DIGIT Act

IC 116TH CONGRESS 2D SESSION S. 1611 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES JANUARY 9, 2020 Referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce AN ACT To ensure appropriate prioritization, spectrum planning, and interagency coordination to support the Internet of Things. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:08 Jan 10, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1611.RFH S1611 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 2 S 1611 RFH SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 1 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Developing Innovation 2 and Growing the Internet of Things Act’’ or the ‘‘DIGIT 3 Act’’. 4 SEC. 2. FINDINGS; SENSE OF CONGRESS. 5 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds that— 6 (1) the Internet of Things refers to the growing 7 number of connected and interconnected devices; 8 (2) estimates indicate that more than 9 125,000,000,000 devices will be connected to the 10 internet by 2030; 11 (3) the Internet of Things has the potential to 12 generate trillions of dollars in new economic activity 13 around the world in the transportation, energy, agri- 14 culture, manufacturing, and health care sectors and 15 in other sectors that are critical to the growth of the 16 gross domestic product of the United States; 17 (4) businesses across the United States can de- 18 velop new services and products, improve the effi- 19 ciency of operations and logistics, cut costs, improve 20 worker and public safety, and pass savings on to 21 consumers by utilizing the Internet of Things and 22 related innovations; 23 (5) the Internet of Things will— 24 (A) be vital in furthering innovation and 25 the development of emerging technologies; and 26 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:08 Jan 10, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1611.RFH S1611 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 3 S 1611 RFH (B) play a key role in developing artificial 1 intelligence and advanced computing capabili- 2 ties; 3 (6) the United States leads the world in the de- 4 velopment of technologies that support the internet, 5 the United States technology sector is well-posi- 6 tioned to lead in the development of technologies for 7 the Internet of Things, and the appropriate 8 prioritization of a national strategy with respect to 9 the Internet of Things would strengthen that posi- 10 tion; 11 (7) the Federal Government can implement this 12 technology to better deliver services to the public; 13 and 14 (8) the Senate unanimously passed Senate Res- 15 olution 110, 114th Congress, agreed to March 24, 16 2015, calling for a national strategy for the develop- 17 ment of the Internet of Things. 18 (b) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con- 19 gress that policies governing the Internet of Things 20 should— 21 (1) promote solutions with respect to the Inter- 22 net of Things that are secure, scalable, interoper- 23 able, industry-driven, and standards-based; and 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:08 Jan 10, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1611.RFH S1611 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 4 S 1611 RFH (2) maximize the development and deployment 1 of the Internet of Things to benefit all stakeholders, 2 including businesses, governments, and consumers. 3 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 4 In this Act: 5 (1) COMMISSION.—The term ‘‘Commission’’ 6 means the Federal Communications Commission. 7 (2) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 8 the Secretary of Commerce. 9 (3) STEERING COMMITTEE.—The term ‘‘steer- 10 ing committee’’ means the steering committee estab- 11 lished under section 4(e)(1). 12 (4) WORKING GROUP.—The term ‘‘working 13 group’’ means the working group convened under 14 section 4(a). 15 SEC. 4. FEDERAL WORKING GROUP. 16 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary shall convene a 17 working group of Federal stakeholders for the purpose of 18 providing recommendations and a report to Congress re- 19 lating to the aspects of the Internet of Things described 20 in subsection (b). 21 (b) DUTIES.—The working group shall— 22 (1) identify any Federal regulations, statutes, 23 grant practices, budgetary or jurisdictional chal- 24 lenges, and other sector-specific policies that are in- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:08 Jan 10, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1611.RFH S1611 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 5 S 1611 RFH hibiting, or could inhibit, the development or deploy- 1 ment of the Internet of Things; 2 (2) consider policies or programs that encour- 3 age and improve coordination among Federal agen- 4 cies that have responsibilities that are relevant to 5 the objectives of this Act; 6 (3) consider any findings or recommendations 7 made by the steering committee and, where appro- 8 priate, act to implement those recommendations; 9 (4) examine— 10 (A) how Federal agencies can benefit from 11 utilizing the Internet of Things; 12 (B) the use of Internet of Things tech- 13 nology by Federal agencies as of the date on 14 which the working group performs the examina- 15 tion; 16 (C) the preparedness and ability of Federal 17 agencies to adopt Internet of Things technology 18 as of the date on which the working group per- 19 forms the examination and in the future; and 20 (D) any additional security measures that 21 Federal agencies may need to take to— 22 (i) safely and securely use the Inter- 23 net of Things, including measures that en- 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:08 Jan 10, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1611.RFH S1611 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 6 S 1611 RFH sure the security of critical infrastructure; 1 and 2 (ii) enhance the resiliency of Federal 3 systems against cyber threats to the Inter- 4 net of Things; and 5 (5) in carrying out the examinations required 6 under clauses (i) and (ii) of paragraph (4)(D), en- 7 sure to the maximum extent possible the coordina- 8 tion of the current and future activities of the Fed- 9 eral Government relating to security with respect to 10 the Internet of Things. 11 (c) AGENCY REPRESENTATIVES.—In convening the 12 working group under subsection (a), the Secretary shall 13 have discretion to appoint representatives from Federal 14 agencies and departments as appropriate and shall specifi- 15 cally consider seeking representation from— 16 (1) the Department of Commerce, including— 17 (A) the National Telecommunications and 18 Information Administration; 19 (B) the National Institute of Standards 20 and Technology; and 21 (C) the National Oceanic and Atmospheric 22 Administration; 23 (2) the Department of Transportation; 24 (3) the Department of Homeland Security; 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:08 Jan 10, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1611.RFH S1611 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 7 S 1611 RFH (4) the Office of Management and Budget; 1 (5) the National Science Foundation; 2 (6) the Commission; 3 (7) the Federal Trade Commission; 4 (8) the Office of Science and Technology Policy; 5 (9) the Department of Energy; and 6 (10) the Federal Energy Regulatory Commis- 7 sion. 8 (d) NONGOVERNMENTAL STAKEHOLDERS.—The 9 working group shall consult with nongovernmental stake- 10 holders with expertise relating to the Internet of Things, 11 including— 12 (1) the steering committee; 13 (2) information and communications technology 14 manufacturers, suppliers, service providers, and ven- 15 dors; 16 (3) subject matter experts representing indus- 17 trial sectors other than the technology sector that 18 can benefit from the Internet of Things, including 19 the transportation, energy, agriculture, and health 20 care sectors; 21 (4) small, medium, and large businesses; 22 (5) think tanks and academia; 23 (6) nonprofit organizations and consumer 24 groups; 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:08 Jan 10, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1611.RFH S1611 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 8 S 1611 RFH (7) security experts; 1 (8) rural stakeholders; and 2 (9) other stakeholders with relevant expertise, 3 as determined by the Secretary. 4 (e) STEERING COMMITTEE.— 5 (1) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established 6 within the Department of Commerce a steering com- 7 mittee to advise the working group. 8 (2) DUTIES.—The steering committee shall ad- 9 vise the working group with respect to— 10 (A) the identification of any Federal regu- 11 lations, statutes, grant practices, programs, 12 budgetary or jurisdictional challenges, and 13 other sector-specific policies that are inhibiting, 14 or could inhibit, the development of the Internet 15 of Things; 16 (B) situations in which the use of the 17 Internet of Things is likely to deliver significant 18 and scalable economic and societal benefits to 19 the United States, including benefits from or 20 to— 21 (i) smart traffic and transit tech- 22 nologies; 23 (ii) augmented logistics and supply 24 chains; 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:08 Jan 10, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1611.RFH S1611 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 9 S 1611 RFH (iii) sustainable infrastructure; 1 (iv) precision agriculture; 2 (v) environmental monitoring; 3 (vi) public safety; and 4 (vii) health care; 5 (C) whether adequate spectrum is available 6 to support the growing Internet of Things and 7 what legal or regulatory barriers may exist to 8 providing any spectrum needed in the future; 9 (D) policies, programs, or multi-stake- 10 holder activities that— 11 (i) promote or are related to the pri- 12 vacy of individuals who use or are affected 13 by the Internet of Things; 14 (ii) may enhance the security of the 15 Internet of Things, including the security 16 of critical infrastructure; 17 (iii) may protect users of the Internet 18 of Things; and 19 (iv) may encourage coordination 20 among Federal agencies with jurisdiction 21 over the Internet of Things; 22 (E) the opportunities and challenges asso- 23 ciated with the use of Internet of Things tech- 24 nology by small businesses; and 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:08 Jan 10, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1611.RFH S1611 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 10 S 1611 RFH (F) any international proceeding, inter- 1 national negotiation, or other international mat- 2 ter affecting the Internet of Things to which 3 the United States is or should be a party. 