I 

116TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 4270 

To prohibit commercial exports of certain nonlethal crowd control items and 

defense articles and services to the Hong Kong Disciplined Services, 

and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

SEPTEMBER 10, 2019 

Mr. MCGOVERN (for himself, Mr. SMITH of New Jersey, and Mr. KHANNA) 

introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on 

Foreign Affairs 

A BILL 

To prohibit commercial exports of certain nonlethal crowd 

control items and defense articles and services to the 

Hong Kong Disciplined Services, 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 ‘‘Placing Restrictions 

5 on Teargas Exports and Crowd Control Technology to 

6 Hong Kong Act’’ or the ‘‘PROTECT Hong Kong Act’’. 

7 SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND STATEMENT OF POLICY. 

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


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1 (1) During the 2019 anti-extradition bill and 

2 pro-democracy protests, the Hong Kong Police 

3 Force used non-lethal crowd control articles such as 

4 water cannon trucks, tear gas, rubber bullets, 

5 sponge grenades, beanbag rounds, batons, pepper 

6 spray, pepper balls, and projectile launchers. 

7 (2) The United Nations High Commissioner for 

8 Human Rights, along with human rights organiza9 tions, have called for an investigation of the use of 

10 crowd control tactics used in Hong Kong which fall 

11 short of international standards, including the 

12 United Nations Code of Conduct for Law Enforce13 ment Officials and the Basic Principles on the Use 

14 of Force and Firearms for Law Enforcement Offi15 cials. 

16 (3) United States companies received export li17 censes to sell the Hong Kong Police Force munitions 

18 and non-lethal crowd control defense articles and 

19 services and at least some of those articles were used 

20 by the police unnecessarily and disproportionately 

21 during largely peaceful demonstrations. 

22 (4) The Government of the United Kingdom 

23 suspended export licenses for the sale of tear gas 

24 and other non-lethal crowd control equipment to 

25 Hong Kong until concerns about human rights 


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1 abuses are addressed by the Hong Kong Special Ad2 ministrative Region government. 

3 (5) The European Parliament adopted a resolu4 tion calling on European governments and the inter5 national community to impose export-control mecha6 nisms to deny the Hong Kong and Chinese govern7 ments access to technologies used to violate basic 

8 rights. 

9 (6) Hong Kong citizens and the international 

10 community have called for changes to the Hong 

11 Kong Police’s crowd control tactics and these re12 quests have gone unheeded by the Hong Kong Spe13 cial Administrative Region government. 

14 (b) STATEMENT OF POLICY.—It is the policy of the 

15 United States— 

16 (1) to restrict the export of security assistance 

17 and crime control and detection instruments and 

18 equipment to any country the government of which 

19 engages in a consistent pattern of gross violations of 

20 internationally recognized human rights as required 

21 by section 502B(a) of the Foreign Assistance Act of 

22 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2304(a)); and 

23 (2) to use export controls on crime control and 

24 detection instruments and equipment to deter the 

25 development of a consistent pattern of human rights 


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1 abuses, distance the United States from such 

2 abuses, and avoid contributing to civil disorder in a 

3 country or region in accordance with section 

4 742.7(b) of part 774 of subtitle B of title 15, Code 

5 of Federal Regulations. 

6 SEC. 3. PROHIBITION ON COMMERCIAL EXPORT OF COV7 ERED DEFENSE ARTICLES AND SERVICES 

8 AND COVERED MUNITIONS ITEMS TO THE 

9 HONG KONG DISCIPLINED SERVICES. 

10 (a) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in subsection 

11 (b), beginning on the date that is 30 days after the date 

12 of the enactment of this Act, the President shall prohibit 

13 the issuance of licenses to export covered defense articles 

14 and services and covered munitions items to the Hong 

15 Kong Disciplined Services. 

16 (b) EXCEPTION.—The prohibition in subsection (a) 

