[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 115 (Thursday, July 11, 2024)]
[Senate]
[Pages S4809-S4810]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

  SA 2490. Mr. KAINE 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 title XII, add the following:

 Subtitle I--Caribbean and Latin America Maritime Security Initiative 
                                  Act

     SEC. 1291. SHORT TITLE.

       This Act may be cited as the ``Caribbean and Latin America 
     Maritime Security Initiative Act''.

     SEC. 1292. SUPPORT FOR IMPLEMENTATION OF BILATERAL AGREEMENTS 
                   CONCERNING ILLICIT TRANSNATIONAL MARITIME 
                   ACTIVITY IN THE CARIBBEAN AND LATIN AMERICA.

       (a) In General.--The Secretary of Defense, in coordination 
     with the Commandant of the Coast Guard, and in consultation 
     with the Secretary of State, may provide covered assistance 
     to the Coast Guard for the execution of existing maritime law 
     enforcement agreements between the United States and 
     countries in the Caribbean and Latin America that were 
     entered into to combat transnational organized illegal 
     maritime activity, including illegal, unreported, and 
     unregulated fishing.
       (b) Effect on Military Training and Readiness.--The 
     Secretary of Defense shall ensure that the provision of 
     covered assistance under this section does not negatively 
     affect military training, operations, readiness, or other 
     military requirements.

[[Page S4810]]

       (c) Funds.--If the Secretary of Defense provides covered 
     assistance under subsection (a) during fiscal year 2025 or 
     any subsequent fiscal year, the Secretary shall provide such 
     covered assistance using amounts available for that fiscal 
     year for the Department of Defense for operation and 
     maintenance.
       (d) Definitions.--In this section:
       (1) Covered assistance.--The term ``covered assistance'' 
     means any of the following:
       (A) The use of surface and air assets as bases of 
     operations and information collection platforms.
       (B) Communication infrastructure.
       (C) Information sharing.
       (D) The provision of logistic support, supplies, and 
     services (as such term is defined in section 2350 of title 
     10, United States Code).
       (E) Allowing the participation of enforcement units of 
     countries in the Caribbean and Latin America in shiprider 
     agreements with the Coast Guard for the enforcement of 
     fisheries regulations that address illegal, unreported, and 
     unregulated fishing.
       (2) Illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing.--The term 
     ``illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing'' means any 
     activity set out in paragraph 3 of the 2001 Food and 
     Agriculture Organization of the United Nations International 
     Plan of Action to Prevent, Deter and Eliminate Illegal, 
     Unreported, and Unregulated Fishing.

     SEC. 1293. AUTHORIZATION OF IMPOSITION OF SANCTIONS WITH 
                   RESPECT TO ILLEGAL, UNREPORTED, OR UNREGULATED 
                   FISHING.

       (a) In General.--The President may impose the sanctions 
     described in subsection (b) with respect to any foreign 
     person or foreign vessel (regardless of ownership) that the 
     President determines--
       (1) is responsible for, complicit in, or has directly or 
     indirectly participated in--
       (A) illegal, unreported, or unregulated fishing; or
       (B) except as part of a conservation effort, the sale, 
     supply, purchase, or transfer (including transportation) of 
     endangered species, as defined in section 3(6) of the 
     Endangered Species Act of 1973 (16 U.S.C. 1532(6));
       (2) is a leader or official of an entity, including a 
     government entity, that has engaged in, or the members of 
     which have engaged in, any of the activities described in 
     paragraph (1) during the tenure of the leader or official;
       (3) has ever owned, operated, chartered, or controlled a 
     vessel during which time the personnel of the vessel engaged 
     in any of the activities described in paragraph (1); or
       (4) has materially assisted, sponsored, or provided 
     financial, material, or technological support for, or goods 
     or services in support of--
       (A) any of the activities described in paragraph (1); or
       (B) any foreign person engaged in any such activity.
       (b) Sanctions Described.--The sanctions that may be imposed 
     under subsection (a) with respect to a foreign person or 
     foreign vessel are the following:
       (1) Blocking of property.--Notwithstanding section 202 of 
     the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 
     1701), the exercise of all powers granted to the President 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 foreign person described in 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) Inadmissibility to the united states.--In the case of a 
     foreign person described in subsection (a) who is an 
     individual, or any alien that the President determines is a 
     corporate officer or principal of, or a shareholder with a 
     controlling interest in, a foreign person described in 
     subsection (a) that is an entity--
       (A) ineligibility for a visa to enter and inadmissibility 
     to the United States; and
       (B) revocation of any valid visa or travel documentation in 
     accordance with section 221(i) of the Immigration and 
     Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1201(i)).
       (3) Prohibition on access to the united states.--In the 
     case of a foreign vessel described in subsection (a), denial 
     of access to United States ports.
       (4) Loans from united states financial institutions.--The 
     President may prohibit any United States financial 
     institution from making loans or providing credits to a 
     foreign person described in subsection (a).
       (5) Foreign exchange.--The President may, pursuant to such 
     regulations as the President may prescribe, prohibit any 
     transactions in foreign exchange that are subject to the 
     jurisdiction of the United States and in which a foreign 
     person or foreign vessel described in subsection (a) has any 
     interest.
       (6) Sanctions on principal executive officers.--The 
     President may impose any of the sanctions described in this 
     subsection that are applicable on the principal executive 
     officer or officers of the foreign person, or on individuals 
     performing similar functions and with similar authorities as 
     such officer or officers, who are knowingly responsible for, 
     complicit in, or responsible for ordering, controlling, or 
     otherwise directing, or participated in, any activity 
     described in subsection (a).
       (c) Report Required.--Not later than 1 year after the 
     implementation of this section, and annually thereafter, the 
     President shall submit a report on the imposition of 
     sanctions under this section to--
       (1) the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs 
     and the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate; and
       (2) the Committee on Financial Services and the Committee 
     on Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives.
       (d) National Interest Waiver.--The President may waive the 
     imposition of sanctions under subsection (a) with respect to 
     a foreign person or foreign vessel if the President 
     determines that such a waiver is in the national interests of 
     the United States.
       (e) Exceptions.--
       (1) Exceptions for authorized intelligence and law 
     enforcement activities.--Sanctions under 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, 
     law enforcement, or national security activities of the 
     United States.
       (2) Exception to comply with international agreements.--
     Sanctions under subsection (b)(2) shall not apply with 
     respect to the admission of an alien to the United States if 
     such admission is necessary to comply with the obligations of 
     the United States under the Agreement regarding the 
     Headquarters of the United Nations, signed at Lake Success on 
     June 26, 1947, and entered into force on November 21, 1947, 
     between the United Nations and the United States, or the 
     Convention on Consular Relations, done at Vienna on April 24, 
     1963, and entered into force on March 19, 1967, or other 
     international obligations.
       (3) Exception for safety of vessels and crew.--Sanctions 
     under this section shall not apply with respect to a person 
     providing provisions to a vessel if such provisions are 
     intended for the safety and care of the crew aboard the 
     vessel or the maintenance of the vessel to avoid any 
     environmental or other significant damage.
       (4) Humanitarian exception.--The President may not impose 
     sanctions under this section with respect to any person for 
     conducting or facilitating a transaction for--
       (A) the sale of--
       (i) agricultural commodities or food (other than fish or 
     fish products obtained through illegal, unreported, or 
     unregulated fishing); or
       (ii) medicine or medical devices; or
       (B) the provision of humanitarian assistance.
       (f) 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.
       (g) Rulemaking.--
       (1) In general.--The head of any Federal agency responsible 
     for the implementation of this section may promulgate such 
     rules and regulations as may be necessary to carry out the 
     provisions of this section (which may include regulatory 
     exceptions), including under section 205 of the International 
     Emergency Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1704).
       (2) Rule of construction.--Nothing in this section may be 
     construed to limit the authority of the President pursuant to 
     the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 
     1701 et seq.).
       (h) Definitions.--In this section:
       (1) Admission; admitted; alien; lawfully admitted for 
     permanent residence.--The terms ``admission'', ``admitted'', 
     ``alien'', and ``lawfully admitted for permanent residence'' 
     have the meanings given those terms in section 101 of the 
     Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101).
       (2) Foreign person.--The term ``foreign person'' means an 
     individual or entity that is not a United States person.
       (3) United states person.--The term ``United States 
     person'' means--
       (A) a United States citizen or an alien lawfully admitted 
     for permanent residence to the United States;
       (B) an entity organized under the laws of the United States 
     or any jurisdiction within the United States, including a 
     foreign branch of such an entity; or
       (C) any person located in the United States.
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