II 

115TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 1591 

To impose sanctions with respect to the Democratic People’s Republic of 

Korea, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JULY 19, 2017 

Mr. VAN HOLLEN (for himself and Mr. TOOMEY) introduced the following bill; 

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

A BILL 

To impose sanctions with respect to the Democratic People’s 

Republic of Korea, 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; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

4 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

5 ‘‘Banking Restrictions Involving North Korea (BRINK) 

6 Act of 2017’’. 

7 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 

8 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

Sec. 2. Findings. 

Sec. 3. Definitions. 


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TITLE I—FINANCIAL REQUIREMENTS AND SANCTIONS RELATING 

TO TRANSACTIONS INVOLVING NORTH KOREA 

Sec. 101. Sanctions with respect to financial institutions providing support to 

the Government of North Korea. 

Sec. 102. Expansion of licensing requirements for transactions in North Korean 

covered property. 

Sec. 103. Authorization of imposition of sanctions with respect to the provision 

of specialized financial messaging services to North Korean financial institutions and sanctioned persons. 

Sec. 104. Authorization of imposition of sanctions with respect to governments 

that fail to comply with United Nations Security Council sanctions against North Korea. 

Sec. 105. Grants to conduct research on financial networks and financial methods of the Government of North Korea. 

Sec. 106. Report on use by the Government of North Korea of beneficial ownership rules to access the international financial system. 

Sec. 107. Sense of Congress on identification and blocking of property of North 

Korean officials. 

Sec. 108. Sense of Congress regarding the Kaesong Industrial Complex. 

TITLE II—DIVESTMENT FROM NORTH KOREA 

Sec. 201. Authority of State and local governments to divest from companies 

that invest in North Korea. 

Sec. 202. Safe harbor for changes of investment policies by asset managers. 

Sec. 203. Sense of Congress regarding certain ERISA plan investments. 

Sec. 204. Rule of construction. 

TITLE III—GENERAL AUTHORITIES 

Sec. 301. Rulemaking. 

Sec. 302. Authority to consolidate reports. 

Sec. 303. Rule of construction. 

1 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

2 Congress finds the following: 

3 (1) Since 2006, the United Nations Security 

4 Council has approved 5 resolutions imposing sanc5 tions against North Korea under chapter VII of the 

6 United Nations Charter, which— 

7 (A) prohibit the use, development, and pro8 liferation of weapons of mass destruction by the 

9 Government of North Korea; 


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1 (B) prohibit the transfer of arms and re2 lated materiel to or by the Government of 

3 North Korea; 

4 (C) prohibit the transfer of luxury goods to 

5 North Korea; 

6 (D) restrict access by the Government of 

7 North Korea to the financial system and re8 quire due diligence on the part of financial in9 stitutions to prevent the financing of prolifera10 tion involving the Government of North Korea; 

11 (E) restrict North Korean shipping, includ12 ing the reflagging of ships owned or controlled 

13 by the Government of North Korea; 

14 (F) limit the sale by the Government of 

15 North Korea of precious metals, iron, coal, va16 nadium, and rare earth minerals; and 

17 (G) prohibit the transfer to North Korea 

18 of rocket, aviation, or jet fuel. 

19 (2) The Government of North Korea has 

20 threatened to carry out nuclear attacks against the 

21 United States and South Korea and has sent clan22 destine agents to kidnap or murder the citizens of 

23 foreign countries and murder dissidents in exile. 

24 (3) The Federal Bureau of Investigation has 

25 determined that the Government of North Korea 


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1 was responsible for cyberattacks against the United 

2 States and South Korea. 

3 (4) In February 2016, the Director of National 

4 Intelligence reported that the Government of North 

5 Korea is ‘‘committed to developing a long-range, nu6 clear-armed missile that is capable of posing a direct 

7 threat to the United States’’ and some arms control 

8 experts have estimated that the Government of 

9 North Korea may acquire this capability by 2020. 

10 (5) The Government of North Korea tested its 

11 5th and largest nuclear device on September 9, 

12 2016. 

13 (6) The Government of North Korea has in14 creased the pace of its missile testing, including the 

15 test of a submarine-launched ballistic missile, poten16 tially furthering the development of capability to at17 tack the United States with a nuclear weapon. 

18 (7) Financial transactions and investments that 

19 provide financial resources to the Government of 

20 North Korea, and that fail to incorporate adequate 

21 safeguards against the misuse of those financial re22 sources, pose an undue risk of contributing to— 

23 (A) weapons of mass destruction programs 

24 of that government; and 


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1 (B) prohibited imports or exports of arms 

2 and related materiel, services, or technology by 

3 that government. 

4 (8) The strict enforcement of sanctions is es5 sential to the efforts by the international community 

6 to achieve the peaceful, complete, verifiable, and ir7 reversible dismantlement of weapons of mass de8 struction programs of the Government of North 

9 Korea. 

10 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 

11 In this Act: 

12 (1) APPLICABLE EXECUTIVE ORDER; APPLICA13 BLE UNITED NATIONS SECURITY COUNCIL RESOLU14 TION; GOVERNMENT OF NORTH KOREA; NORTH

15 KOREA.—The terms ‘‘applicable Executive order’’, 

16 ‘‘applicable United Nations Security Council resolu17 tion’’, ‘‘Government of North Korea’’, and ‘‘North 

18 Korea’’ have the meanings given those terms in sec19 tion 3 of the North Korea Sanctions and Policy En20 hancement Act of 2016 (22 U.S.C. 9202). 

21 (2) APPROPRIATE CONGRESSIONAL COMMIT22 TEES.—The term ‘‘appropriate congressional com23 mittees’’ means— 


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1 (A) the Committee on Banking, Housing, 

2 and Urban Affairs and the Committee on For3 eign Relations of the Senate; and 

4 (B) the Committee on Financial Services 

5 and the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the 

6 House of Representatives. 

7 (3) KNOWINGLY.—The term ‘‘knowingly’’, with 

8 respect to conduct, a circumstance, or a result, 

9 means that a person has actual knowledge, or should 

10 have known, of the conduct, the circumstance, or the 

11 result. 

12 (4) NORTH KOREAN COVERED PROPERTY.— 

13 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘North Ko14 rean covered property’’ includes any goods, 

15 services, or technology— 

16 (i) that are in North Korea; 

17 (ii) that are made with significant 

18 amounts of North Korean labor, materials, 

19 goods, or technology; 

20 (iii) in which the Government of 

21 North Korea or a North Korean financial 

22 institution has a significant interest or ex23 ercises significant control; or 


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1 (iv) in which a designated person has 

2 a significant interest or exercises signifi3 cant control. 

4 (B) DESIGNATED PERSON.—In this para5 graph, the term designated person means a per6 son who is designated under— 

7 (i) an applicable Executive order; 

8 (ii) an applicable United Nations Se9 curity Council resolution; or 

10 (iii) section 104 of the North Korea 

11 Sanctions and Policy Enhancement Act of 

12 2016 (22 U.S.C. 9204). 

13 (5) NORTH KOREAN FINANCIAL INSTITUTION.— 

14 The term ‘‘North Korean financial institution’’ in15 cludes— 

16 (A) any North Korean financial institution, 

17 as defined in section 3 of the North Korea 

18 Sanctions and Policy Enhancement Act of 2016 

19 (22 U.S.C. 9202); 

20 (B) any financial agency, as defined in sec21 tion 5312 of title 31, United States Code, that 

22 is owned or controlled by the Government of 

23 North Korea; 

24 (C) any money transmitting business, as 

25 defined in section 5330(d) of title 31, United 


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1 States Code, that is owned or controlled by the 

2 Government of North Korea; and 

3 (D) any financial institution that is a joint 

4 venture between any person and the Govern5 ment of North Korea. 

