II 

117TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 5156 

To amend the Justice for United States Victims of State Sponsored Terrorism 

Act to authorize appropriations for catch-up payments from the United 

States Victims of State Sponsored Terrorism Fund, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

NOVEMBER 30 (legislative day, NOVEMBER 29), 2022 

Mr. COTTON (for himself and Mr. SULLIVAN) introduced the following bill; 

which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs 

A BILL 

To amend the Justice for United States Victims of State 

Sponsored Terrorism Act to authorize appropriations for 

catch-up payments from the United States Victims of 

State Sponsored Terrorism Fund, and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Fairness for American 

5 Victims of State-Sponsored Terrorism Act’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. JUSTICE FOR UNITED STATES VICTIMS OF STATE 

2 SPONSORED TERRORISM ACT. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 404 of the Justice for 

4 United States Victims of State Sponsored Terrorism Act 

5 (34 U.S.C. 20144) is amended— 

6 (1) in subsection (b)— 

7 (A) in paragraph (1)(B), in the first sen8 tence, by inserting ‘‘and during the 1-year pe9 riod beginning on the date of enactment of the 

10 Fairness for American Victims of State-Spon11 sored Terrorism Act, the Special Master may 

12 utilize an additional 5 full-time equivalent De13 partment of Justice personnel’’ before the pe14 riod at the end; and 

15 (B) in paragraph (2)(A), by inserting ‘‘Not 

16 later than 30 days after the date of enactment 

17 of the Fairness for American Victims of State18 Sponsored Terrorism Act, the Special Master 

19 shall update, as necessary as a result of the en20 actment of such Act, such procedures and other 

21 guidance previously issued by the Special Mas22 ter.’’ after the period at the end of the second 

23 sentence; 

24 (2) in subsection (c)(3)(A), by striking clause 

25 (ii) and inserting the following: 


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1 ‘‘(ii) Not later than 90 days after the 

2 date of obtaining a final judgment, with 

3 regard to a final judgment obtained on or 

4 after the date of that publication, unless— 

5 ‘‘(I) the final judgment was 

6 awarded to a 9/11 victim, 9/11 

7 spouse, or 9/11 dependent before the 

8 date of enactment of the United 

9 States Victims of State Sponsored 

10 Terrorism Fund Clarification Act, in 

11 which case such United States person 

12 shall have 90 days from the date of 

13 enactment of such Act to submit an 

14 application for payment; or 

15 ‘‘(II) the final judgment was 

16 awarded to a 1983 Beirut barracks 

17 bombing victim before the date of en18 actment of the Fairness for American 

19 Victims of State-Sponsored Terrorism 

20 Act, in which case such United States 

21 person shall have 180 days from the 

22 date of enactment of such Act to sub23 mit an application for payment.’’; 

24 (3) in subsection (d)(4)— 


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1 (A) in subparagraph (A), by striking ‘‘(B) 

2 and (C)’’ and inserting ‘‘(B), (C), and (D)’’; 

3 (B) in subparagraph (C), by adding at the 

4 end the following: 

5 ‘‘(iv) AUTHORIZATION.— 

6 ‘‘(I) IN GENERAL.—The Special 

7 Master shall authorize lump sum 

8 catch-up payments in amounts equal 

9 to the amounts described in sub10 clauses (I), (II), and (III) of clause 

11 (iii). 

12 ‘‘(II) APPROPRIATIONS.— 

13 ‘‘(aa) IN GENERAL.—There 

14 are authorized to be appropriated 

15 and there are appropriated to the 

16 Fund such sums as are necessary 

17 to carry out this clause, to re18 main available until expended. 

19 ‘‘(bb) LIMITATION.— 

20 Amounts appropriated pursuant 

21 to item (aa) may not be used for 

22 a purpose other than to make 

23 lump sum catch-up payments 

24 under this clause.’’; and 

25 (C) by adding at the end the following: 


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1 ‘‘(D) LUMP SUM CATCH-UP PAYMENTS FOR

2 BEIRUT BARRACKS BOMBING VICTIMS, SPOUSES, 

3 AND DEPENDENTS.— 

4 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 

5 year after the enactment of the Fairness 

6 for American Victims of State-Sponsored 

7 Terrorism Act, and in accordance with 

8 clauses (i) and (ii) of subsection (d)(3)(A), 

9 the Comptroller General of the United 

10 States shall conduct an audit and publish 

11 in the Federal Register a notice of pro12 posed lump sum catch-up payments to the 

13 1983 Beirut barracks bombing victims who 

14 have submitted applications in accordance 

15 with subsection (c)(3)(A)(ii)(II) in 

16 amounts that, after receiving the lump 

17 sum catch-up payments, would result in 

18 the percentage of the claims of such vic19 tims received from the Fund being equal to 

20 the percentage of the claims non-9/11 vic21 tim of state sponsored terrorism received 

22 from the Fund, as of the date of enact23 ment of this subparagraph. 

24 ‘‘(ii) PUBLIC COMMENT.—The Comp25 troller General shall provide an opportunity 


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1 for public comment for a 30-day period be2 ginning on the date on which the notice is 

3 published under clause (i). 

