Protecting Europe’s Energy Security Act of 2019

I 116TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 4818 To impose sanctions with respect to the provision of certain vessels for the construction of Russian energy export pipelines, and for other purposes. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OCTOBER 23, 2019 Mr. BARR (for himself, Mr. MURPHY of North Carolina, Mr. HAGEDORN, Mr. MITCHELL, Mr. HUIZENGA, Mr. GRAVES of Louisiana, and Mr. SHIM- KUS) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs, and in addition to the Committees on the Judiciary, Financial Services, Oversight and Reform, and Ways and Means, 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 com- mittee concerned A BILL To impose sanctions with respect to the provision of certain vessels for the construction of Russian energy export pipelines, 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 ‘‘Protecting Europe’s 4 Energy Security Act of 2019’’. 5 SEC. 2. SENSE OF CONGRESS. 6 It is the sense of Congress that— 7 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:10 Oct 29, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4818.IH H4818 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 2 •HR 4818 IH (1) the United States and Europe share a com- 1 mon history, a common identity, and common values 2 built upon the principles of democracy, rule of law, 3 and individual freedoms; 4 (2) the United States has encouraged and ad- 5 mired the European project, which has resulted in a 6 common market and common policies, has achieved 7 unprecedented prosperity and stability on the con- 8 tinent, and serves as a model for other countries to 9 reform their institutions and prioritize 10 anticorruption measures; 11 (3) the relationships between the United States 12 and Europe and the United States and Germany are 13 critical to the national security interests of the 14 United States as well as to global prosperity and 15 peace, and Germany in particular is a crucial part- 16 ner for the United States in multilateral efforts 17 aimed at promoting global prosperity and peace; 18 (4) the United States should stand against any 19 effort designed to weaken those relationships; and 20 (5) Germany has demonstrated leadership with- 21 in the European Union and in international fora to 22 ensure that sanctions imposed with respect to the 23 Russian Federation for its malign activities are 24 maintained. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:10 Oct 29, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4818.IH H4818 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 3 •HR 4818 IH SEC. 3. IMPOSITION OF SANCTIONS WITH RESPECT TO PRO- 1 VISION OF CERTAIN VESSELS FOR THE CON- 2 STRUCTION OF RUSSIAN ENERGY EXPORT 3 PIPELINES. 4 (a) REPORT REQUIRED.—Not later than 60 days 5 after the date of the enactment of this Act, and every 90 6 days thereafter, the Secretary of State shall submit to the 7 appropriate congressional committees a report that identi- 8 fies, for the period beginning on the date of the enactment 9 of this Act and ending on the date of the report— 10 (1) vessels that engaged in pipe-laying at 11 depths of 100 feet or more below sea level for the 12 construction of Russian energy export pipelines; and 13 (2) foreign persons that have sold, leased, pro- 14 vided, or facilitated the provision of those vessels for 15 the construction of such pipelines. 16 (b) INADMISSIBILITY TO UNITED STATES OF IDENTI- 17 FIED PERSONS AND CORPORATE OFFICERS.—The Sec- 18 retary of State shall deny a visa to, and the Secretary of 19 Homeland Security shall exclude from the United States 20 of, any alien who is— 21 (1) a foreign person identified under subsection 22 (a)(2); 23 (2) a corporate officer of a person described in 24 paragraph (1); or 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:10 Oct 29, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4818.IH H4818 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 4 •HR 4818 IH (3) a principal shareholder with a controlling 1 interest in a person described in paragraph (1). 2 (c) BLOCKING OF PROPERTY OF IDENTIFIED PER- 3 SONS.—The President shall exercise all powers granted to 4 the President by the International Emergency Economic 5 Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.) to the extent nec- 6 essary to block and prohibit all transactions in all property 7 and interests in property of any person identified under 8 subsection (a)(2) if such property and interests in prop- 9 erty are in the United States, come within the United 10 States, or are or come within the possession or control 11 of a United States person. 12 (d) SANCTIONS FOR PROVISION OF UNDERWRITING 13 SERVICES OR INSURANCE OR REINSURANCE FOR IDENTI- 14 FIED VESSELS.— 15 (1) IN GENERAL.—The President may impose 5 16 or more of the sanctions described in paragraph (2) 17 with respect to a foreign person if the President de- 18 termines that the person knowingly, on or after the 19 date of the enactment of this Act, provides under- 20 writing services or insurance or reinsurance for a 21 vessel identified under subsection (a)(1). 