6 (6) SECRETARY.—Unless otherwise specified, 

7 the term ‘‘Secretary’’ means the Secretary of the 

8 Treasury. 

9 (7) UNITED STATES FINANCIAL INSTITUTION.— 

10 The term ‘‘United States financial institution’’ 

11 means a financial institution that— 

12 (A) is a United States person, regardless 

13 of where the person operates; or 

14 (B) operates or does business in the 

15 United States, including by conducting wire 

16 transfers through correspondent banks in the 

17 United States. 

18 (8) UNITED STATES PERSON.—The term 

19 ‘‘United States person’’ means— 

20 (A) a citizen or resident of the United 

21 States or a national of the United States (as 

22 defined in section 101(a) of the Immigration 

23 and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101(a))); and 

24 (B) an entity that is organized under the 

25 laws of the United States or any jurisdiction 


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1 within the United States, including a foreign 

2 subsidiary of such an entity. 

3 TITLE I—FINANCIAL REQUIRE4 MENTS AND SANCTIONS RE5 LATING TO TRANSACTIONS 

6 INVOLVING NORTH KOREA 

7 SEC. 101. SANCTIONS WITH RESPECT TO FINANCIAL INSTI8 TUTIONS PROVIDING SUPPORT TO THE GOV9 ERNMENT OF NORTH KOREA. 

10 (a) REPORT ON NONCOMPLIANT FINANCIAL INSTI11 TUTIONS.— 

12 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 60 days after 

13 the date of the enactment of this Act, and every 180 

14 days thereafter, the President shall submit to the 

15 appropriate congressional committees and publish in 

16 the Federal Register a report that contains a list of 

17 any financial institutions that the President has 

18 identified as having engaged in, during the one-year 

19 period preceding the submission of the report, the 

20 following conduct: 

21 (A) Dealing in North Korean covered prop22 erty. 

23 (B) Providing correspondent or interbank 

24 services to one or more North Korean financial 

25 institutions. 


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1 (C) Failing to apply enhanced due dili2 gence to prevent North Korean financial insti3 tutions from gaining access to correspondent or 

4 interbank services in the United States or pro5 vided by United States persons. 

6 (D) Knowingly operating or participating 

7 with or on behalf of an offshore United States 

8 dollar clearing system that conducts trans9 actions involving the Government of North 

10 Korea or North Korean covered property. 

11 (E) Conducting or facilitating one or more 

12 significant transactions in North Korean cov13 ered property involving covered goods (as that 

14 term is defined in section 1027.100 of title 31, 

15 Code of Federal Regulations, or any successor 

16 regulation) or the currency of a country other 

17 than the country in which the person is oper18 ating at the time of the transaction. 

19 (2) FORM OF REPORT.—Each report required 

20 under paragraph (1) shall be submitted in unclassi21 fied form but may contain a classified annex. 

22 (b) IMPOSITION OF SANCTIONS.— 

23 (1) IN GENERAL.—If the President determines 

24 that a financial institution identified under sub25 section (a) has knowingly engaged in conduct deVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:13 Jul 27, 2017 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1591.IS S1591

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1 scribed in that subsection, the President shall apply 

2 the following sanctions with respect to that financial 

3 institution: 

4 (A) Prohibit the designation of the finan5 cial institution, or the continuation of any prior 

6 designation of the financial institution, as a pri7 mary dealer in United States Government debt 

8 instruments. 

9 (B) Prohibit the financial institution from 

10 serving as agent of the United States Govern11 ment or as a repository for funds of the United 

12 States Government. 

13 (C) One or more of the following: 

14 (i) Prohibit the opening, and prohibit 

15 or impose strict conditions on the main16 taining, in the United States of any cor17 respondent account or payable-through ac18 count by the financial institution if the fi19 nancial institution is a foreign financial in20 stitution. 

21 (ii) Prohibit any transactions in for22 eign exchange that are subject to the juris23 diction of the United States and in which 

24 the financial institution has any interest. 


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1 (iii) In accordance with the Inter2 national Emergency Economic Powers Act 

3 (50 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.), block and pro4 hibit all transactions in all property and 

5 interests in property of the financial insti6 tution if such property and interests in 

7 property are in the United States, come 

8 within the United States, or are or come 

9 within the possession or control of a 

10 United States person. 

11 (2) CIVIL PENALTIES.—If the President deter12 mines that a financial institution identified under 

13 subsection (a) that is a United States financial insti14 tution has knowingly engaged in conduct described 

15 in that subsection— 

16 (A) if the financial institution has taken 

17 reasonable steps to prevent a recurrence of con18 duct described in that subsection and is cooper19 ating fully with the efforts of the President to 

20 enforce the provisions of this Act— 

21 (i) unless the financial institution is 

22 described in clause (ii), the President shall 

23 impose a civil penalty not to exceed 

24 $100,000 for each reportable act described 

25 in subparagraphs (A) through (E) of subVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:13 Jul 27, 2017 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1591.IS S1591

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1 section (a)(1) that is knowingly conducted; 

2 or 

3 (ii) if the financial institution has not 

4 previously been reported for similar con5 duct under subsection (a), the President 

6 shall issue a cautionary letter to that fi7 nancial institution; or 

8 (B) if the financial institution is not a fi9 nancial institution described in subparagraph 

10 (A), the President shall impose a civil penalty 

11 not to exceed $250,000 for each reportable act 

12 described in subparagraphs (A) through (E) of 

13 subsection (a)(1) that is knowingly conducted. 

14 (c) SUSPENSION FOR LAW ENFORCEMENT PUR15 POSES.—The President may suspend the submission of 

16 the reports described in subsection (a) and the application 

17 of sanctions and penalties described in subsection (b) for 

18 a one-year period if— 

19 (1) such reporting and application of sanctions 

20 and penalties could compromise an ongoing law en21 forcement investigation or prosecution; or 

22 (2) a criminal prosecution is pending, or a 

23 criminal or civil fine or penalty has been imposed or 

24 conditionally deferred, for the conduct reported pur25 suant to subsection (a). 


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1 (d) SUSPENSION AND TERMINATION OF SANCTIONS

2 AND PENALTIES.— 

3 (1) SUSPENSION.—The President may suspend 

4 the application of any sanctions or penalties under 

5 subsection (b) for a period of not more than one 

6 year if the President certifies to the appropriate con7 gressional committees that the Government of North 

8 Korea is taking steps toward— 

9 (A) the verification of its compliance with 

10 applicable United Nations Security Council Res11 olutions; and 

12 (B) fully accounting for and repatriating 

13 United States citizens and permanent residents 

14 (including deceased United States citizens and 

15 permanent residents)— 

16 (i) abducted or unlawfully held captive 

17 by the Government of North Korea; or 

18 (ii) detained in violation of the Agree19 ment Concerning a Military Armistice in 

20 Korea, signed at Panmunjom July 27, 

21 1953 (commonly referred to as the ‘‘Ko22 rean War Armistice Agreement’’). 

23 (2) RENEWAL OF SUSPENSION.—The President 

24 may renew a suspension described in paragraph (1) 

25 for additional periods of not more than 180 days if 


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1 the President certifies to the appropriate congres2 sional committees that the Government of North 

3 Korea continues to take steps as described in para4 graph (1). 

5 (3) TERMINATION OF SANCTIONS.—Subject to 

6 subsection (f), the President may terminate the ap7 plication of any sanctions or penalties under sub8 section (b) if the President certifies that the Govern9 ment of North Korea has made significant progress 

10 towards— 

11 (A) completely, verifiably, and irreversibly 

12 dismantling all of its nuclear, chemical, biologi13 cal, and radiological weapons programs, includ14 ing all programs for the development of systems 

15 designed in whole or in part for the delivery of 

16 such weapons; and 

17 (B) fully accounting for and repatriating 

18 United States citizens and permanent residents 

19 (including deceased United States citizens and 

20 permanent residents)— 

21 (i) abducted or unlawfully held captive 

22 by the Government of North Korea; or 

23 (ii) detained in violation of the Agree24 ment Concerning a Military Armistice in 

25 Korea, signed at Panmunjom July 27, 


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1 1953 (commonly referred to as the ‘‘Ko2 rean War Armistice Agreement’’). 

