What This Bill Does
This bill prevents the President and Secretary of State from removing Cuba from the U.S. government's list of countries that support terrorism. Cuba can only be removed from that list if the President meets conditions described in another law from 1996. The bill also creates rules to stop certain financial transactions that would benefit Cuba's military and intelligence services.
Who It Affects
People and businesses subject to U.S. legal authority. The President and Secretary of State. The Secretary of the Treasury and Secretary of Commerce. Congress, specifically six committees that handle foreign relations and intelligence. The Cuban government and Cuban military and intelligence services.
Key Provisions
• Cuba cannot be removed from the state sponsors of terrorism list until the President makes a specific determination under the Cuban Liberty and Democratic Solidarity Act of 1996 (Sec. 3(a))
• The President must submit a report within 180 days identifying all terrorists and fugitives convicted or indicted for terrorism crimes in U.S. courts who are hiding in Cuba, plus members of foreign terrorist organizations being protected there (Sec. 4(a))
• People and businesses subject to U.S. law cannot engage in direct financial transactions, including electronic money transfers, with Cuban military, intelligence or security entities if those transactions would mainly benefit those services instead of the Cuban people (Sec. 5(a))
• The Secretary of State must create and publish a list of Cuban entities and organizations that cannot receive direct financial transactions within 90 days and update it every year (Sec. 6(a))
• The Secretary of State must report within 60 days on corruption involving Cuban government leaders and Venezuelan government activities happening in Cuba (Sec. 7(b))
What Changes
If this law passes, U.S. citizens and businesses will be prohibited from making direct financial transactions with listed Cuban military, intelligence and security entities. The government will be required to identify and publicly list these entities. Congress will receive reports about terrorists in Cuba and corruption by Cuban leaders. The government must notify Congress within 14 days about any U.S. engagement with Cuba. The restrictions on financial transactions will end 90 days after the President certifies that Cuba has started a transparent, free and fair election process and met conditions for ending the economic embargo under the 1996 law.
Important Definitions
"State sponsor of terrorism" means a country whose government the Secretary of State determines has repeatedly provided support for international terrorism under four specific laws (Sec. 3(b))
Effective Date
Not specified in bill text
II
118TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
S. 538
To prohibit the removal of Cuba from the list of state sponsors of terrorism
until Cuba satisfies certain conditions, and for other purposes.
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
FEBRUARY 27, 2023
Mr. RUBIO (for himself, Mr. CRUZ, and Mr. SCOTT of Florida) introduced the
following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on
Foreign Relations
A BILL
To prohibit the removal of Cuba from the list of state spon-
sors of terrorism until Cuba satisfies certain conditions,
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 TITLES.
3
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Fighting Oppression
4
until the Reign of Castro Ends Act’’ or the ‘‘FORCE
5
Act’’.
6
SEC. 2. STATEMENT OF POLICY.
7
It shall be the policy of the United States—
8
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•S 538 IS
(1) to support the Cuban people’s desire to hold
1
free and fair elections, which are supervised by re-
2
spected international observers that respect the peo-
3
ple of Cuba’s desire for freedom and democracy;
4
(2) to encourage the international community
5
to raise their voices in support of the Cuban people’s
6
desire to live freely; and
7
(3) to demand the release of all political pris-
8
oners in Cuba.
9
SEC. 3. PROHIBITION ON REMOVAL.
10
(a) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other provi-
11
sion of law, neither the President nor the Secretary of
12
State may remove Cuba from the list of state sponsors
13
of terrorism until the President makes the determination
14
described in section 205 of the Cuban Liberty and Demo-
15
cratic Solidarity (LIBERTAD) Act of 1996 (22 U.S.C.
16
6065).
17
(b) DEFINED TERM.—In this section, the term ‘‘state
18
sponsor of terrorism’’ means a country the government of
19
which the Secretary of State determines has repeatedly
20
provided support for international terrorism pursuant
21
to—
22
(1) section 1754(c)(1)(A) of the Export Control
23
Reform Act of 2018 (50 U.S.C. 4318(c)(1)(A));
24
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•S 538 IS
(2) section 620A of the Foreign Assistance Act
1
of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2371);
2
(3) section 40 of the Arms Export Control Act
3
(22 U.S.C. 2780); or
4
(4) any other provision of law.
