[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 27 (Monday, March 4, 1996)]
[House]
[Pages H1645-H1662]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                     CONFERENCE REPORT ON H.R. 927

  Mr. GILMAN submitted the following conference report and statement on 
the bill (H.R. 927), to seek international sanctions against the Castro 
government in Cuba, to plan for support of a transition government 
leading to a democratically elected government in Cuba, and for other 
purposes:

                  Conference Report (H. Rept. 104-468)

       The committee of conference on the disagreeing votes of the 
     two Houses on the amendment of the Senate to the bill (H.R. 
     927), to seek international sanctions against the Castro 
     government in Cuba, to plan for support of a transition 
     government leading to a democratically elected government in 
     Cuba, and for other purposes, having met, after full and free 
     conference, have agreed to recommend and do recommend to 
     their respective Houses as follows:
       That the House recede from its disagreement to the 
     amendment of the Senate and agree to the same with an 
     amendment as follows:
       In lieu of the matter proposed to be inserted by the Senate 
     amendment, insert the following:

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.

       (a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``Cuban 
     Liberty and Democratic Solidarity (LIBERTAD) Act of 1996''.
       (b) Table of Contents.--The table of contents of this Act 
     is as follows:

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.
Sec. 2. Findings.
Sec. 3. Purposes.
Sec. 4. Definitions.
Sec. 5. Severability.

   TITLE I--STRENGTHENING INTERNATIONAL SANCTIONS AGAINST THE CASTRO 
                               GOVERNMENT

Sec. 101. Statement of policy.
Sec. 102. Enforcement of the economic embargo of Cuba.
Sec. 103. Prohibition against indirect financing of Cuba.
Sec. 104. United States opposition to Cuban membership in international 
              financial institutions.
Sec. 105. United States opposition to termination of the suspension of 
              the Cuban Government from participation in the 
              Organization of American States.
Sec. 106. Assistance by the independent states of the former Soviet 
              Union for the Cuban Government.
Sec. 107. Television broadcasting to Cuba.
Sec. 108. Reports on commerce with, and assistance to, Cuba from other 
              foreign countries.
Sec. 109. Authorization of support for democratic and human rights 
              groups and international observers.
Sec. 110. Importation safeguard against certain Cuban products.
Sec. 111. Withholding of foreign assistance from countries supporting 
              Juragua nuclear plant in Cuba.
Sec. 112. Reinstitution of family remittances and travel to Cuba.
Sec. 113. Expulsion of criminals from Cuba.
Sec. 114. News bureaus in Cuba.
Sec. 115. Effect of Act on lawful United States Government activities.
Sec. 116. Condemnation of Cuban attack on American aircraft.

          TITLE II--ASSISTANCE TO A FREE AND INDEPENDENT CUBA

Sec. 201. Policy toward a transition government and a democratically 
              elected government in Cuba.
Sec. 202. Assistance for the Cuban people.
Sec. 203. Coordination of assistance program; implementation and 
              reports to Congress; reprogramming.
Sec. 204. Termination of the economic embargo of Cuba.
Sec. 205. Requirements and factors for determining a transition 
              government.
Sec. 206. Requirements for determining a democratically elected 
              government.
Sec. 207. Settlement of outstanding United States claims to confiscated 
              property in Cuba.

  TITLE III--PROTECTION OF PROPERTY RIGHTS OF UNITED STATES NATIONALS

Sec. 301. Findings.
Sec. 302. Liability for trafficking in confiscated property claimed by 
              United States nationals.
Sec. 303. Proof of ownership of claims to confiscated property.
Sec. 304. Exclusivity of Foreign Claims Settlement Commission 
              certification procedure.
Sec. 305. Limitation of actions.
Sec. 306. Effective date.

                 TITLE IV--EXCLUSION OF CERTAIN ALIENS

Sec. 401. Exclusion from the United States of aliens who have 
              confiscated property of United States nationals or who 
              traffic in such property.

     SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

       The Congress makes the following findings:
       (1) The economy of Cuba has experienced a decline of at 
     least 60 percent in the last 5 years as a result of--
       (A) the end of its subsidization by the former Soviet Union 
     of between 5 billion and 6 billion dollars annually;
       (B) 36 years of communist tyranny and economic 
     mismanagement by the Castro government;
       (C) the extreme decline in trade between Cuba and the 
     countries of the former Soviet bloc; and
       (D) the stated policy of the Russian Government and the 
     countries of the former Soviet bloc to conduct economic 
     relations with Cuba on strictly commercial terms.
       (2) At the same time, the welfare and health of the Cuban 
     people have substantially deteriorated as a result of this 
     economic decline and the refusal of the Castro regime to 
     permit free and fair democratic elections in Cuba.
       (3) The Castro regime has made it abundantly clear that it 
     will not engage in any substantive political reforms that 
     would lead to democracy, a market economy, or an economic 
     recovery.
       (4) The repression of the Cuban people, including a ban on 
     free and fair democratic elections, and continuing violations 
     of fundamental human rights, have isolated the Cuban regime 
     as the only completely nondemocratic government in the 
     Western Hemisphere.
       (5) As long as free elections are not held in Cuba, the 
     economic condition of the country and the welfare of the 
     Cuban people will not improve in any significant way.
       (6) The totalitarian nature of the Castro regime has 
     deprived the Cuban people of any peaceful means to improve 
     their condition and has led thousands of Cuban citizens to 
     risk or lose their lives in dangerous attempts to escape from 
     Cuba to freedom.
       (7) Radio Marti and Television Marti have both been 
     effective vehicles for providing the people of Cuba with news 
     and information and have helped to bolster the morale of the 
     people of Cuba living under tyranny.
       (8) The consistent policy of the United States towards Cuba 
     since the beginning of the Castro regime, carried out by both 
     Democratic and Republican administrations, has sought to keep 
     faith with the people of Cuba, and has been effective in 
     sanctioning the totalitarian Castro regime.
       (9) The United States has shown a deep commitment, and 
     considers it a moral obligation, to promote and protect human 
     rights and fundamental freedoms as expressed in the Charter 
     of the United Nations and in the Universal Declaration of 
     Human Rights.
       (10) The Congress has historically and consistently 
     manifested its solidarity and the solidarity of the American 
     people with the democratic aspirations of the Cuban people.
       (11) The Cuban Democracy Act of 1992 calls upon the 
     President to encourage the governments of countries that 
     conduct trade with Cuba to restrict their trade and credit 
     relations with Cuba in a manner consistent with the purposes 
     of that Act.
       (12) Amendments to the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 made 
     by the FREEDOM Support Act require that the President, in 
     providing economic assistance to Russia and the emerging 
     Eurasian democracies, take into account the extent to which 
     they are acting to ``terminate support for the communist 
     regime in Cuba, including removal of troops, closing military 
     facilities, and ceasing trade subsidies and economic, 
     nuclear, and other assistance''.
       (13) The Cuban Government engages in the illegal 
     international narcotics trade and harbors fugitives from 
     justice in the United States.

[[Page H1646]]

       (14) The Castro government threatens international peace 
     and security by engaging in acts of armed subversion and 
     terrorism such as the training and supplying of groups 
     dedicated to international violence.
       (15) The Castro government has utilized from its inception 
     and continues to utilize torture in various forms (including 
     by psychiatry), as well as execution, exile, confiscation, 
     political imprisonment, and other forms of terror and 
     repression, as means of retaining power.
       (16) Fidel Castro has defined democratic pluralism as 
     ``pluralistic garbage'' and continues to make clear that he 
     has no intention of tolerating the democratization of Cuban 
     society.
       (17) The Castro government holds innocent Cubans hostage in 
     Cuba by no fault of the hostages themselves solely because 
     relatives have escaped the country.
       (18) Although a signatory state to the 1928 Inter-American 
     Convention on Asylum and the International Covenant on Civil 
     and Political Rights (which protects the right to leave one's 
     own country), Cuba nevertheless surrounds embassies in its 
     capital by armed forces to thwart the right of its citizens 
     to seek asylum and systematically denies that right to the 
     Cuban people, punishing them by imprisonment for seeking to 
     leave the country and killing them for attempting to do so 
     (as demonstrated in the case of the confirmed murder of over 
     40 men, women, and children who were seeking to leave Cuba on 
     July 13, 1994).
       (19) The Castro government continues to utilize blackmail, 
     such as the immigration crisis with which it threatened the 
     United States in the summer of 1994, and other unacceptable 
     and illegal forms of conduct to influence the actions of 
     sovereign states in the Western Hemisphere in violation of 
     the Charter of the Organization of American States and other 
     international agreements and international law.
       (20) The United Nations Commission on Human Rights has 
     repeatedly reported on the unacceptable human rights 
     situation in Cuba and has taken the extraordinary step of 
     appointing a Special Rapporteur.
       (21) The Cuban Government has consistently refused access 
     to the Special Rapporteur and formally expressed its decision 
     not to ``implement so much as one comma'' of the United 
     Nations Resolutions appointing the Rapporteur.
       (22) The United Nations General Assembly passed Resolution 
     47-139 on December 18, 1992, Resolution 48-142 on December 
     20, 1993, and Resolution 49-200 on December 23, 1994, 
     referencing the Special Rapporteur's reports to the United 
     Nations and condemning violations of human rights and 
     fundamental freedoms in Cuba.
       (23) Article 39 of Chapter VII of the United Nations 
     Charter provides that the United Nations Security Council 
     ``shall determine the existence of any threat to the peace, 
     breach of the peace, or act of aggression and shall make 
     recommendations, or decide what measures shall be taken . . 
     ., to maintain or restore international peace and 
     security.''.
       (24) The United Nations has determined that massive and 
     systematic violations of human rights may constitute a 
     ``threat to peace'' under Article 39 and has imposed 
     sanctions due to such violations of human rights in the cases 
     of Rhodesia, South Africa, Iraq, and the former Yugoslavia.
       (25) In the case of Haiti, a neighbor of Cuba not as close 
     to the United States as Cuba, the United States led an effort 
     to obtain and did obtain a United Nations Security Council 
     embargo and blockade against that country due to the 
     existence of a military dictatorship in power less than 3 
     years.
       (26) United Nations Security Council Resolution 940 of July 
     31, 1994, subsequently authorized the use of ``all necessary 
     means'' to restore the ``democratically elected government of 
     Haiti'', and the democratically elected government of Haiti 
     was restored to power on October 15, 1994.
       (27) The Cuban people deserve to be assisted in a decisive 
     manner to end the tyranny that has oppressed them for 36 
     years, and the continued failure to do so constitutes 
     ethically improper conduct by the international community.
       (28) For the past 36 years, the Cuban Government has posed 
     and continues to pose a national security threat to the 
     United States.

     SEC. 3. PURPOSES.

       The purposes of this Act are--
       (1) to assist the Cuban people in regaining their freedom 
     and prosperity, as well as in joining the community of 
     democratic countries that are flourishing in the Western 
     Hemisphere;
       (2) to strengthen international sanctions against the 
     Castro government;
       (3) to provide for the continued national security of the 
     United States in the face of continuing threats from the 
     Castro government of terrorism, theft of property from United 
     States nationals by the Castro government, and the political 
     manipulation by the Castro government of the desire of Cubans 
     to escape that results in mass migration to the United 
     States;
       (4) to encourage the holding of free and fair democratic 
     elections in Cuba, conducted under the supervision of 
     internationally recognized observers;
       (5) to provide a policy framework for United States support 
     to the Cuban people in response to the formation of a 
     transition government or a democratically elected government 
     in Cuba; and
       (6) to protect United States nationals against confiscatory 
     takings and the wrongful trafficking in property confiscated 
     by the Castro regime.

     SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS.

       As used in this Act, the following terms have the following 
     meanings:
       (1) Agency or instrumentality of a foreign state.--The term 
     ``agency or instrumentality of a foreign state'' has the 
     meaning given that term in section 1603(b) of title 28, 
     United States Code.
       (2) Appropriate congressional committees.--The term 
     ``appropriate congressional committees'' means the Committee 
     on International Relations and the Committee on 
     Appropriations of the House of Representatives and the 
     Committee on Foreign Relations and the Committee on 
     Appropriations of the Senate.
       (3) Commercial activity.--The term ``commercial activity'' 
     has the meaning given that term in section 1603(d) of title 
     28, United States Code.
       (4) Confiscated.--As used in titles I and III, the term 
     ``confiscated'' refers to--
       (A) the nationalization, expropriation, or other seizure by 
     the Cuban Government of ownership or control of property, on 
     or after January 1, 1959--
       (i) without the property having been returned or adequate 
     and effective compensation provided; or
       (ii) without the claim to the property having been settled 
     pursuant to an international claims settlement agreement or 
     other mutually accepted settlement procedure; and
       (B) the repudiation by the Cuban Government of, the default 
     by the Cuban Government on, or the failure of the Cuban 
     Government to pay, on or after January 1, 1959--
       (i) a debt of any enterprise which has been nationalized, 
     expropriated, or otherwise taken by the Cuban Government;
       (ii) a debt which is a charge on property nationalized, 
     expropriated, or otherwise taken by the Cuban Government; or
       (iii) a debt which was incurred by the Cuban Government in 
     satisfaction or settlement of a confiscated property claim.
       (5) Cuban government.--(A) The term ``Cuban Government'' 
     includes the government of any political subdivision of Cuba, 
     and any agency or instrumentality of the Government of Cuba.
       (B) For purposes of subparagraph (A), the term ``agency or 
     instrumentality of the Government of Cuba'' means an agency 
     or instrumentality of a foreign state as defined in section 
     1603(b) of title 28, United States Code, with each reference 
     in such section to ``a foreign state'' deemed to be a 
     reference to ``Cuba''.
       (6) Democratically elected government in cuba.--The term 
     ``democratically elected government in Cuba'' means a 
     government determined by the President to have met the 
     requirements of section 206.
       (7) Economic embargo of cuba.--The term ``economic embargo 
     of Cuba'' refers to--
       (A) the economic embargo (including all restrictions on 
     trade or transactions with, and travel to or from, Cuba, and 
     all restrictions on transactions in property in which Cuba or 
     nationals of Cuba have an interest) that was imposed against 
     Cuba pursuant to section 620(a) of the Foreign Assistance Act 
     of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2370(a)), section 5(b) of the Trading with 
     the Enemy Act (50 U.S.C. App. 5(b)), the Cuban Democracy Act 
     of 1992 (22 U.S.C. 6001 and following), or any other 
     provision of law; and
       (B) the restrictions imposed by section 902(c) of the Food 
     Security Act of 1985.
       (8) Foreign national.--The term ``foreign national'' 
     means--
       (A) an alien; or
       (B) any corporation, trust, partnership, or other juridical 
     entity not organized under the laws of the United States, or 
     of any State, the District of Columbia, or any commonwealth, 
     territory, or possession of the United States.
       (9) Knowingly.--The term ``knowingly'' means with knowledge 
     or having reason to know.
       (10) Official of the cuban government or the ruling 
     political party in cuba.--The term ``official of the Cuban 
     Government or the ruling political party in Cuba'' refers to 
     any member of the Council of Ministers, Council of State, 
     central committee of the Communist Party of Cuba, or the 
     Politburo of Cuba, or their equivalents.
       (11) Person.--The term ``person'' means any person or 
     entity, including any agency or instrumentality of a foreign 
     state.
       (12) Property.--(A) The term ``property'' means any 
     property (including patents, copyrights, trademarks, and any 
     other form of intellectual property), whether real, personal, 
     or mixed, and any present, future, or contingent right, 
     security, or other interest therein, including any leasehold 
     interest.
       (B) For purposes of title III of this Act, the term 
     ``property'' does not include real property used for 
     residential purposes unless, as of the date of the enactment 
     of this Act--
       (i) the claim to the property is held by a United States 
     national and the claim has been certified under title V of 
     the International Claims Settlement Act of 1949; or
       (ii) the property is occupied by an official of the Cuban 
     Government or the ruling political party in Cuba.
       (13) Traffics.--(A) As used in title III, and except as 
     provided in subparagraph (B), a person ``traffics'' in 
     confiscated property if that person knowingly and 
     intentionally--
       (i) sells, transfers, distributes, dispenses, brokers, 
     manages, or otherwise disposes of confiscated property, or 
     purchases, leases, receives, possesses, obtains control of, 
     manages, uses, or otherwise acquires or holds an interest in 
     confiscated property,
       (ii) engages in a commercial activity using or otherwise 
     benefiting from confiscated property, or
       (iii) causes, directs, participates in, or profits from, 
     trafficking (as described in clause (i) or (ii)) by another 
     person, or otherwise engages in trafficking (as described in 
     clause (i) or (ii)) through another person,
     without the authorization of any United States national who 
     holds a claim to the property.
       (B) The term ``traffics'' does not include--
       (i) the delivery of international telecommunication signals 
     to Cuba;

[[Page H1647]]

       (ii) the trading or holding of securities publicly traded 
     or held, unless the trading is with or by a person determined 
     by the Secretary of the Treasury to be a specially designated 
     national;
       (iii) transactions and uses of property incident to lawful 
     travel to Cuba, to the extent that such transactions and uses 
     of property are necessary to the conduct of such travel; or
       (iv) transactions and uses of property by a person who is 
     both a citizen of Cuba and a resident of Cuba, and who is not 
     an official of the Cuban Government or the ruling political 
     party in Cuba.
       (14) Transition government in cuba.--The term ``transition 
     government in Cuba'' means a government that the President 
     determines is a transition government consistent with the 
     requirements and factors set forth in section 205.
       (15) United states national.--The term ``United States 
     national'' means--
       (A) any United States citizen; or
       (B) any other legal entity which is organized under the 
     laws of the United States, or of any State, the District of 
     Columbia, or any commonwealth, territory, or possession of 
     the United States, and which has its principal place of 
     business in the United States.

     SEC. 5. SEVERABILITY.

       If any provision of this Act or the amendments made by this 
     Act or the application thereof to any person or circumstance 
     is held invalid, the remainder of this Act, the amendments 
     made by this Act, or the application thereof to other persons 
     not similarly situated or to other circumstances shall not be 
     affected by such invalidation.
   TITLE I--STRENGTHENING INTERNATIONAL SANCTIONS AGAINST THE CASTRO 
                               GOVERNMENT

     SEC. 101. STATEMENT OF POLICY.

       It is the sense of the Congress that--
       (1) the acts of the Castro government, including its 
     massive, systematic, and extraordinary violations of human 
     rights, are a threat to international peace;
       (2) the President should advocate, and should instruct the 
     United States Permanent Representative to the United Nations 
     to propose and seek within the Security Council, a mandatory 
     international embargo against the totalitarian Cuban 
     Government pursuant to chapter VII of the Charter of the 
     United Nations, employing efforts similar to consultations 
     conducted by United States representatives with respect to 
     Haiti;
       (3) any resumption of efforts by any independent state of 
     the former Soviet Union to make operational any nuclear 
     facilities in Cuba, and any continuation of intelligence 
     activities by such a state from Cuba that are targeted at the 
     United States and its citizens will have a detrimental impact 
     on United States assistance to such state; and
       (4) in view of the threat to the national security posed by 
     the operation of any nuclear facility, and the Castro 
     government's continuing blackmail to unleash another wave of 
     Cuban refugees fleeing from Castro's oppression, most of whom 
     find their way to United States shores, further depleting 
     limited humanitarian and other resources of the United 
     States, the President should do all in his power to make it 
     clear to the Cuban Government that--
       (A) the completion and operation of any nuclear power 
     facility, or
       (B) any further political manipulation of the desire of 
     Cubans to escape that results in mass migration to the United 
     States,

     will be considered an act of aggression which will be met 
     with an appropriate response in order to maintain the 
     security of the national borders of the United States and the 
     health and safety of the American people.

     SEC. 102. ENFORCEMENT OF THE ECONOMIC EMBARGO OF CUBA.

