[Congressional Bills 112th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 6436 Introduced in House (IH)]

112th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 6436

    To eliminate conditions in foreign prisons and other detention 
 facilities that do not meet primary indicators of health, sanitation, 
                  and safety, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           September 19, 2012

   Mr. Smith of New Jersey introduced the following bill; which was 
              referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
    To eliminate conditions in foreign prisons and other detention 
 facilities that do not meet primary indicators of health, sanitation, 
                  and safety, and for other purposes.

    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 ``Foreign Prison Conditions 
Improvement Act of 2012''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress makes the following findings:
            (1) Millions of incarcerated people in the world suffer 
        inhumane conditions in prisons and other detention facilities 
        that are overcrowded, unsanitary, and unsafe to the point of 
        endangering their lives. Many governments do not respect their 
        international commitments to ensure that all individuals in 
        detention or incarceration are treated with humanity and with 
        respect for the inherent dignity of the human person.
            (2) Rates of malnutrition and death among prisoners and 
        other detainees far exceed those of the general population, and 
        medical treatment for serious illness or injury is, in many 
        instances, non-existent or grossly inadequate.
            (3) Prisons are extremely high-risk environments for 
        transmitting diseases, particularly HIV and tuberculosis, and 
        create grave risks to communities in which released prisoners 
        live; studies estimate that HIV infection rates in prisons in 
        developing countries can be as much as 50 times higher than in 
        the general population, and tuberculosis infection rates in 
        prisons are more than 20 times higher than in the general 
        population.
            (4) These conditions are compounded by severe overcrowding 
        in prisons and other detention facilities. Excessive pre-trial 
        detention and dysfunctional justice systems frequently result 
        in prisoners and other detainees spending years in such 
        conditions before their cases are adjudicated. In some 
        countries, such facilities are filled to capacity many times 
        over resulting in conditions so cramped that individual 
        prisoners cannot move without all doing so en masse.
            (5) Experts have documented widespread inhumane prison 
        conditions, including overcrowding, inadequate food and water, 
        no access to hygiene products or medical care, juveniles 
        detained with adults, and denial of visits from family.
            (6) Some governments fail to provide even the most 
        rudimentary sanitation in prisons and other detention 
        facilities, putting prisoners and other detainees at even 
        greater risk of easily preventable and often life-threatening 
        diseases. Toilets are few or non-existent and human waste 
        repositories often are located among the general prison 
        population, forcing prisoners to eat, sleep, and live in 
        grossly unsanitary conditions.
            (7) Some governments fail to permit prisoners and other 
        detainees reasonable contact with family members or other 
        visitors. Many governments deny access to certain prisoners and 
        detainees, or do not provide information about their location, 
        health, and well-being, leaving them unaccounted for.
            (8) Inhumane conditions in prisons and other detention 
        facilities often exist in countries where resources for law 
        enforcement are limited and only a small fraction of such 
        resources are made available for the operation and maintenance 
        of prisons and other detention facilities. Inadequate, 
        misplaced, or lost records often result in prisoners and other 
        detainees being incarcerated indefinitely because their cases 
        have never been tried or otherwise adjudicated. In other cases, 
        poor recordkeeping results in prisoners and other detainees 
        being held long after their sentences have expired. Allocating 
        the relatively modest resources necessary to provide for the 
        basic human needs of prisoners and other detainees and to 
        remediate the inhumane conditions under which such prisoners 
        are held is often a low priority.
            (9) The United States Government currently provides 
        significant amounts of assistance to countries whose 
        governments operate prisons and other detention facilities 
        that, because of their inhumane conditions, seriously 
        jeopardize the lives of prisoners and other detainees held 
        under their authority.
            (10) The Department of State's 2011 Country Reports on 
        Human Rights Practices reported prison conditions as poor, 
        inhumane, or life threatening in scores of countries, all of 
        which receive United States assistance.
            (11) On February 14, 2012, a fire at the Comayagua Prison 
        in Honduras killed 360 prisoners. United States officials who 
        investigated the fire attributed the deaths to severe 
        overcrowding and poor safety practices. In one overcrowded cell 
        block, only 4 of 105 prisoners survived. More than half of the 
        prisoners were pretrial detainees who had never been convicted 
        of any crime.
            (12) In many countries, United States citizens suffer 
        serious harm and are at risk of death and mistreatment from 
        being held in prisons and other detention facilities under 
        inhumane conditions.
            (13) The United States Government should use its influence 
        and resources to ensure that governments that receive United 
        States assistance do not operate prisons and other detention 
        facilities under inhumane conditions. The United States 
        Government also should assist countries to eliminate inhumane 
        conditions in prisons and other detention facilities.
            (14) Eliminating inhumane conditions in foreign prisons and 
        other detention facilities will strengthen the rule of law, 
        save lives, and enhance the health and well-being of vulnerable 
        people in poor countries, and it will advance United States 
        interests.

SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) Appropriate congressional committees.--The term 
        ``appropriate congressional committees'' means--
                    (A) the Committee on Appropriations and the 
                Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate; and
                    (B) the Committee on Appropriations and the 
                Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of 
                Representatives.
            (2) Primary indicators for the elimination of inhumane 
        conditions in foreign prisons and other detention facilities.--
        The term ``primary indicators for the elimination of inhumane 
        conditions in prisons and other detention facilities'' means, 
        with respect to the operation or maintenance of prisons and 
        other detention facilities in a foreign country that is a 
        recipient of United States assistance, the following:
                    (A) The number of inmates or detainees held in a 
                facility does not so exceed prison capacity such that 
                per capita floor space is insufficient to allow for 
                humane sleeping conditions and reasonable physical 
                movement.
                    (B) Human waste facilities are sanitary and 
                accessible, and human waste is disposed of regularly 
                and in a sanitary manner.
                    (C) The lighting, ventilation, temperature, and 
                physical construction of prisons and other detention 
                facilities do not seriously endanger the health and 
                safety of prisoners.
                    (D) Prisoners and other detainees have access to 
                adequate food and potable drinking water.
                    (E) Prisoners and other detainees have access to 
                essential and emergency medical care.
                    (F) To the maximum extent practicable, prisoners 
                and other detainees are allowed religious observance 
                and materials, and contact with clergy, family, and 
                friends, by both correspondence and personal visits.
            (3) United states assistance.--The term ``United States 
        assistance'' means any non-humanitarian assistance furnished to 
        carry out the provisions of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 
        (22 U.S.C. 2151 et seq.), the Arms Export Control Act (22 
        U.S.C. 2751 et seq.), or the Millennium Challenge Act of 2003 
        (22 U.S.C. 7701 et seq.).

SEC. 4. EFFORTS TO HELP ELIMINATE INHUMANE CONDITIONS IN FOREIGN 
              PRISONS AND OTHER DETENTION FACILITIES.

