[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 600 Reported in Senate (RS)]

<DOC>





                                                       Calendar No. 624
115th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 600


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                            January 30, 2017

Received; read twice and referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations

                            October 5, 2018

               Reported by Mr. Corker, with an amendment
 [Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed 
                               in italic]

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 AN ACT


 
 To promote Internet access in developing countries and update foreign 
          policy toward the Internet, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

<DELETED>SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.</DELETED>

<DELETED>    This Act may be cited as the ``Digital Global Access 
Policy Act of 2017'' or the ``Digital GAP Act''.</DELETED>

<DELETED>SEC. 2. PURPOSE.</DELETED>

<DELETED>    The purpose of this Act is to--</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (1) encourage the efforts of developing countries 
        to improve mobile and fixed access to the Internet in order to 
        catalyze innovation, spur economic growth and job creation, 
        improve health, education, and financial services, reduce 
        poverty and gender inequality, mitigate disasters, promote 
        democracy and good governance, and strengthen 
        cybersecurity;</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (2) promote build once policies and approaches and 
        the multi-stakeholder approach to Internet governance; 
        and</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (3) ensure the effective use of United States 
        foreign assistance resources toward this end.</DELETED>

<DELETED>SEC. 3. FINDINGS.</DELETED>

<DELETED>    Congress finds the following:</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (1) The number of Internet users worldwide has 
        more than tripled from 1 billion to 3.2 billion since 2005, yet 
        the growth rate of Internet access is slowing. An estimated 4.2 
        billion people, or 60 percent of the world's population, remain 
        offline, an estimated 75 percent of the offline population 
        lives in just 20 countries, and rural, female, elderly, 
        illiterate, and low-income populations are being left 
        behind.</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (2) Studies suggest that women across the 
        developing world are disproportionately affected by a digital 
        gap, and that bringing an additional 600 million women online 
        would contribute $13 billion to $18 billion to annual GDP 
        across 144 developing countries.</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (3) Internet access in developing countries is 
        most often hampered by a lack of infrastructure and a poor 
        regulatory environment for investment.</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (4) Build once policies and approaches, which seek 
        to coordinate public and private sector investments in roads 
        and other critical infrastructure, can minimize the number and 
        scale of excavation and construction activities when installing 
        telecommunications infrastructure in rights-of-way, thereby 
        reducing installation costs for high-speed Internet networks 
        and serving as a development best practice.</DELETED>

