SB 3360, the FREEDOM Act, would require the Secretary of State, in consultation with the Federal Communications Commission and the Department of the Treasury, to submit a report to Congress within 120 days on internet freedom in Iran. The report would update and supplement an existing strategy required under the FY2025 National Defense Authorization Act and focus on practical ways to expand or preserve internet access for people in Iran.
The bill directs the report to examine the feasibility of direct-to-cell wireless communications, the effects of drone-based platforms and signal jamming, and the current landscape of terrestrial and non-terrestrial telecommunications providers in Iran, including state ownership, foreign investment, and implications for censorship. It also asks for broader analysis of opportunities and risks associated with communications technologies in Iran, and requires the report to be submitted in unclassified form, with a classified annex permitted.
If enacted, the bill would not directly change domestic regulatory law, but it would impose a new reporting requirement on the Department of State and related agencies and expand the scope of an existing congressional strategy on Iran communications freedom. It would also require analysis of low-Earth-orbit satellite internet systems, off-the-shelf technologies, user privacy and security, and resilience against Iranian countermeasures, potentially informing future sanctions, foreign policy, export control, or democracy-support initiatives related to Iran's internet access and censorship environment.
The available context suggests generally favorable, bipartisan interest in the bill’s subject matter. The measure was introduced by Senators Rosen, McCormick, Gallego, and Cornyn, indicating cross-party sponsorship, and it was reported by the Senate Foreign Relations Committee with an amendment. There is no recorded vote or transcript in the provided materials, but the committee action and lack of recorded opposition suggest the bill was viewed as a technical, policy-oriented effort to study internet access and censorship in Iran rather than a controversial substantive intervention.
The main points of potential contention are likely to center on the feasibility, security, and policy implications of using direct-to-cell and satellite internet technologies to bypass Iranian censorship. The bill specifically asks for analysis of jamming, drone-based platforms, classified vulnerabilities, and the use of commercial off-the-shelf technologies, which suggests concerns about operational security, user safety, and whether such tools could expose Iranian users to retaliation. Another possible point of debate is the extent to which the United States should support technologies that facilitate uncensored internet access in Iran, especially where such efforts may intersect with sanctions, export controls, or broader U.S.-Iran policy.