3 (e) WAIVER.—Subject to subsection (f), the President 

4 may waive the application of sanctions or penalties under 

5 subsection (b) with respect to a financial institution if the 

6 President determines that the waiver is in the national se7 curity interest of the United States. 

8 (f) CONGRESSIONAL REVIEW OF PROPOSED ACTIONS

9 TO WAIVE OR TERMINATE SANCTIONS.— 

10 (1) SUBMISSION TO CONGRESS OF PROPOSED

11 ACTION.— 

12 (A) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any 

13 other provision of law, before taking any action 

14 described in subparagraph (B), the President 

15 shall submit to the appropriate congressional 

16 committees and leadership a report that de17 scribes the proposed action and the reasons for 

18 that action. 

19 (B) ACTIONS DESCRIBED.—An action de20 scribed in this subparagraph is— 

21 (i) an action to suspend, renew a sus22 pension, or terminate under subsection (d) 

23 the application of sanctions or penalties 

24 under subsection (b); or 


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1 (ii) with respect to sanctions or pen2 alties under subsection (b) imposed by the 

3 President with respect to a person, an ac4 tion to waive under subsection (e) the ap5 plication of those sanctions or penalties 

6 with respect to that person. 

7 (C) DESCRIPTION OF TYPE OF ACTION.— 

8 Each report submitted under subparagraph (A) 

9 with respect to an action described in subpara10 graph (B) shall include a description of whether 

11 the action— 

12 (i) is not intended to significantly 

13 alter United States foreign policy with re14 gard to North Korea; or 

15 (ii) is intended to significantly alter 

16 United States foreign policy with regard to 

17 North Korea. 

18 (D) INCLUSION OF ADDITIONAL MAT19 TER.— 

20 (i) IN GENERAL.—Each report sub21 mitted under subparagraph (A) that re22 lates to an action that is intended to sig23 nificantly alter United States foreign policy 

24 with regard to North Korea shall include a 

25 description of— 


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1 (I) the significant alteration to 

2 United States foreign policy with re3 gard to North Korea; 

4 (II) the anticipated effect of the 

5 action on the national security inter6 ests of the United States; and 

7 (III) the policy objectives for 

8 which the sanctions affected by the 

9 action were initially imposed. 

10 (ii) REQUESTS FROM BANKING AND

11 FINANCIAL SERVICES COMMITTEES.—The 

12 Committee on Banking, Housing, and 

13 Urban Affairs of the Senate or the Com14 mittee on Financial Services of the House 

15 of Representatives may request the sub16 mission to the Committee of the matter de17 scribed in subclauses (II) and (III) of 

18 clause (i) with respect to a report sub19 mitted under subparagraph (A) that re20 lates to an action that is not intended to 

21 significantly alter United States foreign 

22 policy with regard to North Korea. 

23 (2) PERIOD FOR REVIEW BY CONGRESS.— 

24 (A) IN GENERAL.—During the period of 

25 30 calendar days beginning on the date on 


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1 which the President submits a report under 

2 paragraph (1)(A)— 

3 (i) in the case of a report that relates 

4 to an action that is not intended to signifi5 cantly alter United States foreign policy 

6 with regard to North Korea, the Com7 mittee on Banking, Housing, and Urban 

8 Affairs of the Senate and the Committee 

9 on Financial Services of the House of Rep10 resentatives should, as appropriate, hold 

11 hearings and briefings and otherwise ob12 tain information in order to fully review 

13 the report; and 

14 (ii) in the case of a report that relates 

15 to an action that is intended to signifi16 cantly alter United States foreign policy 

17 with regard to North Korea, the Com18 mittee on Foreign Relations of the Senate 

19 and the Committee on Foreign Affairs of 

20 the House of Representatives should, as 

21 appropriate, hold hearings and briefings 

22 and otherwise obtain information in order 

23 to fully review the report. 

24 (B) EXCEPTION.—The period for congres25 sional review under subparagraph (A) of a reVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:13 Jul 27, 2017 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00019 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1591.IS S1591

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1 port required to be submitted under paragraph 

2 (1)(A) shall be 60 calendar days if the report 

3 is submitted on or after July 10 and on or be4 fore September 7 in any calendar year. 

5 (C) LIMITATION ON ACTIONS DURING INI6 TIAL CONGRESSIONAL REVIEW PERIOD.—Not7 withstanding any other provision of law, during 

8 the period for congressional review provided for 

9 under subparagraph (A) of a report submitted 

10 under paragraph (1)(A) proposing an action de11 scribed in paragraph (1)(B), including any ad12 ditional period for such review as applicable 

13 under the exception provided in subparagraph 

14 (B), the President may not take that action un15 less a joint resolution of approval with respect 

16 to that action is enacted in accordance with 

17 paragraph (3). 

18 (D) LIMITATION ON ACTIONS DURING

19 PRESIDENTIAL CONSIDERATION OF A JOINT

20 RESOLUTION OF DISAPPROVAL.—Notwith21 standing any other provision of law, if a joint 

22 resolution of disapproval relating to a report 

23 submitted under paragraph (1)(A) proposing an 

24 action described in paragraph (1)(B) passes 

25 both Houses of Congress in accordance with 


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1 paragraph (3), the President may not take that 

2 action for a period of 12 calendar days after the 

3 date of passage of the joint resolution of dis4 approval. 

5 (E) LIMITATION ON ACTIONS DURING CON6 GRESSIONAL RECONSIDERATION OF A JOINT

7 RESOLUTION OF DISAPPROVAL.—Notwith8 standing any other provision of law, if a joint 

9 resolution of disapproval relating to a report 

10 submitted under paragraph (1)(A) proposing an 

11 action described in paragraph (1)(B) passes 

12 both Houses of Congress in accordance with 

13 paragraph (3), and the President vetoes the 

14 joint resolution, the President may not take 

15 that action for a period of 10 calendar days 

16 after the date of the President’s veto. 

17 (F) EFFECT OF ENACTMENT OF A JOINT

18 RESOLUTION OF DISAPPROVAL.—Notwith19 standing any other provision of law, if a joint 

20 resolution of disapproval relating to a report 

21 submitted under paragraph (1)(A) proposing an 

22 action described in paragraph (1)(B) is enacted 

23 in accordance with paragraph (3), the President 

24 may not take that action. 


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1 (3) JOINT RESOLUTIONS OF DISAPPROVAL OR

2 APPROVAL.— 

3 (A) JOINT RESOLUTIONS OF DISAPPROVAL

4 OR APPROVAL DEFINED.—In this paragraph: 

5 (i) JOINT RESOLUTION OF AP6 PROVAL.—The term ‘‘joint resolution of 

7 approval’’ means only a joint resolution of 

8 either House of Congress— 

9 (I) the title of which is as fol10 lows: ‘‘A joint resolution approving 

11 the President’s proposal to take an 

12 action relating to the application of 

13 certain sanctions with respect to 

14 North Korea.’’; and 

15 (II) the sole matter after the re16 solving clause of which is the fol17 lowing: ‘‘Congress approves of the ac18 tion relating to the application of 

19 sanctions imposed with respect to 

20 North Korea proposed by the Presi21 dent in the report submitted to Con22 gress under section 101(f)(1)(A) of 

23 the Banking Restrictions Involving 

24 North Korea (BRINK) Act of 2017 

25 on lllllll relating to 


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1 llllllll.’’, with the first 

2 blank space being filled with the ap3 propriate date and the second blank 

4 space being filled with a short descrip5 tion of the proposed action. 

