What This Bill Does
This bill creates sanctions (penalties) against foreign people and companies that do business with Cuba's military, security, or intelligence sectors. It also creates sanctions against Cuban government officials and others involved in human rights abuses or corruption in Cuba. The bill directs the President to work on providing unrestricted internet service to the Cuban people.
Who It Affects
- Foreign companies and individuals who do business with Cuba's defense, security, or intelligence sectors
- Cuban government officials involved in human rights abuses or corruption
- Members of Cuba's Communist Party leadership and military
- Cuban government officials who work in justice or legal systems
- Families of sanctioned individuals
- The President and executive branch agencies responsible for enforcing sanctions
Key Provisions
- The President must impose sanctions on foreign persons who knowingly provide financial, material, or technological support to Cuba's defense, security, or intelligence sectors (Sec. 4(a))
- Sanctions include blocking property and assets in the United States and making certain individuals ineligible for visas or entry into the United States (Sec. 4(b))
- The President must impose sanctions on Cuban government officials and Communist Party members responsible for human rights abuses or corruption (Sec. 5(a))
- The President must work to provide unrestricted internet service to Cuban people that is not censored or blocked by the Cuban government (Sec. 7(a))
- The President must create a task force within 90 days to develop a long-term solution for providing internet service to Cuba (Sec. 7(c))
What Changes
If this bill becomes law, foreign companies and individuals doing business with Cuba's military, security, or intelligence sectors would face U.S. sanctions including frozen assets and visa bans. Cuban government officials involved in human rights abuses or corruption would also face these same sanctions. The U.S. government would be required to actively work on providing unrestricted internet to Cuban citizens. Sanctions would end only if Cuba meets specific conditions including legalizing all political activity, releasing political prisoners, holding free elections supervised by international observers, and returning property taken from U.S. citizens since 1959.
Important Definitions
- "Covered sector" means Cuba's defense, security, intelligence sectors, or any other Cuban government sector the President certifies is involved in human rights abuses or supporting international terrorism (Sec. 4(a)(5))
- "Foreign person" means any person that is not a United States person (Sec. 4(e)(3))
- "United States person" means U.S. citizens, permanent residents, entities organized under U.S. law, or any person in the United States (Sec. 4(e)(5))
- "Entity" means partnerships, corporations, trusts, joint ventures, or other organizations (Sec. 4(e)(2))
Effective Date
The internet service provisions take effect immediately upon the bill's enactment (Sec. 7(a)). All other provisions take effect upon enactment of the bill.
I
118TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION H. R. 1120
To impose sanctions with respect to foreign persons that engage in certain
transactions relating to Cuba and to impose sanctions with respect to
human rights abuse and corruption in Cuba, and for other purposes.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
FEBRUARY 21, 2023
Mr. DONALDS (for himself, Ms. SALAZAR, Mr. MOONEY, and Mr. DIAZ-
BALART) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Com-
mittee on Foreign Affairs, and in addition to the Committees on the Ju-
diciary, and Rules, for a period to be subsequently determined by the
Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within
the jurisdiction of the committee concerned
A BILL
To impose sanctions with respect to foreign persons that
engage in certain transactions relating to Cuba and to
impose sanctions with respect to human rights abuse
and corruption in Cuba, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
1
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
2
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
3
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Denying Earnings to
4
the Military Oligarchy in Cuba and Restricting Activities
5
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•HR 1120 IH
of the Cuban Intelligence Apparatus Act’’ or the
1
‘‘DEMOCRACIA Act’’.
2
SEC. 2. FINDINGS; SENSE OF CONGRESS.
3
(a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following:
4
(1) The Cuban Communist takeover of 1959 es-
5
tablished in Cuba a one-party authoritarian state of
6
the Cuban Communist Party.
7
(2) Cuba is a totalitarian state, in which the
8
Cuban Communist Party has brutally oppressed the
9
people of Cuba for more than 60 years.
