IB 

Union Calendar No. 566 

116TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 4782 

[Report No. 116–683, Part I] 

To establish a national commission on online platforms and homeland security, 

and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

OCTOBER 22, 2019 

Mr. THOMPSON of Mississippi (for himself, Mr. ROSE of New York, Ms. 

BARRAGA ́N, Mrs. WATSON COLEMAN, Ms. CLARKE of New York, Mr. 

RICHMOND, Mr. PAYNE, Mr. LANGEVIN, Mr. CORREA, and Mr. CLEAVER) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee 

on Homeland Security, and in addition to the Committee on Energy and 

Commerce, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, 

in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 

DECEMBER 21, 2020 

Additional sponsors: Ms. TITUS, Mr. TAYLOR, Ms. TORRES SMALL of New 

Mexico, Ms. SLOTKIN, Mrs. AXNE, Mr. GONZALEZ of Texas, Ms. NORTON, Mr. MOULTON, and Mr. CASE

DECEMBER 21, 2020 

Reported from the Committee on Homeland Security with an amendment 

[Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic] 

DECEMBER 21, 2020 

Committee on Energy and Commerce discharged; committed to the Committee 

of the Whole House on the State of the Union and ordered to be printed 

[For text of introduced bill, see copy of bill as introduced on October 22, 2019] 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
2 

•HR 4782 RH

A BILL 

To establish a national commission on online platforms and 

homeland security, and for other purposes. 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
3 

•HR 4782 RH

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

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘National Commission 

5 on Online Platforms and Homeland Security Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. NATIONAL COMMISSION ON ONLINE PLATFORMS 

7 AND HOMELAND SECURITY. 

8 (a) ESTABLISHMENT OF COMMISSION.—There is estab9 lished a National Commission on Online Platforms and 

10 Homeland Security (referred to in this section as the ‘‘Com11 mission’’). 

12 (b) PURPOSES.—The Commission shall— 

13 (1) identify, examine, and report on the ways, if 

14 any, that online platforms have been utilized in fur15 therance of acts of targeted violence, including domes16 tic terrorism and international terrorism, or covert 

17 foreign state influence campaigns; and 

18 (2) identify, examine, and report on the ways, if 

19 any, that free speech, privacy, civil rights, and civil 

20 liberties are impacted by— 

21 (A) any utilization of online platforms in 

22 furtherance of acts of targeted violence, including 

23 domestic terrorism and international terrorism, 

24 or covert foreign state influence campaigns; and 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
4 

•HR 4782 RH

1 (B) any policies, procedures, or activities 

2 undertaken by owners and operators of online 

3 platforms to prevent or limit the utilization of 

4 online platforms in furtherance of acts of tar5 geted violence, including domestic terrorism and 

6 international terrorism, or covert foreign state 

7 influence campaigns; and 

8 (3) develop recommendations, as appropriate, for 

9 how online platforms could address the utilization 

10 identified pursuant to paragraph (1), if any, in ways 

11 that are transparent and accountable, to promote free 

12 speech and innovation on the internet, preserve indi13 vidual privacy, civil rights, and civil liberties, and 

14 uphold the principles of the Constitution, in accord15 ance with relevant existing statutes, including section 

16 552a of title 5, United States Code (commonly re17 ferred to as the Privacy Act of 1974), and take into 

18 account current or anticipated trends and techno19 logical developments, such as advancements in artifi20 cial intelligence. 

21 (c) COMPOSITION OF COMMISSION.— 

22 (1) MEMBERS.—The Commission shall be com23 posed of 12 members, of whom— 

24 (A) two members shall be appointed by the 

25 Committee on Homeland Security in the House 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
5 

•HR 4782 RH

1 of Representatives, with one member selected by 

2 the Chair and the other selected by the Ranking 

3 Member; 

4 (B) two members shall be appointed by the 

5 Committee on Foreign Affairs in the House of 

6 Representatives, with one member selected by the 

7 Chair and the other selected by the Ranking 

8 Member; 

9 (C) two members shall be appointed by the 

10 Committee on Energy and Commerce in the 

11 House of Representatives, with one member se12 lected by the Chair and the other selected by the 

13 Ranking Member; 

14 (D) two members shall be appointed by the 

15 Committee on Homeland Security and Govern16 ment Affairs in the Senate, with one member se17 lected by the Chair and the other selected by the 

18 Ranking Member; 

19 (E) two members shall be appointed by the 

20 Committee on Foreign Relations in the Senate, 

21 with one member selected by the Chair and the 

22 other selected by the Ranking Member; and 

23 (F) two members shall be appointed by the 

24 Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transpor25 tation in the Senate, with one member selected 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
6 

•HR 4782 RH

1 by the Chair and the other selected by the Rank2 ing Member. 

