The US House of Representatives will reportedly vote on a new defence bill that could provide telecoms companies in the country more than $3 billion, aiding efforts to strip out kit made by Chinese companies Huawei and ZTE.

The vote is one of many provisions included in an 1800-page document seen by Reuters, aimed directly at China. The report apparently includes an intelligence assessment on the state of China’s biotechnology capabilities and a look into alleged efforts to avoid US security regulations.

Funding for US’ rip and replace programme has been a hot topic. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) chair Jessica Rosenworcel has long-lobbied for the US government to approve more than $3 billion in funding to remove equipment deemed a security risk.

She stated in May that nearly 40 per cent of participants involved in the programme claimed they could not complete the swap out without additional funding.

She followed up on her comments last week, stating the programme to replace equipment in networks of 126 operators faces a shortfall of around $3 billion and puts “national security and the connectivity of rural consumers who depend on these networks at risk”.

Operators serving less than 10 million customers could be in line to claim expenses for costs incurred in removing kit made by Chinese vendors. A total of $1.9 billion has been allocated to the programme, but the FCC estimates the cost could run up to just shy of $5 billion.

President Joe Biden’s administration asked for $3.1 billion in 2023, but Congress did not approve the request.