116TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 1359 

AN ACT 

To promote Internet access in developing countries and update foreign policy toward the Internet, 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, 
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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

2 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Digital Global Access 

3 Policy Act of 2019’’ or the ‘‘Digital GAP Act’’. 

4 SEC. 2. PURPOSE. 

5 The purpose of this Act is to— 

6 (1) encourage the efforts of developing coun7 tries to improve and secure mobile and fixed access 

8 to the Internet in order to catalyze innovation, spur 

9 economic growth and job creation, improve health, 

10 education, and financial services, reduce poverty and 

11 gender inequality, mitigate disasters, and promote 

12 free speech, democracy, and good governance; 

13 (2) promote build-once policies and approaches 

14 and the multi-stakeholder approach to Internet gov15 ernance; and 

16 (3) ensure the effective use of United States 

17 foreign assistance resources toward that end. 

18 SEC. 3. FINDINGS. 

19 Congress makes the following findings: 

20 (1) Internet access has been a driver of eco21 nomic activity around the world. Bringing Internet 

22 access to the more than 4,000,000,000 people who 

23 do not have it could increase global economic output 

24 by $6,700,000,000,000 and raise 500,000,000 peo25 ple out of poverty. 
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1 (2) The number of Internet users has more 

2 than tripled from 1,000,000,000 to over 

3 3,000,000,000 since 2005, including 2,000,000,000 

4 living in the developing world, yet more than half of 

5 the world’s population remains offline, living without 

6 the economic and social benefits of the Internet. By 

7 the end of 2016, over 80 percent of households in 

8 the developed world had Internet access, compared 

9 with just 40 percent of households in developing 

10 countries and just 11 percent in the world’s least de11 veloped countries. Of the world’s offline population, 

12 an estimated 75 percent live in just 20 countries, 

13 and rural, female, elderly, illiterate, and low-income 

14 populations are being left behind. 

15 (3) Studies suggest that women are dispropor16 tionately affected by a digital gap in developing 

17 countries, where there are on average 23 percent 

18 fewer women online then men. Bringing an addi19 tional 600,000,000 women online could contribute 

20 $13,000,000,000 to $18,000,000,000 to annual 

21 GDP across 144 developing countries. 

22 (4) The United States has been a leader in pro23 moting access to an open, secure, interoperable 

24 Internet around the world. Recognizing that support 

25 for expanded Internet access furthers United States 
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1 economic and foreign policy interests, including ef2 forts to end extreme global poverty and enabling re3 silient, democratic societies, the Department of State 

4 launched a diplomatic effort called ‘‘Global Con5 nect’’. 

6 (5) Internet access in developing countries is 

7 hampered, in part, by a lack of infrastructure and 

8 a poor regulatory environment for investment. Build9 once policies and approaches, which seek to coordi10 nate public and private sector investments in roads 

11 and other critical infrastructure, can reduce the 

12 number and scale of excavation and construction ac13 tivities when installing telecommunications infra14 structure in rights-of-way, thereby reducing installa15 tion costs for high-speed Internet networks and serv16 ing as a development best practice. 

17 SEC. 4. EXPANDING INTERNET ACCESS IN DEVELOPING 

18 COUNTRIES. 

19 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

20 (1) APPROPRIATE CONGRESSIONAL COMMIT21 TEES.—The term ‘‘appropriate congressional com22 mittees’’ means— 

23 (A) the Committee on Foreign Relations, 

24 the Committee on Commerce, Science, and 
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1 Transportation, and the Committee on Appro2 priations of the Senate; and 

3 (B) the Committee on Foreign Affairs, the 

4 Committee on Energy and Commerce, and the 

5 Committee on Appropriations of the House of 

6 Representatives. 

7 (2) BROADBAND.—The term ‘‘broadband’’ 

8 means an Internet Protocol-based transmission serv9 ice that enables users to send and receive voice, 

10 video, data, graphics, or a combination thereof, 

11 using technologies including fiber optic, mobile, sat12 ellite, and Wi-Fi. 

13 (3) BROADBAND CONDUIT.—The term ‘‘broad14 band conduit’’ means a conduit for fiber optic cables 

15 and other connectivity technologies that support 

16 broadband or wireless facilities for broadband serv17 ice. 

