The Treasury Department's Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) updated its website to demystify its review process and boost transparency. The launch introduces a confidential pre-filing consultation portal, a public risk matrix, and Operation Shot Clock to streamline interagency reviews within statutory timeframes. Simultaneously, law firms are hiring key Treasury officials like Jess Sanchez to meet rising corporate demand for cross-border expertise as SelectUSA reports a record $280 billion in foreign investment.
CFIUS website transparency updates
- ▪The Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States updated its website to increase transparency and public engagement while maintaining confidentiality and national security standards.
- ▪The Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States published a risk matrix on its website outlining common national security risks, such as privacy data concerns, along with potential mitigation options.
Pre-filing consultation portal
- ▪Unrepresented entrepreneurs are using the pre-filing consultation portal to share transaction details directly with the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States.
- ▪The pre-filing consultation portal enables the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States case officers to review proposed transactions and discuss national security concerns before deals close.
- ▪The updated Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States website features a confidential pre-filing consultation link that allows investors to submit transaction details, anonymously if desired, to connect with a case officer.
Operation Shot Clock commitment
- ▪The Treasury Department created Operation Shot Clock to establish internal agency review deadlines within the 90-day statutory CFIUS review framework and escalate delayed reviews to higher official levels.
- ▪Cabinet secretaries leading all nine agencies comprising the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States committed to the Operation Shot Clock escalation timeline.
Investment Security Technology Initiative
- ▪The Treasury Department established the Investment Security Technology Initiative to monitor pre-commercialized emerging technologies in universities and corporate research and development.
- ▪The Investment Security Technology Initiative focuses on anticipating national security risks in sectors including quantum computing, supercomputing, hypersonics, and biotechnology.
Domestic vendor outreach
- ▪The Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States is working with the Department of War and the Small Business Administration to connect foreign investors with domestic vendors.
- ▪Local economic development officials join meetings across the country with companies that completed the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States process to support vendor connections.
Recruitment of CFIUS legal talent
- ▪Former Treasury Department attorney Jess Sanchez joined Sidley Austin as a partner in its Washington, D.C. office on October 14, 2026, after serving as acting principal deputy assistant general counsel.
- ▪Law firms are actively recruiting government attorneys with expertise in the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States due to rising geopolitical tensions and cross-border artificial intelligence investments.
- ▪Jess Sanchez managed a team of nearly 30 Treasury Department attorneys overseeing legal matters related to the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States and the Foreign Investment Risk Review Modernization Act of 2018.
SelectUSA Foreign Investment under Trump
- ▪The Commerce Department's SelectUSA program secured $280 billion across more than 345 foreign direct investment projects during Donald Trump's presidency.
- ▪SelectUSA foreign direct investment under Donald Trump surpassed the $255 billion total brought in by the program during its previous 12-plus years since launching in 2011.
- ▪Assistant Commerce Secretary David Fogel stated that the Trump administration used tariffs, tax cuts, and deregulation to leverage foreign investment commitments.
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