       (a) Policy.--
       (1) Restrictions by other countries.--The Congress hereby 
     reaffirms section 1704(a) of the Cuban Democracy Act of 1992, 
     which states that the President should encourage foreign 
     countries to restrict trade and credit relations with Cuba in 
     a manner consistent with the purposes of that Act.
       (2) Sanctions on other countries.--The Congress further 
     urges the President to take immediate steps to apply the 
     sanctions described in section 1704(b)(1) of that Act against 
     countries assisting Cuba.
       (b) Diplomatic Efforts.--The Secretary of State should 
     ensure that United States diplomatic personnel abroad 
     understand and, in their contacts with foreign officials, are 
     communicating the reasons for the United States economic 
     embargo of Cuba, and are urging foreign governments to 
     cooperate more effectively with the embargo.
       (c) Existing Regulations.--The President shall instruct the 
     Secretary of the Treasury and the Attorney General to enforce 
     fully the Cuban Assets Control Regulations set forth in part 
     515 of title 31, Code of Federal Regulations.
       (d) Trading with the Enemy Act.--
       (1) Civil penalties.--Subsection (b) of section 16 of the 
     Trading with the Enemy Act (50 U.S.C. App. 16(b)), as added 
     by Public Law 102-484, is amended to read as follows:
       ``(b)(1) A civil penalty of not to exceed $50,000 may be 
     imposed by the Secretary of the Treasury on any person who 
     violates any license, order, rule, or regulation issued in 
     compliance with the provisions of this Act.
       ``(2) Any property, funds, securities, papers, or other 
     articles or documents, or any vessel, together with its 
     tackle, apparel, furniture, and equipment, that is the 
     subject of a violation under paragraph (1) shall, at the 
     direction of the Secretary of the Treasury, be forfeited to 
     the United States Government.
       ``(3) The penalties provided under this subsection may be 
     imposed only on the record after opportunity for an agency 
     hearing in accordance with sections 554 through 557 of title 
     5, United States Code, with the right to prehearing 
     discovery.
       ``(4) Judicial review of any penalty imposed under this 
     subsection may be had to the extent provided in section 702 
     of title 5, United States Code.''.
       (2) Conforming amendment.--Section 16 of the Trading with 
     the Enemy Act is further amended by striking subsection (b), 
     as added by Public Law 102-393.
       (3) Clerical amendments.--Section 16 of the Trading with 
     the Enemy Act is further amended--
       (A) by inserting ``Sec. 16.'' before ``(a)''; and
       (B) in subsection (a) by striking ``participants'' and 
     inserting ``participates''.
       (e) Denial of Visas to Certain Cuban Nationals.--It is the 
     sense of the Congress that the President should instruct the 
     Secretary of State and the Attorney General to enforce fully 
     existing regulations to deny visas to Cuban nationals 
     considered by the Secretary of State to be officers or 
     employees of the Cuban Government or of the Communist Party 
     of Cuba.
       (f) Coverage of Debt-for-Equity Swaps by Economic Embargo 
     of Cuba.--Section 1704(b)(2) of the Cuban Democracy Act of 
     1992 (22 U.S.C. 6003(b)(2)) is amended--
       (1) by striking ``and'' at the end of subparagraph (A);
       (2) by redesignating subparagraph (B) as subparagraph (C); 
     and
       (3) by inserting after subparagraph (A) the following new 
     subparagraph:
       ``(B) includes an exchange, reduction, or forgiveness of 
     Cuban debt owed to a foreign country in return for a grant of 
     an equity interest in a property, investment, or operation of 
     the Government of Cuba (including the government of any 
     political subdivision of Cuba, and any agency or 
     instrumentality of the Government of Cuba) or of a Cuban 
     national; and''; and
       (4) by adding at the end the following flush sentence: ``As 
     used in this paragraph, the term `agency or instrumentality 
     of the Government of Cuba' means an agency or instrumentality 
     of a foreign state as defined in section 1603(b) of title 28, 
     United States Code, with each reference in such section to `a 
     foreign state' deemed to be a reference to `Cuba'.''.
       (g) Telecommunications Services.--Section 1705(e) of the 
     Cuban Democracy Act of 1992 (22 U.S.C. 6004(e)) is amended by 
     adding at the end the following new paragraphs:
       ``(5) Prohibition on investment in domestic 
     telecommunications services.--Nothing in this subsection 
     shall be construed to authorize the investment by any United 
     States person in the domestic telecommunications network 
     within Cuba. For purposes of this paragraph, an `investment' 
     in the domestic telecommunications network within Cuba 
     includes the contribution (including by donation) of funds or 
     anything of value to or for, and the making of loans to or 
     for, such network.
       ``(6) Reports to congress.--The President shall submit to 
     the Congress on a semiannual basis a report detailing 
     payments made to Cuba by any United States person as a result 
     of the provision of telecommunications services authorized by 
     this subsection.''.
       (h) Codification of Economic Embargo.--The economic embargo 
     of Cuba, as in effect on March 1, 1996, including all 
     restrictions under part 515 of title 31, Code of Federal 
     Regulations, shall be in effect upon the enactment of this 
     Act, and shall remain in effect, subject to section 204 of 
     this Act.

     SEC. 103. PROHIBITION AGAINST INDIRECT FINANCING OF CUBA.

       (a) Prohibition.--Notwithstanding any other provision of 
     law, no loan, credit, or other financing may be extended 
     knowingly by a United States national, a permanent resident 
     alien, or a United States agency to any person for the 
     purpose of financing transactions involving any confiscated 
     property the claim to which is owned by a United States 
     national as of the date of the enactment of this Act, except 
     for financing by the United States national owning such claim 
     for a transaction permitted under United States law.
       (b) Suspension and Termination of Prohibition.--
       (1) Suspension.--The President is authorized to suspend the 
     prohibition contained in subsection (a) upon a determination 
     made under section 203(c)(1) that a transition government in 
     Cuba is in power.
       (2) Termination.--The prohibition contained in subsection 
     (a) shall cease to apply on the date on which the economic 
     embargo of Cuba terminates as provided in section 204.
       (c) Penalties.--Violations of subsection (a) shall be 
     punishable by such civil penalties as are applicable to 
     violations of the Cuban Assets Control Regulations set forth 
     in part 515 of title 31, Code of Federal Regulations.
       (d) Definitions.--As used in this section--
       (1) the term ``permanent resident alien'' means an alien 
     lawfully admitted for permanent residence into the United 
     States; and
       (2) the term ``United States agency'' has the meaning given 
     the term ``agency'' in section 551(1) of title 5, United 
     States Code.

     SEC. 104. UNITED STATES OPPOSITION TO CUBAN MEMBERSHIP IN 
                   INTERNATIONAL FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS.

       (a) Continued Opposition to Cuban Membership in 
     International Financial Institutions.--
       (1) In general.--Except as provided in paragraph (2), the 
     Secretary of the Treasury shall instruct the United States 
     executive director of each international financial 
     institution to use the voice and vote of the United States to 
     oppose the admission of Cuba as a member of such institution 
     until the President submits a determination under section 
     203(c)(3) that a democratically elected government in Cuba is 
     in power.
       (2) Transition government.--Once the President submits a 
     determination under section

[[Page H1648]]

     203(c)(1) that a transition government in Cuba is in power--
       (A) the President is encouraged to take steps to support 
     the processing of Cuba's application for membership in any 
     international financial institution, subject to the 
     membership taking effect after a democratically elected 
     government in Cuba is in power, and
       (B) the Secretary of the Treasury is authorized to instruct 
     the United States executive director of each international 
     financial institution to support loans or other assistance to 
     Cuba only to the extent that such loans or assistance 
     contribute to a stable foundation for a democratically 
     elected government in Cuba.
       (b) Reduction in United States Payments to International 
     Financial Institutions.--If any international financial 
     institution approves a loan or other assistance to the Cuban 
     Government over the opposition of the United States, then the 
     Secretary of the Treasury shall withhold from payment to such 
     institution an amount equal to the amount of the loan or 
     other assistance, with respect to either of the following 
     types of payment:
       (1) The paid-in portion of the increase in capital stock of 
     the institution.
       (2) The callable portion of the increase in capital stock 
     of the institution.
       (c) Definition.--For purposes of this section, the term 
     ``international financial institution'' means the 
     International Monetary Fund, the International Bank for 
     Reconstruction and Development, the International Development 
     Association, the International Finance Corporation, the 
     Multilateral Investment Guaranty Agency, and the Inter-
     American Development Bank.

     SEC. 105. UNITED STATES OPPOSITION TO TERMINATION OF THE 
                   SUSPENSION OF THE CUBAN GOVERNMENT FROM 
                   PARTICIPATION IN THE ORGANIZATION OF AMERICAN 
                   STATES.

       The President should instruct the United States Permanent 
     Representative to the Organization of American States to 
     oppose and vote against any termination of the suspension of 
     the Cuban Government from participation in the Organization 
     until the President determines under section 203(c)(3) that a 
     democratically elected government in Cuba is in power.

     SEC. 106. ASSISTANCE BY THE INDEPENDENT STATES OF THE FORMER 
                   SOVIET UNION FOR THE CUBAN GOVERNMENT.

       (a) Reporting Requirement.--Not later than 90 days after 
     the date of the enactment of this Act, the President shall 
     submit to the appropriate congressional committees a report 
     detailing progress toward the withdrawal of personnel of any 
     independent state of the former Soviet Union (within the 
     meaning of section 3 of the FREEDOM Support Act (22 U.S.C. 
     5801)), including advisers, technicians, and military 
     personnel, from the Cienfuegos nuclear facility in Cuba.
       (b) Criteria for Assistance.--Section 498A(a)(11) of the 
     Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2295a(a)(11)) is 
     amended by striking ``of military facilities'' and inserting 
     ``military and intelligence facilities, including the 
     military and intelligence facilities at Lourdes and 
     Cienfuegos''.
       (c) Ineligibility for Assistance.--
       (1) In general.--Section 498A(b) of that Act (22 U.S.C. 
     2295a(b)) is amended--
       (A) by striking ``or'' at the end of paragraph (4);
       (B) by redesignating paragraph (5) as paragraph (6); and
       (C) by inserting after paragraph (4) the following new 
     paragraph:
       ``(5) for the government of any independent state effective 
     30 days after the President has determined and certified to 
     the appropriate congressional committees (and Congress has 
     not enacted legislation disapproving the determination within 
     that 30-day period) that such government is providing 
     assistance for, or engaging in nonmarket based trade (as 
     defined in section 498B(k)(3)) with, the Cuban Government; 
     or''.
       (2) Definition.--Subsection (k) of section 498B of that Act 
     (22 U.S.C. 2295b(k)) is amended by adding at the end the 
     following new paragraphs:
       ``(3) Nonmarket based trade.--As used in section 
     498A(b)(5), the term `nonmarket based trade' includes 
     exports, imports, exchanges, or other arrangements that are 
     provided for goods and services (including oil and other 
     petroleum products) on terms more favorable than those 
     generally available in applicable markets or for comparable 
     commodities, including--
       ``(A) exports to the Cuban Government on terms that involve 
     a grant, concessional price, guaranty, insurance, or subsidy;
       ``(B) imports from the Cuban Government at preferential 
     tariff rates;
       ``(C) exchange arrangements that include advance delivery 
     of commodities, arrangements in which the Cuban Government is 
     not held accountable for unfulfilled exchange contracts, and 
     arrangements under which Cuba does not pay appropriate 
     transportation, insurance, or finance costs; and
       ``(D) the exchange, reduction, or forgiveness of debt of 
     the Cuban Government in return for a grant by the Cuban 
     Government of an equity interest in a property, investment, 
     or operation of the Cuban Government or of a Cuban national.
       ``(4) Cuban government.--(A) The term `Cuban Government' 
     includes the government of any political subdivision of Cuba, 
     and any agency or instrumentality of the Government of Cuba.
       ``(B) For purposes of subparagraph (A), the term `agency or 
     instrumentality of the Government of Cuba' means an agency or 
     instrumentality of a foreign state as defined in section 
     1603(b) of title 28, United States Code, with each reference 
     in such section to `a foreign state' deemed to be a reference 
     to `Cuba'.''.
       (3) Exception.--Section 498A(c) of the Foreign Assistance 
     Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2295A(c)) is amended by inserting 
     after paragraph (3) the following new paragraph:
       ``(4) The assistance is provided under the secondary school 
     exchange program administered by the United States 
     Information Agency.''.
       (d) Facilities at Lourdes, Cuba.--
       (1) Disapproval of credits.--The Congress expresses its 
     strong disapproval of the extension by Russia of credits 
     equivalent to $200,000,000 in support of the intelligence 
     facility at Lourdes, Cuba, in November 1994.
       (2) Reduction in assistance.--Section 498A of the Foreign 
     Assistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2295a) is amended by adding 
     at the end the following new subsection:
       ``(d) Reduction in Assistance for Support of Intelligence 
     Facilities in Cuba.--
       ``(1) Reduction in assistance.--Notwithstanding any other 
     provision of law, the President shall withhold from 
     assistance provided, on or after the date of the enactment of 
     this subsection, for an independent state of the former 
     Soviet Union under this Act an amount equal to the sum of 
     assistance and credits, if any, provided on or after such 
     date by such state in support of intelligence facilities in 
     Cuba, including the intelligence facility at Lourdes, Cuba.
       ``(2) Waiver.--(A) The President may waive the requirement 
     of paragraph (1) to withhold assistance if the President 
     certifies to the appropriate congressional committees that 
     the provision of such assistance is important to the national 
     security of the United States, and, in the case of such a 
     certification made with respect to Russia, if the President 
     certifies that the Russian Government has assured the United 
     States Government that the Russian Government is not sharing 
     intelligence data collected at the Lourdes facility with 
     officials or agents of the Cuban Government.
       ``(B) At the time of a certification made with respect to 
     Russia under subparagraph (A), the President shall also 
     submit to the appropriate congressional committees a report 
     describing the intelligence activities of Russia in Cuba, 
     including the purposes for which the Lourdes facility is used 
     by the Russian Government and the extent to which the Russian 
     Government provides payment or government credits to the 
     Cuban Government for the continued use of the Lourdes 
     facility.
       ``(C) The report required by subparagraph (B) may be 
     submitted in classified form.
       ``(D) For purposes of this paragraph, the term `appropriate 
     congressional committees' includes the Permanent Select 
     Committee on Intelligence of the House of Representatives and 
     the Select Committee on Intelligence of the Senate.
       ``(3) Exceptions to reductions in assistance.--The 
     requirement of paragraph (1) to withhold assistance shall not 
     apply with respect to--
       ``(A) assistance to meet urgent humanitarian needs, 
     including disaster and refugee relief;
       ``(B) democratic political reform or rule of law 
     activities;
       ``(C) technical assistance for safety upgrades of civilian 
     nuclear power plants;
       ``(D) the creation of private sector or nongovernmental 
     organizations that are independent of government control;
       ``(E) the development of a free market economic system;
       ``(F) assistance under the secondary school exchange 
     program administered by the United States Information Agency; 
     or
       ``(G) assistance for the purposes described in the 
     Cooperative Threat Reduction Act of 1993 (title XII of Public 
     Law 103-160).''.

     SEC. 107. TELEVISION BROADCASTING TO CUBA.

       (a) Conversion to UHF.--The Director of the United States 
     Information Agency shall implement a conversion of television 
     broadcasting to Cuba under the Television Marti Service to 
     ultra high frequency (UHF) broadcasting.
       (b) Periodic Reports.--Not later than 45 days after the 
     date of the enactment of this Act, and every three months 
     thereafter until the conversion described in subsection (a) 
     is fully implemented, the Director of the United States 
     Information Agency shall submit a report to the appropriate 
     congressional committees on the progress made in carrying out 
     subsection (a).
       (c) Termination of Broadcasting Authorities.--Upon 
     transmittal of a determination under section 203(c)(3), the 
     Television Broadcasting to Cuba Act (22 U.S.C. 1465aa and 
     following) and the Radio Broadcasting to Cuba Act (22 U.S.C. 
     1465 and following) are repealed.

     SEC. 108. REPORTS ON COMMERCE WITH, AND ASSISTANCE TO, CUBA 
                   FROM OTHER FOREIGN COUNTRIES.

       (a) Reports Required.--Not later than 90 days after the 
     date of the enactment of this Act, and by January 1 of each 
     year thereafter until the President submits a determination 
     under section 203(c)(1), the President shall submit a report 
     to the appropriate congressional committees on commerce with, 
     and assistance to, Cuba from other foreign countries during 
     the preceding 12-month period.
       (b) Contents of Reports.--Each report required by 
     subsection (a) shall, for the period covered by the report, 
     contain the following, to the extent such information is 
     available:
       (1) A description of all bilateral assistance provided to 
     Cuba by other foreign countries, including humanitarian 
     assistance.
       (2) A description of Cuba's commerce with foreign 
     countries, including an identification of Cuba's trading 
     partners and the extent of such trade.
       (3) A description of the joint ventures completed, or under 
     consideration, by foreign nationals and business firms 
     involving facilities in Cuba, including an identification of 
     the location of the facilities involved and a description of 
     the terms of agreement of the joint ventures and the names of 
     the parties that are involved.

[[Page H1649]]

       (4) A determination as to whether or not any of the 
     facilities described in paragraph (3) is the subject of a 
     claim against Cuba by a United States national.
       (5) A determination of the amount of debt of the Cuban 
     Government that is owed to each foreign country, including--
       (A) the amount of debt exchanged, forgiven, or reduced 
     under the terms of each investment or operation in Cuba 
     involving foreign nationals; and
       (B) the amount of debt owed the foreign country that has 
     been exchanged, forgiven, or reduced in return for a grant by 
     the Cuban Government of an equity interest in a property, 
     investment, or operation of the Cuban Government or of a 
     Cuban national.
       (6) A description of the steps taken to assure that raw 
     materials and semifinished or finished goods produced by 
     facilities in Cuba involving foreign nationals do not enter 
     the United States market, either directly or through third 
     countries or parties.
       (7) An identification of countries that purchase, or have 
     purchased, arms or military supplies from Cuba or that 
     otherwise have entered into agreements with Cuba that have a 
     military application, including--
       (A) a description of the military supplies, equipment, or 
     other material sold, bartered, or exchanged between Cuba and 
     such countries,
       (B) a listing of the goods, services, credits, or other 
     consideration received by Cuba in exchange for military 
     supplies, equipment, or material, and
       (C) the terms or conditions of any such agreement.

     SEC. 109. AUTHORIZATION OF SUPPORT FOR DEMOCRATIC AND HUMAN 
                   RIGHTS GROUPS AND INTERNATIONAL OBSERVERS.

       (a) Authorization.--Notwithstanding any other provision of 
     law (including section 102 of this Act), except for section 
     634A of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2394-1) 
     and comparable notification requirements contained in any Act 
     making appropriations for foreign operations, export 
     financing, and related programs, the President is authorized 
     to furnish assistance and provide other support for 
     individuals and independent nongovernmental organizations to 
     support democracy-building efforts for Cuba, including the 
     following:
       (1) Published and informational matter, such as books, 
     videos, and cassettes, on transitions to democracy, human 
     rights, and market economies, to be made available to 
     independent democratic groups in Cuba.
       (2) Humanitarian assistance to victims of political 
     repression, and their families.
       (3) Support for democratic and human rights groups in Cuba.
       (4) Support for visits and permanent deployment of 
     independent international human rights monitors in Cuba.
       (b) OAS Emergency Fund.--
       (1) For support of human rights and elections.--The 
     President shall take the necessary steps to encourage the 
     Organization of American States to create a special emergency 
     fund for the explicit purpose of deploying human rights 
     observers, election support, and election observation in 
     Cuba.
       (2) Action of other member states.--The President should 
     instruct the United States Permanent Representative to the 
     Organization of American States to encourage other member 
     states of the Organization to join in calling for the Cuban 
     Government to allow the immediate deployment of independent 
     human rights monitors of the Organization throughout Cuba and 
     on-site visits to Cuba by the Inter-American Commission on 
     Human Rights.
       (3) Voluntary contributions for fund.--Notwithstanding 
     section 307 of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 
     2227) or any other provision of law limiting the United 
     States proportionate share of assistance to Cuba by any 
     international organization, the President should provide not 
     less than $5,000,000 of the voluntary contributions of the 
     United States to the Organization of American States solely 
     for the purposes of the special fund referred to in paragraph 
     (1).
       (c) Denial of Funds to the Cuban Government.--In 
     implementing this section, the President shall take all 
     necessary steps to ensure that no funds or other assistance 
     is provided to the Cuban Government.

     SEC. 110. IMPORTATION SAFEGUARD AGAINST CERTAIN CUBAN 
                   PRODUCTS.

