A bill to authorize the Secretary of State to pay a reward to combat transnational organized crime and for information concerning foreign nationals wanted by international criminal tribunals, and for other purposes.

Summary: Department of State Rewards Program Update and Technical Corrections Act of 2012 - (Sec. 2) Expresses the sense of Congress that the Department of State rewards program should be expanded to: (1) address the threat to U.S. interests from transnational criminal activity, such as intellectual property rights piracy, money laundering, trafficking in persons, arms trafficking, and cyber crime; and (2) target individuals indicted by international, hybrid, or mixed tribunals for genocide, war crimes, or crimes against humanity.

(Sec. 3) Amends the State Department Basic Authorities Act of 1956 to include in the program's purpose the prevention of acts of transnational organized crime and violations of international humanitarian law.

Authorizes the Secretary of State to issue rewards for information leading to: (1) the arrest or conviction in any country of any individual for participating in, primarily outside the United States, transnational organized crime; (2) the arrest or conviction in any country of any individual conspiring to participate in or attempting to participate in transnational organized crime; or (3) the arrest or conviction in any country, or the transfer to or conviction by an international criminal tribunal, of any foreign national accused of war crimes, crimes against humanity, or genocide.

Directs the Secretary to notify Congress at least 15 days before announcing a reward for a foreign national accused of war crimes, crimes against humanity, or genocide.

(Sec. 4) Eliminates program references to the reward for the capture or death of Osama bin Laden.

(Sec. 5) States that nothing in this Act shall be construed as authorizing the use of activity precluded under the American Servicemembers' Protection Act of 2002.

(Sec. 6) States that the Secretary shall use amounts available to the Department's Emergencies in the Diplomatic and Consular Services account to pay rewards authorized pursuant to this Act and to carry out other related activities.

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
    This Act may be cited as the ``Department of State Rewards Program 
Update and Technical Corrections Act of 2012''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS; SENSE OF CONGRESS.
    (a) Findings.--Congress makes the following findings:
        (1) The Department of State's existing rewards programs permit 
    the payment of reward for information leading to the arrest or 
    conviction of--
            (A) individuals who have committed, or attempted or 
        conspired to commit, certain acts of international terrorism;
            (B) individuals who have committed, or attempted or 
        conspired to commit, certain narcotics-related offenses; and
            (C) individuals who have been indicted by certain 
        international criminal tribunals.
        (2) The Department of State considers the rewards program to be 
    ``one of the most valuable assets the U.S. Government has in the 
    fight against international terrorism''. Since the program's 
    inception in 1984, the United States Government has rewarded over 
    60 people who provided actionable information that, according to 
    the Department of State, prevented international terrorist attacks 
    or helped convict individuals involved in terrorist attacks.
        (3) The program has been credited with providing information in 
    several high-profile cases, including the arrest of Ramzi Yousef, 
    who was convicted in the 1993 bombing of the World Trade Center, 
    the deaths of Uday and Qusay Hussein, who United States military 
    forces located and killed in Iraq after receiving information about 
    their locations, and the arrests or deaths of several members of 
    the Abu Sayyaf group, believed to be responsible for the 
    kidnappings and deaths of United States citizens and Filipinos in 
    the Philippines.
    (b) Sense of Congress.--It is the sense of Congress that the 
rewards program of the Department of State should be expanded in order 
to--
        (1) address the growing threat to important United States 
    interests from transnational criminal activity, such as 
    intellectual property rights piracy, money laundering, trafficking 
    in persons, arms trafficking, and cybercrime; and
        (2) target other individuals indicted by international, hybrid, 
    or mixed tribunals for genocide, war crimes, or crimes against 
    humanity.
SEC. 3. ENHANCED REWARDS AUTHORITY.
    Section 36 of the State Department Basic Authorities Act of 1956 
(22 U.S.C. 2708) is amended--
        (1) in subsection (a)(2), by inserting ``serious violations of 
    international humanitarian law, transnational organized crime,'' 
    after ``international narcotics trafficking,'';
        (2) in subsection (b)--
            (A) in the matter preceding paragraph (1), by striking 
        ``Attorney General'' and inserting ``heads of other relevant 
        departments or agencies'';
            (B) in paragraphs (4) and (5), by striking ``paragraph (1), 
        (2), or (3)'' both places it appears and inserting ``paragraph 
        (1), (2), (3), (8), or (9)'';
            (C) in paragraph (6)--
                (i) by inserting ``or transnational organized crime 
            group'' after ``terrorist organization''; and
                (ii) by striking ``or'' at the end;
            (D) in paragraph (7)--
                (i) in the matter preceding subparagraph (A), by 
            striking ``, including the use by the organization of 
            illicit narcotics production or international narcotics 
            trafficking'' and inserting ``or transnational organized 
            crime group, including the use by such organization or 
            group of illicit narcotics production or international 
            narcotics trafficking'';
                (ii) in subparagraph (A), by inserting ``or 
            transnational organized crime'' after ``international 
            terrorism''; and
                (iii) in subparagraph (B)--

