[Congressional Record Volume 169, Number 119 (Wednesday, July 12, 2023)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2431-S2432]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
SA 267. Mr. RISCH submitted an amendment intended to be proposed by
him to the bill S. 2226, to authorize appropriations for fiscal year
2024 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 in title XII, insert the
following:
Subtitle __--UNRWA Accountability and Transparency
SEC. 12_1. SHORT TITLE.
This subtitle may be cited as the ``UNRWA Accountability
and Transparency Act''.
SEC. 12_2. STATEMENT OF POLICY.
(a) Palestinian Refugee Defined.--It shall be the policy of
the United States, in matters concerning the United Nations
Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near
East (referred to in this subtitle as ``UNRWA''), which
operates in Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, the Gaza Strip, and the
West Bank, to define a Palestinian refugee as a person who--
(1) resided, between June 1946 and May 1948, in the region
controlled by Britain between 1922 and 1948 that was known as
Mandatory Palestine;
(2) was personally displaced as a result of the 1948 Arab-
Israeli conflict; and
(3) has not accepted an offer of legal residency status,
citizenship, or other permanent adjustment in status in
another country or territory.
(b) Limitations on Refugee and Derivative Refugee Status.--
In applying the definition under subsection (a) with respect
to refugees receiving assistance from UNRWA, it shall be the
policy of the United States, consistent with the definition
of refugee in section 101(a)(42) of the Immigration and
Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101(a)(42)) and the requirements
for eligibility for refugee status under section 207 of such
Act (8 U.S.C. 1157), that--
(1) derivative refugee status may only be extended to the
spouse or a minor child of a Palestinian refugee; and
(2) an alien who is firmly resettled in any country is not
eligible to retain refugee status.
SEC. 12_3. UNITED STATES' CONTRIBUTIONS TO UNRWA.
Section 301(c) of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (22
U.S.C. 2221) is amended to read as follows:
``(c) Withholding.--
``(1) Definitions.--In this subsection:
``(A) Anti-semitic.--The term `anti-Semitic'--
``(i) has the meaning adopted on May 26, 2016, by the
International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance as the non-
legally binding working definition of antisemitism; and
``(ii) includes the contemporary examples of antisemitism
in public life, the media, schools, the workplace, and in the
religious sphere identified on such date by the International
Holocaust Remembrance Alliance.
``(B) Appropriate congressional committees.--The term
`appropriate congressional committees' means--
``(i) the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate;
``(ii) the Committee on Appropriations of the Senate;
``(iii) the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of
Representatives; and
``(iv) the Committee on Appropriations of the House of
Representatives.
``(C) Boycott of, divestment from, and sanctions against
israel.--The term `boycott of, divestment from, and sanctions
against Israel' has the meaning given to such term in section
909(f)(1) of the Trade Facilitation and Trade Enforcement Act
of 2015 (19 U.S.C. 4452(f)(1)).
``(D) Foreign terrorist organization.--The term `foreign
terrorist organization' means an organization designated as a
foreign terrorist organization by the Secretary of State in
accordance with section 219(a) of the Immigration and
Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1189(a)).
``(E) UNRWA.--The term `UNRWA' means the United Nations
Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near
East.
