,i #aacth ,,congress #ast ,session ,h4 ,r4 #aifb ,,in ,,the ,,house ,,of ,,representatives ,may #ad1 #bjac ,mr4 ,poe of ,texas introduced the following bill2 which was referred to the ,committee on the ,judiciary ,a ,,bill ,to maintain the free flow of information to the public by providing conditions for the federally compelled disclosure of information by certain persons connected with the news media4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,free ,flow of ,information ,act of #bjac4 #b4 ,compelled disclosure from covered persons 7a7 ,conditions for compelled disclosure ,in any matter arising under ,federal law1 a ,federal entity may not compel a covered person to provide testimony or produce any document related to information obtained or created by such covered person as part of engaging in journalism1 unless a court determines by a preponderance of the evidence1 after providing notice and an opportunity to be heard to such covered person-- 7#a7 that the party seeking to compel production of such testimony or document has exhausted all reasonable alternative sources 7other than the covered person7 of the testimony or document2 7#b7 that-- 7,a7 in a criminal investigation or prosecution1 based on information obtained from a person other than the covered person-- 7i7 there are reasonable grounds to believe that a crime has occurred2 and 7ii7 the testimony or document sought is critical to the investigation or prosecution or to the defense against the prosecution2 or 7,b7 in a matter other than a criminal investigation or prosecution1 based on information obtained from a person other than the covered person1 the testimony or document sought is critical to the successful completion of the matter2 7#c7 in the case that the testimony or document sought could reveal the identity of a source of information or include any information that could reasonably be expected to lead to the discovery of the identity of such a source1 that-- 7,a7 disclosure of the identity of such a source is necessary to prevent an act of terrorism against the ,united ,states or its allies or other significant and specified harm to national security with the objective to prevent such harm2 7,b7 disclosure of the identity of such a source is necessary to prevent imminent death or significant bodily harm with the objective to prevent such death or harm1 respectively2 or 7,c7 disclosure of the identity of such a source is necessary to identify a person who has disclosed-- 7i7 a trade secret1 actionable under section #ahca or #ahcb of title #ah1 ,united ,states ,code2 7ii7 individually identifiable health information1 as such term is defined in section #aaga7f7 of the ,social ,security ,act 7#db ,u4,s4,c4 #acbj;d7#f771 actionable under ,federal law2 or 7iii7 nonpublic personal information1 as such term is defined in section #eji7d7 of the ,gramm-,leach-,biley ,act 7#ae ,u4,s4,c4 #fhji7d771 of any consumer actionable under ,federal law2 and 7#d7 that the public interest in compelling disclosure of the information or document involved outweighs the public interest in gathering or disseminating news or information4 7b7 ,limitations on content of information ,the content of any testimony or document that is compelled under subsection 7a7 shall-- 7#a7 not be overbroad1 unreasonable1 or oppressive and1 as appropriate1 be limited to the purpose of verifying published information or describing any surrounding circumstances relevant to the accuracy of such published information2 and 7#b7 be narrowly tailored in subject matter and period of time covered so as to avoid compelling production of peripheral1 nonessential1 or speculative information4 7c7 ,rule of construction ,nothing in this ,act shall be construed as applying to civil defamation1 slander1 or libel claims or defenses under ,state law1 regardless of whether or not such claims or defenses1 respectively1 are raised in a ,state or ,federal court4 #c4 ,compelled disclosure from communications service providers 7a7 ,conditions for compelled disclosure ,with respect to testimony or any document consisting of any record1 information1 or other communication that relates to a business transaction between a communications service provider and a covered person1 section #b shall apply to such testimony or document if sought from the communications service provider in the same manner that such section applies to any testimony or document sought from a covered person4 7b7 ,notice and opportunity provided to covered persons ,a court may compel the testimony or disclosure of a document under this section only after the party seeking such a document provides the covered person who is a party to the business transaction described in subsection 7a7-- 7#a7 notice of the subpoena or other compulsory request for such testimony or disclosure from the communications service provider not later than the time at which such subpoena or request is issued to the communications service provider2 and 7#b7 an opportunity to be heard before the court before the time at which the testimony or disclosure is compelled4 7c7 ,exception to notice requirement ,notice under subsection 7b77#a7 may be delayed only if the court involved determines by clear and convincing evidence that such notice would pose a substantial threat to the integrity of a criminal investigation4 #d4 ,definitions ,in this ,act3 7#a7 ,communications service provider ,the term communications service provider-- 7,a7 means any person that transmits information of the customer's choosing by electronic means2 and 7,b7 includes a telecommunications carrier1 an information service provider1 an interactive computer service provider1 and an information content provider 7as such terms are defined in sections #c and #bcj of the ,communications ,act of #aicd 7#dg ,u4,s4,c4 #aec1 #bcj774 7#b7 ,covered person ,the term covered person means a person who1 for financial gain or livelihood1 is engaged in journalism and includes a supervisor1 employer1 parent1 subsidiary1 or affiliate of such covered person4 ,such term shall not include-- 7,a7 any person who is a foreign power or an agent of a foreign power1 as such terms are defined in section #aja of the ,foreign ,intelligence ,surveillance ,act of #aigh 7#ej ,u4,s4,c4 #ahja72 or 7,b7 any organization designated by the ,secretary of ,state as a foreign terrorist organization in accordance with section #bai of the ,immigration and ,nationality ,act 7#h ,u4,s4,c4 #aahi74 7#c7 ,document ,the term document means writings1 recordings1 and photographs1 as those terms are defined by ,federal ,rule of ,evidence #ajja 7#bh ,u4,s4,c4 ,app474 7#d7 ,federal entity ,the term ,federal entity means an entity or employee of the judicial or executive branch or an administrative agency of the ,federal ,government with the power to issue a subpoena or issue other compulsory process4 7#e7 ,journalism ,the term journalism means the gathering1 preparing1 collecting1 photographing1 recording1 writing1 editing1 reporting1 or publishing of news or information that concerns local1 national1 or international events or other matters of public interest for dissemination to the public4