    (a) Report to Congress.--
            (1) Annual report.--
                    (A) In general.--Not later than 180 days after the 
                date of the enactment of this Act, and annually 
                thereafter for five years on October 1, the Secretary 
                of State shall submit to the appropriate congressional 
                committees a report describing the conditions in 
                prisons and other detention facilities in at least 30 
                countries receiving United States assistance or under 
                sanction by the United States selected as a result of 
                the Secretary's determination that such conditions 
                raise the most serious human rights or humanitarian 
                concerns. In selecting such countries, the Secretary 
                shall consider only the conditions within each 
                country's prisons and detention facilities.
                    (B) Content.--The report required under 
                subparagraph (A) shall, for each country, describe the 
                conditions that raise human rights and humanitarian 
                concerns, including--
                            (i) a detailed and up to date review, 
                        whenever possible, of each of the primary 
                        indicators set forth in section 3(2) and noting 
                        any efforts made to eliminate inhumane 
                        conditions as described in paragraph (2);
                            (ii) an identification of those countries, 
                        if any, receiving United States assistance, 
                        whose governments--
                                    (I) do not meet one or more of the 
                                primary indicators for the elimination 
                                of inhumane conditions in prisons and 
                                other detention facilities but are 
                                making significant efforts to comply; 
                                and
                                    (II) do not meet one or more of the 
                                primary indicators and are not making 
                                significant efforts to comply; and
                            (iii) the steps being taken by the United 
                        States Government to improve conditions in 
                        foreign prisons and other detention facilities.
                    (C) Best practices.--The report shall also include 
                a section on best practices worldwide for achieving the 
                primary indicators.
            (2) Significant efforts.--In making determinations under 
        paragraph (1)(A) as to whether the government of a country is 
        making significant efforts to comply with the primary 
        indicators for the elimination of inhumane conditions in 
        prisons and other detention facilities, the Secretary of State 
        shall consider the extent to which the government of the 
        country is--
                    (A) regularly monitoring the conditions of prisons 
                and other detention facilities under its authority, 
                including allowing access for independent monitors, 
                permitting prisoners and other detainees to submit 
                complaints without censorship, cooperating with 
                international experts on eliminating and monitoring 
                inhumane conditions in prisons and other detention 
                facilities, promptly investigating credible allegations 
                of inhumane conditions, and making information 
                concerning conditions and investigations available to 
                the public and the Secretary of State;
                    (B) taking effective steps to eliminate inhumane 
                conditions in prisons and other detention facilities, 
                which may include, among other steps, appointing 
                ombudsmen to serve on behalf of prisoners and other 
                detainees, providing alternatives to incarceration for 
                nonviolent offenders in order to alleviate inhumane 
                overcrowding, addressing the status and circumstances 
                of confinement of juveniles, improving pretrial 
                detention practices, and implementing bail and 
                recordkeeping procedures to reduce pretrial detention 
                periods and to ensure that prisoners do not serve 
                beyond the maximum sentence for the charged offense; 
                and
                    (C) increasing the amount of government resources 
                to eliminate inhumane conditions in prisons and other 
                detention facilities.
            (3) Use of country reports.--The report required under 
        paragraph (1) may draw from the discussion of prison conditions 
        contained in the Country Reports on Human Rights Practices 
        required under sections 116(d) and 502B(b) of the Foreign 
        Assistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2151n(d) and 2304(b)).
            (4) Publication.--The report required under paragraph (1) 
        shall be made available to the public, including on a publicly 
        available website of the Department of State.
    (b) Assistance for Governments To Eliminate Inhumane Conditions in 
Prisons and Other Detention Facilities.--
            (1) In general.--The Secretary of State and the 
        Administrator of the United States Agency for International 
        Development should furnish assistance authorized under section 
        7 for the purpose of eliminating inhumane conditions in prisons 
        and other detention facilities where such assistance would be 
        appropriate and beneficial.
            (2) Inapplicability of prohibition.--The prohibitions under 
        section 660 of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 
        2420) shall not be applicable to assistance furnished to carry 
        out the provisions of paragraph (1).
            (3) Assistance.--Assistance made available under this 
        subsection shall be designated and used exclusively to 
        eliminate inhumane conditions in prisons and other detention 
        facilities in the country receiving the grant, but may not 
        include the construction of new prisons. Funds made available 
        under this section shall be subject to the regular notification 
        procedures of the Committees on Appropriations of the Senate 
        and the House of Representatives.
    (c) Consultations With Governments Not Making Significant Efforts 
To Eliminate Inhumane Conditions in Prisons and Other Detention 
Facilities.--
            (1) Consultations.--In the case of a government of a 
        country that is listed in the report submitted under subsection 
        (a)(1)(B)(ii)(II) as not making significant efforts to 
        eliminate inhumane conditions in prisons and other detention 
        facilities, the Secretary of State shall, not later than 90 
        days after the date such report is submitted, enter into 
        consultations with such government to achieve the purposes of 
        this Act.
            (2) Actions regarding united states assistance.--
                    (A) United states assistance.--The Secretary of 
                State and the Administrator of the United States Agency 
                for International Development may restructure, 
                reprogram, or reduce United States assistance for a 
                government described in paragraph (1) to achieve the 
                purposes of this Act.
                    (B) Reporting.--If assistance is provided to a 
                country whose government is described in paragraph (1), 
                the Secretary of State shall submit to the appropriate 
                congressional committees within 30 days of the decision 
                to provide such assistance a report--
                            (i) explaining that any government agency 
                        or facility to receive assistance has the 
                        independence and commitment necessary to 
                        achieve the purposes of this Act;
                            (ii) detailing the purposes for which such 
                        assistance will be provided;
                            (iii) describing the United States interest 
                        in providing such assistance notwithstanding 
                        the failure of the government to make 
                        significant efforts to eliminate inhumane 
                        conditions; and
                            (iv) describing the conditions in prisons 
                        and other detention facilities in such country 
                        unless this information has already been 
                        included in the report required under section 
                        4(a)(1).
            (3) Briefing.--Not later than 180 days after the beginning 
        of consultations required under paragraph (1), the Secretary 
        shall brief the appropriate congressional committees on the 
        actions taken or agreed to be taken, if any, by the government 
        of that country that constitute significant efforts to 
        eliminate inhumane conditions in prisons and other detention 
        facilities and the actions taken, or that will be taken, by the 
        United States pursuant to paragraph (2). Such information shall 
        also be included in the next report required under subsection 
        (a). If the Secretary determines that United States assistance 
        to such government should not be restructured, reprogrammed, or 
        reduced, the briefing and report shall contain an explanation 
        for that decision.