       (a) Prohibition on Import of and Dealings in Cuban 
     Products.--The Congress notes that section 515.204 of title 
     31, Code of Federal Regulations, prohibits the entry of, and 
     dealings outside the United States in, merchandise that--
       (1) is of Cuban origin;
       (2) is or has been located in or transported from or 
     through Cuba; or
       (3) is made or derived in whole or in part of any article 
     which is the growth, produce, or manufacture of Cuba.
       (b) Effect of NAFTA.--The Congress notes that United States 
     accession to the North American Free Trade Agreement does not 
     modify or alter the United States sanctions against Cuba. The 
     statement of administrative action accompanying that trade 
     agreement specifically states the following:
       (1) ``The NAFTA rules of origin will not in any way 
     diminish the Cuban sanctions program. . . . Nothing in the 
     NAFTA would operate to override this prohibition.''.
       (2) ``Article 309(3) [of the NAFTA] permits the United 
     States to ensure that Cuban products or goods made from Cuban 
     materials are not imported into the United States from Mexico 
     or Canada and that U.S. products are not exported to Cuba 
     through those countries.''.
       (c) Restriction of Sugar Imports.--The Congress notes that 
     section 902(c) of the Food Security Act of 1985 (Public Law 
     99-198) requires the President not to allocate any of the 
     sugar import quota to a country that is a net importer of 
     sugar unless appropriate officials of that country verify to 
     the President that the country does not import for reexport 
     to the United States any sugar produced in Cuba.
       (d) Assurances Regarding Sugar Products.--Protection of 
     essential security interests of the United States requires 
     assurances that sugar products that are entered, or withdrawn 
     from warehouse for consumption, into the customs territory of 
     the United States are not products of Cuba.

     SEC. 111. WITHHOLDING OF FOREIGN ASSISTANCE FROM COUNTRIES 
                   SUPPORTING JURAGUA NUCLEAR PLANT IN CUBA.

       (a) Findings.--The Congress makes the following findings:
       (1) President Clinton stated in April 1993 that the United 
     States opposed the construction of the Juragua nuclear power 
     plant because of the concerns of the United States about 
     Cuba's ability to ensure the safe operation of the facility 
     and because of Cuba's refusal to sign the Nuclear Non-
     Proliferation Treaty or ratify the Treaty of Tlatelolco.
       (2) Cuba has not signed the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation 
     of Nuclear Weapons or ratified the Treaty of Tlatelolco, the 
     latter of which establishes Latin America and the Caribbean 
     as a nuclear weapons-free zone.
       (3) The State Department, the Nuclear Regulatory 
     Commission, and the Department of Energy have expressed 
     concerns about the construction and operation of Cuba's 
     nuclear reactors.
       (4) In a September 1992 report to the Congress, the General 
     Accounting Office outlined concerns among nuclear energy 
     experts about deficiencies in the nuclear plant project in 
     Juragua, near Cienfuegos, Cuba, including--
       (A) a lack in Cuba of a nuclear regulatory structure;
       (B) the absence in Cuba of an adequate infrastructure to 
     ensure the plant's safe operation and requisite maintenance;
       (C) the inadequacy of training of plant operators;
       (D) reports by a former technician from Cuba who, by 
     examining with x-rays weld sites believed to be part of the 
     auxiliary plumbing system for the plant, found that 10 to 15 
     percent of those sites were defective;
       (E) since September 5, 1992, when construction on the plant 
     was halted, the prolonged exposure to the elements, including 
     corrosive salt water vapor, of the primary reactor 
     components; and
       (F) the possible inadequacy of the upper portion of the 
     reactors' dome retention capability to withstand only 7 
     pounds of pressure per square inch, given that normal 
     atmospheric pressure is 32 pounds per square inch and United 
     States reactors are designed to accommodate pressures of 50 
     pounds per square inch.
       (5) The United States Geological Survey claims that it had 
     difficulty determining answers to specific questions 
     regarding earthquake activity in the area near Cienfuegos 
     because the Cuban Government was not forthcoming with 
     information.
       (6) The Geological Survey has indicated that the Caribbean 
     plate, a geological formation near the south coast of Cuba, 
     may pose seismic risks to Cuba and the site of the power 
     plant, and may produce large to moderate earthquakes.
       (7) On May 25, 1992, the Caribbean plate produced an 
     earthquake numbering 7.0 on the Richter scale.
       (8) According to a study by the National Oceanic and 
     Atmospheric Administration, summer winds could carry 
     radioactive pollutants from a nuclear accident at the power 
     plant throughout all of Florida and parts of the States on 
     the coast of the Gulf of Mexico as far as Texas, and northern 
     winds could carry the pollutants as far northeast as Virginia 
     and Washington, D.C.
       (9) The Cuban Government, under dictator Fidel Castro, in 
     1962 advocated the Soviets' launching of nuclear missiles to 
     the United States, which represented a direct and dangerous 
     provocation of the United States and brought the world to the 
     brink of a nuclear conflict.
       (10) Fidel Castro over the years has consistently issued 
     threats against the United States Government, most recently 
     that he would unleash another perilous mass migration from 
     Cuba upon the enactment of this Act.
       (11) Despite the various concerns about the plant's safety 
     and operational problems, a feasibility study is being 
     conducted that would establish a support group to include 
     Russia, Cuba, and third countries with the objective of 
     completing and operating the plant.
       (b) Withholding of Foreign Assistance.--
       (1) In general.--Notwithstanding any other provision of 
     law, the President shall withhold from assistance allocated, 
     on or after the date of the enactment of this Act, for any 
     country an amount equal to the sum of assistance and credits, 
     if any, provided on or after such date of enactment by that 
     country or any entity in that country in support of the 
     completion of the Cuban nuclear facility at Juragua, near 
     Cienfuegos, Cuba.
       (2) Exceptions.--The requirement of paragraph (1) to 
     withhold assistance shall not apply with respect to--
       (A) assistance to meet urgent humanitarian needs, including 
     disaster and refugee relief;
       (B) democratic political reform or rule of law activities;
       (C) the creation of private sector or nongovernmental 
     organizations that are independent of government control;
       (D) the development of a free market economic system;
       (E) assistance for the purposes described in the 
     Cooperative Threat Reduction Act of 1993 (title XII of Public 
     Law 103-160); or
       (F) assistance under the secondary school exchange program 
     administered by the United States Information Agency.

[[Page H1650]]

       (3) Definition.--As used in paragraph (1), the term 
     ``assistance'' means assistance under the Foreign Assistance 
     Act of 1961, credits, sales, guarantees of extensions of 
     credit, and other assistance under the Arms Export Control 
     Act, assistance under titles I and III of the Agricultural 
     Trade Development and Assistance Act of 1954, assistance 
     under the FREEDOM Support Act, and any other program of 
     assistance or credits provided by the United States to other 
     countries under other provisions of law.

     SEC. 112. REINSTITUTION OF FAMILY REMITTANCES AND TRAVEL TO 
                   CUBA.

       It is the sense of the Congress that the President should--
       (1)(A) before considering the reinstitution of general 
     licenses for family remittances to Cuba, insist that, prior 
     to such reinstitution, the Cuban Government permit the 
     unfettered operation of small businesses fully empowered with 
     the right to hire others to whom they may pay wages and to 
     buy materials necessary in the operation of the businesses, 
     and with such other authority and freedom as are required to 
     foster the operation of small businesses throughout Cuba; and
       (B) if licenses described in subparagraph (A) are 
     reinstituted, require a specific license for remittances 
     described in subparagraph (A) in amounts of more than $500; 
     and
       (2) before considering the reinstitution of general 
     licenses for travel to Cuba by individuals resident in the 
     United States who are family members of Cuban nationals who 
     are resident in Cuba, insist on such actions by the Cuban 
     Government as abrogation of the sanction for departure from 
     Cuba by refugees, release of political prisoners, recognition 
     of the right of association, and other fundamental freedoms.

     SEC. 113. EXPULSION OF CRIMINALS FROM CUBA.

       The President shall instruct all United States Government 
     officials who engage in official contacts with the Cuban 
     Government to raise on a regular basis the extradition of or 
     rendering to the United States all persons residing in Cuba 
     who are sought by the United States Department of Justice for 
     crimes committed in the United States.

     SEC. 114. NEWS BUREAUS IN CUBA.

       (a) Establishment of News Bureaus.--The President is 
     authorized to establish and implement an exchange of news 
     bureaus between the United States and Cuba, if the exchange 
     meets the following conditions:
       (1) The exchange is fully reciprocal.
       (2) The Cuban Government agrees not to interfere with the 
     establishment of news bureaus or with the movement in Cuba of 
     journalists of any United States-based news organizations, 
     including Radio Marti and Television Marti.
       (3) The Cuban Government agrees not to interfere with 
     decisions of United States-based news organizations with 
     respect to individuals assigned to work as journalists in 
     their news bureaus in Cuba.
       (4) The Department of the Treasury is able to ensure that 
     only accredited journalists regularly employed with a news 
     gathering organization travel to Cuba under this subsection.
       (5) The Cuban Government agrees not to interfere with the 
     transmission of telecommunications signals of news bureaus or 
     with the distribution within Cuba of publications of any 
     United States-based news organization that has a news bureau 
     in Cuba.
       (b) Assurance Against Espionage.--In implementing this 
     section, the President shall take all necessary steps to 
     ensure the safety and security of the United States against 
     espionage by Cuban journalists it believes to be working for 
     the intelligence agencies of the Cuban Government.
       (c) Fully Reciprocal.--As used in subsection (a)(1), the 
     term ``fully reciprocal'' means that all news services, news 
     organizations, and broadcasting services, including such 
     services or organizations that receive financing, assistance, 
     or other support from a governmental or official source, are 
     permitted to establish and operate a news bureau in the 
     United States and Cuba.

     SEC. 115. EFFECT OF ACT ON LAWFUL UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT 
                   ACTIVITIES.

       Nothing in this Act prohibits any lawfully authorized 
     investigative, protective, or intelligence activity of a law 
     enforcement agency, or of an intelligence agency, of the 
     United States.

     SEC. 116. CONDEMNATION OF CUBAN ATTACK ON AMERICAN AIRCRAFT.

       (a) Findings.--The Congress makes the following findings:
       (1) Brothers to the Rescue is a Miami-based humanitarian 
     organization engaged in searching for and aiding Cuban 
     refugees in the Straits of Florida, and was engaged in such a 
     mission on Saturday, February 24, 1996.
       (2) The members of Brothers to the Rescue were flying 
     unarmed and defenseless planes in a mission identical to 
     hundreds they have flown since 1991 and posted no threat 
     whatsoever to the Cuban Government, the Cuban military, or 
     the Cuban people.
       (3) Statements by the Cuban Government that Brothers to the 
     Rescue has engaged in covert operations, bombing campaigns, 
     and commando operations against the Government of Cuba have 
     no basis in fact.
       (4) The Brothers to the Rescue aircraft notified air 
     traffic controllers as to their flight plans, which would 
     take them south of the 24th parallel and close to Cuban 
     airspace.
       (5) International law provides a nation with airspace over 
     the 12-mile territorial sea.
       (6) The response of Fidel Castro's dictatorship to 
     Saturday's afternoon flight was to scramble 2 fighter jets 
     from a Havana airfield.
       (7) At approximately 3:24 p.m., the pilot of one of the 
     Cuban MiGs received permission and proceeded to shoot down 
     one Brothers to the Rescue airplane more than 6 miles north 
     of the Cuban exclusion zone, or 18 miles from the Cuban 
     coast.
       (8) Approximately 7 minutes later, the pilot of the Cuban 
     fighter jet received permission and proceeded to shoot down 
     the second Brothers to the Rescue airplane almost 18.5 miles 
     north of the Cuban exclusion zone, or 30.5 miles from the 
     Cuban coast.
       (9) The Cuban dictatorship, if it truly felt threatened by 
     the flight of these unarmed aircraft, could have and should 
     have pursued other peaceful options as required by 
     international law.
       (10) The response chosen by Fidel Castro, the use of lethal 
     force, was completely inappropriate to the situation 
     presented to the Cuban Government, making such actions a 
     blatant and barbaric violation of international law and 
     tantamount to cold-blooded murder.
       (11) There were no survivors of the attack on these 
     aircraft, and the crew of a third aircraft managed to escape 
     this criminal attack by Castro's Air Force.
       (12) The crew members of the destroyed planes, Pablo 
     Morales, Carlos Costa, Mario de la Pena, and Armando 
     Alejandre, were United States citizens from Miami flying with 
     Brothers to the Rescue on a voluntary basis.
       (13) It is incumbent upon the United States Government to 
     protect the lives and livelihoods of United States citizens 
     as well as the rights of free passage and humanitarian 
     missions.
       (14) This premeditated act took place after a week-long 
     waive of repression by the Cuban Government against Concilio 
     Cubano, an umbrella organization of human rights activists, 
     dissidents, independent economists, and independent 
     journalists, among others.
       (15) The waive of repression against Concilio Cubano, whose 
     membership is committed to peaceful democratic change in 
     Cuba, included arrests, strip searches, house arrests, and in 
     some cases sentences to more than 1 year in jail.
       (b) Statements by the Congress.--(1) The Congress strongly 
     condemns the act of terrorism by the Castro regime in 
     shooting down the Brothers to the Rescue aircraft on February 
     24, 1996.
       (2) The Congress extends its condolences to the families of 
     Pablo Morales, Carlos Costa, Mario de la Pena, and Armando 
     Alejandre, the victims of the attack.
       (3) The Congress urges the President to seek, in the 
     International Court of Justice, indictment for this act of 
     terrorism by Fidel Castro.
          TITLE II--ASSISTANCE TO A FREE AND INDEPENDENT CUBA

     SEC. 201. POLICY TOWARD A TRANSITION GOVERNMENT AND A 
                   DEMOCRATICALLY ELECTED GOVERNMENT IN CUBA.

       The policy of the United States is as follows:
       (1) To support the self-determination of the Cuban people.
       (2) To recognize that the self-determination of the Cuban 
     people is a sovereign and national right of the citizens of 
     Cuba which must be exercised free of interference by the 
     government of any other country.
       (3) To encourage the Cuban people to empower themselves 
     with a government which reflects the self-determination of 
     the Cuban people.
       (4) To recognize the potential for a difficult transition 
     from the current regime in Cuba that may result from the 
     initiatives taken by the Cuban people for self-determination 
     in response to the intransigence of the Castro regime in not 
     allowing any substantive political or economic reforms, and 
     to be prepared to provide the Cuban people with humanitarian, 
     developmental, and other economic assistance.
       (5) In solidarity with the Cuban people, to provide 
     appropriate forms of assistance--
       (A) to a transition government in Cuba;
       (B) to facilitate the rapid movement from such a transition 
     government to a democratically elected government in Cuba 
     that results from an expression of the self-determination of 
     the Cuban people; and
       (C) to support such a democratically elected government.
       (6) Through such assistance, to facilitate a peaceful 
     transition to representative democracy and a market economy 
     in Cuba and to consolidate democracy in Cuba.
       (7) To deliver such assistance to the Cuban people only 
     through a transition government in Cuba, through a 
     democratically elected government in Cuba, through United 
     States Government organizations, or through United States, 
     international, or indigenous nongovernmental organizations.
       (8) To encourage other countries and multilateral 
     organizations to provide similar assistance, and to work 
     cooperatively with such countries and organizations to 
     coordinate such assistance.
       (9) To ensure that appropriate assistance is rapidly 
     provided and distributed to the people of Cuba upon the 
     institution of a transition government in Cuba.
       (10) Not to provide favorable treatment or influence on 
     behalf of any individual or entity in the selection by the 
     Cuban people of their future government.
       (11) To assist a transition government in Cuba and a 
     democratically elected government in Cuba to prepare the 
     Cuban military forces for an appropriate role in a democracy.
       (12) To be prepared to enter into negotiations with a 
     democratically elected government in Cuba either to return 
     the United States Naval Base at Guantanamo to Cuba or to 
     renegotiate the present agreement under mutually agreeable 
     terms.
       (13) To consider the restoration of diplomatic recognition 
     and support the reintegration of the Cuban Government into 
     Inter-American organizations when the President determines 
     that there exists a democratically elected government in 
     Cuba.
       (14) To take steps to remove the economic embargo of Cuba 
     when the President determines that a transition to a 
     democratically elected government in Cuba has begun.

[[Page H1651]]

       (15) To assist a democratically elected government in Cuba 
     to strengthen and stabilize its national currency.
       (16) To pursue trade relations with a free, democratic, and 
     independent Cuba.

     SEC. 202. ASSISTANCE FOR THE CUBAN PEOPLE.

       (a) Authorization.--
       (1) In general.--The President shall develop a plan for 
     providing economic assistance to Cuba at such time as the 
     President determines that a transition government or a 
     democratically elected government in Cuba (as determined 
     under section 203(c)) is in power.
       (2) Effect on other laws.--Assistance may be provided under 
     this section subject to an authorization of appropriations 
     and subject to the availability of appropriations.
       (b) Plan for Assistance.--
       (1) Development of plan.--The President shall develop a 
     plan for providing assistance under this section--
       (A) to Cuba when a transition government in Cuba is in 
     power; and
       (B) to Cuba when a democratically elected government in 
     Cuba is in power.
       (2) Types of assistance.--Assistance under the plan 
     developed under paragraph (1) may, subject to an 
     authorization of appropriations and subject to the 
     availability of appropriations, include the following:
       (A) Transition government.--(i) Except as provided in 
     clause (ii), assistance to Cuba under a transition government 
     shall, subject to an authorization of appropriations and 
     subject to the availability of appropriations, be limited 
     to--
       (I) such food, medicine, medical supplies and equipment, 
     and assistance to meet emergency energy needs, as is 
     necessary to meet the basic human needs of the Cuban people; 
     and
       (II) assistance described in subparagraph (C).
       (ii) Assistance in addition to assistance under clause (i) 
     may be provided, but only after the President certifies to 
     the appropriate congressional committees, in accordance with 
     procedures applicable to reprogramming notifications under 
     section 634A of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961, that such 
     assistance is essential to the successful completion of the 
     transition to democracy.
       (iii) Only after a transition government in Cuba is in 
     power, freedom of individuals to travel to visit their 
     relatives without any restrictions shall be permitted.
       (B) Democratically elected government.--Assistance to a 
     democratically elected government in Cuba may, subject to an 
     authorization of appropriations and subject to the 
     availability of appropriations, consist of economic 
     assistance in addition to assistance available under 
     subparagraph (A), together with assistance described in 
     subparagraph (C). Such economic assistance may include--
       (i) assistance under chapter 1 of part I (relating to 
     development assistance), and chapter 4 of part II (relating 
     to the economic support fund), of the Foreign Assistance Act 
     of 1961;
       (ii) assistance under the Agricultural Trade Development 
     and Assistance Act of 1954;
       (iii) financing, guarantees, and other forms of assistance 
     provided by the Export-Import Bank of the United States;
       (iv) financial support provided by the Overseas Private 
     Investment Corporation for investment projects in Cuba;
       (v) assistance provided by the Trade and Development 
     Agency;
       (vi) Peace Corps programs; and
       (vii) other appropriate assistance to carry out the policy 
     of section 201.
       (C) Military adjustment assistance.--Assistance to a 
     transition government in Cuba and to a democratically elected 
     government in Cuba shall also include assistance in preparing 
     the Cuban military forces to adjust to an appropriate role in 
     a democracy.
       (c) Strategy for Distribution.--The plan developed under 
     subsection (b) shall include a strategy for distributing 
     assistance under the plan.
       (d) Distribution.--Assistance under the plan developed 
     under subsection (b) shall be provided through United States 
     Government organizations and nongovernmental organizations 
     and private and voluntary organizations, whether within or 
     outside the United States, including humanitarian, 
     educational, labor, and private sector organizations.
       (e) International Efforts.--The President shall take the 
     necessary steps--
       (1) to seek to obtain the agreement of other countries and 
     of international financial institutions and multilateral 
     organizations to provide to a transition government in Cuba, 
     and to a democratically elected government in Cuba, 
     assistance comparable to that provided by the United States 
     under this Act; and
       (2) to work with such countries, institutions, and 
     organizations to coordinate all such assistance programs.
       (f) Communication With the Cuban People.--The President 
     shall take the necessary steps to communicate to the Cuban 
     people the plan for assistance developed under this section.
       (g) Report to Congress.--Not later than 180 days after the 
     date of the enactment of this Act, the President shall 
     transmit to the appropriate congressional committees a report 
     describing in detail the plan developed under this section.
       (h) Report on Trade and Investment Relations.--
       (1) Report to congress.--The President, following the 
     transmittal to the Congress of a determination under section 
     203(c)(3) that a democratically elected government in Cuba is 
     in power, shall submit to the Committee on Ways and Means of 
     the House of Representatives and the Committee on Finance of 
     the Senate and the appropriate congressional committees a 
     report that describes--
       (A) acts, policies, and practices which constitute 
     significant barriers to, or distortions of, United States 
     trade in goods or services or foreign direct investment with 
     respect to Cuba;
       (B) policy objectives of the United States regarding trade 
     relations with a democratically elected government in Cuba, 
     and the reasons therefor, including possible--
       (i) reciprocal extension of nondiscriminatory trade 
     treatment (most-favored-nation treatment);
       (ii) designation of Cuba as a beneficiary developing 
     country under title V of the Trade Act of 1974 (relating to 
     the Generalized System of Preferences) or as a beneficiary 
     country under the Caribbean Basin Economic Recovery Act, and 
     the implications of such designation with respect to trade 
     with any other country that is such a beneficiary developing 
     country or beneficiary country or is a party to the North 
     American Free Trade Agreement; and
       (iii) negotiations regarding free trade, including the 
     accession of Cuba to the North American Free Trade Agreement;
       (C) specific trade negotiating objectives of the United 
     States with respect to Cuba, including the objectives 
     described in section 108(b)(5) of the North American Free 
     Trade Agreement Implementation Act (19 U.S.C. 3317(b)(5)); 
     and
       (D) actions proposed or anticipated to be undertaken, and 
     any proposed legislation necessary or appropriate, to achieve 
     any of such policy and negotiating objectives.
       (2) Consultation.--The President shall consult with the 
     Committee on Ways and Means of the House of Representatives 
     and the Committee on Finance of the Senate and the 
     appropriate congressional committees and shall seek advice 
     from the appropriate advisory committees established under 
     section 135 of the Trade Act of 1974 regarding the policy and 
     negotiating objectives and the legislative proposals 
     described in paragraph (1).

