Congressional Budget Office Scores the NTIA Reauthorization Act of 2023

The NTIA Reauthorization Act of 2023 (H.R. 4510) would authorize the appropriation of $62 million for fiscal years 2024 and 2025 for the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) to carry out its operations. The bill would codify some existing responsibilities and programs of the NTIA, such as the Office of Public Safety Communications and the Office of International Affairs. H.R. 4510 also would require the NTIA to carry out other responsibilities including a cybersecurity literacy campaign and studying the cybersecurity of mobile service networks. In addition, the bill would require NTIA and the Federal Communications Commission to publish certain information if the FCC proposes actions or issues final rules about the reallocation of radio spectrum that could affect how the federal government uses that spectrum. H.R. 4510 would establish two interagency groups related to spectrum policy in the federal government. Finally, the bill would require the NTIA and several other federal agencies, including the FCC and Department of Agriculture (USDA), to establish a national strategy to close the digital divide. CBO estimates that implementing H.R. 4510 would cost $129 million over 2024-2028. The bill would authorize the appropriation of $62 million for fiscal years 2024 and 2025 for the administration of the NTIA. The Congress provided $62 million for the NTIA in 2023. Based on the historical spending patterns for those activities, CBO estimates that implementing the bill would cost $124 million over the 2024-2028 period. Using information from the agency, CBO expects that the NTIA would require more than $62 million each of those two years to maintain its current operations and fully implement the additional responsibilities in the bill.