II 

Calendar No. 644 

116TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 5085 

To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to increase the additional 

2020 recovery rebates, to repeal section 230 of the Communications 

Act of 1934, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

DECEMBER 29, 2020 

Mr. MCCONNELL introduced the following bill; which was read the first time 

DECEMBER 30, 2020 

Read the second time and placed on the calendar 

A BILL 

To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to increase 

the additional 2020 recovery rebates, to repeal section 

230 of the Communications Act of 1934, and for other 

purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. INCREASE IN 2020 RECOVERY REBATES. 

4 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 6428A of the Internal 

5 Revenue Code of 1986 (as added by the COVID-related 

6 Tax Relief Act of 2020) is amended— 


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1 (1) in subsection (a)(1), by striking ‘‘$600 

2 ($1,200’’ and inserting ‘‘$2,000 ($4,000’’, 

3 (2) in subsection (g)(1), by striking ‘‘$600’’ 

4 and inserting ‘‘$2,000’’, and 

5 (3) in subsection (g)(2)— 

6 (A) by striking ‘‘$1,200’’ in the matter 

7 preceding subparagraph (A) and inserting 

8 ‘‘$4,000’’, and 

9 (B) by striking ‘‘$600’’ in subparagraph 

10 (A) and inserting ‘‘$2,000’’. 

11 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

12 this section shall take effect as if included in section 272 

13 of the COVID-related Tax Relief Act of 2020. 

14 SEC. 2. REPEAL OF SECTION 230. 

15 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 230 of the Communica16 tions Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 230) is repealed. 

17 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

18 (1) COMMUNICATIONS ACT OF 1934.—The Com19 munications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 151 et seq.) is 

20 amended— 

21 (A) in section 223(h) (47 U.S.C. 223(h)), 

22 by striking paragraph (2) and inserting the fol23 lowing: 

24 ‘‘(2) The term ‘interactive computer service’ 

25 means any information service, system, or access 


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1 software provider that provides or enables computer 

2 access by multiple users to a computer server, in3 cluding specifically a service or system that provides 

4 access to the Internet and such systems operated or 

5 services offered by libraries or educational institu6 tions.’’; and 

7 (B) in section 231(b)(4) (47 U.S.C. 

8 231(b)(4)), by striking ‘‘or section 230’’. 

9 (2) TRADEMARK ACT OF 1946.—Section 45 of 

10 the Act entitled ‘‘An Act to provide for the registra11 tion and protection of trademarks used in commerce, 

12 to carry out the provisions of certain international 

13 conventions, and for other purposes’’, approved July 

14 5, 1946 (commonly known as the ‘‘Trademark Act 

15 of 1946’’) (15 U.S.C. 1127) is amended by striking 

16 the definition relating to the term ‘‘Internet’’ and in17 serting the following: 

18 ‘‘The term ‘Internet’ means the international com19 puter network of both Federal and non-Federal interoper20 able packet switched data networks.’’. 

21 (3) TITLE 17, UNITED STATES CODE.—Section 

22 1401 of title 17, United States Code, is amended by 

23 striking subsection (g). 

24 (4) TITLE 18, UNITED STATES CODE.—Part I of 

25 title 18, United States Code, is amended— 


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1 (A) in section 2257(h)(2)(B)(v), by strik2 ing ‘‘, except that deletion of a particular com3 munication or material made by another person 

4 in a manner consistent with section 230(c) of 

5 the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 

6 230(c)) shall not constitute such selection or al7 teration of the content of the communication’’; 

8 and 

9 (B) in section 2421A— 

10 (i) in subsection (a), by striking ‘‘(as 

11 such term is defined in defined in section 

12 230(f) the Communications Act of 1934 

13 (47 U.S.C. 230(f)))’’ and inserting ‘‘(as 

14 that term is defined in section 223 of the 

15 Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 

16 223))’’; and 

17 (ii) in subsection (b), by striking ‘‘(as 

18 such term is defined in defined in section 

19 230(f) the Communications Act of 1934 

20 (47 U.S.C. 230(f)))’’ and inserting ‘‘(as 

21 that term is defined in section 223 of the 

22 Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 

23 223))’’. 

