IIB 

116TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 2615 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JULY 16, 2019 

Received; read twice and referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations 

AN ACT 

To support the people of Central America and strengthen 

United States national security by addressing the root 

causes of migration from El Salvador, Guatemala, and 

Honduras. 

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


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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

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

3 ‘‘United States-Northern Triangle Enhanced Engagement 

4 Act’’. 

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

6 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

Sec. 2. Report on drivers of migration from the Northern Triangle to the 

United States. 

Sec. 3. Actions to promote inclusive economic growth and development in the 

Northern Triangle. 

Sec. 4. Actions to combat corruption in the Northern Triangle. 

Sec. 5. Actions to strengthen democratic institutions in the Northern Triangle. 

Sec. 6. Actions to improve security conditions in the Northern Triangle. 

Sec. 7. Authorization of appropriations for assistance to Central America. 

Sec. 8. Conditions on assistance to the Northern Triangle. 

Sec. 9. Enhancing engagement with the Government of Mexico on the Northern 

Triangle. 

Sec. 10. Targeting assistance to address migration from communities in the 

Northern Triangle. 

Sec. 11. Targeted sanctions to fight corruption in the Northern Triangle. 

Sec. 12. Requirement to provide advance notification to Congress of security 

assistance to Northern Triangle countries. 

Sec. 13. Definitions. 

Sec. 14. Determination of budgetary effects. 

7 SEC. 2. REPORT ON DRIVERS OF MIGRATION FROM THE 

8 NORTHERN TRIANGLE TO THE UNITED 

9 STATES. 

10 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days after the 

11 date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State, 

12 in coordination with the Administrator of the United 

13 States Agency for International Development and the 

14 heads of other relevant Federal agencies, shall submit to 

15 the appropriate congressional committees a report on the 

16 drivers of migration from each of the Northern Triangle 


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1 countries and the progress United States foreign assist2 ance is making in addressing such drivers. 

3 (b) ELEMENTS.—The report required under sub4 section (a) shall include the following elements for each 

5 of the Northern Triangle countries, with data 

6 disaggregated by municipality, age, and gender, as nec7 essary: 

8 (1) Information and data on all criminal activi9 ties, including drug trafficking, extortion, trafficking 

10 in persons, and gender-based violence, with par11 ticular emphasis on such activities carried out by 

12 criminal gangs and transnational criminal organiza13 tions such as MS–13 and the 18th Street Gang. 

14 (2) Data on the extent to which criminal activi15 ties referred to in paragraph (1) are reported to gov16 ernment authorities and the number of perpetrators 

17 investigated, apprehended, prosecuted, or convicted, 

18 versus the number of known perpetrators who are 

19 not so investigated, apprehended, prosecuted, or con20 victed. 

21 (3) Data on children and young adults forcibly 

22 recruited for criminal activities referred to in para23 graph (1), including the extent to which government 

24 authorities received reports of forced recruitment. 


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1 (4) Data on internal displacement due to crimi2 nal activities referred to in paragraph (1), and serv3 ices, including temporary shelters, provided to those 

4 displaced by violence. 

5 (5) Data on gender-based violence by region 

6 and municipality and descriptions of gender-based 

7 violence and domestic violence trends, including gen8 der-based violence against indigenous women, and 

9 correlation to outward migration. 

10 (6) Descriptions of the obstacles (including ca11 pacity gaps within the criminal justice systems) to 

12 resolving gender-based violence cases and deterring 

13 violence against women and children. 

14 (7) Information on the availability of trauma15 informed legal and social services, including in shel16 ters, for victims of gender-based violence. 

17 (8) Data on the number of police officers, pros18 ecutors, court personnel, and specialized units 

19 trained in violence against women and children, in20 cluding data on the number of female police officers 

21 in each of the Northern Triangle countries. 

22 (9) Data on reported cases of abuse, including 

23 extrajudicial executions, torture, forced disappear24 ance, and arbitrary detention, allegedly committed 

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1 tween members of such security forces and gangs 

2 and other criminal groups, including transnational 

3 criminal organizations, and the number of perpetra4 tors investigated, apprehended, prosecuted, or con5 victed, versus the number of known perpetrators not 

6 so investigated, apprehended, prosecuted, or con7 victed. 

8 (10) Descriptions of the strategies being imple9 mented to guarantee the rights of indigenous and 

10 rural communities. 

11 (11) Descriptions of the strategies being imple12 mented to address forced recruitment of children 

13 and youth by gangs, transnational criminal organiza14 tions, and other criminal groups, and how such 

15 strategies are complemented by United States ef16 forts. 

17 (12) Descriptions of the strategies being imple18 mented by the governments of each of the Northern 

19 Triangle countries to address corruption and orga20 nized crime and how such strategies are com21 plemented by United States efforts. 

22 (13) Data on the effectiveness of anti-corrup23 tion strategies, including through bilateral and mul24 tilateral anti-corruption assistance. 


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1 (14) An assessment of the extent of corruption, 

2 including regarding narcotics trafficking and illicit 

3 campaign financing, a description of steps taken and 

4 to be taken to impose sanctions pursuant to the 

5 Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act 

6 (22 U.S.C. 2656 note), and a list of senior officials 

7 who are known or credibly alleged to have committed 

8 or facilitated such corruption, not including individ9 uals who have already been sentenced to crimes in 

10 criminal courts. 

