[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4747 Introduced in House (IH)]
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117th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 4747
To establish the Open Translation and Analysis Center, and for other
purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
July 28, 2021
Mr. Castro of Texas (for himself, Mr. Gallagher, Mr. Keating, Mr.
Fitzpatrick, and Mrs. Kim of California) introduced the following bill;
which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To establish the Open Translation and Analysis Center, and for other
purposes.
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 ``Open Translation and Analysis Center
Authorization Act''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress finds the following:
(1) The success of United States foreign policy depends on
the ability to accurately perceive and understand other
countries' foreign and domestic policies.
(2) Open source materials published by the People's
Republic of China and other nations offer a uniquely valuable
window into the politics, policy, ideology, intentions, and
activities of those countries.
(3) A lack of foreign language speakers greatly hinders
United States policymakers, journalists, academics, students,
and others' ability to understand the People's Republic of
China and other nations and governments.
(4) During the Cold War, the Foreign Broadcast Information
Service provided translations and open source analysis that
nourished generations of diplomats, journalists, academics,
students, and others.
(5) Today, a public translation and analysis organization
is needed to support the development of United States foreign
policy and to enrich public understanding.
SEC. 3. ESTABLISHMENT.
There is established a federally funded research and development
center to be known as the ``Open Translation and Analysis Center''
(referred to in this section as ``OTAC'').
SEC. 4. INCORPORATION.
OTAC shall be--
(1) administered as a separate entity by an organization
managing a federally funded research and development center on
the date of the enactment of this Act; or
(2) incorporated as a nonprofit membership corporation.
SEC. 5. PURPOSE AND MISSION.
The purpose and mission of OTAC is the following:
(1) The translation, analysis, and public dissemination of
foreign language government and other documents from countries
of strategic interest, for the purposes of enhancing the
understanding of such countries' governments, governing
organizations, militaries, economies, and cultures.
(2) To provide proper context and explanations of
translated foreign-language material to enhance the ability of
consumers to understand the meaning and significance of such
translated material.
(3) To strive to make as much translated foreign-language
material publicly available as possible, and to provide
summaries of important foreign-language material that cannot be
made public.
(4) To train and develop exceptional analysts and linguists
with specialization regarding countries of strategic interest.
SEC. 6. DUTIES.
(a) In General.--In furtherance of the purpose and mission
specified in section 5, OTAC shall--
(1) translate into the English language documents and
information in languages from countries of interest,
including--
(A) official and unofficial government, governing
organization, and military documents and reports;
(B) speeches of relevant government, political,
governing organization, and military officials;
(C) official and semiofficial government, governing
organization, and military journals;
(D) news articles and commentary from government,
governing organization, or other quasi-official sources
OTAC determines particularly noteworthy for United
States policymakers and journalists and analysts around
the world;
(E) documents and other information by state-owned
businesses and entities; and
(F) other information, including internet and
social media posts, that OTAC determines important to
United States policymakers and journalists, academics,
and the general public around the world;
(2) provide analyses, summaries, and important context for
material translated pursuant to paragraph (1), and other
untranslated material, including--
(A) biographical sketches and information on
important leaders;
(B) descriptions and background on political
processes, important bodies, companies, economic
systems, and military weapons systems and doctrines;
(C) definitions and analysis of important concepts
and phrases;
(D) information regarding changes over time in
government, military, and governing organization
policies and intentions; and
(E) other issues that are of significance for
understanding countries of strategic interest; and
(3) cooperate with other grantees of the United States
Agency for Global Media and relevant Federal agencies regarding
any effort consistent with such purpose and mission.
(b) Dissemination.--
(1) Public website.--
(A) In general.--OTAC shall establish a publicly
accessible website that includes all analyses and
summaries under this Act and, to the maximum extent
practicable, all translated materials under subsection
(a), including speeches, documents, and reports from
any government, governing organizations, military, or
other organizations that are required to register, or
have subsidiaries that are required to register, under
title II of the State Department Basic Authorities Act
of 1956 (22 U.S.C. 4301 et seq.).
(B) License.--The materials referred to in
subparagraph (A) shall be published under a creative
commons license.
(2) Copyright.--
(A) In general.--In accordance with the Berne
Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic
Works, other World Intellectual Property Organization
regulations and treaties, and other international
treaties, OTAC shall treat foreign material in the same
manner as national materials are treated for purpose of
copyrights.
(B) National laws.--Notwithstanding any other
provision of law, no document published by the United
States Government, including the Armed Forces and any
organization associated with or part of such
Government, may be construed by OTAC to have any
copyright protection beyond the level of a creative
commons license.
