Editorial Notes
References in Text
Sections 5583 and 5584 of the Otto Warmbier Countering North Korean Censorship and Surveillance Act of 2022, referred to in subsec. (a)(7)(B)(i), are sections 5583 and 5584 of subtitle F of title LV of div. E of Pub. L. 117–263, Dec. 23, 2022, 136 Stat. 3372. 3373. Sections 5583 and 5584(a) of the Act are not classified to the Code. Section 5584(b) of the Act amended this section.
Section 403, referred to in subsec. (a)(7)(B)(ii), may mean section 403 of the North Korea Sanctions and Policy Enhancement Act of 2016, Pub. L. 114–122, which authorized appropriations to carry out various provisions in this chapter and was classified to section 9253 of this title, prior to repeal by Pub. L. 115–198, § 9, July 20, 2018, 132 Stat. 1525. There is no section 403 of Pub. L. 108–333, of which this section is a part.
The date of the enactment of the North Korea Sanctions and Policy Enhancement Act of 2015, referred to in subsec. (d), probably means the date of enactment of the North Korea Sanctions and Policy Enhancement Act of 2016, Pub. L. 114–122, which was approved Feb. 18, 2016.
Amendments
2022—Subsec. (a)(7)(B). Pub. L. 117–263, § 5584(b)(1), in introductory provisions, substituted “September 30, 2022” for “1 year after July 20, 2018” and “Chief Executive Officer of the United States Agency for Global Media” for “Broadcasting Board of Governors”.
Subsec. (a)(7)(B)(i). Pub. L. 117–263, § 5584(b)(2), inserted “and sections 5583 and 5584 of the Otto Warmbier Countering North Korean Censorship and Surveillance Act of 2022” after “this section”.
2018—Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 115–198, § 5, designated existing provisions as par. (1), inserted heading, inserted “, USB drives, micro SD cards, audio players, video players, cell phones, wi-fi, wireless internet, web pages, internet, wireless telecommunications, and other electronic media that shares information” before period at end, and added pars. (2) to (7).
Subsec. (b)(1). Pub. L. 115–198, § 7(b)(1), substituted “$3,000,000” for “$2,000,000” and “2022” for “2017”.
Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 115–198, § 7(b)(2), substituted “2022” for “2017”.
2016—Subsec. (d). Pub. L. 114–122 added subsec. (d).
2012—Subsecs. (b)(1), (c). Pub. L. 112–172 substituted “2017” for “2012”.
2008—Subsec. (b)(1). Pub. L. 110–346, § 7(1), substituted “2012” for “2008”.
Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 110–346, § 7(2), substituted “annually through 2012” for “in each of the 3 years thereafter”.
Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries
Change of Name
Broadcasting Board of Governors renamed United States Agency for Global Media pursuant to section 6204(a)(21) of this title. The renaming was effectuated by notice to congressional appropriations committees dated May 24, 2018, and became effective Aug. 22, 2018.
Findings; Sense of Congress
Pub. L. 117–263, div. E, title LV, § 5581, Dec. 23, 2022, 136 Stat. 3371, provided that:
“(a) Findings.—Congress makes the following findings:
“(1)
The information landscape in
North Korea is the most repressive in the world, consistently ranking last or near-last in the annual World Press Freedom Index.
“(2)
Under the brutal rule of Kim Jung Un, the country’s leader since 2012, the North Korean regime has tightened controls on access to information, as well as enacted harsh punishments for consumers of outside media, including sentencing to time in a concentration camp and a maximum penalty of death.
“(3)
Such repressive and unjust laws surrounding information in
North Korea resulted in the death of 22-year-old United States citizen and university student Otto Warmbier, who had traveled to
North Korea in December 2015 as part of a guided tour.
“(4)
Otto Warmbier was unjustly arrested, sentenced to 15 years of hard labor, and severely mistreated at the hands of North Korean officials. While in captivity, Otto Warmbier suffered a serious medical emergency that placed him into a comatose state. Otto Warmbier was comatose upon his release in June 2017 and died 6 days later.
“(5)
Despite increased penalties for possession and viewership of foreign media, the people of North Korean have increased their desire for foreign media content, according to a survey of 200 defectors concluding that 90 percent had watched South Korean or other foreign media before defecting.
“(6)
On March 23, 2021, in an annual resolution, the United Nations General Assembly condemned ‘the long-standing and ongoing systematic, widespread and gross violations of human rights in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea’ and expressed grave concern at, among other things, ‘the denial of the right to freedom of thought, conscience, and religion . . . and of the rights to freedom of opinion, expression, and association, both online and offline, which is enforced through an absolute monopoly on information and total control over organized social life, and arbitrary and unlawful state surveillance that permeates the private lives of all citizens’.
“(7)
In 2018, Typhoon Yutu caused extensive damage to 15 broadcast antennas used by the United States Agency for Global Media in Asia, resulting in reduced programming to
North Korea. The United States Agency for Global Media has rebuilt 5 of the 15 antenna systems as of June 2021.
“(b) Sense of Congress.—It is the sense of Congress that—
“(1)
in the event of a crisis situation, particularly where information pertaining to the crisis is being actively censored or a false narrative is being put forward, the United States should be able to quickly increase its broadcasting capability to deliver fact-based information to audiences, including those in
North Korea; and
“(2)
the United States International Broadcasting Surge Capacity Fund is already authorized under section 316 of the
United States International Broadcasting Act of 1994 (
22 U.S.C. 6216), and expanded authority to transfer unobligated balances from expired accounts of the United States Agency for Global Media would enable the Agency to more nimbly respond to crises.”
Statement of Policy
Pub. L. 117–263, div. E, title LV, § 5582, Dec. 23, 2022, 136 Stat. 3372, provided that:
“It is the policy of the United States—
“(1)
to provide the people of
North Korea with access to a diverse range of fact-based information;
“(2)
to develop and implement novel means of communication and information sharing that increase opportunities for audiences in
North Korea to safely create, access, and share digital and non-digital news without fear of repressive censorship, surveillance, or penalties under law; and
“(3)
to foster and innovate new technologies to counter
North Korea’s state-sponsored repressive surveillance and censorship by advancing internet freedom tools, technologies, and new approaches.”
Executive Documents