11 (15) Descriptions of operating conditions for 

12 civil society organizations and independent media in 

13 each of the Northern Triangle countries, and data 

14 on harassment and attacks on civil society and inde15 pendent media from political and criminal actors. 

16 (16) An assessment of information sharing re17 garding known or suspected terrorists and other in18 dividuals and groups that pose a potential threat to 

19 United States national security that are crossing 

20 through or residing in the Northern Triangle. 

21 (17) Descriptions of the obstacles (including ca22 pacity gaps within the criminal justice systems) to 

23 resolving criminal cases and corruption and deter24 ring violence. 


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1 (18) Data on the capacity of child welfare sys2 tems in each Northern Triangle country to protect 

3 unaccompanied children, including runaways and 

4 refugee returnees. 

5 (19) Data on the governance capacity of North6 ern Triangle country governments at the local and 

7 national level, including ability to deliver basic cit8 izen services, including tax collection and citizen se9 curity. 

10 (20) Data on the rates of extortion, the impact 

11 of extortion on local businesses and economies, and 

12 the number of extortion cases investigated, pros13 ecuted, or convicted. 

14 (21) Data on the extent to which the Northern 

15 Triangle governments are promoting economic 

16 growth and educational opportunities, improving 

17 health outcomes, and addressing the underlying 

18 causes of poverty and inequality through public poli19 cies. 

20 (22) Data on the activities of China and Rus21 sia, an assessment of the threat of such activities to 

22 United States interests, and the impact of such ac23 tivities on irregular migration. 

24 (23) An analysis of the manner and extent to 

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1 angle countries in fiscal years 2015 through 2017 

2 were expended, particularly including— 

3 (A) the extent to which funds made avail4 able to private and nongovernmental entities to 

5 provide such assistance were subsequently ex6 pended on activities conducted within such 

7 countries; and 

8 (B) the manner in which such funds were 

9 expended on activities in other countries. 

10 (24) Data on the geographic regions where 

11 highest incidence of violence occurs against women 

12 and children. 

13 (25) An evaluation of the extent to which 

14 women and children who are victims of violence have 

15 access to protection and justice. 

16 (26) An evaluation of the capacity of the justice 

17 system in each Northern Triangle country to re18 spond to reports of femicide, sexual assault, domes19 tic violence, trafficking, or child abuse and neglect, 

20 and to hold perpetrators of such crimes accountable. 

21 (c) PUBLIC AVAILABILITY.—The report required 

22 under subsection (a) shall be made publicly available on 

23 the website of the Department of State. 


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1 SEC. 3. ACTIONS TO PROMOTE INCLUSIVE ECONOMIC 

2 GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT IN THE NORTH3 ERN TRIANGLE. 

4 (a) SECRETARY OF STATE PRIORITIZATION.—The 

5 Secretary of State shall prioritize economic development 

6 in the Northern Triangle countries by carrying out the fol7 lowing initiatives: 

8 (1) Supporting market-based solutions to elimi9 nate constraints to inclusive economic growth, in10 cluding through support for increased digital 

11 connectivity and the use of financial technology, and 

12 private sector and civil society-led efforts to create 

13 jobs and foster economic prosperity. 

14 (2) Addressing underlying causes of poverty 

15 and inequality, including by improving nutrition and 

16 food security, providing health resources and access 

17 to clean water, sanitation, hygiene, and shelter, and 

18 improving livelihoods. 

19 (3) Responding to immediate humanitarian 

20 needs by increasing humanitarian assistance, includ21 ing through access to clean water, sanitation, hy22 giene, and shelter, improving livelihoods, and by pro23 viding health resources and improving nutrition and 

24 food security. 


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1 (4) Supporting conservation and community re2 silience and strengthening community preparedness 

3 for natural disasters and other external shocks. 

4 (5) Identifying, as appropriate, a role for the 

5 United States International Development Finance 

6 Corporation, the Millennium Challenge Corporation 

7 (MCC), the United States Agency for International 

8 Development, and the United States private sector 

9 in supporting efforts to increase private sector in10 vestment and strengthen economic prosperity. 

11 (6) Expanding comprehensive reintegration 

12 mechanisms for repatriated individuals once re13 turned to their countries of origin and supporting ef14 forts by the private sector to hire and train eligible 

15 returnees. 

16 (7) Establishing monitoring and verification 

17 services to determine the well-being of repatriated 

18 children in order to determine if United States pro19 tection and screening functioned effectively in identi20 fying persecuted and trafficked children. 

21 (8) Supporting efforts to increase domestic re22 source mobilization, including through strengthening 

23 of tax collection and enforcement and legal arbitra24 tion mechanisms. 

25 (b) STRATEGY.— 


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1 (1) ELEMENTS.—Not later than 180 days after 

2 the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary 

3 of State, in coordination with the Administrator of 

4 the United States Agency for International Develop5 ment, the President and Chief Executive Officer of 

6 the Inter-American Foundation, the Director of the 

7 United States Trade and Development Agency, the 

8 Chief Executive Officer of the United States Inter9 national Development Finance Corporation, and the 

10 heads of other relevant Federal agencies, shall sub11 mit to the appropriate congressional committees a 5- 

12 year strategy to support inclusive economic growth 

13 and development in the Northern Triangle countries 

14 by carrying out the initiatives described in sub15 section (a). 

