II 

117TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 4865 

To establish the Foundation for Digital Equity, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

SEPTEMBER 15, 2022 

Mr. LUJA ́N (for himself, Mr. MERKLEY, Mr. HEINRICH, Mr. MARKEY, Mr. 

BLUMENTHAL, and Ms. KLOBUCHAR) introduced the following bill; which 

was read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and 

Transportation 

A BILL 

To establish the Foundation for Digital Equity, 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. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Digital Equity Foun5 dation Act of 2022’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FOUNDATION FOR DIGITAL EQUITY. 

7 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

8 (1) ASSISTANT SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Assist9 ant Secretary’’ means the Assistant Secretary of 

10 Commerce for Communications and Information. 


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1 (2) BOARD.—The term ‘‘Board’’ means the 

2 Board of Directors described in subsection (d)(1). 

3 (3) BUSINESS INCUBATOR.—The term ‘‘busi4 ness incubator’’ has the meaning given the term in 

5 section 3 of the Native American Business Incuba6 tors Program Act (25 U.S.C. 5802). 

7 (4) COMMISSION.—The term ‘‘Commission’’ 

8 means the Federal Communications Commission. 

9 (5) COMMITTEE.—The term ‘‘Committee’’ 

10 means the Committee for the Establishment of the 

11 Foundation for Digital Equity established under 

12 subsection (b). 

13 (6) COMMUNITY ANCHOR INSTITUTION; COV14 ERED HOUSEHOLD; COVERED POPULATIONS.—The 

15 terms ‘‘community anchor institution’’, ‘‘covered 

16 household’’, and ‘‘covered populations’’ have the 

17 meanings given those terms in section 60302 of the 

18 Digital Equity Act of 2021 (47 U.S.C. 1721). 

19 (7) DEPARTMENT.—The term ‘‘Department’’ 

20 means the Department of Commerce. 

21 (8) DIGITAL EQUITY.—The term ‘‘digital eq22 uity’’ means the condition in which individuals and 

23 communities have the information technology capac24 ity that is needed for full participation in the society 

25 and economy of the United States. 


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1 (9) DIGITAL INCLUSION.—The term ‘‘digital in2 clusion’’— 

3 (A) means the activities that are necessary 

4 to ensure that all individuals in the United 

5 States have access to, and the use of, affordable 

6 information and communication technologies, 

7 such as— 

8 (i) reliable fixed and wireless 

9 broadband; 

10 (ii) internet-enabled devices that meet 

11 the needs of the user for telehealth, remote 

12 work, remote schooling, or other purposes; 

13 and 

14 (iii) applications and online content 

15 designed to enable and encourage self-suf16 ficiency, participation, and collaboration; 

17 and 

18 (B) includes— 

19 (i) obtaining access to digital literacy 

20 training; 

21 (ii) the provision of quality technical 

22 support; and 

23 (iii) obtaining basic awareness of 

24 measures to ensure online privacy and cy25 bersecurity. 


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1 (10) DIGITAL LITERACY.—The term ‘‘digital lit2 eracy’’ means the skills associated with using tech3 nology to enable users to find, evaluate, organize, 

4 create, and communicate information. 

5 (11) EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR.—The term ‘‘Exec6 utive Director’’ means the Executive Director of the 

7 Foundation described in subsection (f)(1). 

8 (12) FOUNDATION.—The term ‘‘Foundation’’ 

9 means the Foundation for Digital Equity established 

10 under subsection (c). 

11 (13) INSTITUTION OF HIGHER EDUCATION.— 

12 The term ‘‘institution of higher education’’ means— 

13 (A) an institution of higher education, as 

14 that term is defined in section 101 of the High15 er Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001); or 

16 (B) a postsecondary vocational institution, 

17 as that term is defined in section 102(c) of the 

18 Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 

19 1002(c)). 

20 (14) MINORITY-SERVING INSTITUTION.—The 

21 term ‘‘Minority-serving institution’’ means an insti22 tution described in any of paragraphs (1) through 

23 (7) of section 371(a) of the Higher Education Act 

24 of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1067q(a)). 


