Caesar Syria Civilian Protection Act of 2019

II Calendar No. 107 116TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 31 IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES JANUARY 23 (legislative day, JANUARY 22), 2019 Received; read twice and referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations JUNE 3, 2019 Reported by Mr. RISCH, with an amendment [Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic] AN ACT To require certain additional actions in connection with the national emergency with respect to Syria, 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 ‘‘Caesar Syria Civilian 4 Protection Act of 2019’’. 5 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:01 Jun 03, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\H31.RS H31 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 2 •HR 31 RS TITLE I—ADDITIONAL ACTIONS 1 IN CONNECTION WITH THE 2 NATIONAL EMERGENCY WITH 3 RESPECT TO SYRIA 4 SEC. 101. MEASURES WITH RESPECT TO CENTRAL BANK OF 5 SYRIA. 6 (a) DETERMINATION REGARDING CENTRAL BANK OF 7 SYRIA.—Not later than 180 days after the date of the en- 8 actment of this Act, the Secretary of the Treasury shall 9 determine, under section 5318A of title 31, United States 10 Code, whether reasonable grounds exist for concluding 11 that the Central Bank of Syria is a financial institution 12 of primary money laundering concern. 13 (b) ENHANCED DUE DILIGENCE AND REPORTING 14 REQUIREMENTS.—If the Secretary of the Treasury deter- 15 mines under subsection (a) that reasonable grounds exist 16 for concluding that the Central Bank of Syria is a finan- 17 cial institution of primary money laundering concern, the 18 Secretary, in consultation with the Federal functional reg- 19 ulators (as defined in section 509 of the Gramm-Leach- 20 Bliley Act (15 U.S.C. 6809)), shall impose one or more 21 of the special measures described in section 5318A(b) of 22 title 31, United States Code, with respect to the Central 23 Bank of Syria. 24 (c) REPORT REQUIRED.— 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:01 Jun 03, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\H31.RS H31 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 3 •HR 31 RS (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 90 days after 1 making a determination under subsection (a) as to 2 whether or not the Central Bank of Syria is a finan- 3 cial institution of primary money laundering con- 4 cern, the Secretary of the Treasury shall submit to 5 the appropriate congressional committees a report 6 that includes the reasons for the determination. 7 (2) FORM.—A report required by paragraph (1) 8 shall be submitted in unclassified form, but may in- 9 clude a classified annex. 10 (3) APPROPRIATE CONGRESSIONAL COMMIT- 11 TEES DEFINED.—In this subsection, the term ‘‘ap- 12 propriate congressional committees’’ means— 13 (A) the Committee on Foreign Affairs, the 14 Committee on Financial Services, and the Com- 15 mittee on Appropriations of the House of Rep- 16 resentatives; and 17 (B) the Committee on Foreign Relations, 18 the Committee on Banking, Housing, and 19 Urban Affairs, and the Committee on Appro- 20 priations of the Senate. 21 SEC. 102. SANCTIONS WITH RESPECT TO FOREIGN PER- 22 SONS THAT ENGAGE IN CERTAIN TRANS- 23 ACTIONS. 24 (a) IMPOSITION OF SANCTIONS.— 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:01 Jun 03, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\H31.RS H31 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 4 •HR 31 RS (1) IN GENERAL.—On and after the date that 1 is 180 days after the date of the enactment of this 2 Act, the President shall impose the sanctions de- 3 scribed in subsection (b) with respect to a foreign 4 person if the President determines that the foreign 5 person, on or after such date of enactment, know- 6 ingly engages in an activity described in paragraph 7 (2). 8 (2) ACTIVITIES DESCRIBED.—A foreign person 9 engages in an activity described in this paragraph if 10 the foreign person— 11 (A) knowingly provides significant finan- 12 cial, material, or technological support to, or 13 knowingly engages in a significant transaction 14 with— 15 (i) the Government of Syria (including 16 any entity owned or controlled by the Gov- 17 ernment of Syria) or a senior political fig- 18 ure of the Government of Syria; 19 (ii) a foreign person that is a military 20 contractor, mercenary, or a paramilitary 21 force knowingly operating in a military ca- 22 pacity inside Syria for or on behalf of the 23 Government of Syria, the Government of 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:01 Jun 03, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\H31.RS H31 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 5 •HR 31 RS the Russian Federation, or the Govern- 1 ment of Iran; or 2 (iii) a foreign person subject to sanc- 3 tions pursuant to the International Emer- 4 gency Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 5 1701 et seq.) with respect to Syria or any 6 other provision of law that imposes sanc- 7 tions with respect to Syria; 8 (B) knowingly sells or provides significant 9 goods, services, technology, information, or 