24 (5) CONTROLLED SUBSTANCES ACT.—Section 

25 401(h)(3)(A)(iii)(II) of the Controlled Substances 


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1 Act (21 U.S.C. 841(h)(3)(A)(iii)(II)) is amended by 

2 striking ‘‘, except that deletion of a particular com3 munication or material made by another person in 

4 a manner consistent with section 230(c) of the Com5 munications Act of 1934 shall not constitute such 

6 selection or alteration of the content of the commu7 nication’’. 

8 (6) WEBB-KENYON ACT.—Section 3(b)(1) of 

9 the Act entitled ‘‘An Act divesting intoxicating liq10 uors of their interstate character in certain cases’’, 

11 approved March 1, 1913 (commonly known as the 

12 ‘‘Webb-Kenyon Act’’) (27 U.S.C. 122b(b)(1)) is 

13 amended by striking ‘‘(as defined in section 230(f) 

14 of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 

15 230(f))’’ and inserting ‘‘(as defined in section 223 of 

16 the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 223))’’. 

17 (7) TITLE 28, UNITED STATES CODE.—Section 

18 4102 of title 28, United States Code, is amended— 

19 (A) by striking subsection (c); and 

20 (B) in subsection (e)— 

21 (i) by striking ‘‘construed to’’ and all 

22 that follows through ‘‘affect’’ and inserting 

23 ‘‘construed to affect’’; and 


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1 (ii) by striking ‘‘defamation; or’’ and 

2 all that follows and inserting ‘‘defama3 tion.’’. 

4 (8) TITLE 31, UNITED STATES CODE.—Section 

5 5362(6) of title 31, United States Code, is amended 

6 by striking ‘‘section 230(f) of the Communications 

7 Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 230(f))’’ and inserting ‘‘sec8 tion 223 of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 

9 U.S.C. 223)’’. 

10 (9) NATIONAL TELECOMMUNICATIONS AND IN11 FORMATION ADMINISTRATION ORGANIZATION ACT.— 

12 Section 157 of the National Telecommunications 

13 and Information Administration Organization Act 

14 (47 U.S.C. 941) is amended— 

15 (A) by striking subsection (e); and 

16 (B) by redesignating subsections (f) 

17 through (j) as subsections (e) through (i), re18 spectively. 

19 SEC. 3. 2020 BIPARTISAN ADVISORY COMMITTEE. 

20 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established within 

21 the Election Assistance Commission the 2020 Bipartisan 

22 Advisory Committee (referred to in this section as the 

23 ‘‘Advisory Committee’’). 

24 (b) MEMBERSHIP.— 


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1 (1) COMPOSITION.—The Advisory Committee 

2 shall be composed of 18 members of whom— 

3 (A) nine shall be appointed by the leader 

4 of the Republican caucus in the Senate (in con5 sultation with the minority leader of the House 

6 of Representatives), one of which shall be ap7 pointed as a Co-Chairperson of the Advisory 

8 Committee; and 

9 (B) nine shall be appointed by the Speaker 

10 of the House of Representatives (in consultation 

11 with the leader of the Democratic caucus in the 

12 Senate), one of which shall be appointed as a 

13 Co-Chairperson of the Advisory Committee. 

14 (2) REPRESENTATION.—Individuals appointed 

15 to the Advisory Committee under paragraph (1) 

16 shall be geographically balanced and shall include 

17 representatives of Federal, State, and local govern18 ments and of the legal, cybersecurity, and election 

19 administration and technology communities. 

20 (3) DATE.—The appointments of the members 

21 of the Advisory Committee shall be made not later 

22 than 90 days after the date of enactment of this 

23 Act. 

24 (c) PERIOD OF APPOINTMENT; VACANCIES.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para2 graph (2), a member of the Advisory shall be ap3 pointed for the duration of the Advisory Committee. 

4 (2) REMOVAL.—A member may be removed 

5 from the Advisory Committee at any time at the 

6 upon concurrence of both of the Co-Chairpersons of 

7 the Advisory Committee. 

