[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 5557 Introduced in House (IH)]
<DOC>
117th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 5557
To impose sanctions with respect to foreign persons that engage in
certain transactions relating to Cuba and to impose sanctions with
respect to human rights abuse and corruption in Cuba, and for other
purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
October 12, 2021
Mr. Donalds (for himself, Mr. Diaz-Balart, Mr. Gimenez, Mr. Mooney, Ms.
Salazar, Mr. Babin, and Ms. Malliotakis) introduced the following bill;
which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs, and in addition
to the Committees on the Judiciary, and Rules, 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 committee
concerned
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To impose sanctions with respect to foreign persons that engage in
certain transactions relating to Cuba and to impose sanctions with
respect to human rights abuse and corruption in Cuba, and for other
purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Denying Earnings to the Military
Oligarchy in Cuba and Restricting Activities of the Cuban Intelligence
Apparatus Act'' or the ``DEMOCRACIA Act''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS; SENSE OF CONGRESS.
(a) Findings.--Congress finds the following:
(1) The Cuban Communist takeover of 1959 established in
Cuba a one-party authoritarian state of the Cuban Communist
Party.
(2) Cuba is a totalitarian state, in which the Cuban
Communist Party has brutally oppressed the people of Cuba for
more than 60 years.
(3) Cuban democracy activists, including Las Damas de
Blanco (also known as ``Ladies in White''), a group composed of
wives and relatives of political prisoners, prisoners of
conscience, and peaceful activists in Cuba, are routinely
repressed, censured, beaten, and unjustly imprisoned by the
Cuban Communist Party.
(4) On July 11, 2021, protesters marched in the streets
throughout Cuba voicing their opposition against the communist
regime of Cuba.
(5) During those protests, Cubans in more than 40 cities
throughout the entire island held demonstrations chanting
``Libertad!'', ``Abajo la Dictadura de Cuba'' (``Down with the
Dictatorship''), and ``Patria y Vida!'' (``Homeland and
Life'').
(6) Through those protests, the people of Cuba demanded the
end to communism in Cuba and access to food, medicine, water,
and electricity, basic needs that the communist system in Cuba
cannot provide.
(7) Cubans gathered outside of the headquarters of the
Cuban Communist Party chanting, ``Cuba isn't yours!''. In a
clear message, Cubans exercised their fundamental God-given
rights to peaceably assemble, express their political opinions,
and live free of censorship and oppression and demanded the
ruling elites, especially the Cuban Communist Party, give the
power back to the people.
(8) During the July 11, 2021, protests, the Cuban Communist
Party deployed a wave of terror throughout Cuba by--
(A) unleashing its secret police and some military
forces on peaceful protesters and unlawfully detained
them, including by--
(i) harassing and threatening people in
their homes;
(ii) abducting and torturing civil society
leaders and other Cubans peacefully exercising
their fundamental rights; and
(iii) detaining more than 800 Cubans for
peacefully protesting, who have gone missing
since the protests and demonstrations began,
including leaders from Cuban civil society
groups such as UNPACU, the San Isidro Movement,
the Ladies in White, and religious leaders; and
(B) in a crude and savage effort to silence the
Cuban people, cutting internet connectivity and mobile
services throughout Cuba, which prevented the Cuban
people from organizing and hid from the outside world
images and videos of the oppressive and brutal
crackdown.
(9) In response to these demonstrations and protests, the
regime blocked access to social media, messaging platforms and
cellular services, and arrested and detained hundreds of
protesters, activists, and journalists, according to Cuban
human rights groups.
(10) The Human Rights Report on Cuba for 2020 set forth by
the Department of State found that Cuba is an authoritarian
state.
(11) A new constitution ratified in February 2019 codified
that Cuba remains a one-party system in which the Cuban
Communist Party is the only legal political party. Elections in
Cuba were neither free, fair, nor competitive.
(12) The Ministry of Interior of Cuba (MININT) controls
police, internal security forces, and the prison system. The
National Revolutionary Police are the primary law enforcement
organization of the Ministry. Specialized units of the state
security branch of the Ministry are responsible for monitoring,
infiltrating, and suppressing independent political activity.
The national leadership of Cuba, including members of the
military, maintain effective control over the security forces.
Members of the security forces have committed numerous abuses.
