What This Bill Does
This bill tells the President to punish foreign people who break Mexican laws through serious corruption. The bill lists five types of corrupt behavior that can trigger these punishments, including bribery, stealing government contract money and selling illegal fentanyl (a dangerous drug).
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Who It Affects
Foreign people (non-U.S. citizens or residents) who engage in the corrupt acts described. The President and federal agencies that enforce sanctions. Congress committees that oversee foreign affairs, the judiciary and finances.
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Key Provisions
* The President must block and freeze any money or property owned by these foreign people if that money or property is in the United States (Sec. 1(b)(1)(A))
* Foreign individuals cannot get a visa or enter the United States, and any existing visas get cancelled immediately (Sec. 1(b)(1)(B) and (C))
* The five corrupt acts that trigger sanctions are: government contract corruption, bribery or extortion, moving stolen money, threatening corruption investigators and selling illegal fentanyl (Sec. 1(a)(1)-(5))
* The President can skip these punishments on a case-by-case basis if national security requires it, but must tell Congress why (Sec. 1(d))
* All sanctions expire three years after the law takes effect (Sec. 1(e))
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What Changes
If this law passes, the President gains new power to punish foreign people engaged in five specific types of corruption in Mexico. Foreign individuals involved in these acts lose the ability to visit, work or own frozen assets in the United States. The President must report every year (within 180 days at first) on foreign people involved in illegal fentanyl operations (Sec. 1(g)).
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Important Definitions
* **Foreign person**: Anyone who is not a U.S. citizen or permanent resident
* **Fentanyl analog**: Any controlled drug that is chemically similar to fentanyl
* **Good**: Any physical item, natural or manufactured product (but not technical information)
* **United States person**: A U.S. citizen or permanent resident alien
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Effective Date
Not specified in bill text
I
118TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION H. R. 1779
To direct the President to impose sanctions against foreign persons deter-
mined to have knowingly engaged in significant corruption in Mexico,
and for other purposes.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
MARCH 24, 2023
Mr. MORAN introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee
on Foreign Affairs, and in addition to the Committee on the Judiciary,
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 direct the President to impose sanctions against foreign
persons determined to have knowingly engaged in signifi-
cant corruption in Mexico, 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. IMPOSITION OF SANCTIONS.
3
(a) IMPOSITION OF SANCTIONS.—The President shall
4
impose the sanctions described in subsection (b) with re-
5
spect to any foreign person that the President determines
6
has, on or after the date of the enactment of this Act,
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•HR 1779 IH
knowingly engaged in significant corruption in Mexico, in-
1
cluding through the following acts:
2
(1) Corruption related to government contracts.
3
(2) Bribery or extortion.
4
(3) The transfer, or the facilitation of the
5
transfer, of the proceeds of corruption, including
6
through money laundering.
7
(4) Acts of violence, harassment, or intimida-
8
tion directed at governmental or nongovernmental
9
corruption investigators.
10
(5) The facilitation of, or involvement in, the
11
production, sale, or distribution of illicit fentanyl or
12
fentanyl analogs.
13
(b) SANCTIONS DESCRIBED.—
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(1) IN GENERAL.—The sanctions described in
15
this subsection are the following:
16
(A) ASSET
BLOCKING.—The President
17
shall exercise all of the powers granted to the
18
President by the International Emergency Eco-
19
nomic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.) to
20
the extent necessary to block and prohibit all
21
transactions in property and interests in prop-
22
erty of a foreign person if such property or in-
23
terests in property are in the United States,
24
come within the United States, or are or come
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•HR 1779 IH
within the possession or control of a United
1
States person.
2
(B) INELIGIBILITY FOR VISAS AND ADMIS-
3
SION TO THE UNITED STATES.—In the case of
4
a foreign person who is an individual, such for-
5
eign person is—
6
(i) inadmissible to the United States;
7
(ii) ineligible to receive a visa or other
8
documentation to enter the United States;
9
and
10
(iii) otherwise ineligible to be admitted
11
or paroled into the United States or to re-
12
ceive any other benefit under the Immigra-
13
tion and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101 et
14
seq.).
15
(C) CURRENT VISAS REVOKED.—
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(i) IN
GENERAL.—The issuing con-
17
sular officer or the Secretary of State, (or
18
a designee of the Secretary of State) shall,
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in accordance with section 221(i) of the
20
Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C.
21
1201(i)), revoke any visa or other entry
22
documentation issued to a foreign person
23
regardless of when the visa or other entry
24
documentation is issued.
