SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Digital Global Access 
Policy Act of 2019’’ or the ‘‘Digital GAP Act’’. 
SEC. 2. PURPOSE. 
The purpose of this Act is to— 
(1) encourage the efforts of developing coun-
tries to improve and secure mobile and fixed access 
to the Internet in order to catalyze innovation, spur 
economic growth and job creation, improve health, 
education, and financial services, reduce poverty and 
gender inequality, mitigate disasters, and promote 
free speech, democracy, and good governance; 
(2) promote build-once policies and approaches 
and the multi-stakeholder approach to Internet gov-
ernance; and 
(3) ensure the effective use of United States 
foreign assistance resources toward that end. 
SEC. 3. FINDINGS. 
Congress makes the following findings: 
(1) Internet access has been a driver of eco-
nomic activity around the world. Bringing Internet 
access to the more than 4,000,000,000 people who 
do not have it could increase global economic output 
by $6,700,000,000,000 and raise 500,000,000 peo-
ple out of poverty.
(2) The number of Internet users has more 
than 
tripled 
from 
1,000,000,000 
to 
over 
3,000,000,000 since 2005, including 2,000,000,000 
living in the developing world, yet more than half of 
the world’s population remains offline, living without 
the economic and social benefits of the Internet. By 
the end of 2016, over 80 percent of households in 
the developed world had Internet access, compared 
with just 40 percent of households in developing 
countries and just 11 percent in the world’s least de-
veloped countries. Of the world’s offline population, 
an estimated 75 percent live in just 20 countries, 
and rural, female, elderly, illiterate, and low-income 
populations are being left behind. 
(3) Studies suggest that women are dispropor-
tionately affected by a digital gap in developing 
countries, where there are on average 23 percent 
fewer women online then men. Bringing an addi-
tional 600,000,000 women online could contribute 
$13,000,000,000 to $18,000,000,000 to annual 
GDP across 144 developing countries. 
(4) The United States has been a leader in pro-
moting access to an open, secure, interoperable 
Internet around the world. Recognizing that support 
for expanded Internet access furthers United States
economic and foreign policy interests, including ef-
forts to end extreme global poverty and enabling re-
silient, democratic societies, the Department of State 
launched a diplomatic effort called ‘‘Global Con-
nect’’. 
(5) Internet access in developing countries is 
hampered, in part, by a lack of infrastructure and 
a poor regulatory environment for investment. Build- 
once policies and approaches, which seek to coordi-
nate public and private sector investments in roads 
and other critical infrastructure, can reduce the 
number and scale of excavation and construction ac-
tivities when installing telecommunications infra-
structure in rights-of-way, thereby reducing installa-
tion costs for high-speed Internet networks and serv-
ing as a development best practice. 
SEC. 4. EXPANDING INTERNET ACCESS IN DEVELOPING 
COUNTRIES. 
(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 
(1) APPROPRIATE
CONGRESSIONAL
COMMIT-
TEES.—The term ‘‘appropriate congressional com-
mittees’’ means— 
(A) the Committee on Foreign Relations, 
the Committee on Commerce, Science, and
Transportation, and the Committee on Appro-
priations of the Senate; and 
(B) the Committee on Foreign Affairs, the 
Committee on Energy and Commerce, and the 
Committee on Appropriations of the House of 
Representatives. 
(2) 
BROADBAND.—The 
term 
‘‘broadband’’ 
means an Internet Protocol-based transmission serv-
ice that enables users to send and receive voice, 
video, data, graphics, or a combination thereof, 
using technologies including fiber optic, mobile, sat-
ellite, and Wi-Fi. 
(3) BROADBAND CONDUIT.—The term ‘‘broad-
band conduit’’ means a conduit for fiber optic cables 
and other connectivity technologies that support 
broadband or wireless facilities for broadband serv-
ice. 
(4) BUILD-ONCE POLICIES AND APPROACHES.— 
The term ‘‘build-once policies and approaches’’ 
means policies or practices that encourage the inte-
gration of Internet infrastructure into traditional in-
frastructure projects that minimize the number and 
scale of excavation and construction activities when 
installing 
telecommunications 
infrastructure 
in
rights-of-way to reduce costs, such as by laying fiber 
optic cable simultaneously with road construction. 
(5) STAKEHOLDERS.—The term ‘‘stakeholders’’ 
means the private sector, the public sector, coopera-
tives, civil society, the technical community that de-
velops Internet technologies, standards, implementa-
tion, operations, and applications, and other groups 
that are working to increase Internet access or are 
impacted by the lack of Internet access in their com-
munities. 