4 ‘‘(iii) REPORT.—Not later than 30 

5 days after the expiration of the comment 

6 period in clause (ii), the Comptroller Gen7 eral of the United States shall submit to 

8 the Committee on the Judiciary and the 

9 Committee on Appropriations of the Sen10 ate, the Committee on the Judiciary and 

11 the Committee on Appropriations of the 

12 House of Representatives, and the Special 

13 Master a report that includes the deter14 mination of the Comptroller General on the 

15 amount of the proposed lump sum catch16 up payment for each Beirut barracks 

17 bombing victim and the total amount of 

18 such proposed lump sum catch-up pay19 ments. 

20 ‘‘(iv) LUMP SUM CATCH-UP PAYMENT

21 RESERVE FUND.— 

22 ‘‘(I) IN GENERAL.—There is es23 tablished within the Fund a lump sum 

24 catch-up payment reserve fund, to reVerDate Sep 11 2014 05:47 Dec 01, 2022 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S5156.IS S5156

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1 main in reserve except in accordance 

2 with this subsection. 

3 ‘‘(II) AUTHORIZATION.—Not ear4 lier than 90 days after the date on 

5 which the Comptroller General sub6 mits the report required under clause 

7 (iii), and not later than 1 year after 

8 such date, the Special Master shall 

9 authorize lump sum catch-up pay10 ments from the reserve fund estab11 lished under subclause (I) in amounts 

12 equal to the amounts described in 

13 clause (iii). 

14 ‘‘(III) APPROPRIATIONS.— 

15 ‘‘(aa) IN GENERAL.—There 

16 are authorized to be appropriated 

17 and there are appropriated to the 

18 lump sum catch-up payment re19 serve fund $3,000,000,000 to 

20 carry out this clause, to remain 

21 available until expended. 

22 ‘‘(bb) LIMITATION.—Except 

23 as provided in sublcause (IV), 

24 amounts appropriated pursuant 

25 to item (aa) may not be used for 


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1 a purpose other than to make 

2 lump sum catch-up payments 

3 under this clause. 

4 ‘‘(IV) EXPIRATION.— 

5 ‘‘(aa) IN GENERAL.—The 

6 lump sum catch-up payment re7 serve fund established by this 

8 clause shall be terminated not 

9 later than 1 year after the Spe10 cial Master disperses all lump 

11 sum catch-up payments pursuant 

12 to subclause (II). 

13 ‘‘(bb) REMAINING

14 AMOUNTS.—All amounts remain15 ing in the lump sum catch-up 

16 payment reserve fund in excess of 

17 the amounts described in clause 

18 (iii) shall be deposited into the 

19 Fund under this section.’’; 

20 (4) in subsection (e), by striking paragraph (2) 

21 and inserting the following: 

22 ‘‘(2) DEPOSIT AND TRANSFER.—Beginning on 

23 the date of the enactment of this Act, the following 

24 shall be deposited or transferred into the Fund for 

25 distribution under this section: 


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1 ‘‘(A) CRIMINAL FUNDS AND PROPERTY.— 

2 All funds, and the net proceeds from the sale 

3 of property, forfeited or paid to the United 

4 States after the date of enactment of this Act 

5 as a criminal penalty or fine arising from a vio6 lation of any license, order, regulation, or prohi7 bition issued under the International Emer8 gency Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1701 et 

9 seq.) or the Trading with the Enemy Act (50 

10 U.S.C. App. 1 et seq.), or any related criminal 

11 conspiracy, scheme, or other Federal offense 

12 arising from the actions of, or doing business 

13 with or acting on behalf of, a state sponsor of 

14 terrorism. 

15 ‘‘(B) CIVIL FUNDS AND PROPERTY.—Sev16 enty-five percent of all funds, and seventy-five 

17 percent of the net proceeds from the sale of 

18 property, forfeited or paid to the United States 

19 after the date of enactment of this Act as a civil 

20 penalty or fine arising from a violation of any 

21 license, order, regulation, or prohibition issued 

22 under the International Emergency Economic 

23 Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.) or the 

24 Trading with the Enemy Act (50 U.S.C. App. 

25 1 et seq.), or any related conspiracy, scheme, or 


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1 other Federal offense arising from the actions 

2 of, or doing business with or acting on behalf 

3 of, a state sponsor of terrorism.’’; 

4 (5) in subsection (g)(1), by striking ‘‘(e)(2)(A)’’ 

5 and inserting ‘‘(e)(2)’’; and 

6 (6) in subsection (j), by adding at the end the 

7 following: 

8 ‘‘(15) 1983 BEIRUT BOMBING VICTIM.—The 

9 term ‘1983 Beirut bombing victim’ means a plain10 tiff, or estate or successor in interest thereof, who 

11 has an eligible claim under subsection (c) that arises 

12 out of the October 23, 1983, bombing of the United 

13 States Marine Corps barracks in Beirut, Lebanon.’’. 

14 (b) RESCISSIONS.— 

15 (1) BUSINESS LOANS PROGRAM ACCOUNT.—Of 

16 the unobligated balances of amounts made available 

17 under the heading ‘‘Small Business Administra18 tion—Business Loans Program Account, CARES 

19 Act’’, for carrying out paragraphs (36) and (37) of 

20 section 7(a) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 

21 636(a)), $2,982,000,000 are hereby rescinded. 

22 (2) EMERGENCY RENTAL ASSISTANCE.—Of the 

23 unobligated balances of amounts made available 

24 under section 3201(a) of the American Rescue Plan 


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1 Act of 2021 (Public Law 117–2; 135 Stat. 54), 

2 $3,000,000,000 are hereby rescinded. 

Æ 


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