I 
116TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 8659 
To amend the Communications Act of 1934 to provide for requirements 
for the exercise of the emergency powers of the President under section 
706 of such Act, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
OCTOBER 23, 2020 
Ms. ESHOO (for herself and Mr. GRIFFITH) introduced the following bill; 
which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in 
addition to the Committee on Rules, for a period to be subsequently de-
termined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions 
as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 
A BILL 
To amend the Communications Act of 1934 to provide for 
requirements for the exercise of the emergency powers 
of the President under section 706 of such Act, and 
for other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Preventing Unwar-
ranted Communications Shutdowns Act of 2020’’. 
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SEC. 2. REQUIREMENTS FOR EXERCISE OF CERTAIN EMER-
GENCY POWERS OF THE PRESIDENT. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 706 of the Communica-
tions Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 606) is amended by adding 
at the end the following: 
‘‘(i) REQUIREMENTS FOR ACTIONS BY PRESIDENT 
UNDER THIS SECTION.— 
‘‘(1) STANDARD
FOR
TAKING
ACTION.—The 
President may not take an action under subsection 
(a), (b), (c), or (d) unless such action is— 
‘‘(A) necessary to protect against an immi-
nent and specific threat to human life or an im-
minent and specific threat to national security; 
‘‘(B) narrowly tailored to achieve the pur-
pose described in subparagraph (A); and 
‘‘(C) the least restrictive means to achieve 
such purpose. 
‘‘(2) NOTIFICATION TO CONGRESSIONAL LEAD-
ERS AND SENIOR GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS.— 
‘‘(A) IN
GENERAL.—Before or not later 
than 12 hours after taking any action under 
subsection (a), (b), (c), or (d), the President 
shall transmit a notification with respect to 
such action that meets the requirements of sub-
paragraph (B) to each congressional leader and 
each senior Government official. 
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‘‘(B) REQUIREMENTS.—The requirements 
of this subparagraph for a notification with re-
spect to an action under subsection (a), (b), (c), 
or (d) are the following: 
‘‘(i) CONTENTS.—Such notification 
shall contain the following: 
‘‘(I) An identification of the war, 
threat of war, state of public peril, 
disaster, national emergency, or other 
circumstance that is the basis for the 
President to take such action, as re-
quired by the subsection under which 
the President has acted or wishes to 
act. 
‘‘(II) A detailed description of 
such action, including— 
‘‘(aa) the geographic scope 
of such action; 
‘‘(bb) the types of commu-
nications networks impacted by 
such action; and 
‘‘(cc) a list of each person to 
whom the President has trans-
mitted a communication directing 
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such person to comply with such 
action. 
‘‘(III) The amount of time (if 
any) beyond the period of effective-
ness provided in paragraph (3) for 
which the President is requesting au-
thorization to maintain such action. 
‘‘(IV) A justification, with re-
spect to such action and any amount 
of time stated under subclause (III), 
of how the President reached the de-
termination required for taking an ac-
tion under such subsection (including 
the determination that the require-
ments of paragraph (1) of this sub-
section are met). 
‘‘(ii) FORM.—Such notification shall 
be in writing. With respect to each con-
gressional leader and each senior Govern-
ment official, the President shall first 
transmit such notification to such leader or 
official in either physical or electronic 
form, whichever the President determines 
will result in quicker delivery to such lead-
er or official. The President shall transmit 
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such notification to such leader or official 
in the other form as soon thereafter as 
possible, but failure to transmit such noti-
fication in such other form shall not affect 
the validity of the action by the President 
to which such notification relates. 
‘‘(iii) TIMING.— 
‘‘(I) CONGRESS.— 
‘‘(aa) IN
GENERAL.—The 
President shall transmit such no-
tification in such a manner so as 
to ensure delivery to each con-
gressional leader as close to si-
multaneously as practicable, but 
the time between delivery to each 
congressional leader shall not be 
greater than 1 hour. 
‘‘(bb) OFFICIAL
TIME
RE-
CEIVED; 
PUBLICATION.—Each 
congressional leader shall record 
the official time of the chamber 
at receipt. In the case of notifica-
tion to a congressional leader in 
both 
physical 
and 
electronic 
form, the time recorded shall be 
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the 4 times recorded under subclause 
(I)(bb). 
‘‘(C) PUBLIC AVAILABILITY.— 
‘‘(i) PRESUMPTIVELY
PUBLIC.—Ex-
cept as provided in clause (ii), the Presi-
dent shall publicly release a notification 
transmitted under subparagraph (A) at the 
time when the 48-hour period begins. 
‘‘(ii) TEMPORARY WITHHOLDING AND 
RELEASE.— 
‘‘(I) WITHHOLDING.—The Presi-
dent may withhold from public release 
under clause (i) a portion of a notifi-
cation transmitted under subpara-
graph (A) only to the extent that the 
President determines that— 
‘‘(aa) secrecy of such portion 
is necessary to protect against an 
imminent and specific threat to 
human life; or 
‘‘(bb) such portion contains 
classified information. 
