47 U.S.C. § 906 — Wireless supply chain innovation and mul-

Page 378 TITLE 47—TELECOMMUNICATIONS § 905 (c) General provisions (1) Regulations The Secretary and NTIA shall issue such regulations as may be necessary to carry out the functions assigned under this chapter. (2) Support and assistance from other agencies All executive agencies are authorized and di- rected to cooperate with the NTIA and to fur- nish it with such information, support, and as- sistance, not inconsistent with law, as it may require in the performance of its functions. (3) Effect on vested functions Nothing in this chapter reassigns any func- tion that is, on October 27, 1992, vested by law or executive order in the Commission, or the Department of State, or any officer thereof. (d) Reorganization (1) Authority to reorganize Subject to paragraph (2), the Secretary may reassign to another unit of the Department of Commerce a function (or portion thereof) re- quired to be assigned to the NTIA by section 902(b) of this title. (2) Limitation on authority The Secretary may not make any reassign- ment of a function (or portion thereof) re- quired to be assigned to the NTIA by section 902(b) of this title unless the Secretary sub- mits to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate and the Committee on Energy and Commerce of the House of Representatives a statement describ- ing the proposed reassignment and containing an explanation of the reasons for the reassign- ment. No reassignment of any such function (or portion thereof) shall be effective until 90 legislative days after the Secretary submits that statement to such Committees. For pur- poses of this paragraph, the term ‘‘legislative days’’ includes only days on which both Houses of Congress are in session. (e) Limitation on solicitations Notwithstanding section 1522 of title 15, nei- ther the Secretary, the Assistant Secretary, nor any officer or employee of the NTIA shall solicit any gift or bequest of property, both real and personal, from any entity for the purpose of fur- thering the authorized functions of the NTIA if such solicitation would create a conflict of in- terest or an appearance of a conflict of interest. (Pub. L. 102–538, title I, § 105, Oct. 27, 1992, 106 Stat. 3538.) Editorial Notes REFERENCES IN TEXT Section 744(a) of this title, referred to in subsec. (a)(2), was repealed by Pub. L. 103–414, title III, § 304(b)(4)(A), Oct. 25, 1994, 108 Stat. 4297. Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries CHANGE OF NAME Committee on Energy and Commerce of House of Representatives treated as referring to Committee on Commerce of House of Representatives by section 1(a) of Pub. L. 104–14, set out as a note preceding section 21 of Title 2, The Congress. Committee on Commerce of House of Representatives changed to Committee on En- ergy and Commerce of House of Representatives, and jurisdiction over matters relating to securities and ex- changes and insurance generally transferred to Com- mittee on Financial Services of House of Representa- tives by House Resolution No. 5, One Hundred Seventh Congress, Jan. 3, 2001. TERMINATION OF ADVISORY COMMITTEES Advisory committees established after Jan. 5, 1973, to terminate not later than the expiration of the 2-year period beginning on the date of their establishment, unless, in the case of a committee established by the President or an officer of the Federal Government, such committee is renewed by appropriate action prior to the expiration of such 2-year period, or in the case of a committee established by Congress, its duration is otherwise provided by law. See section 1013 of Title 5, Government Organization and Employees. § 905. Omitted Editorial Notes CODIFICATION Section, Pub. L. 95–567, title IV, § 402, Nov. 2, 1978, 92 Stat. 2424, which required the National Telecommuni- cations and Information Administration to submit an annual report to Congress on activities of the Adminis- tration with respect to domestic communications, international communications, Federal Government communications, spectrum plans and policies, and other matters, terminated, effective May 15, 2000, pur- suant to section 3003 of Pub. L. 104–66, as amended, set out as a note under section 1113 of Title 31, Money and Finance. See, also, 1st item on page 55 of House Docu- ment No. 103–7. § 906. Wireless supply chain innovation and mul- tilateral security (a) Communications technology security funds (1) Public Wireless Supply Chain Innovation Fund (A) Establishment (i) In general There is established in the Treasury of the United States a trust fund to be known as the ‘‘Public Wireless Supply Chain In- novation Fund’’ (referred to in this para- graph as the ‘‘Innovation Fund’’). (ii) Availability (I) In general Amounts appropriated to the Innova- tion Fund shall remain available through the end of the tenth fiscal year beginning after the date on which funds are appropriated to the Fund. (II) Remainder to Treasury Any amounts remaining in the Innova- tion Fund