SAFETY on Social Media Act of 2023

Subjects: Science, Technology, Communications


<html><body><pre>[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 872 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

&lt;DOC&gt;






118th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                 S. 872

   To identify social media entities under the influence of certain 
foreign entities and to take measures to protect the United States from 
                 such entities, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             March 16, 2023

  Mr. Cotton introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
    referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
   To identify social media entities under the influence of certain 
foreign entities and to take measures to protect the United States from 
                 such entities, and for other purposes.

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

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Stopping Attempts by Foreign 
Entities to Target Youths on Social Media Act Act of 2023'' or the 
``SAFETY on Social Media Act of 2023''.

SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) App.--The term ``app'' means a software application or 
        electronic service that may be run or directed by a user on a 
        computer, a mobile device, or any other general purpose 
        computing device.
            (2) App store.--The term ``app store'' means a publicly 
        available website, software application, or other electronic 
        service that distributes apps from third-party developers to 
        users of a computer, a mobile device, or any other general 
        purpose computing device.
            (3) Covered nation.--The term ``covered nation'' has the 
        meaning given that term in section 4872 of title 10, United 
        States Code.
            (4) Foreign entity of concern.--The term ``foreign entity 
        of concern'' means--
                    (A) the government, Armed Forces, or ruling party 
                of a covered nation;
                    (B) any entity that is owned or controlled, 
                directly or indirectly, by the government, Armed 
                Forces, or ruling party of a covered nation;
                    (C) any entity that is organized under the laws of, 
                or otherwise subject to the jurisdiction of, the 
                government of a covered nation; or
                    (D) any entity acting on behalf of an entity 
                described in subparagraph (A), (B), or (C).
            (5) Foreign person.--The term ``foreign person'' means any 
        individual or entity that is not a United States person.
            (6) Social media entity.--The term ``social media entity'' 
        means any entity that--
                    (A) owns or operates, directly or indirectly, an 
                app or website, the primary or sole purpose of which is 
                not--
                            (i) to conduct commercial transactions;
                            (ii) to make video games available for play 
                        by users;
                            (iii) to report news; or
                            (iv) to provide other kinds of information 
                        concerning businesses, products, or travel 
                        information; and
                    (B) allows users of the app or website to publish 
                and distribute to the public or to other users text, 
                images, videos, and other forms of media content.
            (7) United states person.--The term ``United States 
        person'' means--
                    (A) a United States citizen or an alien lawfully 
                admitted for permanent residence to the United States; 
                or
                    (B) an entity organized under the laws of the 
                United States or of any jurisdiction within the United 
                States, including a foreign branch of such an entity.

SEC. 3. LIST OF UNTRUSTWORTHY APPLICATIONS AND SOCIAL MEDIA ENTITIES.

    (a) In General.--Not later than 90 days after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter, the President shall 
publish and submit to Congress a list of untrustworthy applications and 
social media entities (in this Act referred to as the ``List''), which 
shall include all entities that meet the criteria described in 
subsection (b).
    (b) Criteria for List.--The President shall include on the List any 
social media entity that--
            (1) is a foreign person;
            (2) owns or controls, is directly or indirectly owned or 
        controlled by, or is under common ownership or control with a 
        foreign entity of concern;
            (3)(A) as a result of the influence of a foreign entity of 
        concern--
                    (i) has altered the content of an app or website 
                owned or operated by the social media entity to comply 
                with the request of, or to advance the interests of, a 
                foreign entity of concern; or
                    (ii) has shared the data of United States persons 
                with a foreign entity of concern; or
            (B) may be compelled by a foreign entity of concern--
                    (i) to alter the content of an app or website owned 
                or operated by the social media entity; or
                    (ii) to share the data of United States persons 
                with a foreign entity of concern; and
            (4) had, in at least one month in the 12-month period 
        preceding submission of the report, more than--
                    (A) 1,000,000 active monthly users; or
                    (B) 1,000,000 downloads.

SEC. 4. BLOCKING OF PROPERTY OF LISTED ENTITIES.

