I 

116TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 1611 

To provide assistance for United States citizens and nationals taken hostage 

or unlawfully or wrongfully detained abroad, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

MARCH 7, 2019 

Mr. DEUTCH (for himself, Mr. WILSON of South Carolina, Mr. TED LIEU of 

California, and Mr. WALTZ) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs, and in addition to the Committee on the Judiciary, for a period to be subsequently determined by 

the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 

A BILL 

To provide assistance for United States citizens and nationals taken hostage or unlawfully or wrongfully detained 

abroad, and for other purposes. 

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

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Robert Levinson Hos5 tage Recovery and Hostage-Taking Accountability Act’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. ASSISTANCE FOR UNITED STATES CITIZENS AND 

2 NATIONALS UNLAWFULLY OR WRONGFULLY 

3 DETAINED ABROAD. 

4 (a) REVIEW.—The Secretary of State shall review the 

5 cases of citizens and nationals of the United States de6 tained abroad to determine if there is credible information 

7 that they are being detained unlawfully or wrongfully, 

8 based on criteria including whether— 

9 (1) the detained individual has presented cred10 ible information of factual innocence to United 

11 States officials; 

12 (2) information exists that the individual is de13 tained solely or substantially because he or she is a 

14 citizen or national of the United States; 

15 (3) information exists that the individual is 

16 being detained in violation of internationally pro17 tected rights and freedoms, such as freedom of ex18 pression, association, assembly, and religion; 

19 (4) the individual is being detained in violation 

20 of the laws of the detaining country; 

21 (5) independent nongovernmental organizations 

22 or journalists have raised legitimate questions about 

23 the innocence of the detained individual; 

24 (6) the United States embassy in the country 

25 where the individual is detained has received credible 

26 reports that the detention is a pretext; 


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1 (7) police reports show evidence of the lack of 

2 a credible investigation; 

3 (8) the individual is detained in a country 

4 where the Department of State has determined in its 

5 annual human rights reports that the judicial system 

6 is not independent or impartial, is susceptible to cor7 ruption, or is incapable of rendering just verdicts; 

8 (9) the individual is detained in inhumane con9 ditions; and 

10 (10) the international right to due process of 

11 law has been sufficiently impaired so as to render 

12 the detention arbitrary. 

13 (b) REFERRALS TO THE SPECIAL ENVOY.—Upon a 

14 determination by the Secretary of State that there is cred15 ible information that the detention of a United States na16 tional abroad is unlawful or wrongful, and regardless of 

17 whether the detention is by a foreign government or a non18 governmental actor, the Secretary shall transfer responsi19 bility for such case from the Bureau of Consular Affairs 

20 of the Department of State to the Special Envoy for Hos21 tage Affairs created pursuant to section 3. 

22 (c) REPORT.— 

23 (1) BIANNUAL REPORT.—With respect to 

24 United States nationals for whom the Secretary de25 termines there is credible information of unlawful or 


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1 wrongful detention abroad, the Secretary shall sub2 mit a biannual report to the appropriate congres3 sional committees. 

4 (2) COMPOSITION.—The report required under 

5 paragraph (1) shall include current estimates of the 

6 number of individuals so detained, as well as rel7 evant information about particular cases, such as— 

8 (A) the name of the individual, unless the 

9 provision of such information is inconsistent 

10 with section 552a of title 5, United States Code 

11 (commonly known as the ‘‘Privacy Act of 

12 1974’’); 

13 (B) basic facts about the case; 

14 (C) a summary of the information that 

15 such individual may be detained unlawfully or 

16 wrongfully; 

17 (D) a description of specific efforts, legal 

18 and diplomatic, taken on behalf of the indi19 vidual since the last reporting period, including 

20 a description of accomplishments and setbacks; 

21 and 

22 (E) a description of intended next steps. 

23 (d) RESOURCE MANUAL.— 

24 (1) ESTABLISHMENT.—Not later than 180 days 

25 after the date of the enactment of this Act and after 


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1 consulting with relevant organizations that advocate 

2 on behalf of United States citizens and national de3 tained abroad, the Secretary of State shall publish 

4 a resource manual for government officials and fam5 ilies of unjustly or wrongfully detained individuals. 

