Big Tech Accountability for Broadband Act
Bill: H.R.4905 | Sponsor: Rep. Bergman, Jack (R-MI)
Policy area: Science, Technology, Communications

Summary:
Big Tech Accountability for Broadband Act
This bill requires the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to promulgate regulations requiring covered businesses to contribute to the federal universal service support mechanism.
A  covered business is a business offering an online platform (e.g., a social media platform) that has (1) more than 30 million U.S. users or 300 million worldwide users, and (2) more than $10 billion in global revenue. The federal universal service support mechanism collects money from telecommunications companies and uses it to expand broadband access and infrastructure, especially in unserved and underserved areas.
In promulgating such regulations, the FCC must consider including a mechanism that prohibits a telecommunications carrier from requiring a customer to pay charges related to universal service support contributions if the customer is considered unserved or underserved with respect to broadband internet access.

To direct the Federal Communications Commission to promulgate 
regulations to collect regulatory fees from large technology platforms.

    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 ``Big Tech Accountability for 
Broadband Act''.

SEC. 2. COLLECTION OF REGULATORY FEES FROM LARGE TECHNOLOGY PLATFORMS.

    (a) Regulations.--
            (1) In general.--Not later than 180 days after the date of 
        the enactment of this Act, the Commission shall, 
        notwithstanding subsection (d) of section 254 of the 
        Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 254), promulgate 
        regulations to require covered businesses to contribute to the 
        Federal universal service support mechanism under such section.
            (2) Fee structure.--Such regulations shall include a fee 
        structure to be assessed on covered businesses.
    (b) Considerations.--In promulgating regulations under subsection 
(a), the Commission shall consider including in such regulations a 
mechanism to prohibit a telecommunications carrier from levying on a 
customer of such carrier charges relating to the required contributions 
of such carriers to Federal universal service support mechanism under 
section 254(d) of the Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 254), if 
such customer is considered by the Commission to be unserved or 
underserved with respect to broadband internet access service.
    (c) Definitions.--In this Act:
            (1) Broadband internet access service.--The term 
        ``broadband internet access service'' has the meaning of that 
        term under section 8.1(b) of title 47, Code of Federal 
        Regulations.
            (2) Commission.--The term ``Commission'' means the Federal 
        Communications Commission.
            (3) Covered business.--The term ``covered business''--
                    (A) means a business offering an online platform 
                which--
                            (i) in any month during the most recently 
                        completed 12-month period--
                                    (I) more than 30,000,000 users in 
                                the United States accessed, without 
                                regard to the means by which the users 
                                accessed the service; or
                                    (II) more than 300,000,000 users 
                                worldwide accessed, without regard to 
                                the means by which the users accessed 
                                the service; and
                            (ii) during the most recently completed 
                        taxable year, had more than $10,000,000,000 in 
                        global revenue; and
                    (B) does not include an organization described in 
                section 501(c) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 
                that is exempt from taxation under section 501(a) of 
                such Code.
            (4) Online platform.--The term ``online platform'' means a 
        website, online or mobile application, mobile operating system, 
        digital assistant, or online service that is designed primarily 
        to--
                    (A) enable a user to generate content that can be 
                viewed by other users on the platform or to interact 
                with other content on the platform;
                    (B) facilitate the offering, sale, purchase, 
                payment, or shipping of products or services, including 
                software applications, between and among consumers or 
                businesses not controlled by the platform operator; or
                    (C) enable user searches or queries that access or 
                display a large volume of information.
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