(C) Clarification.--For the purposes of this Act, a
governing organization or any organization that is
required to register, or has subsidiaries that are
required to register, under title II of the State
Department Basic Authorities Act of 1956 (22 U.S.C.
4301 et seq.), shall be treated as a government for
copyright purposes.
(3) Exception.--For translated materials that cannot be
made publicly accessible without violating legally binding
copyright or intellectual property protections, OTAC shall--
(A) provide such materials free of charge on a
private website available to all United States
Government employees, Members of Congress, and
congressional staff, as well as to organizations and
individuals who have relevant contracts or grants with
the United States Government or any part thereof;
(B) license such materials to any such organization
or individual at cost; and
(C) as appropriate, provide summaries and analyses
that would fall under ``fair use'' guidelines for the
purpose of copyright laws.
(c) Methodology.--In carrying out this section and section 5, OTAC
shall--
(1) establish the capabilities to acquire, retain, train,
and develop exceptional analytical and linguistic expertise in
countries of strategic interest and languages of strategic
interest;
(2) use software, programs, artificial intelligence, and
other technologies to ensure timely translations;
(3) seek input from technical, regional, and subject matter
experts from a wide range of relevant disciplines, to review,
provide feedback, and evaluate translations and analyses;
(4) maximize cooperation with the public and private
sectors in the United States, including Federal agencies, as
well as with United States allies and partners, to maximize
efficiencies, acquire source materials, and eliminate
duplication of efforts; and
(5) select material to translate and analyze on the basis
of its significance for United States and allied policymakers,
journalists, academics, and the general public, and to enhance
the understanding of countries of strategic interests'
politics, policies, intentions, ideologies, militaries,
businesses, technologies, science, and cultures.
(d) Limitation.--OTAC may not publish any translation until such
translation has been reviewed and approved for accuracy by OTAC.
SEC. 7. COOPERATION AND CONSULTATION.
(a) In General.--In carrying out the duties described in section 6,
OTAC shall consult and cooperate with--
(1) relevant Federal agencies and grantees of the U.S.
Agency for Global Media, regarding any effort consistent with
the purposes of this Act, including--
(A) collecting source material;
(B) avoiding duplication of effort;
(C) details of employees; and
(D) training; and
(2) other relevant stakeholders, including--
(A) nonprofit research institutes;
(B) institutions of higher education; and
(C) media organizations.
(b) Foreign Governments.--OTAC is authorized to consult and
cooperate with any foreign government beginning on the date that is 14
days after--
(1) the Secretary of State certifies that it is in the
national interest for OTAC to cooperate and consult with a
foreign government; and
(2) the Secretary of State provides to the relevant
congressional committees such certification.
SEC. 8. SPONSORSHIP.
(a) Sponsors.--
(1) In general.--The Secretary of State shall be the
primary sponsor of OTAC.
(2) Agreements.--The Secretary of State may enter into
agreements with other relevant Federal agencies to provide
additional sponsors of OTAC.
(3) Notification.--The Secretary of State shall notify the
relevant congressional committees of any additional sponsors
for OTAC not later than 15 days after entering into an
agreement under paragraph (2).
(b) Sense of Congress.--It is the sense of Congress that the
Secretary of State should enter into a sponsorship agreement pursuant
to subsection (a)(2) with the Director of the Central Intelligence
Agency.
(c) Agreement.--
(1) In general.--Not later than 180 days after the date of
the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State shall seek to
enter into a sponsoring agreement with respect to OTAC that
requires OTAC to carry out the duties described in sections 5
and 6.
(2) Consistency with requirements prescribed by
administrator for federal procurement policy.--The
Administrator for Federal Procurement Policy shall prescribe
general requirements for the sponsoring agreement entered into
under paragraph (1).
SEC. 9. DEFINITIONS.
For the purposes of this Act:
(1) The term ``governing organization'' means any national
body separate from a foreign government that maintains ultimate
control over such government, including political parties that
exercise functions normally reserved for governments.
(2) The term ``countries of strategic interest'' means--
(A) the People's Republic of China; and
(B) other countries as determined by the Secretary
of State.
(3) The term ``relevant congressional committees'' means--
(A) the Foreign Affairs Committee in the House of
Representatives; and
(B) the Foreign Relations Committee in the Senate.
(4) The term ``languages of strategic interest'' means--
(A) languages identified as critical languages by
the Department of State's Critical Language Scholarship
Program; and
(B) other languages as determined by the Secretary
of State.
SEC. 10. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.
There are authorized to be appropriated for OTAC--
(1) $85,000,000 for fiscal year 2022;
(2) $80,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2023 through 2026;
and
(3) such sums as may be necessary for each fiscal year
thereafter.
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