[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 3369 Introduced in House (IH)]







110th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 3369

  To provide compensation for United States citizens taken hostage by 
               terrorists or state sponsors of terrorism.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             August 3, 2007

Ms. Ros-Lehtinen (for herself, Mr. Delahunt, Mr. Burton of Indiana, and 
   Mr. Poe) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
Committee on the Judiciary, and in addition to the Committee on Foreign 
Affairs, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in 
   each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the 
                jurisdiction of the committee concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To provide compensation for United States citizens taken hostage by 
               terrorists or state sponsors of terrorism.

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

SECTION 1. COMPENSATION FOR UNITED STATES CITIZENS TAKEN HOSTAGE BY 
              TERRORISTS OR STATE SPONSORS OF TERRORISM.

    (a) In General.--In accordance with such procedures as the 
President may by regulation establish, the President shall receive the 
claims of, and pay compensation to, any national of the United States, 
or to the estate of any such national, who--
            (1) has obtained a judgment on a claim filed prior to the 
        date of enactment of this Act in a court of the United States 
        against a foreign state seeking compensation for injuries 
        caused by an act of hostage-taking, and such a claim has not 
        been fully satisfied;
            (2) at any time on or after August 2, 1990, and while not 
        serving on active duty in the Armed Forces of the United 
        States, was taken as a hostage by a terrorist party; or
            (3) was a representative plaintiff or class member in Case 
        Number 1:00CV03110 (EGS) in the United States District Court 
        for the District of Columbia or a plaintiff in Case Number 
        1:00CV00716 (HHK) in the United States District Court for the 
        District of Columbia.
    (b) Limit on Amount of Award.--The amount that may be awarded to 
any person seeking compensation under this section shall not exceed 
$500,000, adjusted to reflect the annual percentage change in the 
Consumer Price Index from the date on which the act of hostage-taking 
was initiated to the date on which such compensation is paid.
    (c) Type of Award.--Subject to the limit in subsection (b), any 
person seeking compensation under this section shall be awarded the 
following amounts, with respect to which the United States shall enjoy 
full subrogation rights in the event such person obtains any recovery 
in litigation or otherwise as a result of the hostage-taking on which 
the claim under this section is based:
            (1) In the case of any person who has been issued a final 
        judgment for compensatory damages, the unsatisfied amount of 
        such judgment.
            (2) In the case of any person who survived his or her 
        captivity and who has not been issued a final judgment for 
        compensatory damages, $10,000 per day for each day during which 
        the person was held or, if the person died or was tortured 
        during the course of his or her captivity, the maximum amount 
        specified in subsection (b).
    (d) Prohibition on Civil Actions Against Foreign States.--A person 
who has accepted compensation under subsection (c)(2) may not commence 
or maintain in any court in the United States a civil action against a 
foreign state, or any agency or instrumentality of a foreign state, 
seeking compensation for injuries or damages associated with the act of 
hostage-taking on which the claim under this section is based.
    (e) Funding.--Not later than 60 days after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, the President shall establish in the Treasury of 
the United States a fund (in this section referred to as the ``Hostage 
Victims Fund'') for payment of claims to persons to whom compensation 
is due under this section. The President shall direct deposits into the 
Hostage Victims Fund in amounts sufficient to pay persons to whom 
compensation is due under subsection (c), in such proportions as the 
President may determine, from--
            (1) the blocked assets of terrorist parties;
            (2) amounts received by the United States by reason of any 
        legal action taken by the United States against any person 
        relating to improper conduct in connection with the Oil for 
        Food Program of the United Nations, including any fines, 
        forfeitures, or disgorgements of amounts received through any 
        activity related to such Program; or
            (3) amounts received as a result of any fine or forfeiture 
        obtained from any person or entity in connection with a 
        violation of--
                    (A) the International Emergency Economic Powers Act 
                (50 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.);
                    (B) section 5(b) of the Trading With the Enemy Act 
                (50 U.S.C. App. 5(b));
                    (C) the United and Strengthening America by 
                Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and 
                Obstruct Terrorism (USA PATRIOT) Act of 2001 (Public 
                Law 107-56; 115 Stat. 272);
                    (D) chapter 53 of title 31, United States Code, 
                chapter 2 of title I of Public Law 91-508, and section 
                21 of the Federal Deposit Insurance Act;
                    (E) the Export Administration Act of 1979 (50 
                U.S.C. App. 2401-2410); or
                    (F) any regulations promulgated under an Act listed 
                in any of subparagraphs (A) through (E).
    (f) Additional Compensation for Victims of Iranian Hostage-Taking 
in Tehran.--In addition to any amounts that may be awarded under 
subsection (c), the President shall, from monies deposited for Iran in 
the Iran Foreign Military Sales Fund account within the Foreign 
Military Sales Fund (including any amounts accrued as interest 
thereon)--
            (1) pay any person who qualifies for payment under 
        subsection (a)(3) who was taken as a hostage by the Islamic 
        Republic of Iran on November 4, 1979, or who was taken as a 
        hostage in Lebanon by Hezbollah on December 4, 1984, and 
        subsequently transferred to Iran, additional compensation of 
        $500,000, adjusted to reflect the annual percentage change in 
        the Consumer Price Index, from the date on which the act of 
        hostage-taking was initiated to the date on which the 
        compensation under this paragraph is paid; and
            (2) pay any person who was, at the time of the hostage-
        taking described in paragraph (1), the spouse or child of the 
        person taken hostage, 50 percent of the total amount of 
        compensation paid to the person taken hostage.
    (g) Return of Amounts in Hostage Victims Fund to Certain Foreign 
States.--Upon exercising all authorities necessary to terminate the 
designation of a foreign state as a terrorist party and the status of 
the assets of such foreign state as blocked assets, the President may 
withdraw from the Hostage Victims Fund amounts not to exceed the value 
of the assets of that foreign state which have been deposited into such 
Fund and return such amounts to the control of such foreign state if, 
prior to such withdrawal, all claims received by the President prior to 
the exercise of such authorities have been adjudicated and paid in full 
or the President has determined that the remaining balance of the Fund 
after such withdrawal will be sufficient to make prompt payment on all 
such claims in the full amount provided for under the terms of this 
Act.
    (h) Definitions.--In this section:
            (1) Blocked asset.--The term ``blocked asset'' has the 
        meaning given that term in section 201(d)(2) of the Terrorism 
        Risk Insurance Act of 2002 (Public Law 107-297; 28 U.S.C. 1610 
        note).
            (2) Hostage.--The term ``hostage'' has the meaning given 
        that term in Article 1 of the International Convention Against 
        the Taking of the Hostages, signed at New York on December 17, 
        1979 (TIAS 11081), and includes any hostage taken before that 
        date.
            (3) Hostage-taking.--The term ``hostage-taking'' has the 
        meaning given that term in Article 1 of the International 
        Convention Against the Taking of the Hostages and includes any 
        act that caused a person to be in ``hostage status'' within the 
        meaning of section 599C(d)(1) of Public Law 101-513.
            (4) Terrorist party.--The term ``terrorist party'' has the 
        meaning given that term in section 201(d)(4) of the Terrorism 
        Risk Insurance Act of 2002 (Public Law 107-297; 28 U.S.C. 1610 
        note) and includes any person, organization, or foreign state 
        that was designated as such either at the time or as a result 
        of the act of hostage-taking for which compensation is sought.
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