5
SEC. 4. REPORT.
6
(a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days after the
7
date of the enactment of this Act, the President shall sub-
8
mit a report to the Committee on Foreign Relations of
9
the Senate, the Select Committee on Intelligence of the
10
Senate, the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House
11
of Representatives, and the Permanent Select Committee
12
on Intelligence of the House of Representatives that iden-
13
tifies all terrorists and fugitives who—
14
(1)(A) have been convicted for a terrorism-re-
15
lated offense in a United States court;
16
(B) fled the United States after being indicted
17
for a terrorism-related offense, but before standing
18
trial; or
19
(C) are members of a foreign terrorist organiza-
20
tion; and
21
(2) are being provided safe haven in Cuba.
22
(b) FORM.—Each report submitted under this section
23
shall be submitted in unclassified form, but may include
24
a classified annex.
25
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•S 538 IS
SEC. 5. PROHIBITION OF FINANCIAL TRANSACTIONS BENE-
1
FITTING THE CUBAN REGIME.
2
(a) IN GENERAL.—No person subject to the jurisdic-
3
tion of the United States may engage in a direct financial
4
transaction, including electronic remittances, with any en-
5
tity or subentity that the Secretary of State, in consulta-
6
tion with the Secretary of the Treasury, determines to be
7
under the control of, or acting for or on behalf of, the
8
Cuban military, intelligence, or security services or per-
9
sonnel with which direct financial transactions would dis-
10
proportionately benefit such services or personnel at the
11
expense of the Cuban people or private enterprise in Cuba.
12
(b) SENSE OF CONGRESS REGARDING SANCTIONS.—
13
It is the sense of Congress that the Secretary of the Treas-
14
ury should expand and tighten sanctions programs to en-
15
sure beneficial ownership disclosure and material support
16
clauses to penalize tax havens for entities used by sanc-
17
tioned countries, as was recently disclosed in the OpenLux
18
investigation of the Cuban military’s use of destinations
19
such as Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, and Hong Kong.
20
SEC. 6. IMPLEMENTATION.
21
(a) UPDATE AND PUBLICATION OF ENTITY LIST.—
22
Not later than 90 days after the date of the enactment
23
of this Act, and annually thereafter, the Secretary of State
24
shall—
25
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•S 538 IS
(1) in furtherance of the regulatory changes de-
1
scribed in this section, identify the entities or sub-
2
entities, as appropriate, that are under the control
3
of, or act for or on behalf of, the Cuban military, in-
4
telligence, or security services or personnel, including
5
GAESA, its affiliates, subsidiaries, and successors;
6
(2) update a list of the entities and subentities
7
identified pursuant to paragraph (1) with which di-
8
rect financial transactions would disproportionately
9
benefit such services or personnel at the expense of
10
the Cuban people or private enterprise in Cuba; and
11
(3) make the list updated pursuant to para-
12
graph (2) available to the public.
13
(b) LIMITATION.—
14
(1) PROHIBITED
TRANSACTIONS.—Except as
15
provided in subsection (a) and section 8, the regu-
16
latory changes described in this section shall prohibit
17
direct financial transactions with any entity or sub-
18
entity on the list updated pursuant to subsection
19
(a)(2).
20
(2) ALLOWED TRANSACTIONS.—The regulatory
21
changes described in this section may not prohibit
22
any transaction that the Secretary of the Treasury
23
or the Secretary of Commerce, in coordination with
24
the Secretary of State, determines is consistent with
25
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•S 538 IS
the policy of the United States, including trans-
1
actions concerning—
2
(A) Federal Government operations, in-
3
cluding operations at the Naval Station at
4
Guantanamo Bay and at the United States mis-
5
sion in Havana;
6
(B) programs seeking to build democracy
7
in Cuba;
8
(C) air and sea operations that support
9
permissible travel, cargo, or trade;
10
(D) the acquisition of visas for permissible
11
travel;
12
(E) the expansion of direct telecommuni-
13
cations and internet access for the Cuban peo-
14
ple;
15
(F) the sale of agricultural commodities,
16
medicines, and medical devices sold to Cuba in
17
accordance with the Trade Sanctions Reform
18
and Export Enhancement Act of 2000 (22
19
U.S.C. 7201 et seq.) and the Cuban Democracy
20
Act of 2002 (22 U.S.C. 6001 et seq.);
21
(G) sending, processing, or receiving au-
22
thorized remittances that do not wholly, or in
23
any part, benefit any entity or subentity on the
24
list updated pursuant to subsection (a)(2);
25
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•S 538 IS
(H) furthering the national security or for-
1
eign policy interests of the United States; or
2
(I) any other activity that is required by
3
law.