10
(3) Cuban democracy activists, including Las
11
Damas de Blanco (also known as ‘‘Ladies in
12
White’’), a group composed of wives and relatives of
13
political prisoners, prisoners of conscience, and
14
peaceful activists in Cuba, are routinely repressed,
15
censured, beaten, and unjustly imprisoned by the
16
Cuban Communist Party.
17
(4) On July 11, 2021, protesters marched in
18
the streets throughout Cuba voicing their opposition
19
against the communist regime of Cuba.
20
(5) During those protests, Cubans in more than
21
40 cities throughout the entire island held dem-
22
onstrations
chanting
‘‘Libertad!’’,
‘‘Abajo
la
23
Dictadura de Cuba’’ (‘‘Down with the Dictator-
24
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•HR 1120 IH
ship’’), and ‘‘Patria y Vida!’’ (‘‘Homeland and
1
Life’’).
2
(6) Through those protests, the people of Cuba
3
demanded the end to communism in Cuba and ac-
4
cess to food, medicine, water, and electricity, basic
5
needs that the communist system in Cuba cannot
6
provide.
7
(7) Cubans gathered outside of the head-
8
quarters of the Cuban Communist Party chanting,
9
‘‘Cuba isn’t yours!’’. In a clear message, Cubans ex-
10
ercised their fundamental God-given rights to peace-
11
ably assemble, express their political opinions, and
12
live free of censorship and oppression and demanded
13
the ruling elites, especially the Cuban Communist
14
Party, give the power back to the people.
15
(8) During the July 11, 2021, protests, the
16
Cuban Communist Party deployed a wave of terror
17
throughout Cuba by—
18
(A) unleashing its secret police and some
19
military forces on peaceful protesters and un-
20
lawfully detained them, including by—
21
(i) harassing and threatening people
22
in their homes;
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•HR 1120 IH
(ii) abducting and torturing civil soci-
1
ety leaders and other Cubans peacefully
2
exercising their fundamental rights; and
3
(iii) detaining more than 800 Cubans
4
for peacefully protesting, who have gone
5
missing since the protests and demonstra-
6
tions began, including leaders from Cuban
7
civil society groups such as UNPACU, the
8
San Isidro Movement, the Ladies in White,
9
and religious leaders; and
10
(B) in a crude and savage effort to silence
11
the Cuban people, cutting internet connectivity
12
and mobile services throughout Cuba, which
13
prevented the Cuban people from organizing
14
and hid from the outside world images and vid-
15
eos of the oppressive and brutal crackdown.
16
(9) In response to these demonstrations and
17
protests, the regime blocked access to social media,
18
messaging platforms and cellular services, and ar-
19
rested and detained hundreds of protesters, activists,
20
and journalists, according to Cuban human rights
21
groups.
22
(10) The Human Rights Report on Cuba for
23
2020 set forth by the Department of State found
24
that Cuba is an authoritarian state.
25
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(11) A new constitution ratified in February
1
2019 codified that Cuba remains a one-party system
2
in which the Cuban Communist Party is the only
3
legal political party. Elections in Cuba were neither
4
free, fair, nor competitive.
5
(12) The Ministry of Interior of Cuba
6
(MININT) controls police, internal security forces,
7
and the prison system. The National Revolutionary
8
Police are the primary law enforcement organization
9
of the Ministry. Specialized units of the state secu-
10
rity branch of the Ministry are responsible for moni-
11
toring, infiltrating, and suppressing independent po-
12
litical activity. The national leadership of Cuba, in-
13
cluding members of the military, maintain effective
14
control over the security forces. Members of the se-
15
curity forces have committed numerous abuses.
16
(13) Significant human rights issues in Cuba
17
perpetrated by the Communist Party include the fol-
18
lowing:
19
(A) Unlawful or arbitrary killings, includ-
20
ing extrajudicial killings.
21
(B) Forced disappearances.
22
(C) Torture and cruel, inhuman, and de-
23
grading treatment of political dissidents, detain-
24
ees, and prisoners by security forces.
25
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•HR 1120 IH
(D) Harsh and life-threatening prison con-
1
ditions.
2
(E) Arbitrary arrests and detentions.
3
(F) The detaining of political prisoners.
4
(G) Significant problems with the inde-
5
pendence of the judiciary.
6
(H) Arbitrary or unlawful interference
7
with privacy.
8
(I) Functional lack of freedom of the
9
press, as criminal libel laws are used against
10
persons who criticize the ruling Communist
11
Party of Cuba and that it has engaged in cen-
12
sorship and internet site blocking.
13
(J) Severe limitations on academic and
14
cultural freedom.
15
(K) Severe restrictions on the right of
16
peaceful assembly and denial of freedom of as-
17
sociation, including refusal to recognize inde-
18
pendent associations.
19
(L) Severe restrictions on religious free-
20
dom.
21
(M) Restrictions on internal and external
22
freedom of movement.
23
(N) Inability of citizens to change their
24
government through free and fair elections.
25
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•HR 1120 IH
(O) Restrictions on political participation
1
to members of the ruling party.
2
(P) Corruption within the ruling party, the
3
Communist Party of Cuba.
4
(Q) Trafficking in persons, including com-
5
pulsory labor.
6
(R)
Outlawing
of
independent
trade
7
unions.
8
(14) Many within the high level operatives of
9
the Communist Party of Cuba, at the direction of
10
their superiors, have committed most human rights
11
abuses. As a matter of policy, superiors failed to in-
12
vestigate or prosecute the individuals who committed
13
those abuses. Impunity for the perpetrators has re-
14
mained widespread.
15
(15) The United States Commission on Inter-
16
national
Religious
Freedom
(USCIRF)
rec-
17
ommended in its 2021 Annual Report that the
18
United States Government again placed Cuba on the
19
special watch list under section 402(b)(1)(A)(iii) of
20
the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998
21
(22 U.S.C. 6442(b)(1)(A)(iii)) and recommended im-
22
posing sanctions on the Office of Religious Affairs of
23
Cuba.
24
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•HR 1120 IH
(16) In the report specified in paragraph (15),
1
the United States Commission on International Reli-
2
gious Freedom (USCIRF) raised concerns regarding
3
the denial in Cuba of religious freedom for human
4
rights activists, independent journalists, and pro-
5
testers, particularly in the wake of demonstrations
6
that started on November 13, 2020, calling for
7
greater freedom of expression in Cuba.
8
(17) Cuba is ground zero for a series of inter-
9
national and yet unexplained attacks that com-
10
menced in 2016 on members of the United States
11
and Canadian diplomatic community.
12
(18) Cuba continues to provide safe harbor for
13
adversaries of the United States, including multiple
14
fugitives from justice in the United States, including
15
William Morales, Charles Hill, Victor Manuel
16
Gerena, and Joanne Chesimard, who executed New
17
Jersey State Trooper Werner Foerster during a rou-
18
tine traffic stop in May 1973.
19
(19) The Trade Sanctions Reform and Export
20
Enhancement Act (TSRA) of 2000 (22 U.S.C. 7201
21
et seq.) prohibits the President from imposing uni-
22
lateral agricultural or medical sanctions against
23
Cuba.
24
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•HR 1120 IH
(20) The defense, security, and intelligence sec-
1
tors of Cuba are the primary perpetrators of beat-
2
ings,
arrests,
detainments,
and
unjust
3
imprisonments of the Cuban people.
4
(21) The Cuban Communist Party has a long
5
history of racism.
6
(22) Many Cubans who suffered the worst
7
treatment at the hands of the security forces of the
8
Cuban Communist Party are Afro-Cuban, such as
9
Dr. O´scar Elı´as Biscet, Jorge Luis Garcı´a Pe´rez,
10
Berta Soler, Guillermo Farin˜as, Orlando Zapata
11
Tamayo, Luis Manuel Otero Alca´ntara, and Ivan
12
Hernandez Carrillo.
