U.S. Senator Jim Risch (R-Idaho), chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, joined Senators Pete Ricketts (R-NE), and Andy Kim (D-NJ) in introducing the Multilateral Alignment of Technology Controls on Hardware (MATCH) Act. This bipartisan legislation modernizes U.S. export controls to ensure adversaries cannot buy sensitive U.S. technology.
Work to modernize U.S. export controls to prevent adversaries from acquiring sensitive U.S. technology.
Occurrences
A changing landscape requires a change in policy... It was the recognition that we have more than one nuclear threat to the American people and nuclear agreements of days gone by no longer meet the needs of our nation. If our adversaries are building nuclear stockpiles, we unfortunately must do so as well. ... We need a credible, modernized nuclear program that deters our enemies from ever trying to intimidate us with their own nuclear weapons.
Evidence
Senator Jim Risch joined Senators Pete Ricketts and Andy Kim in introducing the Multilateral Alignment of Technology Controls on Hardware (MATCH) Act. The release says the bill 'modernizes U.S. export controls' to stop adversaries from buying semiconductor manufacturing equipment and says Risch's aim is to 'strengthen[] our export controls and clos[e] loopholes' adversaries exploit to obtain critical technologies.
Assessments
The evidence shows Risch materially advanced the promise by cointroducing the MATCH Act, a federal legislative proposal explicitly framed as modernizing U.S. export controls to prevent adversaries from acquiring sensitive semiconductor technology. However, the cited action is bill introduction, not enactment or final implementation, so the promised outcome has not been fully delivered. Because this is a serious legislative attempt during his current Senate term, partial credit is appropriate with an effort badge.