I 
115TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 2397 
To amend the North Korean Human Rights Act of 2004 to authorize further 
actions to promote freedom of information and democracy in North 
Korea, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
MAY 4, 2017 
Mr. YOHO (for himself, Mr. ROYCE of California, Mr. ENGEL, and Mr. SHER-
MAN) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee 
on Foreign Affairs 
A BILL 
To amend the North Korean Human Rights Act of 2004 
to authorize further actions to promote freedom of infor-
mation and democracy in North Korea, 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 ‘‘Distribution and Pro-
motion of Rights and Knowledge Act of 2017’’ or the 
‘‘DPRK Act of 2017’’. 
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SEC. 2. ACTIONS TO PROMOTE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION 
AND DEMOCRACY IN NORTH KOREA. 
The North Korean Human Rights Act of 2004 is 
amended— 
(1) in subsection (a) of section 103 (22 U.S.C. 
7813)— 
(A) by striking ‘‘radio broadcasting’’ and 
inserting ‘‘broadcasting, including news re-
broadcasting,’’; and 
(B) by striking ‘‘increase broadcasts’’ and 
inserting ‘‘increase such broadcasts, including 
news rebroadcasts,’’; and 
(2) in subsection (a) of section 104 (22 U.S.C. 
7814)— 
(A) by striking ‘‘The President’’ and in-
serting the following: 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The President’’; 
(B) by inserting ‘‘, USB drives, micro SD 
cards, audio players, video players, cell phones, 
wi-fi, wireless internet, webpages, internet, wire-
less telecommunications, and other electronic 
media that shares information’’ before the pe-
riod at the end; and 
(C) by adding at the end the following new 
paragraphs: 
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‘‘(2) DISTRIBUTION.—In accordance with the 
sense of Congress described in section 103, the 
President, acting through the Secretary of State, is 
authorized to distribute or provide grants to dis-
tribute information receiving devices, electronically 
readable devices, and other informational sources 
into North Korea, including devices and informa-
tional sources specified in paragraph (1). To carry 
out this paragraph, the President is authorized to 
issue directions to facilitate the free-flow of informa-
tion into North Korea. 
‘‘(3) RESEARCH
AND
DEVELOPMENT
GRANT 
PROGRAM.—In accordance with the authorization de-
scribed in paragraphs (1) and (2) to increase the 
availability and distribution of sources of informa-
tion inside North Korea, the President, acting 
through the Secretary of State, is authorized to es-
tablish a grant program to make grants to eligible 
entities to develop or distribute (or both) new prod-
ucts or methods to allow North Koreans easier ac-
cess to outside information. Such program may in-
volve public-private partnerships. 
‘‘(4) CULTURE.—In accordance with the sense 
of Congress described in section 103, the Broad-
casting Board of Governors may broadcast Amer-
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ican, Korean, Chinese, and other popular music, tel-
evision, movies, and popular cultural references as 
part of its programming. 
‘‘(5) RIGHTS AND LAWS.—In accordance with 
the sense of Congress described in section 103, the 
Broadcasting Board of Governors shall broadcast to 
North Korea in the Korean language information on 
rights, laws, and freedoms afforded through the 
North Korean Constitution, the Universal Declara-
tion of Human Rights, the United Nations Commis-
sion of Inquiry on Human Rights in the Democratic 
People’s Republic of Korea, and any other applicable 
treaties or international agreements to which North 
Korea is bound. 
‘‘(6) 
BROADCASTING
REPORT.—Not 
later 
than— 
‘‘(A) 180 days after the date of the enact-
ment of this paragraph, the Secretary of State, 
in consultation with the Broadcasting Board of 
Governors, shall submit to the appropriate con-
gressional committees a report that sets forth a 
detailed plan for improving broadcasting con-
tent for the purpose of targeting new audiences 
and increasing listenership; and 
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‘‘(B) one year after the date of the enact-
ment of this paragraph and annually thereafter 
for each of the next five years, the Secretary of 
State, in consultation with the Broadcasting 
Board of Governors, shall submit to the appro-
priate congressional committees a report on the 
effectiveness of actions taken pursuant to this 
section, including data reflecting audience and 
listenership, device distribution and usage, tech-
nological development and advancement usage, 
and other appropriate information to fully in-
form Congress.’’. 
Æ 
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