``(2) Certification.--Notwithstanding any other provision
of law, the United States may not provide contributions to
UNRWA, to any successor or related entity, or to the regular
budget of the United Nations for the support of UNRWA or a
successor entity (through staff positions provided by the
United Nations Secretariat or otherwise) unless the Secretary
of State submits a written certification to the appropriate
congressional committees that--
``(A) no official, employee, consultant, contractor,
subcontractor, representative, affiliate of UNRWA, an UNRWA
partner organization, or an UNRWA contracting entity pursuant
to completion of a thorough vetting and background check
process--
``(i) is a member of, is affiliated with, or has any ties
to a foreign terrorist organization, including Hamas and
Hezbollah;
``(ii) has advocated, planned, sponsored, or engaged in any
terrorist activity;
``(iii) has propagated or disseminated anti-American, anti-
Israel, or anti-Semitic rhetoric, incitement, or propaganda,
including--
``(I) calling for or encouraging the destruction of Israel;
``(II) failing to recognize Israel's right to exist;
``(III) showing maps without Israel;
``(IV) describing Israelis as `occupiers' or `settlers';
``(V) advocating, endorsing, or expressing support for
violence, hatred, jihad, martyrdom, or terrorism, glorifying,
honoring, or otherwise memorializing any person or group that
has advocated, sponsored, or committed acts of terrorism, or
providing material support to terrorists or their families;
``(VI) expressing support for boycott of, divestment from,
and sanctions against Israel (commonly referred to as `BDS');
``(VII) claiming or advocating for a `right of return' of
refugees into Israel;
``(VIII) ignoring, denying, or not recognizing the historic
connection of the Jewish people to the land of Israel; and
``(IX) calling for violence against Americans; or
``(iv) has used any UNRWA resources, including
publications, websites, or social media platforms, to
propagate or disseminate anti-American, anti-Israel, or anti-
Semitic rhetoric, incitement, or propaganda, including with
respect to any of the matters described in subclauses (I)
through (IX) of clause (iii);
``(B) no UNRWA school, hospital, clinic, facility, or other
infrastructure or resource is being used by a foreign
terrorist organization or any member thereof--
``(i) for terrorist activities, such as operations,
planning, training, recruitment, fundraising, indoctrination,
communications, sanctuary, storage of weapons or other
materials; or
``(ii) as an access point to any underground tunnel
network, or any other terrorist-related purposes;
``(C) UNRWA is subject to comprehensive financial audits by
an internationally recognized third party independent
auditing firm that--
``(i) is agreed upon by the Government of Israel and the
Palestinian Authority; and
``(ii) has implemented an effective system of vetting and
oversight to prevent the use, receipt, or diversion of any
UNRWA resources by any foreign terrorist organization or
members thereof;
``(D) no UNRWA controlled or funded facility, such as a
school, an educational institution, or a summer camp, uses
textbooks or other educational materials that propagate or
disseminate anti-American, anti-Israel, or anti-Semitic
rhetoric, incitement, or propaganda, including with respect
to any of the matters described in subclauses (I) through
(IX) of subparagraph (A)(iii);
``(E) no recipient of UNRWA funds or loans is--
``(i) a member of, is affiliated with, or has any ties to a
foreign terrorist organization; or
``(ii) otherwise engaged in terrorist activities; and
``(F) UNRWA holds no accounts or other affiliations with
financial institutions that the United States considers or
believes to be complicit in money laundering and terror
financing.
``(3) Period of effectiveness.--
``(A) In general.--A certification described in paragraph
(2) shall be effective until the earlier of--
``(i) the date on which the Secretary receives information
rendering the certification described in paragraph (2)
factually inaccurate; or
``(ii) the date that is 180 days after the date on which it
is submitted to the appropriate congressional committees.
``(B) Notification of renunciation.--If a certification
becomes ineffective pursuant to subparagraph (A), the
Secretary shall promptly notify the appropriate congressional
committees of the reasons for renouncing or failing to renew
such certification.
``(4) Limitation.--During any year in which a certification
described in paragraph (1) is in effect, the United States
may not contribute to UNRWA, or to any successor entity, an
amount that--
``(A) is greater than the highest contribution to UNRWA
made by a member country of the League of Arab States for
such year; and
``(B) is greater (as a proportion of the total UNRWA
budget) than the proportion of the total budget for the
United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees paid by the
United States.''.
[[Page S2432]]
SEC. 12_4. REPORT.
(a) Defined Term.--In this section, the term ``appropriate
congressional committees'' means--
(1) the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate;
(2) the Committee on Appropriations of the Senate;
(3) the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of
Representatives; and
(4) the Committee on Appropriations of the House of
Representatives.
(b) In General.--Not later than 180 days after the date of
the enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter, the
Secretary of State shall submit a report to the appropriate
congressional committees describing the actions being taken
to implement a comprehensive plan for--
(1) encouraging other countries to adopt the policy
regarding Palestinian refugees that is described in section
12_2;
(2) urging other countries to withhold their contributions
to UNRWA, to any successor or related entity, or to the
regular budget of the United Nations for the support of UNRWA
or a successor entity (through staff positions provided by
the United Nations Secretariat or otherwise) until UNRWA has
met the conditions listed in subparagraphs (A) through (F) of
section 301(c)(2) of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961, as
added by section 12_3;
(3) working with other countries to phase out UNRWA and
assist Palestinians receiving UNRWA services by--
(A) integrating such Palestinians into their local
communities in the countries in which they are residing; or
(B) resettling such Palestinians in countries other than
Israel or territories controlled by Israel in the West Bank
in accordance with international humanitarian principles; and
(4) ensuring that the actions described in paragraph (3)--
(A) are being implemented in complete coordination with,
and with the support of, Israel; and
(B) do not endanger the security of Israel in any way.
______