Enhancing North Korea Humanitarian Assistance Act

II 116TH CONGRESS 2D SESSION S. 3908 To expedite the provision of humanitarian assistance, including life-saving medical care, to the people of North Korea, and for other purposes. IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES JUNE 8, 2020 Mr. MURPHY (for himself, Mr. MARKEY, Mr. CARDIN, and Mr. MURPHY)) in- troduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Com- mittee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs A BILL To expedite the provision of humanitarian assistance, includ- ing life-saving medical care, to the people of North Korea, 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 ‘‘Enhancing North 4 Korea Humanitarian Assistance Act’’. 5 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 6 Congress makes the following findings: 7 (1) Providing humanitarian assistance, includ- 8 ing to countries subject to sanctions imposed by the 9 VerDate Sep 11 2014 06:07 Jun 24, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3908.IS S3908 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 2 •S 3908 IS United States, is an expression of American values 1 that furthers United States interests around the 2 world and is consistent with international humani- 3 tarian law. 4 (2) As of February 2020, roughly 10,100,000 5 people in North Korea are in urgent need of food as- 6 sistance and roughly 10,400,000 need nutrition sup- 7 port and improved access to basic services, including 8 health care, water, sanitation, and hygiene facilities. 9 (3) More than 40 percent of people in North 10 Korea are undernourished, and 1 out of every 5 chil- 11 dren in the country younger than 5 years of age is 12 stunted in growth. 13 (4) More than 1⁄3 of household drinking water 14 in North Korea is contaminated. 15 (5) Independent experts have identified severe 16 deficiencies in North Korea’s public health infra- 17 structure, trained medical personnel, ability to com- 18 municate important safety information, and commit- 19 ment to addressing those deficiencies. 20 (6) North Korea has one of the highest burdens 21 of tuberculosis in the world and humanitarian assist- 22 ance is critical for countering the spread of deadly 23 infectious diseases such as tuberculosis, HIV/AIDS, 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 06:07 Jun 24, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3908.IS S3908 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 3 •S 3908 IS hepatitis B, and the coronavirus disease 2019 (com- 1 monly known as ‘‘COVID–19’’). 2 (7) North Korea cannot reliably maintain 3 stocks of drugs to treat diseases such as tuberculosis 4 and HIV/AIDS, posing the risk of interrupted treat- 5 ments, which can lead to treatment failures and re- 6 sistance to multiple therapies that make treatment 7 significantly more difficult and costly. 8 (8) The spread of COVID–19 in North Korea 9 would likely have devastating consequences for the 10 people of that country who are especially vulnerable 11 to a pandemic because of deficiencies in public 12 health infrastructure. 13 (9) While the Government of North Korea has 14 not reported any cases of COVID–19 in the country, 15 the extent and results of testing are unknown, and 16 government officials have not historically been open 17 or transparent about humanitarian emergencies fac- 18 ing the people of North Korea. 19 (10) Responses to the COVID–19 crisis, includ- 20 ing border closings and quarantines that may extend 21 through the planting season, have impeded inter- 22 national efforts that would otherwise be providing 23 life-saving support to the people of North Korea. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 06:07 Jun 24, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3908.IS S3908 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 4 •S 3908 IS (11) In its final report published on March 5, 1 2019, the United Nations Panel of Experts on 2 North Korea found that ‘‘United Nations agencies 3 and humanitarian organizations continue to experi- 4 ence unintended consequences on their humanitarian 5 programmes that make it impossible to operate nor- 6 mally in the Democratic People’s Republic of 7 Korea.’’. 8 (12) Barriers to humanitarian access can result 9 from decisions made or delayed by the Government 10 of North Korea, by the governments of other coun- 11 tries, including the governments of the United 12 States and the People’s Republic of China, and by 13 the Committee of the United Nations Security Coun- 14 cil established by United Nations Security Council 15 Resolution 1718 (2006) (referred to in this Act as 16 the ‘‘1718 Sanctions Committee’’). 