Safeguarding Internet Freedom in Hong Kong Act of 2021
Bill: S.860 | Sponsor: Sen. Lankford, James (R-OK)
Policy area: International Affairs

Summary:
Safeguarding Internet Freedom in Hong Kong Act of 2021
This bill authorizes and establishes programs to promote internet freedom in Hong Kong and contains other related provisions.
The Department of State may establish an interagency working group to develop a strategy to bolster internet resiliency and access in Hong Kong. The State Department shall also establish within the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor a Hong Kong internet freedom program. (The bureau has existing programs to promote internet freedom globally through technology development, digital safety, policy advocacy, and research.)
The Open Technology Fund may establish a Hong Kong internet freedom program. (The fund, an independent nonprofit organization that receives U.S. government funding, was originally a part of Radio Free Asia.)
The bureau and the fund may award grants to qualifying private organizations to promote technology and tools in Hong Kong that promote online information access, enhance digital security, and circumvent internet blocking and other online censorship.
The State Department shall report to Congress a classified strategy to (1) increase the availability of firewall circumvention technology in Hong Kong; and (2) support the preservation of an open, interoperable, reliable, and secure internet in Hong Kong.

To develop and deploy firewall circumvention tools for the people of 
 Hong Kong after the People's Republic of China violated its agreement 
          under the Joint Declaration, and for other purposes.

    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 ``Safeguarding Internet Freedom in 
Hong Kong Act of 2021''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress makes the following findings:
            (1) The People's Republic of China has repeatedly violated 
        its obligations under the Joint Declaration by suppressing the 
        basic rights and freedoms of Hongkongers.
            (2) On June 30, 2020 the National People's Congress passed 
        a ``National Security Law'' that further erodes Hong Kong's 
        autonomy and enables authorities to suppress dissent.
            (3) The Government of the People's Republic of China 
        continues to utilize the National Security Law to undermine the 
        fundamental rights of the Hong Kong people through suppression 
        of the freedom of speech, assembly, religion, and the press.
            (4) Article 9 of the National Security Law authorizes 
        unprecedented regulation and supervision of internet activity 
        in Hong Kong, including expanded police powers to force 
        internet service providers to censor content, hand over user 
        information, and block access to platforms.
            (5) On January 13, 2021, the Hong Kong Broadband Network 
        blocked public access to HKChronicles, a website promoting pro-
        democracy viewpoints, under the authorities of the National 
        Security Law.
            (6) On January 28, 2021, the Hong Kong Internet 
        Registration Corporation Limited enacted a revised ``acceptable 
        use'' policy that enables authorities to require the rejection 
        of website registration requests that may ``incite `illegal 
        acts'''.
            (7) On February 4, 2021, Carrie Lam expressed support for 
        implementing additional laws to increase internet censorship.
            (8) On February 12, 2021, internet service providers 
        blocked access to the Taiwan Transitional Justice Commission 
        website in Hong Kong.
            (9) Major tech companies including Facebook, Twitter, 
        WhatsApp and Google have stopped reviewing requests for user 
        data from Hong Kong authorities.
            (10) On February 28, 2021, 47 pro-democracy activists in 
        Hong Kong were arrested charged under the National Security Law 
        on the charge of ``conspiracy to commit subversion''.

SEC. 3. SENSE OF CONGRESS.

    It is the sense of Congress that the United States should--
            (1) support the ability of the people of Hong Kong to 
        maintain their freedom to access information online; and
            (2) focus on investments in technologies that facilitate 
        the unhindered exchange of information in Hong Kong in advance 
        of any future efforts by the Chinese Communist Party--
                    (A) to suppress internet access;
                    (B) to increase online censorship; or
                    (C) to inhibit online communication and content-
                sharing by the people of Hong Kong.

SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) Appropriate congressional committees.--The term 
        ``appropriate congressional committees'' means--
                    (A) the Committee on Foreign Relations of the 
                Senate;
                    (B) the Committee on Appropriations of the Senate;
                    (C) the Select Committee on Intelligence of the 
                Senate;
                    (D) the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House 
                of Representatives;
                    (E) the Committee on Appropriations of the House of 
                Representatives; and
                    (F) the Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence 
                of the House of Representatives.
            (2) Interagency working group.--The term ``interagency 
        working group'' means--
                    (A) the Under Secretary of State for Civilian 
                Security, Democracy, and Human Rights;
                    (B) the Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian 
                and Pacific Affairs;
                    (C) the Chief Executive Officer of the Open 
                Technology Fund; and
                    (D) the Administrator of the United States Agency 
                for International Development.
            (3) Joint declaration.--The term ``Joint Declaration'' 
        means the Joint Declaration of the Government of the United 
        Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland and the 
        Government of the People's Republic of China on the Question of 
        Hong Kong, done at Beijing on December 19, 1984.

SEC. 5. HONG KONG INTERNET FREEDOM PROGRAM.

    (a) In General.--The Secretary of State is authorized to establish 
an interagency working group to develop a strategy to bolster internet 
resiliency and online access in Hong Kong. The Secretary shall 
establish a Hong Kong Internet Freedom Program in the Bureau of 
Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor at the Department of State. 
Additionally, the Chief Executive Officer of the Open Technology Fund 
is authorized to establish a Hong Kong Internet Freedom Program. These 
programs shall operate independently, but in strategic coordination 
with other entities in the interagency working group.
    (b) Independence.--During the period beginning on the date of the 
enactment of this Act and ending on September 30, 2023, the Program 
shall be carried out independent from the mainland China internet 
freedom portfolios in order to focus on supporting liberties presently 
enjoyed by the people of Hong Kong.
    (c) Consolidation of Department of State Program.--Beginning on 
October 1, 2023, the Secretary of State may--
            (1) consolidate the Program with the mainland China 
        initiatives in the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and 
        Labor; or
            (2) continue to carry out the Program in accordance with 
        subsection (b).
    (d) Consolidation of Open Technology Fund Program.--Beginning on 
October 1, 2023, the CEO of the Open Technology Fund may--
            (1) consolidate the Program with the mainland China 
        initiatives in the Open Technology Fund; or
            (2) continue to carry out the Program in accordance with 
        subsection (b).