16 (2) CONSULTATION.—In developing the strat17 egy required under paragraph (1), the Secretary of 

18 State shall consult with nongovernmental organiza19 tions in the Northern Triangle countries and the 

20 United States. 

21 (3) BENCHMARKS.—The strategy required 

22 under paragraph (1) shall include annual bench23 marks to track the strategy’s progress in curbing ir24 regular migration from the Northern Triangle to the 

25 United States. 


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1 (4) PUBLIC DIPLOMACY.—The strategy re2 quired under paragraph (1) shall include a public di3 plomacy strategy for educating citizens of the North4 ern Triangle countries about United States assist5 ance and its benefits to them, and informing such 

6 citizens of the dangers of illegal migration to the 

7 United States. 

8 (5) ANNUAL PROGRESS UPDATES.—Not later 

9 than 1 year after the submission of the strategy re10 quired under paragraph (1) and annually thereafter 

11 for 4 years, the Secretary of State shall provide the 

12 appropriate congressional committees with a written 

13 description of progress made in meeting the bench14 marks established in the strategy. 

15 (6) PUBLIC AVAILABILITY.—The strategy re16 quired under paragraph (1) shall be made publicly 

17 available on the website of the Department of State. 

18 (c) REPORT ON ESTABLISHING AN INVESTMENT

19 FUND FOR THE NORTHERN TRIANGLE COUNTRIES AND

20 SOUTHERN MEXICO.—Not later than 180 days after the 

21 date of the enactment of this Act, the Chief Executive Of22 ficer of the United States International Development Fi23 nance Corporation shall submit to the appropriate con24 gressional committees a detailed report assessing the fea25 sibility, costs, and benefits of the Corporation establishing 


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1 an investment fund to promote economic and social devel2 opment in the Northern Triangle countries and southern 

3 Mexico. 

4 SEC. 4. ACTIONS TO COMBAT CORRUPTION IN THE NORTH5 ERN TRIANGLE. 

6 (a) SECRETARY OF STATE PRIORITIZATION.—The 

7 Secretary of State shall prioritize efforts to combat cor8 ruption in the Northern Triangle countries by carrying out 

9 the following initiatives: 

10 (1) Supporting anti-corruption efforts, includ11 ing by strengthening national justice systems and at12 torneys general, providing technical assistance to fi13 nancial institutions to identify money laundering and 

14 other financial crimes, breaking up financial hold15 ings of organized criminal syndicates, including ille16 gally acquired lands and proceeds from illegal activi17 ties, and supporting independent media and inves18 tigative reporting. 

19 (2) Supporting anti-corruption efforts through 

20 bilateral assistance and complementary support 

21 through multilateral anti-corruption mechanisms 

22 when necessary. 

23 (3) Encouraging cooperation agreements be24 tween the Department of State and relevant United 


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1 States Government agencies and attorneys general 

2 to fight corruption. 

3 (4) Supporting efforts to strengthen special 

4 prosecutorial offices and financial institutions to 

5 combat corruption, money laundering, financial 

6 crimes, extortion, human rights crimes, asset for7 feiture, and criminal analysis. 

8 (5) Supporting initiatives to advance judicial in9 tegrity and improve security for members of the ju10 dicial sector. 

11 (6) Supporting transparent, merit-based selec12 tion processes for prosecutors and judges and the 

13 development of professional and merit-based civil 

14 services. 

15 (7) Supporting the establishment or strength16 ening of methods, procedures, and expectations for 

17 internal and external control mechanisms for the se18 curity and police services and judiciary. 

19 (8) Supporting the adoption of appropriate 

20 technologies to combat corruption in public finance. 

21 (b) STRATEGY.— 

22 (1) ELEMENTS.—Not later than 180 days after 

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

24 of State, in coordination with the Administrator of 

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1 ment and the heads of other relevant Federal agen2 cies, shall submit to the appropriate congressional 

3 committees a 5-year strategy to combat corruption 

4 in the Northern Triangle countries by carrying out 

5 the initiatives described in subsection (a). 

6 (2) CONSULTATION.—In developing the strat7 egy required under paragraph (1), the Secretary of 

8 State shall consult with nongovernmental organiza9 tions in the Northern Triangle countries and the 

10 United States. 

11 (3) BENCHMARKS.—The strategy required 

12 under paragraph (1) shall include annual bench13 marks to track the strategy’s progress in curbing ir14 regular migration from the Northern Triangle to the 

15 United States. 

16 (4) PUBLIC DIPLOMACY.—The strategy re17 quired under paragraph (1) shall include a public di18 plomacy strategy for educating citizens of the North19 ern Triangle countries about United States assist20 ance and its benefits to them, and informing such 

21 citizens of the dangers of illegal migration to the 

22 United States. 

23 (5) ANNUAL PROGRESS UPDATES.—Not later 

24 than 1 year after the submission of the strategy re25 quired under paragraph (1) and annually thereafter 


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1 for 4 years, the Secretary of State shall provide the 

2 appropriate congressional committees with a written 

3 description of progress made in meeting the bench4 marks established in the strategy. 

5 (6) PUBLIC AVAILABILITY.—The strategy re6 quired under paragraph (1) shall be made publicly 

7 available on the website of the Department of State. 

