Civil society organizations (CSOs), which are often viewed as an important component of sustainable democracy, are confronting growing limitations on their ability to operate around the world. This phenomenon is referred to by researchers and advocates as "closing space" for civil society work. Many experts assess that the closing space trend is likely to continue, which could also impact broader U.S. engagement on democracy promotion or the freedoms of assembly, association, and expression and, in some cases, even conflict with U.S. efforts to promote, development, and security. Congress has taken action to support civil society through a range of activities, including legislation, and may choose to further consider legislation, oversight activities—such as reporting, hearings, or direct engagement—and U.S. funding to respond to growing limitations on civil society around the world. From restrictions on the types of funding they are allowed to receive to draconian registration requirements, the measures targeting nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) and civil society groups are putting ever greater pressure on the entire civil society sector. The restrictions are most commonly imposed by governments seeking to limit the influence of nongovernmental actors. While the problem may be most acute and visible under the repressive regimes in Russia and China, restrictions are also being imposed by a broad range of governments, to include democratic allies such as India and major U.S. foreign assistance recipients such as Egypt. The United States has long supported civil society abroad, though the implications of this support sometimes vary in practice. It is the largest financial supporter of civil society in the world, according to a recent White House fact sheet, with more than $3.2 billion invested to strengthen civil society since 2010 through training, technical assistance, and direct funding for programs. Civil society groups are also in many cases the implementers of U.S. foreign assistance programs managed by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and groups such as the National Endowment for Democracy, among others. In the face of the rapid geographic and substantive expansion of measures designed to close civil society space, the Obama Administration launched the Stand with Civil Society initiative in 2013 to bolster U.S. support for civil society abroad. The effort saw Presidential attention through speeches and a Presidential Memorandum. While advocates generally praise the Administration for raising the profile of the closing space issue, there is less consensus on whether the Administration's actions have fully matched its rhetoric, or on whether the policies and structures put into place under the initiative are sustainable. This report provides an overview of the "closing space" challenge, including its origins and current manifestations; outlines current Administration programs and initiatives aimed at addressing the problem; and discusses some areas of potential engagement that Congress may choose to further consider. Support for democratic governance abroad has long featured as an element of U.S. foreign policy and has often received significant backing in Congress, although its prominence has varied over time and in specific circumstances. Advocates within and outside of government have argued that the role of civil society is fundamental in a democratic system; according to one expert, A vigorous civil society helps to ensure that governments serve their people. Joining together in civic groups amplifies isolated voices and leverages their ability to influence governments—to ensure that they build schools, secure access to health care, protect the environment, and take countless other steps to pursue a popular vision of the common good. Moreover, civil society can also play an important role in global economic growth and development. According to the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of peaceful assembly and of association, civil society space often reflects a positive business environment: The Special Rapporteur has found that the presence of a robust, vocal and critical civil society sector guarantees, almost without exception, that a State also possesses a good business environment (the converse does not hold: a good business environment does not guarantee a good civil society environment). The rule of law is stronger, transparency is greater and markets are less tainted by corruption. Indeed, the presence of a critical civil society can be viewed as a barometer of a State's confidence and stability—important factors for businesses looking to invest their money. Congress at times has treated the promotion of vibrant civil societies abroad as a key element of U.S. foreign policy. A December 2006 Senate Foreign Relations Committee staff report declared that "support for democratic, grassroots organizations has become a centerpiece of America's international outreach." Restrictions on civil society not only impact the health of democracies abroad (and U.S. efforts to support them); they also resonate because of their potentially direct impacts on more immediate U.S. interests in crisis situations, as spelled out in an April 2015 report by the Center for Strategic and International Studies: if Liberia or Guinea had adopted laws that made it difficult or impossible for NGOs to