3 (2) QUALIFICATIONS.— 

4 (A) AREAS OF EXPERTISE.—Individuals 

5 appointed to the Commission shall be United 

6 States persons with experience in such profes7 sions as privacy, civil rights, civil liberties, con8 stitutional law, computer science and engineer9 ing, digital media and communications, online 

10 platform management, cybersecurity, informa11 tion operations, and national security. The ap12 pointment of members to the Commission shall, 

13 to the extent possible, be coordinated among 

14 nominations to ensure Commission membership 

15 represents a variety of expertise in such fields. 

16 (B) PRIVACY, CIVIL RIGHTS, AND CIVIL LIB17 ERTIES.—Not fewer than four individuals ap18 pointed to the Commission shall be experts in the 

19 fields of privacy, civil rights, or civil liberties, 

20 and not fewer than one individual shall be an 

21 expert in constitutional law. 

22 (C) NON-GOVERNMENT APPOINTEES.—An 

23 individual appointed to the Commission may 

24 not be an officer or employee of the Federal Gov25 ernment. 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
7 

•HR 4782 RH

1 (D) NON-INDUSTRY APPOINTEES.—An indi2 vidual appointed to the Commission may not be 

3 a current officer, employee, contractor, or active 

4 or significant shareholder of an entity that owns 

5 or operates an online platform. 

6 (3) DEADLINE FOR APPOINTMENT.—Members of 

7 the Commission shall be appointed not later than 30 

8 days after the date of the enactment of this Act. 

9 (d) CHAIR.—The Chair shall be chosen from among 

10 the members appointed to the Commission on the basis of 

11 their qualifications with respect to privacy, civil rights, and 

12 civil liberties, through a vote taken by a majority of Com13 mission members or, in the absence of a majority, by a plu14 rality of Commission members. 

15 (e) INITIAL MEETING.—The Commission shall meet 

16 and begin operating not later than 30 days after the date 

17 of the appointment of its final member. 

18 (f) QUORUM; VACANCIES.—After its initial meeting, 

19 the Commission shall meet upon the call of the Chair or 

20 a majority of its members. Nine members of the Commission 

21 shall constitute a quorum, and members shall have the op22 tion to vote by proxy. Any vacancy in the Commission shall 

23 not affect its powers, but shall be filled in the same manner 

24 in which the original appointment was made. 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
8 

•HR 4782 RH

1 (g) STUDY AREAS.—The Commission shall, consistent 

2 with the purposes specified in subsection (b), analyze exist3 ing research that relates to the utilization of online plat4 forms in furtherance of acts of targeted violence, including 

5 domestic terrorism and international terrorism, or covert 

6 foreign state influence campaigns, identify any areas with 

7 respect to which additional research is needed, and study 

8 the following: 

9 (1) The extent to which owners or operators of 

10 online platforms have been able to respond effectively 

11 to attempts to use online platforms in furtherance of 

12 acts of targeted violence, including domestic terrorism 

13 and international terrorism, or covert foreign state 

14 influence campaigns, and what impact, if any, such 

15 responses have had on the privacy, civil rights, or 

16 civil liberties of users. 

17 (2) The ways, if any, that online platforms’ algo18 rithms or other automated decision-making systems 

19 may have affected activity on such platforms in fur20 therance of acts of targeted violence, including domes21 tic terrorism and international terrorism, or covert 

22 foreign state influence campaigns. 

23 (3) The extent to which owners or operators of 

24 online platforms have transparent, consistent, and eq25 uitable policies and procedures to enforce terms of 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
9 

•HR 4782 RH

1 services or codes of conduct, provide notice and an op2 portunity for redress, or otherwise address violations 

3 of platform rules, including a consideration of best 

4 practices for improving online platforms’ policies and 

5 procedures, including the recommendations contained 

6 in the Santa Clara Principles on Transparency and 

7 Accountability in Content Moderation, as published 

8 on February 2, 2018, or successor principles with re9 spect to the extent and impact of content removals 

10 and user suspensions and removals, as well as prin11 ciples related to the notice and appeals of such deci12 sions. 

13 (4) The extent to which owners or operators of 

14 online platforms consistently and effectively enforce 

15 the policies and procedures described in paragraph 

16 (3). 

17 (5) The extent to which owners or operators of 

18 online platforms consider the potential use of online 

19 platforms in furtherance of targeted violence, includ20 ing domestic terrorism and international terrorism, 

21 or covert foreign state influence campaigns, when 

22 evaluating whether to enter into partnerships, adver23 tising agreements, or other business opportunities. 