    (a) In General.--Not later than 30 days after each publication of 
the List under section 3, the President shall exercise all of the 
powers granted to the President under the International Emergency 
Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.) to the extent necessary to 
block and prohibit all transactions in property and interests in 
property of each entity on the List if such property and interests in 
property are in the United States, come within the United States, or 
are or come within the possession or control of a United States person.
    (b) Inapplicability of Certain IEEPA Provisions.--For purposes of 
subsection (a), the following provisions of the International Emergency 
Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.) shall not apply:
            (1) The requirement under section 202(b) (50 U.S.C. 
        1701(b)) to declare a national emergency.
            (2) The exceptions under section 203(b) of that Act (50 
        U.S.C. 1702(b)).
    (c) Implementation; Penalties.--
            (1) Implementation.--The President may exercise the 
        authorities provided to the President under sections 203 and 
        205 of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (50 
        U.S.C. 1702 and 1704) to the extent necessary to carry out this 
        section.
            (2) Penalties.--A person that violates, attempts to 
        violate, conspires to violate, or causes a violation of 
        subsection (a) or any regulation, license, or order issued to 
        carry out that subsection shall be subject to the penalties set 
        forth in subsections (b) and (c) of section 206 of the 
        International Emergency Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1705) to 
        the same extent as a person that commits an unlawful act 
        described in subsection (a) of that section.

SEC. 5. HALTING OPERATIONS OF LISTED ENTITIES.

    (a) Removal From App Stores.--After the first publication of the 
List under section 3 and not later than 1 year after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, the Federal Communications Commission (referred 
to in this section as the ``Commission'') shall prescribe a rule 
prohibiting any entity that owns, controls, or operates an app store in 
the United States from carrying or supporting in the app store in the 
United States an app or website owned or operated by a social media 
entity that is on the List.
    (b) Internet Service Providers.--
            (1) In general.--After the first publication of the List 
        under section 3 and not later than 1 year after the date of the 
        enactment of this Act, the Commission shall prescribe a rule 
        requiring each internet service provider to ensure that the 
        internet service of the provider cannot be used to access the 
        website of any social media entity on the List.
            (2) Liability protection.--An internet service provider 
        shall not be liable under the rule prescribed under paragraph 
        (1) for access to the website of a social media entity on the 
        List that is obtained through the use of a virtual private 
        network.
    (c) Enforcement.--The Commission may impose a forfeiture penalty 
under section 503 of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 503) on 
any person who violates a rule prescribed under this section.
    (d) Rule of Construction.--Nothing in this section may be construed 
to give the Commission the authority to carry out any action under 
subsection (a) or (b) with respect to any entity that is not on the 
List.

SEC. 6. COUNTERMEASURES AGAINST EMPLOYEES OF LISTED ENTITIES.

    (a) Visa Ineligibility.--Beginning on the date that is 30 days 
after an entity is first included on the List--
            (1) any foreign person employed by such entity on or after 
        such date of first inclusion who is a national of a covered 
        nation--
                    (A) shall be permanently ineligible to be issued or 
                to retain a nonimmigrant visa under section 
                101(a)(15)(H)(i)(b) of the Immigration and Nationality 
                Act (8 U.S.C. 1101(a)(15)(H)(i)(b)); and
                    (B) shall be ineligible to be issued or to retain 
                any other visa authorizing entry into the United States 
                until the date that is 3 years after the date on 
                which--
                            (i) such foreign person terminates his or 
                        her employment with such entity; or
                            (ii) such entity is removed from the List; 
                        and
            (2) any foreign person employed by such entity on or after 
        such date of first inclusion who is not a national of a covered 
        nation shall be ineligible to be issued or to retain any visa 
        authorizing entry into the United States until the date that is 
        3 years after the date on which--
                    (A) such foreign person terminates his or her 
                employment with such entity; or
                    (B) such entity is removed from the List.
    (b) Foreign Agent Registration Required.--
            (1) Registration.--Section 1(b) of the Foreign Agents 
        Registration Act of 1938, as amended (22 U.S.C. 611(b)) is 
        amended--
                    (A) in paragraph (2), by striking ``; and'' and 
                inserting a semicolon;
                    (B) in paragraph (3), by striking the period at the 
                end and inserting ``; and''; and
                    (C) by adding at the end the following:
            ``(4) an entity on the list of untrustworthy applications 
        and social media entities under section 3 of the Stopping 
        Attempts by Foreign Entities to Target Youths on Social Media 
        Act Act of 2023.''.
            (2) Cessation of employment.--Section 2 of the Foreign 
        Agents Registration Act of 1938, as amended (22 U.S.C. 612) is 
        amended by adding at the end the following:
    ``(e) Agents of Entities Listed in the Untrustworthy Applications 
and Social Media Entities List.--Any individual who ceases employment 
as an agent of a foreign principal that is an entity on the list of 
untrustworthy applications and social media entities under section 3 of 
the Stopping Attempts by Foreign Entities to Target Youths on Social 
Media Act Act of 2023 shall, during the 2-year period beginning on the 
date on which the individual ceases such employment with the foreign 
principal--
            ``(1) continue to register as an agent of a foreign 
        principal; and
            ``(2) be subject to the penalties under section 8 of this 
        Act.''.
                                 &lt;all&gt;
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