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[Congressional Bills 105th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S.J. Res. 34 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

105th CONGRESS
  1st Session
S. J. RES. 34

  Suspending the certification procedures under section 490(b) of the 
Foreign Assistance Act of 1991 in order to foster greater multilateral 
        cooperation in international counternarcotics programs.

_______________________________________________________________________

                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             June 27, 1997

 Mr. Dodd (for himself and Mr. McCain) introduced the following joint 
   resolution; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on 
                           Foreign Relations

_______________________________________________________________________

                            JOINT RESOLUTION

 
  Suspending the certification procedures under section 490(b) of the 
Foreign Assistance Act of 1991 in order to foster greater multilateral 
        cooperation in international counternarcotics programs.

    Resolved by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United 
States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SUSPENSION OF DRUG CERTIFICATION PROCEDURES.

    (a) Findings.--Congress makes the following findings:
            (1) The international drug trade poses a direct threat to 
        the United States and to international efforts to promote 
        democracy, economic stability, human rights, and the rule of 
        law.
            (2) The United States has a vital national interest in 
        combating the financial and other resources of the 
        multinational drug cartels, which resources threaten the 
        integrity of political and financial institutions both in the 
        United States and abroad.
            (3) Approximately 12,800,000 Americans use illegal drugs, 
        including 1,500,000 cocaine users, 600,000 heroin addicts, and 
        9,800,000 marijuana users.
            (4) Illegal drug use occurs among members of every ethnic 
        and socioeconomic group in the United States.
            (5) Drug-related illness, death, and crime cost the United 
        States approximately $67,000,000,000 in 1996, including costs 
        for lost productivity, premature death, and incarceration.
            (6) Worldwide drug trafficking generates revenues estimated 
        at $400,000,000,000 annually.
            (7) The United States has spent more than $25,000,000,000 
        for drug interdiction and source country counternarcotics 
        programs since 1981, and despite impressive seizures at the 
        border, on the high seas, and in other countries, illegal drugs 
        from foreign sources are cheaper and more readily available in 
        the United States today than 20 years ago.
            (8) The 1961 Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs, the 1971 
        Convention on Psychotropic Substances, and the 1988 Convention 
        Against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic 
        Substances form the legal framework for international drug 
        control cooperation.
            (9) The United Nations International Drug Control Program, 
        the International Narcotics Control Board, and the Organization 
        of American States can play important roles in facilitating the 
        development and implementation of more effective multilateral 
        programs to combat both domestic and international drug 
        trafficking and consumption.
            (10) The annual certification process required by section 
        490 of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2291j), 
        which has been in effect since 1986, has failed to foster 
        bilateral or multilateral cooperation with United States 
        counternarcotics programs because its provisions are vague and 
        inconsistently applied and fail to acknowledge that United 
        States narcotics programs have not been fully effective in 
        combating consumption or trafficking in illegal drugs, and 
        related crimes, in the United States.
    (b) Sense of Congress.--It is the sense of Congress that--
            (1) existing United States domestic and international 
        counternarcotics program have not reduced the supply of illegal 
        drugs or significantly reduced domestic consumption of such 
        drugs;
            (2) the President should appoint a high level task force of 
        foreign policy experts, law enforcement officials, and drug 
        specialists to develop a comprehensive program for addressing 
        domestic and international drug trafficking and drug 
        consumption and related crimes, with particular attention to 
        fashioning a multilateral framework for improving international 
        cooperation in combating illegal drug trafficking, and should 
        designate the Director of the Office of National Drug Policy to 
        chair the task force;
            (3) the President should call upon the heads of state of 
        major illicit drug producing countries, major drug transit 
        countries, and major money laundering countries to establish 
        similar high level task forces to work in coordination with the 
        United States; and
            (4) not later than one year after the date of enactment of 
        this Act, the President should call for the convening of an 
        international summit of all interested governments to be hosted 
        by the Organization of American States or another international 
        organization mutually agreed to by the parties, for the purpose 
        of reviewing the findings and recommendations of the task 
        forces referred to in paragraphs (1) and (2) and adopting a 
        counternarcotics plan of action for each country.
    (c) Suspension of Drug Certification Process.--(1) Section 490 of 
the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2291j), relating to 
annual certification procedures for assistance for certain drug-
producing and drug-transit countries, shall not apply in 1998 and 1999.
    (2) The President may waive the applicability of that section in 
2000 if the President determines that the waiver would facilitate the 
enhancement of United States international narcotics control programs.
                                 <all>
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