24 (h) POWERS OF COMMISSION.— 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
10 

•HR 4782 RH

1 (1) HEARINGS AND EVIDENCE.—For the purpose 

2 of carrying out this section, the Commission may— 

3 (A) hold such hearings and sit and act at 

4 such times and places, take such testimony, re5 ceive such evidence, and administer such oaths, 

6 and 

7 (B) require, by subpoena authorized by the 

8 majority vote of the Commission, the attendance 

9 and testimony of such witnesses and the produc10 tion of such books, records, correspondence, 

11 memoranda, papers, and documents, but only to 

12 the extent necessary to achieve the purposes spec13 ified in subsection (b). 

14 (2) LIMITATIONS ON SUBPOENA AUTHORITY.— 

15 With respect to the subpoena authority granted in 

16 paragraph (1)(B), the Commission— 

17 (A) may only issue a subpoena to an owner 

18 or operator of an online platform but only to the 

19 extent necessary to achieve the purposes specified 

20 in subsection (b); 

21 (B) may not, under any circumstances, 

22 issue a subpoena for information related to an 

23 individual user or group of users; 

24 (C) may not share, disclose, publish, or 

25 transmit in any way any information obtained 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
11 

•HR 4782 RH

1 through subpoena to a Federal department or 

2 agency, any agency of a State, local, Tribal, or 

3 territorial government, or any international 

4 body; 

5 (D) may not share, disclose, publish, or 

6 transmit in any way any information obtained 

7 through subpoena with any individual or orga8 nization outside the Commission unless three9 fourths of Commission members approve such ac10 tion and that any such sharing, disclosure, pub11 lishing, or transmission be reasonably necessary 

12 for the report and to further the Commission’s 

13 goals; and 

14 (E) shall comply with requirements for the 

15 issuance of a subpoena issued by a United States 

16 district court under the Federal Rules of Civil 

17 Procedure. 

18 (3) PUBLIC MEETINGS AND RELEASE OF PUBLIC

19 VERSIONS OF REPORTS.— 

20 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Commission shall— 

21 (i) hold public hearings and meetings, 

22 as appropriate; 

23 (ii) hold closed or classified hearings or 

24 meetings, as appropriate; 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
12 

•HR 4782 RH

1 (iii) provide an opportunity for public 

2 comment, including sharing of research and 

3 policy analysis, through publication in the 

4 Federal Register of a solicitation for public 

5 comments during a period to last not fewer 

6 than 45 days; and 

7 (iv) release a public version of the re8 port required under subsection (k)(2). 

9 (B) CONDUCT.—Any public hearing, meet10 ing, or reporting of the Commission under this 

11 paragraph shall be conducted in a manner con12 sistent with the protection of information pro13 vided to or developed for or by the Commission 

14 as required by any applicable statute, regulation, 

15 or Executive order. 

16 (4) OBLIGATION TO PROTECT PERSONAL INFOR17 MATION.—Whether or not the Commission receives 

18 personally identifiable information through the exer19 cise of subpoena authority pursuant to paragraph 

20 (1)(B), neither the Commission nor any member of 

21 the Commission may publish, disclose, or release such 

22 information publicly or to a Federal department or 

23 agency, an agency of a State, local, Tribal, or terri24 torial government, any international body, or any 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
13 

•HR 4782 RH

1 other individual or organization outside the Commis2 sion. 

3 (5) OBLIGATION TO PROTECT PROPRIETARY IN4 FORMATION.—Whether or not the Commission receives 

5 proprietary information, confidential business infor6 mation, or a trade secret through the exercise of sub7 poena authority pursuant to paragraph (1)(B), nei8 ther the Commission nor any member of the Commis9 sion may publish, disclose, or release such informa10 tion publicly or to a Federal department or agency, 

11 an agency of a State, local, Tribal, or territorial gov12 ernment, any international body, or any individual 

13 or organization outside the Commission. 

14 (6) COORDINATION WITH AND ASSISTANCE TO

15 THE UNDER SECRETARY FOR SCIENCE AND TECH16 NOLOGY OF THE DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECU17 RITY.—The Commission may, to the extent prac18 ticable— 

19 (A) consult with the Under Secretary for 

20 Science and Technology of the Department of 

21 Homeland Security on the research conducted in 

22 accordance with section 3; and 

23 (B) provide assistance in furtherance of 

24 such research, as appropriate. 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
14 

•HR 4782 RH

1 (7) PERSONALLY IDENTIFIABLE INFORMATION.— 

2 In providing testimony or producing books, records, 

3 correspondence, memoranda, papers, documents, or 

4 any other information or materials to the Commis5 sion, either to comply with a subpoena issued under 

6 this subsection or for any other purpose, owners or 

7 operators of online platforms should review such in8 formation or materials for personally identifiable in9 formation and should remove such information. 

