II 

117TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 621 

To amend the Immigration and Nationality Act to add membership in a 

significant transnational criminal organization to the list of grounds 

of inadmissibility and to prohibit the provision of material support or 

resources to such organizations. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MARCH 9, 2021 

Mr. COTTON (for himself, Mrs. BLACKBURN, Mr. HAWLEY, and Mr. SASSE) 

introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the 

Committee on the Judiciary 

A BILL 

To amend the Immigration and Nationality Act to add membership in a significant transnational criminal organization to the list of grounds of inadmissibility and to 

prohibit the provision of material support or resources 

to such organizations. 

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 ‘‘Significant 

5 Transnational Criminal Organization Designation Act’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. INADMISSIBILITY OF MEMBERS OF SIGNIFICANT 

2 TRANSNATIONAL CRIMINAL ORGANIZATIONS. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 212(a)(2)(F) of the Im4 migration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1182(a)(2)(F)) 

5 is amended to read as follows: 

6 ‘‘(F) MEMBERSHIP IN A SIGNIFICANT

7 TRANSNATIONAL CRIMINAL ORGANIZATION.— 

8 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Any alien who— 

9 ‘‘(I) is a member of a significant 

10 transnational criminal organization; or 

11 ‘‘(II) is the spouse or child of an 

12 alien described in subclause (I), 

13 is inadmissible. 

14 ‘‘(ii) EXCEPTION.—Clause (i)(II) shall 

15 not apply to a spouse or child— 

16 ‘‘(I) who did not know, or should 

17 not reasonably have known, that his 

18 or her spouse or parent was a member 

19 of a significant transnational criminal 

20 organization; or 

21 ‘‘(II) whom the consular officer 

22 or Attorney General has reasonable 

23 grounds to believe has renounced the 

24 significant transnational criminal or25 ganization to which his or her spouse 

26 or parent belongs.’’. 


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1 (b) DESIGNATION OF SIGNIFICANT TRANSNATIONAL

2 CRIMINAL ORGANIZATIONS.— 

3 (1) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 2 of title II of the 

4 Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1181 et 

5 seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following: 

6 ‘‘SEC. 219A. DESIGNATION OF SIGNIFICANT 

7 TRANSNATIONAL CRIMINAL ORGANIZATIONS. 

8 ‘‘(a) DESIGNATION.— 

9 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Attorney General is 

10 authorized to designate an organization as a signifi11 cant transnational criminal organization in accord12 ance with this subsection if the Attorney General, 

13 after consultation with the Secretary of State, the 

14 Secretary of the Treasury, and the Secretary of 

15 Homeland Security, determines that— 

16 ‘‘(A) the organization is a foreign organi17 zation; 

18 ‘‘(B) the organization— 

19 ‘‘(i) engages in criminal activity that 

20 involves or affects commerce in the United 

21 States; or 

22 ‘‘(ii) retains the ability and intent to 

23 engage in such criminal activity; and 

24 ‘‘(C) the criminal activity of the organiza25 tion threatens the security of United States naVerDate Sep 11 2014 21:42 Apr 03, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S621.IS S621

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1 tionals or the national security of the United 

2 States. 

3 ‘‘(2) PROCEDURE.— 

4 ‘‘(A) NOTICE.— 

5 ‘‘(i) TO CONGRESSIONAL LEADERS.— 

6 Not later than 7 days before making a des7 ignation under this subsection, the Attor8 ney General shall, by classified communica9 tion, notify the Speaker and minority lead10 er of the House of Representatives, the 

11 President pro tempore, majority leader, 

12 and minority leader of the Senate, and the 

13 members of the relevant committees of the 

14 House of Representatives and the Senate, 

15 in writing, of— 

16 ‘‘(I) the intent to designate an 

17 organization under this subsection; 

18 and 

19 ‘‘(II) the findings made under 

20 paragraph (1) with respect to that or21 ganization, including the factual basis 

22 for such determination. 

23 ‘‘(ii) PUBLICATION IN FEDERAL REG24 ISTER.—The Attorney General shall pub25 lish the designation in the Federal Register 


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1 not later than 7 days after providing the 

2 notification under clause (i). 