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1 (15) NTIA.—The term ‘‘NTIA’’ means the Na2 tional Telecommunications and Information Admin3 istration. 

4 (16) OLDER INDIVIDUAL.—The term ‘‘older in5 dividual’’ has the meaning given the term in section 

6 101 of the Older Americans Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 

7 3001). 

8 (17) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ 

9 means the Secretary of Commerce. 

10 (18) SMALL BUSINESS INVESTMENT COM11 PANY.—The term ‘‘small business investment com12 pany’’ has the meaning given the term in section 

13 103 of the Small Business Investment Act of 1958 

14 (15 U.S.C. 662). 

15 (19) STARTUP.—The term ‘‘startup’’ has the 

16 meaning given the term ‘‘start-up business’’ in sec17 tion 362(f)(5)(C) of the Energy Policy and Con18 servation Act (42 U.S.C. 6322(f)(5)(C)). 

19 (20) TRIBAL BROADBAND CONNECTIVITY PRO20 GRAM.—The term ‘‘Tribal Broadband Connectivity 

21 Program’’ means the program established pursuant 

22 to section 905(c) of division N of the Consolidated 

23 Appropriations Act, 2021 (47 U.S.C. 1305 note). 

24 (b) COMMITTEE FOR THE ESTABLISHMENT OF THE

25 FOUNDATION FOR DIGITAL EQUITY.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 90 days after 

2 the date of enactment of this Act, the Secretary 

3 shall establish the Committee for the Establishment 

4 of the Foundation for Digital Equity. 

5 (2) MEMBERS.—The Committee shall be com6 posed of 5 members— 

7 (A) who shall be appointed by the officials 

8 described in subsection (d)(2)(B)(i); 

9 (B) each of whom shall be a voting mem10 ber of the Committee; 

11 (C) not fewer than 3 of whom shall have 

12 broad and general experience in matters relat13 ing to digital equity, digital inclusion, or digital 

14 literacy; and 

15 (D) not less than 1 of whom shall have 

16 broad and general experience in working with 

17 private nonprofit organizations. 

18 (3) FUNCTIONS.—The functions of the Com19 mittee are as follows: 

20 (A) To carry out such activities as may be 

21 necessary to incorporate the Foundation under 

22 the laws of a State, including by— 

23 (i) serving as the incorporators for the 

24 Foundation; and 


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1 (ii) ensuring that the articles of incor2 poration for the Foundation require that 

3 the Foundation is operated in accordance 

4 with the requirements of this section. 

5 (B) To ensure that the Foundation quali6 fies for and (during the period in which the 

7 Committee is in existence) maintains the status 

8 described in subsection (c)(4). 

9 (C) To provide for the initial operation of 

10 the Foundation, including by ensuring that the 

11 Foundation has adequate facilities, equipment, 

12 and staff. 

13 (D) To appoint initial voting members of 

14 the Board who satisfy the requirements under 

15 subsection (d)(2)(C) and have such other quali16 fications as the Committee determines appro17 priate with respect to those members. 

18 (4) CHAIR.—The Committee shall, from among 

19 the members of the Committee, designate a member 

20 of the Committee to serve as Chair of the Com21 mittee. 

22 (5) TERM.— 

23 (A) IN GENERAL.—Each member of the 

24 Committee shall serve for the duration of the 

25 Committee. 


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1 (B) VACANCIES.— 

2 (i) NO EFFECT ON AUTHORITY.—A 

3 vacancy in the membership of the Com4 mittee shall not affect the authority of the 

5 Committee to carry out the functions of 

6 the Committee. 

7 (ii) REPLACEMENT.—If a member of 

8 the Committee does not serve for the dura9 tion of the Committee, the individual ap10 pointed to fill that vacancy shall be ap11 pointed by the ex officio members of the 

12 Board for the remainder of the applicable 

13 term. 

14 (6) COMPENSATION.—A member of the Com15 mittee— 

16 (A) shall not receive compensation for 

17 service on the Committee; and 

18 (B) may be reimbursed for travel, subsist19 ence, and other necessary expenses incurred in 

20 carrying out the functions of the Committee. 

