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H.R. 805 (114th): DOTCOM Act of 2015

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The text of the bill below is as of Feb 5, 2015 (Introduced).

Summary of this bill

The Domain Openness Through Continued Oversight Matters Act, or DOTCOM Act, would slow down the process of transitioning control over the Internet’s domain name system (e.g. the .com’s and .net’s) from being U.S.-government run to being run by a non-governmental global “multistakeholder” community. The National Telecommunications and Information Administration, or NTIA, the government agency that currently oversees the domain name system, recommended in 2014 that control be privatized. This bill would add congressional oversight as NTIA transitions out of its role, requiring that certain accountability reforms be put in place in the existing governance model before making further changes.

I

114th CONGRESS

1st Session

H. R. 805

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

February 5, 2015

(for himself, Mr. Barton, Mr. Cramer, Mrs. Ellmers, Mr. Lance, Mr. McKinley, Mr. Farenthold, Mr. Nugent, Mr. Bucshon, Mr. Kline, Mr. Walden, Mr. Rokita, Mr. Latta, and Mr. Long) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce

A BILL

To prohibit the National Telecommunications and Information Administration from relinquishing responsibility over the Internet domain name system until the Comptroller General of the United States submits to Congress a report on the role of the NTIA with respect to such system.

1.

Short title

This Act may be cited as the Domain Openness Through Continued Oversight Matters Act of 2015 or the DOTCOM Act of 2015.

2.

NTIA retention of DNS responsibilities pending GAO report

(a)

Retention of responsibilities

Until the Comptroller General of the United States submits the report required by subsection (b), the Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Communications and Information may not relinquish or agree to any proposal relating to the relinquishment of the responsibility of the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (in this section referred to as the NTIA) over Internet domain name system functions, including responsibility with respect to the authoritative root zone file, the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority functions, and related root zone management functions.

(b)

Report

Not later than 1 year after the date on which the NTIA receives a proposal relating to the relinquishment of the responsibility of the NTIA over Internet domain name system functions that was developed in a process convened by the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers at the request of the NTIA, the Comptroller General of the United States shall submit to Congress a report on the role of the NTIA with respect to the Internet domain name system. Such report shall include—

(1)

a discussion and analysis of—

(A)

the advantages and disadvantages of relinquishment of the responsibility of the NTIA over Internet domain name system functions, including responsibility with respect to the authoritative root zone file, the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority functions, and related root zone management functions;

(B)

any principles or criteria that the NTIA sets for proposals for such relinquishment;

(C)

each proposal received by the NTIA for such relinquishment;

(D)

the processes used by the NTIA and any other Federal agencies for evaluating such proposals;

(E)

any national security concerns raised by such relinquishment; and

(F)

any concerns raised by such relinquishment with respect to the security of the Internet domain name system or the security of other information networks and systems; and

(2)

a definition of the term multistakeholder model, as used by the NTIA with respect to Internet policymaking and governance, and definitions of any other terms necessary to understand the matters covered by the report.