<DELETED>SEC. 4. STATEMENT OF POLICY.</DELETED>

<DELETED>    Congress declares that it is the policy of the United 
States to consult, partner, and coordinate with the governments of 
foreign countries, international organizations, regional economic 
communities, businesses, civil society, and other stakeholders in a 
concerted effort to close the digital gap by promoting--</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (1) first-time Internet access to mobile or 
        broadband Internet for at least 1.5 billion people in 
        developing countries by 2020 in both urban and rural 
        areas;</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (2) Internet deployment and related coordination, 
        capacity building, and build once policies and approaches in 
        developing countries, including actions to encourage--
        </DELETED>
                <DELETED>    (A) standardization of build once policies 
                and approaches for the inclusion of broadband conduit 
                in rights-of-way projects that are funded, co-funded, 
                or partially financed by the United States or any 
                international organization that includes the United 
                States as a member, in consultation with 
                telecommunications providers, unless a cost-benefit 
                analysis determines that the cost of such approach 
                outweighs the benefits;</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    (B) adoption and integration of build once 
                policies and approaches into the development and 
                investment strategies of national and local government 
                agencies of developing countries and donor governments 
                and organizations that will enhance coordination with 
                the private sector for road building, pipe laying, and 
                other major infrastructure projects; and</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    (C) provision of increased financial 
                support by international organizations, including 
                through grants, loans, and technical assistance, to 
                expand information and communications access and 
                Internet connectivity;</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (3) policy changes that encourage first-time 
        affordable access to the Internet in developing countries, 
        including actions to encourage--</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    (A) integration of universal and gender-
                equitable Internet access goals, to be informed by the 
                collection of related gender disaggregated data, and 
                Internet tools into national development plans and 
                United States Government country-level development 
                strategies;</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    (B) reforms of competition laws and 
                spectrum allocation processes that may impede the 
                ability of companies to provide Internet services; 
                and</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    (C) efforts to improve procurement 
                processes to help attract and incentivize investment in 
                Internet infrastructure;</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (4) the removal of tax and regulatory barriers to 
        Internet access;</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (5) the use of the Internet to increase economic 
        growth and trade, including--</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    (A) policies and strategies to remove 
                restrictions to e-commerce, cross-border information 
                flows, and competitive marketplaces; and</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    (B) entrepreneurship and distance learning 
                enabled by access to technology;</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (6) use of the Internet to bolster democracy, 
        government accountability, transparency, and human rights, 
        including through the establishments of policies, initiatives, 
        and investments that--</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    (A) support the development of national 
                Internet plans that are consistent with United States 
                human rights goals, including freedom of expression, 
                religion, assembly, and association;</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    (B) expand online access to government 
                information and services to enhance government 
                accountability and service delivery, including for 
                areas in which government may have limited 
                presence;</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    (C) advance the principles of responsible 
                Internet governance, including commitments to maintain 
                open and equitable access; and</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    (D) support programs, research, and 
                technologies that safeguard human rights and 
                fundamental freedoms online, and enable political 
                organizing and activism, free speech, and religious 
                expression that are in compliance with international 
                human rights standards;</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (7) Internet access and inclusion into Internet 
        policymaking for women, people with disabilities, minorities, 
        low-income and marginalized groups, and underserved 
        populations;</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (8) cybersecurity and data protection, including 
        international use of the National Institute of Standards and 
        Technology (NIST) Framework for Improving Critical 
        Infrastructure Cybersecurity, that are industry-led and 
        globally recognized cybersecurity standards and best practices; 
        and</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (9) inter-agency coordination and cooperation 
        across all executive branch agencies regarding the construction 
        and promotion of Internet initiatives as a greater part of 
        United States foreign policy.</DELETED>

<DELETED>SEC. 5. LEVERAGING INTERNATIONAL SUPPORT.</DELETED>

<DELETED>    In pursuing the policy described in section 4, the 
President should direct United States representatives to appropriate 
international bodies to use the influence of the United States, 
consistent with the broad development goals of the United States, to 
advocate that each such body--</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (1) commit to increase efforts and coordination to 
        promote affordable and gender-equitable Internet access, in 
        partnership with stakeholders and consistent with host 
        countries' absorptive capacity;</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (2) integrate affordable and gender-equitable 
        Internet access data into existing economic and business 
        assessments, evaluations, and indexes such as the Millennium 
        Challenge Corporation constraints analysis, the Doing Business 
        Report, International Monetary Fund Article IV assessments and 
        country reports, the Open Data Barometer, and the Affordability 
        Drivers Index;</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (3) standardize inclusion of broadband conduit as 
        part of highway or comparable construction projects in 
        developing countries, in consultation with telecommunications 
        providers, unless such inclusion would create an undue burden, 
        is not necessary based on the availability of existing 
        broadband infrastructure, or a cost-benefit analysis determines 
        that the cost outweighs the benefits;</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (4) provide technical assistance to the regulatory 
        authorities in developing countries to remove unnecessary 
        barriers to investment in otherwise commercially viable 
        projects and strengthen weak regulations or develop new 
        regulations to support market growth and development;</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (5) utilize clear, accountable, and metric-based 
        targets, including targets with gender-disaggregated data, to 
        measure the effectiveness of efforts to promote Internet 
        access; and</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (6) promote and protect human rights online, such 
        as the freedoms of expression, religion, assembly, and 
        association, through resolutions, public statements, projects, 
        and initiatives, and advocate that other member states of such 
        bodies are held accountable when major violations are 
        uncovered.</DELETED>

