,i #aagth ,,congress #b;d ,session ,h4 ,r4 #hjfe ,,in ,,the ,,house ,,of ,,representatives ,june #ad1 #bjbb ,mr4 ,waltz 7for himself1 ,mr4 ,soto1 ,mr4 ,donalds1 ,mr4 ,swalwell1 and ,mr4 ,gottheimer7 introduced the following bill2 which was referred to the ,committee on ,science1 ,space1 and ,technology ,a ,,bill ,to authorize the development of a national strategy for the research and development of distributed ledger technologies and their applications1 to authorize awards to support research on distributed ledger technologies and their applications1 and to authorize an applied research project on distributed ledger technologies in commerce4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,national ,r ,d ,strategy for ,distributed ,ledger ,technology ,act of #bjbb4 #b4 ,definitions ,in this ,act3 7#a7 ,director ,except as otherwise expressly provided1 the term ,director means the ,director of the ,office of ,science and ,technology ,policy4 7#b7 ,distributed ledger ,the term distributed ledger means a ledger that-- 7,a7 is shared across a set of distributed nodes1 which are devices or processes1 that participate in a network and store a complete or partial replica of the ledger2 7,b7 is synchronized between the nodes2 7,c7 has data appended to it by following the ledger's specified consensus mechanism2 7,d7 may be accessible to anyone 7public7 or restricted to a subset of participants 7private72 and 7,e7 may require participants to have authorization to perform certain actions 7permissioned7 or require no authorization 7permissionless74 7#c7 ,distributed ledger technology ,the term distributed ledger technology means technology that enables the operation and use of distributed ledgers4 7#d7 ,institution of higher education ,the term institution of higher education has the meaning given the term in section #aja of the ,higher ,education ,act of #aife 7#bj ,u4,s4,c4 #ajja74 7#e7 ,relevant congressional committees ,the term relevant congressional committees means-- 7,a7 the ,committee on ,commerce1 ,science1 and ,transportation of the ,senate2 and 7,b7 the ,committee on ,science1 ,space1 and ,technology of the ,house of ,representatives4 7#f7 ,smart contract ,the term smart contract means a computer program stored in a distributed ledger system that is executed when certain predefined conditions are satisfied and wherein the outcome of any execution of the program may be recorded on the distributed ledger4 #c4 ,national distributed ledger technology ,r,d strategy 7a7 ,in general ,the ,director1 or a designee of the ,director1 shall1 in coordination with the ,national ,science and ,technology ,council1 and the heads of such other relevant ,federal agencies and entities as the ,director considers appropriate1 which may include the ,national ,academies1 and in consultation with such nongovernmental entities as the ,director considers appropriate1 develop a national strategy for the research and development of distributed ledger technologies and their applications1 including applications of public and permissionless distributed ledgers4 ,in developing the national strategy1 the ,director shall consider the following3 7#a7 ,current efforts and coordination by ,federal agencies to invest in the research and development of distributed ledger technologies and their applications1 including through programs like the ,small ,business ,innovation ,research program1 the ,small ,business ,technology ,transfer program1 and the ,national ,science ,foundation's ,innovation ,corps programs4 7#b7 7,a7 ,the potential benefits and risks of applications of distributed ledger technologies across different industry sectors1 including their potential to-- 7i7 lower transactions costs and facilitate new types of commercial transactions2 7ii7 protect privacy and increase individuals' data sovereignty2 7iii7 reduce friction to the interoperability of digital systems2 7iv7 increase the accessibility1 auditability1 security1 efficiency1 and transparency of digital services2 7v7 increase market competition in the provision of digital services2 7vi7 enable dynamic contracting and contract execution through smart contracts2 7vii7 enable participants to collaborate in trustless and disintermediated environments2 7viii7 enable the operations and governance of distributed organizations2 7ix7 create new ownership models for digital items2 and 7x7 increase participation of populations historically underrepresented in the technology1 business1 and financial sectors4 7,b7 ,in consideration of the potential risks of applications of distributed ledger technologies under subparagraph 7,a71 the ,director shall take into account1 where applicable-- 7i7 additional risks that may emerge from distributed ledger technologies1 as identified in reports submitted to the ,president pursuant to ,executive ,order #adjfg1 that may be addressed by research and development2 7ii7 software vulnerabilities in distributed ledger technologies and smart contracts2 7iii7 limited consumer literacy on engaging with applications of distributed ledger technologies in a secure way2 7iv7 the use of distributed ledger technologies in illicit finance and their use in combating illicit finance2 7v7 manipulative1 deceptive1 and fraudulent practices that harm consumers engaging with applications of distributed ledger technologies2 7vi7 the implications of different consensus mechanisms for digital ledgers and governance and accountability mechanisms for applications of distributed ledger technologies1 which may