[Congressional Bills 109th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Res. 317 Agreed to Senate (ATS)]


109th CONGRESS
  1st Session
S. RES. 317

Expressing the sense of the Senate regarding oversight of the Internet 
              Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                           November 16, 2005

Mr. Burns (for himself, Mr. Leahy, Mr. Inouye, Mr. Smith, Mr. Stevens, 
  Mr. Sununu, Mr. Nelson of Florida, Mrs. Hutchison, Mr. Inhofe, Mr. 
 Allen, and Mr. Craig) submitted the following concurrent resolution; 
                   which was considered and agreed to

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
Expressing the sense of the Senate regarding oversight of the Internet 
              Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers.

    Whereas the origins of the Internet can be found in United States 
            Government funding of research to develop packet-switching 
            technology and communications networks, starting with the 
            ``ARPANET'' network established by the Department of 
            Defense's Advanced Research Projects Agency in the 1960s 
            and carried forward by the National Science Foundation's 
            ``NSFNET'';
    Whereas in subsequent years the Internet evolved from a United 
            States Government research initiative to a global tool for 
            information exchange as in the 1990s it was commercialized 
            by private sector investment, technical management and 
            coordination;
    Whereas since its inception the authoritative root zone server--the 
            file server system that contains the master list of all top 
            level domain names made available for routers serving the 
            Internet--has been physically located in the United States;
    Whereas today the Internet is a global communications network of 
            inestimable value;
    Whereas the continued success and dynamism of the Internet is 
            dependent upon continued private sector leadership and the 
            ability for all users to participate in its continued 
            evolution;
    Whereas in allowing people all around the world freely to exchange 
            information, communicate with one another, and facilitate 
            economic growth and democracy, the Internet has enormous 
            potential to enrich and transform human society;
    Whereas existing structures have worked effectively to make the 
            Internet the highly robust medium that it is today;
    Whereas the security and stability of the Internet's underlying 
            infrastructure, the domain name and addressing system, must 
            be maintained;
    Whereas the United States has been committed to the principles of 
            freedom of expression and the free flow of information, as 
            expressed in Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of 
            Human Rights, and reaffirmed in the Geneva Declaration of 
            Principles adopted at the first phase of the World Summit 
            on the Information Society;
    Whereas the U.S. Principles on the Internet's Domain Name and 
            Addressing System, issued on June 30, 2005, represent an 
            appropriate framework for the coordination of the system at 
            the present time;
    Whereas the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers 
            popularly known as ICANN, is the proper organization to 
            coordinate the technical day-to-day operation of the 
            Internet's domain name and addressing system;
    Whereas all stakeholders from around the world, including 
            governments, are encouraged to advise ICANN in its 
            decision-making;
    Whereas ICANN makes significant efforts to ensure that the views of 
            governments and all Internet stakeholders are reflected in 
            its activities;
    Whereas governments have legitimate concerns with respect to the 
            management of their country code top level domains;
    Whereas the United States Government is committed to working 
            successfully with the international community to address 
            those concerns, bearing in mind the need for stability and 
            security of the Internet's domain name and addressing 
            system;
    Whereas the topic of Internet governance, as currently being 
            discussed in the United Nations World Summit on the 
            Information Society is a broad and complex topic;
    Whereas it is appropriate for governments and other stakeholders to 
            discuss Internet governance, given that the Internet will 
            likely be an increasingly important part of the world 
            economy and society in the 21st Century;
    Whereas Internet governance discussions in the World Summit should 
            focus on the real threats to the Internet's growth and 
            stability, and not recommend changes to the current regime 
            of domain name and addressing system management and 
            coordination on political grounds unrelated to any 
            technical need; and
    Whereas market-based policies and private sector leadership have 
            allowed this medium the flexibility to innovate and evolve: 
            Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved by the Senate, That it is the sense of the Senate that--
            (1) it is incumbent upon the United States and other 
        responsible governments to send clear signals to the 
        marketplace that the current structure of oversight and 
        management of the Internet's domain name and addressing service 
        works, and will continue to deliver tangible benefits to 
        Internet users worldwide in the future; and
            (2) therefore the authoritative root zone server should 
        remain physically located in the United States and the 
        Secretary of Commerce should maintain oversight of ICANN so 
        that ICANN can continue to manage the day-to-day operation of 
        the Internet's domain name and addressing system well, remain 
        responsive to all Internet stakeholders worldwide, and 
        otherwise fulfill its core technical mission.D23/
                                 <all>