[Congressional Bills 108th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 3603 Introduced in House (IH)]






108th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 3603

 To provide for the adjudication of claims of nationals of the United 
    States against the Government of Iraq arising during the period 
         beginning on May 16, 1987, and ending on May 1, 2003.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           November 21, 2003

Mr. Gerlach (for himself, Mr. McGovern, Ms. Berkley, Ms. Ros-Lehtinen, 
and Mr. Gallegly) introduced the following bill; which was referred to 
                the Committee on International Relations

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To provide for the adjudication of claims of nationals of the United 
    States against the Government of Iraq arising during the period 
         beginning on May 16, 1987, and ending on May 1, 2003.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Iraq Claims Act of 2003''.

SEC. 2. DETERMINATION AND CERTIFICATION OF INDIVIDUAL AND CORPORATE 
              CLAIMS.

    (a) In General.--Not later than 3 years after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, the Commission shall determine, in accordance 
with applicable substantive law (including international law), the 
validity and amount of each individual and corporate claim, and shall 
certify such determination to the Secretary of State and the Secretary 
of the Treasury. Such certification shall be in the form of a single 
document, listing each valid claim, and shall include with the listing 
of each claim the name and address of the claimant and the amount of 
such claim, including interest, determined by the Commission to be 
valid.
    (b) Applicability of the International Claims Settlement Act of 
1949.--Except to the extent inconsistent with the provisions of this 
Act, the provisions of title I of the International Claims Settlement 
Act of 1949 (22 U.S.C. 1621 et seq.) shall apply with respect to each 
individual and corporate claim under this section to the same extent as 
such provisions apply to claims under such title. Any reference in such 
provisions to ``this title'' shall be deemed to refer to those 
provisions and to this Act.
    (c) Award of Interest.--In determining the amount of any valid 
claim pursuant to this section, the Commission shall award interest on 
the amount of the claim for the period beginning on the date that the 
injury, loss, or damage that forms the basis of the claim occurred and 
ending on the date that the claim is settled. Interest shall be awarded 
at the rate set by the Secretary of the Treasury under section 1961(a) 
of title 28, United States Code, as of the date that the Commission 
determines the validity of the claim. Interest shall be computed daily 
to the date of the settlement of the claim, and shall be compounded 
annually.

SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) Commission.--The term ``Commission'' means the Foreign 
        Claims Settlement Commission of the United States.
            (2) Corporate claim.--The term ``corporate claim'' means a 
        claim by any corporation, partnership, association, or other 
        legal entity organized under the laws of the United States, any 
        State, the District of Columbia, or any commonwealth, 
        territory, or possession of the United States against the 
        Government of Iraq for injuries, losses, or other damages 
        arising during the period beginning on May 16, 1987, and ending 
        on May 1, 2003.
            (3) Government of iraq.--The term ``Government of Iraq'' 
        includes agencies and instrumentalities of, and entities 
        (including public sector enterprises) controlled by, such 
        government.
            (4) Individual claim.--The term ``individual claim'' means 
        a claim by any citizen or national of the United States against 
        the Government of Iraq for injuries, losses, or other damages 
        arising during the period beginning on May 16, 1987, and ending 
        on May 1, 2003.
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