21 (7) TERMINATION.—The Committee shall— 

22 (A) complete the functions of the com23 mittee described in paragraph (3) not later 

24 than 180 days after the date on which the SecVerDate Sep 11 2014 23:36 Sep 20, 2022 Jkt 029200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4865.IS S4865

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1 retary establishes the Committee under para2 graph (1); and 

3 (B) terminate on the date that is 30 days 

4 after the date on which the Secretary deter5 mines that the Committee has completed the 

6 functions described in paragraph (3). 

7 (c) ESTABLISHMENT.— 

8 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days 

9 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Sec10 retary shall establish a nonprofit corporation to be 

11 known as the ‘‘Foundation for Digital Equity’’. 

12 (2) MISSION.—The mission of the Foundation 

13 shall be— 

14 (A) to supplement, but not supplant, the 

15 work of the NTIA and the Commission in pro16 moting the benefits of technological develop17 ment in the United States, and of high-capac18 ity, affordable broadband connectivity in par19 ticular, for all users of telecommunications and 

20 information facilities; 

21 (B) to raise, leverage, or match funding 

22 from other entities, including philanthropic or23 ganizations, the private sector, and State and 

24 local governments, to promote digital literacy, 


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1 digital inclusion, and digital equity for commu2 nities with low rates of adoption of broadband; 

3 (C) to develop programs and partnerships 

4 to— 

5 (i) spur greater rates of adoption of 

6 broadband among covered populations; 

7 (ii) collaborate with State, local, and 

8 Tribal governments, Minority-serving insti9 tutions, other anchor institutions, and 

10 stakeholders in the communications, edu11 cation, business, and technology fields; 

12 (iii) publicize and incentivize the 

13 adoption of evidence-based programs; 

14 (iv) convene organizations and part15 nerships with related goals and interests to 

16 establish problem-solving processes; 

17 (v) strengthen and share best prac18 tices relating to— 

19 (I) projects promoting digital in20 clusion, digital literacy, and digital eq21 uity; and 

22 (II) regional economic develop23 ment; 

24 (vi) support job creation and work25 force development; and 


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1 (vii) support the goals of the Tribal 

2 Broadband Connectivity Program; and 

3 (D) to promote equitable access to, and the 

4 adoption of, broadband technologies and digital 

5 applications that support accessibility, tele6 health, distance learning, and online access to 

7 governmental benefits and services, including by 

8 preventing, detecting, and remedying digital 

9 discrimination. 

10 (3) LIMITATION.—The Foundation shall not be 

11 an agency or instrumentality of the Federal Govern12 ment or any State or local government. 

13 (4) TAX-EXEMPT STATUS.—The Board shall 

14 take all necessary and appropriate steps to ensure 

15 that the Foundation is an organization that is de16 scribed in section 501(c) of the Internal Revenue 

17 Code of 1986 and exempt from taxation under sec18 tion 501(a) of that Code. 

19 (d) BOARD OF DIRECTORS.— 

20 (1) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Foundation shall 

21 be governed by a Board of Directors. 

22 (2) COMPOSITION.— 

23 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Board shall be 

24 composed of the ex officio members described in 


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1 subparagraph (B) and the appointed voting 

2 members described in subparagraph (C). 

3 (B) EX OFFICIO MEMBERS.— 

4 (i) MEMBERS.—The ex officio mem5 bers of the Board shall be the following in6 dividuals (or designees of those individ7 uals): 

8 (I) The Secretary. 

9 (II) The Assistant Secretary. 

10 (III) The Chairman of the Com11 mission. 

12 (IV) The Secretary of the Treas13 ury. 

14 (V) The Under Secretary of Agri15 culture for Rural Development. 

16 (ii) NONVOTING MEMBERS.—The ex 

17 officio members of the Board shall be non18 voting members of the Board. 

