,,ii #aafth ,,congress #b;d ,session ,s4 #dege ,,in ,,the ,,senate ,,of ,,the ,,united ,,states ,september #ae1 #bjbj,mr4 ,gardner introduced the following bill2 which was read twice and referred to the ,committee on ,foreign ,relations ,a ,,bill ,to ensure that the ,united ,states ,government advocates for a free internet4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,free the ,internet around the ,globe to ,hack ,tyranny and ,censorship ,act or the ,,fight ,censorship ,act4 #b4 ,definitions ,in this ,act3 7#a7 ,assistant ,secretary ,the term ,assistant ,secretary means the ,assistant ,secretary of ,commerce for ,communications and ,information4 7#b7 ,united ,states internet freedom policy ,the term ,united ,states internet freedom policy means the policy under section #c7;b74 #c4 ,statement of ,united ,states policy on commitment to internet freedom 7a7 ,findings ,congress finds that-- 7#a7 the internet has revolutionized communications and is one of the most transformative technological developments of the #bjth century2 7#b7 the internet is a powerful tool that facilitates the exercise of human rights and fundamental freedoms1 including freedoms of expression1 association1 peaceful assembly1 and religion or belief2 7#c7 the internet has vastly improved economic freedom for connected individuals around the world and driven a global increase in trade1 commercial activity1 and innovation2 7#d7 the internet is intended to be universal1 and a segmented or fractured internet puts protection of human rights and fundamental freedoms at risk2 7#e7 national governments that pursue aggressive data localization efforts or attempts to reduce the free flow of information across borders erode economic opportunity and freedom for their own citizens2 7#f7 national governments that own1 sponsor1 or largely control social media platforms1 telecommunications providers1 or other technological mediums and use them to further human rights abuses violate the rights and freedoms described in this subsection2 and 7#g7 national governments that engage in internet shutdowns1 arrests for nonviolent expression online1 politically motivated content moderation1 and online political surveillance violate human rights1 including the rights to privacy and safety1 as well as the fundamental freedoms of their own citizens4 7b7 ,policy ,it is the policy of the ,united ,states-- 7#a7 that the internet should remain open1 interoperable1 reliable1 and secure1 and grounded in a transparent1 consensus-driven1 multi-stakeholder model2 7#b7 to uphold human rights and fundamental freedoms described in subsection 7a7 domestically and promote their continued adoption1 protection1 and expansion throughout the world2 7#c7 to engage international partners and national governments who pledge to uphold the human rights and fundamental freedoms described in subsection 7a71 and build a coalition of like-minded countries to support those rights and freedoms in all internet-related activities2 7#d7 that the ,united ,states is committed to a single internet where everyone in the world has access to the free exchange of information and ideas2 and 7#e7 that the ,united ,states1 its global partners1 and ,united ,states companies should ensure that all national governments adhere to the human rights and fundamental freedoms described in subsection 7a7 in questions of internet policy and work to counter national governments hostile to those rights and freedoms4 #d4 ,,ntia responsibilities ,the ,assistant ,secretary shall-- 7#a7 adhere to the ,united ,states internet freedom policy2 7#b7 communicate the ,united ,states internet freedom policy to appropriate stakeholders during meetings of international organizations at which the ,assistant ,secretary represents the ,united ,states in discussions on internet policy2 and 7#c7 work to advance the ,united ,states internet freedom policy in global fora4 #e4 ,internet ,freedom ,task ,force 7a7 ,establishment ,the ,secretary of ,commerce shall establish an ,internet ,freedom ,task ,force composed of-- 7#a7 the ,national ,telecommunications and ,information ,administration2 7#b7 the ,united ,states ,patent and ,trademark ,office2 7#c7 the ,national ,institute of ,standards and ,technology2 and 7#d7 the ,international ,trade ,administration4 7b7 ,coordinator ,the ,assistant ,secretary shall coordinate the activities of the ,internet ,freedom ,task ,force4 7c7 ,duties 7#a7 ,annual report ,not later than #ahj days after the date of enactment of this ,act1 and each year thereafter for #d additional years1 the ,internet ,freedom ,task ,force shall submit to ,congress a report on the state of global internet freedom4 7#b7 ,consultation ,the ,assistant ,secretary1 as coordinator of the ,internet ,freedom ,task ,force1 shall engage in ongoing consultation with the ,director of the ,united ,states ,patent and ,trademark ,office1 the ,director of the ,national ,institute of ,standards and ,technology1 and the ,under ,secretary of ,commerce for ,international ,trade on matters related to privacy policy1 copyright1 global free flow of information1 cybersecurity1 and innovation in the internet economy1 to ensure that the agency headed by each such official is advancing policies that reflect the ,united ,states internet freedom policy4 #f4 ,annual designations of countries that fail to provide sufficient internet freedom ,the ,secretary of ,state1 in consultation with the ,secretary of ,commerce1 shall annually designate countries that the ,secretary of ,state determines do not provide sufficient internet freedom to their residents1 including-- 7#a7 countries with unfavorable domestic laws that-- 7,a7 restrict the free flow of information2 or 7,b7 deliberately target domestic minority groups2 and 7#b7 countries advocating for policies at international fora that conflict with the ,united ,states internet freedom policy4 #g4 ,internet ,freedom ,grant ,program 7a7 ,grants authorized ,the ,secretary of ,state1 working through the ,assistant ,secretary for the ,bureau of ,democracy1 ,human ,rights1 and ,labor1 and in coordination with other bureaus in the ,department of ,state1 shall administer a grant program to promote internet freedom policies worldwide that conform with the ,united ,states internet freedom policy4 7b7 ,eligible grantees2 grant period ,grants authorized under subsection 7a7 may be awarded to nonprofit and international organizations for a period not to exceed #e years4 7c7 ,purpose ,the purpose of the grants authorized under subsection 7a7 shall be-- 7#a7 to promote anti-censorship technology1 including censorship-defeating peer-to-peer communication technology2 and 7#b7 to promote secure communications technology development1 including research on current and future global cybersecurity policy4 7d7 ,use of grant funds ,grant funds received by grant recipients under this section shall be used-- 7#a7 to create open-source and free platforms to achieve the purposes described in subsection 7c72 and 7#b7 for projects operating in countries designated by the ,secretary of ,state pursuant to section #f4 7e7 ,risk assessments ,the ,assistant ,secretary for the ,bureau of ,democracy1 ,human ,rights1 and ,labor shall conduct periodic risk assessments to protect the identity of grant recipients under this section4 7f7 ,authorization of appropriations ,there are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section #be1jjj1jjj1 which shall remain available until expended4 #h4 ,stop the ,,ccp ,initiative ,fund 7a7 ,establishment ,there is established in the ,treasury of the ,united ,states a trust fund1 which shall be known as the ,stop the ,,ccp ,initiative ,fund 7referred to in this section as the ,fund7 and shall be administered by the ,secretary of ,state1 in consultation with the ,secretary of ,commerce4 7b7 ,funding ,there is hereby appropriated #bj1jjj1jjj into the ,fund4 7c7 ,purposes ,the purposes of the ,fund shall be to support the development of technologies1 including counter censorship technology and secure communications technology development-- 7#a7 to counter and circumvent internet censorship within the ,people's ,republic of ,china2 and 7#b7 to promote human rights and fundamental freedoms on the internet in a manner that is consistent with the ,united ,states internet freedom policy4 7d7 ,annual reports ,the ,secretary of ,state shall submit an annual report to ,congress regarding the activities supported by the ,fund during the #e-year period beginning on the date of the enactment of this ,act4