SEC. 6. SUPPORT FOR INFORMATION PROGRAMS.

    (a) Grants Authorized.--
            (1) In general.--The Secretary of State, working through 
        the Open Technology Fund and the Bureau of Democracy, Human 
        Rights, and Labor, is authorized to award grants to private 
        organizations to support and develop programs in Hong Kong that 
        promote or expand--
                    (A) online information access;
                    (B) freedom of the press;
                    (C) disruptive technologies that bypass internet 
                blocking, filtering, and other censorship techniques;
                    (D) virtual private networks;
                    (E) firewall circumvention tools;
                    (F) distributed denial of service mitigation 
                techniques;
                    (G) digital security capacity building for internet 
                users; or
                    (H) digital resiliency for international 
                organizations, pro-democracy activists, and other civil 
                society actors in Hong Kong, including emergency 
                support.
            (2) Goals.--The goals of the programs developed with grants 
        authorized under paragraph (1) should be--
                    (A) to make the technologies described in paragraph 
                (1) available in Hong Kong;
                    (B) to increase the number of the tools in the 
                circumvention technology portfolio;
                    (C) to promote the availability of such 
                technologies and tools in Hong Kong;
                    (D) to encourage the adoption of such technologies 
                and tools by the people of Hong Kong;
                    (E) to scale up the distribution of such 
                technologies and tools throughout Hong Kong;
                    (F) to prioritize the development of tools, 
                components, code, and technologies that are fully open 
                source, to the extent practicable;
                    (G) to conduct research on repressive tactics that 
                undermine internet freedom in Hong Kong; and
                    (H) to engage American private industry, including 
                e-commerce firms and social networking companies, on 
                the importance of preserving internet access in Hong 
                Kong.
            (3) Grant recipients.--Grants authorized under this 
        subsection shall be distributed to multiple vendors and 
        suppliers through an open, fair, competitive, and evidence-
        based decision process--
                    (A) to diversify the technical base; and
                    (B) to reduce the risk of mitigation by bad actors.
            (4) Security audits.--New technologies developed using 
        grants from this subsection shall undergo comprehensive 
        security audits to ensure that such technologies are secure and 
        have not been compromised in a manner detrimental to the 
        interests of the United States or to individuals or 
        organizations benefitting from programs supported by the Open 
        Technology Fund.
    (b) Funding Source.--The Secretary of State is authorized to expend 
funds from the Human Rights and Democracy Fund of the Bureau of 
Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor of the Department of State during 
fiscal year 2020 for grants authorized under subsection (a) at any 
entity in the interagency working group.
    (c) Authorization of Appropriations.--
            (1) Open technology fund.--In addition to the funds 
        authorized to be expended pursuant to subsection (b), there are 
        authorized to be appropriated to the Open Technology Fund 
        $5,000,000 for each of the fiscal years 2021 through 2023 to 
        carry out this section.
            (2) Bureau of democracy, human rights, and labor.--In 
        addition to the funds authorized to be expended pursuant to 
        subsection (b), there are authorized to be appropriated to the 
        Office of Internet Freedom Programs in the Bureau of Democracy, 
        Human Rights, and Labor of the Department of State $10,000,000 
        for each of the fiscal years 2021 through 2023 to carry out 
        this section.
            (3) Availability.--Amounts appropriated pursuant to 
        paragraphs (1) and (2) shall remain available until expended.

SEC. 7. STRATEGIC PLANNING REPORT.

    Not later than 120 days after the date of the enactment of this 
Act, the Secretary of State and the interagency working group shall 
submit a classified report to the appropriate congressional committees 
that--
            (1) describes the Federal Government's plan to bolster and 
        increase the availability of firewall circumvention technology 
        in Hong Kong during fiscal year 2021, including--
                    (A) secure private messaging tools;
                    (B) secure file storage and sharing platforms;
                    (C) virtual private networks;
                    (D) satellite internet;
                    (E) proxies;
                    (F) refraction routing;
                    (G) pluggable transports; and
                    (H) other secure communication mechanisms and anti-
                censorship technologies;
            (2) outlines a plan for--
                    (A) supporting the preservation of an open, 
                interoperable, reliable, and secure internet in Hong 
                Kong;
                    (B) increasing the supply of the technology 
                referred to in paragraph (1);
                    (C) accelerating the dissemination of such 
                technology;
                    (D) promoting the availability of such technology 
                in Hong Kong;
                    (E) utilizing presently available tools in the 
                mainland China portfolio for further use in the unique 
                context of Hong Kong;
                    (F) expanding the portfolio of tools in order to 
                diversify and strengthen the effectiveness and 
                resiliency of the circumvention efforts; and
                    (G) providing training for high-risk groups and 
                individuals in Hong Kong;
            (3) includes a detailed description of the technical and 
        fiscal steps necessary to implement the plans referred to in 
        paragraphs (1) and (2), including an analysis of the market 
        conditions in Hong Kong;
            (4) describes the Federal Government's plans for awarding 
        grants to private organizations for the purposes described in 
        section 6(a)(1);
            (5) outlines the interagency working group's consultations 
        regarding the implementation of this Act to ensure that all 
        Federal efforts are aligned and well coordinated; and
            (6) outlines the Department of State's strategy to 
        influence global internet legal standards at international 
        organizations and multilateral fora.
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