Sponsors (2)
Official title: Develop a strategy for increasing access to independent information for Chinese citizens, to establish an interagency task force to carry out such strategy, and for other purposes
Introduced February 5, 2025 by Daniel Scott Sullivan · Last progress February 5, 2025
The bill expands U.S.-funded Mandarin-language media, outreach, and censorship‑circumvention support to boost access to independent information and U.S. influence, at the cost of taxpayer funding and heightened risks — including diplomatic retaliation, user safety/privacy concerns, and potential credibility and implementation constraints.
Mandarin-speaking PRC citizens (inside China and abroad) will gain greater access to independent, uncensored news and expanded circumvention tools that help bypass censorship, increasing freedom of expression and information.
U.S. public diplomacy and national security actors may gain increased influence with Mandarin-speaking audiences as expanded Mandarin-language content and outreach present U.S. perspectives more effectively.
The bill authorizes predictable funding and support (including multi-year appropriations) to sustain Mandarin-language content, outreach, and circumvention/secure‑communications programs through FY2029, giving implementers more stable resources.
U.S. efforts to expand circumvention tools and targeted information outreach risk escalating diplomatic tensions with the PRC and provoking retaliatory measures that could harm U.S.-China relations and U.S. interests.
The programs will increase federal spending (authorized at roughly $75M/year plus associated grants and admin costs), creating direct costs for U.S. taxpayers and potential demands for sustained appropriations.
Using circumvention tools, covert distribution channels, or collecting engagement data can expose PRC users to surveillance, legal penalties, or reprisals, putting vulnerable people at physical and privacy risk.
Based on analysis of 16 sections of legislative text.
Requires a Presidential strategy and interagency task force to expand Mandarin content, circumvention tools, and a non‑Federal Global News Service to reach PRC audiences.
Directs the Executive Branch to prioritize expanding access to independent Mandarin-language information for people in and from the People’s Republic of China by developing a coordinated strategy, creating an interagency task force with a Presidential coordinator, and establishing a new non‑federal Global News Service to curate and distribute content. Requires a Presidentially-delivered unclassified strategy (with optional classified annex) within one year and directs State and other agencies to increase support for Mandarin content, internet circumvention tools, secure-sharing technologies, and partnerships with independent journalists and influencers.