Today, U.S. Senators Tom Udall (D-N.M.), Jeff Flake (R-Ariz.), Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) and Mike Enzi (R-Wyo.) introduced bipartisan legislation that would enable U.S. telecommunications and Internet companies to provide their services and devices in Cuba. Cuba is one of the least wired countries in the western hemisphere, leaving many Cubans unable to access the Internet for things like business development, political discourse and personal communications.
The Cuba Digital and Telecommunications Advancement Act — or Cuba DATA Act — will allow American companies to help Cuba build the 21st-century telecommunications infrastructure necessary in today’s global economy and empower Cubans to realize their full potential. The Cuba DATA Act provides the certainty that businesses and investors require to connect Cuba to the world by removing barriers for U.S. and international businesses looking to invest in Cuba, and helping open the door to further change.
“One of the best ways that the U.S. can support change in Cuba is by encouraging better and more open communications, and improvements in infrastructure will do that,” said Enzi. “Because Cuba is one of the least wired countries in the western hemisphere, this legislation will provide the opportunity and assurances needed to help cultivate telecommunications services that will deliver new perspectives and information to a people who have been severely limited, as well as opportunities for economic growth.”
Smartphones are also unusable in Cuba, and the few Cubans who do have access to cellular technology are limited to voice and some text services. As the United States begins to normalize diplomatic relations with Cuba, the world needs to be able to engage with Cubans, and encourage renewed connections through unfettered access to telecommunications technologies.
The Cuba DATA Act has the support of Engage Cuba, the Latin America Working Group, #CubaNow, the National Foreign Trade Council, Center for Democracy in the Americas and the Council of the Americas.
The Cuba DATA Act will:
- Allow U.S. companies to export consumer communications devices and telecommunications services to Cuba.
- Codify the Obama administration’s policy of utilizing Internet and telecommunications technology to engage with Cubans.
- Encourage financing and market reform by repealing outdated policies that prevent American businesses from investing in Cuba, including provisions that prevent financing, indirect financing, and assistance to Cuba from the U.S. and other countries.
- Empower international organizations to work with Cuba by repealing outdated provisions that prevent multilateral organizations from investing in the country and engaging in important diplomatic efforts.