18 (4) BUILD-ONCE POLICIES AND APPROACHES.— 

19 The term ‘‘build-once policies and approaches’’ 

20 means policies or practices that encourage the inte21 gration of Internet infrastructure into traditional in22 frastructure projects that minimize the number and 

23 scale of excavation and construction activities when 

24 installing telecommunications infrastructure in 
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1 rights-of-way to reduce costs, such as by laying fiber 

2 optic cable simultaneously with road construction. 

3 (5) STAKEHOLDERS.—The term ‘‘stakeholders’’ 

4 means the private sector, the public sector, coopera5 tives, civil society, the technical community that de6 velops Internet technologies, standards, implementa7 tion, operations, and applications, and other groups 

8 that are working to increase Internet access or are 

9 impacted by the lack of Internet access in their com10 munities. 

11 (b) POLICY.—It is the policy of the United States to 

12 consult, partner, and coordinate with the governments of 

13 foreign countries, international organizations, regional 

14 economic communities, businesses, civil society, and other 

15 stakeholders in a concerted effort to close the digital gap 

16 by increasing public and private investments in secure 

17 Internet infrastructure and creating conditions for uni18 versal Internet access and usage worldwide by pro19 moting— 

20 (1) first-time access to fixed or mobile broad21 band Internet by 2027 for at least 1,500,000,000 

22 people living in urban and rural areas in developing 

23 countries; 

24 (2) Internet deployment and related coordina25 tion, capacity building, and build-once policies and 
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1 approaches in developing countries, including actions 

2 to encourage— 

3 (A) standardization of build-once policies 

4 and approaches for the inclusion of broadband 

5 conduit in rights-of-way projects that are fund6 ed, co-funded, or partially financed by the 

7 United States or any international organization 

8 that includes the United States as a member, in 

9 consultation with telecommunications providers, 

10 unless a cost-benefit analysis determines that 

11 the cost of such approach outweighs the bene12 fits; 

13 (B) adoption and integration of build-once 

14 policies and approaches into the development 

15 and investment strategies of national and local 

16 government agencies of developing countries 

17 and donor governments and organizations that 

18 will enhance coordination with the private sec19 tor for road building, pipe laying, major infra20 structure projects, and development-related con21 struction such as schools, clinics, and civic 

22 buildings; 

23 (C) provision of increased financial support 

24 by international organizations, including 

25 through grants, loans, technical assistance, and 
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1 partnerships to expand information and com2 munications access and Internet connectivity; 

3 and 

4 (D) avoidance of vendors and contractors 

5 likely to be subject to extrajudicial direction 

6 from a foreign government; 

7 (3) policy and regulatory approaches that pro8 mote a competitive market for investment and inno9 vation in Internet infrastructure and service to en10 courage first-time, affordable access to the Internet 

11 in developing countries, including actions to encour12 age, as appropriate— 

13 (A) the integration of universal and gen14 der-equitable Internet access and adoption 

15 goals, to be informed by the collection of related 

16 gender disaggregated data and research on so17 cial norms that often limit women’s and girls’ 

18 use of the Internet, into national development 

19 plans and United States Government country20 level strategies; 

21 (B) effective, transparent, and efficient 

22 spectrum allocation processes and reforms of 

23 competition laws that may impede the ability of 

24 companies to provide Internet services; and 
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1 (C) efforts to improve procurement proc2 esses to help attract and incentivize investment 

3 in secure Internet infrastructure; 

4 (4) the removal of tax and regulatory barriers 

5 to Internet access, as appropriate; 

6 (5) the use of the Internet to increase economic 

7 growth and trade, including, as appropriate— 

8 (A) policies and strategies to remove re9 strictions to e-commerce, cross-border informa10 tion flows, and competitive marketplaces; and 

11 (B) entrepreneurship and distance learning 

12 enabled by access to technology; 

13 (6) the use of the Internet to bolster democ14 racy, government accountability, transparency, gen15 der equity, and human rights, including through the 

16 establishment of policies, initiatives, and investments 

17 that— 

18 (A) support the development of national 

19 broadband plans or information and commu20 nication technologies strategies that are con21 sistent with fundamental civil and political 