function or receive funding from foreign sources, how would these countries have coped with the Ebola virus? If Kenya adopts such laws, how will the country respond to another famine, and what will the next national election cycle there look like if the hundreds of organizations that helped create citizen demand for a nonviolent election in 2013 no longer exist? Crackdowns on civil society groups abroad may also directly impact U.S. government-funded organizations (as in the July 2015 Russia ban on National Endowment for Democracy operations within its borders). In some cases, they can ensnare U.S. citizens who are affiliated with those organizations (for instance, when the Egyptian government cracked down on NGOs in 2011-2012, causing several U.S. citizens working with the National Democratic Institute and International Republican Institute to take shelter at the U.S. Embassy in Cairo; 16 Americans were among 43 workers later convicted in absentia of receiving foreign funding). A senior Amnesty International official lamented the increasing restrictions on civil society work globally in a 2015 news article: There are new pieces of legislation almost every week—on foreign funding, restrictions in registration or association, anti-protest laws, gagging laws. And, unquestionably, this is going to intensify in the coming two to three years. You can visibly watch the space shrinking. Groups tracking the increasingly restrictive environment for nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) have catalogued the problem using a number of different metrics: CIVICUS, an international association of civil society groups, counted "significant attacks on the fundamental civil society rights of free association, free assembly and free expression in 96 countries" in 2014. Freedom House, an NGO focused on expanding democracy and freedom, noted the decline in space for civil society in its 2015 Freedom in the World report, saying, " ... whereas the most successful authoritarian regimes previously tolerated a modest opposition press, some civil society activity, and a comparatively vibrant internet environment, they are now reducing or closing these remaining spaces for dissent and debate. " The International Center for Not-for-Profit Law (ICNL) has pointed out that between January 2012 and August 2014, some 50 countries introduced or enacted laws designed to restrict the activity of civil society organizations or curtail funding for their work. ICNL also asserts that more than 120 laws constraining the freedoms of association or assembly have been proposed or enacted in 60 countries since 2012. Of these measures, those designed to restrict foreign funding to support the work of civil society groups have seen the fastest growth. Such restrictions may include requirements for prior government approval for the use of government-controlled bank accounts, laws demanding "foreign agent" disclosures, or caps on allowable foreign funding. The U.S. Agency for International Development produces a Civil Society Sustainability Index (CSOSI) for several regions of the world, tracking developments in this space on an annual basis. For example, the Agency's 2014 report on Africa found that " ... in many countries in the region, CSOs—particularly those focused on advocacy and human rights — are facing increasing restrictions or threats of restrictions on their work. " In many cases, the restrictions have targeted U.S.-funded organizations; for example, in July 2015, Russia banned the National Endowment for Democracy (NED) from operating within its borders. The NED thus became the first group to be subjected to a May 2015 law against "undesirable" NGOs. The law, which increased Russian authorities' ability to shutter such groups without a court order, followed Russian President Vladimir Putin's assertion to security officials in March that western intelligence agencies use NGOs to "discredit the authorities and destabilize the internal situation in Russia." The impact goes beyond U.S. interests; other international donors, including governments, charities, churches, and private philanthropic groups and foundations also are affected. Nor is Russia alone in taking such actions; the Hungarian government, for example, has targeted NGOs that distributed funding from the Norwegian government, accusing them of serving foreign powers seeking to influence Hungarian internal politics. Measures targeting foreign funding are potentially especially damaging, experts at the Carnegie Endowment suggest: Although such support is rarely, if ever, a determinative factor in the political life of recipient countries, it often does have tangible effects on the institutions and processes that it reaches. This is especially true in the civil society domain, where external funding can be a lifeline for groups working on sensitive topics for which domestic funding is scarce, such as human rights advocacy, anticorruption work, or election monitoring. Limiting these organizations' access to external support weakens their capacity for action and often threatens their very existence. In addition, while crackdowns in authoritarian countries such as Russia or China appear to garner the lion's share of Western media attention, experts suggest that repressive measures are being taken against civil society around the world in a variety of political systems and across cultural and economic lines.