8 (c) DESIGNATION OF A SENIOR RULE OF LAW ADVI9 SOR FOR THE NORTHERN TRIANGLE IN THE BUREAU OF

10 WESTERN HEMISPHERE AFFAIRS.—The Secretary of 

11 State shall designate in the Bureau of Western Hemi12 sphere Affairs of the Department of State a Senior Rule 

13 of Law Advisor for the Northern Triangle who shall lead 

14 diplomatic engagement with the Northern Triangle coun15 tries in support of democratic governance, anti-corruption 

16 efforts, and the rule of law in all aspects of United States 

17 policy towards the countries of the Northern Triangle, in18 cluding carrying out the initiatives described in subsection 

19 (a) and developing the strategy required under subsection 

20 (b). The individual designated in accordance with this sub21 section shall be a Department of State employee in the 

22 Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs. 


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1 SEC. 5. ACTIONS TO STRENGTHEN DEMOCRATIC INSTITU2 TIONS IN THE NORTHERN TRIANGLE. 

3 (a) SECRETARY OF STATE PRIORITIZATION.—The 

4 Secretary of State shall prioritize strengthening demo5 cratic institutions, good governance, human rights, and 

6 the rule of law in the Northern Triangle countries by car7 rying out the following initiatives: 

8 (1) Providing support to strengthen government 

9 institutions and actors at the local and national lev10 els to provide services and respond to citizen needs 

11 through transparent, inclusive, and democratic proc12 esses. 

13 (2) Supporting efforts to strengthen access to 

14 information laws and reform laws that currently 

15 limit access to information. 

16 (3) Financing efforts to build the capacity of 

17 independent media with a specific focus on profes18 sional investigative journalism. 

19 (4) Ensuring that threats and attacks on jour20 nalists and human rights defenders are fully inves21 tigated and perpetrators are held accountable. 

22 (5) Developing the capacity of civil society to 

23 conduct oversight and accountability mechanisms at 

24 the national and local levels. 

25 (6) Training political actors committed to 

26 democratic principles. 


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1 (7) Strengthening electoral institutions and 

2 processes to ensure free, fair, and transparent elec3 tions. 

4 (8) Advancing conservation principles and the 

5 rule of law to address multiple factors, including the 

6 impacts of illegal cattle ranching and smuggling as 

7 drivers of deforestation. 

8 (b) STRATEGY.— 

9 (1) ELEMENTS.—Not later than 180 days after 

10 the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary 

11 of State, in coordination with the Administrator of 

12 the United States Agency for International Develop13 ment and the heads of other relevant Federal agen14 cies, shall submit to the appropriate congressional 

15 committees a strategy to support democratic govern16 ance in the Northern Triangle countries by carrying 

17 out the initiatives described in subsection (a). 

18 (2) CONSULTATION.—In developing the strat19 egy required under paragraph (1), the Secretary of 

20 State shall consult with nongovernmental organiza21 tions in the Northern Triangle countries and the 

22 United States. 

23 (3) BENCHMARKS.—The strategy required 

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1 regular migration from the Northern Triangle to the 

2 United States. 

3 (4) PUBLIC DIPLOMACY.—The strategy re4 quired under paragraph (1) shall include a public di5 plomacy strategy for educating citizens of the North6 ern Triangle countries about United States assist7 ance and its benefits to them, and informing such 

8 citizens of the dangers of illegal migration to the 

9 United States. 

10 (5) ANNUAL PROGRESS UPDATES.—Not later 

11 than 1 year after the submission of the strategy re12 quired under paragraph (1) and annually thereafter 

13 for 4 years, the Secretary of State shall provide the 

14 appropriate congressional committees with a written 

15 description of progress made in meeting the bench16 marks established in the strategy. 

17 (6) PUBLIC AVAILABILITY.—The strategy re18 quired under paragraph (1) shall be made publicly 

19 available on the website of the Department of State. 

20 SEC. 6. ACTIONS TO IMPROVE SECURITY CONDITIONS IN 

21 THE NORTHERN TRIANGLE. 

22 (a) SECRETARY OF STATE PRIORITIZATION.—The 

23 Secretary of State shall prioritize security in the Northern 

24 Triangle countries by carrying out the following initiatives: 


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1 (1) Implementing the Central America Regional 

2 Security Initiative of the Department of State. 

3 (2) Continuing the vetting and 

4 professionalization of security services, including the 

5 civilian police and military units. 

6 (3) Supporting efforts to combat the illicit ac7 tivities of criminal gangs and transnational criminal 

8 organizations, including MS–13 and the 18th Street 

9 Gang, through support to fully vetted elements of at10 torneys general offices, appropriate government in11 stitutions, and security services. 

12 (4) Supporting training for fully vetted civilian 

13 police and appropriate security services in criminal 

14 investigations, best practices for citizen security, and 

15 human rights. 

16 (5) Providing capacity-building to relevant secu17 rity services and attorneys general to support coun18 ternarcotics efforts and combat human trafficking, 

19 forcible recruitment of children and youth by gangs, 

20 gender-based violence, and other illicit activities, in21 cluding trafficking of wildlife, and natural resources. 

22 (6) Encouraging collaboration with regional and 

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1 mation sharing on gangs and transnational criminal 

2 organizations. 

3 (7) Providing equipment, technology, tools, and 

4 training to security services to assist in border and 

5 port inspections. 

6 (8) Providing equipment, technology, tools, and 

7 training to assist security services in counter8 narcotics and other efforts to combat illicit activities. 

9 (9) Continuing information sharing regarding 

10 known or suspected terrorists and other individuals 

11 and entities that pose a potential threat to United 

12 States national security that are crossing through or 

13 residing in the Northern Triangle. 

