[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 66 (Tuesday, April 16, 2024)]
[House]
[Pages H2423-H2426]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                   NO PAYDAYS FOR HOSTAGE-TAKERS ACT

  Mr. WILSON of South Carolina. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the 
rules and pass the bill (H.R. 5826) to require a report on sanctions 
under the Robert Levinson Hostage Recovery and Hostage-Taking 
Accountability Act, and for other purposes, as amended.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                               H.R. 5826

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``No Paydays for Hostage-
     Takers Act''.

     SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

       Congress finds the following:
       (1) The Islamic Republic of Iran has a long history of 
     hostage-taking and wrongful detention of United States 
     nationals, including its illegal detention of 52 American 
     diplomats from 1979 to 1981.
       (2) The Robert Levinson Hostage Recovery and Hostage-Taking 
     Accountability Act (22 U.S.C. 1741 et seq.), named in honor 
     of Robert Levinson, the longest-held hostage in United States 
     history who is presumed to have been killed by the regime 
     while in Iranian custody, authorizes sanctions with respect 
     to foreign persons who are responsible for or complicit in 
     hostage-taking or unlawful or wrongful detention of United 
     States nationals abroad.

     SEC. 3. STATEMENT OF POLICY.

       It shall be the policy of the United States to undertake 
     additional actions and impose strict penalties to deter the 
     Government of Iran and other hostile governments and non-
     state actors from hostage-taking or wrongfully detaining 
     United States nationals.

     SEC. 4. REPORT AND CERTIFICATION ON RESTRICTED IRANIAN FUNDS 
                   RELEASED TO QATAR.

       (a) In General.--Not later than 90 days after the date of 
     the enactment of this Act, and every 180 days thereafter for 
     6 years, the President shall submit to the Committee on 
     Foreign Affairs and the Committee on Financial Services of 
     the House of Representatives and the Committee on Foreign 
     Relations and the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban 
     Affairs of the Senate the following:
       (1) A report on the $6,000,000,000 in funds transferred 
     from restricted Iranian accounts in the Republic of South 
     Korea to restricted accounts in Qatar on or after August 9, 
     2023.
       (2) A certification as to whether credible evidence or 
     intelligence exists that any of the funds transferred have 
     been used for any purpose other than humanitarian purposes.
       (3) A certification as to whether credible evidence or 
     intelligence exists that the funds transferred have enabled 
     the Government of Iran to increase spending on defense, 
     intelligence, or malign foreign activities.
       (b) Matters to Be Included.--The report required by 
     subsection (a)(1) shall include the following:
       (1) An itemized list of all transactions involving the use 
     of funds transferred, including the value of such 
     transactions, the parties to such transactions, the financial 
     institutions involved, the goods purchased in each 
     transaction, the destinations and end user of such goods, the 
     date on which the United States was notified of such 
     transaction, and the date the transaction occurred.
       (2) The quantity of funds described in subsection (a)(1) in 
     restricted accounts in Qatar at the beginning and end of each 
     reporting period.

[[Page H2424]]

       (3) A thorough description of the process the United States 
     Government utilized during the reporting period to review 
     transactions involving the use of funds transferred in order 
     to verify that such transactions were humanitarian in nature.

     SEC. 5. REVIEW AND DETERMINATION AND REPORTS ON SANCTIONS 
                   UNDER THE ROBERT LEVINSON HOSTAGE RECOVERY AND 
                   HOSTAGE-TAKING ACCOUNTABILITY ACT.