8 (3) VACANCIES.—A vacancy in the Advisory 

9 Committee— 

10 (A) shall not affect the powers of the Com11 mission; and 

12 (B) shall be filled in the same manner as 

13 the original appointment. 

14 (d) DUTIES.— 

15 (1) STUDY.— 

16 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Advisory Com17 mittee shall, consistent with applicable law, 

18 study the integrity and administration of the 

19 general election for Federal office held in No20 vember 2020 and make recommendations to 

21 Congress to improve the security, integrity, and 

22 administration of Federal elections. 

23 (B) MATTERS STUDIED.—The matters 

24 studied by the Advisory Committee shall in25 clude— 


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1 (i) the effects of the COVID–19 pan2 demic on the administration of the general 

3 election for Federal office held in Novem4 ber 2020; 

5 (ii) the election practices adopted by 

6 Federal, State, and local governments in 

7 response to the COVID–19 pandemic, in8 cluding— 

9 (I) practices that undermined the 

10 security and integrity of the election; 

11 and 

12 (II) practices that strengthened 

13 the security and integrity of the elec14 tion; 

15 (iii) the laws, rules, policies, activities, 

16 strategies, and practices regarding mail-in 

17 ballots, absentee ballots, and vote-by-mail 

18 procedures, including— 

19 (I) measures that undermined 

20 the security and integrity of the elec21 tion; and 

22 (II) measures that strengthened 

23 the security and integrity of the elec24 tion; 


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1 (iv) any laws, rules, policies, activities, 

2 strategies, and practices that would have 

3 allowed improper or fraudulent votes to be 

4 cast in such election and the scope of any 

5 improper and fraudulent votes that were 

6 cast in the election; and 

7 (v) any laws, rules, policies, activities, 

8 strategies, and practices that would have 

9 allowed improper or fraudulent voter reg10 istration and the scope of any improper or 

11 fraudulent voter registration. 

12 (2) REPORTS.— 

13 (A) INITIAL REPORT.—Not later than 180 

14 days after the date of the enactment of this 

15 Act, the Advisory Committee shall submit to 

16 the Election Assistance Commission and the ap17 propriate Congressional committees a report on 

18 the matter studied under paragraph (1). Such 

19 report shall include— 

20 (i) precinct-by-precinct data high21 lighting the number and incidence of any 

22 improper and fraudulent votes that were 

23 cast in the election; and 

24 (ii) precinct-by-precinct data high25 lighting the number and incidence of any 


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1 improper and fraudulent voter registra2 tions. 

3 (B) RECOMMENDATIONS.— 

4 (i) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 360 

5 days after the date of the enactment of 

6 this Act, the Advisory Committee shall 

7 submit to the Election Assistance Commis8 sion and the appropriate Congressional 

9 committees recommendations on the fol10 lowing: 

11 (I) The best practices that should 

12 be adopted by at each level of local, 

13 State, and Federal Government for 

14 administering elections for Federal of15 fice— 

16 (aa) during the COVID–19 

17 pandemic; and 

18 (bb) during other national 

19 emergencies. 

20 (II) The best practices that 

21 should be adopted at each level of 

22 local, State, and Federal Government 

23 to mitigate fraud and increase the in24 tegrity and security of mail-in ballots, 


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1 absentee ballots, and vote-by-mail pro2 cedures. 

3 (III) The best practices that 

4 should be adopted at each level of 

5 local, State, and Federal Government 

6 to prevent improper or fraudulent 

7 votes from being cast. 

8 (IV) The best practices that 

9 should be adopted at each level of 

10 local, State, and Federal Government 

11 to prevent improper voters from being 

12 registered. 

13 (ii) MINORITY VIEWS.—In the case of 

14 any recommendation with respect to which 

15 one-third or more of the Committee does 

16 not concur, the report shall include a jus17 tification for why such members do not 

18 concur. 