(13) Significant human rights issues in Cuba perpetrated by
the Communist Party include the following:
(A) Unlawful or arbitrary killings, including
extrajudicial killings.
(B) Forced disappearances.
(C) Torture and cruel, inhuman, and degrading
treatment of political dissidents, detainees, and
prisoners by security forces.
(D) Harsh and life-threatening prison conditions.
(E) Arbitrary arrests and detentions.
(F) The detaining of political prisoners.
(G) Significant problems with the independence of
the judiciary.
(H) Arbitrary or unlawful interference with
privacy.
(I) Functional lack of freedom of the press, as
criminal libel laws are used against persons who
criticize the ruling Communist Party of Cuba and that
it has engaged in censorship and internet site
blocking.
(J) Severe limitations on academic and cultural
freedom.
(K) Severe restrictions on the right of peaceful
assembly and denial of freedom of association,
including refusal to recognize independent
associations.
(L) Severe restrictions on religious freedom.
(M) Restrictions on internal and external freedom
of movement.
(N) Inability of citizens to change their
government through free and fair elections.
(O) Restrictions on political participation to
members of the ruling party.
(P) Corruption within the ruling party, the
Communist Party of Cuba.
(Q) Trafficking in persons, including compulsory
labor.
(R) Outlawing of independent trade unions.
(14) Many within the high level operatives of the Communist
Party of Cuba, at the direction of their superiors, have
committed most human rights abuses. As a matter of policy,
superiors failed to investigate or prosecute the individuals
who committed those abuses. Impunity for the perpetrators has
remained widespread.
(15) The United States Commission on International
Religious Freedom (USCIRF) recommended in its 2021 Annual
Report that the United States Government again placed Cuba on
the special watch list under section 402(b)(1)(A)(iii) of the
International Religious Freedom Act of 1998 (22 U.S.C.
6442(b)(1)(A)(iii)) and recommended imposing sanctions on the
Office of Religious Affairs of Cuba.
(16) In the report specified in paragraph (15), the United
States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF)
raised concerns regarding the denial in Cuba of religious
freedom for human rights activists, independent journalists,
and protesters, particularly in the wake of demonstrations that
started on November 13, 2020, calling for greater freedom of
expression in Cuba.
(17) Cuba is ground zero for a series of international and
yet unexplained attacks that commenced in 2016 on members of
the United States and Canadian diplomatic community.
(18) Cuba continues to provide safe harbor for adversaries
of the United States, including multiple fugitives from justice
in the United States, including William Morales, Charles Hill,
Victor Manuel Gerena, and Joanne Chesimard, who executed New
Jersey State Trooper Werner Foerster during a routine traffic
stop in May 1973.
(19) The Trade Sanctions Reform and Export Enhancement Act
(TSRA) of 2000 (22 U.S.C. 7201 et seq.) prohibits the President
from imposing unilateral agricultural or medical sanctions
against Cuba.
(20) The defense, security, and intelligence sectors of
Cuba are the primary perpetrators of beatings, arrests,
detainments, and unjust imprisonments of the Cuban people.
(21) The Cuban Communist Party has a long history of
racism.
(22) Many Cubans who suffered the worst treatment at the
hands of the security forces of the Cuban Communist Party are
Afro-Cuban, such as Dr. Oscar Elias Biscet, Jorge Luis Garcia
Perez, Berta Soler, Guillermo Farinas, Orlando Zapata Tamayo,
Luis Manuel Otero Alcantara, and Ivan Hernandez Carrillo.
(23) On January 12, 2021, the Department of State
determined that Cuba has repeatedly provided support for acts
of international terrorism and was designated a state sponsor
of terrorism.
(24) On May 14, 2021, Secretary of State Antony Blinken
determined and certified to Congress that Cuba is not
cooperating fully with United States antiterrorism efforts.
(25) The Cuban Communist Party continues to support
international terrorist groups such as the Revolutionary Armed
Forces of Colombia (FARC) and the National Liberation Army
(ELN).
(26) Commercial engagement with the defense, security, and
intelligence sectors of Cuba empowers the human rights abuses,
racism against Afro-Cubans, and support for international
terrorism by the Cuban Communist Party.
(b) Sense of Congress.--It is the sense of Congress that Congress--
(1) reaffirms subsection (a) of section 1704 of the Cuban
Democracy Act of 1992 (CDA) (22 U.S.C. 6003), which states that
the President should encourage foreign countries to restrict
trade and credit relations with Cuba in a manner consistent
with the purposes of that Act; and
(2) urges the President to take immediate steps to apply
the sanctions described in subsection (b)(1) of that section
with respect to countries assisting Cuba.