6 (ii) JOINT RESOLUTION OF DIS7 APPROVAL.—The term ‘‘joint resolution of 

8 disapproval’’ means only a joint resolution 

9 of either House of Congress— 

10 (I) the title of which is as fol11 lows: ‘‘A joint resolution disapproving 

12 the President’s proposal to take an 

13 action relating to the application of 

14 certain sanctions with respect to 

15 North Korea.’’; and 

16 (II) the sole matter after the re17 solving clause of which is the fol18 lowing: ‘‘Congress disapproves of the 

19 action relating to the application of 

20 sanctions imposed with respect to 

21 North Korea proposed by the Presi22 dent in the report submitted to Con23 gress under section 101(f)(1)(A) of 

24 the Banking Restrictions Involving 

25 North Korea (BRINK) Act of 2017 


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1 on lllllll relating to 

2 llllllll.’’, with the first 

3 blank space being filled with the ap4 propriate date and the second blank 

5 space being filled with a short descrip6 tion of the proposed action. 

7 (B) INTRODUCTION.—During the period of 

8 30 calendar days provided for under paragraph 

9 (2)(A), including any additional period as appli10 cable under the exception provided in paragraph 

11 (2)(B), a joint resolution of approval or joint 

12 resolution of disapproval may be introduced— 

13 (i) in the House of Representatives, 

14 by the majority leader or the minority 

15 leader; and 

16 (ii) in the Senate, by the majority 

17 leader (or the majority leader’s designee) 

18 or the minority leader (or the minority 

19 leader’s designee). 

20 (C) FLOOR CONSIDERATION IN HOUSE OF

21 REPRESENTATIVES.— 

22 (i) REPORTING AND DISCHARGE.—If 

23 a committee of the House of Representa24 tives to which a joint resolution of approval 

25 or joint resolution of disapproval has been 


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1 referred has not reported the joint resolu2 tion within 10 calendar days after the date 

3 of referral, that committee shall be dis4 charged from further consideration of the 

5 joint resolution. 

6 (ii) PROCEEDING TO CONSIDER7 ATION.—Beginning on the third legislative 

8 day after each committee to which a joint 

9 resolution of approval or joint resolution of 

10 disapproval has been referred reports the 

11 joint resolution to the House or has been 

12 discharged from further consideration of 

13 the joint resolution, it shall be in order to 

14 move to proceed to consider the joint reso15 lution in the House. All points of order 

16 against the motion are waived. Such a mo17 tion shall not be in order after the House 

18 has disposed of a motion to proceed on the 

19 joint resolution. The previous question 

20 shall be considered as ordered on the mo21 tion to its adoption without intervening 

22 motion. The motion shall not be debatable. 

23 A motion to reconsider the vote by which 

24 the motion is disposed of shall not be in 

25 order. 


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1 (iii) CONSIDERATION.—The joint reso2 lution of approval or joint resolution of dis3 approval shall be considered as read. All 

4 points of order against the joint resolution 

5 and against its consideration are waived. 

6 The previous question shall be considered 

7 as ordered on the joint resolution to final 

8 passage without intervening motion except 

9 2 hours of debate equally divided and con10 trolled by the sponsor of the joint resolu11 tion (or a designee) and an opponent. A 

12 motion to reconsider the vote on passage of 

13 the joint resolution shall not be in order. 

14 (D) CONSIDERATION IN THE SENATE.— 

15 (i) COMMITTEE REFERRAL.—A joint 

16 resolution of approval or joint resolution of 

17 disapproval introduced in the Senate shall 

18 be— 

19 (I) referred to the Committee on 

20 Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs 

21 if the joint resolution relates to a re22 port submitted under paragraph 

23 (1)(A) with respect to an action that 

24 is not intended to significantly alter 


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1 United States foreign policy with re2 gard to North Korea; and 

3 (II) referred to the Committee on 

4 Foreign Relations if the joint resolu5 tion relates to a report submitted 

6 under paragraph (1)(A) with respect 

7 to an action that is intended to sig8 nificantly alter United States foreign 

9 policy with respect to North Korea. 

10 (ii) REPORTING AND DISCHARGE.—If 

11 the committee to which a joint resolution 

12 of approval or joint resolution of dis13 approval was referred has not reported the 

14 joint resolution within 10 calendar days 

15 after the date of referral of the joint reso16 lution, that committee shall be discharged 

17 from further consideration of the joint res18 olution and the joint resolution shall be 

19 placed on the appropriate calendar. 

20 (iii) PROCEEDING TO CONSIDER21 ATION.—Notwithstanding Rule XXII of 

22 the Standing Rules of the Senate, it is in 

23 order at any time after the Committee on 

24 Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs or 

25 the Committee on Foreign Relations, as 


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1 the case may be, reports a joint resolution 

2 of approval or joint resolution of dis3 approval to the Senate or has been dis4 charged from consideration of such a joint 

5 resolution (even though a previous motion 

6 to the same effect has been disagreed to) 

7 to move to proceed to the consideration of 

8 the joint resolution, and all points of order 

9 against the joint resolution (and against 

10 consideration of the joint resolution) are 

11 waived. The motion to proceed is not de12 batable. The motion is not subject to a mo13 tion to postpone. A motion to reconsider 

14 the vote by which the motion is agreed to 

15 or disagreed to shall not be in order. 

16 (iv) RULINGS OF THE CHAIR ON PRO17 CEDURE.—Appeals from the decisions of 

18 the Chair relating to the application of the 

19 rules of the Senate, as the case may be, to 

20 the procedure relating to a joint resolution 

21 of approval or joint resolution of dis22 approval shall be decided without debate. 

23 (v) CONSIDERATION OF VETO MES24 SAGES.—Debate in the Senate of any veto 

25 message with respect to a joint resolution 


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1 of approval or joint resolution of dis2 approval, including all debatable motions 

3 and appeals in connection with the joint 

4 resolution, shall be limited to 10 hours, to 

5 be equally divided between, and controlled 

6 by, the majority leader and the minority 

7 leader or their designees. 

8 (E) RULES RELATING TO SENATE AND

9 HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES.— 

10 (i) COORDINATION WITH ACTION BY

11 OTHER HOUSE.—If, before the passage by 

12 one House of a joint resolution of approval 

13 or joint resolution of disapproval of that 

14 House, that House receives an identical 

15 joint resolution from the other House, the 

16 following procedures shall apply: 

17 (I) The joint resolution of the 

18 other House shall not be referred to a 

19 committee. 

20 (II) With respect to the joint res21 olution of the House receiving the 

22 joint resolution from the other 

23 House— 

24 (aa) the procedure in that 

25 House shall be the same as if no 


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1 joint resolution had been received 

2 from the other House; but 

3 (bb) the vote on passage 

4 shall be on the joint resolution of 

5 the other House. 

6 (ii) TREATMENT OF A JOINT RESOLU7 TION OF OTHER HOUSE.—If one House 

8 fails to introduce a joint resolution of ap9 proval or joint resolution of disapproval, a 

10 joint resolution of approval or joint resolu11 tion of disapproval of the other House 

12 shall be entitled to expedited procedures in 

13 that House under this subsection. 

14 (iii) TREATMENT OF HOUSE JOINT

15 RESOLUTION IN SENATE.—If, following 

16 passage of a joint resolution of approval or 

17 joint resolution of disapproval in the Sen18 ate, the Senate receives an identical joint 

19 resolution from the House of Representa20 tives, that joint resolution shall be placed 

21 on the appropriate Senate calendar. 

22 (iv) APPLICATION TO REVENUE MEAS23 URES.—The provisions of this subpara24 graph shall not apply in the House of Rep25 resentatives to a joint resolution of apVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:13 Jul 27, 2017 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00030 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1591.IS S1591

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1 proval or joint resolution of disapproval 

2 that is a revenue measure. 

3 (F) RULES OF HOUSE OF REPRESENTA4 TIVES AND SENATE.—This paragraph is en5 acted by Congress— 

6 (i) as an exercise of the rulemaking 

7 power of the Senate and the House of Rep8 resentatives, respectively, and as such is 

9 deemed a part of the rules of each House, 

10 respectively, but applicable only with re11 spect to the procedure to be followed in 

12 that House in the case of a joint resolution 

13 of approval or joint resolution of dis14 approval, and supersedes other rules only 

15 to the extent that it is inconsistent with 

16 such rules; and 

17 (ii) with full recognition of the con18 stitutional right of either House to change 

19 the rules (so far as relating to the proce20 dure of that House) at any time, in the 

21 same manner, and to the same extent as in 

22 the case of any other rule of that House. 

23 (g) BRIEFING REQUIRED.—Not later than 180 days 

24 after the date of the enactment of this Act, and every 180 

25 days thereafter, the President shall brief the appropriate 


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1 congressional committees on the status of efforts by the 

2 President to prevent conduct described in subparagraphs 

3 (A) through (E) of subsection (a)(1). 

4 (h) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this sec5 tion shall be construed to prohibit any person from, or 

6 authorize or require the imposition of sanctions with re7 spect to any person for, conducting or facilitating any 

8 transaction for the sale or donation of agricultural com9 modities, food, medicine, or medical devices. 

10 (i) APPROPRIATE CONGRESSIONAL COMMITTEES AND

11 LEADERSHIP DEFINED.—In this section, the term ‘‘ap12 propriate congressional committees and leadership’’ 

13 means— 

14 (1) the Committee on Banking, Housing, and 

15 Urban Affairs, the Committee on Foreign Relations, 

16 and the majority and minority leaders of the Senate; 

17 and 

18 (2) the Committee on Financial Services, the 

19 Committee on Foreign Affairs, and the Speaker, the 

20 majority leader, and the minority leader of the 

21 House of Representatives. 

22 SEC. 102. EXPANSION OF LICENSING REQUIREMENTS FOR 

23 TRANSACTIONS IN NORTH KOREAN COVERED 

24 PROPERTY. 

25 (a) LICENSE REQUIRED.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para2 graph (2), not later than 180 days after the date of 

3 the enactment of this Act, the President shall pre4 scribe regulations prohibiting any transaction involv5 ing the manufacture, sale, purchase, transfer, im6 port, or export of North Korean covered property by 

7 a United States person or conducted in the United 

8 States. 

9 (2) EXCEPTION.— 

10 (A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in 

11 subparagraph (B), the Secretary may grant li12 censes and permits for the following purposes: 

13 (i) For any purpose covered by an ex14 emption or waiver under section 208 of the 

15 North Korea Sanctions and Policy En16 hancement Act of 2016 (22 U.S.C. 9228), 

17 including humanitarian, diplomatic, con18 sular, law enforcement, and other pur19 poses. 

20 (ii) To import food products into 

21 North Korea if such food products are not 

22 defined as luxury goods. 

23 (iii) To meet an urgent and compel24 ling humanitarian need. 


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1 (iv) For activities to promote human 

2 rights in North Korea, the development of 

3 private agriculture and markets in North 

4 Korea, and the free flow of information to, 

5 from, and within North Korea. 

6 (v) To import agricultural products, 

7 medicine, or medical devices into North 

8 Korea if such products, medicine, or de9 vices are classified as designated ‘‘EAR 

10 99’’ under subchapter C of chapter VII of 

11 title 15, Code of Federal Regulations, or 

12 any successor regulations (commonly 

13 known as the ‘‘Export Administration Reg14 ulations’’), and not controlled under— 

15 (I) the Export Administration 

16 Act of 1979 (50 U.S.C. App. 2401 et 

17 seq.), as continued in effect under the 

18 International Emergency Economic 

19 Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.); 

20 (II) the Arms Export Control Act 

21 (22 U.S.C. 2751 et seq.); 

22 (III) part B of title VIII of the 

23 Nuclear Proliferation Prevention Act 

24 of 1994 (22 U.S.C. 6301 et seq.); or 


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1 (IV) the Chemical and Biological 

2 Weapons Control and Warfare Elimi3 nation Act of 1991 (22 U.S.C. 5601 

4 et seq.). 

5 (B) EXCEPTION.—The Secretary may not 

6 grant a license or permit under subparagraph 

7 (A) for an activity described in section 104(a) 

8 of the North Korea Sanctions and Policy En9 hancement Act of 2016 (22 U.S.C. 9214(a)). 

10 (b) PENALTIES.— 

11 (1) IN GENERAL.—A person shall be fined not 

12 more than $5,000,000, imprisoned for not more 

13 than 20 years, or both, if the person knowingly— 

14 (A) engages in a transaction described in 

15 subsection (a)(1), except pursuant to a license 

16 or permit granted under this section or regula17 tions prescribed pursuant to this section; or 

18 (B) evades a requirement to obtain a li19 cense or permit under this section or a regula20 tions prescribed pursuant to this section. 

21 (2) FORFEITURE OF PROPERTY.—Any property, 

22 real or personal, that is involved in a transaction 

23 that is a violation of subsection (a)(1), is involved in 

24 an attempt to conduct such a transaction, or con25 stitutes or is derived from proceeds traceable to such 


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1 a transaction, is subject to forfeiture to the United 

2 States. 

3 (c) REPORT REQUIRED.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days 

5 after the date of the enactment of this Act, and an6 nually thereafter, the President shall submit to the 

7 appropriate congressional committees a report listing 

8 any licenses or permits granted under subsection 

9 (a). 

10 (2) FORM.—Each report required under para11 graph (1) shall be submitted in unclassified form but 

12 may include a classified annex. 

13 (3) PUBLIC AVAILABILITY.—Not later than 30 

14 days after the submission of a report under para15 graph (1), the Secretary of the Treasury and the 

16 Secretary of State shall each publish the unclassified 

17 part of the report on a publicly available Internet 

18 website of the Department of the Treasury and the 

19 Department of State, as the case may be. 

20 (d) TERMINATION OF REQUIREMENTS.—The Presi21 dent may terminate the prohibition on transactions de22 scribed in subsection (a) and the imposition of penalties 

23 under subsection (b) if the President submits to the appro24 priate congressional committees the certification described 


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1 in section 402 of the North Korea Sanctions and Policy 

2 Enhancement Act of 2016 (22 U.S.C. 9252). 

3 (e) MODIFICATION OF DEFINITION OF SPECIFIED

4 UNLAWFUL ACTIVITY FOR MONEY LAUNDERING PUR5 POSES.—Section 1956(c)(7)(D) of title 18, United States 

6 Code, is amended— 

7 (1) by striking ‘‘or section 104(a) of’’ and in8 serting ‘‘section 104(a) of’’; and 

9 (2) by inserting before the semicolon at the end 

10 the following: ‘‘, or section 102(b) of the Banking 

11 Restrictions Involving North Korea (BRINK) Act of 

12 2017 (relating to transactions in certain North Ko13 rean property)’’. 