19 (C) APPOINTED MEMBERS.— 

20 (i) REPRESENTATION.—The ap21 pointed members of the Board shall reflect 

22 a broad cross-section of stakeholders from 

23 academia, industry, nonprofit and civil 

24 rights organizations, community-based 

25 practitioners of efforts to promote digital 


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1 inclusion, State or local governments, local 

2 school districts and libraries, other commu3 nity anchor institutions, and the philan4 thropic community. 

5 (ii) EXPERIENCE.—Each appointed 

6 member of the Board shall— 

7 (I)(aa) have experience pro8 moting digital equity, digital inclusion, 

9 and digital literacy; 

10 (bb) have experience in the tech11 nology sector; 

12 (cc) have experience in the tele13 communications and broadband sec14 tor; 

15 (dd) have direct experience work16 ing with covered populations; or 

17 (ee) have research experience in 

18 foundation operations; and 

19 (II) to the extent practicable, 

20 represent diverse regions, sectors, and 

21 the communities corresponding to the 

22 covered populations that are the focus 

23 of the activities of the Foundation. 

24 (3) CHAIR AND VICE CHAIR.— 


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1 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Board shall des2 ignate, from among the appointed members of 

3 the Board— 

4 (i) an individual to serve as Chair of 

5 the Board; and 

6 (ii) an individual to serve as Vice 

7 Chair of the Board. 

8 (B) TERMS.—The term of service of the 

9 Chair and Vice Chair of the Board shall end on 

10 the earlier of— 

11 (i) the date that is 3 years after the 

12 date on which the Chair or Vice Chair of 

13 the Board, as applicable, is designated for 

14 the position; and 

15 (ii) the last day of the term of service 

16 of the member, as determined under para17 graph (4)(A), who is designated to be 

18 Chair or Vice Chair of the Board, as appli19 cable. 

20 (C) REPRESENTATION.—The Chair and 

21 Vice Chair of the Board— 

22 (i) shall not be representatives of the 

23 same area of subject matter expertise, or 

24 entity, as applicable, under paragraph 

25 (2)(C)(ii); and 


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1 (ii) shall not be representatives of any 

2 area of subject matter expertise, or entity, 

3 as applicable, represented by the imme4 diately preceding Chair and Vice Chair of 

5 the Board. 

6 (4) TERMS AND VACANCIES.— 

7 (A) TERMS.— 

8 (i) IN GENERAL.—The term of service 

9 of each appointed member of the Board 

10 shall be not more than 5 years. 

11 (ii) INITIAL APPOINTED MEMBERS.— 

12 Of the initial members of the Board appointed under subsection (b)(3)(D), 1 13 ⁄2 of 

the members shall serve for 4 years and 1 14 ⁄2

15 of the members shall serve for 5 years, as 

16 determined by the Chair of the Board. 

17 (B) VACANCIES.—Any vacancy in the 

18 membership of the appointed members of the 

19 Board— 

20 (i) shall be filled by a majority vote of 

21 the appointed members of the Board in ac22 cordance with the bylaws of the Founda23 tion; 


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1 (ii) shall not affect the power of the 

2 remaining appointed members to execute 

3 the duties of the Board; and 

4 (iii) shall be filled by an individual se5 lected by the Board. 

6 (5) MEETINGS; QUORUM.— 

7 (A) INITIAL MEETING.—Not later than 60 

8 days after the date on which all of the members 

9 of the Board have been appointed, the Sec10 retary shall convene a meeting of the ex officio 

11 and appointed members of the Board to estab12 lish the bylaws of the Foundation in accordance 

13 with paragraph (7). 

14 (B) QUORUM.—A majority of the ap15 pointed members of the Board shall constitute 

16 a quorum for purposes of conducting the busi17 ness of the Board. 

18 (6) DUTIES.—The Board shall— 

19 (A) provide overall direction for the activi20 ties of the Foundation and establish priority ac21 tivities; 

22 (B) provide guidance to the Executive Di23 rector such that the Executive Director may 

24 carry out any other necessary activities of the 

25 Foundation; 


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1 (C) evaluate the performance of the Execu2 tive Director; and 

3 (D) actively solicit and accept funds, gifts, 

4 grants, devises, or bequests of real or personal 

5 property to the Foundation, including from pri6 vate entities. 