(b) POLICY.—It is the policy of the United States to 
consult, partner, and coordinate with the governments of 
foreign countries, international organizations, regional 
economic communities, businesses, civil society, and other 
stakeholders in a concerted effort to close the digital gap 
by increasing public and private investments in secure 
Internet infrastructure and creating conditions for uni-
versal Internet access and usage worldwide by pro-
moting— 
(1) first-time access to fixed or mobile broad-
band Internet by 2027 for at least 1,500,000,000 
people living in urban and rural areas in developing 
countries; 
(2) Internet deployment and related coordina-
tion, capacity building, and build-once policies and
approaches in developing countries, including actions 
to encourage— 
(A) standardization of build-once policies 
and approaches for the inclusion of broadband 
conduit in rights-of-way projects that are fund-
ed, co-funded, or partially financed by the 
United States or any international organization 
that includes the United States as a member, in 
consultation with telecommunications providers, 
unless a cost-benefit analysis determines that 
the cost of such approach outweighs the bene-
fits; 
(B) adoption and integration of build-once 
policies and approaches into the development 
and investment strategies of national and local 
government agencies of developing countries 
and donor governments and organizations that 
will enhance coordination with the private sec-
tor for road building, pipe laying, major infra-
structure projects, and development-related con-
struction such as schools, clinics, and civic 
buildings; 
(C) provision of increased financial support 
by 
international 
organizations, 
including 
through grants, loans, technical assistance, and
(C) efforts to improve procurement proc-
esses to help attract and incentivize investment 
in secure Internet infrastructure; 
(4) the removal of tax and regulatory barriers 
to Internet access, as appropriate; 
(5) the use of the Internet to increase economic 
growth and trade, including, as appropriate— 
(A) policies and strategies to remove re-
strictions to e-commerce, cross-border informa-
tion flows, and competitive marketplaces; and 
(B) entrepreneurship and distance learning 
enabled by access to technology; 
(6) the use of the Internet to bolster democ-
racy, government accountability, transparency, gen-
der equity, and human rights, including through the 
establishment of policies, initiatives, and investments 
that— 
(A) support the development of national 
broadband plans or information and commu-
nication technologies strategies that are con-
sistent with fundamental civil and political 
rights, including freedom of expression, religion, 
belief, assembly, and association; 
(B) expand online access to government in-
formation and services to enhance government
accountability and service delivery, including for 
areas in which government may have limited 
presence; and 
(C) support expression of free speech and 
enable political organizing and activism in sup-
port of human rights and democracy through 
activities that expand access to independent 
sources of news and information and safeguard 
human rights and fundamental freedoms online, 
in compliance with international human rights 
standards; 
(7) programs and mechanisms that actively pro-
mote and advance access to and adoption of Internet 
and other information and communications tech-
nologies by women, people with disabilities, minori-
ties, low-income and marginalized groups, and un-
derserved populations, such as programs that ad-
dress social norms and barriers to women’s active 
participation in the digital economy or Internet pol-
icymaking; 
(8) mechanisms for public and private financing 
of rural broadband connectivity and digital inclusion; 
(9) public Internet access facilities and Wi-Fi 
networks in places such as libraries, government 
buildings, community centers, and schools;
(10) the creation and support of research and 
educational networks; 
(11) cybersecurity, data protection, and privacy, 
including international use of the latest version of 
the National Institute of Standards and Technology 
Framework for Improving Critical Infrastructure 
Cybersecurity; and 
(12) interagency coordination and cooperation 
across all executive branch agencies regarding the 
promotion of Internet initiatives as a part of United 
States foreign policy. 
(c) DEPARTMENT
OF STATE.—The Secretary of 
State, in coordination with other agencies, multilateral in-
stitutions, foreign countries, and stakeholders, shall ad-
vance the policy articulated in this Act and promote ex-
panded Internet connectivity worldwide, as appropriate, 
by— 
(1) encouraging foreign countries to prioritize 
secure Internet connectivity in development plans; 
(2) promoting the formation of region-specific 
multi-sector working groups to ensure technical and 
regulatory best practices; and 
(3) encouraging the development of digital lit-
eracy programs in developing countries.