10 other support that significantly facilitates the 11 maintenance or expansion of the Government of 12 Syria’s domestic production of natural gas, pe- 13 troleum, or petroleum products; 14 (C) knowingly sells or provides aircraft or 15 spare aircraft parts that are used for military 16 purposes in Syria for or on behalf of the Gov- 17 ernment of Syria to any foreign person oper- 18 ating in an area directly or indirectly controlled 19 by the Government of Syria or foreign forces 20 associated with the Government of Syria; 21 (D) knowingly provides significant goods 22 or services associated with the operation of air- 23 craft that are used for military purposes in 24 Syria for or on behalf of the Government of 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:01 Jun 03, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\H31.RS H31 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 6 •HR 31 RS Syria to any foreign person operating in an 1 area described in subparagraph (C); or 2 (E) knowingly, directly or indirectly, pro- 3 vides significant construction or engineering 4 services to the Government of Syria. 5 (3) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of 6 Congress that, in implementing this section, the 7 President should consider financial support under 8 paragraph (2)(A) to include the provision of loans, 9 credits, or export credits. 10 (b) SANCTIONS DESCRIBED.— 11 (1) IN GENERAL.—The sanctions to be imposed 12 with respect to a foreign person subject to sub- 13 section (a) are the following: 14 (A) BLOCKING OF PROPERTY.—The Presi- 15 dent shall exercise all of the powers granted to 16 the President under the International Emer- 17 gency Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1701 et 18 seq.) to the extent necessary to block and pro- 19 hibit all transactions in property and interests 20 in property of the foreign person if such prop- 21 erty and interests in property are in the United 22 States, come within the United States, or are or 23 come within the possession or control of a 24 United States person. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:01 Jun 03, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\H31.RS H31 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 7 •HR 31 RS (B) ALIENS INELIGIBLE FOR VISAS, AD- 1 MISSION, OR PAROLE.— 2 (i) VISAS, ADMISSION, OR PAROLE.— 3 An alien who the Secretary of State or the 4 Secretary of Homeland Security (or a des- 5 ignee of one of such Secretaries) knows, or 6 has reason to believe, has knowingly en- 7 gaged in any activity described in sub- 8 section (a)(2) is— 9 (I) inadmissible to the United 10 States; 11 (II) ineligible to receive a visa or 12 other documentation to enter the 13 United States; and 14 (III) otherwise ineligible to be 15 admitted or paroled into the United 16 States or to receive any other benefit 17 under the Immigration and Nation- 18 ality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101 et seq.). 19 (ii) CURRENT VISAS REVOKED.— 20 (I) IN GENERAL.—The issuing 21 consular officer, the Secretary of 22 State, or the Secretary of Homeland 23 Security (or a designee of one of such 24 Secretaries) shall, in accordance with 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:01 Jun 03, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\H31.RS H31 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 8 •HR 31 RS section 221(i) of the Immigration and 1 Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1201(i)), 2 revoke any visa or other entry docu- 3 mentation issued to an alien described 4 in clause (i) regardless of when the 5 visa or other entry documentation is 6 issued. 7 (II) EFFECT OF REVOCATION.— 8 A revocation under subclause (I)— 9 (aa) shall take effect imme- 10 diately; and 11 (bb) shall automatically can- 12 cel any other valid visa or entry 13 documentation that is in the 14 alien’s possession. 15 (2) PENALTIES.—The penalties provided for in 16 subsections (b) and (c) of section 206 of the Inter- 17 national Emergency Economic Powers Act (50 18 U.S.C. 1705) shall apply to a person that violates, 19 attempts to violate, conspires to violate, or causes a 20 violation of regulations promulgated under section 21 303 to carry out paragraph (1)(A) to the same ex- 22 tent that such penalties apply to a person that com- 23 mits an unlawful act described in section 206(a) of 24 that Act. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:01 Jun 03, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\H31.RS H31 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 9 •HR 31 RS (3) EXCEPTION TO COMPLY WITH UNITED NA- 1 TIONS HEADQUARTERS AGREEMENT.—Sanctions 2 under paragraph (1)(B) shall not apply with respect 3 to an alien if admitting or paroling the alien into the 4 United States is necessary to permit the United 5 States to comply with the Agreement regarding the 6 Headquarters of the United Nations, signed at Lake 7 Success June 26, 1947, and entered into force No- 8 vember 21, 1947, between the United Nations and 9 the United States, or other applicable international 10 obligations. 