To direct the Secretary of Commerce to submit to Congress a report containing an assessment of the value, cost, and feasibility of a trans-Atlantic submarine fiber optic cable connecting the contiguous United States, the United States Virgin Islands, Ghana, and Nigeria.
Latest action · Mar 6, 2024 Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
Progress
Where this bill reached, and when. A stage with no date was not reached; one that failed a vote and later carried shows the date it carried.
- IntroducedMay 16, 2023
- Passed HouseMar 5, 2024
- Passed SenateNot reached
- To the PresidentNot reached
- Became lawNot reached
Summary
This bill requires the National Telecommunications and Information Administration to submit a report to Congress that assesses the feasibility, value, cost, and security implications of a submarine fiber optic cable to connect the contiguous United States, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Ghana, and Nigeria.
Cosponsors 1
Members who signed on, in the order they did. All signed on Jul 27, 2023.
| Seat | Cosponsor | Signed on | |
|---|---|---|---|
| R-ID | Russ Fulcher | Jul 27, 2023 |
Committees 2
Where it was sent and what each committee and subcommittee did with it, in order.
| Chamber | Committee | What it did |
|---|---|---|
| House | Energy and Commerce Committee | Referred May 16, 2023Markup Jul 27, 2023Reported Oct 2, 2023 |
| Communications and Technology Subcommittee | Referred May 19, 2023Reported Jul 12, 2023Markup Jul 12, 2023 | |
| Senate | Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee | Referred Mar 6, 2024 |
Actions 16
Everything that happened, newest first.
- Mar 6, 2024Received in the Senate and Read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
- Mar 5, 2024Mr. Latta moved to suspend the rules and pass the bill, as amended.
- Mar 5, 2024Considered under suspension of the rules. (consideration: CR H801-803)
- Mar 5, 2024DEBATE - The House proceeded with forty minutes of debate on H.R. 3385.
- Mar 5, 2024Passed/agreed to in House: On motion to suspend the rules and pass the bill, as amended Agreed to by voice vote. (text: CR H801-802)
- Mar 5, 2024Motion to reconsider laid on the table Agreed to without objection.
- Mar 5, 2024The title of the measure was amended. Agreed to without objection.
- Oct 2, 2023Reported (Amended) by the Committee on Energy and Commerce. H. Rept. 118-239.
- Oct 2, 2023Placed on the Union Calendar, Calendar No. 191.
- Jul 27, 2023Committee Consideration and Mark-up Session Held.
- Jul 27, 2023Ordered to be Reported in the Nature of a Substitute (Amended) by the Yeas and Nays: 41 - 0.
- Jul 12, 2023Forwarded by Subcommittee to Full Committee in the Nature of a Substitute (Amended) by Voice Vote.
- Jul 12, 2023Subcommittee Consideration and Mark-up Session Held
- May 19, 2023Referred to the Subcommittee on Communications and Technology.
- May 16, 2023Introduced in House
- May 16, 2023Referred to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce.
In the Congressional Record 2
Days the Record’s own index lists this bill, newest first, with the pages and the members it names. Pages starting H are the House, S the Senate, E Extensions of Remarks.
| Where | In the Record | Members | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| House | Debate and remarks H801–H803Text printed H801 | Kim Schrier D-WA, Robert E. Latta R-OH, Stacey E. Plaskett D-VI | Mar 5, 2024 |
| House | Debate and remarks H3076 | Stacey E. Plaskett D-VI | Jun 22, 2023 |
Research
What has been written about this bill: committee reports, cost estimates, the sponsor’s authority statement, printed hearings and the Congressional Research Service’s work.
Committee report
Congressional Budget Office cost estimate
- Aug 24, 2023H.R. 3385, a bill to direct the Secretary of Commerce to submit to Congress a report containing an assessment of the value, cost, and feasibility of a trans-Atlantic submarine fiber optic cable connecting the contiguous United States, the United States Virgin Islands, Ghana, and NigeriaAs ordered reported by the House Committee on Energy and Commerce on July 27, 2023
Constitutional authority
The sponsor’s statement, as printed in the Congressional Record, vol. 169, no. 82, May 16, 2023, page H2378.
CRS reports 2
Congressional Research Service work that CRS links to this bill or the law it became, newest first.
Cite it 2
Products on other subjects that cite it, usually among other measures.
| Product | Title | Kind | Published |
|---|---|---|---|
| R47329 | Ghana: Current Issues and U.S. Relations Archived | Report | Dec 12, 2024 |
| R47648 | Protection of Undersea Telecommunication Cables: Issues for Congress | Report | Aug 7, 2023 |
Titles 3
Every title it has carried, official and short, at each stage.
- Official Title as Introduced
- To direct the Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Communications and Information to submit to Congress a report containing an assessment of the value, cost, and feasibility of developing a trans-Atlantic submarine fiber optic cable connecting the contiguous United States, the United States Virgin Islands, Ghana, and Nigeria, and for other purposes.
- Official Titles as Amended by House
- To direct the Secretary of Commerce to submit to Congress a report containing an assessment of the value, cost, and feasibility of a trans-Atlantic submarine fiber optic cable connecting the contiguous United States, the United States Virgin Islands, Ghana, and Nigeria.
- Short Title(s) as Introduced
- DiasporaLink Act
Subjects
Assigned by the Library of Congress. Policy area: Science, Technology, Communications.
Text 4
Each version as it was printed, newest first.
- Mar 6, 2024Referred in Senate
- Mar 5, 2024Engrossed in House
- Oct 2, 2023Reported in House
- May 16, 2023Introduced in House
Everything here is as published by Congress: the summary is the Congressional Research Service's, the action wording is the clerks', and the subjects are the Library of Congress's. How far it got is read from the actions themselves, taking the most recent one of each kind, so a bill that failed a vote and later passed is shown as having passed. Records come from this bill on Congress.gov and govinfo.gov; cost estimates are the Congressional Budget Office's, and the hearings are the printed hearings GovInfo publishes, which can appear months after the hearing.