     SEC. 203. COORDINATION OF ASSISTANCE PROGRAM; IMPLEMENTATION 
                   AND REPORTS TO CONGRESS; REPROGRAMMING.

       (a) Coordinating Official.--The President shall designate a 
     coordinating official who shall be responsible for--
       (1) implementing the strategy for distributing assistance 
     described in section 202(b);
       (2) ensuring the speedy and efficient distribution of such 
     assistance; and
       (3) ensuring coordination among, and appropriate oversight 
     by, the agencies of the United States that provide assistance 
     described in section 202(b), including resolving any disputes 
     among such agencies.
       (b) United States-Cuba Council.--Upon making a 
     determination under subsection (c)(3) that a democratically 
     elected government in Cuba is in power, the President, after 
     consultation with the coordinating official, is authorized to 
     designate a United States-Cuba council--
       (1) to ensure coordination between the United States 
     Government and the private sector in responding to change in 
     Cuba, and in promoting market-based development in Cuba; and
       (2) to establish periodic meetings between representatives 
     of the United States and Cuban private sectors for the 
     purpose of facilitating bilateral trade.
       (c) Implementation of Plan; Reports to Congress.--
       (1) Implementation with respect to transition government.--
     Upon making a determination that a transition government in 
     Cuba is in power, the President shall transmit that 
     determination to the appropriate congressional committees and 
     shall, subject to an authorization of appropriations and 
     subject to the availability of appropriations, commence the 
     delivery and distribution of assistance to such transition 
     government under the plan developed under section 202(b).
       (2) Reports to congress.--(A) The President shall transmit 
     to the appropriate congressional committees a report setting 
     forth the strategy for providing assistance described in 
     section 202(b)(2) (A) and (C) to the transition government in 
     Cuba under the plan of assistance developed under section 
     202(b), the types of such assistance, and the extent to which 
     such assistance has been distributed in accordance with the 
     plan.
       (B) The President shall transmit the report not later than 
     90 days after making the determination referred to in 
     paragraph (1), except that the President shall transmit the 
     report in preliminary form not later than 15 days after 
     making that determination.
       (3) Implementation with respect to democratically elected 
     government.--The President shall, upon determining that a 
     democratically elected government in Cuba is in power, submit 
     that determination to the appropriate congressional 
     committees and shall, subject to an authorization of 
     appropriations and subject to the availability of 
     appropriations, commence the delivery and distribution of 
     assistance to such democratically elected government under 
     the plan developed under section 202(b).
       (4) Annual reports to congress.--Not later than 60 days 
     after the end of each fiscal year, the President shall 
     transmit to the appropriate congressional committees a report 
     on the assistance provided under the plan developed under 
     section 202(b), including a description of each type of 
     assistance, the amounts expended for such assistance, and a 
     description of the assistance to be provided under the plan 
     in the current fiscal year.
       (d) Reprogramming.--Any changes in the assistance to be 
     provided under the plan developed under section 202(b) may 
     not be made unless the President notifies the appropriate 
     congressional committees at least 15 days in advance in 
     accordance with the procedures applicable to reprogramming 
     notifications under section 634A of the Foreign Assistance 
     Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2394-1).

[[Page H1652]]



     SEC. 204. TERMINATION OF THE ECONOMIC EMBARGO OF CUBA.

       (a) Presidential Actions.--Upon submitting a determination 
     to the appropriate congressional committees under section 
     203(c)(1) that a transition government in Cuba is in power, 
     the President, after consultation with the Congress, is 
     authorized to take steps to suspend the economic embargo of 
     Cuba and to suspend the right of action created in section 
     302 with respect to actions thereafter filed against the 
     Cuban Government, to the extent that such steps contribute to 
     a stable foundation for a democratically elected government 
     in Cuba.
       (b) Suspension of Certain Provisions of Law.--In carrying 
     out subsection (a), the President may suspend the enforcement 
     of--
       (1) section 620(a) of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 
     (22 U.S.C. 2370(a));
       (2) section 620(f) of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 
     (22 U.S.C. 2370(f)) with respect to the ``Republic of Cuba'';
       (3) sections 1704, 1705(d), and 1706 of the Cuban Democracy 
     Act of 1992 (22 U.S.C. 6003, 6004(d), and 6005);
       (4) section 902(c) of the Food Security Act of 1985; and
       (5) the prohibitions on transactions described in part 515 
     of title 31, Code of Federal Regulations.
       (c) Additional Presidential Actions.--Upon submitting a 
     determination to the appropriate congressional committees 
     under section 203(c)(3) that a democratically elected 
     government in Cuba is in power, the President shall take 
     steps to terminate the economic embargo of Cuba, including 
     the restrictions under part 515 of title 31, Code of Federal 
     Regulations.
       (d) Conforming Amendments.--On the date on which the 
     President submits a determination under section 203(c)(3)--
       (1) section 620(a) of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 
     (22 U.S.C. 2370(a)) is repealed;
       (2) section 620(f) of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 
     (22 U.S.C. 2370(f)) is amended by striking ``Republic of 
     Cuba'';
       (3) sections 1704, 1705(d), and 1706 of the Cuban Democracy 
     Act of 1992 (22 U.S.C. 6003, 6004(d), and 6005) are repealed; 
     and
       (4) section 902(c) of the Food Security Act of 1985 is 
     repealed.
       (e) Review of Suspension of Economic Embargo.--
       (1) Review.--If the President takes action under subsection 
     (a) to suspend the economic embargo of Cuba, the President 
     shall immediately so notify the Congress. The President shall 
     report to the Congress no less frequently than every 6 months 
     thereafter, until he submits a determination under section 
     203(c)(3) that a democratically elected government in Cuba is 
     in power, on the progress being made by Cuba toward the 
     establishment of such a democratically elected government. 
     The action of the President under subsection (a) shall cease 
     to be effective upon the enactment of a joint resolution 
     described in paragraph (2).
       (2) Joint resolutions.--For purposes of this subsection, 
     the term ``joint resolution'' means only a joint resolution 
     of the 2 Houses of Congress, the matter after the resolving 
     clause of which is as follows: ``That the Congress 
     disapproves the action of the President under section 204(a) 
     of the Cuban Liberty and Democratic Solidarity (LIBERTAD) Act 
     of 1996 to suspend the economic embargo of Cuba, notice of 
     which was submitted to the Congress on ____.'', with the 
     blank space being filled with the appropriate date.
       (3) Referral to committees.--Joint resolutions introduced 
     in the House of Representatives shall be referred to the 
     Committee on International Relations and joint resolutions 
     introduced in the Senate shall be referred to the Committee 
     on Foreign Relations.
       (4) Procedures.--(A) Any joint resolution shall be 
     considered in the Senate in accordance with the provisions of 
     section 601(b) of the International Security Assistance and 
     Arms Export Control Act of 1976.
       (B) For the purpose of expediting the consideration and 
     enactment of joint resolutions, a motion to proceed to the 
     consideration of any joint resolution after it has been 
     reported by the appropriate committee shall be treated as 
     highly privileged in the House of Representatives.
       (C) Not more than 1 joint resolution may be considered in 
     the House of Representatives and the Senate in the 6-month 
     period beginning on the date on which the President notifies 
     the Congress under paragraph (1) of the action taken under 
     subsection (a), and in each 6-month period thereafter.

     SEC. 205. REQUIREMENTS AND FACTORS FOR DETERMINING A 
                   TRANSITION GOVERNMENT.

       (a) Requirements.--For the purposes of this Act, a 
     transition government in Cuba is a government that--
       (1) has legalized all political activity;
       (2) has released all political prisoners and allowed for 
     investigations of Cuban prisons by appropriate international 
     human rights organizations;
       (3) has dissolved the present Department of State Security 
     in the Cuban Ministry of the Interior, including the 
     Committees for the Defense of the Revolution and the Rapid 
     Response Brigades; and
       (4) has made public commitments to organizing free and fair 
     elections for a new government--
       (A) to be held in a timely manner within a period not to 
     exceed 18 months after the transition government assumes 
     power;
       (B) with the participation of multiple independent 
     political parties that have full access to the media on an 
     equal basis, including (in the case of radio, television, or 
     other telecommunications media) in terms of allotments of 
     time for such access and the times of day such allotments are 
     given; and
       (C) to be conducted under the supervision of 
     internationally recognized observers, such as the 
     Organization of American States, the United Nations, and 
     other election monitors;
       (5) has ceased any interference with Radio Marti or 
     Television Marti broadcasts;
       (6) makes public commitments to and is making demonstrable 
     progress in--
       (A) establishing an independent judiciary;
       (B) respecting internationally recognized human rights and 
     basic freedoms as set forth in the Universal Declaration of 
     Human Rights, to which Cuba is a signatory nation;
       (C) allowing the establishment of independent trade unions 
     as set forth in conventions 87 and 98 of the International 
     Labor Organization, and allowing the establishment of 
     independent social, economic, and political associations;
       (7) does not include Fidel Castro or Raul Castro; and
       (8) has given adequate assurances that it will allow the 
     speedy and efficient distribution of assistance to the Cuban 
     people.
       (b) Additional Factors.--In addition to the requirements in 
     subsection (a), in determining whether a transition 
     government in Cuba is in power, the President shall take into 
     account the extent to which that government--
       (1) is demonstrably in transition from a communist 
     totalitarian dictatorship to representative democracy;
       (2) has made public commitments to, and is making 
     demonstrable progress in--
       (A) effectively guaranteeing the rights of free speech and 
     freedom of the press, including granting permits to privately 
     owned media and telecommunications companies to operate in 
     Cuba;
       (B) permitting the reinstatement of citizenship to Cuban-
     born persons returning to Cuba;
       (C) assuring the right to private property; and
       (D) taking appropriate steps to return to United States 
     citizens (and entities which are 50 percent or more 
     beneficially owned by United States citizens) property taken 
     by the Cuban Government from such citizens and entities on or 
     after January 1, 1959, or to provide equitable compensation 
     to such citizens and entities for such property;
       (3) has extradited or otherwise rendered to the United 
     States all persons sought by the United States Department of 
     Justice for crimes committed in the United States; and
       (4) has permitted the deployment throughout Cuba of 
     independent and unfettered international human rights 
     monitors.

     SEC. 206. REQUIREMENTS FOR DETERMINING A DEMOCRATICALLY 
                   ELECTED GOVERNMENT.

       For purposes of this Act, a democratically elected 
     government in Cuba, in addition to meeting the requirements 
     of section 205(a), is a government which--
       (1) results from free and fair elections--
       (A) conducted under the supervision of internationally 
     recognized observers; and
       (B) in which--
       (i) opposition parties were permitted ample time to 
     organize and campaign for such elections; and
       (ii) all candidates were permitted full access to the 
     media;
       (2) is showing respect for the basic civil liberties and 
     human rights of the citizens of Cuba;
       (3) is substantially moving toward a market-oriented 
     economic system based on the right to own and enjoy property;
       (4) is committed to making constitutional changes that 
     would ensure regular free and fair elections and the full 
     enjoyment of basic civil liberties and human rights by the 
     citizens of Cuba;
       (5) has made demonstrable progress in establishing an 
     independent judiciary; and
       (6) has made demonstrable progress in returning to United 
     States citizens (and entities which are 50 percent or more 
     beneficially owned by United States citizens) property taken 
     by the Cuban Government from such citizens and entities on or 
     after January 1, 1959, or providing full compensation for 
     such property in accordance with international law standards 
     and practice.

     SEC. 207. SETTLEMENT OF OUTSTANDING UNITED STATES CLAIMS TO 
                   CONFISCATED PROPERTY IN CUBA.

       (a) Report to Congress.--Not later than 180 days after the 
     date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State 
     shall provide a report to the appropriate congressional 
     committees containing an assessment of the property dispute 
     question in Cuba, including--
       (1) an estimate of the number and amount of claims to 
     property confiscated by the Cuban Government that are held by 
     United States nationals in addition to those claims certified 
     under section 507 of the International Claims Settlement Act 
     of 1949;
       (2) an assessment of the significance of promptly resolving 
     confiscated property claims to the revitalization of the 
     Cuban economy;
       (3) a review and evaluation of technical and other 
     assistance that the United States could provide to help 
     either a transition government in Cuba or a democratically 
     elected government in Cuba establish mechanisms to resolve 
     property questions;
       (4) an assessment of the role and types of support the 
     United States could provide to help resolve claims to 
     property confiscated by the Cuban Government that are held by 
     United States nationals who did not receive or qualify for 
     certification under section 507 of the International Claims 
     Settlement Act of 1949; and
       (5) an assessment of any areas requiring legislative review 
     or action regarding the resolution of property claims in Cuba 
     prior to a change of government in Cuba.
       (d) Sense of Congress.--It is the sense of the Congress 
     that the satisfactory resolution of property claims by a 
     Cuban Government recognized by the United States remains an 
     essential condition for the full resumption of economic

[[Page H1653]]

     and diplomatic relations between the United States and Cuba.
  TITLE III--PROTECTION OF PROPERTY RIGHTS OF UNITED STATES NATIONALS

     SEC. 301. FINDINGS.

       The Congress makes the following findings:
       (1) Individuals enjoy a fundamental right to own and enjoy 
     property which is enshrined in the United States 
     Constitution.
       (2) The wrongful confiscation or taking of property 
     belonging to United States nationals by the Cuban Government, 
     and the subsequent exploitation of this property at the 
     expense of the rightful owner, undermines the comity of 
     nations, the free flow of commerce, and economic development.
       (3) Since Fidel Castro seized power in Cuba in 1959--
       (A) he has trampled on the fundamental rights of the Cuban 
     people; and
       (B) through his personal despotism, he has confiscated the 
     property of--
       (i) millions of his own citizens;
       (ii) thousands of United States nationals; and
       (iii) thousands more Cubans who claimed asylum in the 
     United States as refugees because of persecution and later 
     became naturalized citizens of the United States.
       (4) It is in the interest of the Cuban people that the 
     Cuban Government respect equally the property rights of Cuban 
     nationals and nationals of other countries.
       (5) The Cuban Government is offering foreign investors the 
     opportunity to purchase an equity interest in, manage, or 
     enter into joint ventures using property and assets some of 
     which were confiscated from United States nationals.
       (6) This ``trafficking'' in confiscated property provides 
     badly needed financial benefit, including hard currency, oil, 
     and productive investment and expertise, to the current Cuban 
     Government and thus undermines the foreign policy of the 
     United States--
       (A) to bring democratic institutions to Cuba through the 
     pressure of a general economic embargo at a time when the 
     Castro regime has proven to be vulnerable to international 
     economic pressure; and
       (B) to protect the claims of United States nationals who 
     had property wrongfully confiscated by the Cuban Government.
       (7) The United States Department of State has notified 
     other governments that the transfer to third parties of 
     properties confiscated by the Cuban Government ``would 
     complicate any attempt to return them to their original 
     owners''.
       (8) The international judicial system, as currently 
     structured, lacks fully effective remedies for the wrongful 
     confiscation of property and for unjust enrichment from the 
     use of wrongfully confiscated property by governments and 
     private entities at the expense of the rightful owners of the 
     property.
       (9) International law recognizes that a nation has the 
     ability to provide for rules of law with respect to conduct 
     outside its territory that has or is intended to have 
     substantial effect within its territory.
       (10) The United States Government has an obligation to its 
     citizens to provide protection against wrongful confiscations 
     by foreign nations and their citizens, including the 
     provision of private remedies.
       (11) To deter trafficking in wrongfully confiscated 
     property, United States nationals who were the victims of 
     these confiscations should be endowed with a judicial remedy 
     in the courts of the United States that would deny 
     traffickers any profits from economically exploiting Castro's 
     wrongful seizures.

     SEC. 302. LIABILITY FOR TRAFFICKING IN CONFISCATED PROPERTY 
                   CLAIMED BY UNITED STATES NATIONALS.

