[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1642 Introduced in House (IH)]
<DOC>
116th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 1642
To authorize actions with respect to foreign countries engaged in
illicit trade in tobacco products or their precursors, and for other
purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
March 8, 2019
Ms. Jackson Lee (for herself and Mr. Hudson) introduced the following
bill; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs, and in
addition to the Committee on the Judiciary, 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 authorize actions with respect to foreign countries engaged in
illicit trade in tobacco products or their precursors, 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 ``Combating the Illicit Trade in
Tobacco Products Act''.
SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.
In this Act:
(1) Appropriate congressional committees.--The term
``appropriate congressional committees'' means--
(A) the Committee on Financial Services, the
Committee on Foreign Affairs, and the Committee on the
Judiciary of the House of Representatives; and
(B) the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban
Affairs, the Committee on Foreign Relations, and the
Committee on the Judiciary of the Senate.
(2) Foreign person.--The term ``foreign person'' means a
person that is not a United States person.
(3) Illicit trade in tobacco products or their
precursors.--The term ``illicit trade in tobacco products or
their precursors'' means any practice or conduct prohibited by
law that relates to production, shipment, receipt, possession,
distribution, sale, or purchase of tobacco products or their
precursors, including any practice or conduct intended to
facilitate such activity.
(4) Person.--The term ``person'' means an individual or
entity.
(5) United states person.--The term ``United States
person'' means--
(A) a United States citizen or an alien lawfully
admitted for permanent residence to the United States;
or
(B) an entity organized under the laws of the
United States or of any jurisdiction within the United
States, including a foreign branch of such an entity.
SEC. 3. FINDINGS.
Congress makes the following findings:
(1) The illicit trade in tobacco products or their
precursors is a multibillion dollar business that fuels
organized crime, fosters public corruption, undermines public
health goals, and finances terrorist groups that threaten
global security and stability.
(2) According to an estimate by the World Health
Organization, one in every 10 cigarettes smoked is illegal.
(3) The Center for Public Integrity states, ``while one 40-
foot container of cigarettes (containing 10 million sticks) can
be produced in China for just $100,000, the street value of
such a container smuggled into the United States is up to $2
million.''.
(4) According to the International Criminal Police
Organization (commonly known as ``Interpol''), the trade in
illicit cigarettes accounts for 11.6 percent of global
consumption, equaling 657,000,000,000 cigarettes a year.
(5) According to the Department of State report entitled
``The Global Illicit Trade in Tobacco: A Threat to National
Security'', cigarette smuggling enables corruption and
undermines good governance.
(6) According to that Department of State report, illicit
trade in tobacco products or their precursors costs governments
and taxpayers between $40,000,000,000 and $50,000,000,000
annually in tax revenues.
(7) According to that Department of State report, the
illicit trade in tobacco products or their precursors
facilitates other crimes and provides funding for additional
criminal activities, including money laundering, bulk cash
smuggling, and the trafficking in humans, weapons, drugs,
antiquities, diamonds, and counterfeit goods.
(8) The report entitled ``Illicit Trade: Converging
Criminal Networks'' by the Organisation for Economic Co-
operation and Development stated that cigarettes present a
high-profit margin and are among the most commonly traded
products on the black market due to the relative ease of
production and movement, along with low detection rates and
penalties.
(9) According to the Department of State report entitled,
``The Global Illicit Trade in Tobacco: A Threat to National
Security'', illicit trade in tobacco products or their
precursors can be transnational, with proceeds earned
domestically and sent overseas to finance attacks against
United States interests, or earned domestically by foreign
actors who can operate more easily from within the country.
(10) The Center for the Analysis of Terrorism reports that
nearly 15 terrorist organizations throughout the world
regularly have recourse in large proportions to smuggling and
counterfeiting cigarettes to be financed, in particular the
Pakistani Taliban, Lashkar-E-Taiba, Al-Qaida au Maghreb
Islamique, Hezbollah, Hamas, the Revolutionary Armed Forces of
Colombia, the Kurdistan Workers' Party, Euskadi Ta Askatasuna,
and the Irish Republican Army.
SEC. 4. DESIGNATION OF AND ACTIONS WITH RESPECT TO FOREIGN COUNTRIES
ENGAGED IN ILLICIT TRADE IN TOBACCO PRODUCTS OR THEIR
PRECURSORS.
