Combatting Fentanyl Trafficking from China and Mexico Act

II 118TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION S. 1689 To prioritize efforts of the Department of State to combat international trafficking in precursor chemicals and covered synthetic drugs with the Government of Mexico, to provide for the imposition of sanctions with respect to persons of the People’s Republic of China contributing to international proliferation of illicit drugs or their means of production, and for other purposes. IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES MAY 18, 2023 Mr. MURPHY (for himself and Mr. HAGERTY) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations A BILL To prioritize efforts of the Department of State to combat international trafficking in precursor chemicals and cov- ered synthetic drugs with the Government of Mexico, to provide for the imposition of sanctions with respect to persons of the People’s Republic of China contributing to international proliferation of illicit drugs or their means of production, 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 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:35 Jun 02, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1689.IS S1689 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 2 •S 1689 IS SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 1 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Combatting Fentanyl 2 Trafficking from China and Mexico Act’’. 3 SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS. 4 In this Act: 5 (1) CONTROLLED SUBSTANCE; CONTROLLED 6 SUBSTANCE ANALOGUE.—The terms ‘‘controlled 7 substance’’ and ‘‘controlled substance analogue’’ 8 have the meanings given those terms in section 102 9 of the Controlled Substances Act (21 U.S.C. 802). 10 (2) COVERED SYNTHETIC DRUG.—The term 11 ‘‘covered synthetic drug’’ means— 12 (A) a synthetic controlled substance or 13 synthetic controlled substance analogue, includ- 14 ing fentanyl or a fentanyl analogue; or 15 (B) a new psychoactive substance. 16 (3) MAJOR DRUG-TRANSIT COUNTRY; MAJOR IL- 17 LICIT DRUG PRODUCING COUNTRY.—The terms 18 ‘‘major drug-transit country’’ and ‘‘major illicit drug 19 producing country’’ have the meanings given those 20 terms in section 481(e) of the Foreign Assistance 21 Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2291(e)). 22 (4) NEW PSYCHOACTIVE SUBSTANCE.—The 23 term ‘‘new psychoactive substance’’ means a sub- 24 stance of abuse, or any preparation thereof, that— 25 (A) is not— 26 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:35 Jun 02, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1689.IS S1689 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 3 •S 1689 IS (i) included in any schedule as a con- 1 trolled substance under the Controlled 2 Substances Act (21 U.S.C. 801 et seq.); or 3 (ii) controlled by the Single Conven- 4 tion on Narcotic Drugs, done at New York 5 March 30, 1961, or the Convention on 6 Psychotropic Substances, done at Vienna 7 February 21, 1971; 8 (B) is new or has reemerged on the illicit 9 market; and 10 (C) poses a threat to the public health and 11 safety. 12 (5) PRECURSOR CHEMICAL.—The term ‘‘pre- 13 cursor chemical’’ has the meaning given the term 14 ‘‘listed chemical’’ in section 102 of the Controlled 15 Substances Act (21 U.S.C. 802). 16 SEC. 3. PRIORITIZATION OF EFFORTS OF THE DEPART- 17 MENT OF STATE TO COMBAT INTER- 18 NATIONAL TRAFFICKING IN PRECURSOR 19 CHEMICALS AND COVERED SYNTHETIC 20 DRUGS WITH THE GOVERNMENT OF MEXICO. 21 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of State shall 22 prioritize efforts of the Department of State to combat 23 international trafficking of precursor chemicals and cov- 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:35 Jun 02, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1689.IS S1689 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 4 •S 1689 IS ered synthetic drugs by carrying out programs and activi- 1 ties that include the following: 2 (1) Strengthening law enforcement capabilities, 3 rule of law, and other security-related efforts to 4 strengthen counterdrug institutions and initiatives 5 outlined in the United States-Mexico Bicentennial 6 Framework for Security, Public Health, and Safe 7 Communities and the North American Drug Dia- 8 logue. 9 (2) Strengthening joint bilateral efforts between 10 the United States and Mexico to, among other 11 issues— 12 (A) combat covered synthetic drugs and 13 the illicit production of other drugs; 14 (B) better understand and reduce demand 15 for drugs in the United States and Mexico; 16 (C) increase interdiction of precursor 17 chemicals and covered synthetic drugs; 18 (D) pursue prosecutions of transnational 19 criminal organizations and illicit financing of 20 those organizations; and 21 (E) reduce the number of illicit firearms 22 crossing the border between the United States 23 and Mexico. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:35 Jun 02, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1689.IS S1689 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 5 •S 1689 IS (3) Providing technical assistance and equip- 1 ment, as appropriate, to strengthen the capacity of 2 enforcement agencies of the Government of Mexico 3 with respect to precursor chemicals and covered syn- 4 thetic drugs. 5 (b) REPORT.— 6 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year after 7 the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary 8 of State shall submit to the appropriate congres- 9 sional committees a report on the implementation of 10 this section. 11 (2) APPROPRIATE CONGRESSIONAL COMMIT- 12 TEES DEFINED.—In this subsection, the term ‘‘ap- 13 propriate congressional committees’’ means— 14 (A) the Committee on Foreign Relations 15 and the Committee on Appropriations of the 16 Senate; and 17 (B) the Committee on Foreign Affairs and 18 the Committee on Appropriations of the House 19 of Representatives. 20 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:35 Jun 02, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1689.IS S1689 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 6 •S 1689 IS SEC. 4. IMPOSITION OF SANCTIONS WITH RESPECT TO PER- 1 SONS OF THE PEOPLE’S REPUBLIC OF CHINA 2 CONTRIBUTING TO INTERNATIONAL PRO- 3 LIFERATION OF ILLICIT DRUGS OR THEIR 4 MEANS OF PRODUCTION. 5 (a) IN GENERAL.—The President may impose any of 6 the sanctions described in subsection (c) with respect to 7 a foreign person described in subsection (b) that is deter- 8 mined by the President— 9 (1) to have engaged in, or attempted to engage 10 in, activities or transactions that have materially 11 contributed to, or pose a significant risk of materi- 12 ally contributing to, the international proliferation of 13 illicit drugs or their means of production; 14 (2) to have knowingly received any property or 15 interest in property that the foreign person knows— 16 (A) constitutes or is derived from proceeds 17 of activities or transactions described in para- 18 graph (1); or 19 (B) was used or intended to be used to 20 commit or to facilitate such activities or trans- 21 actions; 22 (3) to have provided, or attempted to provide, 23 financial, material, or technological support for, or 24 goods or services in support of— 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:35 Jun 02, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1689.IS S1689 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 7 •S 1689 IS (A) any activity or transaction described in 1 paragraph (1); or 2 (B) any sanctioned person; 3 (4) to be or have been a leader or official of any 4 sanctioned person or of any foreign person described 5 in subsection (b) that has engaged in any activity or 6 transaction described in paragraph (1); or 7 (5) to be owned, controlled, or directed by, or 8 to have acted or purported to act for or on behalf 9 of, directly or indirectly, any sanctioned person. 10 (b) FOREIGN PERSONS DESCRIBED.—A foreign per- 11 son described in this subsection is a foreign person that 12 is— 13 (1) a citizen or national of the People’s Repub- 14 lic of China, including the Hong Kong Special Ad- 15 ministrative Region; or 16 (2) an entity organized under the laws of the 17 People’s Republic of China (including the Hong 18 Kong Special Administrative Region) or otherwise 19 subject to the jurisdiction of the Government of the 20 People’s Republic of China. 21 (c) SANCTIONS DESCRIBED.—The sanctions de- 22 scribed in this subsection are the following: 23 (1) BLOCKING OF PROPERTY.—The President 24 may, pursuant to the International Emergency Eco- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:35 Jun 02, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1689.IS S1689 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 8 •S 1689 IS nomic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.), block 1 and prohibit all transactions in property and inter- 2 ests in property of the sanctioned person if such 3 property and interests in property are in the United 4 States, come within the United States, or are or 5 come within the possession or control of a United 6 States person. 7 (2) BANKING TRANSACTIONS.—The President 8 may prohibit any transfers of credit or payments be- 9 tween financial institutions or by, through, or to any 10 financial institution, to the extent that such trans- 11 fers or payments are subject to the jurisdiction of 12 the United States and involve any interest of the 13 sanctioned person. 14 (3) LOANS FROM UNITED STATES FINANCIAL 15 INSTITUTIONS.—The President may prohibit any 16 United States financial institution from making 17 loans or providing credit to the sanctioned person. 18 (4) FOREIGN EXCHANGE TRANSACTIONS.—The 19 President may prohibit any transactions in foreign 20 exchange that are subject to the jurisdiction of the 21 United States and in which the sanctioned person 22 has any interest. 23 (5) PROHIBITION ON INVESTMENT IN EQUITY 24 OR DEBT OF SANCTIONED PERSON.