       (a) Civil Remedy.--
       (1) Liability for trafficking.--(A) Except as otherwise 
     provided in this section, any person that, after the end of 
     the 3-month period beginning on the effective date of this 
     title, traffics in property which was confiscated by the 
     Cuban Government on or after January 1, 1959, shall be liable 
     to any United States national who owns the claim to such 
     property for money damages in an amount equal to the sum of--
       (i) the amount which is the greater of--
       (I) the amount, if any, certified to the claimant by the 
     Foreign Claims Settlement Commission under the International 
     Claims Settlement Act of 1949, plus interest;
       (II) the amount determined under section 303(a)(2), plus 
     interest; or
       (III) the fair market value of that property, calculated as 
     being either the current value of the property, or the value 
     of the property when confiscated plus interest, whichever is 
     greater; and
       (ii) court costs and reasonable attorneys' fees.
       (B) Interest under subparagraph (A)(i) shall be at the rate 
     set forth in section 1961 of title 28, United States Code, 
     computed by the court from the date of confiscation of the 
     property involved to the date on which the action is brought 
     under this subsection.
       (2) Presumption in favor of the certified claims.--There 
     shall be a presumption that the amount for which a person is 
     liable under clause (i) of paragraph (1)(A) is the amount 
     that is certified as described in subclause (I) of that 
     clause. The presumption shall be rebuttable by clear and 
     convincing evidence that the amount described in subclause 
     (II) or (III) of that clause is the appropriate amount of 
     liability under that clause.
       (3) Increased liability.--(A) Any person that traffics in 
     confiscated property for which liability is incurred under 
     paragraph (1) shall, if a United States national owns a claim 
     with respect to that property which was certified by the 
     Foreign Claims Settlement Commission under title V of the 
     International Claims Settlement Act of 1949, be liable for 
     damages computed in accordance with subparagraph (C).
       (B) If the claimant in an action under this subsection 
     (other than a United States national to whom subparagraph (A) 
     applies) provides, after the end of the 3-month period 
     described in paragraph (1) notice to--
       (i) a person against whom the action is to be initiated, or
       (ii) a person who is to be joined as a defendant in the 
     action,

     at least 30 days before initiating the action or joining such 
     person as a defendant, as the case may be, and that person, 
     after the end of the 30-day period beginning on the date the 
     notice is provided, traffics in the confiscated property that 
     is the subject of the action, then that person shall be 
     liable to that claimant for damages computed in accordance 
     with subparagraph (C).
       (C) Damages for which a person is liable under subparagraph 
     (A) or subparagraph (B) are money damages in an amount equal 
     to the sum of--
       (i) the amount determined under paragraph (1)(A)(ii), and
       (ii) 3 times the amount determined applicable under 
     paragraph (1)(A)(i).
       (D) Notice to a person under subparagraph (B)--
       (i) shall be in writing;
       (ii) shall be posted by certified mail or personally 
     delivered to the person; and
       (iii) shall contain--
       (I) a statement of intention to commence the action under 
     this section or to join the person as a defendant (as the 
     case may be), together with the reasons therefor;
       (II) a demand that the unlawful trafficking in the 
     claimant's property cease immediately; and
       (III) a copy of the summary statement published under 
     paragraph (8).
       (4) Applicability.--(A) Except as otherwise provided in 
     this paragraph, actions may be brought under paragraph (1) 
     with respect to property confiscated before, on, or after the 
     date of the enactment of this Act.
       (B) In the case of property confiscated before the date of 
     the enactment of this Act, a United States national may not 
     bring an action under this section on a claim to the 
     confiscated property unless such national acquires ownership 
     of the claim before such date of enactment.
       (C) In the case of property confiscated on or after the 
     date of the enactment of this Act, a United States national 
     who, after the property is confiscated, acquires ownership of 
     a claim to the property by assignment for value, may not 
     bring an action on the claim under this section.
       (5) Treatment of certain actions.--(A) In the case of a 
     United States national who was eligible to file a claim with 
     the Foreign Claims Settlement Commission under title V of the 
     International Claims Settlement Act of 1949 but did not so 
     file the claim, that United States national may not bring an 
     action on that claim under this section.
       (B) In the case of any action brought under this section by 
     a United States national whose underlying claim in the action 
     was timely filed with the Foreign Claims Settlement 
     Commission under title V of the International Claims 
     Settlement Act of 1949 but was denied by the Commission, the 
     court shall accept the findings of the Commission on the 
     claim as conclusive in the action under this section.
       (C) A United States national, other than a United States 
     national bringing an action under this section on a claim 
     certified under title V of the International Claims 
     Settlement Act of 1949, may not bring an action on a claim 
     under this section before the end of the 2-year period 
     beginning on the date of the enactment of this Act.
       (D) An interest in property for which a United States 
     national has a claim certified under title V of the 
     International Claims Settlement Act of 1949 may not be the 
     subject of a claim in an action under this section by any 
     other person. Any person bringing an action under this 
     section whose claim has not been so certified shall have the 
     burden of establishing for the court that the interest in 
     property that is the subject of the claim is not the subject 
     of a claim so certified.
       (6) Inapplicability of act of state doctrine.--No court of 
     the United States shall decline, based upon the act of state 
     doctrine, to make a determination on the merits in an action 
     brought under paragraph (1) .
       (7) Licenses not required.--(A) Notwithstanding any other 
     provision of law, an action under this section may be brought 
     and may be settled, and a judgment rendered in such action 
     may be enforced, without obtaining any license or other 
     permission from any agency of the United States, except that 
     this paragraph shall not apply to the execution of a judgment 
     against, or the settlement of actions involving, property 
     blocked under the authorities of section 5(b) of the Trading 
     with the Enemy Act that were being exercised on July 1, 1977, 
     as a result of a national emergency declared by the President 
     before such date, and are being exercised on the date of the 
     enactment of this Act.
       (B) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, and for 
     purposes of this title only, any claim against the Cuban 
     Government shall not be deemed to be an interest in property 
     the transfer of which to a United States national required 
     before the enactment of this Act, or requires after the 
     enactment of this Act, a license issued by, or the permission 
     of, any agency of the United States.
       (8) Publication by attorney general.--Not later than 60 
     days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the 
     Attorney General shall prepare and publish in the Federal 
     Register a concise summary of the provisions of this title, 
     including a statement of the liability under this title of a 
     person trafficking in confiscated property, and the remedies 
     available to United States nationals under this title.
       (b) Amount in Controversy.--An action may be brought under 
     this section by a United States

[[Page H1654]]

     national only where the amount in controversy exceeds the sum 
     or value of $50,000, exclusive of interest, costs, and 
     attorneys' fees. In calculating $50,000 for purposes of the 
     preceding sentence, the applicable amount under subclause 
     (I), (II), or (III) of subsection (a)(1)(A)(i) may not be 
     tripled as provided in subsection (a)(3).
       (c) Procedural Requirements.--
       (1) In general.--Except as provided in this title, the 
     provisions of title 28, United States Code, and the rules of 
     the courts of the United States apply to actions under this 
     section to the same extent as such provisions and rules apply 
     to any other action brought under section 1331 of title 28, 
     United States Code.
       (2) Service of process.--In an action under this section, 
     service of process on an agency or instrumentality of a 
     foreign state in the conduct of a commercial activity, or 
     against individuals acting under color of law, shall be made 
     in accordance with section 1608 of title 28, United States 
     Code.
       (d) Enforceability of Judgments Against Cuban Government.--
     In an action brought under this section, any judgment against 
     an agency or instrumentality of the Cuban Government shall 
     not be enforceable against an agency or instrumentality of 
     either a transition government in Cuba or a democratically 
     elected government in Cuba.
       (e) Certain Property Immune From Execution.--Section 1611 
     of title 28, United States Code, is amended by adding at the 
     end the following new subsection:
       ``(c) Notwithstanding the provisions of section 1610 of 
     this chapter, the property of a foreign state shall be immune 
     from attachment and from execution in an action brought under 
     section 302 of the Cuban Liberty and Democratic Solidarity 
     (LIBERTAD) Act of 1996 to the extent that the property is a 
     facility or installation used by an accredited diplomatic 
     mission for official purposes.''.
       (f) Election of Remedies.--
       (1) Election.--Subject to paragraph (2)--
       (A) any United States national that brings an action under 
     this section may not bring any other civil action or 
     proceeding under the common law, Federal law, or the law of 
     any of the several States, the District of Columbia, or any 
     commonwealth, territory, or possession of the United States, 
     that seeks monetary or nonmonetary compensation by reason of 
     the same subject matter; and
       (B) any person who brings, under the common law or any 
     provision of law other than this section, a civil action or 
     proceeding for monetary or nonmonetary compensation arising 
     out of a claim for which an action would otherwise be 
     cognizable under this section may not bring an action under 
     this section on that claim.
       (2) Treatment of certified claimants.--(A) In the case of 
     any United States national that brings an action under this 
     section based on a claim certified under title V of the 
     International Claims Settlement Act of 1949--
       (i) if the recovery in the action is equal to or greater 
     than the amount of the certified claim, the United States 
     national may not receive payment on the claim under any 
     agreement entered into between the United States and Cuba 
     settling claims covered by such title, and such national 
     shall be deemed to have discharged the United States from any 
     further responsibility to represent the United States 
     national with respect to that claim;
       (ii) if the recovery in the action is less than the amount 
     of the certified claim, the United States national may 
     receive payment under a claims agreement described in clause 
     (i) but only to the extent of the difference between the 
     amount of the recovery and the amount of the certified claim; 
     and
       (iii) if there is no recovery in the action, the United 
     States national may receive payment on the certified claim 
     under a claims agreement described in clause (i) to the same 
     extent as any certified claimant who does not bring an action 
     under this section.
       (B) In the event some or all actions brought under this 
     section are consolidated by judicial or other action in such 
     manner as to create a pool of assets available to satisfy the 
     claims in such actions, including a pool of assets in a 
     proceeding in bankruptcy, every claimant whose claim in an 
     action so consolidated was certified by the Foreign Claims 
     Settlement Commission under title V of the International 
     Claims Settlement Act of 1949 shall be entitled to payment in 
     full of its claim from the assets in such pool before any 
     payment is made from the assets in such pool with respect to 
     any claim not so certified.
       (g) Deposit of Excess Payments by Cuba Under Claims 
     Agreement.--Any amounts paid by Cuba under any agreement 
     entered into between the United States and Cuba settling 
     certified claims under title V of the International Claims 
     Settlement Act of 1949 that are in excess of the payments 
     made on such certified claims after the application of 
     subsection (f) shall be deposited into the United States 
     Treasury.
       (h) Termination of Rights.--
       (1) In general.--All rights created under this section to 
     bring an action for money damages with respect to property 
     confiscated by the Cuban Government--
       (A) may be suspended under section 204(a); and
       (B) shall cease upon transmittal to the Congress of a 
     determination of the President under section 203(c)(3) that a 
     democratically elected government in Cuba is in power.
       (2) Pending suits.--The suspension or termination of rights 
     under paragraph (1) shall not affect suits commenced before 
     the date of such suspension or termination (as the case may 
     be), and in all such suits, proceedings shall be had, appeals 
     taken, and judgments rendered in the same manner and with the 
     same effect as if the suspension or termination had not 
     occurred.
       (i) Imposition of Filing Fees.--The Judicial Conference of 
     the United States shall establish a uniform fee that shall be 
     imposed upon the plaintiff or plaintiffs in each action 
     brought under this section. The fee should be established at 
     a level sufficient to recover the costs to the courts of 
     actions brought under this section. The fee under this 
     subsection is in addition to any other fees imposed under 
     title 28, United States Code.

     SEC. 303. PROOF OF OWNERSHIP OF CLAIMS TO CONFISCATED 
                   PROPERTY.

       (a) Evidence of Ownership.--
       (1) Conclusiveness of certified claims.--In any action 
     brought under this title, the court shall accept as 
     conclusive proof of ownership of an interest in property a 
     certification of a claim to ownership of that interest that 
     has been made by the Foreign Claims Settlement Commission 
     under title V of the International Claims Settlement Act of 
     1949 (22 U.S.C. 1643 and following).
       (2) Claims not certified.--If in an action under this title 
     a claim has not been so certified by the Foreign Claims 
     Settlement Commission, the court may appoint a special 
     master, including the Foreign Claims Settlement Commission, 
     to make determinations regarding the amount and ownership of 
     the claim. Such determinations are only for evidentiary 
     purposes in civil actions brought under this title and do not 
     constitute certifications under title V of the International 
     Claims Settlement Act of 1949.
       (3) Effect of determinations of foreign or international 
     entities.--In determining the amount or ownership of a claim 
     in an action under this title, the court shall not accept as 
     conclusive evidence any findings, orders, judgments, or 
     decrees from administrative agencies or courts of foreign 
     countries or international organizations that declare the 
     value of or invalidate the claim, unless the declaration of 
     value or invalidation was found pursuant to binding 
     international arbitration to which the United States or the 
     claimant submitted the claim.
       (b) Amendment of the International Claims Settlement Act of 
     1949.--Title V of the International Claims Settlement Act of 
     1949 (22 U.S.C. 1643 and following) is amended by adding at 
     the end the following new section:


 ``determination of ownership of claims referred by district courts of 
                           the united states

       ``Sec. 514. Notwithstanding any other provision of this Act 
     and only for purposes of section 302 of the Cuban Liberty and 
     Democratic Solidarity (LIBERTAD) Act of 1996, a United States 
     district court, for fact-finding purposes, may refer to the 
     Commission, and the Commission may determine, questions of 
     the amount and ownership of a claim by a United States 
     national (as defined in section 4 of the Cuban Liberty and 
     Democratic Solidarity (LIBERTAD) Act of 1996), resulting from 
     the confiscation of property by the Government of Cuba 
     described in section 503(a), whether or not the United States 
     national qualified as a national of the United States (as 
     defined in section 502(1)) at the time of the action by the 
     Government of Cuba.''.
       (c) Rule of Construction.--Nothing in this Act or in 
     section 514 of the International Claims Settlement Act of 
     1949, as added by subsection (b), shall be construed--
       (1) to require or otherwise authorize the claims of Cuban 
     nationals who became United States citizens after their 
     property was confiscated to be included in the claims 
     certified to the Secretary of State by the Foreign Claims 
     Settlement Commission for purposes of future negotiation and 
     espousal of claims with a friendly government in Cuba when 
     diplomatic relations are restored; or
       (2) as superseding, amending, or otherwise altering 
     certifications that have been made under title V of the 
     International Claims Settlement Act of 1949 before the date 
     of the enactment of this Act.

     SEC. 304. EXCLUSIVITY OF FOREIGN CLAIMS SETTLEMENT COMMISSION 
                   CERTIFICATION PROCEDURE.

       Title V of the International Claims Settlement Act of 1949 
     (22 U.S.C. 1643 and following), as amended by section 303, is 
     further amended by adding at the end the following new 
     section:


  ``exclusivity of foreign claims settlement commission certification 
                               procedure

       ``Sec. 515. (a) Subject to subsection (b), neither any 
     national of the United States who was eligible to file a 
     claim under section 503 but did not timely file such claim 
     under that section, nor any person who was ineligible to file 
     a claim under section 503, nor any national of Cuba, 
     including any agency, instrumentality, subdivision, or 
     enterprise of the Government of Cuba or any local government 
     of Cuba, nor any successor thereto, whether or not recognized 
     by the United States, shall have a claim to, participate in, 
     or otherwise have an interest in, the compensation proceeds 
     or nonmonetary compensation paid or allocated to a national 
     of the United States by virtue of a claim certified by the 
     Commission under section 507, nor shall any district court of 
     the United States have jurisdiction to adjudicate any such 
     claim.
       ``(b) Nothing in subsection (a) shall be construed to 
     detract from or otherwise affect any rights in the shares of 
     capital stock of nationals of the United States owning claims 
     certified by the Commission under section 507.''.

     SEC. 305. LIMITATION OF ACTIONS.

       An action under section 302 may not be brought more than 2 
     years after the trafficking giving rise to the action has 
     ceased to occur.

     SEC. 306. EFFECTIVE DATE.

       (a) In General.--Subject to subsections (b) and (c), this 
     title and the amendments made by this title shall take effect 
     on August 1, 1996.
       (b) Suspension Authority.--
       (1) Suspension authority.--The President may suspend the 
     effective date under subsection (a) for a period of not more 
     than 6 months if the President determines and reports in 
     writing to the appropriate congressional committees at

[[Page H1655]]

     least 15 days before such effective date that the suspension 
     is necessary to the national interests of the United States 
     and will expedite a transition to democracy in Cuba.
       (2) Additional suspensions.--The President may suspend the 
     effective date under subsection (a) for additional periods of 
     not more than 6 months each, each of which shall begin on the 
     day after the last day of the period during which a 
     suspension is in effect under this subsection, if the 
     President determines and reports in writing to the 
     appropriate congressional committees at least 15 days before 
     the date on which the additional suspension is to begin that 
     the suspension is necessary to the national interests of the 
     United States and will expedite a transition to democracy in 
     Cuba.
       (c) Other Authorities.--
       (1) Suspension.--After this title and the amendments of 
     this title have taken effect--
       (A) no person shall acquire a property interest in any 
     potential or pending action under this title; and
       (B) the President may suspend the right to bring an action 
     under this title with respect to confiscated property for a 
     period of not more than 6 months if the President determines 
     and reports in writing to the appropriate congressional 
     committees at least 15 days before the suspension takes 
     effect that such suspension is necessary to the national 
     interests of the United States and will expedite a transition 
     to democracy in Cuba.
       (2) Additional suspensions.--The President may suspend the 
     right to bring an action under this title for additional 
     periods of not more than 6 months each, each of which shall 
     begin on the day after the last day of the period during 
     which a suspension is in effect under this subsection, if the 
     President determines and reports in writing to the 
     appropriate congressional committees at least 15 days before 
     the date on which the additional suspension is to begin that 
     the suspension is necessary to the national interests of the 
     United States and will expedite a transition to democracy in 
     Cuba.
       (3) Pending suits.--The suspensions of actions under 
     paragraph (1) shall not affect suits commenced before the 
     date of such suspension, and in all such suits, proceedings 
     shall be had, appeals taken, and judgments rendered in this 
     same manner and with the same effect as if the suspension had 
     not occurred.
       (d) Rescission of Suspension.--The President may rescind 
     any suspension made under subsection (b) or (c) upon 
     reporting to the appropriate congressional committees that 
     doing so will expedite a transition to democracy in Cuba.
                 TITLE IV--EXCLUSION OF CERTAIN ALIENS

     SEC. 401. EXCLUSION FROM THE UNITED STATES OF ALIENS WHO HAVE 
                   CONFISCATED PROPERTY OF UNITED STATES NATIONALS 
                   OR WHO TRAFFIC IN SUCH PROPERTY.

       (a) Grounds for Exclusion.--The Secretary of State shall 
     deny a visa to, and the Attorney General shall exclude from 
     the United States, any alien who the Secretary of State 
     determines is a person who, after the date of the enactment 
     of this Act--
       (1) has confiscated, or has directed or overseen the 
     confiscation of, property a claim to which is owned by a 
     United States national, or converts or has converted for 
     personal gain confiscated property, a claim to which is owned 
     by a United States national;
       (2) traffics in confiscated property, a claim to which is 
     owned by a United States national;
       (3) is a corporate officer, principal, or shareholder with 
     a controlling interest of an entity which has been involved 
     in the confiscation of property or trafficking in confiscated 
     property, a claim to which is owned by a United States 
     national; or
       (4) is a spouse, minor child, or agent of a person 
     excludable under paragraph (1), (2), or (3).
       (b) Definitions.--As used in this section, the following 
     terms have the following meanings:
       (1) Confiscated; confiscation.--The terms ``confiscated'' 
     and ``confiscation'' refer to--
       (A) the nationalization, expropriation, or other seizure by 
     the Cuban Government of ownership or control of property--
       (i) without the property having been returned or adequate 
     and effective compensation provided; or
       (ii) without the claim to the property having been settled 
     pursuant to an international claims settlement agreement or 
     other mutually accepted settlement procedure; and
       (B) the repudiation by the Cuban Government of, the default 
     by the Cuban Government on, or the failure of the Cuban 
     Government to pay--
       (i) a debt of any enterprise which has been nationalized, 
     expropriated, or otherwise taken by the Cuban Government;
       (ii) a debt which is a charge on property nationalized, 
     expropriated, or otherwise taken by the Cuban Government; or
       (iii) a debt which was incurred by the Cuban Government in 
     satisfaction or settlement of a confiscated property claim.
       (2) Traffics.--(A) Except as provided in subparagraph (B), 
     a person ``traffics'' in confiscated property if that person 
     knowingly and intentionally--
       (i)(I) transfers, distributes, dispenses, brokers, or 
     otherwise disposes of confiscated property,
       (II) purchases, receives, obtains control of, or otherwise 
     acquires confiscated property, or
       (III) improves (other than for routine maintenance), 
     invests in (by contribution of funds or anything of value, 
     other than for routine maintenance), or begins after the date 
     of the enactment of this Act to manage, lease, possess, use, 
     or hold an interest in confiscated property,
       (ii) enters into a commercial arrangement using or 
     otherwise benefiting from confiscated property, or
       (iii) causes, directs, participates in, or profits from, 
     trafficking (as described in clause (i) or (ii)) by another 
     person, or otherwise engages in trafficking (as described in 
     clause (i) or (ii)) through another person,

     without the authorization of any United States national who 
     holds a claim to the property.
       (B) The term ``traffics'' does not include--
       (i) the delivery of international telecommunication signals 
     to Cuba;
       (ii) the trading or holding of securities publicly traded 
     or held, unless the trading is with or by a person determined 
     by the Secretary of the Treasury to be a specially designated 
     national;
       (iii) transactions and uses of property incident to lawful 
     travel to Cuba, to the extent that such transactions and uses 
     of property are necessary to the conduct of such travel; or
       (iv) transactions and uses of property by a person who is 
     both a citizen of Cuba and a resident of Cuba, and who is not 
     an official of the Cuban Government or the ruling political 
     party in Cuba.
       (c) Exemption.--This section shall not apply where the 
     Secretary of State finds, on a case by case basis, that the 
     entry into the United States of the person who would 
     otherwise be excluded under this section is necessary for 
     medical reasons or for purposes of litigation of an action 
     under title III.
       (d) Effective Date.--
       (1) In general.--This section applies to aliens seeking to 
     enter the United States on or after the date of the enactment 
     of this Act.
       (2) Trafficking.--This section applies only with respect to 
     acts within the meaning of ``traffics'' that occur on or 
     after the date of the enactment of this Act.
       And the Senate agree to the same.

     Ben Gilman,
     Dan Burton,
     Ileana Ros-Lehtinen,
     Peter T. King,
     Lincoln Diaz-Balart,
     Robert G. Torricelli,
     Robert Menendez,
                                Managers on the Part of the House.

     Jesse Helms,
     Paul Coverdell,
     Fred Thompson,
     Olympia Snowe,
     Charles S. Robb,
                               Managers on the Part of the Senate.