3 ‘‘(B) EFFECT OF DESIGNATION.—A des4 ignation under this subsection— 

5 ‘‘(i) shall take effect upon publication 

6 under subparagraph (A)(ii), for purposes 

7 of section 212(a)(2)(F) of this Act and 

8 section 2339B of title 18, United States 

9 Code; and 

10 ‘‘(ii) shall cease to have effect upon 

11 an Act of Congress disapproving such des12 ignation. 

13 ‘‘(C) FREEZING OF ASSETS.—Upon notifi14 cation under paragraph (2)(A)(i), the Secretary 

15 of the Treasury may require United States fi16 nancial institutions possessing or controlling 

17 any assets of any foreign organization included 

18 in the notification to block all financial trans19 actions involving those assets until further di20 rective from the Secretary of the Treasury, an 

21 Act of Congress, or a court order. 

22 ‘‘(3) RECORD.— 

23 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—In making a designa24 tion under this subsection, the Attorney Gen25 eral shall create an administrative record. 


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1 ‘‘(B) CLASSIFIED INFORMATION.—The At2 torney General may consider classified informa3 tion in making a designation under this sub4 section. Classified information shall not be sub5 ject to disclosure for such time as it remains 

6 classified, except that such information may be 

7 disclosed to a court ex parte and in camera for 

8 purposes of judicial review under subsection (c). 

9 ‘‘(4) PERIOD OF DESIGNATION.— 

10 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—A designation under 

11 this subsection shall be effective for all purposes 

12 until revoked under paragraph (5) or (6) or set 

13 aside pursuant to subsection (c). 

14 ‘‘(B) REVIEW OF DESIGNATION UPON PE15 TITION.— 

16 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The Attorney 

17 General shall review the designation of a 

18 significant transnational criminal organiza19 tion under the procedures set forth in 

20 clauses (iii) and (iv) if the designated orga21 nization files a petition for revocation with22 in the petition period described in clause 

23 (ii). 

24 ‘‘(ii) PETITION PERIOD.—For pur25 poses of clause (i)— 


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1 ‘‘(I) if the designated organiza2 tion has not previously filed a petition 

3 for revocation under this subpara4 graph, the petition period begins 2 

5 years after the date on which the des6 ignation was made; or 

7 ‘‘(II) if the designated organiza8 tion has previously filed a petition for 

9 revocation under this subparagraph, 

10 the petition period begins 2 years 

11 after the date of the determination 

12 made under clause (iv) on that peti13 tion. 

14 ‘‘(iii) PROCEDURES.—Any significant 

15 transnational criminal organization that 

16 submits a petition for revocation under 

17 this subparagraph shall provide evidence in 

18 that petition that the relevant cir19 cumstances described in paragraph (1) are 

20 sufficiently different from the cir21 cumstances that were the basis for the des22 ignation such that a revocation with re23 spect to the organization is warranted. 

24 ‘‘(iv) DETERMINATION.— 


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1 ‘‘(I) IN GENERAL.—Not later 

2 than 180 days after receiving a peti3 tion for revocation submitted under 

4 this subparagraph, the Attorney Gen5 eral shall make a determination re6 garding such petition. 

7 ‘‘(II) CLASSIFIED INFORMA8 TION.—The Attorney General may 

9 consider classified information in 

10 making a determination in response to 

11 a petition for revocation. Classified in12 formation shall not be subject to dis13 closure for such time as it remains 

14 classified, except that such informa15 tion may be disclosed to a court ex 

16 parte and in camera for purposes of 

17 judicial review under subsection (c). 

18 ‘‘(III) PUBLICATION OF DETER19 MINATION.—A determination made by 

20 the Attorney General under this 

21 clause shall be published in the Fed22 eral Register. 

23 ‘‘(IV) PROCEDURES.—Any rev24 ocation by the Attorney General shall 


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1 be made in accordance with para2 graph (6). 

3 ‘‘(C) OTHER REVIEW OF DESIGNATION.— 

4 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—If no review is 

5 conducted pursuant to subparagraph (B) 

6 during the 5-year period beginning on the 

7 date on which a designation under this 

8 subsection takes effect, the Attorney Gen9 eral shall review the designation of the sig10 nificant transnational criminal organiza11 tion in order to determine whether such 

12 designation should be revoked pursuant to 

13 paragraph (6). 

14 ‘‘(ii) PROCEDURES.—If a review does 

15 not take place pursuant to subparagraph 

16 (B) in response to a petition for revocation 

17 that is filed in accordance with that sub18 paragraph, then the review shall be con19 ducted pursuant to procedures established 

20 by the Attorney General. The results of 

21 such review and the applicable procedures 

22 shall not be reviewable in any court. 

23 ‘‘(iii) PUBLICATION OF RESULTS OF

24 REVIEW.—The Attorney General shall pubVerDate Sep 11 2014 21:42 Apr 03, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S621.IS S621

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1 lish any determination made pursuant to 

2 this subparagraph in the Federal Register. 

3 ‘‘(5) REVOCATION BY ACT OF CONGRESS.— 

4 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided by 

5 subparagraph (B), Congress, by an Act of Con6 gress, may block or revoke a designation made 

7 under paragraph (1) through the congressional 

8 disapproval procedure set forth in section 802 

9 of title 5, United States Code. 

10 ‘‘(B) REFERENCES TO RULE.—In applying 

11 the procedure, references to the term ‘rule’ in 

12 such section 802 shall be deemed to refer to a 

13 designation made under paragraph (1). 

14 ‘‘(C) EFFECTIVE DATE.—A joint resolution 

15 to block or revoke a designation made under 

16 paragraph (1) shall not be subject to the proce17 dure set forth in such section 802 unless it is 

18 introduced in either House of Congress during 

19 the 60-day period beginning on the date on 

20 which the Attorney General notifies Congress 

21 pursuant to paragraph (2)(A)(i). 

22 ‘‘(6) REVOCATION BASED ON CHANGE IN CIR23 CUMSTANCES.— 

24 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Attorney Gen25 eral— 


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1 ‘‘(i) may revoke a designation made 

2 under paragraph (1) at any time; and 

3 ‘‘(ii) shall revoke a designation upon 

4 completion of a review conducted pursuant 

5 to subparagraphs (B) and (C) of para6 graph (4) if the Attorney General deter7 mines that— 

8 ‘‘(I) the circumstances that were 

9 the basis for the designation have 

10 changed in such a manner as to war11 rant revocation; or 

12 ‘‘(II) the national security of the 

13 United States warrants a revocation. 

14 ‘‘(B) PROCEDURE.—The procedural re15 quirements under paragraphs (2) and (3) shall 

16 apply to a revocation under this paragraph. Any 

17 revocation shall take effect on the date specified 

18 in the revocation or upon publication in the 

19 Federal Register if no effective date is specified. 

20 ‘‘(7) EFFECT OF REVOCATION.—The revocation 

21 of a designation under paragraph (5) or (6) shall 

22 not affect any action or proceeding based on conduct 

23 committed before the effective date of such revoca24 tion. 


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1 ‘‘(8) USE OF DESIGNATION IN TRIAL OR HEAR2 ING.—If a designation under this subsection has be3 come effective pursuant to paragraph (2)(B), a de4 fendant in a criminal action or an alien in a removal 

5 proceeding shall not be permitted to raise any ques6 tion concerning the validity of the issuance of such 

7 designation as a defense or an objection at any trial 

8 or hearing. 

9 ‘‘(b) AMENDMENTS TO A DESIGNATION.— 

10 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Attorney General may 

11 amend a designation under this subsection if the At12 torney General discovers that the organization has 

13 changed its name, adopted a new alias, dissolved and 

14 then reconstituted itself under a different name or 

15 names, or merged with another organization. 

16 ‘‘(2) PROCEDURE.—Amendments made to a 

17 designation in accordance with paragraph (1) shall 

18 be effective upon publication in the Federal Register. 

19 Subparagraphs (B) and (C) of subsection (a)(2) 

20 shall apply to an amended designation upon such 

21 publication. Paragraphs (2)(A)(i), (4), (5), (6), (7), 

22 and (8) of subsection (a) shall apply to an amended 

23 designation. 

24 ‘‘(3) ADMINISTRATIVE RECORD.—The adminis25 trative record shall be corrected to include the 


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1 amendments and any additional relevant information 

2 that supports such amendments. 

3 ‘‘(4) CLASSIFIED INFORMATION.—The Attorney 

4 General may consider classified information in 

5 amending a designation in accordance with this sub6 section. Classified information shall not be subject to 

7 disclosure for such time as it remains classified, ex8 cept that such information may be disclosed to a 

9 court ex parte and in camera for purposes of judicial 

10 review under subsection (c). 

11 ‘‘(c) JUDICIAL REVIEW OF DESIGNATION.— 

12 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 30 days 

13 after publication in the Federal Register of a des14 ignation, an amended designation, or a determina15 tion in response to a petition for revocation, the des16 ignated organization may seek judicial review in the 

17 United States Court of Appeals for the District of 

18 Columbia Circuit. 

19 ‘‘(2) BASIS OF REVIEW.—Review under this 

20 subsection shall be based solely upon the administra21 tive record, except that the Government may submit, 

22 for ex parte and in camera review, classified infor23 mation used in making the designation, amended 

24 designation, or determination in response to a peti25 tion for revocation. 


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1 ‘‘(3) SCOPE OF REVIEW.—The Court shall hold 

2 unlawful and set aside a designation, amended des3 ignation, or determination in response to a petition 

4 for revocation the court finds to be— 

5 ‘‘(A) arbitrary, capricious, an abuse of dis6 cretion, or otherwise not in accordance with 

7 law; 

8 ‘‘(B) contrary to constitutional right, 

9 power, privilege, or immunity; 

10 ‘‘(C) in excess of statutory jurisdiction, au11 thority, or limitation, or short of statutory 

12 right; 

13 ‘‘(D) lacking substantial support in the ad14 ministrative record taken as a whole or in clas15 sified information submitted to the court under 

16 paragraph (2), or 

17 ‘‘(E) not in accord with the procedures re18 quired by law. 

19 ‘‘(4) JUDICIAL REVIEW INVOKED.—The pend20 ency of an action for judicial review of a designation, 

21 amended designation, or determination in response 

22 to a petition for revocation shall not affect the appli23 cation of this section, unless the court issues a final 

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1 ignation, or determination in response to a petition 

2 for revocation.’’. 

3 (2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of con4 tents of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 

5 U.S.C. 1101 note) is amended by inserting after the 

6 item relating to section 219 the following: 

‘‘Sec. 219A. Designation of significant transnational criminal organizations.’’. 

7 (c) PROVIDING MATERIAL SUPPORT OR RESOURCES

8 TO SIGNIFICANT TRANSNATIONAL CRIMINAL ORGANIZA9 TIONS.—Section 2339B of title 18, United States Code, 

10 is amended— 

11 (1) by inserting ‘‘or a significant transnational 

12 criminal organization’’ after ‘‘foreign terrorist orga13 nization’’ each place such term appears; 

14 (2) in subsection (a)(1), by amending the sec15 ond sentence to read as follows: ‘‘A person may not 

16 be prosecuted for violating this paragraph unless the 

17 person has knowledge that the organization referred 

18 to in the previous sentence— 

19 ‘‘(A) is a designated terrorist organization; 

20 ‘‘(B) is a significant transnational criminal 

21 organization; 

22 ‘‘(C) has engaged or engages in terrorist 

23 activity (as defined in section 212(a)(3)(B) of 

24 the Immigration and Nationality Act); or 


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1 ‘‘(D) has engaged or engages in terrorism 

2 (as defined in section 140(d)(2) of the Foreign 

3 Relations Authorization Act, Fiscal Years 1988 

4 and 1989).’’; and 

5 (3) in subsection (g)— 

6 (A) in paragraph (5), by striking ‘‘and’’ at 

7 the end; 

8 (B) by redesignating paragraph (6) as 

9 paragraph (7); and 

10 (C) by inserting after paragraph (5) the 

11 following: 

12 ‘‘(6) the term ‘significant transnational criminal 

13 organization’ means an organization so designated 

14 under section 219A of the Immigration and Nation15 ality Act; and’’. 

Æ 


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