Hi all,
FYI, the U.S. Senate passed the following resolution on February 5. This is relevant to the work of the Accountability CCWG.
The “Designation” section is particularly note-worthy.
Best,
Keith
https://www.congress.gov/bill/114th-congress/senate-resolution/71/text
[Congressional Bills 114th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Printing Office]
[S. Res. 71 Agreed to Senate (ATS)]
114th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. RES. 71
Designating the week of February 8 through February 14, 2015, as
``Internet Governance Awareness Week''.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
February 5, 2015
Mr. Hatch (for himself, Mr. Blunt, Mr. Warner, Mr. Coons, and Mr.
Inhofe) submitted the following resolution; which was considered and
agreed to
_______________________________________________________________________
RESOLUTION
Designating the week of February 8 through February 14, 2015, as
``Internet Governance Awareness Week''.
Whereas the United States remains committed to the multistakeholder model of
Internet governance, in which the private sector works in collaboration
with civil society, governments, and technical experts in a consensus
fashion;
Whereas the United States has, through its stewardship of key Internet domain
name functions, maintained an important role in the protection of the
Internet as presently constituted;
Whereas on March 14, 2014, the National Telecommunications and Information
Administration (referred to in this preamble as the ``NTIA'') announced
its intent to transition these key Internet domain name functions to the
global multistakeholder community;
Whereas the transition process demonstrates that the United States supports and
is committed to the multistakeholder model of Internet governance;
Whereas the NTIA has asked the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and
Numbers (referred to in this preamble as ``ICANN'') to convene global
stakeholders to develop a proposal to transition the current role played
by the NTIA in the coordination of the Internet's domain name system
(referred to in this preamble as the ``DNS'');
Whereas the NTIA has stated that there is no deadline for the transition, and
that the transition proposal must have broad community support and
must--
(1) support and enhance the multistakeholder model;
(2) maintain the security, stability, and resiliency of the Internet
DNS;
(3) meet the needs and expectations of the global customers and
partners of the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority; and
(4) maintain the openness of the Internet;
Whereas the NTIA has also stated that it will not accept a proposal that
replaces the NTIA with a government-led or an inter-governmental
organization, a position that is consistent with S. Con. Res. 50
(112\th\ Congress), a concurrent resolution that was unanimously passed
by the Senate and the House of Representatives in 2012 and supported
``the consistent and unequivocal policy of the United States to promote
a global Internet free from government control and preserve and advance
the successful multistakeholder model that governs the Internet today'';
Whereas ICANN will be holding its next global meeting, ICANN 52, in Singapore
between February 8 and February 12, 2015; and
Whereas designating the week of February 8 through February 14, 2015, as
``Internet Governance Awareness Week'' will encourage the participants
at ICANN 52 to focus on developing key ICANN accountability principles
for the protection of the global Internet: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved,
SECTION 1. DESIGNATION.
The Senate designates the week of February 8 through February 14,
2015, as ``Internet Governance Awareness Week'' to--
(1) increase public awareness regarding the March 14, 2014
announcement by the National Telecommunications and Information
Administration (referred to in this resolving clause as the
``NTIA'') declaring the intention of the NTIA to transition the
stewardship of the functions of the Internet Assigned Numbers
Authority to the global multistakeholder community;
(2) encourage public education about the importance of this
transition process; and
(3) call the attention of the participants at the next
global meeting of the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names
and Numbers (referred to in this resolving clause as ``ICANN'')
to the importance of designing accountability and governance
reforms to best prepare ICANN for executing the
responsibilities that it may receive under any transition of
the stewardship of the functions of the Internet Assigned
Numbers Authority, including reforms that would--
(A) insist that the domain name system continues to
function as part of a secure, stable, resilient,
single, decentralized, open, and interoperable
Internet;
(B) ensure a form of stewardship and accountability
that is based on the separation of the functions of
policy-making, policy implementation, and, as needed,
independent adjudication or arbitration for dispute
resolution;
(C) limit and maintain ICANN authority to matters
that pertain to the coordination of Internet unique
identifiers, and limit each function to those rights,
responsibilities, and authorities that have been
explicitly assigned;
(D) protect ICANN from undue influence or capture
by one or more governments or multilateral or
intergovernmental organizations, or a single set of
other commercial or noncommercial stakeholders;
(E) maintain the commitment of ICANN for final
action regarding key policy decisions to demonstrate
broad support by the community of ICANN stakeholders;
(F) reinforce and expand transparency and
accountability measures to ensure community access to
ICANN documents and records; and
(G) ensure that, prior to the execution of the
transition of the stewardship of the functions of the
Internet Assigned Numbers Authority, each of the
foregoing elements of such proposal is adopted and made
effective by ICANN through incorporation in its
articles of incorporation and by-laws, as needed, and
subject to independent adjudication or arbitration for
dispute resolution, as appropriate.
SEC. 2. RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.
Nothing in this resolution shall be construed as congressional
approval of any proposal by ICANN to transition the stewardship of the
functions of the Internet Assigned Numbers Authority to the global
multistakeholder community.
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