10 (i) STAFF OF COMMISSION.—The Chair, in consulta11 tion with the Vice Chair, and in accordance with rules 

12 agreed upon by the Commission, may appoint and fix the 

13 compensation of a staff director and such other personnel 

14 as may be necessary to enable the Commission to carry out 

15 its functions, without regard to the provisions of title 5, 

16 United States Code, governing appointments in the com17 petitive service, and without regard to the provisions of 

18 chapter 51 and subchapter III of chapter 53 of such title 

19 relating to classification and General Schedule pay rates, 

20 except that no rate of pay fixed under this subsection may 

21 exceed the equivalent of that payable for a position at level 

22 V of the Executive Schedule under section 5316 of title 5, 

23 United States Code. 

24 (j) SECURITY CLEARANCES FOR COMMISSION MEM25 BERS AND STAFF.—The heads of appropriate Federal deVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:25 Dec 22, 2020 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00014 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\H4782.RH H4782

kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
15 

•HR 4782 RH

1 partments and agencies shall cooperate with the Commis2 sion in expeditiously providing to Commission members 

3 and staff appropriate security clearances to the extent prac4 ticable pursuant to existing procedures and requirements, 

5 including temporary security clearances, as appropriate. 

6 No person may be provided access to classified information 

7 under this section without the appropriate security clear8 ance. 

9 (k) REPORTS OF COMMISSION; TERMINATION.— 

10 (1) INTERIM REPORTS.—Not later than one year 

11 after the first meeting of the Commission, the Chair 

12 shall report to Congress on the activities of the Com13 mission and share interim findings, as have been 

14 agreed to by a majority of Commission members. 

15 (2) FINAL REPORT.—Not later than two years 

16 after the first meeting of the Commission, the Chair 

17 shall submit to the President and Congress a report 

18 that contains any findings and recommendations 

19 agreed to by a majority of Commission members to 

20 address the areas of study under subsection (g), in21 cluding relating to the following: 

22 (A) Policy mechanisms that would address 

23 the Commission’s findings in a manner that pro24 motes free speech and innovation on the internet, 

25 preserves individual privacy, civil rights, and 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
16 

•HR 4782 RH

1 civil liberties, and upholds the principles of the 

2 Constitution. 

3 (B) Policies and procedures that owners or 

4 operators of online platforms could implement to 

5 address such areas of study that preserve the in6 dividual privacy, civil rights, and civil liberties 

7 of online platform users. 

8 (C) Mechanisms to improve transparency 

9 and accountability related to the matters de10 scribed in subsection (g), including any best 

11 practices identified pursuant to paragraph (3) of 

12 such subsection. 

13 (D) Areas with respect to which additional 

14 research is required, informed by the evaluation 

15 of prior research, as required under subsection 

16 (g). 

17 (E) Other matters identified by the major18 ity of Commission members. 

19 (3) TERMINATION.—The Commission shall ter20 minate on the date that is 90 days after the date on 

21 which the final report under paragraph (2) is sub22 mitted. 

23 (l) ACTION PLAN.—Not later than 180 days after sub24 mission of the final report of the Commission pursuant to 

25 paragraph (2) of subsection (k), the Secretary of Homeland 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
17 

•HR 4782 RH

1 Security shall issue an action plan in response to findings 

2 and recommendations under subparagraph (D) of such 

3 paragraph. 

4 (m) PAPERWORK REDUCTION ACT EXEMPTION.—Sub5 chapter I of chapter 35 of title 44, United States Code, shall 

6 not apply to this section. 

7 (n) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this section 

8 may be construed to confer any authority, including law 

9 enforcement authority, beyond that which is authorized 

10 under existing law. 

11 SEC. 3. RESEARCH. 

12 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Under Secretary for Science 

13 and Technology of the Department of Homeland Security 

14 shall— 

15 (1) analyze existing research regarding previous 

16 acts of targeted violence, including domestic terrorism 

17 or international terrorism; 

18 (2) carry out research to better understand 

19 whether any connection exists between the use of on20 line platforms, particularly platforms used for social 

21 media and social networking, and targeted violence, 

22 including domestic terrorism and international ter23 rorism, that takes into consideration how the organi24 zation, structure, and presentation of information on 

25 an online platform contributes, or does not contribute, 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
18 

•HR 4782 RH

1 to acts of targeted violence, including domestic ter2 rorism or international terrorism; and 

3 (3) develop voluntary approaches that could be 

4 adopted by owners and operators of online platforms 

5 to address research findings under paragraph (2), 

6 while preserving the individual privacy, civil rights, 

7 and civil liberties of users and innovation on online 

8 platforms. 