after the end of the tenth fis- cal year beginning after the date of ap- propriation shall be deposited in the gen- eral fund of the Treasury. (B) Use of Fund (i) In general Amounts appropriated to the Innovation Fund shall be available to the Secretary, acting through the NTIA Administrator, to make grants on a competitive basis Page 379 TITLE 47—TELECOMMUNICATIONS § 906 1 See References in Text note below. under this paragraph in such amounts as the Secretary, acting through the NTIA Administrator, determines appropriate, subject to clause (ii). (ii) Limitation on grant amounts The amount of a grant awarded under this paragraph to a recipient for a specific research focus area may not exceed $50,000,000. (C) Administration of Fund The Secretary, acting through the NTIA Administrator, in consultation with the Commission, the Under Secretary of Com- merce for Standards and Technology, the Secretary of Homeland Security, the Sec- retary of Defense, and the Director of the In- telligence Advanced Research Projects Ac- tivity of the Office of the Director of Na- tional Intelligence, shall establish criteria for grants awarded under this paragraph, by the NTIA Administrator and administer the Innovation Fund, to support the following: (i) Promoting and deploying technology, including software, hardware, and micro- processing technology, that will enhance competitiveness in the fifth-generation (commonly known as ‘‘5G’’) and successor wireless technology supply chains that use open and interoperable interface radio ac- cess networks. (ii) Accelerating commercial deploy- ments of open interface standards-based compatible, interoperable equipment, such as equipment developed pursuant to the standards set forth by organizations such as the O-RAN Alliance, the Telecom Infra Project, 3GPP, the Open-RAN Software Community, or any successor organiza- tions. (iii) Promoting and deploying compat- ibility of new 5G equipment with future open standards-based, interoperable equip- ment. (iv) Managing integration of multi-ven- dor network environments. (v) Identifying objective criteria to de- fine equipment as compliant with open standards for multi-vendor network equip- ment interoperability. (vi) Promoting and deploying security features enhancing the integrity and avail- ability of equipment in multi-vendor net- works. (vii) Promoting and deploying network function virtualization to facilitate multi- vendor interoperability and a more diverse vendor market. (D) Nonduplication To the greatest extent practicable, the Secretary, acting through the NTIA Admin- istrator, shall ensure that any research funded by a grant awarded under this para- graph avoids duplication of other Federal or private sector research. (E) Timing Not later than one year after the date on which funds are appropriated to the Innova- tion Fund, the Secretary, acting through the NTIA Administrator, shall begin awarding grants under this paragraph. (F) Federal advisory body (i) Establishment The Secretary, acting through the NTIA Administrator, and in consultation with the Under Secretary of Commerce for Standards and Technology, shall establish a Federal advisory committee, in accord- ance with the Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.),1 composed of govern- ment and private sector experts, to advise the Secretary and the NTIA Administrator on the administration of the Innovation Fund. (ii) Composition The advisory committee established under clause (i) shall be composed of— (I) representatives from— (aa) the Commission; (bb) the Department of Defense; (cc) the Intelligence Advanced Re- search Projects Activity of the Office of the Director of National Intel- ligence; (dd) the National Institute of Stand- ards and Technology; (ee) the Department of State; (ff) the National Science Foundation; (gg) the Department of Homeland Se- curity; and (hh) the National Telecommuni- cations and Information Administra- tion; and (II) other representatives from the pri- vate and public sectors, at the discretion of the NTIA Administrator. (iii) Duties The advisory committee established under clause (i) shall advise the Secretary and the NTIA Administrator on tech- nology developments to help inform— (I) the strategic direction of the Inno- vation Fund; and (II) efforts of the Federal Government to promote a more secure, diverse, sus- tainable, and competitive supply chain. (G) Reports to Congress (i) Initial report Not later than 180 days after January 1, 2021, the Secretary, acting through the NTIA Administrator, shall submit to the relevant committees of Congress a report with— (I) additional recommendations on pro- moting the competitiveness and sustain- ability of trusted suppliers in the wire- less supply chain; and (II) any additional authorities needed to facilitate the timely adoption of open standards-based equipment, including authority to provide loans, loan guaran- tees, and other forms of credit extension that would maximize the use of funds. (ii) Annual report For