Digital Civil and Human Rights Act of 2022

Bill: 117-hr-7449
Sponsor: full_name: Rep. Brown, Anthony G. [D-MD-4]
Introduced: 2022-04-07
Policy area: Government Operations and Politics
Latest action: action_date: 2022-11-01
text: Referred to the Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights, and Civil Liberties.

Summaries:
action_date: 2022-04-07
action_desc: Introduced in House
text: <p><strong>Digital Civil and Human Rights Act of 2022</strong></p> <p>This bill establishes prohibitions on the use of automated systems in a discriminatory manner.</p> <p>Specifically, the bill prohibits (1) a federal agency, U.S. court, or state, local, or tribal government from using any automated decision system that has a disparate impact on the basis of race, national origin, color, religion, disability, or sex; or (2) the use of automated systems with bias by the Department of Defense. Each federal agency must maintain on its public website a bias data sheet for each automated decision system used by such agency with the potential for a disparate impact on such bases.</p> <p>The bill prohibits a respondent, in connection with the selection or referral of applicants or candidates for employment or promotion, from using any automated decision system that has a disparate impact on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, or national origin.</p> <p>The bill prohibits places of public accommodation from using in their operations that affect commerce any decision system that has a disparate impact on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, or national origin.</p> <p>The bill requires (1) the Office of the Director of National Intelligence to submit to Congress a report on the use within the intelligence community of automated decision systems with an adverse distinction based on race, religion, sex, health, age, or any other similar criteria; and (2) the National Institute of Standards and Technology to develop, publish, and maintain standards for reporting bias in an automated decision system.</p>

tv_txt: I 117th CONGRESS 2d Session H. R. 7449 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES April 7, 2022 Mr. Brown of Maryland (for himself and Ms. Schakowsky ) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Oversight and Reform , and in addition to the Committees on Education and Labor , Armed Services , Science, Space, and Technology , Intelligence (Permanent Select) , and the Judiciary , for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned A BILL To establish prohibitions on the use of automated systems in a discriminatory manner, and for other purposes.