9 (b) PARTNERSHIP.—In carrying out this section, the 

10 Under Secretary for Science and Technology of the Depart11 ment of Homeland Security shall, to the extent practicable, 

12 coordinate with the National Commission on Online Plat13 forms and Homeland Security under section 2, as well as 

14 academic institutions, non-profit organizations, the private 

15 sector, and Federal, State, local, and Tribal partners, as 

16 appropriate. 

17 (c) REPORT.—Not later than one year after the date 

18 of the enactment of this section, the Under Secretary for 

19 Science and Technology of the Department of Homeland Se20 curity shall submit to Congress a report related to the re21 search and development required under subsection (a). 

22 (d) PAPERWORK REDUCTION ACT EXEMPTION.—Sub23 chapter I of chapter 35 of title 44, United States Code, shall 

24 not apply to this section. 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
19 

•HR 4782 RH

1 SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS. 

2 In this Act: 

3 (1) COVERT FOREIGN STATE INFLUENCE CAM4 PAIGNS.—The term ‘‘covert foreign state influence 

5 campaigns’’ means the coordinated and covert appli6 cation of state diplomatic, informational, military, 

7 economic, business, corruption, educational, or other 

8 capability that was carried out by a foreign state 

9 actor to the United States to affect elections in the 

10 United States. 

11 (2) DOMESTIC TERRORISM.—The term ‘‘domestic 

12 terrorism’’ has the meaning given such term in sec13 tion 2331 of title 18, United States Code. 

14 (3) INTERNATIONAL TERRORISM.—The term 

15 ‘‘international terrorism’’ has the meaning given such 

16 term in section 2331 of title 18, United States Code. 

17 (4) ONLINE PLATFORM.— 

18 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘online plat19 form’’ means internet-based information services 

20 consisting of the storage and processing of infor21 mation by and at the request of a content pro22 vider and the dissemination of such content to 

23 third parties. 

24 (B) EXCLUSIONS.—Such term does not in25 clude the following: 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
20 

•HR 4782 RH

1 (i) Platforms the primary purpose of 

2 which is to produce journalistic or editorial 

3 content (not including editorial decisions by 

4 online platforms to rank and organize third 

5 party content). 

6 (ii) Applications and functionalities 

7 that enable private communications, such as 

8 email, direct messages, and end-to-end 

9 encrypted communication services. 

10 (iii) Online service providers at layers 

11 of the internet infrastructure other than the 

12 application layer, and cloud IT infrastruc13 ture service providers. 

14 (5) PERSONALLY IDENTIFIABLE INFORMATION.— 

15 The term ‘‘personally identifiable information’’ means 

16 any information about an individual elicited, col17 lected, stored, or maintained by an agency or owner 

18 or operator of an online platform, including the fol19 lowing: 

20 (A) Any information that can be used to 

21 distinguish or trace the identity of an indi22 vidual, such as a name, a social security num23 ber, a date and place of birth, a mother’s maiden 

24 name, phone number or biometric records. 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
21 

•HR 4782 RH

1 (B) Any other information that is linked or 

2 linkable to an individual, such as medical, edu3 cational, financial, or employment information. 

4 (6) TARGETED VIOLENCE.—The term ‘‘targeted 

5 violence’’ means an incident of violence in which an 

6 attacker selected a particular target in order to inflict 

7 mass injury or death as part of an act of domestic 

8 terrorism or international terrorism or with no 

9 discernable political or ideological motivation beyond 

10 mass injury or death. Acts of targeted violence include 

11 the August 5, 2012, mass shooting at a Sikh temple 

12 in Oak Creek, Wisconsin, the June 12, 2016, night13 club mass shooting in Orlando, Florida, the October 

14 1, 2017, attack on concert-goers at a music festival in 

15 Las Vegas, Nevada, the October 27, 2018, attack at a 

16 synagogue in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and the Au17 gust 3, 2019, mass shooting at a store in El Paso, 

18 Texas. 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS
Union Calendar No. 566 

116TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 4782 

[Report No. 116–683, Part I] 

A BILL 

To establish a national commission on online platposes. forms and homeland security, and for other purDECEMBER 21, 2020 

Reported from the Committee on Homeland Security 

D

with an amendment 

ECEMBER 21, 2020 

Committee on Energy and Commerce discharged; comState of the Union and ordered to be printed mitted to the Committee of the Whole House on the 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS