[Congressional Record Volume 163, Number 146 (Monday, September 11, 2017)]
[Senate]
[Pages S5152-S5153]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
SA 930. Mr. McCAIN (for Mr. Rubio) submitted an amendment intended to
be proposed by Mr. McCain 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 appropriate place, insert the following:
Subtitle __--Combating BDS Act of 2017
SEC. __01. SHORT TITLE.
This subtitle may be cited as the ``Combating BDS Act of
2017''.
SEC. __02. NONPREEMPTION OF MEASURES BY STATE AND LOCAL
GOVERNMENTS TO DIVEST FROM ENTITIES THAT ENGAGE
IN CERTAIN BOYCOTT, DIVESTMENT, OR SANCTIONS
ACTIVITIES TARGETING ISRAEL.
(a) State and Local Measures.--Notwithstanding any other
provision of law, a State or local government may adopt and
enforce measures that meet the requirements of subsection (b)
to divest the assets of the State or local government from,
prohibit investment of the assets of the State or local
government in, or restrict contracting by the State or local
government for goods and services with--
(1) an entity that the State or local government
determines, using credible information available to the
public, knowingly engages in a commerce-related or
investment-related boycott, divestment, or sanctions activity
targeting Israel;
(2) a successor entity or subunit of an entity described in
paragraph (1); or
(3) an entity that owns or controls, is owned or controlled
by, or is under common ownership or control with, an entity
described in paragraph (1).
(b) Requirements.--A State or local government that seeks
to adopt or enforce a measure under subsection (a) shall meet
the following requirements:
(1) Notice.--The State or local government shall provide
written notice to each entity to which a measure under
subsection (a) is to be applied.
(2) Timing.--The measure shall apply to an entity not
earlier than the date that is 90 days after the date on which
written notice is provided to the entity under paragraph (1).
(3) Opportunity for comment.--The State or local government
shall provide an opportunity to comment in writing to each
entity to which a measure is to be applied. If the entity
demonstrates to the State or local government that the entity
has not engaged in a commerce-related or investment-related
boycott, divestment, or sanctions activity targeting Israel,
the measure shall not apply to the entity.
(4) Sense of congress on avoiding erroneous targeting.--It
is the sense of Congress that a State or local government
should not adopt a measure under subsection (a) with respect
to an entity unless the State or local government has made
every effort to avoid erroneously targeting the entity and
has verified that the entity engages in a commerce-related or
investment-related boycott, divestment, or sanctions activity
targeting Israel.
(c) Notice to Department of Justice.--
(1) In general.--Except as provided in paragraph (2), not
later than 30 days after adopting a measure described in
subsection (a), the State or local government that adopted
the measure shall submit written notice to the Attorney
General describing the measure.
(2) Existing measures.--With respect to measures described
in subsection (a) adopted before the date of the enactment of
this Act, the State or local government that adopted the
measure shall submit written notice to the Attorney General
describing the measure not later than 30 days after the date
of the enactment of this Act.
(d) Nonpreemption.--A measure of a State or local
government that is consistent with subsection (a) is not
preempted by any Federal law.
(e) Effective Date.--This section applies to any measure
adopted by a State or local government before, on, or after
the date of the enactment of this Act.
(f) Prior Enacted Measures.--
(1) In general.--Notwithstanding any other provision of
this section or any other provision of law, and except as
provided in paragraph (2), a State or local government may
enforce a measure described in subsection (a) adopted by the
State or local government before the date of the enactment of
this Act without regard to the requirements of subsection
(b).
(2) Application of notice and opportunity for comment.--A
measure described in paragraph (1) shall be subject to the
requirements of subsection (b) on and after the date that is
2 years after the date of the enactment of this Act.
(g) Rules of Construction.--
(1) Authority of states.--Nothing in this section shall be
construed to abridge the authority of a State to issue and
enforce rules governing the safety, soundness, and solvency
of a financial institution subject to its jurisdiction or the
business of insurance pursuant to the Act of March 9, 1945
(59 Stat. 33, chapter 20; 15 U.S.C. 1011 et seq.) (commonly
known as the ``McCarran-Ferguson Act'').
(2) Policy of the united states.--Nothing in this section
shall be construed to alter the established policy of the
United States concerning final status issues associated with
the Arab-Israeli conflict, including border delineation, that
can only be resolved through direct negotiations between the
parties.
(3) Scope of nonpreemption.--Nothing in this section shall
be construed as establishing a basis for preempting or
implying preemption of State measures relating to boycott,
divestment, or sanctions activity targeting Israel that are
outside the scope of subsection (a).
(h) Definitions.--In this section:
(1) Assets.--
(A) In general.--Except as provided in subparagraph (B),
the term ``assets'' means
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any pension, retirement, annuity, or endowment fund, or
similar instrument, that is controlled by a State or local
government.
(B) Exception.--The term ``assets'' does not include
employee benefit plans covered by title I of the Employee
Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (29 U.S.C. 1001 et
seq.).
(2) Boycott, divestment, or sanctions activity targeting
israel.--The term ``boycott, divestment, or sanctions
activity targeting Israel'' means any activity that is
intended to penalize, inflict economic harm on, or otherwise
limit commercial relations with Israel or persons doing
business in Israel or in Israeli-controlled territories for
purposes of coercing political action by, or imposing policy
positions on, the Government of Israel.
(3) Entity.--The term ``entity'' includes--
(A) any corporation, company, business association,
partnership, or trust; and
(B) any governmental entity or instrumentality of a
government, including a multilateral development institution
(as defined in section 1701(c)(3) of the International
Financial Institutions Act (22 U.S.C. 262r(c)(3))).
(4) Investment.--The term ``investment'' includes--
(A) a commitment or contribution of funds or property;
(B) a loan or other extension of credit; and
(C) the entry into or renewal of a contract for goods or
services.
(5) State.--The term ``State'' means each of the several
States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto
Rico, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands,
American Samoa, Guam, the United States Virgin Islands, and
any other territory or possession of the United States.
(6) State or local government.--The term ``State or local
government'' includes--
(A) any State and any agency or instrumentality thereof;
(B) any local government within a State and any agency or
instrumentality thereof; and
(C) any other governmental instrumentality of a State or
locality.
SEC. __03. SAFE HARBOR FOR CHANGES OF INVESTMENT POLICIES BY
ASSET MANAGERS.
Section 13(c)(1) of the Investment Company Act of 1940 (15
U.S.C. 80a-13(c)(1)) is amended--
(1) in subparagraph (A), by striking ``; or'' and inserting
a semicolon;
(2) in subparagraph (B), by striking the period at the end
and inserting ``; or''; and
(3) by adding at the end the following:
``(C) engage in any boycott, divestment, or sanctions
activity targeting Israel described in section __02 of the
Combating BDS Act of 2017.''.
______