Stop PRC Economic Espionage Act of 2026

Key Points

• The bill changes the legal definition used in federal economic espionage prosecutions so that any company simply located in a country like China, Russia, North Korea, or Iran counts as a foreign instrumentality, not just companies proven to be government owned or controlled.
• Under current law, prosecutors generally must show a foreign entity is substantially owned, controlled, or subsidized by a foreign government to bring the toughest economic espionage charges.
• The bill adds a new category covering any entity domiciled in a covered nation as already defined in a separate section of federal law dealing with foreign adversaries, which includes China, Russia, North Korea, and Iran.
• The practical effect would be to make it easier for the Justice Department to charge trade secret theft cases tied to Chinese and other adversary-nation companies with the most serious espionage penalties, even without proving direct government control.