SEC. 3. STATEMENT OF POLICY.
It shall be the policy of the United States--
(1) to support the desire of the people of Cuba for freedom
and democracy; and
(2) to work with allies and the international community to
seek to restrict and reduce the financial resources of the
Cuban dictatorship, which supports terrorism and perpetrates
injustice and human rights abuses against the Cuban people,
that being the Cuban military, security, and intelligence
sectors.
SEC. 4. IMPOSITION OF SANCTIONS WITH RESPECT TO FOREIGN PERSONS THAT
ENGAGE IN CERTAIN TRANSACTIONS RELATING TO CUBA.
(a) Imposition of Sanctions.--
(1) In general.--The President shall impose the sanctions
described in subsection (b) with respect to a foreign person if
the President determines that the foreign person, on or after
the date of the enactment of this Act, knowingly engages in an
activity described in paragraph (2).
(2) Activities described.--Except as provided in paragraph
(3), a foreign person engages in an activity described in this
paragraph if the foreign person provides financial, material,
or technological support to, or engages in a transaction with--
(A) a covered sector of the Government of Cuba, or
any entity or individual affiliated with such sector
(including an immediate adult family member of such
individual);
(B) an agency, instrumentality, or other entity
owned by an entity that is part of or associated with a
covered sector, entity, or individual described in
subparagraph (A) in a percentage share exceeding 25
percent;
(C) an individual who is a senior official of a
covered sector or entity described in subparagraph (A)
(including an immediate adult family member of such
individual);
(D) an agency, instrumentality, or other entity
operated or controlled by a covered sector, entity, or
individual described in subparagraph (A);
(E) an entity or individual--
(i) for the purpose of avoiding a financial
transaction with, or the transfer of funds to,
an entity or individual specified in any of
subparagraphs (A) through (D); or
(ii) for the benefit of an entity or
individual specified in any of subparagraphs
(A) through (D);
(F) a foreign person that is a military contractor,
mercenary, or a paramilitary force knowingly operating
in a military, security, or intelligence capacity for
or on behalf of the Government of Cuba; or
(G) a foreign person subject to sanctions pursuant
to the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (50
U.S.C. 1701 et seq.) (IEEPA) or the Trading with the
Enemy Act (50 U.S.C. 4301 et seq.) with respect to Cuba
or any other provision of law that imposes sanctions or
other economic restrictions or limitations with respect
to Cuba.
(3) Exceptions.--The following activities engaged in by a
foreign person shall not be considered to be activities
described in paragraph (2) for purposes of imposing sanctions
described in subsection (b) with respect to the person:
(A) The sale of agricultural commodities,
medicines, and medical devices sold to Cuba consistent
with the Trade Sanctions Reform and Export Enhancement
Act of 2000 (TSRA) (22 U.S.C. 7201 et seq.).
(B) A remittance to an immediate family member,
other than--
(i) an individual who is a high-level
member of the Cuban Communist Party; or
(ii) an individual who is an immediate
family member of an individual described in
clause (i).
(C) A payment in furtherance of the lease agreement
for, or other financial transactions necessary for
maintenance and improvements of, the military base at
Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, including any adjacent areas
under the control or possession of the United States.
(D) Assistance or support in furtherance of
democracy-building efforts for Cuba described in
section 109 of the Cuban Liberty and Democratic
Solidarity (LIBERTAD) Act of 1996 (22 U.S.C. 6039).
(E) Customary and routine financial transactions
necessary for the maintenance, improvements, or regular
duties of the United States Embassy in Havana, Cuba,
including outreach to the pro-democracy opposition.
(F) Accessing the internet or providing cellular
services if the internet and cellular services have
been restored, are without interference from the Cuban
regime, and do not include any technology, services, or
communications backed by the Communist Party of the
People's Republic of China.
(4) Sense of congress.--It is the sense of Congress that
the President should, in making a determination of whether a
foreign person engages in an activity described in paragraph
(2), consider the provision of loans, credits, or export
credits by the person to be a form of significant financial,
material, or technological support as described in such
paragraph.
