; (B) low-income individuals; and (C) communities with limited access to the internet or telecommunications networks. (4) Inclusion The Secretary shall take into consideration the unique needs and circumstances of marginalized communities and populations that have historically been excluded from or otherwise prevented from taking full advantage of traditional and current financial institutions and payment services. (5) Transparency The Secretary shall seek out and prioritize wherever practically feasible the use of hardware and software technologies issued under open-source licenses, and shall further require that all publicly funded research and technology be released under a suitable open-source license and made available for study and review by the scientific community and the general public, except to the extent that doing so would undermine or impair the security and integrity of e-cash devices or instruments. (d) Consumer protections (1) Fees The Government may charge reasonable prices when selling e-cash-compatible hardware (henceforth e-cash devices ) directly to the public, provided such prices are proportionate to, and not unduly in excess of, actual production and administration costs, but may in no instance impose fees or other charges for holding, receiving, sending, or otherwise transacting with e-cash balances using such devices. (2) Solicited issuance of e-cash hardware devices The Government or an authorized e-cash distributor may issue an e-cash device to a member of the public only in response to an oral or written request for such device. (3) Solicited issuance of e-cash balances The Government or an authorized e-cash distributor may issue e-cash instruments to a user only in response to an oral or written request to receive funds in the form of e-cash, and any such requested funds shall be capable of being— (A) received in the form of an increase in the available balance of an existing e-cash device or as a balance on a newly issued e-cash device