14 SEC. 103. AUTHORIZATION OF IMPOSITION OF SANCTIONS 

15 WITH RESPECT TO THE PROVISION OF SPE16 CIALIZED FINANCIAL MESSAGING SERVICES 

17 TO NORTH KOREAN FINANCIAL INSTITU18 TIONS AND SANCTIONED PERSONS. 

19 (a) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con20 gress that— 

21 (1) providers of specialized financial messaging 

22 services have been used as a critical link between the 

23 Government of North Korea and the international fi24 nancial system; 


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1 (2) the Financial Action Task Force has re2 peatedly called for jurisdictions to apply counter3 measures to protect the financial system from the 

4 risks of money laundering and proliferation financ5 ing emanating from North Korea; 

6 (3) credible published reports have implicated 

7 the Government of North Korea in stealing approxi8 mately $81,000,000 from the Bangladesh Bank and 

9 attempting to steal another $951,000,000 from 

10 other banks using a financial messaging service; and 

11 (4) directly providing specialized financial mes12 saging services to, or enabling or facilitating direct 

13 or indirect access to such messaging services for, 

14 any financial institution designated by the United 

15 Nations Security Council is inconsistent with appli16 cable United Nations Security Council resolutions. 

17 (b) AUTHORIZATION OF IMPOSITION OF SANC18 TIONS.—The President may impose sanctions pursuant to 

19 the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (50 

20 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.) with respect to a person if, on or 

21 after the date that is 90 days after the date of the enact22 ment of this Act, the person knowingly and directly pro23 vides specialized financial messaging services to, or know24 ingly enables or facilitates direct or indirect access to such 

25 messaging services for— 


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1 (1) a North Korean financial institution; 

2 (2) a person, including a financial institution, 

3 that is designated pursuant to— 

4 (A) an applicable Executive order; 

5 (B) an applicable United Nations Security 

6 Council resolution; or 

7 (C) section 104 of the North Korea Sanc8 tions and Policy Enhancement Act of 2016 (22 

9 U.S.C. 9214); or 

10 (3) a person subject to sanctions under this 

11 Act. 

12 (c) ENABLING OR FACILITATING ACCESS TO SPE13 CIALIZED FINANCIAL MESSAGING SERVICES.—For pur14 poses of this section, enabling or facilitating direct or indi15 rect access to specialized financial messaging services to 

16 a person described in paragraph (1) or (2) of subsection 

17 (b) includes doing so by serving as an intermediary finan18 cial institution with access to such messaging services. 

19 (d) SUSPENSION AND TERMINATION OF SANC20 TIONS.— 

21 (1) SUSPENSION.—The President may suspend 

22 the application of any sanctions under subsection (b) 

23 for a period of not more than one year if the Presi24 dent certifies to the appropriate congressional comVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:13 Jul 27, 2017 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00039 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1591.IS S1591

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1 mittees that the Government of North Korea is tak2 ing steps toward— 

3 (A) the verification of its compliance with 

4 applicable United Nations Security Council Res5 olutions; and 

6 (B) fully accounting for and repatriating 

7 United States citizens and permanent residents 

8 (including deceased United States citizens and 

9 permanent residents)— 

10 (i) abducted or unlawfully held captive 

11 by the Government of North Korea; or 

12 (ii) detained in violation of the Agree13 ment Concerning a Military Armistice in 

14 Korea, signed at Panmunjom July 27, 

15 1953 (commonly referred to as the ‘‘Ko16 rean War Armistice Agreement’’). 

17 (2) RENEWAL OF SUSPENSION.—The President 

18 may renew a suspension described in paragraph (1) 

19 for additional periods of not more than 180 days if 

20 the President certifies to the appropriate congres21 sional committees that the Government of North 

22 Korea continues to take steps as described in para23 graph (1). 

24 (3) TERMINATION OF SANCTIONS.—The Presi25 dent may terminate the application of any sanctions 


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1 under subsection (b) if the President certifies that 

2 the Government of North Korea has made signifi3 cant progress towards— 

4 (A) completely, verifiably, and irreversibly 

5 dismantling all of its nuclear, chemical, biologi6 cal, and radiological weapons programs, includ7 ing all programs for the development of systems 

8 designed in whole or in part for the delivery of 

9 such weapons; and 

10 (B) fully accounting for and repatriating 

11 United States citizens and permanent residents 

12 (including deceased United States citizens and 

13 permanent residents)— 

14 (i) abducted or unlawfully held captive 

15 by the Government of North Korea; or 

16 (ii) detained in violation of the Agree17 ment Concerning a Military Armistice in 

18 Korea, signed at Panmunjom July 27, 

19 1953 (commonly referred to as the ‘‘Ko20 rean War Armistice Agreement’’). 


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1 SEC. 104. AUTHORIZATION OF IMPOSITION OF SANCTIONS 

2 WITH RESPECT TO GOVERNMENTS THAT FAIL 

3 TO COMPLY WITH UNITED NATIONS SECU4 RITY COUNCIL SANCTIONS AGAINST NORTH 

5 KOREA. 

6 (a) BRIEFING REQUIRED.—Not later than 90 days 

7 after the date of the enactment of this Act, the President 

8 shall brief the appropriate congressional committees re9 garding each government of a foreign country that the 

10 President has identified as failing to— 

11 (1) close the branches, subsidiaries, or rep12 resentative offices of North Korean financial institu13 tions in that country; 

14 (2) expel representatives of North Korean fi15 nancial institutions; 

16 (3) close the representative offices and expel the 

17 representatives of persons designated under applica18 ble United Nations Security Council resolutions; 

19 (4) prohibit joint ventures with North Korean 

20 financial institutions; 

21 (5) deregister any vessel that constitutes North 

22 Korean covered property; or 

23 (6) expel North Korean nationals, including 

24 diplomats, working on behalf of persons designated 

25 under applicable United Nations Security Council 

26 resolutions. 


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1 (b) PUBLICATION.—The Secretary of the Treasury 

2 shall publish in the Federal Register the names of each 

3 foreign country that has failed to carry out the activities 

4 described in paragraphs (1) through (6) of subsection (a). 

5 (c) SANCTIONS AUTHORIZED.—With respect to any 

6 government of a foreign country included in the briefing 

7 under subsection (a), the President may, until such time 

8 as the President determines that the government has 

9 taken substantial steps to terminate conduct described in 

10 that subsection, impose one or more of the following sanc11 tions with respect to that government: 

12 (1) Prohibit or curtail the export of any goods 

13 or technology to that foreign country pursuant to 

14 the authorities provided in section 6 of the Export 

15 Administration Act of 1979 (50 U.S.C. 4605) (as 

16 continued in effect pursuant to the International 

17 Emergency Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1701 

18 et seq.)). 

19 (2) Withhold assistance under the Foreign As20 sistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2151 et seq.) to 

21 that government. 

22 (3) Instruct the United States executive direc23 tor at each international financial institution (as de24 fined in section 1701(c) of the International Finan25 cial Institutions Act (22 U.S.C. 262r(c))) to use the 


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1 voice and vote of the United States to oppose the 

2 provision of loans, benefits, or other use of the funds 

3 of the institution to that government. 

4 (d) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—This section shall not 

5 be construed to limit the use of other sanctions authorities 

6 available to the President in response to conduct described 

7 in subsection (a). 

8 SEC. 105. GRANTS TO CONDUCT RESEARCH ON FINANCIAL 

9 NETWORKS AND FINANCIAL METHODS OF 

10 THE GOVERNMENT OF NORTH KOREA. 

11 (a) GRANTS AUTHORIZED.— 

12 (1) IN GENERAL.—The President, acting 

13 through the Attorney General, the Secretary of 

14 State, the Secretary of the Treasury, or the Director 

15 of National Intelligence, may award grants to, and 

16 enter into cooperative agreements with, States, units 

17 of local government, nongovernmental organizations, 

18 and relevant international organizations to further 

19 the purposes of this title and provide data to address 

20 the issues identified in section 2. 

21 (2) RESEARCH INITIATIVES.—Grants awarded 

22 and cooperative agreements entered into under para23 graph (1) shall include grants and agreements for 

24 the purpose of conducting research initiatives on the 

25 following: 


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1 (A) The methods used by the Government 

2 of North Korea to deal in, transact in, or con3 ceal the ownership, control, or origin of North 

4 Korean covered property. 

5 (B) The relationship between proliferation 

6 by the Government of North Korea and the fi7 nancial industry or financial institutions. 

8 (C) The export by any person to the 

9 United States of North Korean covered prop10 erty. 

11 (D) The involvement of any person in 

12 human trafficking involving citizens or nation13 als of North Korea. 

14 (E) Information relating to transactions 

15 described in section 102(a). 

16 (F) Information relating to activities de17 scribed in section 104(a). 

18 (G) Information relating to the identifica19 tion, blocking, and release of property or pro20 ceeds described in section 107(a). 