                    (I) by inserting ``or transnational organized crime 
                group'' after ``terrorist organization''; and
                    (II) by striking the period at the end and 
                inserting a semicolon; and

            (E) by adding at the end the following new paragraphs:
        ``(8) the arrest or conviction in any country of any individual 
    for participating in, primarily outside the United States, 
    transnational organized crime;
        ``(9) the arrest or conviction in any country of any individual 
    conspiring to participate in or attempting to participate in 
    transnational organized crime; or
        ``(10) the arrest or conviction in any country, or the transfer 
    to or conviction by an international criminal tribunal (including a 
    hybrid or mixed tribunal), of any foreign national accused of war 
    crimes, crimes against humanity, or genocide, as defined under the 
    statute of such tribunal.'';
        (3) in subsection (g), by adding at the end the following new 
    paragraph:
        ``(3) Advance notification for international criminal tribunal 
    rewards.--Not less than 15 days before publicly announcing that a 
    reward may be offered for a particular foreign national accused of 
    war crimes, crimes against humanity, or genocide, the Secretary of 
    State shall submit to the appropriate congressional committees a 
    report, which may be submitted in classified form if necessary, 
    setting forth the reasons why the arrest or conviction of such 
    foreign national is in the national interests of the United 
    States.''; and
        (4) in subsection (k)--
            (A) by redesignating paragraphs (5) and (6) as paragraphs 
        (7) and (8), respectively; and
            (B) by inserting after paragraph (4) the following new 
        paragraphs:
        ``(5) Transnational organized crime.--The term `transnational 
    organized crime' means--
            ``(A) racketeering activity (as such term is defined in 
        section 1961 of title 18, United States Code) that involves at 
        least one jurisdiction outside the United States; or
            ``(B) any other criminal offense punishable by a term of 
        imprisonment of at least four years under Federal, State, or 
        local law that involves at least one jurisdiction outside the 
        United States and that is intended to obtain, directly or 
        indirectly, a financial or other material benefit.
        ``(6) Transnational organized crime group.--The term 
    `transnational organized crime group' means a group of persons that 
    includes one or more citizens of a foreign country, exists for a 
    period of time, and acts in concert with the aim of engaging in 
    transnational organized crime.''.
SEC. 4. TECHNICAL CORRECTION.
    Section 36(e)(1) of the State Department Basic Authorities Act of 
1956 (22 U.S.C. 2708) is amended by striking ``The Secretary shall 
authorize a reward of $50,000,000 for the capture or death or 
information leading to the capture or death of Osama bin Laden.''.
SEC. 5. RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.
    Nothing in this Act or the amendments made by this Act shall be 
construed as authorizing the use of activity precluded under the 
American Servicemembers' Protection Act of 2002 (title II of Public Law 
107-206; 22 U.S.C. 7421 et seq.).
SEC. 6. FUNDING.
    The Secretary of State shall use amounts appropriated or otherwise 
made available to the Emergencies in the Diplomatic and Consular 
Services account of the Department of State to pay rewards authorized 
pursuant to this Act and to carry out other activities related to such 
rewards authorized under section 36 of the State Department Basic 
Authorities Act (22 U.S.C. 2708).

                               Speaker of the House of Representatives.

                            Vice President of the United States and    
                                               President of the Senate.