Christian is based in our Washington, DC office and is a Senior Vice President of ML Strategies. He assists a variety of clients in their interactions with the federal government.
Prior to joining ML Strategies, Christian spent 20 years on Capitol Hill, the last 10 of which he served as Senior Counsel and Subcommittee Staff Director on the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation. In so doing, he served under the current Chair, Senator Maria Cantwell (D – WA), as well as former Chairman John D. Rockefeller IV (D-WV) and former Ranking Member Bill Nelson (D-FL). In this capacity, his work focused on a broad range of issues, including consumer protection, privacy and data security, cybersecurity, automobile and highway safety, product safety, sports, manufacturing, exports, and trade, while regularly interacting with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), the National Highway Safety Administration (NHTSA), the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), and the Department of Commerce.
Earlier, Christian held senior staff and advisory roles with the House of Representatives’ Committee on Energy & Commerce, where he worked on matters related to the FTC, NHTSA, CPSC, Department of Commerce, and the EPA.
Christian also previously served as a Senior Legislative Assistant to former Representative Bobby L. Rush (D-IL) and to former US Representative Bill Luther (D-MN), advising each on Energy & Commerce Committee issues.
viewpoints
Look Ahead: Upcoming Congressional Work Period – July 2022
July 11, 2022 | Blog | By Alexander Hecht, Christian Tamotsu Fjeld, Anthony DeMaio, R. Neal Martin, Pamela Mejia
The next three weeks will be full of activity in Washington D.C., as the House of Representatives and Senate are working to push their legislative agendas to garner support from their constituents ahead of an August recess and before political “silly season” officially kicks in ahead of the upcoming mid-term elections in November. Here’s our latest update on what you can expect in Congress during the July work period.
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Understanding the American Data Privacy and Protection Act
June 8, 2022 | Blog | By Christian Tamotsu Fjeld, Cynthia Larose
Privacy Implications of the Facebook Whistleblower Testimony
October 20, 2021 | Blog | By Cynthia Larose, Christian Tamotsu Fjeld
Vice President of ML Strategies Christian Fjeld provided insights for a feature article published by The National Law Review examining the privacy implications of Facebook whistleblower Frances Haugen’s testimony before a Congressional Subcommittee regarding harms perpetuated by the tech giant.
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Look Ahead: Fall Preview of Key Biden Administration Initiatives
August 19, 2021 | Blog
The second half of 2021 will be a busy stretch for Congress. In addition to the typical must-pass legislation, Democrats controlling both chambers and the White House are committed to several big spending bills, too. This preview is a rundown of these bills, what’s included in them, and how we can expect them to play out.
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Cyber Policy Legislative Tracker
May 5, 2021 | Resources | By Alexander Hecht, Christian Tamotsu Fjeld
The bills listed reflect a relatively active cybersecurity agenda for the 117th Congress. As reflected in the proposed legislation, many Members are interested in focusing federal policy on matters such as supply chain security, cyber workforce training, and international competitiveness, particularly with China. The most ambitious bill may be the Endless Frontiers Act, which would establish a Directorate for Technology and Innovation within the National Science Foundation and further establish regional hubs (i.e., partnerships between government, private, and academic stakeholders) to drive R&D and commercial innovation in key areas of technology. Endless Frontiers could be the centerpiece of a legislative agenda to ramp up the U.S.’s technological competitiveness with China. The Senate Commerce Committee was scheduled to mark-up the bill last Wednesday, but it was pulled after over 230 amendments were reportedly filed, and Members failed to garner a critical mass of bipartisan support. The committee will likely work through the recess to seek bipartisan agreement for passage.
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House Republicans Reverse Course on Earmarks, Congressionally Directed Spending is Back
March 18, 2021 | Blog | By Frank C. Guinta, Anthony DeMaio
Since the Democrats reclaimed control of the House of Representatives in 2018, barrels of ink have been spilled on the topic of “congressionally-directed spending”. Better known as earmarks, this funding mechanism allows Members of Congress to send money directly to projects identified in their districts, largely bypassing the federal bureaucracy and its protracted grant application process. For more than a decade, the Congress has banned the practice of including congressionally-directed funding in spending bills. Now, Democrats in control of both chambers and the White House are poised to bring earmarks back. On March 17th, House Republicans voted to reverse the GOP Conference’s ten year-old ban on congressionally directed spending, paving the way for Members from both parties to make requests in upcoming spending and infrastructure bills.