include decentralized networks2 7vii7 foreign activities in the development and deployment of distributed ledger technologies and their associated tools and infrastructure2 and 7viii7 environmental1 sustainability1 and economic impacts of the computational resources required for distributed ledger technologies4 7#c7 ,potential uses for distributed ledger technologies that could improve the operations and delivery of services by ,federal agencies1 taking into account the potential of digital ledger technologies to-- 7,a7 improve the efficiency and effectiveness of privacy-preserving data sharing among ,federal agencies and with ,state1 local1 territorial1 and ,tribal governments2 7,b7 promote government transparency by improving data sharing with the public2 7,c7 introduce or mitigate risks that may threaten individuals' rights or broad access to ,federal services2 7,d7 automate and modernize processes for assessing and ensuring regulatory compliance2 and 7,e7 facilitate broad access to financial services for underserved and underbanked populations4 7#d7 ,ways to support public and private sector dialogue on areas of research that could enhance the efficiency1 scalability1 interoperability1 security1 and privacy of applications using distributed ledger technologies4 7#e7 ,the need for increased coordination of the public and private sectors on the development of voluntary standards in order to promote research and development1 including standards regarding security1 smart contracts1 cryptographic protocols1 virtual routing and forwarding1 interoperability1 zero-knowledge proofs1 and privacy1 for distributed ledger technologies and their applications4 7#f7 ,applications of distributed ledger technologies that could positively benefit society but that receive relatively little private sector investment4 7#g7 ,the ,united ,states position in global leadership and competitiveness across research1 development1 and deployment of distributed ledger technologies4 7b7 ,consultation 7#a7 ,in general ,in carrying out the ,director's duties under this section1 the ,director shall consult with the following3 7,a7 ,private industry4 7,b7 ,institutions of higher education1 including minority-serving institutions4 7,c7 ,nonprofit organizations1 including foundations dedicated to supporting distributed ledger technologies and their applications4 7,d7 ,state governments4 7,e7 ,such other persons as the ,director considers appropriate4 7#b7 ,representation ,the ,director shall ensure consultations with the following3 7,a7 ,rural and urban stakeholders from across the ,nation4 7,b7 ,small1 medium1 and large businesses4 7,c7 ,subject matter experts representing multiple industrial sectors4 7,d7 ,a demographically diverse set of stakeholders4 7c7 ,coordination ,in carrying out this section1 the ,director shall1 for purposes of avoiding duplication of activities1 consult1 cooperate1 and coordinate with the programs and policies of other relevant ,federal agencies1 including the interagency process outlined in section #c of ,executive ,order #adjfg 7#hg ,fed4 ,reg4 #adadc2 relating ensuring responsible development of digital assets74 7d7 ,national strategy ,not later than #a year after the date of enactment of this ,act1 the ,director shall submit to the relevant congressional committees and the ,president a national strategy that includes the following3 7#a7 ,priorities for the research and development of distributed ledger technologies and their applications4 7#b7 ,plans to support public and private sector investment and partnerships in research and technology development for societally beneficial applications of distributed ledger technologies4 7#c7 ,plans to mitigate the risks of distributed ledger technologies and their applications4 7#d7 ,an identification of additional resources1 administrative action1 or legislative action recommended to assist with the implementation of such strategy4 7e7 ,research and development funding ,the ,director shall1 as the ,director considers necessary1 consult with the ,director of the ,office of ,management and ,budget and with the heads of such other elements of the ,executive ,office of the ,president as the ,director considers appropriate1 to ensure that the recommendations and priorities with respect to research and development funding1 as expressed in the national strategy developed under this section1 are incorporated in the development of annual budget requests for ,federal research agencies4 #d4 ,distributed ledger technology research 7a7 ,in general ,the ,director of the ,national ,science ,foundation shall make awards1 on a competitive basis1 to institutions of higher education1 including minority-serving institutions1 or nonprofit organizations 7or consortia of such institutions or organizations7 to support research1 including interdisciplinary research1 on distributed ledger technologies1 their applications1 and other issues that impact or are caused by distributed ledger technologies1 which may include research on-- 7#a7 the implications on trust1 transparency1 privacy1 accessibility1 accountability1 and energy consumption of different consensus mechanisms and hardware choices1 and approaches for addressing these implications2 7#b7 approaches for improving the security1 privacy1 resiliency1 interoperability1 performance1 and scalability of distributed ledger technologies and their applications1 which may include decentralized networks2 7#c7 approaches for identifying and addressing vulnerabilities and improving