<DELETED>SEC. 6. DEPARTMENT OF STATE ORGANIZATION.</DELETED>

<DELETED>    (a) Sense of Congress.--It is the sense of Congress that 
the Secretary of State should seek to enhance the efficiency and 
effectiveness of United States foreign assistance efforts to carry out 
the policies and objectives established by this Act, including by 
redesignating an existing Assistant Secretary position in the 
Department of State to be the Assistant Secretary for Cyberspace to 
lead the Department's diplomatic cyberspace policy generally, including 
for cybersecurity, Internet access, Internet freedom, and to promote an 
open, secure, and reliable information and communications technology 
infrastructure.</DELETED>
<DELETED>    (b) Activities.--In recognition of the added value of 
technical knowledge and expertise in the policymaking and diplomatic 
channels, the Secretary of State shall--</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (1) update existing training programs relevant to 
        policy discussions;</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (2) promote the recruitment of candidates with 
        technical expertise into the Civil Service and the Foreign 
        Service; and</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (3) work to improve inter-agency coordination and 
        cooperation on cybersecurity and Internet 
        initiatives.</DELETED>
<DELETED>    (c) Offset.--To offset any costs incurred by the 
Department of State to carry out the designation of an Assistant 
Secretary for Cyberspace in accordance with subsection (a), the 
Secretary of State shall eliminate such positions within the Department 
of State, unless otherwise authorized or required by law, as the 
Secretary determines to be necessary to fully offset such 
costs.</DELETED>
<DELETED>    (d) Rule of Construction.--The redesignation of the 
Assistant Secretary position in the Department of State described in 
subsection (a) may not be construed as increasing the number of 
Assistant Secretary positions at the Department above the current level 
of 24 as authorized in section 1(c)(1) of the State Department Basic 
Authorities Act of 1956 (22 U.S.C. 2651a(c)(1)).</DELETED>

<DELETED>SEC. 7. USAID.</DELETED>

<DELETED>    It is the sense of Congress that the Administrator of the 
United States Agency for International Development should--</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (1) integrate efforts to expand Internet access, 
        develop appropriate technologies, and enhance digital literacy 
        into the education, development, and economic growth programs 
        of the agency, where appropriate;</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (2) expand the utilization of information and 
        communications technologies in humanitarian aid and disaster 
        relief responses and United States operations involving 
        stabilization and security to improve donor coordination, 
        reduce duplication and waste, capture and share lessons 
        learned, and augment disaster preparedness and risk mitigation 
        strategies; and</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (3) establish and promote guidelines for the 
        protection of personal information of individuals served by 
        humanitarian, disaster, and development programs implemented 
        directly through the United States Government, through 
        contracts funded by the United States Government, and by 
        international organizations.</DELETED>

<DELETED>SEC. 8. PEACE CORPS.</DELETED>

<DELETED>    Section 3 of the Peace Corps Act (22 U.S.C. 2502) is 
amended by--</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (1) redesignating subsection (h) as subsection 
        (e); and</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (2) adding at the end the following new 
        subsections:</DELETED>
<DELETED>    ``(f) It is the sense of Congress that access to 
technology can transform agriculture, community economic development, 
education, environment, health, and youth development which are the 
sectors in which Peace Corps currently develops positions for 
Volunteers.</DELETED>
<DELETED>    ``(g) In giving attention to the programs, projects, 
training, and other activities referred to in subsection (f), the Peace 
Corps should develop positions for Volunteers that are focused on 
leveraging technology for development, education, and social and 
economic mobility.''.</DELETED>

<DELETED>SEC. 9. PARTNERSHIP FRAMEWORK.</DELETED>

<DELETED>    Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of 
this Act, the President shall transmit to the Committee on Foreign 
Affairs of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Foreign 
Relations of the Senate plans to promote partnerships by United States 
development agencies, including the United States Agency for 
International Development and the Millennium Challenge Corporation, and 
international agencies funded by the United States Government with the 
private sector and other stakeholders to expand affordable and gender 
equitable access to the Internet in developing countries, including the 
following elements:</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (1) Methods for stakeholders to partner with such 
        agencies in order to provide Internet access or Internet 
        infrastructure in developing countries.</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (2) Methods of outreach to stakeholders to explore 
        partnership opportunities for expanding Internet access or 
        Internet infrastructure, including coordination with the 
        private sector, when financing roads and telecommunications 
        infrastructure.</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (3) Methods for early consultation with 
        stakeholders concerning projects in telecommunications and road 
        construction to provide Internet access or Internet 
        infrastructure.</DELETED>