6 (2) CONTENT.—The resource manual required 

7 under paragraph (1) shall include suggested actions 

8 designed to obtain the release of unjustly or wrong9 fully detained individuals, including— 

10 (A) acting through traditional diplomatic 

11 and consular channels to ensure prompt and 

12 regular access for the detained individual to 

13 legal counsel, family members, humane treat14 ment, and other services; 

15 (B) sanctions tools including withholding 

16 assistance to the foreign government, in cases 

17 where relevant, and denying or revoking visas 

18 and freezing assets of individuals perpetrating 

19 the unjust or wrongful detention; 

20 (C) submitting public or private letters 

21 from members of Congress or other individuals 

22 who may be influential in securing the release 

23 of an individual; and 

24 (D) consulting with relevant legal and 

25 human rights organizations. 


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1 SEC. 3. SPECIAL ENVOY FOR HOSTAGE AFFAIRS. 

2 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There shall be a Special Pres3 idential Envoy for Hostage Affairs, appointed by the 

4 President, by and with the advice and consent of the Sen5 ate, who shall report to the Secretary of State. 

6 (b) RANK.—The Special Envoy shall have the rank 

7 and status of ambassador. 

8 (c) RESPONSIBILITIES.—The Special Presidential 

9 Envoy for Hostage Affairs shall— 

10 (1) lead diplomatic engagement on United 

11 States hostage policy; 

12 (2) coordinate all diplomatic engagements in 

13 support of hostage recovery efforts, in coordination 

14 with the Hostage Recovery Fusion Cell and con15 sistent with policy guidance communicated through 

16 the Hostage Response Group; 

17 (3) coordinate with the Hostage Recovery Fu18 sion Cell proposals for diplomatic engagements and 

19 strategy in support of hostage recovery efforts; 

20 (4) provide senior representation from the Spe21 cial Envoy’s office to the Hostage Recovery Fusion 

22 Cell established under section 4 and the Hostage Re23 sponse Group established under section 5; and 

24 (5) in coordination with the Hostage Recovery 

25 Fusion Cell as appropriate, coordinate diplomatic 

26 engagements regarding cases in which a foreign govVerDate Sep 11 2014 18:09 Mar 21, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1611.IH H1611

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1 ernment confirms that it has detained a United 

2 States national but the United States Government 

3 regards such detention as unlawful or wrongful. 

4 SEC. 4. HOSTAGE RECOVERY FUSION CELL. 

5 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The President shall establish 

6 an interagency Hostage Recovery Fusion Cell. 

7 (b) PARTICIPATION.—The President shall direct the 

8 heads of each of the following executive departments, 

9 agencies, and offices to make available personnel to par10 ticipate in the Hostage Recovery Fusion Cell: 

11 (1) The Department of State. 

12 (2) The Department of the Treasury. 

13 (3) The Department of Defense. 

14 (4) The Department of Justice. 

15 (5) The Office of the Director of National Intel16 ligence. 

17 (6) The Federal Bureau of Investigation. 

18 (7) The Central Intelligence Agency. 

19 (8) Other agencies as the President, from time 

20 to time, may designate. 

21 (c) PERSONNEL.—The Hostage Recovery Fusion Cell 

22 shall have— 

23 (1) a Director, who shall be a full-time senior 

24 officer or employee of the United States Govern25 ment; 


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1 (2) a Family Engagement Coordinator; and 

2 (3) other officers and employees as deemed ap3 propriate by the President. 

4 (d) DUTIES.—The Hostage Recovery Fusion Cell 

5 shall— 

6 (1) coordinate efforts by participating agencies 

7 to ensure that all relevant information, expertise, 

8 and resources are brought to bear to secure the safe 

9 recovery of United States nationals held hostage 

10 abroad; 

11 (2) if directed, coordinate the United States 

12 Government’s response to other hostage-takings oc13 curring abroad in which the United States has a na14 tional interest; and 

15 (3) pursuant to policy guidance coordinated 

16 through the National Security Council— 

17 (A) identify and recommend hostage recov18 ery options and strategies to the President 

19 through the National Security Council; 

20 (B) coordinate efforts by participating 

21 agencies to ensure that information regarding 

22 hostage events, including potential recovery op23 tions and engagements with families and exter24 nal actors (including foreign governments), is 

25 appropriately shared within the United States 


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1 Government to facilitate a coordinated response 

2 to a hostage-taking; 

3 (C) assess and track all hostage-takings of 

4 United States nationals abroad and provide reg5 ular reports to the President on the status of 

6 such cases and any measures being taken to7 ward the hostages’ safe recovery; 

