119-hr1998

[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1998 Referred in Senate

    (RFS) ]

<DOC>
119th CONGRESS
 1st Session
 H. R. 1998

_______________________________________________________________________

 IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

 June 24, 2025

 Received; read twice and referred to theCommittee on Foreign Relations

_______________________________________________________________________

 AN ACT

To require the imposition of sanctions with respect to foreign persons 
 engaged in piracy, 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 ``Sanction Sea Pirates Act of 2025''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

 Congress finds the following:

    (1) In 2011, there were 212 attempted attacks against 
 vessels off of the Somali coast, more than 1,000 crew were held 
 hostage, and 35 seafarers were killed.

    (2) Over the past decade through the beginning of 2023, 
 rates of piracy in the Western Indian Ocean subsided.

    (3) Houthi attacks against commercial vessels in the Red 
 Sea and Gulf of Aden since the Hamas terrorist attack against 
 Israel on October 7th have impacted global shipping markets.

    (4) There has been a surge in Somali pirate attacks, 
 beginning in the fall of 2023 and lasting into 2024, that has 
 coincided with and taken advantage of Houthi aggression.

SEC. 3. SENSE OF CONGRESS.

 It is the sense of Congress that--

    (1) the United States Government should seek to stop piracy 
 all around the world, including off the Somali Coast and in the 
 Gulf of Aden; and

    (2) the United States should seek to work with allies and 
 partners around the globe to combat piracy around the globe and 
 to curb the surge in piracy off of the coast of Somalia and in 
 the Gulf of Aden.

SEC. 4. SANCTIONS.

    (a) In General.--The President shall impose sanctions described in 
subsection

    (b) with respect to any foreign person the President 
determines knowingly engages in piracy.

    (b) Sanctions Described.--The sanctions described in this 
subsection are the following:

    (1) Asset blocking.--Notwithstanding the requirements of 
 

section 202 of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act 
 (50 U.S.C. 1701), the President may exercise of all powers 
 granted to the President by that Act to the extent necessary to 
 block and prohibit all transactions in all 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.

    (2) Visas, admission, or parole.--
        (A) In general.--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, is described in subsection

    (a) is--
            (i) inadmissible to the United States;
            (ii) ineligible for 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 (8 U.S.C. 1101 et seq.).
        (B) 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 (8 U.S.C. 
 1201
            (i) ), revoke any visa or other entry 
 documentation issued to an alien described in 
 subparagraph
        (A) regardless of when the visa or 
 other entry documentation is issued.
            (ii) Effect of revocation.--A revocation 
 under clause
            (i) --
            (I) shall take effect immediately; 
 and
            (II) shall automatically cancel any 
 other valid visa or entry documentation 
 that is in the alien's possession.
            (c) Exceptions.--

    (1) Exception to comply with international obligations.--
 Sanctions under subsection

    (b)

    (2) shall not apply with respect 
 to the admission of 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.

    (2) Exception relating to the provision of humanitarian 
 assistance.--Sanctions under this section may not be imposed 
 with respect to transactions or the facilitation of 
 transactions for--
        (A) the sale of agricultural commodities, food, 
 medicine, or medical devices;
        (B) the provision of humanitarian assistance;
            (C) financial transactions relating to humanitarian 
 assistance; or
            (D) transporting goods or services that are 
 necessary to carry out operations relating to 
 humanitarian assistance.

    (3) Exception for intelligence, law enforcement, and 
 national security activities.--Sanctions under this section 
 shall not apply to any authorized intelligence, law 
 enforcement, or national security activities of the United 
 States.
            (d) Classified Information.--In any judicial review of a 
determination made under this section, if the determination was based 
on classified information (as defined in 

section 1

    (a) of the Classified 
Information Procedures Act) such information may be submitted to the 
reviewing court ex parte and in camera. This subsection may not be 
construed to confer or imply any right to judicial review.

    (e) Implementation; Penalties.--

    (1) Implementation.--The President may exercise all 
 authorities provided to the President under sections 203 and 
 205 of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (50 
 U.S.C. 1702 and 1704) to carry out this section.

    (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 regulations promulgated to carry out this 
 section to the same extent that such penalties apply to a 
 person that commits an unlawful act described in 

section 206

    (a) of that Act.

    (f) Waiver.--The President may waive the application of sanctions 
imposed with respect to a foreign person under this section if the 
President certifies to the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of 
Representatives and the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate 
not later than 15 days before such waiver is to take effect that the 
waiver is crucial to the national security interests of the United 
States.

    (g) Exception Relating to Importation of Goods.--

    (1) In general.--The authorities and requirements to impose 
 sanctions authorized under this section shall not include the 
 authority or requirement to impose sanctions on the importation 
 of goods.

    (2) Good defined.--In this subsection, the term ``good'' 
 means any article, natural or man-made substance, material, 
 supply or manufactured product, including inspection and test 
 equipment, and excluding technical data.

    (h) 

=== Definitions. ===
-In this section:

    (1) Foreign person.--The term ``foreign person'' means an 
 individual or entity that is not a United States person.

    (2) United states person.--The term ``United States 
 person'' means--
        (A) a United States citizen;
        (B) a permanent resident alien of the United 
 States; or
            (C) an entity organized under the laws of the 
 United States or of any jurisdiction within the United 
 States, including a foreign branch of such an entity.

    (3) Piracy.--The term ``piracy'' means any act in violation 
 of one or more provisions of chapter 81 of title 18, United 
 States Code.

 Passed the House of Representatives June 23, 2025.

 Attest:

 KEVIN F. MCCUMBER,

 Clerk.