14 (10) Supporting information sharing on gangs 

15 and transnational criminal organizations between 

16 relevant Federal, State, and local law enforcement 

17 and the governments of the Northern Triangle coun18 tries. 

19 (11) Considering the use of assets and re20 sources of United States State and local government 

21 entities, as appropriate, to support the activities de22 scribed in this subsection. 

23 (12) Providing thorough end-use monitoring of 

24 equipment, technology, tools, and training provided 

25 pursuant to this subsection. 


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1 (b) STRATEGY.— 

2 (1) ELEMENTS.—Not later than 180 days after 

3 the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary 

4 of State, in coordination with the Administrator of 

5 the United States Agency for International Develop6 ment and the heads of other relevant Federal agen7 cies, shall submit to the appropriate congressional 

8 committees a 5-year strategy to prioritize the im9 provement of security in the Northern Triangle 

10 countries by carrying out the initiatives described in 

11 subsection (a). 

12 (2) CONSULTATION.—In developing the strat13 egy required under paragraph (1), the Secretary of 

14 State shall consult with nongovernmental organiza15 tions in the Northern Triangle countries and the 

16 United States. 

17 (3) BENCHMARKS.—The strategy required 

18 under paragraph (1) shall include annual bench19 marks to track the strategy’s progress in curbing ir20 regular migration from the Northern Triangle to the 

21 United States. 

22 (4) PUBLIC DIPLOMACY.—The strategy re23 quired under paragraph (1) shall include a public di24 plomacy strategy for educating citizens of the North25 ern Triangle countries about United States assistVerDate Sep 11 2014 23:05 Jul 16, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00022 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2615.RFS H2615

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1 ance and its benefits to them, and informing such 

2 citizens of the dangers of illegal migration to the 

3 United States. 

4 (5) ANNUAL PROGRESS UPDATES.—Not later 

5 than 1 year after the submission of the strategy re6 quired under paragraph (1) and annually thereafter 

7 for 4 years, the Secretary of State shall provide the 

8 appropriate congressional committees with a written 

9 description of progress made in meeting the bench10 marks established in the strategy. 

11 (6) PUBLIC AVAILABILITY.—The strategy re12 quired under paragraph (1) shall be made publicly 

13 available on the website of the Department of State. 

14 (c) WOMEN AND CHILDREN PROTECTION COM15 PACTS.— 

16 (1) IN GENERAL.—The President, in consulta17 tion with the Secretary of State, the Administrator 

18 of the United States Agency for International Devel19 opment, and the heads of other relevant Federal de20 partments or agencies, is authorized to enter into bi21 lateral agreements with one or more of the Govern22 ments of El Salvador, Guatemala, or Honduras to 

23 provide United States assistance for the purposes 

24 of— 


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1 (A) strengthening the capacity of the jus2 tice systems in such countries to protect women 

3 and children fleeing domestic, gang, or drug vi4 olence and to serve victims of domestic violence, 

5 sexual assault, trafficking, or child abuse or ne6 glect, including by strengthening the capacity of 

7 such systems to hold perpetrators accountable; 

8 and 

9 (B) creating, securing, and sustaining safe 

10 communities and schools in such countries, by 

11 building on current approaches to prevent and 

12 deter violence against women and children in 

13 such communities or schools. 

14 (2) REQUIREMENTS.—An agreement under the 

15 authority provided by paragraph (1)— 

16 (A) shall establish a 3- to 6-year plan to 

17 achieve the objectives described in subpara18 graphs (A) and (B) of such paragraph; 

19 (B) shall include measurable goals and in20 dicators with respect to such objectives; 

21 (C) may not provide for any United States 

22 assistance to be made available directly to any 

23 of the governments of El Salvador, Guatemala, 

24 or Honduras; and 


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1 (D) may be suspended or terminated with 

2 respect to a country or an entity receiving as3 sistance pursuant to the agreement, if the Sec4 retary of State determines that such country or 

5 entity has failed to make sufficient progress to6 wards the goals of the Compact. 

7 SEC. 7. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS FOR ASSIST8 ANCE TO CENTRAL AMERICA. 

9 (a) IN GENERAL.—There are authorized to be appro10 priated to the President $577,000,000 for fiscal year 2020 

11 to carry out the United States Strategy for Engagement 

12 in Central America in accordance with subsection (b). 

13 Funds authorized to be appropriated to carry out this sec14 tion shall be used only for the purposes set forth in sub15 section (b). 

16 (b) USE OF FUNDS.— 

17 (1) IN GENERAL.—Amounts authorized to be 

18 appropriated pursuant to subsection (a) shall be 

19 made available for assistance to Central American 

20 countries to implement the United States Strategy 

21 for Engagement in Central America, including ef22 forts to carry out sections 3, 4, 5, and 6. 

23 (2) EFFECTIVE TARGETING OF ASSISTANCE.— 

24 The Secretary of State shall ensure that, to the ex25 tent practicable, assistance provided to Central 


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1 American countries to carry out this Act is obligated 

2 and expended on projects, programs, or activities 

3 within such countries, in order to better support in4 clusive economic growth and development, combat 

5 corruption, strengthen democratic institutions, and 

6 improve security conditions in such countries. 

7 (c) INTER-AMERICAN FOUNDATION.—Not less than 

8 $10,000,000 of the funds authorized to be appropriated 

9 pursuant to subsection (a) shall be made available to the 

10 Inter-American Foundation to address the root causes of 

11 migration from Central America. 