<DELETED>SEC. 10. REPORTING REQUIREMENT ON IMPLEMENTATION 
              EFFORTS.</DELETED>

<DELETED>    Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of 
this Act, the President shall transmit to the Committee on Foreign 
Affairs of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Foreign 
Relations of the Senate a report on efforts to implement the policies 
specified in this Act and a discussion of the plans and existing 
efforts by the United States Government in developing countries to 
accomplish the following:</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (1) Developing a technical and regulatory road map 
        for promoting Internet access in developing countries and a 
        path to implementing such road map.</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (2) Identifying the regulatory barriers that may 
        unduly impede Internet access, including regulation of wireline 
        broadband deployment or the infrastructure to augment wireless 
        broadband deployment.</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (3) Strengthening and supporting development of 
        regulations that incentivize market growth and sector 
        development.</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (4) Encouraging further public and private 
        investment in Internet infrastructure, including broadband 
        networks and services.</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (5) Increasing gender-equitable Internet access 
        and otherwise encourage or support Internet deployment, 
        competition, and adoption.</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (6) Improving the affordability of Internet 
        access.</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (7) Promoting technology and cybersecurity 
        capacity building efforts and consult technical experts for 
        advice regarding options to accelerate the advancement of 
        Internet deployment, adoption, and usage.</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (8) Promoting Internet freedom globally and 
        include civil society and the private sector in the formulation 
        of policies, projects, and advocacy efforts to protect human 
        rights online.</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (9) Promoting and strengthening the multi-
        stakeholder model of Internet governance and actively 
        participate in multi-stakeholder international fora, such as 
        the Internet Governance Forum.</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (10) Advancing a strategy to promote--</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    (A) global cybersecurity policy consistent 
                with the National Institute of Standards and Technology 
                (NIST) Framework for Improving Critical Infrastructure 
                Cybersecurity;</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    (B) global Internet freedom principles, 
                such as the freedoms of expression, religion, assembly, 
                and association, while combating efforts to impose 
                restrictions on such freedoms; and</DELETED>
                <DELETED>    (C) improved inter-agency coordination and 
                cooperation on cybersecurity and Internet 
                initiatives.</DELETED>

<DELETED>SEC. 11. DEFINITIONS.</DELETED>

<DELETED>    In this Act:</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (1) Broadband.--The term ``broadband'' means an 
        Internet Protocol-based transmission service that enables users 
        to send and receive voice, video, data, graphics, or a 
        combination thereof.</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (2) Broadband conduit.--The term ``broadband 
        conduit'' means a conduit for fiber optic cables that support 
        broadband or wireless facilities for broadband 
        service.</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (3) Build once policies and approaches.--The term 
        ``build once policies and approaches'' means policies or 
        practices that minimize the number and scale of excavation and 
        construction activities when installing telecommunications 
        infrastructure in rights-of-way.</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (4) Cyberspace.--The term ``cyberspace'' means the 
        interdependent network of information technology 
        infrastructures, and includes the Internet, telecommunications 
        networks, computer systems, and embedded processors and 
        controllers in critical industries, and includes the virtual 
        environment of information and interactions between 
        people.</DELETED>
        <DELETED>    (5) Stakeholders.--The term ``stakeholders'' means 
        the private sector, the public sector, cooperatives, civil 
        society, the technical community that develops Internet 
        technologies, standards, implementation, operations, and 
        applications, and other groups that are working to increase 
        Internet access or are impacted by the lack of Internet access 
        in their communities.</DELETED>

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Digital Global Access Policy Act of 
2018'' or the ``Digital GAP Act''.

SEC. 2. PURPOSE.

    The purpose of this Act is to--
            (1) encourage the efforts of developing countries to 
        improve mobile and fixed access to the Internet in order to 
        catalyze innovation, spur economic growth and job creation, 
        improve health, education, and financial services, reduce 
        poverty and gender inequality, mitigate disasters, and promote 
        democracy and good governance;
            (2) promote build-once policies and approaches and the 
        multi-stakeholder approach to Internet governance; and
            (3) ensure the effective use of United States foreign 
        assistance resources toward that end.

SEC. 3. FINDINGS.