(5) Covered sector defined.--In this subsection, the term
``covered sector'' means--
(A) the defense sector;
(B) the security sector;
(C) the intelligence sector; or
(D) any other sector of the Government of Cuba
beginning 15 days after the date on which the President
certifies to Congress that such sector is involved in
carrying out human rights abuses or providing support
for international terrorism.
(b) Sanctions Described.--
(1) In general.--The sanctions to be imposed with respect
to a foreign person subject to subsection (a) are the
following:
(A) Blocking of property.--The President shall
exercise all of the powers granted to the President
under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act
(IEEPA) (50 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.) and the Trading with
the Enemy Act (50 U.S.C. 4301 et seq.) to the extent
necessary to block and prohibit all transactions in
property and interests in property of the foreign
person if such property and interests in property are
in the United States, come within the United States, or
are or come within the possession or control of a
United States person.
(B) Aliens ineligible for visas, admission, or
parole.--
(i) Visas, admission, or parole.--An alien
who the Secretary of State or the Secretary of
Homeland Security (or a designee of one of such
Secretaries) knows, or has reason to believe,
has knowingly engaged in any activity described
in subsection (a)(2) is--
(I) inadmissible to the United
States;
(II) ineligible to receive a visa
or other documentation to enter the
United States; and
(III) otherwise ineligible to be
admitted or paroled into the United
States or to receive any other benefit
under the Immigration and Nationality
Act (INA) (8 U.S.C. 1101 et seq.).
(ii) Current visas revoked.--
(I) In general.--The issuing
consular officer, the Secretary of
State, or the Secretary of Homeland
Security (or a designee of one of such
Secretaries) shall, in accordance with
section 221(i) of the Immigration and
Nationality Act (INA) (8 U.S.C.
1201(i)), revoke any visa or other
entry documentation issued to an alien
described in clause (i) regardless of
when the visa or other entry
documentation is issued.
(II) Effect of revocation.--A
revocation under subclause (I)--
(aa) shall take effect
immediately; and
(bb) shall automatically
cancel any other valid visa or
entry documentation that is in
the alien's possession.
(2) Penalties.--The penalties provided for in subsections
(b) and (c) of section 206 of the International Emergency
Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) (50 U.S.C. 1705) shall apply to a
person that violates, attempts to violate, conspires to
violate, or causes a violation of any regulation, license, or
order issued to carry out paragraph (1)(A) to the same extent
that such penalties apply to a person that commits an unlawful
act described in subsection (a) of that section.
(3) Exception to comply with international obligations.--
Sanctions under paragraph (1)(B) shall not apply with respect
to an alien if admitting or paroling the alien into the United
States is necessary to permit the United States to comply with
the Agreement regarding the Headquarters of the United Nations,
signed at Lake Success June 26, 1947, and entered into force
November 21, 1947, between the United Nations and the United
States, or other applicable international obligations.
(c) Implementation.--The President shall exercise all authorities
under sections 203 and 205 of the International Emergency Economic
Powers Act (IEEPA) (50 U.S.C. 1702 and 1704) to carry out this section,
except that the President--
(1) shall not issue any general license authorizing, or
otherwise authorize, any activity subject to sanctions under
subsection (a); and
(2) shall require any United States person seeking to
engage in a financial transaction or transfer of funds subject
to sanctions under subsection (a) to submit a written request
to the Office of Foreign Assets Control of the Department of
the Treasury.
(d) Waiver.--The President may waive the application of sanctions
described in subsection (b) with respect to a foreign person for a
period of 180 days (and such waiver may not be renewed) if the
President determines and certifies to Congress that such waiver is in
the vital national security interest of the United States.
(e) Definitions.--In this section:
(1) Admitted; alien.--The terms ``admitted'' and ``alien''
have the meanings given those terms in section 101 of the
Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) (8 U.S.C. 1101).
(2) Entity.--The term ``entity'' means a partnership,
association, trust, joint venture, corporation, group,
subgroup, or other organization.
(3) Foreign person.--The term ``foreign person'' means a
person that is not a United States person.
(4) Person.--The term ``person'' means an individual or
entity.
(5) United states person.--the term ``United States
person'' means--
(A) a United States citizen or an alien lawfully
admitted to the United States for permanent residence;
(B) an entity organized under the laws of the
United States or any jurisdiction within the United
States (including any foreign branch of such an
entity); and
(C) any person in the United States.