(a) Designation.--Not later than one year after the date of the
enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter, the Secretary of State,
in consultation with the Secretary of Defense, the Attorney General,
and the Secretary of the Treasury, shall--
(1) review the status of illicit trade in tobacco products
or their precursors in each foreign country to determine
whether--
(A) the country is a major source, point of
transit, or consumer of illicit tobacco products or
their precursors; or
(B)(i) the country meets the criteria of
subparagraph (A); and
(ii) the government of the country has actively
engaged in or knowingly profited from the illicit trade
in tobacco products or their precursors;
(2) designate each foreign country that--
(A) meets the criteria of subparagraph (A) of
paragraph (1) as a focus country for illicit trade in
tobacco products or their precursors for purposes of
providing assistance to the country under subsection
(b); and
(B) meets the criteria of subparagraph (B) of
paragraph (1) as a country of concern for illicit trade
in tobacco products or their precursors for purposes of
withholding United States development assistance and
security assistance to the country under subsection
(c); and
(3) submit to the appropriate congressional committees a
report that includes--
(A) a list that identifies each foreign country
designated as a focus country for illicit trade in
tobacco products or their precursors under paragraph
(2)(A); and
(B) a list that identifies each foreign country
designated as a country of concern for illicit trade in
tobacco products or their precursors under paragraph
(2)(B).
(b) Assistance to Focus Countries.--
(1) Law enforcement professional training.--The Secretary
of State, in coordination with the heads of other relevant
United States departments and agencies and nongovernmental
organizations where appropriate, is authorized to provide
assistance to foreign countries designated as focus countries
for illicit trade in tobacco products or their precursors under
subsection (a)(2)(A) to improve the effectiveness of law
enforcement to combat the illicit trade in tobacco products or
their precursors.
(2) Investigative capacity building.--The Secretary of
State, in coordination with the heads of other relevant United
States departments and agencies, is authorized to establish and
carry out programs to increase the capacity of law enforcement
and customs and border security offices in foreign countries
designated as focus countries for illicit trade in tobacco
products or their precursors under subsection (a)(2)(A).
(c) Prohibition on Assistance to Countries of Concern.--
(1) In general.--The Secretary of State may not provide
development assistance or security assistance to foreign
countries designated as countries of concern for illicit trade
in tobacco products or their precursors under subsection
(a)(2)(B).
(2) Waiver.--The Secretary of State may waive the
application of paragraph (1) with respect to a foreign country
described in paragraph (1) if the Secretary determines and
certifies to the appropriate congressional committees that such
waiver is in the national security interests of the United
States.
(3) Definitions.--In this subsection:
(A) Development assistance.--The term ``development
assistance'' means assistance authorized under--
(i) chapter 1 or 10 of part I of the
Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2151
et seq. or 2293 et seq.); or
(ii) chapter 4 of part II of such Act (22
U.S.C. 2346 et seq.).
(B) Security assistance.--The term ``security
assistance'' means assistance authorized under part II
of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2301
et seq.).
SEC. 5. IMPOSITION OF SANCTIONS WITH RESPECT TO FOREIGN PERSONS
RESPONSIBLE FOR ILLICIT TRADE IN TOBACCO PRODUCTS OR
THEIR PRECURSORS.
(a) In General.--The President is authorized to impose the
sanctions described in subsection (b) with respect to any foreign
person the President determines, based on credible evidence--
(1) is responsible for illicit trade in tobacco products or
their precursors;
(2) acted as an agent of or on behalf of a foreign person
in a matter relating to an activity described in paragraph (1);
(3) is a government official, or a senior associate of such
an official, that is responsible for, or complicit in,
ordering, controlling, or otherwise directing, the illicit
trade in tobacco products or their precursors, including acts
of significant corruption, bribery, or the facilitation or
transfer of the proceeds of corruption to foreign
jurisdictions; or
(4) has materially assisted, sponsored, or provided
financial, material, or technological support for, or goods or
services in support of, an activity described in paragraph (1),
(2), or (3).
(b) Sanctions Described.--The sanctions described in this
subsection are the following:
(1) Inadmissibility to united states.--In the case of a
foreign person who is an individual--
(A) ineligibility to receive a visa to enter the
United States or to be admitted to the United States;
or
(B) if the individual has been issued a visa or
other documentation, revocation, in accordance with
section 221(i) of the Immigration and Nationality Act
(8 U.S.C. 1201(i)), of the visa or other documentation.
(2) Blocking of property.--
(A) In general.--The blocking, in accordance with
the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (50
U.S.C. 1701 et seq.), of all transactions in all
property and interests in property of a foreign person
if such property and interests in property are in the
United States, come within the United States, or are or
come within the possession or control of a United
States person.
(B) Inapplicability of national emergency
requirement.--The requirements of section 202 of the
International Emergency Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C.
1701) shall not apply for purposes of this section.
(C) Exception relating to importation of goods.--
(i) In general.--The authority to block and
prohibit all transactions in all property and
interests in property under subparagraph (A)
shall not include the authority to impose
sanctions on the importation of goods.
(ii) Good defined.--In this subparagraph,
the term ``good'' means any article, natural or
man-made substance, supply or manufactured
product, including inspection and test
equipment, and excluding technical data.