the performance and expressive power of smart contracts2 7#d7 the implications of quantum computing on applications of distributed ledger technologies1 including long-term protection of sensitive information 7such as medical or digital property71 and techniques to address them2 7#e7 game theory1 mechanism design1 and economics underpinning and facilitating the operations and governance of decentralized networks enabled by distributed ledger technologies2 7#f7 the social behaviors of participants in decentralized networks enabled by distributed ledger technologies2 7#g7 human-centric design approaches to make distributed ledger technologies and their applications more usable and accessible2 7#h7 use cases for distributed ledger technologies across various industry sectors and government1 including applications pertaining to-- 7,a7 digital identity1 including trusted identity and identity management2 7,b7 digital property rights2 7,c7 delivery of public services2 7,d7 supply chain transparency2 7,e7 medical information management2 7,f7 inclusive financial services2 7,g7 community governance2 7,h7 charitable giving2 7,i7 public goods funding2 7,j7 digital credentials2 7,k7 regulatory compliance2 7,l7 infrastructure resilience1 including against natural disasters2 and 7,m7 peer-to-peer transactions2 and 7#i7 the social1 behavioral1 and economic implications associated with the growth of applications of distributed ledger technologies1 including decentralization in business1 financial1 and economic systems4 7b7 ,accelerating innovation ,the ,director of the ,national ,science ,foundation shall consider continuing to support startups that are in need of funding1 would develop in and contribute to the economy of the ,united ,states1 leverage distributed ledger technologies1 have the potential to positively benefit society1 and have the potential for commercial viability1 through programs like the ,small ,business ,innovation ,research program1 the ,small ,business ,technology ,transfer program1 and1 as appropriate1 other programs that promote broad and diverse participation4 7c7 ,consideration of national distributed ledger technology research and development strategy ,in making awards under subsection 7a71 the ,director of the ,national ,science ,foundation shall take into account the national strategy1 as described in section #c7;d74 7d7 ,fundamental research ,the ,director of the ,national ,science ,foundation shall consider continuing to make awards supporting fundamental research in areas related to distributed ledger technologies and their applications1 such as applied cryptography and distributed systems4 #e4 ,distributed ledger technology applied research project 7a7 ,applied research project ,subject to the availability of appropriations1 the ,director of the ,national ,institute of ,standards and ,technology may carry out an applied research project to study and demonstrate the potential benefits and unique capabilities of distributed ledger technologies4 7b7 ,activities ,in carrying out the applied research project1 the ,director of the ,national ,institute of ,standards and ,technology shall-- 7#a7 identify potential applications of distributed ledger technologies1 including those that could benefit activities at the ,department of ,commerce or at other ,federal agencies1 considering applications that could-- 7,a7 improve the privacy and interoperability of digital identity and access management solutions2 7,b7 increase the integrity and transparency of supply chains through the secure and limited sharing of relevant supplier information2 7,c7 facilitate increased interoperability across healthcare information systems and consumer control over the movement of their medical data2 7,d7 facilitate broader participation in distributed ledger technologies of populations historically underrepresented in technology1 business1 and financial sectors2 or 7,e7 be of benefit to the public or private sectors1 as determined by the ,director in consultation with relevant stakeholders2 7#b7 solicit and provide the opportunity for public comment relevant to potential projects2 7#c7 consider1 in the selection of a project1 whether the project addresses a pressing need not already addressed by another organization or ,federal agency2 7#d7 establish plans to mitigate potential risks1 including those outlined in section #c7;a77#b77;,b71 if applicable1 of potential projects2 7#e7 produce an example solution leveraging distributed ledger technologies for #a of the applications identified in paragraph 7#a72 7#f7 hold a competitive process to select private sector partners1 if they are engaged1 to support the implementation of the example solution2 7#g7 consider hosting the project at the ,national ,cybersecurity ,center of ,excellence2 and 7#h7 ensure that cybersecurity best practices consistent with the ,cybersecurity ,framework of the ,national ,institute of ,standards and ,technology are demonstrated in the project4 7c7 ,briefings to ,congress ,not later than #a year after the date of enactment of this ,act1 the ,director of the ,national ,institute of ,standards and ,technology shall offer a briefing to the relevant congressional committees on the progress and current findings from the project under this section4 7d7 ,public report ,not later than #ab months after the completion of the project under this section1 the ,director of the ,national ,institute of ,standards and ,technology shall make public a report on the results and findings from the project4