Defending Internet Freedom Act of 2015

To prohibit the National Telecommunications and Information Administration from relinquishing responsibilities with respect to Internet domain name functions unless it certifies that it has received a proposal for such relinquishment that meets certain criteria, and for other purposes. 1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Defending Internet Freedom Act of 2015 2. Requirements for NTIA relinquishment of DNS responsibilities (a) In general Unless the Assistant Secretary submits the certification described in subsection (b) to the appropriate congressional committees— (1) the Assistant Secretary may not relinquish the responsibilities of the NTIA with respect to Internet domain name functions, including responsibility with respect to the authoritative root zone file, the IANA functions, or the related root zone management functions; and (2) the Assistant Secretary shall exercise the first option period described in paragraph I.70(b) of the IANA functions contract to extend such contract through September 30, 2017. (b) Certification described The certification described in this subsection is a written certification that the Assistant Secretary has received a final proposal for relinquishing the responsibilities of the NTIA with respect to Internet domain name functions that ensures the following: (1) Control over the management of the Internet domain name system will not be exercised by a governmental or intergovernmental body. (2) The bylaws of ICANN have been amended to provide for the following: (A) No director or officer of ICANN may be selected by or represent a governmental or intergovernmental body. (B) The board of directors of ICANN is prohibited from voting on advice or a policy proposal offered by the Governmental Advisory Committee unless such Committee reaches consensus regarding such advice or proposal. For purposes of the preceding sentence, the term consensus (C) ICANN is committed to upholding freedom of speech, freedom of the press, freedom of assembly, and freedom of association and has adopted and implemented standards that are at least as protective of such freedoms as is the First Amendment to the Constitution. (D) The term supermajority (E) A change in the bylaws of ICANN requires a vote of a supermajority of the board of directors. (F) ICANN has an external, independent process for reviewing and resolving disputes between ICANN and external parties, including members of the multistakeholder community, in all matters related to the operations and policy decisions of ICANN. Such process includes the ability to reverse decisions of the board of directors. (G) ICANN shall remain subject to United States law (including State law) and to the jurisdiction of United States courts (including State courts). (H) ICANN is prohibited from engaging in activities unrelated to ICANN’s core mission or entering into an agreement or modifying an existing agreement to impose on a registrar or registry with which ICANN conducts business any condition (such as a condition relating to the regulation of content) that is unrelated to ICANN’s core mission. (3) ICANN has adopted policies and procedures for disclosing to the public records and other information that are at least as protective of public access as the policies and procedures required by section 552 of title 5, United States Code (commonly known as the Freedom of Information Act). The policies and procedures adopted include a means by which the denial of a request for access to records or other information may be appealed through the independent dispute resolution process described in paragraph (2)(F). (4) The United States Government has been granted ownership of the .gov and .mil top-level domains. (5) ICANN has adopted, if necessary through amendment to its bylaws, all additional measures recommended by the multistakeholder community through the IANA Stewardship Transition Coordination Group, the Cross Community Working Group on Enhancing ICANN Accountability, and the Cross Community Working Group to Develop an IANA Stewardship Transition Proposal on Naming Related Functions. (c) Definitions In this section: (1) Appropriate congressional committees The term appropriate congressional committees (2) Assistant Secretary The term Assistant Secretary (3) IANA functions The term IANA functions (4) IANA functions contract The term IANA functions contract (5) ICANN The term ICANN (6) ICANN’s core mission The term ICANN’s core mission (7) NTIA The term NTIA (8) State The term State

Summary: Defending Internet Freedom Act of 2015 Prohibits the Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Communications and Information from relinquishing the responsibilities of the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) with respect to Internet domain name functions, including Internet Assigned Numbers Authority (IANA) functions, unless the Assistant Secretary certifies to Congress that a final proposal has been received that ensures: control over the management of the Internet domain name system will not be exercised by a governmental or intergovernmental body; standards for freedoms of speech, of the press, of assembly, and of association are at least as protective as the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution; the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) has an external, independent process for reviewing and resolving disputes between ICANN and external parties, including the ability to reverse decisions of the board of directors; ICANN remains subject to U.S. law; ICANN has adopted disclosure procedures that are at least as protective of public access as the Freedom of Information Act; the U.S. government has been granted ownership of the ".gov" and ".mil" top-level domains; and ICANN has adopted additional measures recommended by the multistakeholder community. Requires such certification to ensure amendments to ICANN bylaws to prohibit ICANN from: (1) engaging in activities unrelated to ICANN's core mission of managing the IANA functions and proposing and overseeing policy decisions central to coordinating the global interoperability and uniqueness of Internet domain names; or (2) agreeing to impose on a registrar or registry any condition, such as a regulation of content, that is unrelated to ICANN's core mission. Requires such a certification to also ensure amendments to bylaws concerning: (1) Governmental Advisory Committee advice and policy proposals, and (2) a required supermajority of the board of directors for votes regarding changes to bylaws. Directs the Assistant Secretary, if such a certification is not submitted to Congress by a specified deadline, to extend through September 30, 2017, the existing IANA functions contract under which ICANN is required to perform IANA functions.