21 (H) The effectiveness of law enforcement 

22 and diplomatic initiatives of Federal, State, and 

23 foreign governments to comply with the provi24 sions of applicable United Nations Security 

25 Council resolutions. 


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1 (I) The effectiveness of compliance pro2 grams within the financial industry to ensure 

3 compliance with applicable United Nations Se4 curity Council resolutions. 

5 (b) INTERAGENCY COORDINATION.—The President 

6 shall ensure that any information collected pursuant to 

7 subsection (a) is shared among the agencies involved in 

8 investigations described in section 102(b) of the North 

9 Korea Sanctions and Policy Enhancement Act of 2016 (22 

10 U.S.C. 9212). 

11 (c) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 

12 authorized to be appropriated for each of fiscal years 2018 

13 through 2021 such sums as may be necessary to carry 

14 out this section. 

15 SEC. 106. REPORT ON USE BY THE GOVERNMENT OF 

16 NORTH KOREA OF BENEFICIAL OWNERSHIP 

17 RULES TO ACCESS THE INTERNATIONAL FI18 NANCIAL SYSTEM. 

19 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than November 11, 

20 2018, the Director of the Financial Crimes Enforcement 

21 Network of the Department of the Treasury shall submit 

22 to the appropriate congressional committees and publish 

23 in the Federal Register a report setting forth the findings 

24 of the Director regarding how the Government of North 


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1 Korea is using laws regarding beneficial ownership of 

2 property to access the international financial system. 

3 (b) ELEMENTS.—The Director shall include in the re4 port required under subsection (a) proposals for such leg5 islative and administrative action as the Director considers 

6 appropriate. 

7 SEC. 107. SENSE OF CONGRESS ON IDENTIFICATION AND 

8 BLOCKING OF PROPERTY OF NORTH KOREAN 

9 OFFICIALS. 

10 (a) IN GENERAL.—It is the sense of Congress that 

11 the President should collaborate with the Stolen Asset Re12 covery Initiative of the World Bank Group and the United 

13 Nations Office on Drugs and Crime to prioritize the iden14 tification, blocking, and release for humanitarian purposes 

15 of— 

16 (1) any property owned or controlled by a 

17 North Korean official; or 

18 (2) any significant proceeds of kleptocracy by 

19 the Government of North Korea or a North Korean 

20 official. 

21 (b) NORTH KOREAN OFFICIAL DEFINED.—In this 

22 section, the term ‘‘North Korean official’’ includes— 

23 (1) the individuals described in section 

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1 icy Enhancement Act of 2016 (22 U.S.C. 

2 9243(a)(2)(B)); and 

3 (2) such additional officials as the President 

4 may determine to be officials of the Government of 

5 North Korea. 

6 SEC. 108. SENSE OF CONGRESS REGARDING THE KAESONG 

7 INDUSTRIAL COMPLEX. 

8 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following: 

9 (1) On October 14, 2006, the United Nations 

10 Security Council adopted Resolution 1718, para11 graph 8(d) of which requires member states of the 

12 United Nations to ensure that persons under their 

13 jurisdiction prevent any funds, financial assets, and 

14 economic resources from being used by persons or 

15 entities engaged in or proving support for the nu16 clear, chemical, or biological weapons programs of 

17 North Korea or the ballistic missile programs of 

18 North Korea. 

19 (2) On April 11, 2011, the President signed 

20 Executive Order 13570 (50 U.S.C. 1701 note; relat21 ing to prohibiting certain transactions with respect 

22 to North Korea), which prohibits the importation 

23 into the United States, directly or indirectly, of any 

24 goods, services, or technology from North Korea, ex25 cept as provided in statute or in licenses, regulaVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:13 Jul 27, 2017 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00048 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1591.IS S1591

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1 tions, orders, or directives that may be issued pursu2 ant to that Executive order. 

3 (3) In April 2013, the Under Secretary of the 

4 Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence 

5 said, in reference to the Kaesong Industrial Com6 plex, ‘‘Precisely what North Koreans do with earn7 ings from Kaesong, I think, is something that we 

8 are concerned about.’’. 

9 (4) In February 2016, on announcing the sus10 pension of operations at the Kaesong Industrial 

11 Complex, the Unification Ministry of the Republic of 

12 Korea stated that the Government of North Korea 

13 may have used the proceeds from the Kaesong In14 dustrial Complex to finance its nuclear weapons pro15 gram. 

16 (5) On November 30, 2016, the United States 

17 Security Council approved Resolution 2321, para18 graph 32 of which requires member states of the 

19 United Nations to prohibit public and private finan20 cial support for trade with North Korea from within 

21 their territories or by persons subject to their juris22 diction, including the granting of export credits, 

23 guarantees, or insurance to persons involved in such 

24 trade, except as approved in advance by a committee 


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1 appointed by the Security Council on a case-by-case 

2 basis. 

3 (b) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con4 gress that— 

5 (1) the United States stands in solidarity with 

6 its ally in the Republic of Korea, and has expressed 

7 that solidarity with the sacrifice of 36,914 people of 

8 the United States and with the continued presence 

9 of 29,500 members of the Armed Forces of the 

10 United States in the Republic of Korea; 

11 (2) the nuclear weapons program of North 

12 Korea poses a grave and imminent threat to the 

13 freedom and security of both the United States and 

14 the Republic of Korea; 

15 (3) the Kaesong Industrial Complex yielded 

16 few, if any, apparent benefits with regard to the re17 form, liberalization, or disarmament of North Korea; 

18 (4) the unconditional provision of revenue from 

19 the Kaesong Industrial Complex to the Government 

20 of North Korea undermines the financial pressure 

21 necessary to strict and effective enforcement of 

22 United Nations Security Council sanctions; 

23 (5) the strict and effective enforcement of 

24 United Nations Security Council sanctions is the last 

25 plausible option to achieve the complete, verifiable, 


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1 irreversible, and peaceful nuclear disarmament of 

2 North Korea; and 

3 (6) the Kaesong Industrial Complex should not 

4 be reopened until the Government of North Korea 

5 has completely, verifiably, and irreversibly disman6 tled all of its nuclear, chemical, biological, and radio7 logical weapons programs, including all programs for 

8 the development of systems designed in whole or in 

9 part for the delivery of such weapons. 

10 TITLE II—DIVESTMENT FROM 

11 NORTH KOREA 

12 SEC. 201. AUTHORITY OF STATE AND LOCAL GOVERN13 MENTS TO DIVEST FROM COMPANIES THAT 

14 INVEST IN NORTH KOREA. 

15 (a) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con16 gress that the United States should support the decision 

17 of any State or local government, for moral, prudential, 

18 or reputational reasons, to divest from, or prohibit the in19 vestment of assets of the State or local government in, 

20 a person that engages in investment activities involving 

21 North Korean covered property if North Korea is subject 

22 to economic sanctions imposed by the United States or 

23 the United Nations Security Council. 

24 (b) AUTHORITY TO DIVEST.—Notwithstanding any 

25 other provision of law, a State or local government may 


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1 adopt and enforce measures that meet the requirements 

2 of subsection (c) to divest the assets of the State or local 

3 government from, or prohibit investment of the assets of 

4 the State or local government in, any person that the 

5 State or local government determines, using credible infor6 mation available to the public, engages in investment ac7 tivities involving North Korean covered property of a value 

8 of more than $10,000. 

9 (c) REQUIREMENTS.—Any measure taken by a State 

10 or local government under subsection (b) shall meet the 

11 following requirements: 

12 (1) NOTICE.—The State or local government 

13 shall provide written notice to each person with re14 spect to which a measure under this section is to be 

15 applied. 

16 (2) TIMING.—The measure applied under this 

17 section shall apply to a person not earlier than the 

18 date that is 90 days after the date on which written 

19 notice under paragraph (1) is provided to the per20 son. 

