[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 7701 Introduced in House (IH)]

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118th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 7701

  To require the imposition of sanctions with respect to any foreign 
person that knowingly participates in the construction, maintenance, or 
 repair of a tunnel or bridge that connects the Russian mainland with 
                         the Crimean peninsula.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             March 15, 2024

Mr. Meeks (for himself and Mr. Wilson of South Carolina) 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 require the imposition of sanctions with respect to any foreign 
person that knowingly participates in the construction, maintenance, or 
 repair of a tunnel or bridge that connects the Russian mainland with 
                         the Crimean peninsula.

    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 ``No Russian Tunnel to Crimea Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress makes the following findings:
            (1) In February and March 2014, the Russian Federation 
        invaded the Crimean peninsula and annexed Crimea, international 
        recognized as Ukrainian territory.
            (2) Following its annexation of Crimea, the Russian 
        Federation constructed the Kerch Strait Bridge to connect the 
        Russian mainland with the Crimean peninsula.
            (3) On February 24, 2022, the Government of the Russian 
        Federation, led by Vladimir Putin, launched an unprovoked, 
        full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
            (4) The Russian Federation has used Crimea as an integral 
        part of its full scale invasion of Ukraine, including to house 
        Russian troops, store ammunition and weapons, and host the 
        Black Sea Fleet.
            (5) In October 2023, it was publicly reported that Russian 
        and Chinese business officials met and exchanged emails to 
        discuss building a tunnel from the Russian mainland to 
        illegally occupied Crimea.

SEC. 3. SANCTIONS.

    (a) In General.--The President shall impose sanctions described in 
subsection (b) with respect to any foreign person that knowingly 
participates in the construction, maintenance, or repair of a tunnel or 
bridge that connects the Russian mainland with the Crimean peninsula.
    (b) Sanctions Described.--The sanctions described in this 
subsection are the following:
            (1) Asset blocking.--Notwithstanding the requirements of 
        section 202 of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act 
        (50 U.S.C. 1701), the President may exercise of all powers 
        granted to the President by that Act to the extent necessary to 
        block and prohibit all transactions in all property and 
        interests in property of the 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.
            (2) Visas, admission, or parole.--
                    (A) In general.--An alien who the Secretary of 
                State or the Secretary of Homeland Security (or a 
                designee of one of such Secretaries) knows, or has 
                reason to believe, is described in subsection (a) is--
                            (i) inadmissible to the United States;
                            (ii) ineligible for 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.).
                    (B) Current visas revoked.--
                            (i) In general.--The issuing consular 
                        officer, the Secretary of State, or the 
                        Secretary of Homeland Security (or a designee 
                        of one of such Secretaries) shall, in 
                        accordance with section 221(i) of the 
                        Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 
                        1201(i)), revoke any visa or other entry 
                        documentation issued to an alien described in 
                        subparagraph (A) regardless of when the visa or 
                        other entry documentation is issued.
                            (ii) Effect of revocation.--A revocation 
                        under clause (i)--
                                    (I) shall take effect immediately; 
                                and
                                    (II) shall automatically cancel any 
                                other valid visa or entry documentation 
                                that is in the alien's possession.
    (c) Exceptions.--
            (1) Exception to comply with international obligations.--
        Sanctions under subsection (b)(2) shall not apply with respect 
        to the admission of an alien if admitting or paroling the alien 
        into the United States 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.
            (2) Exception relating to the provision of humanitarian 
        assistance.--Sanctions under this section may not be imposed 
        with respect to transactions or the facilitation of 
        transactions for--
                    (A) the sale of agricultural commodities, food, 
                medicine, or medical devices;
                    (B) the provision of humanitarian assistance;
                    (C) financial transactions relating to humanitarian 
                assistance; or
                    (D) transporting goods or services that are 
                necessary to carry out operations relating to 
                humanitarian assistance.
            (3) Exception for intelligence, law enforcement, and 
        national security activities.--Sanctions under this section 
        shall not apply to any authorized intelligence, law 
        enforcement, or national security activities of the United 
        States.
    (d) Classified Information.--In any judicial review of a 
determination made under this section, if the determination was based 
on classified information (as defined in section 1(a) of the Classified 
Information Procedures Act) such information may be submitted to the 
reviewing court ex parte and in camera. This subsection does not confer 
or imply any right to judicial review.
    (e) Implementation; Penalties.--
            (1) Implementation.--The President may exercise all 
        authorities provided to the President 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.--The penalties provided for in subsections 
        (b) and (c) of section 206 of the International Emergency 
        Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1705) shall apply to a person 
        that violates, attempts to violate, conspires to violate, or 
        causes a violation of regulations promulgated to carry out this 
        section to the same extent that such penalties apply to a 
        person that commits an unlawful act described in section 206(a) 
        of that Act.
    (f) Waiver.--The President may waive the application of sanctions 
imposed with respect to a foreign person under this section if the 
President certifies to the appropriate congressional committees not 
later than 15 days before such waiver is to take effect that the waiver 
is important to the national security interests of the United States.
    (g) Definitions.--In this section--
            (1) the term ``appropriate congressional committees'' means 
        the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of 
        Representatives and the Committee on Foreign Relations of the 
        Senate;
            (2) the term ``foreign person'' means an individual or 
        entity that is not a United States person; and
            (3) the term ``United States person'' means--
                    (A) a United States citizen;
                    (B) a permanent resident alien of the United 
                States;
                    (C) 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
                    (D) a person in the United States.
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