-15", "2025", "2025-09", "Republican", "Senate", "FL", "Rick Scott", "S001217", "www.rickscott.senate.gov", "rickscott", "https://www.rickscott.senate.gov/press-releases/", "page_html", "WASHINGTON, D.C. \u2013 Last week, Senators Rick Scott, Marsha Blackburn, and Bernie Moreno sent a letter to Securities and Exchange Committee (SEC) Chairman Paul Atkins and Treasury Department Secretary Scott Bessent urging them to take immediate action to delist Hesai from the NASDAQ stock exchange as the company has been determined to support the Chinese military (1260H list), which poses a national security threat. By taking steps to delist Hesai, Chairman Atkins and Secretary Bessent would be helping President Trump deliver on his promises to the American people by protecting American investors, ensuring American national security, and helping put America First.\n\nThe letter builds on several significant pieces of legislation introduced by Senator Scott aimed at protecting American investors and the American way of life from Communist China. In April, Senator Scott introduced a package of bills intended to hold Communist China accountable and combat its exploitation of American families and their hard-earned money. That month, in his role as chairman of the Senate Special Committee on Aging, he also hosted a hearing looking at how American retirees and investors were put at risk by allowing companies like Hesai to be traded on American markets.\n\nRead the letter HERE or below:\n\nDear Chairman Atkins and Secretary Bessent:\n\nWe write to express our profound concern regarding the continued listing of Hesai Group (\u201cHesai\u201d) on the U.S. NASDAQ exchange. As detailed in previous correspondence, Hesai\u2019s designation as a Chinese military company by the Department of Defense presents serious national security concerns that warrant immediate delisting action to protect investors and prevent their hard-earned dollars from funding an adversarial military. As such, we call on you to take immediate steps to delist Hesai from the NASDAQ to maintain the quality of and public confidence in the exchange. Hesai\u2019s operations are fundamentally incompatible with U.S. national security interests and investment standards.\n\nIn January 2024, the Department of Defense (DoD) initially designated Hesai under Section 1260H of the National Defense Authorization Act. The Pentagon then relisted Hesai in October 2024 based on additional evidence of the company\u2019s military ties. On July 7, 2025, this decision was finalized after the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia issued a decision denying Hesai\u2019s lawsuit against the DoD seeking to be removed as a 1260H-listed Chinese military company.\n\nSpecifically, the District Court decision held \u201cthe Court concludes that the DoD\u2019s finding that Hesai contributes \u2018to the Chinese defense industrial base\u2019 is supported by substantial evidence because the evidence in the record viewed in light of the nature of LIDAR technology could lead \u2018a reasonable mind might accept as adequate to support a conclusion.\u2019\u201d This confirms the DoD\u2019s decision that Hesai is a Chinese military company operating actively in the United States. This determination was not made lightly and reflects the serious national security threat posed by this entity.\n\nThis also means that hard-working Americans can invest their savings into a Chinese military company as long as Hesai continues to be listed on the NASDAQ. This directly contradicts the goals President Trump outlined in the America First Investment Policy, stating: \u201cThe PRC is also increasingly exploiting United States capital to develop and modernize its military, intelligence, and other security apparatuses, which poses significant risk to the United States.\u201d With more direct applicability to this case relating to Hesai, the America First Investment Policy further states that:\n\n\u201cThose Chinese companies also raise capital by: selling to American investors securities that trade on American and foreign public exchanges; lobbying United States index providers and funds to include these securities in market offerings; and engaging in other acts to ensure access to United States capital and accompanying intangible benefits. In this way, the PRC exploits United States investors to finance and advance the development and modernization of its military.\u201d\n\nThere is clear evidence that Hesai\u2019s products directly support People\u2019s Liberation Army combat vehicles and surveillance systems used in the repression of Uyghur Muslims in Xinjiang. In addition, there are reports of espionage activities involving Chinese nationals utilizing military-grade LIDAR technology, which are capable of capturing precise location details and transmitting data in real time, around military bases in the Philippines. These incidents not only threaten the security of a key U.S. ally, but also U.S. military actions in the region, and highlight the risks of Chinese-made dual-use technology being used for specific military targeting purposes.\n\nThe Department of the Treasury has the authority to add Chinese companies to the Chinese Military-Industrial Complex Companies (NS-CMIC) List pursuant to Executive Order 13959, as amended. In particular, Treasury may add a company to the NS-CMIC List if it is determined \u201cto operate or have operated in the defense and related materiel sector or the surveillance technology sector of the economy of the PRC.\u201d Given the clear evidence by the DoD that Hesai is a Chinese military company, it follows that the company operates in the defense sector. Therefore, Treasury should begin to immediately take steps to add Hesai to the NS-CMIC List.\n\nHesai\u2019s continued presence on U.S. capital markets directly contradicts NASDAQ\u2019s listing requirements, particularly those related to the public interest and protection of investors. As a Pentagon-designated Chinese military company providing technology that enables both China's military modernization and human rights abuses, Hesai\u2019s securities should no longer be available to American investors.\n\nIn light of this information, we call on the SEC to take immediate action to delist Hesai from the U.S. NASDAQ and call on the Treasury to take immediate action to add Hesai to the NS-CMIC List. We request a response by October 1, 2025, detailing the steps the SEC and Treasury will take to address these concerns and protect U.S. investors from unwittingly financing China\u2019s military modernization through Hesai\u2019s securities.\n\n###", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-03-30T11:08:25Z"]], "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.rickscott.senate.gov/2025/9/sens-rick-scott-blackburn-and-moreno-write-to-treasury-sec-calling-for-immediate-delisting-of-communist-china-s-hesai"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.5043960884213448, "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"}