22 rights, including freedom of expression, religion, 

23 belief, assembly, and association; 

24 (B) expand online access to government in25 formation and services to enhance government 
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1 accountability and service delivery, including for 

2 areas in which government may have limited 

3 presence; and 

4 (C) support expression of free speech and 

5 enable political organizing and activism in sup6 port of human rights and democracy through 

7 activities that expand access to independent 

8 sources of news and information and safeguard 

9 human rights and fundamental freedoms online, 

10 in compliance with international human rights 

11 standards; 

12 (7) programs and mechanisms that actively pro13 mote and advance access to and adoption of Internet 

14 and other information and communications tech15 nologies by women, people with disabilities, minori16 ties, low-income and marginalized groups, and un17 derserved populations, such as programs that ad18 dress social norms and barriers to women’s active 

19 participation in the digital economy or Internet pol20 icymaking; 

21 (8) mechanisms for public and private financing 

22 of rural broadband connectivity and digital inclusion; 

23 (9) public Internet access facilities and Wi-Fi 

24 networks in places such as libraries, government 

25 buildings, community centers, and schools; 
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1 (10) the creation and support of research and 

2 educational networks; 

3 (11) cybersecurity, data protection, and privacy, 

4 including international use of the latest version of 

5 the National Institute of Standards and Technology 

6 Framework for Improving Critical Infrastructure 

7 Cybersecurity; and 

8 (12) interagency coordination and cooperation 

9 across all executive branch agencies regarding the 

10 promotion of Internet initiatives as a part of United 

11 States foreign policy. 

12 (c) DEPARTMENT OF STATE.—The Secretary of 

13 State, in coordination with other agencies, multilateral in14 stitutions, foreign countries, and stakeholders, shall ad15 vance the policy articulated in this Act and promote ex16 panded Internet connectivity worldwide, as appropriate, 

17 by— 

18 (1) encouraging foreign countries to prioritize 

19 secure Internet connectivity in development plans; 

20 (2) promoting the formation of region-specific 

21 multi-sector working groups to ensure technical and 

22 regulatory best practices; and 

23 (3) encouraging the development of digital lit24 eracy programs in developing countries. 
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1 (d) USAID.—The Administrator of the United 

2 States Agency for International Development (USAID) 

3 should advance the policy articulated in this Act and sup4 port expanded Internet connectivity worldwide, as appro5 priate, by— 

6 (1) supporting efforts to expand secure Internet 

7 infrastructure and improve digital literacy, and other 

8 appropriate measures to improve Internet 

9 connectivity and usage, in close coordination with 

10 the Secretary of State; 

11 (2) encouraging public and private investment 

12 in Internet infrastructure and services of developing 

13 countries that takes into consideration the data se14 curity and integrity risks attendant to the products 

15 and services of vendors likely to be subject to 

16 extrajudicial direction from a foreign government; 

17 (3) integrating efforts to expand Internet ac18 cess, develop appropriate, sustainable, and equitable 

19 technologies, and enhance digital literacy and the 

20 availability of relevant local content across develop21 ment sectors, such as USAID health, education, ag22 riculture, and economic development programs; 

23 (4) expanding the utilization of information and 

24 communications technologies in humanitarian aid 

25 and disaster relief responses and United States oper-
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1 ations involving reconstruction and stabilization to 

2 improve donor coordination, reduce duplication and 

3 waste, capture and share lessons learned, and aug4 ment disaster preparedness and risk mitigation 

5 strategies; 

6 (5) establishing and promoting guidelines for 

7 the protection of personal information of individuals 

8 served by humanitarian, disaster, and development 

9 programs directly through the United States Gov10 ernment, and through contracts funded by the 

11 United States Government and by international or12 ganizations; and 

13 (6) establishing programs that directly address 

14 and seek to close gaps in access, adoption, and use 

15 of the Internet and other information and commu16 nications technologies by women, minorities, and 

17 other marginalized groups. 

18 (e) PEACE CORPS.—Section 3 of the Peace Corps Act 

19 (22 U.S.C. 2502) is amended— 

20 (1) by redesignating subsection (h) as sub21 section (e); and 

22 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

23 ‘‘(f) It is the sense of Congress that access to the 

24 Internet can transform agriculture, community economic 

25 development, education, environment, health, and youth 
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1 development, which are the sectors in which Peace Corps 

2 develops positions for volunteers. 