12 (d) NORTHERN TRIANGLE.—Not less than 

13 $490,000,000 of the funds authorized to be appropriated 

14 pursuant to subsection (a) shall be made available for pro15 gramming in the Northern Triangle counties. 

16 (e) WOMEN AND CHILDREN PROTECTION COM17 PACTS.—Not less than $20,000,000 of the funds author18 ized to be appropriated pursuant to subsection (a) shall 

19 be made available to provide assistance pursuant to agree20 ments authorized by section 6(c). 

21 SEC. 8. CONDITIONS ON ASSISTANCE TO THE NORTHERN 

22 TRIANGLE. 

23 (a) IN GENERAL.—Of the funds authorized to be ap24 propriated to the President by this Act that are made 

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1 ments of the Northern Triangle countries, 50 percent of 

2 such funds for each such central government may only be 

3 obligated with respect to each such country after the Sec4 retary of State certifies and reports to the appropriate 

5 congressional committees that such central government is 

6 meeting the following conditions: 

7 (1) Informing its citizens of the dangers of the 

8 journey to the southwest border of the United 

9 States. 

10 (2) Combating all human smuggling and traf11 ficking entities. 

12 (3) Countering the trafficking of illicit drugs, 

13 firearms, wildlife, natural resources, and other con14 traband. 

15 (4) Combating corruption, including inves16 tigating and prosecuting current and former govern17 ment officials credibly alleged to be corrupt. 

18 (5) Implementing reforms, policies, and pro19 grams to increase transparency and strengthen pub20 lic institutions and the rule of law. 

21 (6) Countering the activities of criminal gangs, 

22 drug traffickers, and transnational criminal organi23 zations. 

24 (7) Ensuring that human rights are respected 

25 by national security forces. 


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1 (8) Investigating and prosecuting in the civilian 

2 justice system government personnel who are 

3 credibly alleged to have violated human rights. 

4 (9) Cooperating with commissions against cor5 ruption and impunity and with regional human 

6 rights entities. 

7 (10) Supporting programs to reduce poverty, 

8 expand education and vocational training for at-risk 

9 youth, create jobs, and promote equitable economic 

10 growth, particularly in areas contributing to large 

11 numbers of migrants. 

12 (11) Creating a professional, accountable civil13 ian police force and ending the role of the military 

14 in internal policing. 

15 (12) Protecting the right of political opposition 

16 parties and other members of civil society to operate 

17 without interference. 

18 (13) Implementing tax reforms, ensuring prop19 erty rights, and supporting increased private invest20 ment in the region. 

21 (14) Resolving commercial disputes. 

22 (b) REPROGRAMMING.— 

23 (1) IN GENERAL.—Funds withheld pursuant to 

24 the limitation described in subsection (a) shall be 

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1 angle that do not directly support the central gov2 ernments of such countries. 

3 (2) EXCEPTION.—The limitation described in 

4 subsection (a) does not apply to funds authorized to 

5 be appropriated by this Act for humanitarian assist6 ance or global food security programs. 

7 SEC. 9. ENHANCING ENGAGEMENT WITH THE GOVERN8 MENT OF MEXICO ON THE NORTHERN TRI9 ANGLE. 

10 (a) ENHANCED ENGAGEMENT WITH THE GOVERN11 MENT OF MEXICO ON THE NORTHERN TRIANGLE.—The 

12 Secretary of State shall collaborate with the Government 

13 of Mexico to— 

14 (1) enhance development, particularly in col15 laboration with the Administrator of the United 

16 States Agency for International Development, the 

17 President and Chief Executive Officer of the Inter18 American Foundation, the Chief Executive Officer of 

19 the United States International Development Fi20 nance Corporation, and the heads of other relevant 

21 Federal agencies, in southern Mexico; and 

22 (2) strengthen security cooperation at Mexico’s 

23 shared border with Guatemala and Belize. 

24 (b) STRATEGY.— 


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1 (1) ELEMENTS.—Not later than 180 days after 

2 the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary 

3 of State shall submit to the appropriate congres4 sional committees a strategy to carry out the col5 laboration described in subsection (a). 

6 (2) CONSULTATION.—In developing the strat7 egy required under paragraph (1), the Secretary of 

8 State shall consult with nongovernmental organiza9 tions in Mexico, Belize, the Northern Triangle coun10 tries, and the United States. 

11 (3) PUBLIC AVAILABILITY.—The strategy re12 quired under paragraph (1) shall be made publicly 

13 available on the website of the Department of State. 

14 SEC. 10. TARGETING ASSISTANCE TO ADDRESS MIGRATION 

15 FROM COMMUNITIES IN THE NORTHERN TRI16 ANGLE. 

17 Not later than 1 year after the date of the enactment 

18 of this Act and annually thereafter for each of the three 

19 succeeding years, the Comptroller General of the United 

20 States shall submit to the appropriate congressional com21 mittees a report that contains the following: 

22 (1) Raw data from Federal agencies on the 

23 number of migrants coming to the United States 

24 from each community or geographic area in the 

25 Northern Triangle countries, with a specific focus on 


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1 communities targeted by United States foreign as2 sistance. 

3 (2) An assessment of whether United States 

4 foreign assistance to the Northern Triangle coun5 tries is effectively reaching the communities from 

6 which individuals are migrating. 

