This isn’t about apps. It’s about control - the Feds want to be sure that they can track who is creating apps so they can control the spread of government-disapproved apps. Like the app that someone created last month to track ICE raids. If you control who distributes apps, you can further control what apps are made, and whether those apps are seen as a threat.
Information control in a dictatorship is extremely important.
Saw this comment on Ars and it’s a good point: