Repeal the Smith-Mundt Modernization Act of 2013
Key claim: HR5704 proposes to repeal the Smith-Mundt Modernization Act of 2013, which had allowed domestic dissemination of U.S. government-produced foreign public diplomacy materials.
Abstract
(HR5704 · 119th Congress) Latest action (2025-10-08): Referred to the House Committee on Foreign Affairs.
Why this matters
The Smith-Mundt Modernization Act of 2013 dismantled a decades-old firewall between U.S. government foreign-audience broadcasting and domestic audiences, and its repeal would re-impose that firewall on Voice of America, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, and other USAGM outlets as well as State Department public diplomacy content. The practical implications touch USAGM operations, State Department information activities, and questions about domestic propaganda safeguards. Fiscal impact is modest but the authority interacts directly with State-Foreign Operations appropriations and public diplomacy program design.