SEC. 5. IMPOSITION OF SANCTIONS WITH RESPECT TO HUMAN RIGHTS ABUSE AND
CORRUPTION IN CUBA.
(a) In General.--The President shall impose the sanctions described
in subsection (b) with respect to the following persons:
(1) Any foreign person determined by the Secretary of the
Treasury, in consultation with the Secretary of State and the
Attorney General--
(A) to be responsible for or complicit in, or to
have directly or indirectly engaged in, serious human
rights abuse in Cuba;
(B) to be a current or former official of the
Government of Cuba, or a person acting for or on behalf
of such an official, who is responsible for or
complicit in, or has directly or indirectly engaged
in--
(i) corruption, including the
misappropriation of state assets, the
expropriation of private assets for personal
gain, corruption related to government
contracts or the extraction of natural
resources, or bribery; or
(ii) the transfer or the facilitation of
the transfer of the proceeds of corruption; or
(C) to be or have been a leader or official of--
(i) an entity, including a government
entity, that has engaged in, or whose members
have engaged in, any of the activities
described in subparagraph (A) or (B) relating
to the tenure of the leader or official; or
(ii) an entity whose property and interests
in property are blocked under subsection (b)(1)
as a result of activities related to the tenure
of the leader or official;
(D) to have materially assisted, sponsored, or
provided financial, material, or technological support
for, or goods or services to or in support of--
(i) any activity described in subparagraph
(A) or (B) that is conducted by a foreign
person;
(ii) any person whose property and
interests in property are blocked under
subsection (b)(1); or
(iii) any entity, including a government
entity, that has engaged in, or whose members
have engaged in, any of the activities
described in subparagraph (A) or (B) of
paragraph (1), if the activity is conducted by
a foreign person;
(E) to have received any contribution or provision
of funds, goods, or services from any person whose
property and interests in property are blocked under
subsection (b)(1);
(F) to be owned or controlled by, or to have acted
or purported to act for or on behalf of, directly or
indirectly, any person whose property and interests in
property are blocked under subsection (b)(1);
(G) to be under the control of, or to act for or on
behalf of, the military, intelligence, or security
services or personnel of Cuba;
(H) to be an official of the Government of Cuba who
works with the Ministry of Justice or the Office of the
Attorney General and who violates due process rights of
an individual in Cuba; or
(I) to have attempted to engage in any of the
activities described in subparagraph (A) or (B).
(2) Members of the Communist Party of Cuba, including--
(A) members of the Politburo;
(B) members, department heads, and employees of the
Central Committee;
(C) secretaries and first secretaries of the
provincial party central committees; and
(D) members of the Office of Religious Affairs;
(3) members of the Council of State;
(4) members of the Council of Ministers;
(5) members of the Committees for the Defense of the
Revolution;
(6) the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Cuba;
(7) the Ministry of the Interior of Cuba, including the
National Revolutionary Police Force;
(8) the Office of the President of Cuba; and
(9) the spouse and children of any individual subject to
sanctions under this section.
(b) Sanctions Described.--
(1) In general.--The sanctions to be imposed with respect
to a foreign person subject to subsection (a) are the
following:
(A) Blocking of property.--The President shall
exercise all of the powers granted to the President
under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act
(IEEPA) (50 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.) to the extent
necessary to block and prohibit all transactions in
property and interests in property of the foreign
person if such property and interests in property are
in the United States, come within the United States, or
are or come within the possession or control of a
United States person.
(B) Aliens ineligible for visas, admission, or
parole.--
(i) Visas, admission, or parole.--An alien
who the Secretary of State or the Secretary of
Homeland Security (or a designee of one of such
Secretaries) knows, or has reason to believe,
has knowingly engaged in any activity described
in subsection (a)(2) is--
(I) inadmissible to the United
States;
(II) ineligible to receive a visa
or other documentation to enter the
United States; and
(III) otherwise ineligible to be
admitted or paroled into the United
States or to receive any other benefit
under the Immigration and Nationality
Act (INA) (8 U.S.C. 1101 et seq.).
(ii) Current visas revoked.--
(I) In general.--The issuing
consular officer, the Secretary of
State, or the Secretary of Homeland
Security (or a designee of one of such
Secretaries) shall, in accordance with
section 221(i) of the Immigration and
Nationality Act (INA) (8 U.S.C.