       JOINT EXPLANATORY STATEMENT OF THE COMMITTEE OF CONFERENCE

       The managers on the part of the House and the Senate at the 
     conference on the disagreeing votes of the two Houses on the 
     amendment of the Senate to the bill (H.R. 927), to seek 
     international sanctions against the Castro government in 
     Cuba, to plan for support of a transition government leading 
     to a democratically elected government in Cuba, and for other 
     purposes, submit the following joint statement to the House 
     and the Senate in explanation of the effect of the action 
     agreed upon by the managers and recommended in the 
     accompanying conference report:
       The Senate amendment struck all of the House bill after the 
     enacting clause and inserted a substitute text.
       The House recedes from its disagreement to the amendment of 
     the Senate with an amendment that is a substitute for the 
     House bill and the Senate amendment. The differences between 
     the House bill, the Senate amendment, and the substitute 
     agreed to in conference are noted below, except for clerical 
     corrections, conforming changes made necessary by agreements 
     reached by the conferees, and minor drafting and clerical 
     changes.


                                findings

       The House bill (section 2) sets forth findings of the 
     Congress with respect to Cuba as well as U.S. policy aimed at 
     liberating the Cuban people from the dictatorship of Fidel 
     Castro.
       The Senate amendment (section 2) contains similar 
     provisions.
       The conference substitute (section 2) adopts the House 
     language.


                                purposes

       The House bill (section 3) sets forth the purposes of this 
     Act, including support for a democratic transition in Cuba, 
     to protect the property rights of U.S. nationals, and to 
     protect the national security of the United States.
       The Senate amendment (section 3) contains a similar 
     provision.
       The conference substitute (section 3) adopts the Senate 
     language.


                              definitions

       The House bill (section 4) defines specific terms used in 
     the Act.
       The Senate amendment (section 4) contains a similar 
     provision.
       The Conference substitute (section 4) is similar to the 
     House definitions, but modifies definitions of ``appropriate 
     Congressional committees'', ``economic embargo of Cuba'', 
     ``official of the Cuban government or the ruling political 
     party in Cuba'', ``property'', ``transition government in 
     Cuba'', and ``traffics'', and adds a new definition of 
     ``person'' for purposes of Title III.
       The committee of conference modified the definition of 
     ``economic embargo of Cuba'' to include all statutes or 
     regulations relating to trade, travel, and transactions 
     involving Cuban assets imposed under section 620(a) of the 
     Foreign Assistance Act of 1961, section 5(b) of the Trading 
     with the Enemy Act, the Cuban Democracy Act of 1992, section 
     902(c) of the Food Security Act of 1985, or any other 
     provision of law. It is the intent of the committee that this 
     definition be interpreted broadly, in part, in order to 
     ensure that the suspension or termination of any economic 
     sanctions on Cuba be pursuant only to the authority granted 
     in section 204 of this Act.

[[Page H1656]]

       The committee of conference notes that the definition of 
     ``property'' specifically excludes residential properties 
     from title III, unless the residence is, at the time of 
     enactment of this Act, the claim to the property is held by a 
     United States national and the claim has been certified under 
     title V of the International Claims Settlement Act of 1949 or 
     the property is occupied by an official of the Cuban 
     government or the ruling political party in Cuba, and the 
     claimant can meet the other criteria (e.g., amount in 
     controversy) in title III. The definition of ``traffics,'' as 
     used in Title III, has been modified to remove any liability 
     for the delivery of telecommunications signals to Cuba, the 
     trading or holding of publicly-traded stock (unless the 
     trading is with a person designated by the Secretary of the 
     Treasury as a ``specifically designated national"), and any 
     activities related to lawful travel to Cuba, and transactions 
     and uses of property by Cuban citizens residing in Cuba who 
     are not officials of the Cuban Government or the Communist 
     Party.


                              severability

       The conference substitute (section 5) states that if any 
     provision of this Act is held invalid, the remainder of this 
     Act shall not be affected by such invalidation.
       Neither the House bill nor the Senate amendment contained 
     such a provision. It is the intent of the committee to 
     preserve the remaining provisions of this Act if any 
     particular provision is invalidated.

   Title I--Strengthening International Sanctions Against the Castro 
                               Government


                          STATEMENT OF POLICY

       The House bill (section 101) expresses the sense of 
     Congress on U.S. policy toward Cuba, inter alia, that the 
     acts of the Castro government, including its massive, 
     systematic, and extraordinary violations of human rights, are 
     a threat to international peace and that the President should 
     propose and seek a U.N. Security Council vote on a mandatory 
     international embargo against the totalitarian government of 
     Cuba pursuant to chapter VII of the Charter of the United 
     Nations, which is similar to measures taken by the United 
     States with respect to Haiti.
       The Senate amendment (section 101) has a similar provision.
       The conference substitute (section 101) adopts the Senate 
     language.


              ENFORCEMENT OF THE ECONOMIC EMBARGO OF CUBA

       The House bill (section 102) reaffirms section 1704(a) of 
     the Cuban Democracy Act of 1992, which states the President 
     should encourage foreign countries to restrict trade and 
     credit relations with Cuba. This section also urges the 
     President to take immediate steps to apply the sanctions 
     described in section 1704(b) of that Act against countries 
     assisting Cuba; states that the Secretary of State shall 
     ensure that U.S. diplomatic personnel communicate the reasons 
     for the U.S. economic embargo on Cuba and urge foreign 
     governments to cooperate more effectively with the embargo; 
     urges the full enforcement of the Cuban Assets Control 
     Regulations in part 515 of title 31, Code of Federal 
     Regulations; adds ``debt-for-equity swaps'' to transactions 
     constituting ``assistance to Cuba'' by foreign countries 
     under section 1704(b)(2) of the Cuban Democracy Act of 1992; 
     subjects persons violating travel restrictions to civil 
     penalties and forfeiture of property by amending section 16 
     of the Trading With the Enemy Act (exempting most news 
     gathering, research, religious, or human rights groups).
       The Senate amendment (section 103) has a similar provision, 
     although it does not contain an exception to the application 
     of civil penalties for unlicensed travel to Cuba for 
     specifically for ``news gathering'' or ``educational or 
     religious activities.''
       The conference substitute (section 102) adopts the Senate 
     language, with modifications that incorporate House language 
     defining ``agency or instrumentality of the Government of 
     Cuba,'' requiring a semiannual report to Congress by the 
     President on ``payments made to Cuba by any United States 
     person'' for telecommunications services under the Cuban 
     Democracy Act of 1992.
       The conference substitute (section 102(e)) states the sense 
     of the Congress that existing regulations should be fully 
     enforced to deny visas to officers or employees of the Cuban 
     Government or of the Communist Party of Cuba, pursuant to 
     Proclamation 5377 of October 4, 1985, issued by President 
     Ronald Reagan, under section 212(f) of the Immigration and 
     Nationality Act of 1952, as amended.
       The conference substitute (subsection 102(g)) makes clear 
     that the Cuban Democracy Act of 1992 should not be construed 
     as authorizing any United States person to make any direct or 
     indirect investment, in cash or in-kind, in the domestic 
     telephone network within the island of Cuba until such time 
     as the economic restrictions on such transactions are 
     suspended or terminated as provided in subsection 102(h)).
       The conference substitute (subsection (102(h)) codifies the 
     ``economic embargo of Cuba,'' as defined in section 4. It is 
     the intent of the committee of conference that all economic 
     sanctions in force on March 1, 1996, shall remain in effect 
     until they are either suspended or terminated pursuant to the 
     authorities provided in section 204 of this Act (requiring a 
     Presidential determination that a democratic transition is 
     under way in Cuba). It is not the intent of this section to 
     prohibit executive branch agencies from amending existing 
     regulations to tighten economic sanctions on Cuba or to 
     implement the provisions of this Act.
       The committee of conference expresses its profound 
     conviction that executive branch agencies must be more 
     vigorous in their enforcement of certain provisions of the 
     U.S. embargo on Cuba, and must be accorded the resources by 
     the President for this purpose. The committee of conference 
     concludes that the President and executive agencies must be 
     more vigorous in advocating U.S. policy before foreign 
     governments. The explicit mandates in this legislation make 
     clear congressional intent that U.S. law be enforced fully 
     and, thereby, provide a basis for strict congressional 
     oversight of executive branch enforcement measures 
     henceforth.


             PROHIBITION AGAINST INDIRECT FINANCING OF CUBA

       The House bill (section 103) prohibits a U.S. national, 
     agency, or permanent resident alien from knowingly extending 
     any loan, credit, or other financing to finance transactions 
     involving any property confiscated by the Cuban government 
     the claim to which is owned by a U.S. national; subjects 
     violators of this prohibition to penalties under the Cuban 
     Assets Control Regulations; and terminates this prohibition 
     when the U.S. embargo is lifted.
       The Senate amendment (section 104) has a similar provision 
     that provides an exception for ``financing by the owner of 
     the property or the claim thereto for a permitted 
     transaction.''
       The conference substitute (section 103) adopts the Senate 
     language with minor modifications, including House language 
     defining ``permanent resident alien'' and ``United States 
     agency'' as used in this section.


UNITED STATES OPPOSITION TO CUBAN MEMBERSHIP IN INTERNATIONAL FINANCIAL 
                              INSTITUTIONS

       The House bill (section 104) seeks to ensure that the 
     current Cuban government cannot join or benefit from 
     membership in international financial institutions (such as 
     the World Bank, International Monetary Fund, the Inter-
     American Development Bank, etc.). This section states that 
     the Secretary of the Treasury shall instruct the United 
     States executive director to each international financial 
     institution to use the voice and vote of the United States to 
     oppose the admission of Cuba as a member of such institution 
     until a democratically elected government is in power in Cuba 
     (as defined in section 206 of this Act). This section 
     provides that during the period that a transition government 
     is in power in Cuba (as defined in section 205 of this Act), 
     the President shall take steps to support the processing of 
     Cuba's application for membership to take effect after a 
     democratically elected government is in power. This section 
     states further that, if any international financial 
     institution approves a loan or other assistance to Cuba over 
     U.S. opposition, the Secretary of the Treasury shall withhold 
     from payment to such institution an amount equal to the loan 
     or other assistance to the Cuban government.
       The Senate amendment (section 105) has a similar provision 
     that has the effect of withholding U.S. support for Cuba's 
     membership in international financial institutions until 
     there is a ``democratically elected government'' there; 
     however, the Senate language does authorize U.S. support for 
     loans or other assistance to a ``transition government'' by 
     these institutions as well as U.S. support for a transition 
     government's application for membership ``taking effect after 
     a democratically elected government in Cuba is in power.''
       The conference substitute (section 104) adopts the Senate 
     language.


   UNITED STATES OPPOSITION TO TERMINATION OF THE SUSPENSION OF THE 
 GOVERNMENT OF CUBA FROM PARTICIPATION IN THE ORGANIZATION OF AMERICAN 
                                 STATES

       The House bill (section 105) seeks to ensure that the 
     United States opposes the reintegration of the current 
     government of Cuba into the Organization of American States. 
     (The Castro government was suspended by a vote of the OAS 
     member states in 1961.)
       The Senate amendment (section 106) has a similar provision.
       The conference substitute (section 105) adopts the Senate 
     language.
       The committee believes that it is inconceivable that any 
     OAS member government would consider Cuba to be worthy of 
     active participation in the OAS without first undertaking 
     fundamental democratic reforms, in light of the historic 
     measures taken by the Organization to recognize 
     ``representative democracy as an indispensable condition for 
     stability, peace, and development in the region. . . .''


ASSISTANCE BY THE INDEPENDENT STATES OF THE FORMER SOVIET UNION FOR THE 
                           GOVERNMENT OF CUBA

       The House bill (section 106) seeks to discourage any form 
     of assistance from former Soviet states to the Cuban 
     government, in light of the Castro regime's historic 
     dependency on such assistance. This section (1) requires a 
     report to Congress detailing progress toward the withdrawal 
     from Cuba of personnel of any independent state of the former 
     Soviet Union, including advisers, technicians, and military 
     personnel, from the Cienfuegos nuclear facility in Cuba; (2) 
     amends section 498A(a)(11) of the Foreign Assistance Act of 
     1961 to explicitly designate facilities at Lourdes and 
     Cienfuegos among those installations the dismantling of which 
     should be considered by the President in determining whether 
     to provide assistance to a

[[Page H1657]]

     former Soviet state; (3) adds ``providing assistance for or 
     engaging in nonmarket based trade'' with Cuba to the list of 
     activities that render such countries ineligible for U.S. 
     assistance; and (4) requires the President to reduce 
     assistance allocated for an independent state of the former 
     Soviet Union by an amount equal to the sum of assistance and 
     credits, if any, provided by such state after the date of 
     enactment of this Act in support of intelligence facilities 
     in Cuba, including the intelligence facility at Lourdes, 
     Cuba.
       The President may waive this requirement if doing so is 
     important to the national security and, in the case of 
     Russia, if the President certifies that the Russian 
     government has assured the U.S. Government that the Russian 
     government is not sharing intelligence from Lourdes with 
     officials or agents of the Cuban government. Urgent 
     humanitarian needs, including disaster and refugee relief; 
     assistance for democratic political reform and rule of law; 
     technical assistance for safety upgrades of civilian nuclear 
     power plants; aid to create private sector and 
     nongovernmental organizations and develop a free market 
     system; and aid under the Cooperative Threat Reduction Act of 
     1993 are exempt from the withholding requirement. The 
     President also is required, in the case of a certification 
     with respect to Russia, to report to Congress on the 
     intelligence activities of Russia in Cuba, the purposes of 
     the Lourdes facility, and the extent of any Russian credits 
     provided to Cuba for the use of the Lourdes facility.
       The Senate amendment (section 107) has a similar provision 
     that adds an exception under section 498(c) of the Foreign 
     Assistance Act for ``assistance provided under the secondary 
     school exchange program administered by the United States 
     Information Agency.''
       The conference substitute (section 106) adopts the Senate 
     language with minor modifications, including the House 
     definition of ``agency or instrumentality of the Government 
     of Cuba'' as used in this section.
       The committee of conference notes that since the enactment 
     of the FREEDOM Support Act in 1992, questions have arisen 
     about the nature of the trade relationship between the former 
     Soviet states and Cuba, and whether that trade has been 
     conducted on market terms. The LIBERTAD Act would define the 
     terms for judging such trade and a mechanism for discouraging 
     Russian support for the Castro regime. The committee of 
     conference notes that Russian-Cuban trade primarily involves 
     a barter exchange of Russian oil for Cuban sugar; to the 
     extent that any such exchange is done on terms more favorable 
     to Cuba than are otherwise available in the market, the 
     committee concludes that such ``concessional'' terms 
     represent a subsidy of the Castro regime. The committee of 
     conference intends that U.S. assistance be provided in a 
     manner that prevents any indirect U.S. foreign aid subsidy of 
     any Russian support for the Castro regime.
       This LIBERTAD Act does not affect any market-based economic 
     relationship between any former Soviet state and Cuba, and it 
     does not undermine U.S. support for denuclearization 
     activities or democratic and free market reform in Russia, 
     for which there are provided specific exceptions of the 
     ``withholding'' provision and ample presidential waiver 
     authority.
       With respect to Russian intelligence facilities located at 
     Lourdes, Cuba, the committee of conference notes that a 
     senior Russian government official announced in November 1994 
     that his government was providing $200 million in credits to 
     the Castro regime in exchange for the continued use of that 
     facility. The Lourdes facility is one of the world's largest 
     and most sophisticated intelligence stations, which 
     Department of State and Department of Defense documents say 
     is used to intercept and monitor U.S. commercial satellites, 
     U.S. military and merchant shipping communications, NASA 
     activities, and telephone conversations of U.S. citizens. The 
     committee of conference notes that the Department of State 
     has assured the Congress that no part of the LIBERTAD Act 
     would violate U.S. treaty obligations, nor does any existing 
     arms control treaty prevent the United States from urging 
     Russia to end its use of Cuba as a base for intelligence 
     operations against U.S. interests.


                    television broadcasting to cuba

       The House bill (section 107) reaffirms the congressional 
     mandate to convert Television Marti to ultra high frequency 
     (UHF) and requires reports to Congress from the Director of 
     the United States Information Agency (USIA) until the 
     conversion is complete. The section also establishes a 
     ``sunset'' provision for both Radio and Television Marti upon 
     the President's determination that a democratically elected 
     government is in power in Cuba.
       The Senate amendment (section 108) contains an identical 
     provision.
       The conference substitute (section 107) adopts the House 
     language.
       The committee of conference supports the conversion of 
     Television Marti to UHF in order to expand the reach of the 
     Television Marti signal. The committee of conference notes 
     that Congress mandated the conversion in Public Law 103-317, 
     the FY 95 Commerce, Justice, State Appropriations. The 
     Conference report accompanying the FY 95 Act specifically 
     provided $1,200,000 to convert Television Marti (see 
     Congressional Record, August 16, 1994, p. H8501).


 reports on commerce with, and assistance to, cuba from other foreign 
                               countries

       The House bill (section 108) seeks to determine which 
     governments and commercial entities are continuing to support 
     the Castro government through trade, assistance, and joint 
     ventures by requiring an annual report to Congress that 
     includes a detailed description of all bilateral assistance 
     provided to Cuba by other foreign countries, commercial 
     ventures under way or under consideration (specifically 
     whether such ventures involve property confiscated from a 
     U.S. national), and any exchange of military supplies or 
     equipment.
       The Senate amendment (section 109) has a similar provision 
     that specifies the date on which this report must be 
     submitted.
       The conference substitute (section 108) adopts the Senate 
     language.


  authorization of support for democratic and human rights groups and 
                        international observers

       The House bill (section 109) provides explicit authority, 
     notwithstanding other specific provisions of the law (except 
     for notification requirements), for the President to provide 
     immediate support to individuals and independent 
     nongovernmental organizations to advance democracy-building 
     efforts for Cuba, including publications and audio-visual 
     material on democracy, human rights, and market economies; 
     humanitarian assistance to victims of political repression 
     and their families; and support for democratic and human 
     rights groups; and U.S. financial support for an Organization 
     of American States (OAS) special emergency fund for human 
     rights observers, election support, and election observation 
     in Cuba (notwithstanding section 307 of the Foreign 
     Assistance Act of 1961).
       The Senate amendment (section 102) has a similar provision 
     that authorizes U.S. support for groups in Cuba but does not 
     refer to human rights and electoral support by the 
     Organization of American States.
       The conference substitute (section 109) adopts the House 
     language with minor modifications, including Senate language 
     to ``ensure that no funds or other assistance is provided to 
     the Cuban Government.''
       The committee of conference recognizes that the execution 
     of some of the activities authorized under this section could 
     require incidental payments or indirect benefits to 
     commercial or regulatory entities of the Cuban Government, 
     e.g. payments for hotels, car rental, travel or 
     transportation to or within the island, purchases of other 
     goods or services in the local economy, customs fees, 
     migration fees, or other comparable government charges. The 
     committee does not consider such incidental payments or 
     indirect benefits as ``assistance'' ``provided to the Cuban 
     Government'' that is otherwise prohibited in subsection (c).


          importation safeguard against certain cuban products

       The Senate amendment (section 110) takes note of existing 
     law prohibiting the entry of, and dealings outside the United 
     States in, merchandise that is of Cuban origin, is or has 
     been located in or transported from or through Cuba, or is 
     made or derived in whole or in part of any article which is 
     the growth, produce, or manufacture of Cuba. The Congress 
     also notes in this section that U.S. accession to the North 
     American Free Trade Agreement does not modify or alter U.S. 
     sanctions against Cuba.
       The House bill has no comparable provision.
       The conference substitute (section 110) adopts the Senate 
     language.


  withholding of foreign assistance from countries supporting juragua 
                         nuclear plant in cuba

       The House bill (section 110) is intended to deter countries 
     from providing any form of support for the completion of the 
     Cuban nuclear facility at Juragua, near Cienfuegos, Cuba. 
     This section requires the withholding from U.S. assistance to 
     any country an amount equal to the sum of assistance and 
     credits provided on or after the date of enactment by that 
     country in support of the completion of the Juragua facility. 
     This section exempts from any withholding certain forms of 
     U.S. assistance, such as humanitarian and disaster aid and 
     support for democratic political reform and free market 
     development.
       The Senate amendment has no comparable provision.
       The conference substitute (section 111) adopts the House 
     language with a modification that adds ``assistance provided 
     under the secondary school exchange program administered by 
     the United States Information Agency'' to the list of 
     activities to which the requirement of withholding U.S. aid 
     under this section shall not apply.
       The committee of conference takes note of expert 
     conclusions that the plant's construction is seriously flawed 
     and that Cuba lacks a nuclear regulatory structure as well as 
     adequate infrastructure and training to support the safe 
     operation of the plant. The committee of conference views 
     with alarm recent reports that several countries, including 
     Russia and Cuba, are considering the completion and operation 
     of that plant. The committee of conference intends that 
     ``assistance and credits'' be interpreted broadly, not 
     limited merely to grant assistance or concessional 
     transactions but also including any form of financial, 
     technical, or other support that facilitates completion of 
     the plant at Juragua.