1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Digital Civil and Human Rights Act of 2022 . 2. Prohibition of discriminatory use of automated systems (a) In general No Federal agency, court of the United States, State government, local government, or tribal government may use any automated decision system that has a disparate impact on the basis of race, national origin, color, religion, disability, or sex. (b) Publicly available repository The head of each Federal agency shall maintain a site on the public website of the Federal agency that contains a bias datasheet for each automated decision system used by such Federal agency with the potential for a disparate impact on the bases established under subsection (a). (c) Definition In this section the term bias datasheet means a datasheet conforming to the standard published pursuant to section 22B of the National Institute of Standards and Technology Act. (d) Prohibition against discrimination or segregation in places of public accommodation Section 201 of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 ( 42 U.S.C. 2000a ) is amended by adding at the end the following: (f) It shall be an unlawful practice for a place of public accommodation to use in its operations affecting commerce any automated decision system (as such term is defined in section 701) that has a disparate impact on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, or national origin. . (e) Unlawful employment practices Section 703 of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 ( 42 U.S.C. 2000e–2 ) is amended by adding at the end the following: (o) It shall be an unlawful employment practice for a respondent, in connection with the selection or referral of applicants or candidates for employment or promotion, to use any automated decision system that has a disparate impact on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, or national origin. . (f) Definitions in Civil Rights Act of 1964 Section 701 of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 ( 42 U.S.C. 2000e–2 ) is amended by adding at the end the following: (o) The term automated decision system means any system, software, or process (including one derived from machine learning, statistics, or other data processing or artificial intelligence techniques and excluding passive computing infrastructure) that uses computation, the result of which serves as a basis for a decision or judgment. (p) The term court of the United States has the meaning given such term in section 451 of title 28, United States Code. . (g) rulemaking Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act, the head of each Federal agency, in coordination with the Director of the Office of Management and Budget, shall make rules to carry out this section and the amendments made by this section. 3. Prohibition of bias in use of automated systems by the department of defense (a) In general Chapter 3 of title 10, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following new section: 130l. Prohibition of use of automated systems with bias (a) In general None of the funds authorized to be appropriated or otherwise made available for any fiscal year for the Department of Defense may be used for the use of any automated decision system with any adverse distinction based on race, religion, sex, health, age, or any other similar criteria. (b) Publicly available repository Not later than one year after the effective date of this section, the Secretary of Defense shall maintain a site on the public website of the Department of Defense that contains a bias datasheet for each automated decision system used by the Department of Defense with the potential for an adverse distinction on the bases established under subsection (a). (c) Definitions In this section: (1) The term automated decision system has the meaning given such term in section 701 of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. (2) The term adverse distinction has the meaning given such term through the application of the Geneva Conventions and customary international law. (3) The term bias datasheet means a datasheet conforming to the standard published pursuant to section 22B of the National Institute of Standards and Technology Act and includes an addendum related to international law. . (b) Report required (1) In general Not later than 1 year after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Defense, in coordination with the Secretary of State, shall submit to the appropriate congressional committees a report on the implementation of the amendments made by this section. (2) Elements The report required by subsection (b) shall include the following: (A) An accounting of regulations prescribed, revised, or withdrawn in the implementation of the prohibition created under subsection (a). (B) An identification and assessment of any automated decision systems used by the Department of Defense prior to the enactment of this Act which had an adverse distinction based on race, religion, sex, health, age, or any other similar criteria. (C) Recommendations for actions to affirm the same prohibition for all parties to the Geneva Conventions. (3) Form The report under paragraph (1) shall be submitted in unclassified form, but may contain a classified annex. The unclassified portion of the report shall be posted on a publicly available website of the Department of Defense. (c) Definition In this section the term appropriate congressional committees means— (1) the congressional defense committees; (2) the Committee on Foreign Relations and the Select Committee on Intelligence of the Senate; and (3) the Committee on Foreign Affairs and the Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence of the House of Representatives. (d) Clerical amendment The table of sections at the beginning of such chapter is amended by inserting after the item relating to section 130k the following new item: 130l. Prohibition of use of automated systems with bias. . (e) Effective date The amendments made by this section shall take effect on the date that is one year after the date of the enactment of this Act. 4. Report on intelligence community use of automated decision systems with bias (a) In general Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Director of National Intelligence shall submit to the appropriate congressional committees a report on the use within the intelligence community of automated decision systems with an adverse distinction based on race, religion, sex, health, age, or any other similar criteria. (b) Elements The report required by subsection (a) shall include the following: (1) An accounting of the automated decision systems used by the intelligence community, excluding cyberspace operations, with the potential for an adverse distinction based on race, religion, sex, health, age, or any other similar criteria. (2) An assessment of any adverse distinctions based on race, religion, sex, health, age, or any other similar criteria. (3) An assessment of the impact of a prohibition within the intelligence community on automated decision systems with an adverse distinction based on race, religion, sex, health, age, or any other similar criteria. (4) An assessment of the programs and funding required to replace within the intelligence community any automated decision systems with an adverse distinction based on race, religion, sex, health, age, or any other similar criteria. (c) Form The report under subsection (a) may be submitted in classified form, but if so submitted shall include an unclassified executive summary. The unclassified portion of the report shall be posted on a publicly available website of the Office of the Director of National Intelligence. (d) Definition In this section: (1) The term appropriate congressional committees means— (A) the congressional defense committees; (B) the Committee on Foreign Relations and the Select Committee on Intelligence of the Senate; and (C) the Committee on Foreign Affairs and the Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence of the House of Representatives. (2) The term intelligence community has the meaning given such term in section 3003(4) of title 50, United States Code. (3) The term automated decision system has the meaning given such term in section 701 of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. (4) The term adverse distinction has the meaning given such term through the application of the Geneva Conventions and customary international law. 5. Establishment of datasheet standards on automated decision system bias (a) In general The National Institute of Standards and Technology Act ( 15 U.S.C. 271 et seq. ) is amended by inserting after section 22A the following new section: 22B. Automated decision system bias datasheets (a) In general The Director of the Institute, in consultation with such researchers, private sector industry experts, legal experts, and civil rights experts as the Director considers appropriate, shall develop, publish, and maintain standards for reporting bias in an automated decision system. (b) Elements The standards described in subsection (a) shall require the following: (1) An assessment of bias on the basis of race, national origin, color, religion, disability, sex, sexual orientation, or gender identity. (2) The source, size, and characteristics of any dataset used as the basis for the automated decision system. (3) The content is accessible and machine readable in accordance with the 21st Century Integrated Digital Experience Act ( 44 U.S.C. 3501 note). (4) Any other requirements as determined by the Director. (c) Definitions In this section the term automated decision system has the meaning given such term in section 701 of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. . (b) Deadline for implementation Not later than 18 months after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Director shall initially publish the standards required under subsection (a).