each fiscal year for which amounts in the Innovation Fund are available under Page 380 TITLE 47—TELECOMMUNICATIONS § 906 this paragraph, the Secretary, acting through the NTIA Administrator, shall submit to Congress a report that— (I) describes how, and to whom (includ- ing whether recipients are majority owned and controlled by minority indi- viduals and majority owned and con- trolled by women), amounts in the Inno- vation Fund have been deployed; (II) details the progress of the Sec- retary and the NTIA Administrator in meeting the objectives described in sub- paragraph (C); and (III) includes any additional informa- tion that the Secretary and the NTIA Administrator determine appropriate. (2) Multilateral Telecommunications Security Fund (A) Establishment of Fund (i) In general There is established in the Treasury of the United States a trust fund to be known as the ‘‘Multilateral Telecommunications Security Fund’’. (ii) Use of Fund Amounts appropriated to the Multilat- eral Telecommunications Security Fund shall be available to the Secretary of State to make expenditures under this paragraph in such amounts as the Secretary of State determines appropriate. (iii) Availability (I) In general Amounts appropriated to the Multilat- eral Telecommunications Security Fund— (aa) shall remain available through the end of the tenth fiscal year begin- ning after the date of appropriation; and (bb) may only be allocated upon the Secretary of State reaching an ar- rangement or agreement with foreign government partners to participate in the common funding mechanism de- scribed in subparagraph (B). (II) Remainder to Treasury Any amounts remaining in the Multi- lateral Telecommunications Security Fund after the end of the tenth fiscal year beginning after January 1, 2021 shall be deposited in the general fund of the Treasury. (B) Administration of Fund The Secretary of State, in consultation with the NTIA Administrator, the Secretary of Homeland Security, the Secretary of De- fense, the Secretary of the Treasury, the Di- rector of National Intelligence, and the Commission, is authorized to establish a common funding mechanism, in coordina- tion with foreign partners, that uses amounts from the Multilateral Tele- communications Security Fund to support the development and adoption of secure and trusted telecommunications technologies. In creating and sustaining a common funding mechanism, the Secretary of State should leverage United States funding in order to secure commitments and contributions from trusted foreign partners such as the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and Japan, and should prioritize the fol- lowing objectives: (i) Advancing research and development of secure and trusted communications technologies. (ii) Strengthening supply chains. (iii) Promoting the use of trusted ven- dors. (C) Notifications to be provided by the Fund (i) In general Not later than 15 days prior to the Fund making a financial commitment associ- ated with the provision of expenditures under subparagraph (A)(ii) in an amount in excess of $1,000,000, the Secretary of State shall submit to the appropriate congres- sional committees a report in writing that contains the information required by clause (ii). (ii) Information required The information required by this clause includes— (I) the amount of each such expendi- ture; (II) an identification of the recipient or beneficiary; and (III) a description of the project or ac- tivity and the purpose to be achieved of an expenditure by the Fund. (iii) Arrangements or agreements The Secretary of State shall notify the appropriate congressional committees not later than 30 days after entering into a new bilateral or multilateral arrangement or agreement described in subparagraph (A)(iii)(I)(bb). (iv) Appropriate congressional committees defined In this subparagraph, the term ‘‘appro- priate congressional committees’’ means— (I) the Committee on Foreign Rela- tions of the Senate; (II) the Committee on Appropriations of the Senate; (III) the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives; and (IV) the Committee on Appropriations of the House of Representatives. (b) Promoting United States leadership in inter- national organizations and communications standards-setting bodies (1) In general The Secretary of State, the Secretary of Commerce, and the Chairman of the Commis- sion, or their designees, shall consider how to enhance representation of the United States at international forums that set standards for 5G networks and for future generations of wireless communications networks, includ- ing— (A) the International Telecommunication Union (commonly known as ‘‘ITU’’); Page 381 TITLE 47—TELECOMMUNICATIONS § 921 (B) the International Organization for Standardization (commonly known as ‘‘ISO’’); (C) the Inter-American Telecommuni- cation Commission (commonly known as ‘‘CITEL’’); and (D) the voluntary standards organizations that develop protocols for wireless devices and other equipment, such