       (a) Review and Determination.--Not later than 180 days 
     after the date of the enactment of this Act, and on an annual 
     basis thereafter for 6 years, the President shall--
       (1) review all cases of the hostage-taking of a United 
     States national in Iran or at the direction of the Government 
     of Iran and all cases of the unlawful or wrongful detention 
     of a United States national in Iran or at the direction of 
     the Government of Iran that have occurred during the 
     preceding 10-year period; and
       (2) make a determination as to whether any foreign person, 
     based on credible evidence--
       (A) is responsible for or complicit in, or responsible for 
     ordering, controlling, or otherwise directing, the hostage-
     taking of the United States national or the unlawful or 
     wrongful detention of the United States national; or
       (B) knowingly provides financial, material, or 
     technological support for, or goods or services in support 
     of, an activity described in subparagraph (A).
       (b) Reports.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the 
     enactment of this Act, and on an annual basis thereafter for 
     6 years, the President shall submit to the appropriate 
     congressional committees a report that--
       (1) identifies all foreign persons with respect to which 
     the President has made a determination under subsection 
     (a)(2); and
       (2) with respect to each such foreign person--
       (A) states whether sanctions have been imposed under 
     section 306 of the Robert Levinson Hostage Recovery and 
     Hostage-Taking Accountability Act (22 U.S.C. 1741d) or will 
     be imposed within 30 days of the date of the submission of 
     the report; and
       (B) for whom sanctions have not been imposed or will not be 
     imposed under section 306 of such Act, provides a description 
     of the specific authority under which otherwise applicable 
     sanctions are being waived, have otherwise been determined 
     not to apply, or are not being imposed and a complete 
     justification of the decision to waive or otherwise not apply 
     the sanctions authorized by such sanctions programs and 
     authorities.

     SEC. 6. REQUIREMENT TO LIMIT TRAVEL OF IRANIAN DIPLOMATS AT 
                   THE UNITED NATIONS.

       (a) Findings.--Congress finds the following:
       (1) United States visa restrictions on sanctioned 
     individuals often contain exceptions for activities in order 
     to permit the United States to comply with the Agreement 
     regarding the headquarters of the United Nations signed at 
     Lake Success June 26, 1947, and entered into force November 
     21, 1947, between the United Nations and the United States.
       (2) Section 6 of Public Law 80-357 (commonly known as the 
     ``United Nations Headquarters Agreement Act'') provides 
     ``Nothing in the agreement shall be construed as in any way 
     diminishing, abridging, or weakening the right of the United 
     States to safeguard its own security.''.
       (3) Congress has directed the President to use the 
     President's authority, including the authorities contained in 
     section 6 of Public Law 80-357, to deny any individual's 
     admission to the United States as a representative to the 
     United Nations if the President determines that such 
     individual has been found to have been engaged in espionage 
     activities or a terrorist activity directed against the 
     United States or its allies and may pose a threat to United 
     States national security interests.
       (b) Sense of Congress.--It is the sense of Congress that 
     Iran's longstanding hostage-taking and wrongful detention of 
     United States nationals, assassination plots against United 
     States nationals outside and within the United States, and 
     intelligence activities are a security or terrorist threat to 
     the United States and United States interests and shall be a 
     primary consideration in limiting travel of Iranian diplomats 
     seeking admission to the United States for United Nations 
     activities and their family members.
       (c) Denial of Visas.--Section 407(a)(1) of the Foreign 
     Relations Authorization Act, Fiscal Years 1990 and 1991 (8 
     U.S.C. 1102 note) is amended--
       (1) by striking ``(1)'' and inserting ``(1)(A)'';
       (2) by striking ``and'' at the end and inserting ``or''; 
     and
       (3) by adding further at the end the following:
       ``(B) has been sanctioned pursuant to Executive Order 13224 
     (66 Fed. Reg. 49079; relating to blocking property and 
     prohibiting transactions with persons who commit, threaten to 
     commit, or support terrorism) or Executive Order 13382 (70 
     Fed. Reg. 38567; relating to blocking property of weapons of 
     mass destruction proliferators and their supporters) as of 
     the date of the enactment of the No Paydays for Hostage-
     Takers Act; and''.
       (d) Report.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the 
     enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter for 3 years, 
     the President shall submit to the appropriate congressional 
     committees a report on whether the President has taken action 
     to restrict the travel of Iranian diplomats seeking admission 
     to the United States for United Nations activities and their 
     family members and identifying each such instance in which 
     visas were denied or travel was restricted.

     SEC. 7. REPORT ON BLOCKED IRANIAN ASSETS.

       Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of 
     this Act, and annually thereafter for 3 years, the President 
     shall submit to the appropriate congressional committees a 
     report that includes the following:
       (1) An itemized list of any identifiable assets with a 
     valuation of more than $100,000 belonging to Iranian 
     individuals and entities that are or have been blocked or 
     otherwise frozen pursuant to any sanctions program under any 
     jurisdiction globally, in the prior 2 years.
       (2) Any changes to the status of such assets, including 
     unblocking, unfreezing, or transferring such assets, in the 
     prior 2 years.
       (3) With respect to any changes identified in paragraph 
     (2), whether the United States Government took any action, 
     including waiving of sanctions, that related to such 
     unblocking or unfreezing, and a justification for any such 
     United States actions.