4
(c) PROTECTION OF NATIONAL INTERESTS.—Any ac-
5
tivity conducted pursuant to subsection (a) or (b) shall
6
be carried out in a manner that furthers the national in-
7
terests of the United States, including by appropriately
8
protecting sensitive sources, methods, and operations of
9
the Federal Government.
10
SEC. 7. REPORTING REQUIREMENTS.
11
(a) DEFINED TERM.—In this section, the term ‘‘ap-
12
propriate congressional committees’’ means—
13
(1) the Committee on Foreign Relations of the
14
Senate;
15
(2) the Select Committee on Intelligence of the
16
Senate;
17
(3) the Committee on Homeland Security and
18
Governmental Affairs of the Senate;
19
(4) the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the
20
House of Representatives;
21
(5) the Permanent Select Committee on Intel-
22
ligence of the House of Representatives; and
23
(6) the Committee on Homeland Security of the
24
House of Representatives.
25
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•S 538 IS
(b) REPORT ON THE INVOLVEMENT OF FIDEL CAS-
1
TRO, RAU´L CASTRO, AND MIGUEL DI´AZ-CANEL IN PUB-
2
LIC CORRUPTION AND OTHER ILLICIT ACTIVITIES.—Not
3
later than 60 days after the date of the enactment of this
4
Act, the Secretary of State, acting through the Bureau
5
of Intelligence and Research of the Department of State,
6
and in coordination with the Director of National Intel-
7
ligence, shall submit a report to the appropriate congres-
8
sional committees that describes—
9
(1) significant acts of public corruption in Cuba
10
that—
11
(A) involve—
12
(i) members of El Partido Comunista
13
de Cuba; or
14
(ii) senior officials of the Cuban re-
15
gime, including members of La Asamblea
16
Nacional del Poder Popular, GAESA, and
17
the Ministerio del Interior;
18
(B) pose challenges for United States na-
19
tional security and regional stability;
20
(C) impede the realization of freedom of
21
expression; or
22
(D) infringe upon the fundamental free-
23
doms of civil society and political opponents in
24
Cuba; and
25
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•S 538 IS
(2) activities of the Maduro regime in Ven-
1
ezuela taking place in Cuba, including—
2
(A) cooperation between Venezuela and
3
Cuba’s military personnel, intelligence services,
4
and security forces;
5
(B) cooperation related to telecommuni-
6
cations and satellite navigation;
7
(C) other political and economic coopera-
8
tion with the Government of Cuba; and
9
(D) the threats and risks that such activi-
10
ties pose to United States national interests
11
and national security.
12
(c) NOTIFICATION OF ANY ENGAGEMENT OF THE
13
UNITED STATES WITH CUBA.—The Secretary of State,
14
in coordination with the Secretary of the Treasury, the
15
Secretary of Defense, the Attorney General, the Secretary
16
of Commerce, and the Secretary of Homeland Security,
17
shall notify the appropriate congressional committees of
18
any engagement of the United States with Cuba not later
19
than 14 days after such engagement to ensure that such
20
engagement is advancing the interests of the United
21
States.
22
SEC. 8. TERMINATION.
23
The limitation set forth in section 6(b)(1) shall termi-
24
nate on the date that is 90 days after the date on which
25
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•S 538 IS
the President certifies to Congress that the Government
1
of Cuba—
2
(1) has taken the necessary steps to begin an
3
electoral process that is transparent, free, and fair
4
in accordance with sections 205 and 206 of the
5
Cuban
Liberty
and
Democratic
Solidarity
6
(LIBERTAD) Act of 1996 (Public Law 104–114);
7
and
8
(2) has met the requirements for the termi-
9
nation of the economic embargo set forth in section
10
204 of such Act.
11
Æ
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