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I
116TH CONGRESS
2D SESSION
H. R. 7519
To amend the State Department Basic Authorities Act of 1956 to authorize
rewards for providing information on foreign election interference, and
for other purposes.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
JULY 9, 2020
Mr. ENGEL (for himself and Mr. MCCAUL) introduced the following bill; which
was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs
A BILL
To amend the State Department Basic Authorities Act of
1956 to authorize rewards for providing information on
foreign election interference, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
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tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
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SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
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This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Rewards for Providing
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Information on Foreign Election Interference Act’’.
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•HR 7519 IH
SEC. 2. AUTHORIZATION OF REWARDS FOR PROVIDING IN-
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FORMATION ON FOREIGN ELECTION INTER-
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FERENCE.
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Section 36 of the State Department Basic Authorities
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Act of 1956 (22 U.S.C. 2708) is amended—
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(1) in subsection (a)(2), by inserting ‘‘foreign
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election interference,’’ before ‘‘transnational orga-
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nized crime’’;
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(2) in subsection (b)—
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(A) in paragraph (5), by striking ‘‘or (10)’’
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and inserting ‘‘(10), or (13)’’;
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(B) in paragraph (11), by striking ‘‘or’’
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after the semicolon at the end;
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(C) in paragraph (12)—
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(i) by striking ‘‘sections’’ and insert-
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ing ‘‘section’’;
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(ii) by striking ‘‘or (b)(1)’’ and insert-
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ing ‘‘or 2914(b)(1)’’; and
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(iii) by striking the period at the end
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and inserting ‘‘; or’’; and
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(D) by adding at the end the following new
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paragraph:
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‘‘(13) the identification or location of a foreign
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person that knowingly engaged or is engaging in for-
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eign election interference.’’; and
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(3) in subsection (k)—
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•HR 7519 IH
(A)
by
redesignating
paragraphs
(3)
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through (8) as paragraphs (5) through (10), re-
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spectively;
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(B) by inserting after paragraph (2) the
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following new paragraphs:
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‘‘(3) FOREIGN PERSON.—The term ‘foreign per-
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son’ means—
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‘‘(A) an individual who is not a United
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States person; or
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‘‘(B) a foreign entity.
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‘‘(4) FOREIGN ELECTION INTERFERENCE.—The
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term ‘foreign election interference’ means conduct by
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a foreign person that—
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‘‘(A)(i) violates Federal criminal, voting
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rights, or campaign finance law; or
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‘‘(ii) is performed by any person act-
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ing as an agent of or on behalf of a foreign
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government or criminal enterprise; and
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‘‘(B) includes any covert, fraudulent, de-
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ceptive, or unlawful act or attempted act, or
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knowing use of information acquired by theft,
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undertaken with the purpose or effect of under-
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mining public confidence in election processes
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or institutions, or influencing, undermining con-
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fidence in, or altering the result or reported re-
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•HR 7519 IH
sult of, a general or primary Federal, State, or
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local election or caucus, including—
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‘‘(i) the campaign of a candidate; or
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‘‘(ii) a ballot measure, including an
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amendment, a bond issue, an initiative, a
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recall, a referral, or a referendum.’’; and
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(C) in paragraph (10), as so redesignated,
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in subparagraph (A), by striking ‘‘and’’ after
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the semicolon and inserting ‘‘or’’.
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Æ
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