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[Congressional Bills 114th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Res. 71 Agreed to Senate (ATS)]

114th CONGRESS
  1st Session
S. RES. 71

   Designating the week of February 8 through February 14, 2015, as 
                ``Internet Governance Awareness Week''.

_______________________________________________________________________

                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                            February 5, 2015

   Mr. Hatch (for himself, Mr. Blunt, Mr. Warner, Mr. Coons, and Mr. 
 Inhofe) submitted the following resolution; which was considered and 
                               agreed to

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION

 
   Designating the week of February 8 through February 14, 2015, as 
                ``Internet Governance Awareness Week''.

Whereas the United States remains committed to the multistakeholder model of 
        Internet governance, in which the private sector works in collaboration 
        with civil society, governments, and technical experts in a consensus 
        fashion;
Whereas the United States has, through its stewardship of key Internet domain 
        name functions, maintained an important role in the protection of the 
        Internet as presently constituted;
Whereas on March 14, 2014, the National Telecommunications and Information 
        Administration (referred to in this preamble as the ``NTIA'') announced 
        its intent to transition these key Internet domain name functions to the 
        global multistakeholder community;
Whereas the transition process demonstrates that the United States supports and 
        is committed to the multistakeholder model of Internet governance;
Whereas the NTIA has asked the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and 
        Numbers (referred to in this preamble as ``ICANN'') to convene global 
        stakeholders to develop a proposal to transition the current role played 
        by the NTIA in the coordination of the Internet's domain name system 
        (referred to in this preamble as the ``DNS'');
Whereas the NTIA has stated that there is no deadline for the transition, and 
        that the transition proposal must have broad community support and 
        must--

    (1) support and enhance the multistakeholder model;

    (2) maintain the security, stability, and resiliency of the Internet 
DNS;

    (3) meet the needs and expectations of the global customers and 
partners of the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority; and

    (4) maintain the openness of the Internet;

Whereas the NTIA has also stated that it will not accept a proposal that 
        replaces the NTIA with a government-led or an inter-governmental 
        organization, a position that is consistent with S. Con. Res. 50 
        (112\th\ Congress), a concurrent resolution that was unanimously passed 
        by the Senate and the House of Representatives in 2012 and supported 
        ``the consistent and unequivocal policy of the United States to promote 
        a global Internet free from government control and preserve and advance 
        the successful multistakeholder model that governs the Internet today'';
Whereas ICANN will be holding its next global meeting, ICANN 52, in Singapore 
        between February 8 and February 12, 2015; and
Whereas designating the week of February 8 through February 14, 2015, as 
        ``Internet Governance Awareness Week'' will encourage the participants 
        at ICANN 52 to focus on developing key ICANN accountability principles 
        for the protection of the global Internet: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved,

SECTION 1. DESIGNATION.

    The Senate designates the week of February 8 through February 14, 
2015, as ``Internet Governance Awareness Week'' to--
            (1) increase public awareness regarding the March 14, 2014 
        announcement by the National Telecommunications and Information 
        Administration (referred to in this resolving clause as the 
        ``NTIA'') declaring the intention of the NTIA to transition the 
        stewardship of the functions of the Internet Assigned Numbers 
        Authority to the global multistakeholder community;
            (2) encourage public education about the importance of this 
        transition process; and
            (3) call the attention of the participants at the next 
        global meeting of the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names 
        and Numbers (referred to in this resolving clause as ``ICANN'') 
        to the importance of designing accountability and governance 
        reforms to best prepare ICANN for executing the 
        responsibilities that it may receive under any transition of 
        the stewardship of the functions of the Internet Assigned 
        Numbers Authority, including reforms that would--
                    (A) insist that the domain name system continues to 
                function as part of a secure, stable, resilient, 
                single, decentralized, open, and interoperable 
                Internet;
                    (B) ensure a form of stewardship and accountability 
                that is based on the separation of the functions of 
                policy-making, policy implementation, and, as needed, 
                independent adjudication or arbitration for dispute 
                resolution;
                    (C) limit and maintain ICANN authority to matters 
                that pertain to the coordination of Internet unique 
                identifiers, and limit each function to those rights, 
                responsibilities, and authorities that have been 
                explicitly assigned;
                    (D) protect ICANN from undue influence or capture 
                by one or more governments or multilateral or 
                intergovernmental organizations, or a single set of 
                other commercial or noncommercial stakeholders;
                    (E) maintain the commitment of ICANN for final 
                action regarding key policy decisions to demonstrate 
                broad support by the community of ICANN stakeholders;
                    (F) reinforce and expand transparency and 
                accountability measures to ensure community access to 
                ICANN documents and records; and
                    (G) ensure that, prior to the execution of the 
                transition of the stewardship of the functions of the 
                Internet Assigned Numbers Authority, each of the 
                foregoing elements of such proposal is adopted and made 
                effective by ICANN through incorporation in its 
                articles of incorporation and by-laws, as needed, and 
                subject to independent adjudication or arbitration for 
                dispute resolution, as appropriate.

SEC. 2. RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.

    Nothing in this resolution shall be construed as congressional 
approval of any proposal by ICANN to transition the stewardship of the 
functions of the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority to the global 
multistakeholder community.
                                 <all>
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