[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 146 (Monday, September 11, 2017)]
[Senate]
[Pages S5138-S5139]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

  SA 896. Mr. MURPHY submitted an amendment intended to be proposed by 
him to the bill H.R. 2810, to authorize appropriations for fiscal year 
2018 for military activities of the Department of Defense, for military 
construction, and for defense activities of the Department of Energy, 
to prescribe military personnel strengths for such fiscal year, and for 
other purposes; which was ordered to lie on the table; as follows:

       At the end of subtitle G of title X, add the following:

     SEC. ___. CONDITIONS FOR REFUELING SUPPORT OF THE SAUDI-LED 
                   COALITION IN YEMEN.

       (a) In General.--Not later than 90 days after the date of 
     the enactment of this Act (in this section, the 
     ``certification submittal deadline''), the Secretary of 
     Defense shall, in consultation with the Secretary of State, 
     submit to the appropriate committees of Congress a 
     certification whether or not the Government of Saudi Arabia 
     is taking demonstrable actions to do the following as part of 
     its military operations in Yemen:
       (1) Reduce the risk of harm to civilians and civilian 
     objects in compliance with obligations under international 
     humanitarian law, including minimizing harm to civilians, 
     discriminating between civilian objects and military 
     objectives, and exercising proportional use of force.
       (2) Facilitate the flow of critical humanitarian aid and 
     commercial goods, including commercial fuel and commodities 
     not subject to sanction or prohibition under United Nations 
     Security Council Resolution 2216 (2015).
       (3) Target designated foreign terrorist organizations, 
     including al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula and affiliates of 
     the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant.
       (b) Additional Matters.--The Secretary of Defense shall 
     include with the certification under subsection (a) the 
     following:
       (1) A description of efforts by the Government of Saudi 
     Arabia to avoid harm to civilians and civilian objects in 
     Yemen, including any changes to the training of its pilots, 
     its targeting methodology, and its strike approval process.
       (2) An explanation of United States support or other 
     assistance to the Government of Saudi Arabia designed to 
     improve the training of its pilots, its targeting 
     methodology, and its strike approval process.
       (3) A description of efforts by the Government of Saudi 
     Arabia to investigate incidents where civilians and civilian 
     objects have been harmed as a result of airstrikes and, when 
     necessary, efforts to hold responsible personnel accountable.
       (4) Any other matters in connection with the certification 
     that the Secretary considers appropriate.
       (c) Limitation on Use of Funds.--
       (1) In general.--If the Secretary of Defense does not 
     submit the certification described in subsection (a) by the 
     certification submittal deadline, or the Secretary certifies 
     that the Government of Saudi Arabia is not taking 
     demonstrable actions as described in that subsection, none of 
     the funds authorized to be appropriated by this Act may be 
     obligated or expended after the certification submittal 
     deadline for the refueling of aircraft of Saudi Arabia or its 
     military coalition partners in Yemen for any mission to be 
     conducted in Yemen until the certification described in 
     subsection (a) is submitted to the appropriate committees of 
     Congress or the Secretary further certifies to the 
     appropriate committees of Congress that the Government of 
     Saudi Arabia is taking demonstrable actions as described in 
     that subsection, as applicable.
       (2) Exception.--The limitation in paragraph (1) shall not 
     apply with respect to refueling aircraft of Saudi Arabia or 
     its military coalition partners in Yemen that are conducting 
     counterterrorism operations in support of United States 
     national security objectives.
       (3) Waiver.--The Secretary of Defense may waive the 
     limitation in paragraph (1) if the Secretary determines that 
     the waiver is in the national security interests of the 
     United States. The Secretary shall submit to the appropriate 
     committees of Congress a written notification of the waiver, 
     including the justification for the waiver, not later than 48 
     hours after the issuance of the waiver.
       (d) Appropriate Committees of Congress Defined.--In this 
     section, the term ``appropriate committees of Congress'' 
     means--

[[Page S5139]]

       (1) the Committee on Armed Services, the Committee on 
     Foreign Relations, and the Committee on Appropriations of the 
     Senate; and
       (2) the Committee on Armed Services, the Committee on 
     Foreign Affairs, and the Committee on Appropriations of the 
     House of Representatives.
                                 ______