[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 5925 Introduced in House (IH)]

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118th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 5925

    To authorize the seizure of the property of certain sanctioned 
 individuals for purposes of covering expenses relating to the Ukraine-
                Russia conflict, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            October 11, 2023

              Mr. McCormick introduced the following bill

                            October 25, 2023

              Referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
    To authorize the seizure of the property of certain sanctioned 
 individuals for purposes of covering expenses relating to the Ukraine-
                Russia conflict, 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 ``Make Putin Pay Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds the following:
            (1) On February 24th, 2022, Russian dictator Vladimir Putin 
        launched an illegal, inhumane invasion of Ukraine in clear 
        violation of international law.
            (2) If Putin's illegal invasion were to have been 
        successful, it would be devastating to the post-Cold War world 
        and encourage other totalitarian nations such as China and Iran 
        to act more aggressively.
            (3) United States support for Ukraine has been crucial in 
        deterring Russian aggression. As of July of 2023, the Russian 
        military has lost over 200,000 military personnel, more than 
        1,200 cruise missiles, over 7,000 vehicles and fuel tanks, and 
        more than 4,000 tanks.
            (4) Since the beginning of the Russian invasion, the United 
        States support to Ukraine has totaled over $113,000,000,000.
            (5) The United States and allies have seized approximately 
        $330,000,000,000 in funds related to Russian oligarchs or the 
        Moscow bank. Any of these assets subject to the jurisdiction of 
        the United States Government should be seized and used to 
        reimburse the United States, pay for additional equipment and 
        humanitarian assistance given to Ukraine and pay for 
        reconstruction efforts after the conclusion of the war.
            (6) Resolution 486 adopted by the NATO Parliamentary 
        Assembly on Monday, October 9th, 2023, urges governments ``to 
        ensure that Russia is held accountable for its crime of 
        aggression its war crimes including crimes against humanity and 
        reported acts of genocide committed in Ukraine, and the 
        horrific and unjustified damages it has wrought, and that it 
        helps fund reconstruction, in part, through seized and frozen 
        Russian assets as much as it is possible under the law, and 
        encourages all states to develop such a framework.''.
            (7) For the survival of Western civilization, the United 
        States must continue to face authoritarian regimes head-on. The 
        United States must continue to support Ukraine in a responsible 
        and effective manner.

SEC. 3. AUTHORIZATION FOR SEIZURE OF ASSETS.

    (a) In General.--Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the 
President, acting through the Secretary of the Treasury, is authorized 
to seize and confiscate all assets subject to the jurisdiction of the 
United States that are--
            (1) blocked pursuant to sanctions imposed with respect to 
        foreign persons that derive wealth through political support 
        for or corruption linked to Russian President Vladimir Putin; 
        or
            (2) sovereign assets of the Government of the Russian 
        Federation or owned by the Central Bank of such country.
    (b) Disposition of Proceeds From Sale of Assets.--The proceeds from 
the sale of any asset seized or confiscated pursuant to the authority 
provided by subsection (a) before the date described in subsection 
(c)(1)--
            (1) shall first be made available, without subsequent 
        appropriation, to reimburse the United States for expenses 
        incurred during the period beginning on February 24, 2022, in 
        connection with the Ukraine-Russia conflict; and
            (2) to the extent such proceeds exceed the total expenses 
        described in paragraph (1), are authorized to be made 
        available, only for expenses incurred on or after such date of 
        enactment in connection with such conflict.
    (c) Report.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, and every 180 days thereafter, the Secretary of 
the Treasury shall submit to the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the 
House of Representatives and the Committee on Foreign Relations of the 
Senate a report that specifies the amount remaining of the proceeds 
described in subsection (b) as of the date of the submission of the 
report and itemizes each expenditure of such proceeds as of such date 
of submission.
    (d) Rule of Construction.--Nothing in this Act may be construed to 
authorize the imposition of sanctions or to alter or affect any 
existing authority to impose sanctions that is in effect on the date of 
the enactment of this Act.
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