Rep. Zoe Lofgren, D-Calif., reintroduced her Global Free Internet Act...
Rep. Zoe Lofgren, D-Calif., reintroduced her Global Free Internet Act this week (http://1.usa.gov/1082MC4). The bill -- which has California Democratic Reps. Anna Eshoo, Mike Honda and Doris Matsui as original cosponsors -- would create a task force to monitor and…
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respond to actions by foreign and domestic governments “that deny fair market access to Internet-related goods and services, or that threaten the technical operation, security, and free flow of global Internet communications,” said a Lofgren release(http://1.usa.gov/Ydifh2). The task force would be composed of leaders of executive branch agencies, as well as four people nominated by congressional leadership and four people who are not government employees and who have been “nominated by the Internet itself” and “would hold public hearings, issue reports, and coordinate the activity of the U.S. government to respond to domestic and international threats to the Internet,” the release said. In a statement, Lofgren said: “For the Internet to remain a platform for innovation and prosperity, we need to address undue restrictions on Internet commerce and the global free flow of information.” The bill would ensure that a commitment to an open Internet be prevalent in U.S. foreign and trade policies, said Public Knowledge Vice President-Government Affairs Christopher Lewis in a statement (http://bit.ly/Xoxlom). “The Global Free Internet Act can provide much-needed balance to US efforts to ensure an open internet that promotes free speech around the world,” Lewis said.