     SEC. 8. REPORT ON INTERNATIONAL EFFORTS TO FREEZE AND SEIZE 
                   IRANIAN ASSETS.

       (a) Sense of Congress.--It is the sense of Congress that 
     the Secretary of State, the Secretary of the Treasury, and 
     the Attorney General should, to the extent practicable--
       (1) carry out a coordinated international effort to find, 
     restrain, freeze, and where appropriate and legally 
     authorized, seize, confiscate or forfeit the assets of those 
     individuals and entities that have been sanctioned in 
     connection with Iran's malign activities, including hostage-
     taking, wrongful detention, and human rights violations; and
       (2) work with foreign governments--
       (A) to share intelligence of financial investigations, as 
     appropriate;
       (B) to oversee the assets identified pursuant to paragraph 
     (1); and
       (C) to provide technical assistance to help governments 
     establish the necessary legal framework to carry out asset 
     forfeitures.
       (b) Report.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the 
     enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter for 3 years, 
     the President shall submit to the appropriate congressional 
     committees a report on actions described in subsection (a).

     SEC. 9. DETERMINATION AND REPORT ON INVALIDATING UNITED 
                   STATES PASSPORTS FOR TRAVEL TO IRAN.

       (a) Findings.--Congress finds the following:
       (1) The Secretary of State maintains authority to restrict 
     the use of United States passports for travel to or use in a 
     country or area which the Secretary has determined is a 
     country or area in which there is imminent danger to the 
     public health or physical safety of United States travelers, 
     in accordance with section 51.63 of title 22, Code of Federal 
     Regulations.
       (2) In 2017, the Secretary of State declared United States 
     passports invalid for travel to, in, or through North Korea, 
     unless specially validated for such travel, after United 
     States citizen Otto Warmbier suffered grievous injuries in 
     North Korean custody, which led to his death.
       (3) The ban on use of United States passports for travel to 
     North Korea was renewed in 2023.
       (b) Sense of Congress.--It is the sense of Congress that 
     the Secretary of State should declare United States passports 
     invalid for travel to, in, or through Iran due to the 
     imminent danger to the public health and physical safety of 
     United States travelers stemming from the threat of wrongful 
     detention or being taken hostage by the Iranian regime.
       (c) Determination and Report.--Not later than 90 days after 
     the date of enactment of this Act and annually thereafter for 
     3 years, the Secretary of State shall determine and report to 
     the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of 
     Representatives and the Committee on Foreign Relations of the 
     Senate--
       (1) whether the travel of United States persons to Iran 
     presents an imminent danger to the public health or physical 
     safety of United States travelers; and
       (2) whether the Secretary is exercising his authority to 
     declare United States passports invalid for travel to, in, or 
     through Iran.

     SEC. 10. STRATEGY TO DETER HOSTAGE-TAKING.

       Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of 
     this Act, the President shall develop and submit to Congress 
     a strategy to deter and prevent wrongful detention and 
     hostage-taking by United States adversaries, including 
     identifying penalties for wrongful detention and hostage-
     taking, identifying clear United States Government policies 
     barring the payment of ransom or transactions that could be 
     viewed as ransom by the United States Government, and 
     detailing plans to coordinate with United States allies and 
     partners on such strategy.

     SEC. 11. DEFINITIONS.

       In this Act:
       (1) Appropriate congressional committees.--the term 
     ``appropriate congressional committees'' means--
       (A) the Committee on Foreign Affairs and the Committee on 
     the Judiciary of the House of Representatives; and
       (B) the Committee on Foreign Relations and the Committee on 
     the Judiciary of the Senate.
       (2) Foreign person.--The term ``foreign person''--

[[Page H2425]]

       (A) means an individual or entity that is not a United 
     States person; and
       (B) includes a foreign state (as such term is defined in 
     section 1603 of title 28, United States Code).
       (3) United states national.--The term ``United States 
     national'' has the meaning given that term in section 307(2) 
     of the Robert Levinson Hostage Recovery and Hostage-Taking 
     Accountability Act (22 U.S.C. 1741e(2)).

