Digital Global Access Policy Act of 2019 or the Digital GAP Act
This bill directs the Department of State to advance U.S. policy to promote public and private investments in secure Internet infrastructure and increase Internet access around the world. The U.S. Agency for International Development and the Peace Corps shall also make efforts to advance such policy.
The President shall report to Congress about U.S. efforts to implement the policy, including government efforts to provide technical and regulatory assistance to developing countries and close the gender gap in Internet access.
[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1359 Introduced in House (IH)]
<DOC>
116th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 1359
To promote Internet access in developing countries and update foreign
policy toward the Internet, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
February 26, 2019
Mr. Wright (for himself, Mr. McCaul, Mr. Ted Lieu of California, and
Mr. Bera) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
Committee on Foreign Affairs
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
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,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Digital Global Access Policy Act of
2019'' or the ``Digital GAP Act''.
SEC. 2. PURPOSE.
The purpose of this Act is to--
(1) encourage the efforts of developing countries to
improve and secure 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 free speech, 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, secure, 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, the
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation, and
the Committee on Appropriations of the Senate; and
(B) the Committee on Foreign Affairs, the Committee
on Energy and Commerce, 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 secure
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 2027 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;
(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; and
(D) avoidance of vendors and contractors likely to
be subject to extrajudicial direction from a foreign
government;
(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 secure
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; and
(C) 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 secure
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 secure 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 that takes
into consideration the data security and integrity risks
attendant to the products and services of vendors likely to be
subject to extrajudicial direction from a foreign government;
(3) integrating efforts to expand Internet access, develop
appropriate, sustainable, and 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;
(C) such inclusion would require the incorporation
of the hardware, software, or maintenance of vendors
likely to be subject to extrajudicial direction from a
foreign government; or
(D) 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 to the appropriate congressional committees a
report 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 in which 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.
SEC. 5. COST LIMITATION.
No additional funds are authorized to be appropriated to carry out
the provisions of this Act.
SEC. 6. RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.
Nothing in this Act may be construed to infringe upon the related
functions of any Executive agency (as defined in section 105 of title
5, United States Code) vested in such agency under any other provision
of law.
<all>
Introduced in House
Introduced in House
Referred to the House Committee on Foreign Affairs.
Ordered to be Reported (Amended) by Voice Vote.
Committee Agreed to Seek Consideration Under Suspension of the Rules.
Committee Consideration and Mark-up Session Held.
Mr. Engel moved to suspend the rules and pass the bill.
Considered under suspension of the rules. (consideration: CR H3970-3973)
DEBATE - The House proceeded with forty minutes of debate on H.R. 1359.
Passed/agreed to in House: On motion to suspend the rules and pass the bill Agreed to by voice vote.(text: CR H3970-3972)
On motion to suspend the rules and pass the bill Agreed to by voice vote. (text: CR H3970-3972)
Motion to reconsider laid on the table Agreed to without objection.
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Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations.