IB 
Union Calendar No. 121 
119TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 1737 
[Report No. 119–155] 
To direct the Secretary of Commerce to submit to Congress a report con-
taining an assessment of the value, cost, and feasibility of a trans- 
Atlantic submarine fiber optic cable connecting the contiguous United 
States, the United States Virgin Islands, Ghana, and Nigeria. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
FEBRUARY 27, 2025 
Ms. PLASKETT (for herself and Mr. FULCHER) introduced the following bill; 
which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce 
JUNE 12, 2025 
Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the State of the Union 
and ordered to be printed 
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•HR 1737 RH
A BILL 
To direct the Secretary of Commerce to submit to Congress 
a report containing an assessment of the value, cost, 
and feasibility of a trans-Atlantic submarine fiber optic 
cable connecting the contiguous United States, the 
United States Virgin Islands, Ghana, and Nigeria. 
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•HR 1737 RH
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
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tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
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SECTION 1. ASSESSMENT OF TRANS-ATLANTIC SUBMARINE 
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FIBER OPTIC CABLE. 
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(a) REPORT.—Not later than 1 year after the date 
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of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary, in consultation 
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with the heads of other Federal departments and agencies 
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as necessary, shall submit to the Committee on Energy 
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and Commerce of the House of Representatives and the 
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Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation of 
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the Senate a report containing an assessment of the value, 
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cost, and feasibility of a trans-Atlantic submarine fiber 
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optic cable connecting the contiguous United States, the 
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United States Virgin Islands, Ghana, and Nigeria, to en-
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hance the national security of the United States. 
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(b) ELEMENTS.—The report required by subsection 
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(a) shall include an assessment of— 
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(1) the digital security, national security, and 
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economic opportunities associated with a trans-At-
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lantic submarine fiber optic cable described in sub-
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section (a); 
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(2) the lifespan of submarine fiber optic cables 
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currently connecting the United States Virgin Is-
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lands to the contiguous United States; 
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•HR 1737 RH
(3) the current security of telecommunications 
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between the contiguous United States and the 
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United States Virgin Islands; 
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(4) the readiness of telecommunications infra-
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structure in the United States Virgin Islands to sup-
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port a trans-Atlantic submarine fiber optic cable de-
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scribed in subsection (a); 
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(5) the potential for engagement with trusted 
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entities in the deployment of a trans-Atlantic sub-
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marine fiber optic cable described in subsection (a), 
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and the associated geopolitical and economic advan-
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tages; 
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(6) the potential connectivity opportunities to 
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maximize investments in the United States economy 
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through the use of a trans-Atlantic submarine fiber 
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optic cable described in subsection (a); 
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(7) the value, cost, and feasibility of estab-
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lishing a data center and high-security cloud services 
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facility, with independent power generation, in the 
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United States Virgin Islands for communications of 
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the United States Africa Command, communications 
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of the United States Special Operations Command, 
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and national security communications; 
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•HR 1737 RH
(8) the state of submarine fiber optic cables 
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connected to United States telecommunications in-
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frastructure; and 
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(9) any other related matters the Secretary de-
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termines are appropriate. 
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(c) NO MANDATORY DATA COLLECTION.—The Sec-
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retary may not require any entity to provide data for pur-
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poses of preparing the report required by subsection (a). 
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(d) FORM.—The report required by subsection (a) 
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shall be submitted in unclassified form without any des-
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ignation relating to dissemination control, but may include 
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a classified annex. 
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(e) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 
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(1) NOT TRUSTED.—The term ‘‘not trusted’’ 
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means, with respect to an entity, that the entity is 
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determined by the Secretary to pose an unacceptable 
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risk to the national security of the United States, or 
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the security and safety of United States persons, 
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based solely on one or more determination described 
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under paragraphs (1) through (4) of section 2(c) of 
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the Secure and Trusted Communications Networks 
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Act of 2019 (47 U.S.C. 1601(c)). 
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(2) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 
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the Secretary of Commerce, acting through the As-
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•HR 1737 RH
sistant Secretary of Commerce for Communications 
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and Information. 
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(3) TRUSTED.—The term ‘‘trusted’’ means, 
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with respect to an entity, that the Secretary has not 
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determined that the entity is not trusted. 
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Union Calendar No. 121 
119TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION 
H. R. 1737 
[Report No. 119–155] 
A BILL 
To direct the Secretary of Commerce to submit to 
Congress a report containing an assessment of 
the value, cost, and feasibility of a trans-Atlantic 
submarine fiber optic cable connecting the con-
tiguous United States, the United States Virgin 
Islands, Ghana, and Nigeria. 
JUNE 12, 2025 
Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the 
State of the Union and ordered to be printed 
VerDate Sep 11 2014 
22:38 Jun 12, 2025
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