[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 534 Enrolled Bill (ENR)]

        H.R.534

                     One Hundred Fifteenth Congress

                                 of the

                        United States of America


                          AT THE FIRST SESSION

          Begun and held at the City of Washington on Tuesday,
          the third day of January, two thousand and seventeen


                                 An Act


 
    To require the Secretary of State to take such actions as may be 
 necessary for the United States to rejoin the Bureau of International 
                  Expositions, 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 ``U.S. Wants to Compete for a World 
Expo Act''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
    Congress finds the following:
        (1) The Bureau of International Expositions (BIE) is the 
    organization responsible for governing World Fairs and 
    International Expositions.
        (2) Section 1(a) of Public Law 91-269 (22 U.S.C. 2801(a)) found 
    that ``international expositions . . . have a significant impact on 
    the economic growth of the region surrounding the exposition and . 
    . . are important instruments of national policy''.
        (3) The United States has not been an active member of the BIE 
    since 2001.
        (4) State and local governments and private entities in the 
    United States have continued to participate in international 
    expositions held in foreign countries as a means of promoting 
    United States exports and creating jobs, but face significantly 
    higher costs for such participation because the United States is 
    not an active member.
        (5) State and local governments and private entities in the 
    United States have expressed interest in an international 
    exposition being hosted in the United States, but the bid of a 
    United States city, region, or State to host an international 
    exposition is unlikely to be successful if the United States is not 
    a member of the BIE.
SEC. 3. SENSE OF CONGRESS.
    It is the sense of Congress that--
        (1) the United States should rejoin the BIE immediately to 
    promote domestic job creation, global branding, and tourism to the 
    United States; and
        (2) the Secretary of State, in partnership with the Secretary 
    of Commerce, State and local governments, and private and non-
    profit entities, should take all necessary steps to facilitate the 
    timely submission of a request to rejoin the BIE.
SEC. 4. AUTHORIZATION.
    (a) In General.--The Secretary of State is authorized to take such 
actions as the Secretary determines necessary for the United States to 
rejoin and maintain membership in the BIE.
    (b) Authorization To Accept Private Contributions.--In addition to 
funds otherwise available to the Secretary to carry out this section, 
the Secretary is authorized to accept contributions for such purpose.
    (c) Notification.--The Secretary of State shall notify the 
Committees on Foreign Affairs and Appropriations of the House of 
Representatives and the Committees on Foreign Relations and 
Appropriations of the Senate upon taking any action under subsection 
(a).
SEC. 5. CONTINUATION OF PROHIBITION ON USE OF FEDERAL FUNDS FOR WORLD'S 
FAIR PAVILIONS AND EXHIBITS.
    (a) Continuation of Prohibition.--Nothing in this Act may be 
construed to authorize any obligation or expenditure prohibited by 
section 204 of the Admiral James W. Nance and Meg Donovan Foreign 
Relations Authorization Act, Fiscal Years 2000 and 2001 (22 U.S.C. 
2452b) (relating to limitations on the obligation or expenditure of 
funds by the Department of State for a United States pavilion or 
exhibit at an international exposition or world's fair registered by 
the BIE).
    (b) Prohibition on Solicitation of Funds.--Section 204(b)(1)(C) of 
the Admiral James W. Nance and Meg Donovan Foreign Relations 
Authorization Act, Fiscal Years 2000 and 2001 (22 U.S.C. 
2452b(b)(1)(C)) is amended by inserting after ``expositions'' the 
following: ``, except that no employees of the Department of State may, 
in their official capacity, solicit funds to pay expenses for a United 
States pavilion or other major exhibit at any international exposition 
or world's fair registered by the Bureau of International 
Expositions''.

                               Speaker of the House of Representatives.

                            Vice President of the United States and    
                                               President of the Senate.