22 (2) SANCTIONS DESCRIBED.—The sanctions 23 that may be imposed with respect to a foreign per- 24 son under paragraph (1) are the following: 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:10 Oct 29, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4818.IH H4818 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 5 •HR 4818 IH (A) EXPORT-IMPORT BANK ASSISTANCE 1 FOR EXPORTS TO SANCTIONED PERSONS.—The 2 President may direct the Export-Import Bank 3 of the United States not to give approval to the 4 issuance of any guarantee, insurance, extension 5 of credit, or participation in the extension of 6 credit in connection with the export of any 7 goods or services to the foreign person. 8 (B) EXPORT SANCTION.—The President 9 may order the United States Government not to 10 issue any specific license and not to grant any 11 other specific permission or authority to export 12 any goods or technology to the foreign person 13 under— 14 (i) the Export Control Reform Act of 15 2018 (50 U.S.C. 4801 et seq.); 16 (ii) the Arms Export Control Act (22 17 U.S.C. 2751 et seq.); 18 (iii) the Atomic Energy Act of 1954 19 (42 U.S.C. 2011 et seq.); or 20 (iv) any other statute that requires 21 the prior review and approval of the 22 United States Government as a condition 23 for the export or reexport of goods or serv- 24 ices. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:10 Oct 29, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4818.IH H4818 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 6 •HR 4818 IH (C) LOANS FROM UNITED STATES FINAN- 1 CIAL INSTITUTIONS.—The United States Gov- 2 ernment may prohibit any United States finan- 3 cial institution from making loans or providing 4 credits to the foreign person totaling more than 5 $10,000,000 in any 12-month period unless 6 such person is engaged in activities to relieve 7 human suffering and the loans or credits are 8 provided for such activities. 9 (D) PROHIBITIONS ON FINANCIAL INSTI- 10 TUTIONS.—The following prohibitions may be 11 imposed with respect to the foreign person if 12 the foreign person is a financial institution: 13 (i) PROHIBITION ON DESIGNATION AS 14 PRIMARY DEALER.—Neither the Board of 15 Governors of the Federal Reserve System 16 nor the Federal Reserve Bank of New 17 York may designate, or permit the continu- 18 ation of any prior designation of, such fi- 19 nancial institution as a primary dealer in 20 United States Government debt instru- 21 ments. 22 (ii) PROHIBITION ON SERVICE AS A 23 REPOSITORY OF GOVERNMENT FUNDS.— 24 Such financial institution may not serve as 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:10 Oct 29, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4818.IH H4818 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 7 •HR 4818 IH agent of the United States Government or 1 serve as repository for United States Gov- 2 ernment funds. 3 The imposition of either sanction under clause 4 (i) or (ii) shall be treated as 1 sanction for pur- 5 poses of paragraph (1), and the imposition of 6 both such sanctions shall be treated as 2 sanc- 7 tions for purposes of paragraph (1). 8 (E) PROCUREMENT SANCTION.—The 9 United States Government may not procure, or 10 enter into any contract for the procurement of, 11 any goods or services from the foreign person. 12 (F) FOREIGN EXCHANGE.—The President 13 may, pursuant to such regulations as the Presi- 14 dent may prescribe, prohibit any transactions in 15 foreign exchange that are subject to the juris- 16 diction of the United States and in which the 17 foreign person has any interest. 18 (G) BANKING TRANSACTIONS.—The Presi- 19 dent may, pursuant to such regulations as the 20 President may prescribe, prohibit any transfers 21 of credit or payments between financial institu- 22 tions or by, through, or to any financial institu- 23 tion, to the extent that such transfers or pay- 24 ments are subject to the jurisdiction of the 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:10 Oct 29, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4818.IH H4818 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 8 •HR 4818 IH United States and involve any interest of the 1 foreign person. 2 (H) PROPERTY TRANSACTIONS.—The 3 President may, pursuant to such regulations as 4 the President may prescribe, prohibit any per- 5 son from— 6 (i) acquiring, holding, withholding, 7 using, transferring, withdrawing, trans- 8 porting, importing, or exporting any prop- 9 erty that is subject to the jurisdiction of 10 the United States and with respect to 11 which the foreign person has any interest; 12 (ii) dealing in or exercising any right, 13 power, or privilege with respect to such 14 property; or 15 (iii) conducting any transaction in- 16 volving such property. 17 (I) BAN ON INVESTMENT IN EQUITY OR 18 DEBT OF SANCTIONED PERSON.