  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Fulcher). Pursuant to the rule, the 
gentleman from South Carolina (Mr. Wilson) and the gentleman from New 
York (Mr. Meeks) each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from South Carolina.


                             General Leave

  Mr. WILSON of South Carolina. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent 
that all Members may have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their 
remarks and include extraneous material on this measure.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from South Carolina?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. WILSON of South Carolina. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time 
as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of the No Paydays for Hostage-Takers 
Act.
  For 45 years, the outrageous regime in Tehran has kidnapped American 
hostages. It is a cruel, yet consistent, part of this bloodthirsty 
regime's character. Iran utilizes hostage-taking as a negotiating 
tactic and a funding mechanism. In doing so, Iran repeatedly victimizes 
innocent Americans and their families who endure years of false 
accusations, wretched conditions, and separation. No one deserves this 
treatment. Iranian Americans are very successful and appreciated in 
America, and all Americans equally appreciate the oppressed people of 
Iran.
  Unfortunately, both the Obama and Biden administrations have made the 
catastrophic mistake of cutting financial deals with Iran in order to 
free hostages. Make no mistake, Mr. Speaker, Iran sees dollar signs 
whenever it sees American passports. It knows it can take innocent 
Americans, hold them in prison for years, and see a windfall at the 
end. This is the same tactic of war criminal Putin, kidnapping Wall 
Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich.
  In 2016, the Obama administration ignorantly capitulated a $1.7 
billion ransom to Iran, including a $400 million payment in pallets of 
cash at the same time that Iran released four U.S. hostages.
  At the time, many warned that if the United States Government would 
pay for hostages, then Iran would keep taking them and demand a higher 
and higher price.
  Sure enough, in the next 7 years, Iran continued to hold and collect 
more American hostages. These people suffered away from their families 
and were deprived of their liberty for years until last summer, the 
Biden administration cut a deal to secure their freedom by granting 
loan access to $6 billion in sanctioned funds used to murder Iranians 
and to murder Americans, such as the three Army Reservists from Georgia 
killed on January 28 of this year.
  Some might claim that these funds are only for humanitarian goods. 
First, this naively puts too much trust in a regime skilled at 
sanctions evasion and other forms of illicit finance. Second, money is 
fungible, and this deal freed up $6 billion in funds for the regime to 
finance its military program, terrorist proxies, nuclear activities, 
and repression.
  Right now, Iran is incentivized to keep taking hostages. They keep 
benefiting.
  That is why today we are considering my bipartisan bill to ensure 
that Iran never again profits from taking American hostages. This bill 
imposes sanctions on Iranian officials identified as being responsible 
for or complicit in taking American citizens hostage. It also greatly 
limits the travel of Iranian diplomats at the U.N. They should not be 
allowed to come here and gallivant around the New York metropolitan 
area while innocent Americans languish in Iranian prisons.
  It also requires a detailed report to give Congress full visibility 
on how Iran is using the $6 billion so that the American people's 
elected Representatives can conduct thorough oversight of these funds.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to join me in voting for this 
important bill to protect Americans from Iran's brutal hostage-taking, 
and I reserve the balance of my time.

                                         House of Representatives,


                                   Committee on the Judiciary,

                                   Washington, DC, March 20, 2024.
     Hon. Michael McCaul,
     Chairman, Committee on Foreign Affairs,
     Washington, DC.
       Dear Chairman McCaul: I write regarding H.R. 5826, the No 
     Paydays for Hostage-Takers Act. Provisions of this bill fall 
     within the Judiciary Committee's Rule X jurisdiction, and I 
     appreciate that you consulted with us on those provisions. 
     The Judiciary Committee agrees that it shall be discharged 
     from further consideration of the bill so that it may proceed 
     expeditiously to the House floor.
       The Committee takes this action with the understanding that 
     forgoing further consideration of this measure does not in 
     any way alter the Committee's jurisdiction or waive any 
     future jurisdictional claim over these provisions or their 
     subject matter. We also reserve the right to seek appointment 
     of an appropriate number of conferees in the event of a 
     conference with the Senate involving this measure or similar 
     legislation.
       I ask that you please include this letter in your 
     committee's report to accompany this legislation or insert 
     this letter in the Congressional Record during consideration 
     of H.R. 5826 on the House floor. I appreciate the cooperative 
     manner in which our committees have worked on this matter, 
     and I look forward to working collaboratively in the future 
     on matters of shared jurisdiction. Thank you for your 
     attention to this matter.
           Sincerely,
                                                       Jim Jordan,
     Chairman.
                                  ____