17 (13) Nongovernmental organizations that pro- 18 vide humanitarian assistance in North Korea must 19 typically seek simultaneous authorizations from the 20 Department of the Treasury, the Department of 21 State, the Department of Commerce, the 1718 Sanc- 22 tions Committee, customs officials in the People’s 23 Republic of China, and the Government of North 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 06:07 Jun 24, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3908.IS S3908 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 5 •S 3908 IS Korea, adding further delays to humanitarian ac- 1 cess. 2 (14) The 1718 Sanctions Committee issued the 3 document entitled ‘‘Implementation Assistance No- 4 tice No. 7’’ on August 6, 2018, to clarify the process 5 for granting requests for humanitarian exemptions 6 by the United Nations and to reaffirm that sanc- 7 tions are not intended to have adverse humanitarian 8 consequences for civilians in North Korea. 9 (15) United States Government travel restric- 10 tions impede the access of United States employees 11 of humanitarian organizations inside North Korea 12 and can complicate the monitoring and evaluation 13 procedures that nongovernmental organizations have 14 used to ensure that aid reaches the most vulnerable 15 populations. 16 (16) Humanitarian exceptions in comprehensive 17 sanctions programs, such as the exceptions under 18 section 510.512 of the North Korea Sanctions Regu- 19 lations, are not effective unless the persons who pro- 20 vide assistance along with their financial institu- 21 tions, suppliers, shippers, and other entities can 22 make practical use of the exceptions. 23 SEC. 3. SENSE OF CONGRESS. 24 It is the sense of Congress that— 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 06:07 Jun 24, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3908.IS S3908 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 6 •S 3908 IS (1) national governments and multilateral au- 1 thorities must take action to mitigate documented 2 delays and ensure that sanctions imposed with re- 3 spect to North Korea do not hinder efforts to pro- 4 vide humanitarian relief, including life-saving med- 5 ical care, to the people of North Korea; 6 (2) the Department of the Treasury should pro- 7 vide timely and meaningful responses to requests for 8 specific licenses given that humanitarian organiza- 9 tions typically have a limited time to execute 10 projects that must be approved by multiple United 11 States Government agencies and foreign govern- 12 ments; 13 (3) because humanitarian assistance is unlikely 14 to enable large-scale sanctions evasion and revenue 15 generation, sanctions enforcement should focus on 16 ongoing North Korean activities, including ship-to- 17 ship transfers of coal and other goods, cyberattacks, 18 and the use of forced labor abroad, all highlighted 19 in reports issued by the United Nations Panel of Ex- 20 perts on North Korea and other authoritative 21 sources; and 22 (4) financial institutions should recognize and 23 consider the reputational and practical costs of im- 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 06:07 Jun 24, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3908.IS S3908 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 7 •S 3908 IS peding legitimate efforts to deliver life-saving aid to 1 North Korea. 2 SEC. 4. ENHANCING EXEMPTIONS FROM UNITED STATES 3 SANCTIONS. 4 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 90 days after the 5 date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Treas- 6 ury, acting through the Director of the Office of Foreign 7 Assets Control, shall take 1 or more of the following ac- 8 tions: 9 (1) Modify the humanitarian exception under 10 section 510.512 of the North Korea Sanctions Regu- 11 lations to cover, in addition to the food and medicine 12 already exempted, goods and other items that are 13 not subject to the Export Administration Regula- 14 tions and that support humanitarian projects to 15 meet basic human needs in North Korea so that no 16 specific license is required for such items. 17 (2)(A) Modify the North Korea Sanctions Reg- 18 ulations to exempt from a requirement for a specific 19 license a published list of nonsensitive items, in addi- 20 tion to the food and medicine already covered by sec- 21 tion 510.512 of the North Korea Sanctions Regula- 22 tions, used in humanitarian operations in North 23 Korea in furtherance of the purposes set forth in 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 06:07 Jun 24, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3908.IS S3908 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 8 •S 3908 IS section 4 of the North Korean Human Rights Act 1 of 2004 (22 U.S.C. 7802); 2 (B) ensure that the list reflects the relevant 3 recommendations included in the final report, pub- 4 lished on March 5, 2019, of the Panel of Experts es- 5 tablished pursuant to United Nations Security 6 Council Resolution 1874 (2009); and 7 (C) review and republish the list, in consulta- 8 tion with the Secretary of State and the Adminis- 9 trator of the United States Agency for International 10 Development, every 180 days and in response to re- 11 quests by nongovernmental organizations that have 12 previously engaged in authorized humanitarian ac- 13 tivities in North Korea. 