13
(23) On January 12, 2021, the Department of
14
State determined that Cuba has repeatedly provided
15
support for acts of international terrorism and was
16
designated a state sponsor of terrorism.
17
(24) On May 14, 2021, Secretary of State
18
Antony Blinken determined and certified to Con-
19
gress that Cuba is not cooperating fully with United
20
States antiterrorism efforts.
21
(25) The Cuban Communist Party continues to
22
support international terrorist groups such as the
23
Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC)
24
and the National Liberation Army (ELN).
25
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•HR 1120 IH
(26) Commercial engagement with the defense,
1
security, and intelligence sectors of Cuba empowers
2
the human rights abuses, racism against Afro-Cu-
3
bans, and support for international terrorism by the
4
Cuban Communist Party.
5
(b) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con-
6
gress that Congress—
7
(1) reaffirms subsection (a) of section 1704 of
8
the Cuban Democracy Act of 1992 (CDA) (22
9
U.S.C. 6003), which states that the President
10
should encourage foreign countries to restrict trade
11
and credit relations with Cuba in a manner con-
12
sistent with the purposes of that Act; and
13
(2) urges the President to take immediate steps
14
to apply the sanctions described in subsection (b)(1)
15
of that section with respect to countries assisting
16
Cuba.
17
SEC. 3. STATEMENT OF POLICY.
18
It shall be the policy of the United States—
19
(1) to support the desire of the people of Cuba
20
for freedom and democracy; and
21
(2) to work with allies and the international
22
community to seek to restrict and reduce the finan-
23
cial resources of the Cuban dictatorship, which sup-
24
ports terrorism and perpetrates injustice and human
25
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•HR 1120 IH
rights abuses against the Cuban people, that being
1
the Cuban military, security, and intelligence sec-
2
tors.
3
SEC. 4. IMPOSITION OF SANCTIONS WITH RESPECT TO FOR-
4
EIGN PERSONS THAT ENGAGE IN CERTAIN
5
TRANSACTIONS RELATING TO CUBA.
6
(a) IMPOSITION OF SANCTIONS.—
7
(1) IN GENERAL.—The President shall impose
8
the sanctions described in subsection (b) with re-
9
spect to a foreign person if the President determines
10
that the foreign person, on or after the date of the
11
enactment of this Act, knowingly engages in an ac-
12
tivity described in paragraph (2).
13
(2) ACTIVITIES
DESCRIBED.—Except as pro-
14
vided in paragraph (3), a foreign person engages in
15
an activity described in this paragraph if the foreign
16
person provides financial, material, or technological
17
support to, or engages in a transaction with—
18
(A) a covered sector of the Government of
19
Cuba, or any entity or individual affiliated with
20
such sector (including an immediate adult fam-
21
ily member of such individual);
22
(B) an agency, instrumentality, or other
23
entity owned by an entity that is part of or as-
24
sociated with a covered sector, entity, or indi-
25
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•HR 1120 IH
vidual described in subparagraph (A) in a per-
1
centage share exceeding 25 percent;
2
(C) an individual who is a senior official of
3
a covered sector or entity described in subpara-
4
graph (A) (including an immediate adult family
5
member of such individual);
6
(D) an agency, instrumentality, or other
7
entity operated or controlled by a covered sec-
8
tor, entity, or individual described in subpara-
9
graph (A);
10
(E) an entity or individual—
11
(i) for the purpose of avoiding a fi-
12
nancial transaction with, or the transfer of
13
funds to, an entity or individual specified
14
in any of subparagraphs (A) through (D);
15
or
16
(ii) for the benefit of an entity or indi-
17
vidual specified in any of subparagraphs
18
(A) through (D)
[Text truncated for display. Full text available on Congress.gov.]