SEC. 5. TRAINING FOR FOREIGN SERVICE OFFICERS.

    Section 708 of the Foreign Service Act of 1980 (22 U.S.C. 4028) is 
amended by adding at the end the following new subsection:
    ``(d) The Secretary of State, with the assistance of other relevant 
officials, shall establish as part of the standard training provided 
for chiefs of mission, deputy chiefs of mission, and other officers of 
the Service who are or will be involved in the assessment of conditions 
in foreign prisons and other detention facilities or the drafting of 
the annual Country Reports on Human Rights Practices, instruction on 
matters related to conditions in such prisons and other detention 
facilities and the substance of the Foreign Prison Conditions 
Improvement Act of 2012.''.

SEC. 6. OFFICIAL TO MONITOR FOREIGN PRISON CONDITIONS.

    The Secretary of State shall designate, within the Bureau of 
Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor, an official at a minimum level of a 
Deputy Assistant Secretary who shall have responsibility for 
implementing the provisions of this Act, which shall be a substantial 
part of such official's responsibilities. The Secretary shall instruct 
relevant United States officials abroad to assist such official in 
gathering information regarding conditions in foreign prisons and other 
detention facilities and in implementing the provisions of this Act.

SEC. 7. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

    (a) Foreign Assistance Funding.--In addition to funds otherwise 
available for such purposes, the Secretary of State may use funds 
available for any fiscal year to carry out the provisions of part I and 
chapter 4 of part II of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 
2151 et seq. and 22 U.S.C. 2346 et seq.) and the Support for East 
European Democracy (SEED) Act of 1989 (22 U.S.C. 5401 et seq.) to carry 
out the provisions of section 4(b) of this Act, including for 
administrative expenses.
    (b) Diplomatic and Consular Affairs Funding.--In addition to funds 
otherwise available for such purposes, the Secretary of State may use 
funds available for any fiscal year to the Department of State for 
Diplomatic and Consular Programs to carry out the provisions of section 
6 of this Act and section 708(d) of the Foreign Service Act of 1980, as 
added by section 5, including for administrative expenses.

SEC. 8. RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.

    For purposes of this Act and any amendment made by this Act--
            (1) the prohibitions of section 104(f) of the Foreign 
        Assistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2151b(f)) shall apply to all 
        provisions of this Act and any amendment made by this Act and 
        shall not be construed to be altered by this Act; and
            (2) the primary indicators for the elimination of inhumane 
        conditions in foreign prisons and other detention facilities, 
        as well as significant efforts and best practices to achieve 
        such indicators, shall not be determined based on the provision 
        of services for which funding is prohibited by section 104(f) 
        of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2151b(f)).
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