—The President 19 may, pursuant to such regulations or guidelines 20 as the President may prescribe, prohibit any 21 United States person from investing in or pur- 22 chasing significant amounts of equity or debt 23 instruments of the foreign person. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:10 Oct 29, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4818.IH H4818 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 9 •HR 4818 IH (J) EXCLUSION OF CORPORATE OFFI- 1 CERS.—The President may direct the Secretary 2 of State to deny a visa to, and the Secretary of 3 Homeland Security to exclude from the United 4 States, any alien that the President determines 5 is a corporate officer or principal of, or a share- 6 holder with a controlling interest in, the foreign 7 person. 8 (K) SANCTIONS ON PRINCIPAL EXECUTIVE 9 OFFICERS.—The President may impose on the 10 principal executive officer or officers of the for- 11 eign person, or on persons performing similar 12 functions and with similar authorities as such 13 officer or officers, any of the sanctions under 14 this paragraph. 15 (e) EXCEPTIONS.— 16 (1) EXCEPTION TO COMPLY WITH UNITED NA- 17 TIONS HEADQUARTERS AGREEMENT.—Sanctions 18 under this subsection shall not apply with respect to 19 the admission of an alien to the United States if the 20 admission of the alien is necessary to permit the 21 United States to comply with the Agreement regard- 22 ing the Headquarters of the United Nations, signed 23 at Lake Success June 26, 1947, and entered into 24 force November 21, 1947, between the United Na- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:10 Oct 29, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4818.IH H4818 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 10 •HR 4818 IH tions and the United States, the Convention on Con- 1 sular Relations, done at Vienna April 24, 1963, and 2 entered into force March 19, 1967, or other applica- 3 ble international obligations. 4 (2) EXCEPTION RELATING TO IMPORTATION OF 5 GOODS.— 6 (A) IN GENERAL.—A requirement or the 7 authority to block and prohibit all transactions 8 in all property and interests in property under 9 this section shall not include the authority to 10 impose sanctions on the importation of goods. 11 (B) GOOD DEFINED.—In this paragraph, 12 the term ‘‘good’’ means any article, natural or 13 man-made substance, material, supply or manu- 14 factured product, including inspection and test 15 equipment, and excluding technical data. 16 (f) NATIONAL SECURITY WAIVER.—The President 17 may waive the application of sanctions under this section 18 with respect to a person if the President— 19 (1) determines that the waiver is in the national 20 security interests of the United States; and 21 (2) submits to the appropriate congressional 22 committees a report on the waiver and the reasons 23 for the waiver. 24 (g) IMPLEMENTATION; PENALTIES.— 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:10 Oct 29, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4818.IH H4818 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 11 •HR 4818 IH (1) IMPLEMENTATION.—The President may ex- 1 ercise all authorities provided to the President under 2 sections 203 and 205 of the International Emer- 3 gency Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1702 and 4 1704) to carry out this section. 5 (2) PENALTIES.—A person that violates, at- 6 tempts to violate, conspires to violate, or causes a 7 violation of this section or any regulation, license, or 8 order issued to carry out this section shall be subject 9 to the penalties set forth in subsections (b) and (c) 10 of section 206 of the International Emergency Eco- 11 nomic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1705) to the same ex- 12 tent as a person that commits an unlawful act de- 13 scribed in subsection (a) of that section. 14 (h) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 15 (1) ADMISSION; ADMITTED; ALIEN.—The terms 16 ‘‘admission’’, ‘‘admitted’’, and ‘‘alien’’ have the 17 meanings given those terms in section 101 of the 18 Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101). 19 (2) APPROPRIATE CONGRESSIONAL COMMIT- 20 TEES.—The term ‘‘appropriate congressional com- 21 mittees’’ means the Committee on Foreign Relations 22 and Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban 23 Affairs of the Senate and the Committee on Foreign 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:10 Oct 29, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4818.IH H4818 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 12 •HR 4818 IH Affairs and Committee on Financial Services of the 1 House of Representatives. 2 (3) FOREIGN PERSON.—The term ‘‘foreign per- 3 son’’ means an individual or entity that is not a 4 United States person. 5 (4) KNOWINGLY.—The term ‘‘knowingly’’, with 6 respect to conduct, a circumstance, or a result, 7 means that a person has actual knowledge, or should 8 have known, of the conduct, the circumstance, or the 9 result. 10 (5) UNITED STATES PE [Text truncated for display. 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