7 (3) An assessment of the extent to which 

8 United States foreign assistance is mitigating North9 ern Triangle migration to the United States, includ10 ing a breakdown of effectiveness by project and im11 plementer. 

12 (4) An assessment of the extent to which the 

13 Department of State and the United States Agency 

14 for International Development are adjusting foreign 

15 assistance programming in the Northern Triangle 

16 countries as migration patterns shift. 

17 (5) An assessment of how the Department of 

18 State, the United States Agency for International 

19 Development, and other implementers of United 

20 States foreign assistance in the Northern Triangle 

21 are measuring the impact of programs on migration 

22 trends. 

23 (6) An assessment of how the Department of 

24 State, the United States Agency for International 

25 Development, and other implementers of United 


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1 States foreign assistance in the Northern Triangle 

2 are implementing a public diplomacy strategy that is 

3 widely informing local citizens about United States 

4 Government assistance and the dangers of illegal mi5 gration to the United States, including an assess6 ment of the effectiveness of such strategy on curbing 

7 such illegal migration. 

8 (7) An assessment of the extent to which the 

9 governments of the Northern Triangle countries are 

10 addressing drivers of migration, including efforts to 

11 increase economic prosperity, citizen security, anti12 corruption efforts, democratic principles, and rule of 

13 law. 

14 (8) An assessment of how the Northern Tri15 angle countries are educating their citizens about 

16 the dangers of illegal migration to the United States 

17 and the effectiveness of such educational efforts on 

18 curbing such illegal migration. 

19 SEC. 11. TARGETED SANCTIONS TO FIGHT CORRUPTION IN 

20 THE NORTHERN TRIANGLE. 

21 (a) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con22 gress that— 

23 (1) corruption in the Northern Triangle coun24 tries by private citizens and select officials in local, 

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1 ages the economies of such countries and deprives 

2 citizens of opportunities; 

3 (2) corruption in the Northern Triangle is fa4 cilitated and carried out not only by private citizens 

5 and select officials from those countries but also in 

6 many instances by individuals from third countries; 

7 and 

8 (3) imposing targeted sanctions on individuals 

9 from throughout the world and particularly in the 

10 Western Hemisphere who are engaged in acts of sig11 nificant corruption that impact the Northern Tri12 angle countries will benefit the citizens and govern13 ments of such countries. 

14 (b) IMPOSITION OF SANCTIONS.—The President shall 

15 impose the sanctions described in subsection (c) with re16 spect to a foreign person who the President determines 

17 on or after the date of the enactment of this Act to have 

18 knowingly engaged in significant corruption in a Northern 

19 Triangle country, including the following: 

20 (1) Corruption related to government contracts. 

21 (2) Bribery and extortion. 

22 (3) The facilitation or transfer of the proceeds 

23 of corruption, including through money laundering. 

24 (c) SANCTIONS DESCRIBED.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—The sanctions described in 

2 this subsection are the following: 

3 (A) ASSET BLOCKING.—The blocking, in 

4 accordance with the International Emergency 

5 Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.), 

6 of all transactions in all property and interests 

7 in property of a foreign person if such property 

8 and interests in property are in the United 

9 States, come within the United States, or are or 

10 come within the possession or control of a 

11 United States person. 

12 (B) INELIGIBILITY FOR VISAS AND ADMIS13 SION TO THE UNITED STATES.—In the case of 

14 a foreign person who is an individual, such for15 eign person is— 

16 (i) inadmissible to the United States; 

17 (ii) ineligible to receive a visa or other 

18 documentation to enter the United States; 

19 and 

20 (iii) otherwise ineligible to be admitted 

21 or paroled into the United States or to re22 ceive any other benefit under the Immigra23 tion and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101 et 

24 seq.). 

25 (C) CURRENT VISAS REVOKED.— 


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1 (i) IN GENERAL.—The issuing con2 sular officer or the Secretary of State, (or 

3 a designee of the Secretary of State) shall, 

4 in accordance with section 221(i) of the 

5 Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 

6 1201(i)), revoke any visa or other entry 

7 documentation issued to a foreign person 

8 regardless of when the visa or other entry 

9 documentation is issued. 

10 (ii) EFFECT OF REVOCATION.—A rev11 ocation under clause (i) shall— 

12 (I) take effect immediately; and 

13 (II) automatically cancel any 

14 other valid visa or entry documenta15 tion that is in the foreign person’s 

16 possession. 

17 (2) PENALTIES.—A person that violates, at18 tempts to violate, conspires to violate, or causes a 

19 violation of a measure imposed pursuant to para20 graph (1)(A) or any regulation, license, or order 

21 issued to carry out such paragraph shall be subject 

22 to the penalties specified in subsections (b) and (c) 

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1 tent as a person that commits an unlawful act de2 scribed in subsection (a) of such section. 

3 (3) EXCEPTION TO COMPLY WITH INTER4 NATIONAL OBLIGATIONS.—Sanctions under subpara5 graph (B) and (C) of paragraph (1) shall not apply 

6 with respect to a foreign person if admitting or pa7 roling such person into the United States is nec8 essary to permit the United States to comply with 

9 the Agreement regarding the Headquarters of the 

10 United Nations, signed at Lake Success June 26, 

11 1947, and entered into force November 21, 1947, 

12 between the United Nations and the United States, 

13 or other applicable international obligations. 