7 (7) BYLAWS.— 

8 (A) IN GENERAL.—The bylaws established 

9 under paragraph (5)(A) may include— 

10 (i) policies for the selection of Board 

11 members and officers, employees, agents, 

12 and contractors of the Foundation; 

13 (ii) policies, including ethical stand14 ards, for— 

15 (I) the acceptance, solicitation, 

16 and disposition of donations and 

17 grants to the Foundation, including 

18 appropriate limits on the ability of do19 nors to designate, by stipulation or re20 striction, the use or recipient of do21 nated funds; and 

22 (II) the disposition of assets of 

23 the Foundation; 

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1 ants, and other agents of the Foundation 

2 (including ex officio and appointed mem3 bers of the Board) to conflict of interest 

4 standards; and 

5 (iv) the specific duties of the Execu6 tive Director. 

7 (B) REQUIREMENTS.—The Board shall en8 sure that the bylaws of the Foundation and the 

9 activities carried out under those bylaws shall 

10 not— 

11 (i) reflect unfavorably on the ability of 

12 the Foundation to carry out activities in a 

13 fair and objective manner; or 

14 (ii) compromise, or appear to com15 promise, the integrity of any Federal agen16 cy or program, or any officer or employee 

17 employed by, or involved in, such an agen18 cy or program. 

19 (8) COMPENSATION.— 

20 (A) IN GENERAL.—No member of the 

21 Board shall receive compensation for serving as 

22 a member of the Board. 

23 (B) REIMBURSEMENT OF CERTAIN EX24 PENSES.—In accordance with the bylaws of the 

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1 imbursed for travel expenses, including per 

2 diem in lieu of subsistence, and other necessary 

3 expenses incurred in carrying out the duties of 

4 the Board. 

5 (e) ACTIVITIES.— 

6 (1) STUDIES, COMPETITIONS, AND PROJECTS.— 

7 The Foundation may conduct and support studies, 

8 competitions, projects, and other activities that fur9 ther the mission of the Foundation described in sub10 section (c)(2). 

11 (2) GRANTS.— 

12 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Foundation may 

13 award grants for activities relating to digital eq14 uity, digital inclusion, or digital literacy. 

15 (B) SELECTION.—In selecting a recipient 

16 for a grant awarded under subparagraph (A), 

17 the Foundation— 

18 (i) shall make the selection based on 

19 the comparative merits of— 

20 (I) the proposed project of the 

21 potential recipient; 

22 (II) the impact of the project de23 scribed in subclause (I) on promoting 

24 digital equity in local communities; 

25 and 


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1 (III) the alignment of the project 

2 described in subclause (I) with— 

3 (aa) the overall goals of the 

4 Foundation relating to diversity 

5 on the basis of geography; 

6 (bb) the type of need ad7 dressed by the project; and 

8 (cc) other factors specified 

9 in the strategic plan and grant 

10 guidelines of the Foundation; and 

11 (ii) may consult with a potential re12 cipient regarding the ability of the poten13 tial recipient to carry out various projects 

14 that would further the mission of the 

15 Foundation described in subsection (c)(2). 

16 (3) ACCESSING FACILITIES AND EXPERTISE.— 

17 The Foundation may work with the Secretary and 

18 the Commission— 

19 (A) to leverage the capabilities and facili20 ties of the Department and the Commission; 

21 and 

22 (B) to assist with resources, including by 

23 providing information on assets of the Depart24 ment and the Commission that may enable the 


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1 promotion of digital equity, digital inclusion, or 

2 digital literacy. 

3 (4) TRAINING AND EDUCATION.—The Founda4 tion may support programs that provide training to 

5 researchers, scientists, and other relevant personnel 

6 at the Department, the Commission, and institutions 

7 of higher education to help promote digital equity, 

8 digital inclusion, and digital literacy. 