1201(i)), revoke any visa or other
entry documentation issued to an alien
described in clause (i) regardless of
when the visa or other entry
documentation is issued.
(II) Effect of revocation.--A
revocation under subclause (I)--
(aa) shall take effect
immediately; and
(bb) shall automatically
cancel any other valid visa or
entry documentation that is in
the alien's possession.
(2) Penalties.--The penalties provided for in subsections
(b) and (c) of section 206 of the International Emergency
Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1705) shall apply to a person
that violates, attempts to violate, conspires to violate, or
causes a violation of any regulation, license, or order issued
to carry out paragraph (1)(A) to the same extent that such
penalties apply to a person that commits an unlawful act
described in subsection (a) of that section.
(3) Exception to comply with international obligations.--
Sanctions under paragraph (1)(B) shall not apply with respect
to an alien if admitting or paroling the alien into the United
States is necessary to permit the United States to comply with
the Agreement regarding the Headquarters of the United Nations,
signed at Lake Success June 26, 1947, and entered into force
November 21, 1947, between the United Nations and the United
States, or other applicable international obligations.
(c) Implementation.--The President shall exercise all authorities
under sections 203 and 205 of the International Emergency Economic
Powers Act (IEEPA) (50 U.S.C. 1702 and 1704) to carry out this section,
except that the President--
(1) shall not issue any general license authorizing, or
otherwise authorize, any activity subject to sanctions under
subsection (a); and
(2) shall require any United States person seeking to
engage in a financial transaction or transfer of funds subject
to sanctions under subsection (a) to submit a written request
to the Office of Foreign Assets Control of the Department of
the Treasury.
(d) Humanitarian Exception.--The President may not impose sanctions
under this section with respect to any person for--
(1) donating food or agricultural commodities to--
(A) an independent, nongovernmental organization
not controlled by the Government of Cuba; or
(B) individuals in Cuba who are not high-level
members of the Communist Party of Cuba or the immediate
family member of any such individual; or
(2) exporting medicines or medical supplies, instruments,
or equipment that would be permitted under section 1705(c) of
the Cuban Democracy Act of 1992 (CDA) (22 U.S.C. 6004(c)).
(e) Waiver.--The President may waive the application of sanctions
under this section with respect to a person if the President determines
that such a waiver is in the national security interests of the United
States.
(f) No Prior Notice.--The President, the Secretary of the Treasury,
the Secretary of State, and the Attorney General, and any other
official of the United States Government are not required to provide
any prior notice of a determination made under subsection (a) or of any
other determination to impose sanctions under this section.
(g) Definitions.--In this section:
(1) Admitted; alien.--The terms ``admitted'' and ``alien''
have the meanings given those terms in section 101 of the
Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) (8 U.S.C. 1101).
(2) Entity.--The term ``entity'' means a partnership,
association, trust, joint venture, corporation, group,
subgroup, or other organization.
(3) Foreign person.--The term ``foreign person'' means a
person that is not a United States person.
(4) Person.--The term ``person'' means an individual or
entity.
(5) United states person.--the term ``United States
person'' means--
(A) a United States citizen or an alien lawfully
admitted to the United States for permanent residence;
(B) an entity organized under the laws of the
United States or any jurisdiction within the United
States (including any foreign branch of such an
entity); and
(C) any person in the United States.
SEC. 6. TERMINATION OF SANCTIONS.
