United States–Caribbean Strategic Engagement Act of 2023

I 118TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 4015 To amend the United States-Caribbean Strategic Engagement Act of 2016 to require the submission of an updated multi-year strategy for United States engagement to support the efforts of interested nations in the Caribbean region. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES JUNE 12, 2023 Mr. CASTRO of Texas (for himself, Ms. SALAZAR, Mr. ESPAILLAT, Ms. KAMLAGER-DOVE, and Ms. CLARKE of New York) introduced the fol- lowing bill; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs A BILL To amend the United States-Caribbean Strategic Engage- ment Act of 2016 to require the submission of an up- dated multi-year strategy for United States engagement to support the efforts of interested nations in the Carib- bean region. 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 ‘‘United States–Carib- 4 bean Strategic Engagement Act of 2023’’. 5 VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:47 Jul 11, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4015.IH H4015 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 2 •HR 4015 IH SEC. 2. STATEMENT OF POLICY. 1 Section 2 of the United States-Caribbean Strategic 2 Engagement Act of 2016 (Public Law 114–291; 130 Stat. 3 1497) is amended— 4 (1) by redesignating paragraphs (6) through 5 (9) as paragraphs (15) through (18), respectively; 6 and 7 (2) by inserting after paragraph (5) the fol- 8 lowing: 9 ‘‘(6) reduce the flow of illicit United States fire- 10 arms to the Caribbean region and provide technical 11 support, training, and information-sharing to Carib- 12 bean security forces charged with monitoring mari- 13 time borders, including formal and informal ports of 14 entry; 15 ‘‘(7) enhance efforts to investigate and pros- 16 ecute the regional criminal organizations engaged in 17 the lottery scams that afflict United States citizens; 18 ‘‘(8) augment training, capacity-building, and 19 information-sharing with local law enforcement 20 agencies combating criminal gangs and transnational 21 criminal organizations threatening the security and 22 stability of partner nations; 23 ‘‘(9) improve energy security, resiliency, and 24 independence by working to finance increasing ac- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:47 Jul 11, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4015.IH H4015 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 3 •HR 4015 IH cess to diverse, reliable, secure, and affordable re- 1 newable power solutions; 2 ‘‘(10) support regional adaptation and resilience 3 to the climate-driven effects of severe weather events 4 and natural disasters; 5 ‘‘(11) advance cooperation on democracy and 6 human rights throughout the region and in multilat- 7 eral fora; 8 ‘‘(12) improve public health cooperation and in- 9 frastructure to mitigate health concerns and threats 10 to the Caribbean region, including increasing profes- 11 sional exchanges, medical education, and United 12 States exports of medical services, technology, and 13 pharmaceuticals to prepare for future pandemics 14 and health emergencies, expand the accessibility of 15 health services to marginalized populations, and re- 16 duce dependence on medical imports from malign ac- 17 tors in the region and elsewhere; 18 ‘‘(13) continue to support regional initiatives to 19 advance food security throughout the Caribbean; 20 ‘‘(14) expand internet access throughout the re- 21 gion, especially for marginalized communities, while 22 working cooperatively to enhance data privacy and 23 security; 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:47 Jul 11, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4015.IH H4015 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 4 •HR 4015 IH ‘‘(15) advance access to education and critical 1 skills for at-risk youth, women, and girls in the Car- 2 ibbean region;’’. 3 SEC. 3. REQUIREMENT TO SUBMIT UPDATED MULTI-YEAR 4 STRATEGY FOR UNITED STATES ENGAGE- 5 MENT TO SUPPORT THE EFFORTS OF INTER- 6 ESTED NATIONS IN THE CARIBBEAN REGION. 7 Section 3 of the United States-Caribbean Strategic 8 Engagement Act of 2016 (Public Law 114–291; 130 Stat. 9 1497) is amended— 10 (1) in the matter preceding paragraph (1)— 11 (A) by striking ‘‘this Act’’ and inserting 12 ‘‘the United States–Caribbean Strategic En- 13 gagement Act of 2023’’; and 14 (B) by striking ‘‘a multi-year strategy’’ 15 and inserting ‘‘an updated multi-year strategy’’; 16 and 17 (2) in paragraph (1), by inserting after ‘‘other 18 executive branch agencies’’ the following: ‘‘, includ- 19 ing the Department of Defense, the Department of 20 Justice, and the Department of the Treasury’’. 21 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 04:47 Jul 11, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\H4015.IH H4015 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS