International Communications Reorganization Act of 1980
Latest action. Referred to House Committee on Foreign Affairs.
International Communications Reorganization Act of 1980 - Establishes in the Executive Office of the President a Council on International Communications and Information (Council). Directs the Council to: (1) review any action or proposed action under specified Executive Orders; (2) coordinate the policies and activities of Federal agencies involving international communications and information; and (3) review all policy determinations and proposed policy statements by such agencies relating to international communications and information, except actions or determinations made pursuant to specified rulemaking or adjudicatory procedures. Sets forth the powers of the Council. Directs all Federal agencies to provide the Council with information it deems necessary to perform its functions. Prohibits any agency from acting with respect to international communications or information without prior review by the Council unless such action is made pursuant to specified rulemaking or adjudicatory procedures. Directs the Council to establish an Advisory Committee on International Communications (Committee). Establishes an interagency committee to advise the Council on problems encountered by Federal agencies in the performance of responsibilities related to international communications and information. Permits the disclosure of confidential information where the recipient has been sufficiently informed of the confidential nature of the information, submitted to the Council the Committee, or the interagency committee: (1) to designated U.S. officers and employees; (2) to an appropriate congressional committee; (3) to the Committee; or (4) pursuant to court order. Establishes, and sets forth the functions of, the following offices: (1) a Bureau of International Communications and Information within the Department of State; (2) a Special Ambassador for Telecommunications and Information Services within the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative; and (3) an Office of International Communications within the Federal Communications Commission. Directs the Council to report to specified congressional committees with respect to: (1) the Council's plans for fulfilling its responsibilities under this Act; and (2) legislative or administrative recommendations to further the establishment of a comprehensive international communications and information policy.
Written by analysts at the Congressional Research Service and published on Congress.gov, not by Civibrief. Summarized at the "Introduced in House" stage on December 5, 1980. It describes the bill, it is not the legal text.
Where is it in the process, and what happens next?
4 steps remain before this bill could become law.
The record's latest action, on December 5, 1980: Referred to House Committee on Foreign Affairs.
- Clearing the committees it was referred to, and being scheduled for a floor vote
- Passage by the House
- Passage by the Senate
- The President's signature. If the President vetoes it, two-thirds of both chambers must vote to override.
How likely is it to become law?
Civibrief does not forecast outcomes and this page has no opinion about this one. What the record supports is a base rate, which is a fact about the whole pile, not a prediction about this measure.
In the 96th Congress (1979-80), 613 of the 12,581 bills and joint resolutions introduced became law, about 4.9 percent. That count covers every measure at every stage, including the many that never left committee.
This one is not there yet: 4 steps are still outstanding, listed above.
Has anyone actually voted on it?
No. No roll call in this Congress cites this measure. That is the ordinary outcome: most measures never reach a recorded floor vote, and a committee ends most of them simply by not acting.
A vote is not the only thing that happens to a measure. Hearings, markups, and referrals are all recorded actions, and none of them is a vote of the full chamber.
Who is behind it?
L. PREYER (D-NC) introduced it on December 5, 1980, and 12 members have since signed on as cosponsors.
They come from both major parties: 9 Democrats, 3 Republicans.
Cosponsoring is a formal signature on the text. It is not a commitment to vote for the measure, it does not bind anyone's party, and a long list of cosponsors is a measure of attention rather than of prospects.
How long has it been in play?
It was introduced on December 5, 1980, 16715 days ago. The most recent recorded action was 16715 days ago, on December 5, 1980.
Measures do not carry over. Anything the 96th Congress has not finished by January 3, 1981 dies when the term ends, and has to be introduced again from the start in the next Congress.
Every answer above is assembled from this measure's own record on Congress.gov and from published counts of what Congress has passed before. Civibrief does not predict outcomes and takes no position on any measure.
Vote history
- HouseIn committee, no floor vote yet
- SenateAwaits House passage
- PresidentAwaits both chambers