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(ii) EFFECT OF REVOCATION.—A rev-
1
ocation under clause (i) shall—
2
(I) take effect immediately; and
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(II) automatically cancel any
4
other valid visa or entry documenta-
5
tion that is in the possession of the
6
foreign person.
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(2) PENALTIES.—A person that violates, at-
8
tempts to violate, conspires to violate, or causes a
9
violation of a measure imposed pursuant to para-
10
graph (1)(A) or any regulation, license, or order
11
issued to carry out such paragraph shall be subject
12
to the penalties specified in subsections (b) and (c)
13
of section 206 of the International Emergency Eco-
14
nomic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1705) to the same ex-
15
tent as a person that commits an unlawful act de-
16
scribed in subsection (a) of such section.
17
(3) EXCEPTION
TO
COMPLY
WITH
INTER-
18
NATIONAL OBLIGATIONS.—Sanctions under subpara-
19
graph (B) and (C) of paragraph (1) shall not apply
20
with respect to a foreign person if admitting or pa-
21
roling such person into the United States is nec-
22
essary to permit the United States to comply with
23
the Agreement regarding the Headquarters of the
24
United Nations, signed at Lake Success June 26,
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•HR 1779 IH
1947, and entered into force November 21, 1947,
1
between the United Nations and the United States,
2
or other applicable international obligations.
3
(c) IMPLEMENTATION; REGULATORY AUTHORITY.—
4
(1) IMPLEMENTATION.—The President may ex-
5
ercise all authorities provided under sections 203
6
and 205 of the International Emergency Economic
7
Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1702 and 1704) to carry out
8
this section.
9
(2) REGULATORY AUTHORITY.—The President
10
shall issue such regulations, licenses, and orders as
11
are necessary to carry out this section.
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(d) NATIONAL SECURITY WAIVER.—The President
13
may waive, on a case-by-case basis, the application of a
14
sanction under subsection (b) with respect to a foreign
15
person if the President—
16
(1) determines that such a waiver is in the na-
17
tional security interest of the United States; and
18
(2) submits to the appropriate congressional
19
committees a notice of and justification for the waiv-
20
er.
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(e) TERMINATION.—The authority to impose sanc-
22
tions under subsection (b), and any sanctions imposed
23
pursuant to such authority, shall expire on the date that
24
is 3 years after the date of the enactment of this Act.
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•HR 1779 IH
(f) EXCEPTION RELATING
TO IMPORTATION
OF
1
GOODS.—The authorities and requirements to impose
2
sanctions authorized under this Act shall not include the
3
authority or requirement to impose sanctions on the im-
4
portation of goods.
5
(g) REPORTS REQUIRED.—
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(1) REPORTS.—Not later than 180 days after
7
the date of the enactment of this Act, and not less
8
frequently than annually thereafter, the President
9
shall submit to the appropriate congressional com-
10
mittees a report that identifies each foreign person
11
in Mexico who the President determines to have
12
knowingly engaged in actions that facilitate the illicit
13
production, distribution, or sale of illicit fentanyl or
14
fentanyl analogs, including through the acts listed in
15
paragraphs (1) through (5) of subsection (a).
16
(2) FORM.—Each report under paragraph (1)
17
shall be submitted in unclassified form, but may in-
18
clude a classified annex.
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(h) DEFINITIONS.—In this section:
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(1) APPROPRIATE
CONGRESSIONAL
COMMIT-
21
TEES.—The term ‘‘appropriate congressional com-
22
mittees’’ means—
23
(A) the Committee on Foreign Affairs, the
24
Committee on the Judiciary, and the Com-
25
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•HR 1779 IH
mittee on Financial Services of the House of
1
Representatives; and
2
(B) the Committee on Foreign Relations,
3
the Committee on the Judiciary, and the Com-
4
mittee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs
5
of the Senate.
6
(2) FENTANYL ANALOG.—The term ‘‘fentanyl
7
analog’’ means a controlled substance analogue (as
8
defined in section 102 of the Controlled Substances
9
Act (21 U.S.C. 802)) of fentanyl.
10
(3) FOREIGN PERSON.—The term ‘‘foreign per-
11
son’’ means any person that is not a United States
12
person.
13
(4) GOOD.—The term ‘‘good’’ means any arti-
14
cle, natural or man-made substance, material, supply
15
or manufactured product, including inspection and
16
test equipment, and excluding technical data.
17
(5)
UNITED
STATES
PERSON.—The
term
18
‘‘United States person’’ means, with respect to a
19
person who is an individual, a United States citizen
20
or an alien lawfully admitted for permanent resi-
21
dence to the United States.
22
Æ
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