14 (d) IMPLEMENTATION; REGULATORY AUTHORITY.— 

15 (1) IMPLEMENTATION.—The President may ex16 ercise all authorities provided under sections 203 

17 and 205 of the International Emergency Economic 

18 Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1702 and 1704) to carry out 

19 this section. 

20 (2) REGULATORY AUTHORITY.—The President 

21 shall issue such regulations, licenses, and orders as 

22 are necessary to carry out this section. 

23 (e) NATIONAL INTEREST WAIVER.—The President 

24 may waive the application of the sanctions under sub25 section (c) if the President— 


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1 (1) determines that such a waiver is in the na2 tional interest of the United States; and 

3 (2) submits to the appropriate congressional 

4 committees a notice of and justification for the waiv5 er. 

6 (f) TERMINATION.—The authority to impose sanc7 tions under subsection (b), and any sanctions imposed 

8 pursuant to such authority, shall expire on the date that 

9 is 3 years after the date of the enactment of this Act. 

10 (g) EXCEPTION RELATING TO IMPORTATION OF

11 GOODS.—The authorities and requirements to impose 

12 sanctions authorized under this Act shall not include the 

13 authority or requirement to impose sanctions on the im14 portation of goods. 

15 (h) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

16 (1) APPROPRIATE CONGRESSIONAL COMMIT17 TEES.—The term ‘‘appropriate congressional com18 mittees’’ means— 

19 (A) the Committee on Foreign Affairs, the 

20 Committee on the Judiciary, and the Com21 mittee on Financial Services of the House of 

22 Representatives; and 

23 (B) the Committee on Foreign Relations, 

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1 mittee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs 

2 of the Senate. 

3 (2) GOOD.—The term ‘‘good’’ means any arti4 cle, natural or man-made substance, material, supply 

5 or manufactured product, including inspection and 

6 test equipment, and excluding technical data. 

7 (3) PERSON FROM A NORTHERN TRIANGLE

8 COUNTRY.—The term ‘‘person from a Northern Tri9 angle country’’ means— 

10 (A) a citizen of a Northern Triangle coun11 try; or 

12 (B) an entity organized under the laws of 

13 a Northern Triangle country or any jurisdiction 

14 within a Northern Triangle country. 

15 SEC. 12. REQUIREMENT TO PROVIDE ADVANCE NOTIFICA16 TION TO CONGRESS OF SECURITY ASSIST17 ANCE TO NORTHERN TRIANGLE COUNTRIES. 

18 (a) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other provi19 sion of law, the President may not provide security assist20 ance to a Northern Triangle country during the 3-year 

21 period beginning on the date of the enactment of this Act 

22 until 30 days after the date on which the President has 

23 provided to the appropriate congressional committees no24 tice of such proposed provision of security assistance. 


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1 (b) WAIVER.—The President may waive the applica2 tion of subsection (a) on a case-by-case basis if the Presi3 dent— 

4 (1) determines it is in the national security in5 terests of the United States to do so; and 

6 (2) submits to the appropriate congressional 

7 committees such determination and the rationale for 

8 the determination. 

9 (c) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

10 (1) APPROPRIATE CONGRESSIONAL COMMIT11 TEES.—The term ‘‘appropriate congressional com12 mittees’’ means the Committee on Foreign Affairs of 

13 the House of Representatives and the Committee on 

14 Foreign Relations of the Senate. 

15 (2) SECURITY ASSISTANCE.—The term ‘‘secu16 rity assistance’’— 

17 (A) has the meaning given such term in 

18 section 502B(d)(2) of the Foreign Assistance 

19 Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2304); and 

20 (B) includes assistance under any inter21 national security assistance program conducted 

22 under any other provision of law not specified 

23 in section 502B(d)(2) of such Act. 

24 SEC. 13. DEFINITIONS. 

25 In this Act: 


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1 (1) APPROPRIATE CONGRESSIONAL COMMIT2 TEES.—Except as otherwise provided, the term ‘‘ap3 propriate congressional committees’’ means— 

4 (A) the Committee on Foreign Affairs and 

5 the Committee on Appropriations of the House 

6 of Representatives; and 

7 (B) the Committee on Foreign Relations 

8 and the Committee on Appropriations of the 

9 Senate. 

10 (2) NORTHERN TRIANGLE.—The term ‘‘North11 ern Triangle’’ means the region of Central America 

12 that encompasses the countries of El Salvador, Gua13 temala, and Honduras. 

14 (3) NORTHERN TRIANGLE COUNTRIES.—The 

15 term ‘‘Northern Triangle countries’’ means the 

16 countries of El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras. 

17 (4) TRANSNATIONAL CRIMINAL ORGANIZA18 TION.—The term ‘‘transnational criminal organiza19 tion’’ has the meaning given the term ‘‘significant 

20 transnational criminal organization’’ in Executive 

21 Order No. 13581 (July 24, 2011). 

22 SEC. 14. DETERMINATION OF BUDGETARY EFFECTS. 

23 The budgetary effects of this Act, for the purpose of 

24 complying with the Statutory Pay-As-You-Go-Act of 2010, 

25 shall be determined by reference to the latest statement 


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1 titled ‘‘Budgetary Effects of PAYGO Legislation’’ for this 

2 Act, submitted for printing in the Congressional Record 

3 by the Chairman of the House Budget Committee, pro4 vided that such statement has been submitted prior to the 

5 vote on passage. 

Passed the House of Representatives July 15, 2019. 

Attest: CHERYL L. JOHNSON, 

Clerk. 


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