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Hearings on the SolarWinds Hack and Possible Policy Responses
March 4, 2021 | Blog | By Christian Tamotsu Fjeld
The 117th Congress kicked off its First Session with, among other initiatives, oversight hearings on the SolarWinds cyber hack. On February 23, the Senate Intelligence Committee held a hearing on the high profile, far-reaching breach; followed by a joint hearing on February 26 in the House of Representatives held by the Oversight and Reform and Homeland Security Committees. At both hearings, Sudhakar Ramakrishna, President and CEO of SolarWinds, Kevin Mandia, CEO of FireEye, and Brad Smith, President and Chief Legal Officer of Microsoft, testified. In addition, George Kurtz, the President and CEO of Crowdstrike, testified at the Senate Intelligence hearing, while Kevin Thompson, the former CEO of SolarWinds, testified in front of the joint House hearing. Together, the hearings represent what will likely be the first of several congressional forays into the SolarWinds hack, including possible legislative initiatives to address future possible incidents and supply chain security.
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Transportation & Infrastructure: What to Expect from the Biden Administration & 117th Congress
February 4, 2021 | Blog | By Christian Tamotsu Fjeld, R. Neal Martin, Anthony DeMaio
With Democratic majorities in the U.S. House and U.S. Senate, Congress and President Biden’s new administration are working to quickly advance proposals to provide for economic relief as the nation continues to reel from the now nearly one-year pandemic. One area of emerging bipartisan focus is a long-sought measure to address the nation’s crumbling and outdated infrastructure, which could be paired with a required surface transportation reauthorization bill.
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Senate Passes IoT Cybersecurity Bill by Unanimous Consent
November 18, 2020 | Blog | By Christian Tamotsu Fjeld, Christopher Harvie
News & Press
Privacy Implications of the Facebook Whistleblower Testimony
October 19, 2021
Vice President of ML Strategies Christian Fjeld provided insights for a feature article published by The National Law Review examining the privacy implications of Facebook whistleblower Frances Haugen’s testimony before a Congressional Subcommittee regarding harms perpetuated by the tech giant.
Cyber Standards for Connected Devices Leverage Federal Purchases
January 5, 2021
Vice President of ML Strategies Christian Fjeld was quoted in an article published by Bloomberg Law on how the Internet of Things Cybersecurity Improvement Act of 2020 may impact the industry due to the government’s purchasing power.
In Thomson Reuters’ Westlaw, Vice President of ML Strategies Christian Fjeld was quoted on the Internet of Things (IoT) Cybersecurity Improvement Act of 2020, which establishes security standards for IoT devices owned or controlled by the federal government and was recently signed into law by President Trump, and its potential “spillover effects” into the private sector.
How The Election Could Reshape The Telecom Industry
November 2, 2020
In an article published by Law360, Vice President of ML Strategies Christian Fjeld was quoted on how the 2020 election could reshape the communications industry, specifically with regards to leadership on relevant congressional committees and the possibility of reform of Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act.
Myriad Section 230 Bills Show Agreement Still Out Of Reach
October 19, 2020
In an article published by Law360, Vice President of ML Strategies Christian Fjeld was quoted on lawmaker efforts to amend Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act.
Special Report: The Mask Middlemen - How Pop-Up Brokers Seek Big Paydays in a Frenzied Market
April 1, 2020
Vice President of ML Strategies Christian Fjeld was quoted in an article published by Reuters discussing the increase of price gouging due to COVID-19 and its legality.
Vice President of ML Strategies Christian Fjeld was quoted in an article published by Legaltech News on the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s approval of robotics company Nuro’s request for three exemptions to deploy its fully autonomous car fleet in the United States.
The Impact of AI: Bay Area Experts Discuss the Meaning of Artificial Intelligence and How it Will Affect the Economy and Society
January 24, 2020
On December 9, 2019, Vice President of ML Strategies Christian T. Fjeld participated in the Artificial Intelligence (AI) & Business Table of Experts discussion hosted by the San Francisco Business Times. During the forum, panelists addressed how businesses can leverage AI to drive innovation, the impact AI will have on the economy and on society, and the meaning of artificial intelligence itself.
In this Q&A published by Legaltech News, Vice President of ML Strategies Christian Fjeld—former lead Democratic Senate staffer tasked with shepherding the American Vision for Safer Transportation through Advancement of Revolutionary Technologies Act (AV START Act) through the Senate—discussed why Congress failed to pass the AV START Act, how autonomous vehicles’ complexity isn’t lawmakers’ largest hurdle, and why the data privacy debate may factor into the next autonomous vehicle bill.
Events & Speaking
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6
2021
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Nov
5
2020
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Jul
9
2020
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Coronavirus (COVID-19): Managing the Privacy & Cybersecurity Risks
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Health Care & Cybersecurity: A Powerful Combination
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Recent Insights
Look Ahead: Upcoming Congressional Work Period – July 2022
July 11, 2022 |Blog
Understanding the American Data Privacy and Protection Act
June 8, 2022 |Blog
Privacy Implications of the Facebook Whistleblower Testimony
October 20, 2021 |Blog
