H.R. 3714 (111th): Daniel Pearl Freedom of the Press Act of 2009

Introduced:
Oct 01, 2009 (111th Congress, 2009–2010)
Sponsor:
Rep. Adam Schiff [D-CA29]
Status:
Signed by the President
Slip Law:
This bill became Pub.L. 111-166.

The bill’s title was written by the bill’s sponsor. H.R. stands for House of Representatives bill.

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Status

This bill was enacted after being signed by the President on May 17, 2010.

Progress
Introduced Oct 01, 2009
Referred to Committee Oct 01, 2009
Passed House Dec 16, 2009
Passed Senate Apr 29, 2010
Signed by the President May 17, 2010
Votes

House Vote on Passage
Dec 16, 2009 4:36 p.m.
Passed 403/12

Cosponsors
1 cosponsors (1R) (show)
Committees

House Foreign Affairs

Senate Foreign Relations

The committee chair determines whether a bill will move past the committee stage.

Full Title

To amend the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 to include in the Annual Country Reports on Human Rights Practices information about freedom of the press in foreign countries, and for other purposes.

Summary

No summaries available.

Text

Read Bill Text »

Last updated Jan 01, 2010.
2 pages

Primary Source

View on THOMAS (The Library of Congress)

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Citation

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GovTrack’s Bill Summary

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Library of Congress Summary

The summary below was written by the Congressional Research Service, which is a nonpartisan division of the Library of Congress.

5/17/2010--Public Law. (This measure has not been amended since it was passed by the House on December 16, 2009.
The summary of that version is repeated here.) Daniel Pearl Freedom of the Press Act of 2009 - Amends the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 to expand the annual Country Reports on Human Rights Practices to include:
(1) a description of the status of freedom of the press in each country reviewed in the report;
(2) identification of countries in which there were violations of freedom of the press; and
(3) in countries where there are particularly severe violations of freedom of the press, whether such governments participate in or condone such violations and the actions such governments have taken to preserve the safety and independence of the media and ensure the prosecution of individuals who attack or murder journalists.

House Republican Conference Summary

The summary below was written by the House Republican Conference, which is the caucus of Republicans in the House of Representatives.

This summary can be found at http://www.gop.gov/bill/111/1/hr3714.

Background

H.R. 3714 is named after Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl, who was beheaded by terrorists in Pakistan in 2002. Pearl had been covering the War on Terrorism and was retracing the steps of shoe bomber Richard Reid when he was abducted in Karachi, Pakistan.

Summary

H.R. 3714 requires the Department of State to include in its Annual Country Reports on Human Rights Practices information on freedom of the press in foreign countries and establishes a grant program to promote freedom of the press worldwide.

Specifically, the bill requires the Annual Country Reports on Human Rights Practices to include a description of the status of freedom of the press, including initiatives in favor of freedom of the press and efforts to preserve the independence of the media, as well as an identification of countries where there were violations of freedom of the press such as direct physical attacks, imprisonment, indirect sources of pressure, or censorship by governments, military, or police groups.

 

 

Cost

The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) has not produced a cost estimate for this bill.

 

 

House Democratic Caucus Summary

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So, yes, we display the House Republican Conference’s summaries when available even if we do not have a Democratic summary available. That’s because we feel it is better to give you as much information as possible, even if we cannot provide every viewpoint.

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The bill contains the following citations to other parts of U.S. law:

United States Code

The United States Code is the compilation of permanent laws enacted by Congress. Temporary and other non-permanent laws do not appear in the United States Code. (About half of the United States Code is the law itself, called positive law. The other half is merely a compilation of the laws but has no legal significance.)