9 (5) STAKEHOLDER ENGAGEMENT.—The Foun10 dation shall convene, and may consult with, rep11 resentatives from the Department, the Commission, 

12 institutions of higher education, the private sector, 

13 public interest stakeholders, and commercialization 

14 organizations to develop programs for the mission of 

15 the Foundation described in subsection (c)(2) and to 

16 advance the activities of the Foundation. 

17 (6) FOR-PROFIT SUBSIDIARIES.— 

18 (A) IN GENERAL.—The Foundation may 

19 establish 1 or more for-profit subsidiaries, in20 cluding an impact investment fund— 

21 (i) to stimulate economic development 

22 activities relating to the mission of the 

23 Foundation described in subsection (c)(2); 

24 and 


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1 (ii) to attract for-profit investment 

2 partners for digital equity, digital inclu3 sion, and digital literacy activities. 

4 (B) AUTHORITIES OF THE FOR-PROFIT

5 SUBSIDIARY.—A for-profit subsidiary estab6 lished under subparagraph (A) may— 

7 (i) enter into a partnership with an 

8 economic development corporation, includ9 ing a business incubator or small business 

10 investment company; 

11 (ii) pay for the cost of building and 

12 administering a facility, including a busi13 ness incubator, to support the activities of 

14 the Foundation described in this sub15 section; and 

16 (iii) provide funding to a startup. 

17 (7) SUPPLEMENTAL PROGRAMS.—The Founda18 tion may carry out supplemental programs— 

19 (A) to conduct and support forums, meet20 ings, conferences, courses, and training work21 shops consistent with the mission of the Foun22 dation described in subsection (c)(2); 

23 (B) to support and encourage the under24 standing and development of— 


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1 (i) data collection that provides clarity 

2 with respect to inequities and community 

3 needs in order to promote digital equity, 

4 digital inclusion, and digital literacy; and 

5 (ii) policies that make regulation more 

6 effective and efficient by leveraging the 

7 data collection efforts described in clause 

8 (i) for the regulation of relevant technology 

9 sectors; 

10 (C) for writing, editing, printing, pub11 lishing, and selling books and other materials 

12 relating to efforts carried out by the Founda13 tion, the Department, or the Commission; and 

14 (D) to conduct other activities to carry out 

15 and support the mission of the Foundation de16 scribed in subsection (c)(2). 

17 (8) EVALUATIONS.—The Foundation shall sup18 port the development of an evaluation methodology, 

19 to be used as part of any program supported by the 

20 Foundation, that shall— 

21 (A) consist of qualitative and quantitative 

22 metrics; 

23 (B) include periodic third-party evaluation 

24 of the programs and other activities of the 

25 Foundation; and 


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1 (C) be made publicly available. 

2 (9) COMMUNICATIONS.—The Foundation shall 

3 develop an expertise in communications to— 

4 (A) disseminate awareness of funding op5 portunities among community-based organiza6 tions that serve covered populations; and 

7 (B) promote the work of grant and fellow8 ship recipients under paragraph (2), the suc9 cesses of the Foundation, opportunities for 

10 partnership with the Foundation, and other ac11 tivities. 

12 (10) TRIBAL BROADBAND CONNECTIVITY

13 GRANTS.—The Foundation may support a grant 

14 made under the Tribal Broadband Connectivity Pro15 gram if there are not adequate appropriations to 

16 support such a grant. 

17 (f) ADMINISTRATION.— 

18 (1) EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR.—The Board shall 

19 appoint an Executive Director of the Foundation, 

20 who shall serve at the pleasure of the Board. 

21 (2) ADMINISTRATIVE CONTROL.—No member 

22 of the Board, any officer or employee of the Founda23 tion, any officer or employee of any program estab24 lished by the Foundation, or any participant in a 


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1 program established by the Foundation may exercise 

2 administrative control over any Federal employee. 

