§ 215. DISPARITIES IN ACCESS TO THE INTERNET.

307 words·~1 min read·/usc/title-44/section-215

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Study and Report.— Study .— Not later than 90 days after the date of enactment of this Act [ Dec. 17, 2002 ], the Administrator of General Services shall request that the National Academy of Sciences, acting through the National Research Council, enter into a contract to conduct a study on disparities in Internet access for online Government services. Report .— Not later than 2 years after the date of enactment of this Act, the Administrator of General Services shall submit to the Committee on Governmental Affairs [now Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs] of the Senate and the Committee on Government Reform [now Committee on Oversight and Accountability] of the House of Representatives a final report of the study under this section, which shall set forth the findings, conclusions, and recommendations of the National Research Council.

Contents .— The report under subsection

(a)shall include a study of— how disparities in Internet access influence the effectiveness of online Government services, including a review of— the nature of disparities in Internet access; the affordability of Internet service; the incidence of disparities among different groups within the population; and changes in the nature of personal and public Internet access that may alleviate or aggravate effective access to online Government services; how the increase in online Government services is influencing the disparities in Internet access and how technology development or diffusion trends may offset such adverse influences; and related societal effects arising from the interplay of disparities in Internet access and the increase in online Government services. Recommendations .— The report shall include recommendations on actions to ensure that online Government initiatives shall not have the unintended result of increasing any deficiency in public access to Government services. Authorization of Appropriations .— There are authorized to be appropriated $950,000 in fiscal year 2003 to carry out this section.