‘‘(II) RELEASE.—Notwithstand-
ing any provision of law or Executive 
order regarding the protection of clas-
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sified information, any portion of a 
notification transmitted under sub-
paragraph (A) that is withheld under 
subclause (I) shall be publicly released 
not later than 180 days after— 
‘‘(aa) if there is not enacted 
a law authorizing the action by 
the President under subsection 
(a), (b), (c), or (d) to which such 
notification relates to take effect 
or to be extended (as the case 
may be), the date on which the 
48-hour period begins; or 
‘‘(bb) if there is enacted 
such a law, the date on which 
such action ceases to have any 
force or effect under such law (or 
any subsequent law authorizing 
such action to be extended). 
‘‘(D) 
INDEPENDENT
ANALYSIS.—Con-
sistent with the protection of intelligence 
sources and methods, each Commissioner of the 
Commission may transmit to Congress an inde-
pendent analysis regarding any matter included 
in a notification transmitted by the President 
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under subparagraph (A) or related judgments 
of the President or facts supplied by the Presi-
dent. 
‘‘(3) 
EFFECTIVENESS
OF
ACTION.—Unless 
there is enacted a law authorizing an action by the 
President under subsection (a), (b), (c), or (d) to 
take effect or to be extended (as the case may be)— 
‘‘(A) if the President fails to transmit to 
each congressional leader and each senior Gov-
ernment official a notification with respect to 
such action as required by paragraph (2), such 
action shall cease to have any force or effect at 
the time that is 12 hours after the President 
takes such action; and 
‘‘(B) if the President transmits to each 
congressional leader and each senior Govern-
ment official a notification with respect to such 
action as required by paragraph (2), such ac-
tion shall cease to have any force or effect at, 
and may not take effect after, the end of the 
48-hour period. 
‘‘(4) PROCEDURES FOR EXPEDITED CONGRES-
SIONAL CONSIDERATION.— 
‘‘(A) FAST TRACK CONSIDERATION IN THE 
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES.— 
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‘‘(i) RECONVENING.—Upon receipt of 
a notification under paragraph (2), the 
Speaker, if the House would otherwise be 
adjourned, shall notify the Members of the 
House that, pursuant to this paragraph, 
the House shall convene as soon as the 
Speaker deems practicable. 
‘‘(ii) PLACEMENT
ON
CALENDAR.— 
Upon introduction in the House, the ap-
proval legislation shall be placed imme-
diately on the calendar. 
‘‘(iii) PROCEEDING
TO
CONSIDER-
ATION.—It shall be in order at any time 
during the 48-hour period immediately to 
move to proceed to consider the approval 
legislation in the House. All points of order 
against the motion are waived. Such a mo-
tion shall not be in order after the House 
has disposed of a motion to proceed on the 
approval legislation. The previous question 
shall be considered as ordered on the mo-
tion to its adoption without intervening 
motion. The motion shall not be debatable. 
A motion to reconsider the vote by which 
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the motion is disposed of shall not be in 
order. 
‘‘(iv) CONSIDERATION.—The approval 
legislation shall be considered as read. All 
points of order against the approval legis-
lation and against its consideration are 
waived. The previous question shall be con-
sidered as ordered on the approval legisla-
tion to its passage without intervening mo-
tion except two hours of debate equally di-
vided and controlled by the proponent and 
an opponent. A motion to reconsider the 
vote on passage of the approval legislation 
shall not be in order. 
‘‘(B) FAST TRACK CONSIDERATION IN THE 
SENATE.— 
‘‘(i) RECONVENING.—Upon receipt of 
a notification under paragraph (2), if the 
Senate has adjourned or recessed for more 
than 2 days, the majority leader of the 
Senate, after consultation with the minor-
ity leader of the Senate, shall notify the 
Members of the Senate that, pursuant to 
this paragraph, the Senate shall convene 
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as soon as the majority leader deems prac-
ticable. 
‘‘(ii) PLACEMENT
ON
CALENDAR.— 
Upon introduction in the Senate, the ap-
proval legislation shall be placed imme-
diately on the calendar. 
‘‘(iii) FLOOR CONSIDERATION.— 
‘‘(I) 
IN
GENERAL.—Notwith-
standing Rule XXII of the Standing 
Rules of the Senate, it is in order at 
any time during the 48-hour period to 
move to proceed to the consideration 
of the approval legislation, and all 
points of order against the approval 
legislation (and against consideration 
of the legislation) are waived. The mo-
tion to proceed is not debatable. The 
motion is not subject to a motion to 
postpone. A motion to reconsider the 
vote by which the motion is agreed to 
or disagreed to shall not be in order. 
If a motion to proceed to the consider-
ation of the approval legislation is 
agreed to, the approval legislation 
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