3 (3) STRATEGIC PLAN.—Not later than 1 year 

4 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Founda5 tion shall submit to the Committee on Commerce, 

6 Science, and Transportation of the Senate and the 

7 Committee on Energy and Commerce of the House 

8 of Representatives a strategic plan that, incor9 porating the input of the community advisory com10 mittee convened under subsection (g)(1), contains— 

11 (A) a description of the initial focus areas 

12 of, and primary purposes for, each program, 

13 grant, or award opportunity that the Founda14 tion plans to implement during the 2-year pe15 riod beginning on the date on which the stra16 tegic plan is submitted; 

17 (B) a description of the efforts that the 

18 Foundation will take to be transparent in the 

19 processes of the Foundation, including proc20 esses relating to— 

21 (i) grant awards, including selection, 

22 review, and notification with respect to 

23 those awards; and 

24 (ii) communication of past, current, 

25 and future digital equity priorities; 


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1 (C) a description of the financial goals and 

2 benchmarks of the Foundation for the 10-year 

3 period beginning on the date on which the re4 port is submitted; and 

5 (D) a description of the efforts undertaken 

6 by the Foundation to ensure maximum 

7 complementarity and minimum redundancy 

8 with investments made by the Secretary and 

9 the Commission. 

10 (4) RECURRING REPORT.—Not later than 1 

11 year after the date on which the Foundation is es12 tablished, and once every 2 years thereafter, the 

13 Foundation shall make publicly available, and shall 

14 submit to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and 

15 Transportation of the Senate, the Committee on En16 ergy and Commerce of the House of Representa17 tives, and the Secretary, a report that, for the period 

18 covered by the report— 

19 (A) describes the activities of the Founda20 tion and the progress of the Foundation in fur21 thering the mission of the Foundation described 

22 in subsection (c)(2); 

23 (B) provides a specific accounting of the 

24 source and use of all funds made available to 

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1 scribed in subparagraph (A) to ensure trans2 parency in the alignment of the missions of the 

3 Department and the Commission; and 

4 (C) includes a summary of each evaluation 

5 regarding the decision to award a grant that is 

6 conducted under the requirements of subsection 

7 (e)(2)(B). 

8 (5) EVALUATION BY COMPTROLLER GEN9 ERAL.—Not later than 5 years after the date on 

10 which the Foundation is established, and once every 

11 5 years thereafter, the Comptroller General of the 

12 United States shall submit to the Committee on 

13 Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Sen14 ate and the Committee on Energy and Commerce of 

15 the House of Representatives— 

16 (A) an evaluation of— 

17 (i) the extent to which the Foundation 

18 is achieving the mission of the Foundation; 

19 and 

20 (ii) the operation of the Foundation; 

21 and 

22 (B) any recommendations regarding how 

23 the Foundation may be improved. 

24 (6) AUDITS.—The Foundation shall— 


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1 (A) provide for annual audits of the condi2 tion of the Foundation; and 

3 (B) make the audits, and all other records, 

4 documents, and papers of the Foundation, 

5 available to the Secretary and the Comptroller 

6 General of the United States for examination or 

7 audit. 

8 (7) INTEGRITY.— 

9 (A) IN GENERAL.—To ensure integrity in 

10 the operations of the Foundation, the Board 

11 shall develop and enforce procedures relating to 

12 standards of conduct, financial disclosure state13 ments, conflicts of interest (including recusal 

14 and waiver rules), audits, and any other mat15 ters determined appropriate by the Board. 

16 (B) FINANCIAL CONFLICTS OF INTER17 EST.—An individual who is an officer, em18 ployee, or member of the Board may not par19 ticipate in deliberations by the Foundation re20 garding a matter that would directly or predict21 ably affect any financial interest of— 

22 (i) the individual; 

23 (ii) a relative (as defined in section 

24 109 of the Ethics in Government Act of 


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1 1978 (5 U.S.C. App.)) of that individual; 

2 or 

3 (iii) a business organization or other 

4 entity in which the individual has an inter5 est, including an organization or other en6 tity with which the individual is negoti7 ating employment. 

8 (8) INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY.—The Board 

9 shall adopt written standards to govern the owner10 ship and licensing of any intellectual property 

11 rights— 

12 (A) developed by the Foundation through 

13 activities funded by a for-profit subsidiary es14 tablished under subsection (e)(6); or 

15 (B) otherwise derived from the collabo16 rative efforts of the Foundation. 

