The Public Affairs Alliance of Iranian Americans, together with a diverse group of organizations and internet freedom advocates, is urging Senate leadership to support the inclusion of two bipartisan amendments in the Fiscal Year 2027 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA): the Iran Human Rights, Internet Freedom, and Accountability Act (S.3900, Amendment #5902), and the Feasibility Review of Emerging Equipment for Digital Open Media (FREEDOM) Act (S.3360, Amendment #6327), both introduced by Senators Dave McCormick (R-PA) and Jacky Rosen (D-NV).
Internet shutdowns have become one of the Iranian regime’s most powerful instruments of oppression – allowing severe violence and human rights abuses to occur with diminished international visibility, while simultaneously preventing Iranians from communicating not only with each other but also with the world outside of Iran. In January, authorities imposed a nationwide blackout that kept a lethal crackdown on protestors from international scrutiny. In the months that followed the regime again imposed sweeping restrictions lasting 88 days – the longest nationwide internet blackout recorded in Iran to date – further isolating millions of Iranians from one another and the outside world. Throughout this period, internet restrictions prevented information from entering or exiting the country, ultimately concealing the violent measures taken by the Iranian government against civilians from the rest of the world.
PAAIA believes that helping ordinary Iranians communicate with one another and the international community remains one of the most effective measures the United States can implement in order to support the democratic aspirations of the Iranian people while simultaneously advancing U.S. national security interests.
The bipartisan FREEDOM Act, approved by the Senate Foreign Relations Committee earlier this year, would strengthen the evidentiary foundation of U.S. foreign policy by requiring updated assessments of emerging communications technologies capable of ensuring Iranians are able to remain connected during internet shutdowns. This would help advance communications accessibility within the country and ultimately provide Iranians with digital paths of advocacy. By evaluating these technologies, this legislation would expand communications resilience within Iran and provide Iranians with more secure channels to communicate, organize, and share information with the outside world.
The bipartisan Iran Human Rights, Internet Freedom, and Accountability Act, approved by the Senate Foreign Relations Committee in June, incorporates many of the coordination and implementation concepts reflected in the bipartisan IRAN Act (H.R.7380). The legislation would designate the Department of State to lead a whole-of-government strategy to advance internet freedom in Iran, expand access to VPNs and emerging communications technologies, support independent media and civil society, enhance cybersecurity education, extend the Iran Internet Freedom Grant Program, and strengthen efforts to counter censorship and nationwide internet shutdowns.
Together, these two proposed amendments to the NDAA represent the most comprehensive congressional response to date centered on countering internet shutdowns, strengthening secure communications, and ensuring that Iranian civilians are able to access information in one of the world’s most heavily censored nations. These legislative measures are a key step in advancing the democratic aspirations of the Iranian people and the national security interests of the United States.
We encourage everyone who supports internet freedom and human rights in Iran to contact their representatives and urge them to support the inclusion of these two bipartisan amendments in the FY2027 NDAA. Contact your elected officials today using PAAIA’s action alerts.