[[Page H1658]]




         reinstitution of family remittances and travel to cuba

       The Senate amendment (section 111) states the sense of 
     Congress that the President, before considering the full 
     reinstitution of family remittances and travel to Cuba, 
     should insist on specific economic and political reforms by 
     the Castro regime.
       The House bill has no comparable provision.
       The conference substitute (section 112) adopts Senate 
     language with minor modifications.


                    expulsion of criminals from cuba

       The House bill (section 112) requires the President to 
     instruct U.S. government officials to raise with Cuban 
     officials the extradition or other means of return to the 
     United States of persons residing in Cuba sought by the 
     Department of Justice for crimes committed in the United 
     States.
       The Senate amendment has no comparable provision.
       The conference substitute (section 113) adopts the House 
     language.


                          NEWS BUREAUS IN CUBA

       The Senate amendment (section 112) authorizes the President 
     to establish and implement an exchange of news bureaus 
     between the United States and Cuba, provided that the 
     exchange is fully reciprocal, the Cuban Government allows 
     free, unrestricted, and uninhibited movement in Cuba, the 
     U.S. government is able to ensure that only accredited 
     journalists regularly employed with a news gathering 
     organization avail themselves of the general license to 
     travel to Cuba, and the Cuban Government does not interfere 
     with the transmissions and distribution of materials of news 
     organizations.
       The House bill has no comparable provision.
       The conference substitute (section 114) adopts modified 
     Senate language that, inter alia, ensures that Radio Marti 
     and Television Marti are included among the organizations 
     whose journalists should be allowed to work freely in Cuba 
     without interference by the Cuban government as a condition 
     of any exchange of news bureaus.


      EFFECT OF ACT ON LAWFUL UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT ACTIVITIES

       The Senate amendment (section 113) states that nothing in 
     this Act shall prohibit any lawfully authorized 
     investigative, protective, or intelligence activity of a law 
     enforcement agency or of an intelligence agency of the United 
     States.
       The House bill has no comparable provision.
       The conference substitute (section 115) adopts the Senate 
     language.


           CONDEMNATION OF CUBAN ATTACK ON AMERICAN AIRCRAFT

       The conference substitute (section 116) sets forth 
     congressional findings and statements of condemnation and 
     condolences relating to the February 24, 1996, attack by 
     Cuban military aircraft on unarmed U.S. civilian aircraft 
     which resulted in the deaths of three United States citizens 
     and one United States permanent resident.
       The committee of conference states in the strongest terms 
     its intention that the President seek, in the International 
     Court of Justice, indictment for this act of terrorism by 
     Fidel Castro.

          Title II--Assistance to a Free and Independent Cuba

       Title II sends a clear message to the Cuban people that the 
     United States is prepared fully to assist in a peaceful, 
     democratic transition, with due respect for their right of 
     self-determination. Title II instructs the President to 
     develop an aid plan now so that the U.S. government is 
     prepared to respond quickly to the inevitable democratic 
     transition in Cuba. Title II lists types of U.S. assistance 
     contemplated to be included in the required aid plan; 
     however, it is not the intent of this legislation to mandate 
     that the President include all of the listed forms of 
     assistance in the plan. Also, any assistance is ``subject to 
     an authorization of appropriations and subject to the 
     availability of appropriations'' (see section 203(c)(1) and 
     (3)).


  POLICY TOWARD A TRANSITION GOVERNMENT AND A DEMOCRATICALLY ELECTED 
                               GOVERNMENT

       The House bill (section 201) states that it is the policy 
     of the United States to support Cuban self-determination and 
     to plan now to provide emergency and longer-term support for 
     the transition to democracy in Cuba, directly and through 
     multilateral cooperation. This section also states that it is 
     the U.S. policy, inter alia, to not provide favorable 
     treatment or influence on behalf of any individual or entity 
     in the selection by the Cuban people of their future 
     government; to be prepared to enter into negotiations with a 
     democratically elected government in Cuba on the future of 
     the U.S. presence at Guantanamo Bay; to terminate the 
     economic embargo of Cuba when the President determines that a 
     democratically elected government is in power in Cuba; and to 
     consider the extension of free trade arrangements to a 
     democratic Cuba.
       The Senate amendment (section 201) has a similar provision.
       The conference substitute (section 201) adopts the House 
     language.


                    ASSISTANCE FOR THE CUBAN PEOPLE

       The House bill (section 202) requires the President to 
     develop a plan for providing economic assistance to Cuba, 
     defining what types of assistance can be provided when a 
     transition government is in power and when a democratically 
     elected government is in power. In the case of a transition 
     government, assistance shall be limited to such food, 
     medicine, medical supplies and equipment; assistance to meet 
     emergency energy needs; assistance that the President 
     certifies is essential to the successful completion of the 
     transition to democracy; and assistance in preparing the 
     Cuban military forces to adjust to an appropriate role in a 
     democracy. In the case of a democratically elected 
     government, assistance may include development assistance and 
     economic support funds under the Foreign Assistance Act of 
     1961; assistance under the Agricultural Trade Development and 
     Assistance Act of 1954; financing and other forms of 
     assistance provided by the Export-Import Bank, Overseas 
     Private Investment Corporation, and Trade and Development 
     Agency; Peace Corps programs; and assistance in preparing the 
     Cuban military forces to adjust to an appropriate role in a 
     democracy. This section also states that assistance should be 
     provided through U.S. government organizations or through 
     nongovernmental organizations, private and voluntary 
     organizations (whether within or outside the United States), 
     including humanitarian, educational, labor, and private 
     sector organizations. In addition, this section requires the 
     President to seek to obtain the agreement of other countries, 
     international financial institutions, and multilateral 
     organizations to provide similar forms of assistance to a 
     transition government and to a democratically elected 
     government in Cuba.
       The Senate amendment (section 202) maintains the 
     notification requirements of section 634A of the Foreign 
     Assistance Act (22 USC 2394) and the limitations on 
     assistance pursuant to section 620(a)(2) of the Foreign 
     Assistance Act (22 USC 2370(a)(2)). The amendment also 
     provides that assistance to a transition government be 
     limited to food, medicine, medical supplies and equipment, 
     and such other assistance as may be necessary to meet the 
     basic human needs of the Cuban people. Support to a 
     democratically elected government in Cuba should consist of 
     assistance to promote free market development, private 
     enterprise, and a mutually beneficial trade relationship 
     between the United States and Cuba.
       The conference substitute (section 202) adopts the House 
     language.


                REPORT ON TRADE AND INVESTMENT RELATIONS

       The House bill (section 202(h)) states that once a 
     democratically elected government is in power, the President 
     shall submit a report on trade and investment relations with 
     Cuba and shall consult with Congress on any proposals for 
     improving such economic ties.
       The Senate amendment (section 202(d)) has a similar 
     provision that specifies the Committee on Ways and Means of 
     the House of Representatives and the Committee on Finance of 
     the Senate (as well as appropriate congressional committees) 
     as those committees to which reports under this subsection 
     shall be submitted.
       The conference substitute (section 202(h)) adopts the 
     Senate language.


   COORDINATION OF ASSISTANCE PROGRAM; IMPLEMENTATION AND REPORTS TO 
                        CONGRESS; REPROGRAMMING

       The House bill (section 203) makes explicit that delivery 
     and distribution of assistance to a transition or 
     democratically elected government is ``subject to an 
     authorization of appropriations and subject to the 
     availability of appropriations.'' This section requires the 
     President to designate a coordinating official to implement 
     the assistance plan, ensure the speedy and efficient 
     distribution of assistance, and ensure coordination among the 
     various U.S. agencies involved. It requires the President to 
     designate a United States-Cuba council to involve the private 
     sector in promoting market-based development in and bilateral 
     trade with Cuba. It requires periodic reports to the Congress 
     on implementation of this assistance plan.
       The Senate amendment (section 203) has a similar provision 
     but does not mandate the designation of a ``coordinating 
     official'' or creation of a ``United States-Cuba Council''.
       The conference substitute (section 203) adopts the House 
     language.


              TERMINATION OF THE ECONOMIC EMBARGO OF CUBA

       The House bill (section 204) provides that once a 
     transition government is in power in Cuba, the President, 
     after consulting with the Congress, is authorized to take 
     such steps to suspend the economic embargo of Cuba to the 
     extent that such action contributes to a stable foundation 
     for a democratically elected government. Subsection (e) 
     requires a report to Congress by the President upon making 
     this decision and no less than every six months thereafter 
     and provides that Congress may reject the President's 
     decision by enactment of a joint resolution of the Houses of 
     Congress. Section 204(c) further states that, upon submitting 
     to Congress a determination under section 203(c) that a 
     democratically elected government is in power in Cuba, the 
     President shall take steps to terminate the economic embargo 
     of Cuba. This section explicitly repeals several provisions 
     of the law related to the economic embargo once such a 
     determination is made.
       The Senate amendment (section 204) has a similar provision 
     that also allows the suspension of the ``right of action'' 
     created in Title III of the Act when a ``transition 
     government'' in Cuba is in power, ``to the extent that such 
     action contributes to a stable foundation for a 
     democratically elected government.''

[[Page H1659]]

       The conference substitute (section 204) adopts the Senate 
     language with minor modifications.


    REQUIREMENTS AND FACTORS FOR DETERMINING A TRANSITION GOVERNMENT

       The House bill (section 205) specifies that for the 
     purposes of this Act, a ``transition government'' in Cuba is 
     a government which is demonstrably in transition from 
     communist totalitarian dictatorship to representative 
     democracy; has recognized the right to independent political 
     activity and association; has released all political 
     prisoners and allowed for investigations of Cuban prisons by 
     appropriate international human rights organizations; has 
     ceased any interference with Radio or Television Marti 
     broadcasts; does not include Fidel Castro or Raul Castro; has 
     given adequate assurances that it will allow the speedy and 
     efficient distribution of assistance to the Cuban people; and 
     permits the deployment throughout Cuba of independent and 
     unfettered international human rights monitors. In addition, 
     a transition government also must have made public 
     commitments to and be making demonstrable progress in 
     establishing an independent judiciary; dissolving the present 
     Department of State Security in the Cuban Ministry of the 
     Interior, including the Committees for the Defense of the 
     Revolution and the Rapid Response Brigades; respecting 
     internationally recognized human rights and basic freedoms as 
     set forth in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights; 
     effectively guaranteeing the rights of free speech and 
     freedom of the press; organizing free, fair, and open 
     elections within one year; assuring the right to private 
     property; taking appropriate steps to return to United States 
     nationals property taken by the Government of Cuba; granting 
     permits to privately owned telecommunications and media 
     companies to operate in Cuba; and allowing the establishment 
     of independent trade unions and allowing independent social, 
     economic, and political associations.
       The Senate amendment (section 205) has a similar provision 
     that identifies several similar requirements for a 
     ``transition government'' as well as a set of factors that 
     ``the President shall take into account'' in making a 
     determination whether a ``transition government'' is in power 
     in Cuba. The effect of this language is to allow the 
     President greater flexibility in determining when a 
     ``transition government'' is in power.
       The conference substitute (section 205) adopts modified 
     Senate language that provides the President greater 
     discretion in making a determination. This modified language 
     establishes requirements for a ``transition government'' as 
     follows: has legalized all political activity; has released 
     all political prisoners and allowed for investigations of 
     Cuban prisons by appropriate international human rights 
     organizations; has dissolved the present Department of State 
     Security in the Cuban Ministry of the Interior, including the 
     Committees for the Defense of the Revolution and the Rapid 
     Response Brigades; has made public commitments to organizing 
     free and fair elections for a new government (under specific 
     conditions); has ceased any interference with Radio Marti or 
     Television Marti broadcasts; has made commitments to making 
     demonstrable progress in establishing an independent 
     judiciary, respecting international recognized and basic 
     freedoms, and allowing the establishment of independent trade 
     unions; does not include Fidel Castro or Raul Castro; and has 
     given adequate assurances that it will allow the speedy and 
     efficient distribution of assistance to the Cuban people.
         In addition, the conference substitute takes a series of 
     strict requirements from the House language and includes them 
     instead as factors that ``the President shall take into 
     account'' in making a determination whether a ``transition 
     government'' in Cuba is in power, among these the extent to 
     which that government is demonstrably in transition from 
     communist totalitarian dictatorship to representative 
     democracy; has made public commitments to, and is making 
     demonstrable progress in, effectively guaranteeing the rights 
     of free speech and freedom of the press (including the 
     operation of privately owned media and telecommunications), 
     permitting the reinstatement of citizenship to Cuban-born 
     nationals returning to Cuba, assuring the right to private 
     property, taking appropriate steps to return to United States 
     citizens and companies property taken by the Cuban Government 
     from such citizens and entities on or after January 1, 1959; 
     has extradited or otherwise rendered to the United States all 
     persons sought by the United States for crimes committed in 
     the United States; and has permitted the deployment of 
     independent and unfettered international human rights 
     monitors.


    REQUIREMENTS FOR DETERMINING A DEMOCRATICALLY ELECTED GOVERNMENT

       The House bill (section 206) specifies that for the 
     purposes of this Act, a democratically elected government in 
     Cuba is a government that results from free and fair 
     elections conducted under the supervision of internationally 
     recognized observers; has permitted opposition parties ample 
     time to organize and campaign for such elections, and has 
     permitted full access to the media to all candidates in the 
     elections; is showing respect for the basic civil liberties 
     and human rights of the citizens of Cuba; has made 
     demonstrable progress in establishing an independent 
     judiciary; is substantially moving toward a market-oriented 
     economic system; is committed to making constitutional 
     changes that schedule regular free and fair elections; and 
     has made demonstrable progress in returning to U.S. nationals 
     property taken by the Government of Cuba or providing full 
     compensation.
       The Senate amendment (section 206) has a similar provision 
     that lists factors that the President ``shall taken into 
     account'' in determining if a ``democratically elected 
     government'' is in power in Cuba. The effect of this language 
     is to allow the President greater flexibility in determining 
     when a ``democratically elected government'' is in power.
       The conference substitute (section 206) adopts modified 
     House language that states requirements for a 
     ``democratically elected government'' with the purpose of 
     ensuring that minimally acceptable reforms are under way 
     before a Cuban Government is eligible to receive a full range 
     of benefits of normal political and economic relations with 
     the United States.


SETTLEMENT OF OUTSTANDING UNITED STATES CLAIMS TO CONFISCATED PROPERTY 
                                IN CUBA

       The Senate amendment (section 207) conditions most U.S. 
     support to a ``transition government'' (including U.S. 
     support for loans or assistance through international 
     financial institutions) on such government publicly 
     committing itself, and taking appropriate steps to establish 
     a procedure under its law or through international 
     arbitration, to provide for the return of, or prompt, 
     adequate, and effective compensation for, property 
     confiscated by the Cuban Government on or after January 1, 
     1959. This section also conditions such support to a 
     ``democratically elected government'' on such government 
     having adopted and effectively implementing such procedures. 
     Subsection 207(c) also requires reports to Congress on the 
     number of property claims of U.S. nationals as well as a 
     description of ways to help a Cuban Government resolve such 
     claims, etc. Subsection 207(d) also states the sense of 
     Congress that the satisfactory resolution of property claims 
     by a Cuban Government remains an essential condition for a 
     full resumption of economic and diplomatic relations between 
     the United States and Cuba.
       The House bill has no comparable provision.
       The conference substitute (section 207) adopts the Senate 
     language only with respect to the report to Congress and 
     sense of Congress (Senate amendment subsections 207(c) and 
     (d)).

  Title III--Protection of Property Rights of United States Nationals


                          STATEMENT OF POLICY

       The House bill (sec. 301) contains a series of 
     congressional findings regarding the fundamental right of 
     individuals to hold and enjoy property, the U.S. Government's 
     obligation to protect its citizens against illegal 
     confiscations, and the absence of effective remedies in 
     international law, the result of which is to condone the 
     wrongful confiscation of property and to allow unjust 
     enrichment through the use of confiscated property.
       The Senate amendment contains no comparable provision.
       Section 301 of the conference substitute amends the House 
     language by noting the economic benefit derived by Castro 
     through his government's exploitation (``trafficking'') of 
     wrongfully confiscated American properties and the objective 
     of deterring the use of wrongfully confiscated American 
     properties by denying profits to those who profit from the 
     economic exploitation of Castro's seizures.


  LIABILITY FOR TRAFFICKING IN CONFISCATED PROPERTY CLAIMED BY UNITED 
                            STATES NATIONALS

       The House bill (sec. 302) creates civil liability for 
     persons or entities, including an agency or instrumentality 
     of a foreign state in the conduct of a commercial activity 
     (defined in sec. 4), as follows:


                CIVIL REMEDY: LIABILITY FOR TRAFFICKING

       Section 302(a)(1) and (2) of the House bill provides that 
     any person who, after the end of the 6-month period beginning 
     on the date of enactment, traffics in property confiscated by 
     the Cuban Government shall be liable to the United States 
     national who owns the claim to such property in an amount 
     equal to the value of the property plus reasonable interest, 
     costs, and fees. When determining the amount of liability for 
     claims certified by the Foreign Claims Settlement Commission 
     (FCSC) pursuant to the International Claims Settlement Act of 
     1949, courts shall give a strong presumption to the findings 
     of the FCSC.
       The Senate amendment contains no comparable provision.
       Sections 302(a)(1) and (2) of the conference substitute are 
     similar to the House provision. They provide that liability 
     for trafficking in property confiscated by the Cuban 
     Government shall attach three months after the effective date 
     of the title. The grace period before liability for 
     trafficking attaches is intended to permit persons who 
     currently are ``trafficking'' within the meaning of title III 
     to wind down their activities in Cuba in order to avoid 
     liability. Because the conference substitute is effective not 
     on the date of enactment, but rather on August 1, 1996, the 
     grace period provided by the House bill was reduced from six 
     months to three months.
       In addition, the substitute specifies that damages may 
     include court costs and ``reasonable attorney's fees'' in 
     lieu of ``reasonable costs and attorney's fees.'' Inasmuch as

[[Page H1660]]

     governments (as contrasted with their agencies or 
     instrumentalities) are not ``persons'' for purposes of this 
     section, they cannot be held liable under this section.
       The conference substitute retains the language of the House 
     bill creating a strong presumption in favor of findings of 
     the FCSC when determining the amount of liability under this 
     section for claims certified by the FCSC.
       The committee of conference believes that this right of 
     action is a unique but proportionate remedy for U.S. 
     nationals who were targeted by the Castro regime when their 
     property was wrongfully confiscated. The purpose of this 
     civil remedy is, in part, to discourage persons and companies 
     from engaging in commercial transactions involving 
     confiscated property, and in so doing to deny the Cuban 
     regime of Fidel Castro the capital generated by such ventures 
     and to deter the exploitation of property confiscated from 
     U.S. nationals. The substitute puts would-be investors on 
     notice that if they traffic in confiscated property of U.S. 
     nationals after this provision becomes law, they may be held 
     liable to the legitimate U.S. owners in U.S. courts.
       It is the committee of conference's intent not to supplant 
     or undermine the Foreign Claims Settlement process, but to 
     provide an additional remedy for U.S. nationals through which 
     they may take action to protect their claim to a confiscated 
     property in Cuba. The committee of conference expects that 
     the existence of this remedy will make the recovery process 
     less complicated because it will deter investment in and 
     development of confiscated property in Cuba, thereby 
     facilitating efforts by the rightful owners to reclaim, sell, 
     or develop such property under the laws of a democratic Cuba.