21 (3) OPPORTUNITY TO DEMONSTRATE COMPLI22 ANCE.— 

23 (A) IN GENERAL.—The State or local gov24 ernment shall provide to each person with re25 spect to which a measure is to be applied under 


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1 this section an opportunity to demonstrate to 

2 the State or local government that the person 

3 does not engage in investment activities in 

4 North Korean covered property. 

5 (B) NONAPPLICATION.—If a person with 

6 respect to which a measure is to be applied 

7 under this section demonstrates to the State or 

8 local government under subparagraph (A) that 

9 the person does not engage in investment activi10 ties in North Korean covered property, the 

11 measure shall not apply to that person. 

12 (4) SENSE OF CONGRESS ON AVOIDING ERRO13 NEOUS TARGETING.—It is the sense of Congress 

14 that a State or local government should not adopt 

15 a measure under subsection (b) with respect to a 

16 person unless the State or local government has— 

17 (A) made every effort to avoid erroneously 

18 targeting the person; and 

19 (B) verified that the person engages in in20 vestment activities in North Korean covered 

21 property. 

22 (d) NOTICE TO DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE.—Not 

23 later than 30 days after a State or local government ap24 plies a measure under this section, the State or local govVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:13 Jul 27, 2017 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00053 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1591.IS S1591

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1 ernment shall notify the Attorney General of that meas2 ure. 

3 (e) AUTHORIZATION FOR PRIOR APPLIED MEAS4 URES.— 

5 (1) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other 

6 provision of this section or any other provision of 

7 law, a State or local government may enforce a 

8 measure (without regard to the requirements of sub9 section (c), except as provided in paragraph (2)) ap10 plied by the State or local government before the 

11 date of the enactment of this Act that provides for 

12 the divestment of assets of the State or local govern13 ment from, or prohibits the investment of the assets 

14 of the State or local government in, any person that 

15 the State or local government determines, using 

16 credible information available to the public, engages 

17 in investment activities in North Korean covered 

18 property that are identified in that measure. 

19 (2) APPLICATION OF NOTICE REQUIRE20 MENTS.—A measure described in paragraph (1) 

21 shall be subject to the requirements of paragraphs 

22 (1), (2), and (3)(A) of subsection (c) on and after 

23 the date that is two years after the date of the en24 actment of this Act. 


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1 (f) NO PREEMPTION.—A measure applied by a State 

2 or local government authorized under subsection (b) or (e) 

3 is not preempted by any Federal law. 

4 (g) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

5 (1) ASSET.— 

6 (A) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in 

7 subparagraph (B), the term ‘‘asset’’ means 

8 public monies, and includes any pension, retire9 ment, annuity, endowment fund, or similar in10 strument, that is controlled by a State or local 

11 government. 

12 (B) EXCEPTION.—The term ‘‘asset’’ does 

13 not include employee benefit plans covered by 

14 title I of the Employee Retirement Income Se15 curity Act of 1974 (29 U.S.C. 1001 et seq.). 

16 (2) INVESTMENT.—The term ‘‘investment’’ in17 cludes— 

18 (A) a commitment or contribution of funds 

19 or property; 

20 (B) a loan or other extension of credit; and 

21 (C) the entry into or renewal of a contract 

22 for goods or services. 

23 (h) EFFECTIVE DATE.— 

24 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para25 graph (2) and subsection (e), this section applies to 


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1 measures applied by a State or local government be2 fore, on, or after the date of the enactment of this 

3 Act. 

4 (2) NOTICE REQUIREMENTS.—Except as pro5 vided in subsection (h), subsections (c) and (d) apply 

6 to measures applied by a State or local government 

7 on or after the date of the enactment of this Act. 

8 SEC. 202. SAFE HARBOR FOR CHANGES OF INVESTMENT 

9 POLICIES BY ASSET MANAGERS. 

10 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 13(c)(1) of the Invest11 ment Company Act of 1940 (15 U.S.C. 80a–13(c)(1)) is 

12 amended— 

13 (1) in subparagraph (A) by striking ‘‘or’’ at the 

14 end; 

15 (2) in subparagraph (B) by striking the period 

16 and inserting ‘‘; or’’; and 

17 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

18 ‘‘(C) engage in investment activities involv19 ing North Korean covered property, as defined 

20 in section 3 of the Banking Restrictions Involv21 ing North Korea (BRINK) Act of 2017.’’. 

22 (b) SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION REGU23 LATIONS.—Not later than 120 days after the date of the 

24 enactment of this Act, the Securities and Exchange Com25 mission shall issue any revisions the Securities and ExVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:13 Jul 27, 2017 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00056 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1591.IS S1591

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1 change Commission determines to be necessary to the reg2 ulations requiring disclosure by each registered investment 

3 company that divests itself of securities in accordance with 

4 section 13(c) of the Investment Company Act of 1940 (15 

5 U.S.C. 80a–13(c)), including in accordance with para6 graph (1)(C) of that section, as added by subsection 

7 (a)(3). 

8 SEC. 203. SENSE OF CONGRESS REGARDING CERTAIN 

9 ERISA PLAN INVESTMENTS. 

10 It is the sense of Congress that— 

11 (1) a fiduciary of an employee benefit plan, as 

12 defined in section 3(3) of the Employee Retirement 

13 Income Security Act of 1974 (29 U.S.C. 1002(3)), 

14 may divest plan assets from, or avoid investing plan 

15 assets in, any person the fiduciary determines en16 gages in investment activities involving North Ko17 rean covered property, if— 

18 (A) the fiduciary makes that determination 

19 using credible information that is available to 

20 the public; and 

21 (B) the fiduciary prudently determines 

22 that the result of that divestment or avoidance 

23 of investment would not be expected to provide 

24 the employee benefit plan with— 


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1 (i) a lower rate of return than alter2 native investments with commensurate de3 grees of risk; or 

4 (ii) a higher degree of risk than alter5 native investments with commensurate 

6 rates of return; and 

7 (2) by divesting assets or avoiding the invest8 ment of assets as described in paragraph (1), the fi9 duciary is not breaching the responsibilities, obliga10 tions, or duties imposed upon the fiduciary by sub11 paragraph (A) or (B) of section 404(a)(1) of the 

12 Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 

13 (29 U.S.C. 1104(a)(1)). 

14 SEC. 204. RULE OF CONSTRUCTION. 

15 Nothing in this Act or any other provision of law au16 thorizing sanctions with respect to North Korea shall be 

17 construed to affect or displace— 

18 (1) the authority of a State or local government 

19 to issue and enforce rules governing the safety, 

20 soundness, and solvency of a financial institution 

21 subject to its jurisdiction; or 

22 (2) the regulation and taxation by the several 

23 States of the business of insurance, pursuant to the 

24 Act of March 9, 1945 (59 Stat. 34, chapter 20; 15 


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1 U.S.C. 1011 et seq.) (commonly known as the 

2 ‘‘McCarran-Ferguson Act’’). 

3 TITLE III—GENERAL 

4 AUTHORITIES 

5 SEC. 301. RULEMAKING. 

6 The President may prescribe such rules and regula7 tions as may be necessary to carry out this Act. 

8 SEC. 302. AUTHORITY TO CONSOLIDATE REPORTS. 

9 (a) IN GENERAL.—Any and all reports required to 

10 be submitted to the appropriate congressional committees 

11 under this Act that are subject to a deadline for submis12 sion consisting of the same unit of time may be consoli13 dated into a single report that is submitted pursuant to 

14 that deadline. 

15 (b) CONTENTS.—Any reports consolidated under sub16 section (a) shall contain all information required under 

17 this Act and any other elements that may be required by 

18 existing law. 

19 SEC. 303. RULE OF CONSTRUCTION. 

20 Nothing in this Act shall be construed to limit the 

21 authority or obligation of the President— 

22 (1) to apply the sanctions described in section 

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1 gard to persons that meet the criteria for designa2 tion under such section; or 

3 (2) to exercise any other law enforcement au4 thorities available to the President. 

Æ 


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