    Congress makes the following findings:
            (1) Internet access has been a driver of economic activity 
        around the world. Bringing internet access to the more than 
        4,000,000,000 people who do not have it could increase global 
        economic output by $6,700,000,000,000 and raise 500,000,000 
        people out of poverty.
            (2) The number of Internet users has more than tripled from 
        1,000,000,000 to over 3,000,000,000 since 2005, including 
        2,000,000,000 living in the developing world, yet more than 
        half of the world's population remains offline, living without 
        the economic and social benefits of the Internet. By the end of 
        2016, over 80 percent of households in the developed world had 
        Internet access, compared with just 40 percent of households in 
        developing countries and just 11 percent in the world's least 
        developed countries. Of the world's offline population, an 
        estimated 75 percent live in just 20 countries, and rural, 
        female, elderly, illiterate, and low-income populations are 
        being left behind.
            (3) Studies suggest that women are disproportionately 
        affected by a digital gap in developing countries, where there 
        are on average 23 percent fewer women online then men. Bringing 
        an additional 600,000,000 women online could contribute 
        $13,000,000,000 to $18,000,000,000 to annual GDP across 144 
        developing countries.
            (4) The United States has been a leader in promoting access 
        to an open, interoperable Internet around the world. 
        Recognizing that support for expanded Internet access furthers 
        United States economic and foreign policy interests, including 
        efforts to end extreme global poverty and enabling resilient, 
        democratic societies, the Department of State launched a 
        diplomatic effort called ``Global Connect''.
            (5) Internet access in developing countries is hampered, in 
        part, by a lack of infrastructure and a poor regulatory 
        environment for investment. Build-once policies and approaches, 
        which seek to coordinate public and private sector investments 
        in roads and other critical infrastructure, can reduce the 
        number and scale of excavation and construction activities when 
        installing telecommunications infrastructure in rights-of-way, 
        thereby reducing installation costs for high-speed Internet 
        networks and serving as a development best practice.

SEC. 4. EXPANDING INTERNET ACCESS IN DEVELOPING COUNTRIES.