4 (3) MEMBERSHIP.—The Secretary shall appoint 5 to the steering committee members representing a 6 wide range of stakeholders outside of the Federal 7 Government with expertise relating to the Internet 8 of Things, including— 9 (A) information and communications tech- 10 nology manufacturers, suppliers, service pro- 11 viders, and vendors; 12 (B) subject matter experts representing in- 13 dustrial sectors other than the technology sector 14 that can benefit from the Internet of Things, 15 including the transportation, energy, agri- 16 culture, and health care sectors; 17 (C) small, medium, and large businesses; 18 (D) think tanks and academia; 19 (E) nonprofit organizations and consumer 20 groups; 21 (F) security experts; 22 (G) rural stakeholders; and 23 (H) other stakeholders with relevant exper- 24 tise, as determined by the Secretary. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:08 Jan 10, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1611.RFH S1611 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 11 S 1611 RFH (4) REPORT.—Not later than 1 year after the 1 date of enactment of this Act, the steering com- 2 mittee shall submit to the working group a report 3 that includes any findings or recommendations of 4 the steering committee. 5 (5) INDEPENDENT ADVICE.— 6 (A) IN GENERAL.—The steering committee 7 shall set the agenda of the steering committee 8 in carrying out the duties of the steering com- 9 mittee under paragraph (2). 10 (B) SUGGESTIONS.—The working group 11 may suggest topics or items for the steering 12 committee to study, and the steering committee 13 shall take those suggestions into consideration 14 in carrying out the duties of the steering com- 15 mittee. 16 (C) REPORT.—The steering committee 17 shall ensure that the report submitted under 18 paragraph (4) is the result of the independent 19 judgment of the steering committee. 20 (6) NO COMPENSATION FOR MEMBERS.—A 21 member of the steering committee shall serve with- 22 out compensation. 23 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:08 Jan 10, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1611.RFH S1611 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 12 S 1611 RFH (7) TERMINATION.—The steering committee 1 shall terminate on the date on which the working 2 group submits the report under subsection (f). 3 (f) REPORT TO CONGRESS.— 4 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 18 months 5 after the date of enactment of this Act, the working 6 group shall submit to Congress a report that in- 7 cludes— 8 (A) the findings and recommendations of 9 the working group with respect to the duties of 10 the working group under subsection (b); 11 (B) the report submitted by the steering 12 committee under subsection (e)(4), as the re- 13 port was received by the working group; 14 (C) recommendations for action or reasons 15 for inaction, as applicable, with respect to each 16 recommendation made by the steering com- 17 mittee in the report submitted under subsection 18 (e)(4); and 19 (D) an accounting of any progress made 20 by Federal agencies to implement recommenda- 21 tions made by the working group or the steer- 22 ing committee. 23 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:08 Jan 10, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1611.RFH S1611 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 13 S 1611 RFH (2) COPY OF REPORT.—The working group 1 shall submit a copy of the report described in para- 2 graph (1) to— 3 (A) the Committee on Commerce, Science, 4 and Transportation and the Committee on En- 5 ergy and Natural Resources of the Senate; 6 (B) the Committee on Energy and Com- 7 merce of the House of Representatives; and 8 (C) any other committee of Congress, upon 9 request to the working group. 10 SEC. 5. ASSESSING SPECTRUM NEEDS. 11 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Commission, in consultation 12 with the National Telecommunications and Information 13 Administration, shall issue a notice of inquiry seeking pub- 14 lic comment on the current, as of the date of enactment 15 of this Act, and future spectrum needs to enable better 16 connectivity relating to the Internet of Things. 17 (b) REQUIREMENTS.—In issuing the notice of inquiry 18 under subsection (a), the Commission shall seek comments 19 that consider and evaluate— 20 (1) whether adequate spectrum is available, or 21 is planned for allocation, for commercial wireless 22 services that could support the growing Internet of 23 Things; 24 Ver [Text truncated for display. Full text available on Congress.gov.]