(d) USAID.—The Administrator of the United 
States Agency for International Development (USAID) 
should advance the policy articulated in this Act and sup-
port expanded Internet connectivity worldwide, as appro-
priate, by— 
(1) supporting efforts to expand secure Internet 
infrastructure and improve digital literacy, and other 
appropriate 
measures 
to 
improve 
Internet 
connectivity and usage, in close coordination with 
the Secretary of State; 
(2) encouraging public and private investment 
in Internet infrastructure and services of developing 
countries that takes into consideration the data se-
curity and integrity risks attendant to the products 
and services of vendors likely to be subject to 
extrajudicial direction from a foreign government; 
(3) integrating efforts to expand Internet ac-
cess, develop appropriate, sustainable, and equitable 
technologies, and enhance digital literacy and the 
availability of relevant local content across develop-
ment sectors, such as USAID health, education, ag-
riculture, and economic development programs; 
(4) expanding the utilization of information and 
communications technologies in humanitarian aid 
and disaster relief responses and United States oper-
ations involving reconstruction and stabilization to 
improve donor coordination, reduce duplication and 
waste, capture and share lessons learned, and aug-
ment disaster preparedness and risk mitigation 
strategies; 
(5) establishing and promoting guidelines for 
the protection of personal information of individuals 
served by humanitarian, disaster, and development 
programs directly through the United States Gov-
ernment, and through contracts funded by the 
United States Government and by international or-
ganizations; and 
(6) establishing programs that directly address 
and seek to close gaps in access, adoption, and use 
of the Internet and other information and commu-
nications technologies by women, minorities, and 
other marginalized groups. 
(e) PEACE CORPS.—Section 3 of the Peace Corps Act 
(22 U.S.C. 2502) is amended— 
(1) by redesignating subsection (h) as sub-
section (e); and 
(2) by adding at the end the following: 
‘‘(f) It is the sense of Congress that access to the 
Internet can transform agriculture, community economic 
development, education, environment, health, and youth
development, which are the sectors in which Peace Corps 
develops positions for volunteers. 
‘‘(g) In giving attention to the programs, projects, 
training, and other activities referred to in subsection (f), 
the Peace Corps should develop positions for volunteers 
that include leveraging the Internet, as appropriate, for 
development, education, and social and economic mobil-
ity.’’. 
(f) LEVERAGING
INTERNATIONAL
SUPPORT.—In 
pursuing the policy described in this Act, the President 
should direct United States representatives to appropriate 
international bodies to use the influence of the United 
States, consistent with the broad development goals of the 
United States, to advocate that each such body— 
(1) commit to increase efforts and coordination 
to promote affordable, open, and gender-equitable 
Internet access, in partnership with stakeholders and 
consistent with host countries’ absorptive capacity; 
(2) integrate affordable and gender-equitable 
Internet access data into existing economic and busi-
ness assessments, evaluations, and indexes such as 
the Millennium Challenge Corporation constraints 
analysis, the Doing Business reports, International 
Monetary Fund Article IV assessments and country 
reports, and the Affordability Drivers Index;
(3) standardize the inclusion of broadband con-
duit as part of highway or comparable construction 
projects in developing countries, in consultation with 
telecommunications providers, unless— 
(A) such inclusion would create an undue 
burden; 
(B) such inclusion is not necessary based 
on the availability of existing broadband infra-
structure; 
(C) such inclusion would require the incor-
poration of the hardware, software, or mainte-
nance of vendors likely to be subject to 
extrajudicial direction from a foreign govern-
ment; or 
(D) a cost-benefit analysis determines that 
the cost of such inclusion outweighs the bene-
fits; 
(4) provide technical assistance to the regu-
latory authorities in developing countries to remove 
unnecessary barriers to investment and develop reg-
ulations to support market growth and development; 
(5) utilize clear, accountable, and metric-based 
targets, including targets with gender-disaggregated 
data, to measure the effectiveness of efforts to pro-
mote Internet access; and
(6) promote and protect human rights online, 
such as the freedoms of expression, religion, belief, 
assembly, and association, through resolutions, pub-
lic statements, projects, and initiatives, and advo-
cating that member states of such bodies are held 
accountable for violations. 
(g) REPORTING REQUIREMENT ON IMPLEMENTATION 
EFFORTS.—Not later than 1 year after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, the President shall submit to the 
appropriate congressional committees a report on efforts 
to implement the policy described in this Act and, to the 
extent practicable, describe efforts by the United States 
Government to— 
(1) provide technical and regulatory assistance 
to promote Internet access in developing countries; 
(2) strengthen and support development of reg-
ulations that incentivize market growth that contrib-
utes to increased Internet access in developing coun-
tries; 
(3) encourage public and private investment in 
Internet infrastructure, including broadband net-
works and services, in developing countries; 
(4) increase gender-equitable Internet access 
and close gender gaps in Internet and other infor-
mation and communications technology adoption and
use, especially in countries in which social norms 
limit such adoption and use by women and girls, and 
otherwise encourage or support Internet deployment, 
competition, and adoption; and 
(5) conduct outreach and explore partnership 
opportunities with the private sector on activities 
that advance the policy described in this Act. 
SEC. 5. COST LIMITATION. 
No additional funds are authorized to be appro-
priated to carry out the provisions of this Act. 
SEC. 6. RULE OF CONSTRUCTION. 
Nothing in this Act may be construed to infringe 
upon the related functions of any Executive agency (as 
defined in section 105 of title 5, United States Code) vest-
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 update foreign policy toward the Internet, 
and for other purposes.