    (a) Definitions.--In this section:
            (1) Appropriate congressional committees.--The term 
        ``appropriate congressional committees'' means--
                    (A) the Committee on Foreign Relations and the 
                Committee on Appropriations of the Senate; and
                    (B) the Committee on Foreign Affairs and the 
                Committee on Appropriations of the House of 
                Representatives.
            (2) Broadband.--The term ``broadband'' means an Internet 
        Protocol-based transmission service that enables users to send 
        and receive voice, video, data, graphics, or a combination 
        thereof, using technologies including fiber optic, mobile, 
        satellite, and Wi-Fi.
            (3) Broadband conduit.--The term ``broadband conduit'' 
        means a conduit for fiber optic cables and other connectivity 
        technologies that support broadband or wireless facilities for 
        broadband service.
            (4) Build-once policies and approaches.--The term ``build-
        once policies and approaches'' means policies or practices that 
        encourage the integration of Internet infrastructure into 
        traditional infrastructure projects that minimize the number 
        and scale of excavation and construction activities when 
        installing telecommunications infrastructure in rights-of-way 
        to reduce costs, such as by laying fiber optic cable 
        simultaneously with road construction.
            (5) Stakeholders.--The term ``stakeholders'' means the 
        private sector, the public sector, cooperatives, civil society, 
        the technical community that develops Internet technologies, 
        standards, implementation, operations, and applications, and 
        other groups that are working to increase Internet access or 
        are impacted by the lack of Internet access in their 
        communities.
    (b) Policy.--It is the policy of the United States to consult, 
partner, and coordinate with the governments of foreign countries, 
international organizations, regional economic communities, businesses, 
civil society, and other stakeholders in a concerted effort to close 
the digital gap by increasing public and private investments in 
Internet infrastructure and creating conditions for universal Internet 
access and usage worldwide by promoting--
            (1) first-time access to fixed or mobile broadband Internet 
        by 2026 for at least 1,500,000,000 people living in urban and 
        rural areas in developing countries;
            (2) Internet deployment and related coordination, capacity 
        building, and build-once policies and approaches in developing 
        countries, including actions to encourage--
                    (A) standardization of build-once policies and 
                approaches for the inclusion of broadband conduit in 
                rights-of-way projects that are funded, co-funded, or 
                partially financed by the United States or any 
                international organization that includes the United 
                States as a member, in consultation with 
                telecommunications providers, unless a cost-benefit 
                analysis determines that the cost of such approach 
                outweighs the benefits;
                    (B) adoption and integration of build-once policies 
                and approaches into the development and investment 
                strategies of national and local government agencies of 
                developing countries and donor governments and 
                organizations that will enhance coordination with the 
                private sector for road building, pipe laying, major 
                infrastructure projects, and development-related 
                construction such as schools, clinics, and civic 
                buildings; and
                    (C) provision of increased financial support by 
                international organizations, including through grants, 
                loans, technical assistance, and partnerships to expand 
                information and communications access and Internet 
                connectivity;
            (3) policy and regulatory approaches that promote a 
        competitive market for investment and innovation in Internet 
        infrastructure and service to encourage first-time, affordable 
        access to the Internet in developing countries, including 
        actions to encourage, as appropriate--
                    (A) the integration of universal and gender-
                equitable Internet access and adoption goals, to be 
                informed by the collection of related gender 
                disaggregated data and research on social norms that 
                often limit women's and girls' use of the Internet, 
                into national development plans and United States 
                Government country-level strategies;
                    (B) effective, transparent, and efficient spectrum 
                allocation processes and reforms of competition laws 
                that may impede the ability of companies to provide 
                Internet services; and
                    (C) efforts to improve procurement processes to 
                help attract and incentivize investment in Internet 
                infrastructure;
            (4) the removal of tax and regulatory barriers to Internet 
        access, as appropriate;
            (5) the use of the Internet to increase economic growth and 
        trade, including, as appropriate--
                    (A) policies and strategies to remove restrictions 
                to e-commerce, cross-border information flows, and 
                competitive marketplaces; and
                    (B) entrepreneurship and distance learning enabled 
                by access to technology;
            (6) the use of the Internet to bolster democracy, 
        government accountability, transparency, gender equity, and 
        human rights, including through the establishment of policies, 
        initiatives, and investments that--
                    (A) support the development of national broadband 
                plans or information and communication technologies 
                strategies that are consistent with fundamental civil 
                and political rights, including freedom of expression, 
                religion, belief, assembly, and association;
                    (B) expand online access to government information 
                and services to enhance government accountability and 
                service delivery, including for areas in which 
                government may have limited presence;
                    (C) advance the principles of responsible Internet 
                governance, including commitments to maintain open 
                access; and
                    (D) support expression of free speech and enable 
                political organizing and activism in support of human 
                rights and democracy through activities that expand 
                access to independent sources of news and information 
                and safeguard human rights and fundamental freedoms 
                online, in compliance with international human rights 
                standards;
            (7) programs and mechanisms that actively promote and 
        advance access to and adoption of Internet and other 
        information and communications technologies by women, people 
        with disabilities, minorities, low-income and marginalized 
        groups, and underserved populations, such as programs that 
        address social norms and barriers to women's active 
        participation in the digital economy or Internet policymaking;
            (8) mechanisms for public and private financing of rural 
        broadband connectivity and digital inclusion;
            (9) public Internet access facilities and Wi-Fi networks in 
        places such as libraries, government buildings, community 
        centers, and schools;
