Bill Summary
The Foreign Advanced Technology Surveillance Accountability Act is a proposed bill that aims to amend the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961. This bill would require annual reporting on the status of excessive surveillance and use of advanced technology that violates privacy and other fundamental human rights in each country. This includes monitoring of internet and social media, biometric data collection, and surveillance of individuals based on their political views, religion, or ethnicity. The bill also requires reporting on whether a country has imported or obtained biometric data from other entities, and if so, from whom. The purpose of this bill is to increase transparency and accountability for countries engaging in excessive surveillance and use of advanced technology to restrict human rights.
Possible Impacts
1. This legislation could potentially affect individuals living in countries with high levels of surveillance and use of advanced technology, as it requires the US government to report on the status of these practices in each country. This information could potentially expose the extent of government surveillance and its impact on citizens' privacy and human rights.
2. The legislation could also affect individuals who have been targeted by government surveillance or censorship, as it requires the US government to report on any allegations or reports of unreasonable surveillance or censorship. This could potentially provide a platform for individuals to speak out against violations of their rights.
3. The legislation could also have an impact on international relations, as it requires the US government to report on whether countries have imported or obtained biometric or facial recognition data from other countries or entities. This could potentially expose any illicit or unlawful sharing of sensitive data between countries.
[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 7307 Introduced in House (IH)]
<DOC>
116th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 7307
To amend the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 to require information on
the status of excessive surveillance and use of advanced technology to
violate privacy and other fundamental human rights be included in the
annual Country Reports on Human Rights Practices.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
June 24, 2020
Mr. Curtis (for himself, Mr. Malinowski, Mr. Phillips, and Mr. Yoho)
introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on
Foreign Affairs
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 to require information on
the status of excessive surveillance and use of advanced technology to
violate privacy and other fundamental human rights be included in the
annual Country Reports on Human Rights Practices.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Foreign Advanced Technology
Surveillance Accountability Act''.
SEC. 2. AMENDMENTS TO ANNUAL COUNTRY REPORTS ON HUMAN RIGHTS PRACTICES.
The Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 is amended as follows:
(1) In section 116 (22 U.S.C. 2151n), by adding at the end
the following:
``(h) Status of Excessive Surveillance and Use of Advanced
Technology.--
``(1) In general.--The report required by subsection (d)
shall include, wherever applicable, a description of the status
of surveillance and use of advanced technology to impose
arbitrary or unlawful interference with privacy, or unlawful or
unnecessary restrictions on freedom of expression, peaceful
assembly, association, or other internationally recognized
human rights in each country, including--
``(A) whether the government of such country has
adopted and is enforcing laws, regulations, policies,
or practices relating to--
``(i) government surveillance or
censorship, including through facial
recognition, biometric data collection,
internet and social media controls, sensors,
spyware data analytics, non-cooperative
location tracking, recording devices, or other
similar advanced technologies, and any
allegations or reports that this surveillance
or censorship was unreasonable;
``(ii) extrajudicial searches or seizures
of individual or private institution data; and
``(iii) surveillance of any group based on
political views, religious beliefs, ethnicity,
or other protected category, in violation of
equal protection rights;
``(B) whether such country has imported or
unlawfully obtained biometric or facial recognition
data from other countries or entities and, if
applicable, from whom; and
``(C) whether the government agency end-user has
targeted individuals, including through the use of
technology, in retaliation for the exercise of their
human rights or on discriminatory grounds prohibited by
international law, including targeting journalists or
members of minority groups.
``(2) Definitions.--In this subsection--
``(A) the term `internet and social media controls'
means the arbitrary or unlawful imposition of
restrictions, by state or service providers, on
internet and digital information and communication,
such as through the blocking or filtering of websites,
social media platforms, and communication applications,
the deletion of content and social media posts, or the
penalization of online speech, in a manner that
violates rights to free expression or assembly; and
``(B) the term `extrajudicial targeted
surveillance' means the use of technology to observe
the activities of individuals in a manner that
unlawfully or arbitrarily interferes with their
privacy, such as through physical monitoring or the
interception of digital communications.''.
(2) In section 502B(b) (22 U.S.C. 2304(b))--
(A) by redesignating the second subsection (i) (as
added by section 1207(b)(2) of Public Law 113-4) as
subsection (j); and
(B) by adding at the end the following:
``(k) Status of Excessive Surveillance and Use of Advanced
Technology.--The report required under subsection (b) shall include,
wherever applicable, a description of the status of excessive
surveillance and use of advanced technology to restrict human rights,
including the descriptions of such policies or practices required under
section 116(h).''.
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