8 (D) provide a forum for intelligence shar9 ing and, with the support of the Director of Na10 tional Intelligence, coordinate the declassifica11 tion of relevant information; 

12 (E) coordinate efforts by participating 

13 agencies to provide appropriate support and as14 sistance to hostages and their families in a co15 ordinated and consistent manner and to provide 

16 families with timely information regarding sig17 nificant events in their cases; 

18 (F) make recommendations to agencies in 

19 order to reduce the likelihood of United States 

20 nationals’ being taken hostage abroad and en21 hance United States Government preparation to 

22 maximize the probability of a favorable outcome 

23 following a hostage-taking; and 


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1 (G) coordinate with agencies regarding 

2 congressional, media, and other public inquiries 

3 pertaining to hostage events. 

4 SEC. 5. HOSTAGE RESPONSE GROUP. 

5 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The President shall establish 

6 a Hostage Response Group, to be convened on a regular 

7 basis, as well as upon the request of the National Security 

8 Council, to further the safe recovery of United States na9 tionals held abroad, and to be tasked with coordinating 

10 the United States Government response to other hostage11 takings occurring abroad in which the United States has 

12 a national interest. 

13 (b) MEMBERSHIP.—The regular members of the Hos14 tage Response Group shall include the Director of the 

15 Hostage Recovery Fusion Cell, the Hostage Recovery Fu16 sion Cell’s Family Engagement Coordinator, the Special 

17 Envoy appointed pursuant to section 3, and representa18 tives from the Department of the Treasury, the Depart19 ment of Defense, the Department of Justice, the Federal 

20 Bureau of Investigation, the Office of the Director of Na21 tional Intelligence, and other agencies as the President, 

22 from time to time, may designate. 

23 (c) DUTIES.—The Hostage Recovery Group shall— 


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1 (1) identify and recommend hostage recovery 

2 options and strategies to the President through the 

3 National Security Council; 

4 (2) coordinate the development and implemen5 tation of United States hostage recovery policies, 

6 strategies, and procedures; 

7 (3) receive regular updates from the Hostage 

8 Recovery Fusion Cell on the status of United States 

9 nationals being held hostage abroad and measures 

10 being taken to effect the hostages’ safe recovery; 

11 (4) coordinate the provision of policy guidance 

12 to the Hostage Recovery Fusion Cell, including re13 viewing recovery options proposed by the Hostage 

14 Recovery Fusion Cell and working to resolve dis15 putes within the Hostage Recovery Fusion Cell; and 

16 (5) where higher-level guidance is required, 

17 make recommendations to the National Security 

18 Council. 

19 (d) MEETINGS.—The Hostage Response Group shall 

20 meet regularly. 

21 (e) REPORTING.—The Hostage Response Group shall 

22 regularly provide recommendations on hostage recovery 

23 options and strategies to the National Security Council. 


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1 SEC. 6. AUTHORIZATION OF IMPOSITION OF SANCTIONS. 

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—The President may impose the 

3 sanctions described in subsection (b) with respect to any 

4 foreign person the President determines, based on credible 

5 evidence— 

6 (1) is responsible for or complicit in, or respon7 sible for ordering, controlling, or otherwise directing, 

8 the unlawful or wrongful detention abroad of a 

9 United States national; 

10 (2) acts as an agent of or on behalf of a foreign 

11 person in a matter relating to an activity described 

12 in paragraph (1); or 

13 (3) materially assists, sponsors, or provides fi14 nancial, material, or technological support for, or 

15 goods or services in support of, an activity described 

16 in paragraph (1). 

17 (b) SANCTIONS DESCRIBED.—The sanctions de18 scribed in this subsection are the following: 

19 (1) INADMISSIBILITY TO UNITED STATES.— 

20 (A) IN GENERAL.—In the case of a foreign 

21 person who is an individual— 

22 (i) ineligibility to receive a visa to 

23 enter the United States or to be admitted 

24 to the United States; or 

25 (ii) if the individual has been issued a 

26 visa or other documentation, revocation, in 


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1 accordance with section 221(i) of the Im2 migration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 

3 1201(i)), of the visa or other documenta4 tion. 

5 (B) EXCEPTION TO COMPLY WITH UNITED

6 NATIONS HEADQUARTERS AGREEMENT AND

7 LAW ENFORCEMENT OBJECTIVES.—Sanctions 

8 under subparagraph (A) shall not apply to an 

9 individual if admitting the individual into the 

10 United States would further important law en11 forcement objectives or is necessary to permit 

12 the United States to comply with the Agree13 ment regarding the Headquarters of the United 

14 Nations, signed at Lake Success June 26, 

15 1947, and entered into force November 21, 

16 1947, between the United Nations and the 

17 United States, or other applicable international 

18 obligations of the United States. 