(a) In General.--The authority to impose sanctions under sections 4
and 5 shall terminate if--
(1) the President submits to Congress a determination and
certification that the Government of Cuba--
(A) has legalized all political activity;
(B) has released all political prisoners and
allowed for investigations of Cuban prisons by
appropriate international human rights organizations;
(C) has dissolved the Department of State Security
in the Cuban Ministry of the Interior in place as of
the date of the enactment of this Act, including the
Committees for the Defense of the Revolution and the
Rapid Response Brigades;
(D) has made public commitments to organizing free
and fair elections for a new government--
(i) to be held in a timely manner within a
period not to exceed 18 months after such
certification;
(ii) with the participation of multiple
independent political parties that have full
access to the media on an equal basis,
including (in the case of radio, television, or
other telecommunications media) in terms of
allotments of time for such access and the
times of day such allotments are given; and
(iii) to be conducted under the supervision
of reputable internationally recognized
observers, such as the Organization of American
States, the United Nations, and other election
monitors;
(E) has ceased any interference with Radio Marti or
Television Marti broadcasts;
(F) has made public commitments to and is making
demonstrable progress in--
(i) establishing an independent judiciary;
(ii) respecting internationally recognized
human rights and basic freedoms as set forth in
the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, to
which Cuba is a signatory nation; and
(iii) allowing the establishment of
independent trade unions as set forth in
conventions 87 and 98 of the International
Labor Organization, and allowing the
establishment of independent social, economic,
and political associations;
(G) does not include Raul Castro or his immediate
family;
(H) has given adequate assurances that it will
allow the speedy and efficient distribution of
assistance to the people of Cuba;
(I) is demonstrably in transition from a communist
totalitarian dictatorship to a representative
democracy;
(J) has made public commitments to and is making
demonstrable progress in--
(i) effectively guaranteeing the rights of
free speech and freedom of the press, including
granting permits to privately owned media and
telecommunications companies to operate in
Cuba;
(ii) permitting the reinstatement of
citizenship to Cuban-born persons returning to
Cuba;
(iii) assuring the right to private
property; and
(iv) taking appropriate steps to return to
United States citizens, and entities that are
50 percent or more beneficially owned by United
States citizens, property taken by the
Government of Cuba from such citizens and
entities on or after January 1, 1959, or to
provide equitable compensation to such citizens
and entities for such property;
(K) has extradited or otherwise rendered to the
United States all persons sought by the Department of
Justice of the United States for crimes committed in
the United States; and
(L) has permitted the deployment throughout Cuba of
independent and unfettered international human rights
monitors; and
(2) a joint resolution approving the determination and
certification of the President submitted under paragraph (1) is
enacted into law in accordance with the procedures described in
subsection (b).
(b) Congressional Procedures.--
(1) Referral to committees.--Joint resolutions described in
subsection (a)(2) that are introduced in the House of
Representatives shall be referred to the Committee on Foreign
Affairs and joint resolutions described in subsection (a)(2)
that are introduced in the Senate shall be referred to the
Committee on Foreign Relations.
(2) Procedures.--
(A) Senate.--Any joint resolution described in
subsection (a)(2) shall be considered in the Senate in
accordance with the provisions of section 601(b) of the
International Security Assistance and Arms Export
Control Act of 1976 (Public Law 94-329; 90 Stat. 765).
(B) House of representatives.--For the purpose of
expediting the consideration and enactment of a joint
resolution described in subsection (a)(2), a motion to
proceed to the consideration of any such joint
resolution after it has been reported by the
appropriate committee shall be treated as highly
privileged in the House of Representatives.
(C) Limitation.--Not more than one joint resolution
described in subsection (a)(2) may be considered in the
House of Representatives and the Senate during the 6-
month period beginning on the date on which the
President submits to Congress a determination and
certification under subsection (a)(1).
SEC. 7. PROVISION OF UNRESTRICTED INTERNET SERVICE FOR THE PEOPLE OF
CUBA.
(a) In General.--Effective immediately upon the date of the
enactment of this Act, the President shall use all means possible to
provide unrestricted, reliable internet service to the people of Cuba
that is not censored, blocked, or otherwise restricted by the
Government of Cuba and does not include any technology, services, or
communications backed by the Communist Party of the People's Republic
of China.
(b) Notification.--The President shall notify the appropriate
committees of Congress once an internet connection has been established
to provide unrestricted, reliable internet service under subsection
(a).
(c) Interagency Task Force.--
(1) Establishment.--Not later than 90 days after the date
of the enactment of this Act, the President shall establish an
interagency task force to develop a long-term solution for
providing reliable internet service to the people of Cuba that
is not censored or blocked by the Government of Cuba.
(2) Report.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the
enactment of this Act, the interagency task force established
under paragraph (1) shall submit to the President and the
appropriate committees of Congress a report that outlines the
best long-term solutions of the interagency task force for
providing reliable internet service to the people of Cuba that
is not censored, blocked, or otherwise restricted by the
Government of Cuba.
(d) Appropriate Committees of Congress.--In this section, the term
``appropriate committees of Congress'' means--
(1) the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental
Affairs, the Committee on Foreign Relations, and the Select
Committee on Intelligence of the Senate; and
(2) the Committee on Homeland Security, the Committee on
Foreign Affairs, and the Permanent Select Committee on
Intelligence of the House of Representatives.
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