            (10) the creation and support of research and educational 
        networks;
            (11) cybersecurity, data protection, and privacy, including 
        international use of the latest version of the National 
        Institute of Standards and Technology Framework for Improving 
        Critical Infrastructure Cybersecurity; and
            (12) interagency coordination and cooperation across all 
        executive branch agencies regarding the promotion of Internet 
        initiatives as a part of United States foreign policy.
    (c) Department of State.--The Secretary of State, in coordination 
with other agencies, multilateral institutions, foreign countries, and 
stakeholders, shall advance the policy articulated in this Act and 
promote expanded Internet connectivity worldwide, as appropriate, by--
            (1) encouraging foreign countries to prioritize Internet 
        connectivity in development plans;
            (2) promoting the formation of region-specific multi-sector 
        working groups to ensure technical and regulatory best 
        practices; and
            (3) encouraging the development of digital literacy 
        programs in developing countries.
    (d) USAID.--The Administrator of the United States Agency for 
International Development (USAID) should advance the policy articulated 
in this Act and support expanded Internet connectivity worldwide, as 
appropriate, by--
            (1) supporting efforts to expand Internet infrastructure 
        and improve digital literacy, and other appropriate measures to 
        improve Internet connectivity and usage, in close coordination 
        with the Secretary of State;
            (2) encouraging public and private investment in Internet 
        infrastructure and services of developing countries;
            (3) integrating efforts to expand Internet access, develop 
        appropriate, sustainable, and gender-equitable technologies, 
        and enhance digital literacy and the availability of relevant 
        local content across development sectors, such as USAID health, 
        education, agriculture, and economic development programs;
            (4) expanding the utilization of information and 
        communications technologies in humanitarian aid and disaster 
        relief responses and United States operations involving 
        reconstruction and stabilization to improve donor coordination, 
        reduce duplication and waste, capture and share lessons 
        learned, and augment disaster preparedness and risk mitigation 
        strategies;
            (5) establishing and promoting guidelines for the 
        protection of personal information of individuals served by 
        humanitarian, disaster, and development programs directly 
        through the United States Government, and through contracts 
        funded by the United States Government and by international 
        organizations; and
            (6) establishing programs that directly address and seek to 
        close gaps in access, adoption, and use of the Internet and 
        other information and communications technologies by women, 
        minorities, and other marginalized groups.
    (e) Peace Corps.--Section 3 of the Peace Corps Act (22 U.S.C. 2502) 
is amended--
            (1) by redesignating subsection (h) as subsection (e); and
            (2) by adding at the end the following:
    ``(f) It is the sense of Congress that access to the Internet can 
transform agriculture, community economic development, education, 
environment, health, and youth development, which are the sectors in 
which Peace Corps develops positions for volunteers.
    ``(g) In giving attention to the programs, projects, training, and 
other activities referred to in subsection (f), the Peace Corps should 
develop positions for volunteers that include leveraging the Internet, 
as appropriate, for development, education, and social and economic 
mobility.''.
    (f) Leveraging International Support.--In pursuing the policy 
described in this Act, the President should direct United States 
representatives to appropriate international bodies to use the 
influence of the United States, consistent with the broad development 
goals of the United States, to advocate that each such body--
            (1) commit to increase efforts and coordination to promote 
        affordable, open, and gender-equitable Internet access, in 
        partnership with stakeholders and consistent with host 
        countries' absorptive capacity;
            (2) integrate affordable and gender-equitable Internet 
        access data into existing economic and business assessments, 
        evaluations, and indexes such as the Millennium Challenge 
        Corporation constraints analysis, the Doing Business reports, 
        International Monetary Fund Article IV assessments and country 
        reports, and the Affordability Drivers Index;
            (3) standardize the inclusion of broadband conduit as part 
        of highway or comparable construction projects in developing 
        countries, in consultation with telecommunications providers, 
        unless--
                    (A) such inclusion would create an undue burden;
                    (B) such inclusion is not necessary based on the 
                availability of existing broadband infrastructure; or
                    (C) a cost-benefit analysis determines that the 
                cost of such inclusion outweighs the benefits;
            (4) provide technical assistance to the regulatory 
        authorities in developing countries to remove unnecessary 
        barriers to investment and develop regulations to support 
        market growth and development;
            (5) utilize clear, accountable, and metric-based targets, 
        including targets with gender-disaggregated data, to measure 
        the effectiveness of efforts to promote Internet access; and
            (6) promote and protect human rights online, such as the 
        freedoms of expression, religion, belief, assembly, and 
        association, through resolutions, public statements, projects, 
        and initiatives, and advocating that member states of such 
        bodies are held accountable for violations.
    (g) Reporting Requirement on Implementation Efforts.--Not later 
than one year after the date of the enactment of this Act, the 
President shall submit a report to the appropriate congressional 
committees on efforts to implement the policy described in this Act 
and, to the extent practicable, describe efforts by the United States 
Government to--
            (1) provide technical and regulatory assistance to promote 
        Internet access in developing countries;
            (2) strengthen and support development of regulations that 
        incentivize market growth that contributes to increased 
        Internet access in developing countries;
            (3) encourage public and private investment in Internet 
        infrastructure, including broadband networks and services, in 
        developing countries;
            (4) increase gender-equitable Internet access and close 
        gender gaps in Internet and other information and 
        communications technology adoption and use, especially in 
        countries where social norms limit such adoption and use by 
        women and girls, and otherwise encourage or support Internet 
        deployment, competition, and adoption; and
            (5) conduct outreach and explore partnership opportunities 
        with the private sector on activities that advance the policy 
        described in this Act.
                                                       Calendar No. 624

115th CONGRESS

  2d Session

                               H. R. 600

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 AN ACT

 To promote Internet access in developing countries and update foreign 
          policy toward the Internet, and for other purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

                            October 5, 2018

                       Reported with an amendment