                                         House of Representatives,


                                 Committee on Foreign Affairs,

                                    Washington, DC, April 3, 2024.
     Hon. Jim Jordan,
     Chairman, Committee on the Judiciary,
     Washington, DC.
       Dear Chairman Jordan: Thank you for consulting with the 
     Foreign Affairs Committee and agreeing to be discharged from 
     further consideration of H.R. 5826, the No Paydays for 
     Hostage-Takers Act, so that the measure may proceed 
     expeditiously to the House floor.
       I agree that your forgoing further action on this measure 
     does not in any way diminish or alter the jurisdiction of 
     your committee, or prejudice its jurisdictional prerogatives 
     on this measure or similar legislation in the future. I would 
     support your effort to seek appointment of an appropriate 
     number of conferees from your committee to any House-Senate 
     conference on this legislation.
       I will seek to place our letters on this bill into the 
     Congressional Record during floor consideration. I appreciate 
     your cooperation regarding this legislation and look forward 
     to continuing to work together as this measure moves through 
     the legislative process.
           Sincerely,
                                                Michael T. McCaul,
                                                         Chairman.

  Mr. MEEKS. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 5826, and I yield 
myself such time as I may consume.
  I appreciate the intent of this measure brought to the floor by my 
friend and colleague from South Carolina, Representative Wilson, which 
is to help better prevent hostile governments such as Iran from taking 
Americans hostage or wrongfully detaining them overseas.
  I believe Democrats and Republicans must work together and ensure the 
State Department has all the resources and authorities from Congress 
that it needs to bring Americans home who have been unjustly held 
abroad and to offer them the support they need when they return home.
  I understand and agree with my colleague's intent to disincentivize 
bad behavior by hostile actors, and to make clear to anyone who would 
wrongfully detain any of our citizens that it will not be tolerated.
  However, I am concerned that some of the messages sent in this bill 
risk undermining our key partners in the battle to protect American 
citizens. I want to make sure the State Department's Special 
Presidential Envoy for Hostage Affairs is given the latitude to 
negotiate and get the job done.
  I would like to offer my appreciation to the SPEHA team for the hard 
and difficult work it continues to undertake on behalf of the American 
people. We need to empower that office and the families of wrongful 
detainees that rely on its vital assistance and advocacy, not 
inadvertently burden it with extensive reporting or overly restrictive 
policy prescriptions.
  I also want to be certain we do not restrict the freedom of movement 
of

[[Page H2426]]

Americans, something that is fundamental to our liberty and, 
specifically, the impact such a move would have on hundreds of 
thousands of Iranian Americans who expect our government, unlike the 
regime in Tehran, to respect their fundamental rights.
  That is why I am glad the language on the issue has been made 
nonbinding, and I really appreciate Representative Wilson working with 
us on this bill and the effort to make sure that the United States 
Government's approach on hostages and wrongful detention is smart and 
effective. We have worked together to achieve this.
  Mr. Speaker, in closing, I encourage my colleagues to join in 
supporting this measure. Again, we must do everything we can to prevent 
Americans from being illegally detained abroad.
  Mr. Speaker, again, I thank Mr. Wilson from South Carolina for 
introducing this bill. I urge my colleagues to join me in supporting 
H.R. 5826, and I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. WILSON of South Carolina. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance 
of my time.
  Mr. Speaker, in closing, I am grateful for the leadership of   
Michael McCaul, the chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, 
and the ranking member,  Greg Meeks. Those of us in South Carolina are 
always happy to point out his South Carolina heritage as he now ably 
represents Queens, but we remember his heritage of Rock Hill, and we 
appreciate his success.
  This legislation is so important to strike back against Iran's 
decades-long strategy of taking innocent Americans hostage to the House 
floor today.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support the bill, and I yield 
back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the 
gentleman from South Carolina (Mr. Wilson) that the House suspend the 
rules and pass the bill, H.R. 5826, as amended.
  The question was taken.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds 
being in the affirmative, the ayes have it.
  Mr. WILSON of South Carolina. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas 
and nays.
  The yeas and nays were ordered.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX, further 
proceedings on this motion will be postponed.

                          ____________________