17 (9) LIABILITY.— 

18 (A) IN GENERAL.—The United States 

19 shall not be liable for any debt, default, act, or 

20 omission of— 

21 (i) the Foundation; or 

22 (ii) a Federal entity with respect to an 

23 agreement of that Federal entity with the 

24 Foundation. 


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1 (B) FULL FAITH AND CREDIT.—The full 

2 faith and credit of the United States shall not 

3 extend to any obligations of the Foundation. 

4 (10) NONAPPLICABILITY OF FACA.—The Fed5 eral Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.) shall 

6 not apply to the Foundation. 

7 (g) COMMUNITY ADVISORY COMMITTEE AND RE8 PORT.— 

9 (1) COMPOSITION.— 

10 (A) IN GENERAL.—Not later 90 days after 

11 the date on which the Foundation is estab12 lished, the Board shall convene an advisory 

13 committee comprised of community members 

14 from covered populations and experts with expe15 rience providing essential products and service 

16 to covered populations. 

17 (B) STAKEHOLDERS REPRESENTED.—To 

18 the extent practicable, the Board shall ensure 

19 that members appointed to the advisory com20 mittee under subparagraph (A) represent di21 verse regions, sectors, and communities, includ22 ing not less than 1 member who is affiliated 

23 with, or has experience working with, all of the 

24 following: 

25 (i) Digital inclusion practitioners. 


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1 (ii) Rural-focused programs. 

2 (iii) Members of Indigenous commu3 nities. 

4 (iv) Civil rights advocates. 

5 (v) Consumer advocates. 

6 (vi) Libraries. 

7 (vii) School systems or education tech8 nology specialists. 

9 (viii) Accessibility advocates or ex10 perts. 

11 (ix) Retired or older individuals. 

12 (x) Private sector internet service pro13 viders. 

14 (xi) Other relevant groups with expe15 rience addressing the access, adoption, and 

16 affordability of broadband services. 

17 (2) ANNUAL REPORT.—Not later than 2 years 

18 after the date on which the Foundation is estab19 lished, and annually thereafter, the Board shall di20 rect the community advisory committee convened 

21 under paragraph (1) to submit to the Board a writ22 ten report that includes recommended changes, if 

23 any, to the Foundation and any other matter the 

24 Board considers appropriate. 


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1 (3) REIMBURSEMENT FOR CERTAIN EX2 PENSES.—In accordance with the bylaws of the 

3 Foundation, members of the community advisory 

4 committee convened under paragraph (1) may be re5 imbursed for travel expenses, including per diem in 

6 lieu of subsistence, and other necessary expenses in7 curred in carrying out the functions of that advisory 

8 committee. 

9 (h) SUPPORT SERVICES.—The Secretary shall pro10 vide facilities, utilities, and support services to the Foun11 dation if the Secretary determines that the provision of 

12 those items is advantageous to the programs of the De13 partment. 

14 (i) ANTI-DEFICIENCY ACT.—Section 1341(a)(1) of 

15 title 31, United States Code (commonly referred to as the 

16 ‘‘Anti-Deficiency Act’’), shall not apply to any Federal of17 ficer or employee carrying out any activity of the Founda18 tion using funds of the Foundation. 

19 (j) NO PREEMPTION OF AUTHORITY.—This section 

20 shall not preempt any authority or responsibility of the 

21 Secretary under any other provision of law. 

22 (k) TRANSFER FUNDS.—The Foundation may trans23 fer funds to the Department, which shall be subject to all 

24 applicable Federal limitations relating to federally funded 

25 research. 


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1 (l) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

2 are authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be 

3 necessary— 

4 (1) to the Secretary for fiscal year 2023 to es5 tablish the Committee; 

6 (2) to the Foundation for fiscal year 2024 to 

7 carry out the activities of the Foundation; and 

8 (3) to the Foundation for fiscal year 2025, and 

9 each fiscal year thereafter, for administrative and 

10 operational costs. 

Æ 


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