3 ‘‘(g) In giving attention to the programs, projects, 

4 training, and other activities referred to in subsection (f), 

5 the Peace Corps should develop positions for volunteers 

6 that include leveraging the Internet, as appropriate, for 

7 development, education, and social and economic mobil8 ity.’’. 

9 (f) LEVERAGING INTERNATIONAL SUPPORT.—In 

10 pursuing the policy described in this Act, the President 

11 should direct United States representatives to appropriate 

12 international bodies to use the influence of the United 

13 States, consistent with the broad development goals of the 

14 United States, to advocate that each such body— 

15 (1) commit to increase efforts and coordination 

16 to promote affordable, open, and gender-equitable 

17 Internet access, in partnership with stakeholders and 

18 consistent with host countries’ absorptive capacity; 

19 (2) integrate affordable and gender-equitable 

20 Internet access data into existing economic and busi21 ness assessments, evaluations, and indexes such as 

22 the Millennium Challenge Corporation constraints 

23 analysis, the Doing Business reports, International 

24 Monetary Fund Article IV assessments and country 

25 reports, and the Affordability Drivers Index; 
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1 (3) standardize the inclusion of broadband con2 duit as part of highway or comparable construction 

3 projects in developing countries, in consultation with 

4 telecommunications providers, unless— 

5 (A) such inclusion would create an undue 

6 burden; 

7 (B) such inclusion is not necessary based 

8 on the availability of existing broadband infra9 structure; 

10 (C) such inclusion would require the incor11 poration of the hardware, software, or mainte12 nance of vendors likely to be subject to 

13 extrajudicial direction from a foreign govern14 ment; or 

15 (D) a cost-benefit analysis determines that 

16 the cost of such inclusion outweighs the bene17 fits; 

18 (4) provide technical assistance to the regu19 latory authorities in developing countries to remove 

20 unnecessary barriers to investment and develop reg21 ulations to support market growth and development; 

22 (5) utilize clear, accountable, and metric-based 

23 targets, including targets with gender-disaggregated 

24 data, to measure the effectiveness of efforts to pro25 mote Internet access; and 
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1 (6) promote and protect human rights online, 

2 such as the freedoms of expression, religion, belief, 

3 assembly, and association, through resolutions, pub4 lic statements, projects, and initiatives, and advo5 cating that member states of such bodies are held 

6 accountable for violations. 

7 (g) REPORTING REQUIREMENT ON IMPLEMENTATION

8 EFFORTS.—Not later than 1 year after the date of the 

9 enactment of this Act, the President shall submit to the 

10 appropriate congressional committees a report on efforts 

11 to implement the policy described in this Act and, to the 

12 extent practicable, describe efforts by the United States 

13 Government to— 

14 (1) provide technical and regulatory assistance 

15 to promote Internet access in developing countries; 

16 (2) strengthen and support development of reg17 ulations that incentivize market growth that contrib18 utes to increased Internet access in developing coun19 tries; 

20 (3) encourage public and private investment in 

21 Internet infrastructure, including broadband net22 works and services, in developing countries; 

23 (4) increase gender-equitable Internet access 

24 and close gender gaps in Internet and other infor25 mation and communications technology adoption and 
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1 use, especially in countries in which social norms 

2 limit such adoption and use by women and girls, and 

3 otherwise encourage or support Internet deployment, 

4 competition, and adoption; and 

5 (5) conduct outreach and explore partnership 

6 opportunities with the private sector on activities 

7 that advance the policy described in this Act. 

8 SEC. 5. COST LIMITATION. 

9 No additional funds are authorized to be appro10 priated to carry out the provisions of this Act. 

11 SEC. 6. RULE OF CONSTRUCTION. 

12 Nothing in this Act may be construed to infringe 

13 upon the related functions of any Executive agency (as 

14 defined in section 105 of title 5, United States Code) vest15 ed in such agency under any other provision of law. 

Passed the House of Representatives May 20, 2019. 

Attest: 

Clerk. 
116TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 1359 

AN ACT 

To promote Internet access in developing countries 

and for other purposes. and update foreign policy toward the Internet,