A bill to permanently authorize Radio Free Asia, and for other purposes.

SECTION 1. FINDINGS.
    Congress finds the following:
        (1) Radio Free Asia (referred to in this Act as ``RFA'')--
            (A) was authorized under section 309 of the United States 
        International Broadcasting Act of 1994 (22 U.S.C. 6208);
            (B) was incorporated as a private, non-profit corporation 
        in March 1996 in the hope that its operations would soon be 
        obviated by the global advancement of democracy; and
            (C) is headquartered in Washington, DC, with additional 
        offices in Bangkok, Hong Kong, Phnom Penh, Seoul, Ankara, and 
        Taipei.
        (2) RFA broadcasts serve as substitutes for indigenous free 
    media in regions lacking free media outlets.
        (3) The mission of RFA is ``to provide accurate and timely news 
    and information to Asian countries whose governments prohibit 
    access to a free press'' in order to enable informed decisionmaking 
    by the people within Asia.
        (4) RFA provides daily broadcasts of news, commentary, 
    analysis, and cultural programming to Asian countries in several 
    languages, including--
            (A) 12 hours per day in Mandarin;
            (B) 8 hours per day in 3 Tibetan dialects, Uke, Kham, and 
        Amdo;
            (C) 4 hours per day in Korean and Burmese;
            (D) 2 hours per day in Cantonese, Vietnamese, Laotian, 
        Khmer (Cambodian), and Uyghur; and
            (E) 1\1/2\ hours per week in Wu (local Shanghai dialect).
        (5) The governments of the countries targeted for these 
    broadcasts have consistently denied and blocked attempts at Medium 
    Wave and FM transmissions into their countries, forcing RFA to rely 
    on Shortwave broadcasts and the Internet.
        (6) RFA has provided continuous online news to its Asian 
    audiences since 2004, although some countries--
            (A) routinely and aggressively block RFA's website;
            (B) monitor access to RFA's website; and
            (C) discourage online users by making it illegal to access 
        RFA's website.
        (7) Despite these attempts, RFA has successfully managed to 
    reach its online audiences through proxies, cutting-edge software, 
    and active republication and repostings by its audience.
        (8) RFA also provides forums for local opinions and experiences 
    through message boards, podcasts, web logs (blogs), cell phone-
    distributed newscasts, and new media, including Facebook, Flickr, 
    Twitter, and YouTube.
        (9) Freedom House has documented that freedom of the press is 
    in decline in nearly every region of the world, particularly in 
    Asia, where none of the countries served by RFA have increased 
    their freedom of the press during the past 5 years.
        (10) In fiscal year 2010, RFA is operating on a $37,000,000 
    budget, less than $400,000 of which is available to fund Internet 
    censorship circumvention.
        (11) Congress currently provides grant funding for RFA's 
    operations on a fiscal year basis.
SEC. 2. SENSE OF THE SENATE.
    It is the sense of the Senate that--
        (1) public access to timely, uncensored, and accurate 
    information is imperative for promoting government accountability 
    and the protection of human rights;
        (2) Radio Free Asia provides a vital voice to people in Asia;
        (3) some of the governments in Asia spend millions of dollars 
    each year to jam RFA's shortwave, block its Internet sites;
        (4) Congress should provide additional funding to RFA and the 
    other entities overseen by the Broadcasting Board of Governors 
    for--
            (A) Internet censorship circumvention; and
            (B) enhancement of their cyber security efforts; and
        (5) permanently authorizing funding for Radio Free Asia would--
            (A) reflect the concern that media censorship and press 
        restrictions in the countries served by RFA have increased 
        since RFA was established; and
            (B) send a powerful signal of our Nation's support for free 
        press in Asia and throughout the world.
SEC. 3. PERMANENT AUTHORIZATION FOR RADIO FREE ASIA.
    Section 309 of the United States International Broadcasting Act of 
1994 (22 U.S.C. 6208) is amended--
        (1) in subsection (c)(2), by striking ``, and shall further 
    specify that funds to carry out the activities of Radio Free Asia 
    may not be available after September 30, 2010'';
        (2) by striking subsection (f);
        (3) by redesignating subsections (g) and (h) as subsection (f) 
    and (g), respectively; and
        (4) in subsection (f), as redesignated--
            (A) by striking ``The Board'' and inserting the following:
        ``(1) Notification.--The Board'';
            (B) by striking ``before entering'' and inserting the 
        following: ``before--
            ``(A) entering'';
            (C) by striking ``Radio Free Asia.'' and inserting the 
        following: ``Radio Free Asia; or
            ``(B) entering into any agreements in regard to the 
        utilization of Radio Free Asia transmitters, equipment, or 
        other resources that will significantly reduce the broadcasting 
        activities of Radio Free Asia.'';
            (D) by striking ``The Chairman'' and inserting the 
        following:
        ``(2) Consultation.--The Chairman''; and
            (E) by inserting ``or Radio Free Asia broadcasting 
        activities'' before the period at the end.

                               Speaker of the House of Representatives.

                            Vice President of the United States and    
                                               President of the Senate.

Summary: Expresses the sense of the Senate that: (1) public access to accurate information is imperative for promoting government accountability and the protection of human rights. (2) Radio Free Asia (RFA) provides a vital voice to people in Asia. (3) some of the governments in Asia spend millions of dollars each year to jam RFA. And (4) Congress should provide additional and permanent funding for RFA. Amends the United States International Broadcasting Act of 1994 to make permanent the authority of the Broadcasting Board of Governors to make grants to operate RFA.