                          INCREASED LIABILITY

       Section 302(a)(3) of the House bill provides for treble 
     liability if the person traffics in the property after having 
     received notice both of the claim to ownership and the 
     provisions of this section.
       The Senate amendment contains no comparable provision.
       Section 302(a)(3) of the conference substitute modifies the 
     House bill by providing increased liability (treble damages) 
     for claims certified by the FCSC pursuant to title V of the 
     International Claims Settlement Act of 1949 for any 
     trafficking after the 3-month grace period established by 
     subsection (a)(1). For U.S. nationals with claims not 
     certified by the FCSC, the conference substitute requires a 
     30-day advance notice to the defendant (after the 3-month 
     grace period) by non-certified claimants before they can seek 
     treble damages. The conference substitute further provides 
     that a trafficker can avoid treble liability by ceasing to 
     traffic in the property in question by the conclusion of the 
     30-day period following the provision of notice. A trafficker 
     that ceases trafficking during such 30-day period 
     nevertheless remains liable for damages for trafficking that 
     took place between the conclusion of the 3-month grace period 
     following the effective date and the time that the 
     trafficking ceased. The conference substitute outlines the 
     contents of the required notice and the manner in which it is 
     to be provided. Notice shall be deemed to have been provided 
     on the date posted by certified mail or on the date 
     personally delivered to the defendant.
       The committee of conference notes that investors in Cuba 
     have been effectively on notice regarding the 5,911 certified 
     U.S. claims since the Cuban claims program was completed on 
     July 6, 1972. Information regarding whether the claim to a 
     particular property in Cuba is held by a certified U.S. 
     claimant is readily available. The intent of the conference 
     committee in revising the House language is to provide 
     priority to certified claimants by allowing them to seek 
     treble damages without an additional notice or an additional 
     waiting period (beyond the initial 3-month grace period). In 
     the case of non-certified claimants seeking treble damages, 
     the committee of conference believes it reasonable to impose 
     an affirmative duty on the claimant to notify a potential 
     defendant of the claimant's claim to the property. This 30-
     day period, which is in addition to the 3-month grace period, 
     provides adequate time for an investor in Cuba to research 
     the validity of the claim to the property and take 
     appropriate action.


                             applicability

       Section 302(a)(4) of the House bill provides that the right 
     of action is applicable to property confiscated before, on, 
     or after enactment of this Act; that in order to bring an 
     action with respect to property confiscated before the date 
     of enactment, the U.S. national had to own the property claim 
     before the date of enactment; and that no United States 
     national may bring an action under this section with respect 
     to property that was confiscated on or after the date of 
     enactment if the claim was acquired by assignment for value 
     after enactment.
       The Senate amendment contains no comparable provision.
       Section 302(a)(4) of the conference substitute modifies the 
     House provision to specify with respect to property 
     confiscated on or after the date of enactment that an action 
     for damages is precluded only if the claim to the property 
     was acquired by assignment for value after the property was 
     confiscated.
       The committee of conference notes that these provisions are 
     intended, in part, to eliminate any incentive that might 
     otherwise exist to transfer claims to confiscated property to 
     U.S. nationals in order to take advantage of the remedy 
     created by this section. It is not the committee's intent 
     that the right of action be available to persons or entities 
     that would relocate to the United States for the purpose of 
     using this remedy. Entities that are incorporated in the 
     United States after the date of enactment cannot use the 
     remedy with respect to property confiscated before the date 
     of enactment, inasmuch as such entities could have not have 
     owned the claim to confiscated property on the date of 
     enactment because they did not then exist.


                      treatment of certain actions

       Section 302(a)(5) of the House bill provides the manner in 
     which claims denied by the FCSC and the claims of those U.S. 
     nationals who had the opportunity to avail themselves of the 
     FCSC certification process and failed to do so are to be 
     treated. In the case of any action brought by a U.S. national 
     who was eligible to file the underlying claim with the FCSC 
     but did not do so, the court may hear the case only if the 
     court determines that there was good cause for not filing the 
     claim with the FCSC. In the case of any action brought by a 
     U.S. national who did file a claim with the FCSC but had such 
     claim denied, the court may assess the basis for the denial 
     and may accept the FCSC's findings unless good cause 
     justifies another result.
       The Senate amendment contains no comparable provision.
       Section 302(a)(5) of the conference substitute modifies the 
     House language to provide that U.S. nationals may not use 
     this remedy if they either (1) were previously denied 
     certification by the FCSC or (2) were eligible to file their 
     claim under the FCSC process but failed to do so. The 
     conference substitute adds new language providing that all 
     non-certified claimants must wait two years after the Act's 
     enactment before using the cause of action, and that non-
     certified claimants must satisfy the court that the property 
     in question is not the subject of a certified claim.
       The intent of the committee of conference in revising this 
     paragraph is to enhance the position of the certified 
     claimants and to give them priority in pursuing actions 
     against traffickers.


                inapplicability of act of state doctrine

       Section 302(a)(6) of the House bill directs courts not to 
     dismiss actions brought under this section on the basis of 
     the ``act of state'' doctrine.
       The Senate amendment contains no comparable provision.
       Section 302(a)(6) of the conference substitute is identical 
     to the House provision.


          LICENSES NOT REQUIRED FOR USE OF THE RIGHT OF ACTION

       Section 302(a)(7) of the conference substitute provides 
     that actions may be brought and settled, and judgments 
     rendered, under this section without first having to obtain a 
     license from the United States Government, except that no 
     judgments may be executed against property currently blocked 
     under the authority of the Trading With the Enemy Act. The 
     conference substitute further provides that for purposes of 
     this title only the transfer of a claim to a U.S. national 
     shall not be deemed an interest in property which required or 
     requires a license.


                  PUBLICATION IN THE FEDERAL REGISTER

       Section 302(a)(8) of the conference substitute requires the 
     Attorney General to publish in the Federal Register a summary 
     of the provisions of title III not later than 60 days after 
     enactment.


              AGENCY OR INSTRUMENTALITY OF A FOREIGN STATE

       Section 302(b) of the House bill contains a definition of 
     ``agency or instrumentality of a foreign state.''
       The Senate amendment contains a comparable provision in the 
     definitions section (section 4).
       The definition in the conference substitute is identical to 
     the Senate definition, but moves the definition to section 
     4(1).


                         AMOUNT IN CONTROVERSY

       Section 302(b) of the conference substitute establishes an 
     amount in controversy requirement of $50,000, exclusive of 
     interest, costs, and attorneys' fees, in order for an action 
     to be brought under this section. The provision further 
     provides that the amount in controversy threshold cannot be 
     met by computing treble damages.


                        PROCEDURAL REQUIREMENTS

       Section 302(c) of the House bill amends title 28 of the 
     United States Code to grant United States district courts 
     exclusive jurisdiction over actions brought under this title, 
     regardless of the amount in controversy.
       The Senate amendment contains no comparable provision.
       Section 302(c) of the conference substitute provides that 
     an action under this section shall be subject to the same 
     procedural requirements as any other ``federal question'' 
     action under title 28, United States Code.


        ENFORCEABILITY OF JUDGMENTS AGAINST THE CUBAN GOVERNMENT

       Section 302(d) of the conference substitute provides that 
     judgments under this section shall not be enforceable against 
     an agency or instrumentality of either a transition 
     government or democratically elected government in Cuba. This 
     subsection is intended to ensure that a transition or 
     democratically elected government in Cuba is not burdened by 
     judgments entered at any time under this

[[Page H1661]]

     section in connection with activities of the Castro regime.


                 CERTAIN PROPERTY IMMUNE FROM EXECUTION

       Section 302(d) of the House bill amends section 1611 of 
     title 28, United States Code (a provision of the Foreign 
     Sovereign Immunities Act) to provide that property used for 
     accredited diplomatic purposes is immune from both attachment 
     and execution of a judgment resulting from an action brought 
     under this section.
       The Senate amendment contains no comparable provision.
       Section 302(e) of the conference substitute is identical to 
     the House language.


                          ELECTION OF REMEDIES

       Section 302(e)(1) of the House bill requires an election of 
     remedies for U.S. nationals who bring actions under this 
     section, limiting the manner and number of actions that may 
     be brought seeking compensation. Persons who bring an action 
     under this section may not bring a civil action under any 
     other law seeking compensation by reason of the same subject 
     matter, and persons who bring a civil action under any other 
     law seeking compensation arising out of the same claim may 
     not bring an action under this section. In this context, the 
     term ``same subject matter'' refers not to the original 
     confiscation of property, but rather to trafficking in the 
     property. This section is intended to prevent persons from 
     bringing separate actions for trafficking against the same 
     defendant or defendants under both section 302 and under a 
     common law tort theory.
       Section 302(e)(2) of the House bill contains special rules 
     designed to prevent double compensation of certified 
     claimants. Persons who receive a recovery in an action under 
     this section cannot subsequently collect compensation for the 
     same claim in subsequent settlements, except to the extent 
     that the certified claim was not fully satisfied by the 
     recovery in the action under this section. Certified claims 
     under the FCSC procedure are not adversely affected by an 
     unsuccessful action brought on the basis of the same claim 
     under this section.
       The Senate amendment contains no comparable provision.
       Section 302(f) of the conference substitute is based on the 
     House provision, but adds language stating that in any 
     situation involving a consolidation of cases by the courts, 
     priority in any settlement will be given to the certified 
     claimants.


       DEPOSIT OF EXCESS PAYMENTS BY CUBA UNDER CLAIMS AGREEMENT

       Section 302(f) of the House bill provides that any amounts 
     paid by Cuba to the United States in settlement of certified 
     claims that are in excess of the payments made to the 
     certified claimants shall be deposited into the United States 
     Treasury.
       The Senate amendment contains no comparable provision.
       Section 302(g) of the conference substitute is identical to 
     the House provision.


                         TERMINATION OF RIGHTS

       Section 302(g) of the House bill provides for the 
     termination of the right of action, except for pending suits, 
     upon a determination by the President that a democratic 
     government is in power in Cuba.
       The Senate amendment contains no comparable provision.
       Section 302(h) of the conference substitute modifies the 
     House provision to include, in addition, specific authority 
     for the President to suspend the right of action once he 
     determines that a transition government is in power pursuant 
     to section 204(a). Pending suits are not suspended in the 
     event of such a determination.
       The committee of conference recognizes the burden a future, 
     post-Castro government will confront in resolving property 
     disputes and seeking to attract foreign investment. Further, 
     the committee is confident that such a government will take 
     steps to provide prompt and adequate compensation to property 
     claimants. Accordingly, this section provides that the right 
     to bring an action under this title may be suspended by the 
     President once he determines that a transition government is 
     in power in Cuba, and the right to bring an action will 
     terminate upon a presidential determination that a 
     democratically elected government is in power in Cuba.


                       imposition of filing fees

       Section 302(i) of the conference substitute requires the 
     establishment of a filing fee for potential plaintiffs, with 
     the amount to be determined by the Judicial Conference of the 
     United States. The fee should be sufficient to cover the 
     incremental costs to the courts of actions under this title.
       The committee of conference's objective is to make this 
     right of action system self-sustaining, so that it is paid 
     for by those who use it rather than by tax revenues drawn 
     from the Treasury.


          proof of ownership of claims to confiscated property

       Section 303 of the House bill establishes the means courts 
     may use in determining the amount and ownership of claims 
     brought under section 302 as follows:
       Subsection (a) requires that courts accept as ``conclusive 
     proof of ownership'' a claim certified by the FCSC pursuant 
     to title V of the International Claims Settlement Act of 
     1949. In the case of a claim that has not been certified by 
     the FCSC, the court is given latitude, including the power to 
     appoint a ``special master'' (including the FCSC), in making 
     determinations of the amount and validity of ownership only 
     for the purposes of an action brought under section 302 of 
     the bill. The House bill precludes the courts from taking as 
     ``conclusive evidence of ownership'' any findings, orders, or 
     judgments from foreign courts or agencies or international 
     organizations, unless such findings resulted from binding 
     international arbitration to which the U.S. national 
     submitted the claim.
       Subsection (b) amends the International Claims Settlement 
     Act of 1949 to add a new section 514, providing that the FCSC 
     may provide amount and ownership determinations to the court 
     for evidentiary purposes only, whether or not the U.S. 
     national qualified as a national (as defined in the 
     International Claims Settlement Act of 1949) at the time of 
     the confiscation.
       Subsection (c) sets out a rule of construction that makes 
     explicit that nothing in the Act shall be construed as 
     requiring or authorizing the United States Government to 
     espouse the claims of Cuban nationals who became United 
     States citizens after their property was confiscated.
       The Senate amendment contains no comparable provisions.
       Section 303 of the conference substitute is the same as the 
     House bill, except that it changes the name of the section to 
     ``Proof of Ownership of Claims to Confiscated Property'', and 
     in subsection (a)(3) adds language that U.S. courts may not 
     accept as conclusive evidence any findings, orders, or 
     judgments by courts or agencies of foreign countries or 
     international organizations as to either the amount or 
     ownership of a claim, unless such a determination resulted 
     from binding international arbitration to which either the 
     United States or the individual U.S. claimant submitted the 
     claim.
       The committee of conference recognizes the importance of a 
     decision by the Foreign Claims Settlement Commission in 
     certifying a claim and, accordingly, believes that no court 
     should dismiss a certification in an action brought under 
     this title. The committee of conference also notes the 
     recognized special expertise of the FCSC in determining the 
     amount and validity of claims to confiscated properties 
     overseas. As such, the ``special master'' provision allows 
     the court to call upon the FCSC's expertise for evidentiary 
     purposes related to the right of action only. This provision 
     is intended to make clear that such evidentiary 
     determinations by FCSC do not constitute certification of 
     property claims pursuant to title V of the International 
     Claims Settlement Act of 1949 for purposes of United States 
     Government espousal and future negotiation with a friendly 
     government in Cuba. In the view of the committee of 
     conference, only the current 5,911 claims certified by the 
     FCSC should be espoused by the United States Government in 
     any settlement with a future Cuban Government.
       The committee of conference is also concerned that persons 
     potentially liable for trafficking in wrongfully acquired 
     property may seek to immunize themselves from liability by 
     acquiring a foreign court or agency judgment invalidating the 
     claim of a U.S. national. U.S. courts are precluded from 
     accepting such determinations as conclusive evidence.


   exclusivity of foreign claims settlement commission certification 
                               procedure

       Section 304 of the House bill amends the International 
     Claims Settlement Act of 1949 to add a new section 515, 
     providing that persons who were eligible to file claims under 
     that Act but did not do so, persons who were not eligible to 
     file a claim under that Act, and Cuban nationals or 
     instrumentalities shall not have a claim to any compensation 
     paid or allocated to a United States national by virtue of a 
     certified claim. The amendment also denies U.S. courts 
     jurisdiction to adjudicate any such claim.
       The Senate amendment contains no comparable provision.
       Section 304 of the conference substitute is similar to the 
     House bill.
       The committee of conference intends to make explicit that 
     the LIBERTAD bill does not create any additional claims under 
     the International Claims Settlement Act of 1949 and that any 
     settlement between the United States and Cuban Governments is 
     for the benefit of the property claimants with claims 
     certified by the Foreign Claims Settlement Commission 
     pursuant to title V of the International Claims Settlement 
     Act of 1949. The committee of conference notes that, under 
     current law and court precedents (Judah v. Shanghai Power 
     Co., 546 A.2d 981 (Del. 1988)), an inequitable situation 
     could arise for certified claimants following a settlement 
     with the Cuban Government if section 304 is not enacted. 
     Section 304 is intended to avoid the unfair result that all 
     or a portion of the settlement proceeds paid to expropriated 
     U.S. claimants could be attached by (1) Cuban nationals or 
     representatives of current or successor Cuban government 
     agencies, (2) U.S. nationals who were eligible to file claims 
     with the FCSC but did not, or (3) U.S. nationals who were not 
     eligible to file claims with the FCSC, but without modifying 
     any rights that U.S. nationals might have with respect to 
     their shares of stock.


                         limitation of actions

       Section 305 of the conference substitute provides that 
     actions under section 302 cannot be brought more than two 
     years after the trafficking in confiscated property in Cuba 
     has ceased to occur.


                             effective date

       Section 306 of the conference substitute establishes an 
     effective date of August 1, 1996

[[Page H1662]]

     for title III. The section further provides two forms of 
     suspension authority that the President may exercise to delay 
     litigation under section 302.
       First, the President may suspend the effective date for a 
     period of not more than six months if he determines and 
     reports in writing to the appropriate committees of Congress 
     that such suspension is ``necessary to the national interests 
     of the United States and will expedite a transition to 
     democracy in Cuba.'' This suspension may be extended for 
     additional periods of not more than six months each upon 
     making the same determination and report to Congress as 
     above.
       Second, after title III takes effect, the President may 
     suspend the right to bring an action under section 302 for a 
     period of not more than six months upon making the same 
     determination and report to Congress as above. This second 
     form of suspension can also be extended for additional 
     periods of not more than six months upon making the same 
     determination and report to Congress as above. Suspension 
     pursuant to this authority will not suspend or otherwise 
     affect pending cases.
       The committee of conference provided this suspension 
     authority at the request of the Executive branch in order to 
     afford the President flexibility to respond to unfolding 
     developments in Cuba. The committee specifically rejected a 
     proposal made by the Executive branch that the President be 
     permitted to suspend the right of action upon determining and 
     reporting to the appropriate committees of Congress that such 
     suspension ``is important to the national interests of the 
     United States, including expediting a transition to democracy 
     in Cuba.''
       The committee of conference could not accept the 
     formulation proposed by the Executive branch because it 
     subordinated the question of whether suspension of the right 
     of action would expedite a transition to democracy in Cuba to 
     a larger question of whether suspension is important to the 
     President's overall calculation of the national interest. The 
     committee strongly believes that the question of whether 
     suspension will expedite a transition to democracy in Cuba 
     should be the central element of the President's decision 
     whether to exercise the suspension authority, and not just be 
     one of many factors to be considered by the President.
       The formula included in the conference substitute requires 
     the President to determine two separate and distinct matters 
     before suspending the right of action: first that suspension 
     ``is necessary to the national interests of the United 
     States,'' and second that suspension ``will expedite a 
     transition to democracy in Cuba.''
       In the judgment of the committee of conference, under 
     current circumstances the President could not in good faith 
     determine that suspension of the right of action is either 
     ``necessary to the national interests of the United States'' 
     or ``will expedite a transition to democracy in Cuba.'' In 
     particular, the committee believes that it is demonstrably 
     not the case that suspending the right of action will 
     expedite a transition to democracy in Cuba, inasmuch as 
     suspension would remove a significant deterrent to foreign 
     investment in Cuba, thereby helping prolong Castro's grip on 
     power.

                 Title IV--Exclusion of Certain Aliens

       Section 401 of the House bill provides that the Secretary 
     of State, in consultation with the Attorney General, shall 
     exclude from the United States any alien who the Secretary 
     determines (1) has confiscated or converted, or overseen or 
     directed the confiscation or conversion of, property 
     belonging to a United States national; (2) knowingly and 
     intentionally traffics in confiscated American property after 
     the bill's enactment; (3) is a corporate officer, principal, 
     or controlling shareholder in a company or entity that has 
     been involved in such confiscations or conversions or 
     trafficking; or, (4) is a spouse, minor child, or agent of 
     any person described above. The Secretary of State may waive 
     this prohibition on a case-by-case basis when he determines 
     that it is in the national interest to do so.
       The Senate amendment contains no comparable provision.
       Section 401 of the conference substitute adopts the 
     approach of the House bill, but limits application of the 
     provision to confiscated property in Cuba. In addition, the 
     substitute limits application of the provision to trafficking 
     that occurs after the date of enactment.
       The committee notes that the definition of trafficking for 
     purposes of section 401 is slightly narrower than the 
     definition applicable to title III set forth in section 4(13) 
     of the conference substitute. Two considerations account for 
     the narrower definition. First, the committee did not wish to 
     reach existing acts of trafficking under this section, but 
     rather wished to reach new and different acts of trafficking 
     beginning on or after the date of enactment. Second, the 
     committee did not wish this section to deter investors in 
     Cuba from divesting their holdings. For this reason, the sale 
     or abandonment of confiscated property in Cuba for purposes 
     of disengaging from Cuba is excluded from the definition of 
     trafficking.

     Ben Gilman,
     Dan Burton,
     Ileana Ros-Lehtinen,
     Peter T. King,
     Lincoln Diaz-Balart,
     Robert G. Torricelli,
     Robert Menendez,
                                Managers on the Part of the House.

     Jesse Helms,
     Paul Coverdell,
     Fred Thompson,
     Olympia Snowe,
     Charles S. Robb,
     Managers on the Part of the Senate.

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