[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 115 (Thursday, July 11, 2024)]
[Senate]
[Pages S4806-S4807]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
SA 2483. Mr. RUBIO submitted an amendment intended to be proposed by
him to the bill S. 4638, to authorize appropriations for fiscal year
2025 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 F of title XII, add the following:
SEC. 1291. IMPOSITION OF SANCTIONS WITH RESPECT TO CERTAIN
FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS OF COUNTRIES OF CONCERN.
(a) In General.--The President shall impose one or more of
the sanctions described in subsection (b) with respect to
each covered financial institution that uses the Cross-Border
Interbank Payment System (commonly referred to as ``CIPS''),
the System for Transfer of Financial Messages (commonly
referred to as ``SPFS''), or the System for Electronic
Payment Messaging (commonly referred to as ``SEPAM'') to
clear, verify, settle, or otherwise conduct transactions with
any other covered financial institution.
(b) Sanctions Described.--The sanctions described in this
subsection are the following:
(1) Property blocking.--The exercise of exercise all of the
powers granted by the International Emergency Economic Powers
Act (50 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.) to the extent necessary to block
and prohibit all transactions in all property and interests
in property of a covered financial institution subject to
subsection (a) if such property and interests in property are
in the United States, come within the United States, or are
or come within the possession or control of a United States
person.
(2) Restrictions on correspondent and payable-through
accounts.--A prohibition on the opening or maintaining in the
United States of a correspondent account or a payable-through
account by a covered financial institution subject to
subsection (a).
(3) Executive officers inadmissible for visas, admission,
or parole.--
(A) Visas, admission, or parole.--An executive officer of a
covered financial institution subject to subsection (a) who
is an alien is--
(i) inadmissible to the United States;
(ii) ineligible to receive a visa or other documentation to
enter the United States; and
(iii) otherwise ineligible to be admitted or paroled into
the United States or to receive any other benefit under the
Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101 et seq.).
(B) Current visas revoked.--
(i) In general.--The visa or other entry documentation of
an alien described in subparagraph (A) shall be revoked,
regardless of when such visa or other entry documentation was
issued.
(ii) Immediate effect.--A revocation under clause (i)
shall--
(I) take effect immediately; and
(II) automatically cancel any other valid visa or entry
documentation that is in the alien's possession.
(c) Exceptions.--
(1) Exception for intelligence activities.--This section
shall not apply with respect to activities subject to the
reporting requirements under title V of the National Security
Act of 1947 (50 U.S.C. 3091 et seq.) or any authorized
intelligence activities of the United States.
(2) Compliance with united nations headquarters
agreement.--Subsection (b)(3) shall not apply with respect to
the admission of an alien to the United States if such
admission is necessary 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.
(3) Exception relating to importation of goods.--
(A) In general.--The authority to block and prohibit all
transactions in all property and interests in property under
subsection (b)(1) shall not include the authority or a
requirement to impose sanctions on the importation of goods.
(B) Good.--In this paragraph, the term ``good'' means any
article, natural or manmade substance, material, supply or
manufactured product, including inspection and test
equipment, and excluding technical data.
(d) Implementation; Penalties.--
(1) Implementation.--The President may exercise all
authorities provided under sections 203 and 205 of the
International Emergency Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1702
and 1704) to carry out this section.
(2) Penalties.--A person that violates, attempts to
violate, conspires to violate, or causes a violation of this
section or any regulation, license, or order issued to carry
out this section shall be subject to the penalties set forth
in subsections (b) and (c) of section 206 of the
International Emergency Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1705)
to the same extent as a person that commits an unlawful act
described in subsection (a) of that section.
(e) Delegation.--Not later than 90 days after the date of
the enactment of this Act, the President shall--
(1) make a determination with respect to if and how the
President will delegate the requirements and authorities
under this section; and
(2) notify the appropriate congressional committees of that
determination.
(f) Regulations.--Not later than 90 days after the date of
the enactment of this Act, the President shall prescribe such
regulations as are necessary to carry out this section.
(g) Report Required.--
(1) In general.--Not later than 180 days after the date of
the enactment of this Act, the President shall submit to the
appropriate congressional committees a report--
(A) describing the scope and usage of CIPS, SPFS, or SEPAM
around the world, including usage rates by country;
[[Page S4807]]
(B) assessing the risks that widespread adoption of CIPS,
SPFS, or SEPAM poses to the national security of the United
States;
(C) assessing the ability of CIPS, SPFS, and SEPAM in
helping countries of concern circumvent United States and
international sanctions; and
(D) making recommendations to further preserve and
strengthen the influence of the United States in the global
financial system.
(2) Form.--Each report required by paragraph (1) shall be
submitted in unclassified form but may include a classified
annex.
(h) Definitions.--In this section:
(1) Account; correspondent account; payable-through
account.--The terms ``account'', ``correspondent account'',
and ``payable-through account'' have the meanings given those
terms in section 5318A of title 31, United States Code.
(2) Admission; admitted; alien.--The terms ``admission'',
``admitted'', and ``alien'' have the meanings given those
terms in section 101 of the Immigration and Nationality Act
(8 U.S.C. 1101).
(3) Appropriate congressional committees.--The term
``appropriate congressional committees'' means--
(A) the Committee on Foreign Relations, the Committee on
Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, and the Select Committee
on Intelligence of the Senate; and
(B) the Committee on Foreign Affairs, the Committee on
Financial Services, and the Permanent Select Committee on
Intelligence of the House of Representatives.
(4) Covered financial institution.--The term ``covered
financial institution'' means a financial institution--
(A) located in--
(i) a country of concern; or
(ii) territory controlled by an entity holding itself out
to be the government of the Republic of South Ossetia, the
State of Alania, the Donetsk People's Republic, the Luhansk
People's Republic, the Republic of Abkhazia, or the
Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic;
(B) organized under the laws of a country of concern, any
jurisdiction within a country of concern, or an entity
described in subparagraph (A)(ii), including a foreign branch
of such an institution;
(C) wherever located, owned or controlled by the government
of a country of concern or an entity described in
subparagraph (A)(ii); or
(D) wherever located, owned or controlled by a financial
institution described in subparagraph (A), (B), or (C).
(5) Country of concern.--The term ``country of concern''--
(A) has the meaning given the term ``foreign adversary'' in
section 8(c)(2) of the Secure and Trusted Communications
Networks Act of 2019 (47 U.S.C. 1607(c)(2)); and
(B) includes--
(i) the People's Republic of China (including the Special
Administrative Regions of China, including Hong Kong and
Macau);
(ii) the Russian Federation;
(iii) Iran;
(iv) North Korea;
(v) Cuba; and
(vi) Venezuela under the regime of Nicolas Maduro.
(6) Financial institution.--The term ``financial
institution'' means a financial institution specified in
subparagraph (A), (B), (C), (D), (E), (F), (G), (H), (I),
(J), (M), or (Y) of section 5312(a)(2) of title 31, United
States Code.
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