as the 3GPP and the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (commonly known as ‘‘IEEE’’). (2) Annual report The Secretary of State, the Secretary of Commerce, and the Chairman of the Commis- sion shall jointly submit to the relevant com- mittees of Congress an annual report on the progress made under paragraph (1). (c) Definitions In this section: (1) The term ‘‘3GPP’’ means the Third Gen- eration Partnership Project. (2) The term ‘‘5G network’’ means a radio network as described by 3GPP Release 15 or higher. (3) The term ‘‘Commission’’ means the Fed- eral Communications Commission. (4) The term ‘‘NTIA Administrator’’ means the Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Com- munications and Information. (5) The term ‘‘Open-RAN’’ means the Open Radio Access Network approach to standard- ization adopted by the O-RAN Alliance, Telecom Infra Project, or 3GPP, or any simi- lar set of open standards for multi-vendor net- work equipment interoperability. (6) The term ‘‘relevant committees of Con- gress’’ means— (A) the Select Committee on Intelligence of the Senate; (B) the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate; (C) the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs of the Senate; (D) the Committee on Armed Services of the Senate; (E) the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate; (F) the Committee on Appropriations of the Senate; (G) the Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence of the House of Representatives; (H) the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives; (I) the Committee on Homeland Security of the House of Representatives; (J) the Committee on Armed Services of the House of Representatives; (K) the Committee on Energy and Com- merce of the House of Representatives; and (L) the Committee on Appropriations of the House of Representatives. (7) The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means the Sec- retary of Commerce. (Pub. L. 116–283, div. H, title XCII, § 9202, Jan. 1, 2021, 134 Stat. 4788; Pub. L. 117–167, div. A, § 105(b), Aug. 9, 2022, 136 Stat. 1392; Pub. L. 118–31, div. F, title LXVII, § 6707(b)(1)(A), Dec. 22, 2023, 137 Stat. 1018.) Editorial Notes REFERENCES IN TEXT The Federal Advisory Committee Act, referred to in subsec. (a)(1)(F)(i), is Pub. L. 92–463, Oct. 6, 1972, 86 Stat. 770, which was set out in the Appendix to Title 5, Gov- ernment Organization and Employees, and was substan- tially repealed and restated in chapter 10 (§ 1001 et seq.) of Title 5 by Pub. L. 117–286, §§ 3(a), 7, Dec. 27, 2022, 136 Stat. 4197, 4361. For disposition of sections of the Act into chapter 10 of Title 5, see Disposition Table pre- ceding section 101 of Title 5. CODIFICATION Section was enacted as part of the William M. (Mac) Thornberry National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021 and not as part of the National Tele- communications and Information Administration Orga- nization Act which comprises this chapter. AMENDMENTS 2023—Subsec. (a)(2)(C), (D). Pub. L. 118–31 redesig- nated subpar. (D) as (C) and struck out former subpar. (C) which related to annual report to Congress. 2022—Subsec. (a)(1)(G)(ii)(I). Pub. L. 117–167 inserted ‘‘(including whether recipients are majority owned and controlled by minority individuals and majority owned and controlled by women)’’ after ‘‘to whom’’. SUBCHAPTER II—TRANSFER OF AUCTIONABLE FREQUENCIES § 921. Definitions As used in this subchapter: (1) The term ‘‘allocation’’ means an entry in the National Table of Frequency Allocations of a given frequency band for the purpose of its use by one or more radiocommunication services. (2) The term ‘‘assignment’’ means an author- ization given to a station licensee to use spe- cific frequencies or channels. (3) The term ‘‘the 1934 Act’’ means the Com- munications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 151 et seq.). (Pub. L. 102–538, title I, § 111, as added Pub. L. 103–66, title VI, § 6001(a)(3), Aug. 10, 1993, 107 Stat. 379.) Editorial Notes REFERENCES IN TEXT The Communications Act of 1934, referred to in par. (3), is act June 19, 1934, ch. 652, 48 Stat. 1064, which is classified principally to chapter 5 (§ 151 et seq.) of this title. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see section 609 of this title and Tables. Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries SPECTRUM AUCTIONS Pub. L. 117–58, div. I, § 90008(a), (b), Nov. 15, 2021, 135 Stat. 1348, 1349, provided that: ‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: ‘‘(1) COMMISSION.—The term ‘Commission’ means the Federal Communications Commission. ‘‘(2) COVERED BAND.—The term ‘covered band’ means the band of frequencies between 3100 and 3450 megahertz. ‘‘(3) RELEVANT CONGRESSIONAL COMMITTEES.—The term ‘relevant congressional committees’ means— ‘‘(A) the Committee on Armed Services of the Senate; ‘‘(B) the Committee on Armed Services of the House of Representatives; ‘‘(C) the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of the Senate; and