19 (2) BLOCKING OF PROPERTY.— 

20 (A) IN GENERAL.—The blocking, in ac21 cordance with the International Emergency 

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

23 of all transactions in all property and interests 

24 in property of a foreign person if such property 

25 and interests in property are in the United 


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

2 come within the possession or control of a 

3 United States person. 

4 (B) INAPPLICABILITY OF NATIONAL EMER5 GENCY REQUIREMENT.—The requirements of 

6 section 202 of the International Emergency 

7 Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1701) shall 

8 not apply for purposes of this section. 

9 (C) EXCEPTION RELATING TO IMPORTA10 TION OF GOODS.— 

11 (i) IN GENERAL.—The authority to 

12 block and prohibit all transactions in all 

13 property and interests in property under 

14 subparagraph (A) shall not include the au15 thority to impose sanctions on the importa16 tion of goods. 

17 (ii) GOOD.—In this subparagraph, the 

18 term ‘‘good’’ means any article, natural or 

19 man-made substance, material, supply or 

20 manufactured product, including inspection 

21 and test equipment, and excluding tech22 nical data. 

23 (c) ENFORCEMENT OF BLOCKING OF PROPERTY.— 

24 A person that violates, attempts to violate, conspires to 

25 violate, or causes a violation of subsection (b)(2) or any 


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1 regulation, license, or order issued to carry out that sub2 section shall be subject to the penalties set forth in sub3 sections (b) and (c) of section 206 of the International 

4 Emergency Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1705) to the 

5 same extent as a person that commits an unlawful act de6 scribed in subsection (a) of that section. 

7 (d) TERMINATION OF SANCTIONS.—The President 

8 may terminate the application of sanctions under this sec9 tion with respect to a person if the President determines 

10 and reports to the appropriate congressional committees 

11 not later than 15 days before the termination of the sanc12 tions that— 

13 (1) credible information exists that the person 

14 did not engage in the activity for which sanctions 

15 were imposed; 

16 (2) the person has been prosecuted appro17 priately for the activity for which sanctions were im18 posed; 

19 (3) the person has credibly demonstrated a sig20 nificant change in behavior, has paid an appropriate 

21 consequence for the activity for which sanctions were 

22 imposed, and has credibly committed to not engage 

23 in an activity described in subsection (a) in the fu24 ture; or 


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1 (4) the termination of the sanctions is in the 

2 national security interests of the United States. 

3 (e) REGULATORY AUTHORITY.—The President shall 

4 issue such regulations, licenses, and orders as are nec5 essary to carry out this section. 

6 (f) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

7 (1) FOREIGN PERSON.—The term ‘‘foreign per8 son’’ has the meaning given that term in section 

9 595.304 of title 31, Code of Federal Regulations (as 

10 in effect on the day before the date of the enactment 

11 of this Act). 

12 (2) UNITED STATES PERSON.—The term 

13 ‘‘United States person’’ has the meaning given that 

14 term in section 595.315 of title 31, Code of Federal 

15 Regulations (as in effect on the day before the date 

16 of the enactment of this Act). 

17 SEC. 7. DEFINITIONS. 

18 (a) DEFINITIONS.— 

19 (1) APPROPRIATE CONGRESSIONAL COMMIT20 TEES.—In this Act, the term ‘‘appropriate congres21 sional committees’’ means— 

22 (A) the Committee on Foreign Relations, 

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1 mittee on Armed Services, and the Select Com2 mittee on Intelligence of the United States Sen3 ate; and 

4 (B) the Committee on Foreign Affairs, the 

5 Committee on Appropriations, the Committee 

6 on Financial Services, the Committee on the 

7 Judiciary, the Committee on Armed Services, 

8 and the Permanent Select Committee on Intel9 ligence of the House of Representatives. 

10 (2) UNITED STATES NATIONAL.—The term 

11 ‘‘United States national’’ means— 

12 (A) a United States national as defined in 

13 section 101(a)(22) or section 308 of the Immi14 gration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 

15 1101(a)(22), 8 U.S.C. 1408); and 

16 (B) a lawful permanent resident alien with 

17 significant ties to the United States. 

Æ 


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