[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1294 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
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117th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 1294
To authorize the imposition of sanctions with respect to foreign
persons that have engaged in significant theft of trade secrets of
United States persons, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
April 21, 2021
Mr. Van Hollen (for himself and Mr. Sasse) introduced the following
bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Banking,
Housing, and Urban Affairs
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To authorize the imposition of sanctions with respect to foreign
persons that have engaged in significant theft of trade secrets of
United States persons, 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 ``Protecting American Intellectual
Property Act of 2021''.
SEC. 2. IMPOSITION OF SANCTIONS WITH RESPECT TO THEFT OF TRADE SECRETS
OF UNITED STATES PERSONS.
(a) Report Required.--
(1) In general.--Not later than 180 days after the date of
the enactment of this Act, and not less frequently than
annually thereafter, the President shall submit to the
appropriate congressional committees a report--
(A) identifying any foreign person the President
determines, during the period specified in paragraph
(2)--
(i) has knowingly engaged in, or benefitted
from, significant theft of trade secrets of
United States persons, if the theft of such
trade secrets--
(I) occurred on or after such date
of enactment; and
(II) is reasonably likely to result
in, or has materially contributed to, a
significant threat to the national
security, foreign policy, or economic
health or financial stability of the
United States;
(ii) has provided significant financial,
material, or technological support for, or
goods or services in support of or to benefit
significantly from, such theft;
(iii) is an entity that is owned or
controlled by, or that has acted or purported
to act for or on behalf of, directly or
indirectly, any foreign person identified under
clause (i) or (ii); or
(iv) is a chief executive officer or member
of the board of directors of any foreign entity
identified under clause (i) or (ii);
(B) describing the nature, objective, and outcome
of the theft of trade secrets each foreign person
described in subparagraph (A)(i) engaged in or
benefitted from; and
(C) assessing whether any chief executive officer
or member of the board of directors described in clause
(iv) of subparagraph (A) engaged in, or benefitted
from, activity described in clause (i) or (ii) of that
subparagraph.
(2) Period specified.--The period specified in this
paragraph is--
(A) in the case of the first report required by
paragraph (1), the period beginning on the date of the
enactment of this Act and ending on the date on which
the report is required to be submitted; and
(B) in the case of each subsequent report required
by paragraph (1), the one-year period preceding the
date on which the report is required to be submitted.
(3) Form of report.--Each report required by paragraph (1)
shall be submitted in unclassified form but may include a
classified annex.
(b) Authority To Impose Sanctions.--
(1) Sanctions applicable to entities.--In the case of a
foreign entity identified under subparagraph (A) of subsection
(a)(1) in the most recent report submitted under that
subsection, the President shall impose not less than 5 of the
following:
(A) Blocking of property.--The President may,
pursuant to the International Emergency Economic Powers
Act (50 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.), block and prohibit all
transactions in all property and interests in property
of the entity 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) Inclusion on entity list.--The President may
include the entity on the entity list maintained by the
Bureau of Industry and Security of the Department of
Commerce and set forth in Supplement No. 4 to part 744
of the Export Administration Regulations, for
activities contrary to the national security or foreign
policy interests of the United States.
(C) Export-import bank assistance for exports to
sanctioned persons.--The President may direct the
Export-Import Bank of the United States not to give
approval to the issuance of any guarantee, insurance,
extension of credit, or participation in the extension
of credit in connection with the export of any goods or
services to the entity.
(D) Loans from united states financial
institutions.--The President may prohibit any United
States financial institution from making loans or
providing credits to the entity totaling more than
$10,000,000 in any 12-month period unless the person is
engaged in activities to relieve human suffering and
the loans or credits are provided for such activities.
(E) Loans from international financial
institutions.--The President may direct the United
States executive director to each international
financial institution to use the voice and vote of the
United States to oppose any loan from the international
financial institution that would benefit the entity.
(F) Prohibitions on financial institutions.--The
following prohibitions may be imposed against the
entity if the entity is a financial institution:
(i) Prohibition on designation as primary
dealer.--Neither the Board of Governors of the
Federal Reserve System nor the Federal Reserve
Bank of New York may designate, or permit the
continuation of any prior designation of, the
financial institution as a primary dealer in
United States Government debt instruments.
(ii) Prohibition on service as a repository
of government funds.--The financial institution
may not serve as agent of the United States
Government or serve as repository for United
States Government funds.
The imposition of either sanction under clause (i) or
(ii) shall be treated as one sanction for purposes of
this subsection, and the imposition of both such
sanctions shall be treated as 2 sanctions for purposes
of this subsection.
(G) Procurement sanction.--The United States
Government may not procure, or enter into any contract
for the procurement of, any goods or services from the
entity.
(H) Foreign exchange.--The President may, pursuant
to such regulations as the President may prescribe,
prohibit any transactions in foreign exchange that are
subject to the jurisdiction of the United States and in
which the entity has any interest.
(I) Banking transactions.--The President may,
pursuant to such regulations as the President may
prescribe, prohibit any transfers of credit or payments
between financial institutions or by, through, or to
any financial institution, to the extent that such
transfers or payments are subject to the jurisdiction
of the United States and involve any interest of the
entity.
(J) Ban on investment in equity or debt of
sanctioned person.--The President may, pursuant to such
regulations or guidelines as the President may
prescribe, prohibit any United States person from
investing in or purchasing significant amounts of
equity or debt instruments of the entity.
(K) Exclusion of corporate officers.--The President
may direct the Secretary of State to deny a visa to,
and the Secretary of Homeland Security to exclude from
the United States, any alien that the President
determines is a corporate officer or principal of, or a
shareholder with a controlling interest in, the entity.
(L) Sanctions on principal executive officers.--The
President may impose on the principal executive officer
or officers of the entity, or on individuals performing
similar functions and with similar authorities as such
officer or officers, any of the sanctions under this
paragraph.
(2) Sanctions applicable to individuals.--In the case of an
alien identified under subparagraph (A) of subsection (a)(1) in
the most recent report submitted under that subsection, the
following shall apply:
(A) Blocking of property.--The President shall,
pursuant to the International Emergency Economic Powers
Act (50 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.), block and prohibit all
transactions in all property and interests in property
of the alien 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) Ineligibility for visas, admission, or
parole.--
(i) Visas, admission, or parole.--An alien
described in subparagraph (A) of subsection
(a)(1) is--
(I) inadmissible to the United
States;
(II) ineligible to receive a visa
or other documentation to enter the
United States; and
(III) otherwise ineligible to be
admitted or paroled into the United
States or to receive any other benefit
under the Immigration and Nationality
Act (8 U.S.C. 1101 et seq.).
(ii) Current visas revoked.--
(I) In general.--An alien described
in subparagraph (A) of subsection
(a)(1) is subject to revocation of any
visa or other entry documentation
regardless of when the visa or other
entry documentation is or was issued.
(II) Immediate effect.--A
revocation under subclause (I) shall--
(aa) take effect pursuant
to section 221(i) of the
Immigration and Nationality Act
(8 U.S.C. 1201(i)); and
(bb) cancel any other valid
visa or entry documentation
that is in the alien's
possession.
(c) National Interest Waiver.--The President may waive the
imposition of sanctions under subsection (b) with respect to a person
if the President--
(1) determines that such a waiver is in the national
interests of the United States; and
(2) not more than 15 days after issuing the waiver, submits
to the appropriate congressional committees a notification of
the waiver and the reasons for the waiver.
(d) Termination of Sanctions.--Sanctions imposed under subsection
(b) with respect to a foreign person identified in a report submitted
under subsection (a) shall terminate if the President certifies to the
appropriate congressional committees, before the termination takes
effect, that the person is no longer engaged in the activity identified
in the report.
(e) Implementation; Penalties.--
(1) Implementation.--The President may exercise all
authorities provided under sections 203 and 205 of the
International Emergency Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1702 and
1704) to carry out this section.
(2) Penalties.--A person that violates, attempts to
violate, conspires to violate, or causes a violation of this
part or any regulation, license, or order issued to carry out
this section 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.
(f) Exceptions.--
(1) Intelligence activities.--This section shall not apply
with respect to activities subject to the reporting
requirements under title V of the National Security Act of 1947
(50 U.S.C. 3091 et seq.) or any authorized intelligence
activities of the United States.
(2) Law enforcement activities.--Sanctions under this
section shall not apply with respect to any authorized law
enforcement activities of the United States.
(3) Exception to comply with international agreements.--
Sanctions under this section shall not apply with respect to
the admission of an alien to the United States if such
admission is necessary to comply with the obligations of the
United States under 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 the Convention on Consular
Relations, done at Vienna April 24, 1963, and entered into
force March 19, 1967, or other international obligations.
(4) Exception relating to importation of goods.--
(A) In general.--The authority or a requirement to
impose sanctions under this section shall not include
the authority or a requirement to impose sanctions on
the importation of goods.
(B) Good defined.--In this paragraph, the term
``good'' means any article, natural or manmade
substance, material, supply, or manufactured product,
including inspection and test equipment, and excluding
technical data.
(g) Definitions.--In this section:
(1) Admission; admitted; alien; lawfully admitted for
permanent residence.--The terms ``admission'', ``admitted'',
``alien'', and ``lawfully admitted for permanent residence''
have the meanings given those terms in section 101 of the
Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101).
(2) Appropriate congressional committees.--The term
``appropriate congressional committees'' means--
(A) the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban
Affairs and the Committee on Foreign Relations of the
Senate; and
(B) the Committee on Financial Services and the
Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of
Representatives.
(3) Export administration regulations.--The term ``Export
Administration Regulations'' means subchapter C of chapter VII
of title 15, Code of Federal Regulations.
(4) Foreign entity.--The term ``foreign entity'' means an
entity that is not a United States person.
(5) Foreign person.--The term ``foreign person'' means any
person that is not a United States person.
(6) Knowingly.--The term ``knowingly'', with respect to
conduct, a circumstance, or a result, means that a person has
actual knowledge, or should have known, of the conduct, the
circumstance, or the result.
(7) Person.--The term ``person'' means an individual or
entity.
(8) Trade secret.--The term ``trade secret'' has the
meaning given that term in section 1839 of title 18, United
States Code.
(9) 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;
(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;
or
(C) any person in the United States.
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