11 TITLE II—ASSISTANCE FOR THE 12 PEOPLE OF SYRIA 13 SEC. 201. CODIFICATION OF CERTAIN SERVICES IN SUP- 14 PORT OF NONGOVERNMENTAL ORGANIZA- 15 TIONS’ ACTIVITIES AUTHORIZED. 16 (a) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in subsection 17 (b), section 542.516 of title 31, Code of Federal Regula- 18 tions (relating to certain services in support of nongovern- 19 mental organizations’ activities authorized), as in effect on 20 the day before the date of the enactment of this Act, 21 shall— 22 (1) remain in effect on and after such date of 23 enactment; and 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:01 Jun 03, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\H31.RS H31 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 10 •HR 31 RS (2) in the case of a nongovernmental organiza- 1 tion that is authorized to export or reexport services 2 to Syria under such section on the day before such 3 date of enactment, apply to such organization on 4 and after such date of enactment to the same extent 5 and in the same manner as such section applied to 6 such organization on the day before such date of en- 7 actment. 8 (b) EXCEPTION.— 9 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 542.516 of title 31, 10 Code of Federal Regulations, as codified under sub- 11 section (a), shall not apply with respect to a foreign 12 person that has been designated as a foreign ter- 13 rorist organization under section 219 of the Immi- 14 gration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1189), or oth- 15 erwise designated as a terrorist organization, by the 16 Secretary of State, in consultation with or upon the 17 request of the Attorney General or the Secretary of 18 Homeland Security. 19 (2) EFFECTIVE DATE.—Paragraph (1) shall 20 apply with respect to a foreign person on and after 21 the date on which the designation of that person as 22 a terrorist organization is published in the Federal 23 Register. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:01 Jun 03, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\H31.RS H31 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 11 •HR 31 RS SEC. 202. BRIEFING ON STRATEGY TO FACILITATE HUMANI- 1 TARIAN ASSISTANCE. 2 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days after the 3 date of the enactment of this Act, the President shall brief 4 the appropriate congressional committees on the strategy 5 of the President to help facilitate the ability of humani- 6 tarian organizations to access financial services to help fa- 7 cilitate the safe and timely delivery of assistance to com- 8 munities in need in Syria. 9 (b) CONSIDERATION OF DATA FROM OTHER COUN- 10 TRIES AND NONGOVERNMENTAL ORGANIZATIONS.—In 11 preparing the strategy required by subsection (a), the 12 President shall consider credible data already obtained by 13 other countries and nongovernmental organizations, in- 14 cluding organizations operating in Syria. 15 (c) APPROPRIATE CONGRESSIONAL COMMITTEES DE- 16 FINED.—In this section, the term ‘‘appropriate congres- 17 sional committees’’ means— 18 (1) the Committee on Foreign Affairs, the 19 Committee on Financial Services, and the Com- 20 mittee on Appropriations of the House of Represent- 21 atives; and 22 (2) the Committee on Foreign Relations, the 23 Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Af- 24 fairs, and the Committee on Appropriations of the 25 Senate. 26 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:01 Jun 03, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\H31.RS H31 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 12 •HR 31 RS TITLE III—GENERAL 1 PROVISIONS 2 SEC. 301. SUSPENSION OF SANCTIONS. 3 (a) IN GENERAL.—The President may suspend in 4 whole or in part the imposition of sanctions otherwise re- 5 quired under this Act for periods not to exceed 180 days 6 if the President determines that the following criteria have 7 been met in Syria: 8 (1) The air space over Syria is no longer being 9 utilized by the Government of Syria or the Govern- 10 ment of the Russian Federation to target civilian 11 populations through the use of incendiary devices, 12 including barrel bombs, chemical weapons, and con- 13 ventional arms, including air-delivered missiles and 14 explosives. 15 (2) Areas besieged by the Government of Syria, 16 the Government of the Russian Federation, the Gov- 17 ernment of Iran, or a foreign person described in 18 section 102(a)(2)(A)(ii) are no longer cut off from 19 international aid and have regular access to humani- 20 tarian assistance, freedom of travel, and medical 21 care. 22 (3) The Government of Syria is releasing all po- 23 litical prisoners forcibly held within the prison sys- 24 tem of the regime of Bashar al-Assad and the Gov- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 23:01 Jun 03, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\H31.RS H31 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS 13 •HR 31 RS ernment of Syria is allowing full access to the same 1 facilities for investigations by appropriate inter- 2 national human rights organizations. 3 (4) The forc [Text truncated for display. 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