19 (C) APPROPRIATE CONGRESSIONAL COM20 MITTEES.—For purposes of this paragraph, the 

21 term ‘‘appropriate Congressional Committees’’ 

22 means— 

23 (i) the Committee on Rules and Ad24 ministration of the Senate; 


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1 (ii) the Committee on the Judiciary of 

2 the Senate; 

3 (iii) the Committee on House Admin4 istration of the House of Representatives; 

5 and 

6 (iv) the Committee on the Judiciary of 

7 the House of Representatives. 

8 (e) COMMISSION PERSONNEL MATTERS.— 

9 (1) PROHIBITION ON COMPENSATION OF MEM10 BERS.—The members of the Advisory Committee 

11 may not receive pay or benefits from the United 

12 States Government by reason of their service on the 

13 Advisory Committee. 

14 (2) STAFF.— 

15 (A) IN GENERAL.—Each Co-Chairperson 

16 of the Advisory Committee may appoint not 

17 more than 5 subject matter experts to serve as 

18 staff to the Advisory Committee. 

19 (B) COMPENSATION.—The Co-Chair20 persons of the Advisory Committee may fix the 

21 compensation of the staff of the Advisor Com22 mittee without regard to chapter 51 and sub23 chapter III of chapter 53 of title 5, United 

24 States Code, relating to classification of posi25 tions and General Schedule pay rates, except 


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1 that the rate of pay for the staff may not ex2 ceed the rate payable for level V of the Execu3 tive Schedule under section 5316 of that title. 

4 (f) TERMINATION.—The Advisory Committee shall 

5 terminate 90 days after the date on which the Advisory 

6 Committee submits the report required under subsection 

7 (d). 

8 (g) NONAPPLICABILITY OF FACA.—The Federal Ad9 visory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.) shall not apply to 

10 the Advisory Committee. 

11 SEC. 4. DISCLOSURE OF ACCESS TO ELECTION INFRA12 STRUCTURE BY FOREIGN NATIONALS. 

13 (a) IN GENERAL.—Title III of the Help America 

14 Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21081 et seq.) is amended 

15 by inserting after section 303 the following new section: 

16 ‘‘SEC. 303A. DISCLOSURE OF ACCESS TO ELECTION INFRA17 STRUCTURE BY FOREIGN NATIONALS. 

18 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Each chief State election official 

19 shall disclose to the Commission the identity of any foreign 

20 national known by the chief State election official— 

21 ‘‘(1) to have physically handled— 

22 ‘‘(A) ballots used in an election for Federal 

23 office; or 

24 ‘‘(B) voting machines; or 

25 ‘‘(2) to have had unmonitored access to— 


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1 ‘‘(A) a storage facility or centralized vote 

2 tabulation location used to support the adminis3 tration of an election for public office; or 

4 ‘‘(B) election-related information or com5 munications technology, including voter reg6 istration databases, voting machines, electronic 

7 mail and other communications systems (includ8 ing electronic mail and other systems of vendors 

9 who have entered into contracts with election 

10 agencies to support the administration of elec11 tions, manage the election process, and report 

12 and display election results), and other systems 

13 used to manage the election process and to re14 port and display election results on behalf of an 

15 election agency. 

16 ‘‘(b) TIMING.—The chief State election official shall 

17 make the disclosure under subsection (a) not later than 

18 30 days after the date on which such official becomes 

19 aware of an activity described in such subsection. 

20 ‘‘(c) FOREIGN NATIONAL DEFINED.—The term ‘for21 eign national’ has the meaning given that term in section 

22 319 of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 

23 U.S.C. 30121).’’. 

24 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT RELATING TO EN25 FORCEMENT.—Section 401 of such Act (52 U.S.C. 21111) 


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1 is amended by striking ‘‘sections 301, 302, and 303’’ and 

2 inserting ‘‘subtitle A of title III’’. 

3 (c) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of contents 

4 of such Act is amended by inserting after the item relating 

5 to section 303 the following new item: 

‘‘Sec. 303A. Disclosure of access to election infrastructure by foreign nationals.’’. 


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Calendar No. 644 

116TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 5085 

A BILL 

To amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to 

1934, and for other purposes. repeal section 230 of the Communications Act of increase the additional 2020 recovery rebates, to 

DECEMBER 30, 2020 

Read the second time and placed on the calendar 


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