S. 2259 — Protecting Military Bases from Connected Vehicles of Concern Act of 2025

This section prohibits the operation of connected vehicles on military installations or other Department of Defense property after January 1, 2028, if such vehicles appear on a list of prohibited vehicles to be established by the Secretary of Defense. The Secretary must publish the list on a public DOD website by January 1, 2027, identifying connected vehicles that are designed, developed, manufactured, or supplied by persons owned by, controlled by, or subject to the jurisdiction of a foreign entity of concern (as defined in 15 U.S.C. 4651)—such as certain Chinese or Russian government-linked entities—and that pose (i) an undue risk of sabotage or subversion of U.S. information and communications technology; (ii) an undue risk of catastrophic effects on U.S. critical infrastructure or digital economy; or (iii) an unacceptable risk to U.S. national security or the security and safety of U.S. persons. The Secretary must incorporate existing federal rules in establishing the list, review it annually (with explanations for any subtractions), and consult with appropriate federal agencies (transmitting the list and modifications to them). This section further directs the Secretary to brief the congressional defense committees by June 1, 2027, on an implementation plan that identifies (1) the lead DOD organization; (2) processes for identifying and assessing prohibited vehicles; (3) interagency coordination; (4) threat assessment metrics; (5) compliance mechanisms at military installations; and (6) resource requirements. This section defines "connected vehicle" (per 15 C.F.R. 791.301 or successor), "congressional defense committees" (per 10 U.S.C. 101(a)(16)), "foreign entity of concern" (per 15 U.S.C. 4651), and "military installation" (per 10 U.S.C. 2801(c)).