14 (3) Modify the North Korea Sanctions Regula- 15 tions so that— 16 (A) a specific license from the Office of 17 Foreign Assets Control of the Department of 18 the Treasury is not required for partnerships 19 and partnership agreements between non- 20 governmental organizations and persons owned 21 or controlled by the Government of North 22 Korea that are necessary for nongovernmental 23 organizations to provide otherwise authorized 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 06:07 Jun 24, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3908.IS S3908 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 9 •S 3908 IS services related to humanitarian activity in 1 North Korea; and 2 (B) a specific license is still required for 3 any partnerships and partnership agreements 4 with persons on the list of specially designated 5 nationals and blocked persons maintained by 6 the Office of Foreign Assets Control. 7 (b) BRIEFING.—Not later than 120 days after the 8 date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Treas- 9 ury shall provide to the appropriate congressional commit- 10 tees a briefing— 11 (1) for each action described in subsection (a), 12 describing whether the action was taken and pro- 13 viding a justification for the decision to take or not 14 take the action; and 15 (2) detailing the benefits and risks associated 16 with establishing a category of recognized non- 17 governmental organizations that would be exempt 18 from requirements for specific licenses related to 19 dealings with the Government of North Korea or 20 persons on the list of specially designated nationals 21 and blocked persons maintained by the Office of 22 Foreign Assets Control for purposes of transactions 23 involving goods other than food or medicine to sup- 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 06:07 Jun 24, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3908.IS S3908 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 10 •S 3908 IS port authorized humanitarian activities in North 1 Korea. 2 (c) MODIFICATION TO NORTH KOREA SANCTIONS 3 REGULATIONS.—Not later than 90 days after the date of 4 the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of the Treasury 5 shall modify the North Korea Sanctions Regulations so 6 that personal computers and related peripherals that sup- 7 port authorized humanitarian activities by nongovern- 8 mental organizations are not considered to be ‘‘luxury 9 goods’’. 10 (d) GUIDANCE.—Not later than 120 days after the 11 date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of the 12 Treasury, acting through the Director of the Office of 13 Foreign Assets Control, shall issue plainly worded guid- 14 ance intended for financial institutions, shipping compa- 15 nies, foreign customs officials, and others involved in 16 transactions related to humanitarian assistance that— 17 (1) clarifies the applicability of the humani- 18 tarian exception under the North Korea Sanctions 19 Regulations; and 20 (2) describes best practices for ensuring that 21 activities are consistent with that exception. 22 (e) REPORT REQUIRED.—Not later than 90 days 23 after the date of the enactment of this Act, and every 120 24 days thereafter, the Secretary of the Treasury, acting 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 06:07 Jun 24, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3908.IS S3908 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 11 •S 3908 IS through the Director of the Office of Foreign Assets Con- 1 trol and in consultation with the Secretary of State, shall 2 submit to the appropriate congressional committees a re- 3 port that includes— 4 (1) a list of specific licenses related to humani- 5 tarian assistance in North Korea issued by the Of- 6 fice of Foreign Assets Control during the 120-day 7 period immediately preceding the submission of the 8 report; 9 (2) a list of requests for specific licenses related 10 to humanitarian assistance in North Korea denied 11 by the Office of Foreign Assets Control during such 12 120-day period, including explanations for the deni- 13 als; 14 (3) a list of requests for specific licenses related 15 to humanitarian assistance in North Korea that 16 have been pending for 30 days or more as of the 17 date on which the report is submitted, including ex- 18 planations for the delays; 19 (4) a list of requests by non-United States per- 20 sons for sanctions waivers related to humanitarian 21 assistance in North Korea that have been pending 22 for 30 days or more as of the date on which the re- 23 port is submitted, including explanations for the 24 delays; and 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 06:07 Jun 24, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S3908.IS S3908 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 12 •S 3908 IS (5) a description of recent efforts to streamline 1 the process by which nongovernmental organizations 2 engaged in humanitarian activity in North Korea 3 apply for and are granted specific licenses or waiv- 4 ers. 5 SEC. 5. ENHANCING MULTILATERAL SANCTIONS EXE [Text truncated for display. Full text available on Congress.gov.]