17 shall not take effect if— 

18 (1) the President certifies to the appropriate 

19 congressional committees before the date specified in 

20 such subsection (a) that— 

21 (A) extraordinary circumstances exist that 

22 necessitate the continuation of the export of 

23 covered defense articles and services and cov24 ered munitions items to the Hong Kong DisVerDate Sep 11 2014 18:45 Sep 11, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4270.IH H4270

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1 ciplined Services and includes a description of 

2 such circumstances; or 

3 (B) exports of covered defense articles and 

4 services and covered munitions items to parts of 

5 the Hong Kong Disciplined Services other than 

6 the Hong Kong Police Force are required to ad7 vance United States foreign policy goals and in8 cludes— 

9 (i) a description of the articles, serv10 ices, and items; and 

11 (ii) the number of articles, services, 

12 and items required to meet such goals; or 

13 (2) the President has issued an Executive order 

14 under section 202 of the United States-Hong Kong 

15 Policy Act of 1992 (22 U.S.C. 5722) before the date 

16 specified in such subsection (a) suspending the ap17 plication of section 201(a) of such Act to any United 

18 States law related to the sale of covered defense arti19 cles and services and covered munitions items to the 

20 Hong Kong Disciplined Services. 


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1 SEC. 4. REPORT ON COVERED DEFENSE ARTICLES AND 

2 SERVICES AND COVERED MUNITIONS ITEMS 

3 EXPORTED TO THE HONG KONG DISCIPLINED 

4 SERVICES. 

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 90 days after the 

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

7 in consultation with the Secretary of Commerce and the 

8 heads of other relevant Federal departments and agencies, 

9 shall submit to the appropriate congressional committees 

10 a report that lists and provides a description of all covered 

11 defense articles and services and covered munitions items 

12 exported to the Hong Kong Disciplined Services during 

13 the five-year period ending on such date of enactment. 

14 (b) FORM.—The report required by subsection (a) 

15 shall be— 

16 (1) submitted in unclassified form; and 

17 (2) submitted as either a separate written re18 port or as an annex to testimony offered by Depart19 ment of State officials before one or more of the ap20 propriate congressional committees. 

21 SEC. 5. DEFINITIONS. 

22 In this Act: 

23 (1) APPROPRIATE CONGRESSIONAL COMMIT24 TEES.—The term ‘‘appropriate congressional com25 mittees’’ means— 


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1 (A) the Committee on Foreign Affairs of 

2 the House of Representatives; and 

3 (B) the Committee on Foreign Relations of 

4 the Senate. 

5 (2) COVERED DEFENSE ARTICLES AND SERV6 ICES.—The term ‘‘covered defense articles and serv7 ices’’ means defense articles and defense services 

8 designated by the President under section 38(a)(1) 

9 of the Arms Export Control Act (22 U.S.C. 

10 2778(a)(1)). 

11 (3) COVERED MUNITIONS ITEMS.—The term 

12 ‘‘covered munitions items’’ means— 

13 (A) items controlled under section 742.7 of 

14 part 742 of subtitle B of title 15, Code of Fed15 eral Regulations (relating to crime control and 

16 detection instruments and equipment and re17 lated technology and software); and 

18 (B) items listed under the ‘‘600 series’’ of 

19 the Commerce Control List contained in Sup20 plement No. 1 to part 774 of subtitle B of title 

21 15, Code of Federal Regulations. 

22 (4) HONG KONG.—The term ‘‘Hong Kong’’ has 

23 the meaning given such term in section 3 of the 

24 United States-Hong Kong Policy Act of 1992 (22 

25 U.S.C. 5702). 


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1 (5) HONG KONG DISCIPLINED SERVICES.—The 

2 term ‘‘Hong Kong Disciplined Services’’ means— 

3 (A) the Hong Kong Police Force; 

4 (B) the Hong Kong Auxiliary Police Force; 

5 (C) the Hong Kong Immigration Depart6 ment; 

7 (D) the Hong Kong Customs and Excise 

8 Department; 

9 (E) the Hong Kong Fire Services Depart10 ment; 

11 (F) the Hong Kong Correctional Services 

12 Department; and 

13 (G) the Hong Kong Government Flying 

14 Service. 

Æ 


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