—The President 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:35 Jun 02, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1689.IS S1689 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 9 •S 1689 IS may prohibit any United States person from invest- 1 ing in or purchasing significant amounts of equity or 2 debt instruments of the sanctioned person. 3 (6) PROHIBITIONS ON FINANCIAL INSTITU- 4 TIONS.—The President may direct that the following 5 prohibitions be imposed with respect to a sanctioned 6 person that is a financial institution: 7 (A) PROHIBITION ON DESIGNATION AS 8 PRIMARY DEALER.—Neither the Board of Gov- 9 ernors of the Federal Reserve System nor the 10 Federal Reserve Bank of New York may des- 11 ignate, or permit the continuation of any prior 12 designation of, the financial institution as a pri- 13 mary dealer in United States Government debt 14 instruments. 15 (B) PROHIBITION ON SERVICE AS A RE- 16 POSITORY OF GOVERNMENT FUNDS.—The fi- 17 nancial institution may not serve as agent of 18 the United States Government or serve as re- 19 pository for United States Government funds. 20 (7) PROCUREMENT BAN.—The President may 21 direct that the United States Government may not 22 procure, or enter into any contract for the procure- 23 ment of, any goods or services from the sanctioned 24 person. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:35 Jun 02, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1689.IS S1689 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 10 •S 1689 IS (8) EXCLUSION OF CORPORATE OFFICERS.— 1 The President may direct the Secretary of State to 2 deny a visa to, and the Secretary of Homeland Secu- 3 rity to exclude from the United States, any alien 4 that the President determines is a leader, official, 5 senior executive officer, or director of, or a share- 6 holder with a controlling interest in, the sanctioned 7 person. 8 (9) SANCTIONS ON PRINCIPAL EXECUTIVE OF- 9 FICERS.—The President may impose on the prin- 10 cipal executive officer or officers of the sanctioned 11 person, or on individuals performing similar func- 12 tions and with similar authorities as such officer or 13 officers, any of the sanctions described in para- 14 graphs (1) through (8) that are applicable. 15 (d) INADMISSIBILITY OF CERTAIN SANCTIONED PER- 16 SONS.— 17 (1) VISAS, ADMISSION, OR PAROLE.—Except as 18 provided by paragraph (3), an alien with respect to 19 whom the President imposed sanctions under para- 20 graph (1) or (8) of subsection (c) shall be— 21 (A) inadmissible to the United States; 22 (B) ineligible to receive a visa or other doc- 23 umentation to enter the United States; and 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:35 Jun 02, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1689.IS S1689 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 11 •S 1689 IS (C) otherwise ineligible to be admitted or 1 paroled into the United States or to receive any 2 other benefit under the Immigration and Na- 3 tionality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101 et seq.). 4 (2) CURRENT VISAS REVOKED.— 5 (A) IN GENERAL.—The visa or other entry 6 documentation of any alien described in para- 7 graph (1) is subject to revocation regardless of 8 the date on which the visa or other entry docu- 9 mentation is or was issued. 10 (B) IMMEDIATE EFFECT.—A revocation 11 under subparagraph (A) shall— 12 (i) take effect immediately; and 13 (ii) cancel any other valid visa or 14 entry documentation that is in the posses- 15 sion of the alien. 16 (3) EXCEPTIONS.—Paragraphs (1) and (2) 17 shall not apply with respect to the admission of an 18 alien described in paragraph (1) if the President de- 19 termines that the admission of the alien would not 20 be contrary to the interests of the United States, in- 21 cluding if the President determines that the admis- 22 sion of the alien would further important United 23 States law enforcement objectives. 24 (e) IMPLEMENTATION; PENALTIES.— 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 03:35 Jun 02, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1689.IS S1689 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 12 •S 1689 IS (1) IMPLEMENTATION.—The President may ex- 1 ercise all authorities provided under sections 203 2 and 205 of the International Emergency Economic 3 Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1702 and 1704) to carry out 4 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 (f) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 15 (1) ADMISSION; ADMITTED; ALIEN; LAWFULLY 16 ADMITTED FOR PERMANENT RESIDENCE; NA- 17 TIONAL.—The terms ‘‘admission’’, ‘‘admitted’’, 18 ‘‘alien’’, ‘‘lawfully admitted for permanent resi- 19 dence’’, and ‘‘national’’ have the meanings given 20 those terms in section 101 of the Immigration and 21 Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101). 22 (2) ENTITY.—The te [Text truncated for display. 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