(c) Consideration of Certain Information in Imposing Sanctions.--In
determining whether to impose sanctions under subsection (a), the
President shall consider--
(1) information provided by the chairperson and ranking
member of each of the appropriate congressional committees; and
(2) credible information obtained by other countries and
nongovernmental organizations that monitor violations of human
rights.
(d) Requests by Chairperson and Ranking Member of Appropriate
Congressional Committees.--Not later than 120 days after receiving a
written request from the chairperson and ranking member of one of the
appropriate congressional committees with respect to whether a foreign
person has engaged in an activity described in subsection (a), the
President shall--
(1) determine if that person has engaged in such an
activity; and
(2) submit to the chairperson and ranking member of that
committee with respect to that determination a report that
includes--
(A) a statement of whether or not the President
imposed or intends to impose sanctions with respect to
the person; and
(B) if the President imposed or intends to impose
sanctions, a description of those sanctions.
(e) Exception To Comply With United Nations Headquarters Agreement
and Law Enforcement Objectives.--Sanctions under subsection (b)(1)
shall not apply to an individual if admitting the individual into the
United States would further important law enforcement objectives or is
necessary to permit the United States to comply with the Agreement
regarding the Headquarters of the United Nations, signed at Lake
Success June 26, 1947, and entered into force November 21, 1947,
between the United Nations and the United States, or other applicable
international obligations of the United States.
(f) Enforcement of Blocking of Property.--A person that violates,
attempts to violate, conspires to violate, or causes a violation of
subsection (b)(2) or any regulation, license, or order issued to carry
out subsection (b)(2) shall be subject to the penalties set forth in
subsections (b) and (c) of section 206 of the International Emergency
Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1705) to the same extent as a person
that commits an unlawful act described in subsection (a) of that
section.
(g) Termination of Sanctions.--The President may terminate the
application of sanctions under this section with respect to a foreign
person if the President determines and reports to the appropriate
congressional committees not later than 15 days before the termination
of the sanctions that--
(1) credible information exists that the person did not
engage in the activity for which sanctions were imposed;
(2) the person has been prosecuted appropriately for the
activity for which sanctions were imposed;
(3) the person has credibly demonstrated a significant
change in behavior, has paid an appropriate consequence for the
activity for which sanctions were imposed, and has credibly
committed to not engage in an activity described in subsection
(a) in the future; or
(4) the termination of the sanctions is in the vital
national security interests of the United States.
(h) Regulatory Authority.--The President shall issue such
regulations, licenses, and orders as are necessary to carry out this
section.
(i) Identification of Sanctionable Foreign Persons.--The Assistant
Secretary of State for International Narcotics and Law Enforcement
Affairs, in consultation with the Assistant Secretary of State for
Consular Affairs and other bureaus of the Department of State, as
appropriate, is authorized to submit to the Secretary of State, for
review and consideration, the names of foreign persons who may meet the
criteria described in subsection (a).
SEC. 6. REPORTS TO CONGRESS.
(a) In General.--Not later than 120 days after the date of the
enactment of this Act and annually thereafter, the President shall
submit to the appropriate congressional committees a report that
includes--
(1) a list of each foreign person with respect to which the
President imposed sanctions pursuant to section 5 during the
year preceding the submission of the report;
(2) a description of the type of sanctions imposed with
respect to each such foreign person;
(3) the number of foreign persons with respect to which the
President--
(A) imposed sanctions under section 5 during that
year; and
(B) terminated sanctions under section 5 during
that year;
(4) the dates on which such sanctions were imposed or
terminated, as the case may be;
(5) the reasons for imposing or terminating such sanctions;
and
(6) a description of the efforts of the President to
encourage the governments of other countries to impose
sanctions that are similar to the sanctions authorized by
section 5.
(b) Form of Report.--
(1) In general.--Each report required by subsection (a)
shall be submitted in unclassified form, but may include a
classified annex.
(2) Exception.--The name of a foreign person to be included
in the list required by subsection (a)(1) may be submitted in
the classified annex authorized by paragraph (1) only if the
President--
(A) determines that it is vital for the national
security interests of the United States to do so;
(B) uses the annex in a manner consistent with
congressional intent and the purposes of this Act; and
(C) not later than 15 days before submitting the
name in a classified annex, provides to the appropriate
congressional committees notice of, and a justification
for, including the name in the classified annex despite
any publicly available credible information indicating
that the person engaged in an activity described in
section 5(a).
(c) Public Availability.--
(1) In general.--The unclassified portion of the report
required by subsection (a) shall be made available to the
public, including through publication in the Federal Register.
(2) Nonapplicability of confidentiality requirement with
respect to visa records.--The President shall publish the list
required by subsection (a)(1) without regard to the
requirements of section 222(f) of the Immigration and
Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1202(f)) with respect to
confidentiality of records pertaining to the issuance or
refusal of visas or permits to enter the United States.
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