I 

108TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 3814

To enhance peace between the Israelis and Palestinians. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

FEBRUARY 11, 2004

Mr. SESSIONS introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 

Committee on International Relations 

A BILL

To enhance peace between the Israelis and Palestinians.

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 ‘‘Israeli-Palestinian 

5 Peace Enhancement Act of 2004’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 Congress makes the following findings: 

8 (1) The security of the State of Israel is a 

9 major and enduring national security interest of the 

10 United States. 
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1 (2) A lasting peace in the Middle East region, 

2 which Israel desperately seeks, can only take root in 

3 an atmosphere free of violence and terrorism. 

4 (3) The Palestinian people have been ill-served 

5 by leaders who, by resorting to violence and ter6 rorism to pursue their political objectives, have 

7 brought economic and personal hardship to their 

8 people and brought a halt to efforts seeking a nego9 tiated settlement of the conflict. 

10 (4) The United States has an interest in a Mid11 dle East in which two states, Israel and Palestine, 

12 will live side by side in peace and security. 

13 (5) In his speech of June 24, 2002, and in 

14 other statements, President George W. Bush out15 lined a comprehensive vision of the possibilities of 

16 peace in the Middle East region following a change 

17 in Palestinian leadership. 

18 (6) President Bush stated in his June 24, 

19 2002, speech that ‘‘a stable and peaceful Palestinian 

20 state is necessary to achieve the security that Israel 

21 longs for,’’ and Israel has committed itself to con22 crete steps to achieve that end. 

23 (7) The Palestinian state must be a reformed, 

24 peaceful, and democratic state that abandons forever 

25 the use of terror. 
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1 (8) Israel has repeatedly indicated its willing2 ness to make painful concessions to achieve peace 

3 once there is a partner for peace on the Palestinian 

4 side. 

5 SEC. 3. PURPOSES. 

6 The purposes of this Act are—

7 (1) to express the sense of Congress with re8 spect to United States recognition of a Palestinian 

9 state; 

10 (2) to encourage the emergence of a Palestinian 

11 leadership that is capable of achieving the reforms 

12 outlined by President Bush, including making peace 

13 with Israel, combating all forms of terrorism, and 

14 developing a peaceful, democratic Palestinian state; 

15 and 

16 (3) to demonstrate United States willingness to 

17 provide substantial economic and humanitarian as18 sistance, and to support large-scale multilateral as19 sistance, to a peaceful, democratic Palestinian state, 

20 after the Palestinians have achieved the reforms out21 lined by President Bush and have achieved peace 

22 with Israel. 

23 SEC. 4. SENSE OF CONGRESS. 

24 It is the sense of Congress that—
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1 (1) peace between Israel and the Palestinians 

2 cannot be achieved until the Palestinian system of 

3 government has been transformed along the lines 

4 outlined in President Bush’s June 24, 2002, speech; 

5 (2) substantial United States and international 

6 economic assistance will be needed after the Pal7 estinians have achieved the reforms described in sec8 tion 620K(c)(2) of the Foreign Assistance Act of 

9 1961 (as added by section 6 of this Act) and have 

10 made a lasting and secure peace with Israel; 

11 (3) any new Palestinian administration urgently 

12 should take the necessary security-related steps to 

13 allow for implementation of a performance-based 

14 road map to resolve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict; 

15 (4) the United States Administration should 

16 work vigorously toward the goal of two states living 

17 side-by-side in peace within secure and internation18 ally-recognized boundaries free from threats or acts 

19 of force; and 

20 (5) the United States has a vital national secu21 rity interest in a permanent, comprehensive, and 

22 just resolution of the Arab-Israeli conflict, and par23 ticularly the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, based on the 

24 terms of United Nations Security Council Resolu25 tions 242 and 338. 
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1 SEC. 5. RECOGNITION OF A PALESTINIAN STATE. 

2 It is the sense of Congress that a Palestinian state 

3 should not be recognized by the United States until the 

4 President determines that—

5 (1) a new leadership of a Palestinian governing 

6 entity, not compromised by terrorism, has been 

7 elected and taken office; and 

8 (2) the newly-elected Palestinian governing enti9 ty—

10 (A) has demonstrated a firm and tangible 

11 commitment to peaceful coexistence with the 

12 State of Israel and to ending anti-Israel incite13 ment, including the cessation of all officially 

14 sanctioned or funded anti-Israel incitement; 

15 (B) has taken sustained and effective 

16 measures to counter terrorism and terrorist fi17 nancing in the West Bank and Gaza, including 

18 the dismantling of the terrorist infrastructure 

19 and the confiscation of unlawful weaponry; 

20 (C) has established one unified Palestinian 

21 security entity that is fully cooperating with the 

22 appropriate Israeli security organizations; 

23 (D) has achieved exclusive authority and 

24 responsibility for governing the national affairs 

25 of a Palestinian state, has taken effective steps 

26 to ensure democracy, the rule of law, and an 
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1 independent judiciary, and has adopted other 

2 reforms ensuring transparent and accountable 

3 governance; and 

4 (E) has taken effective steps to ensure that 

5 its education and communications systems pro6 mote the acceptance of Israel’s existence and of 

7 peace with Israel and actively discourage anti8 Israel incitement. 

9 SEC. 6. LIMITATION ON ASSISTANCE TO A PALESTINIAN 

10 STATE. 

11 Chapter 1 of part III of the Foreign Assistance Act 

12 of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2351 et seq.) is amended—

13 (1) by redesignating the second section 620G 

14 (as added by section 149 of Public Law 104–164 

15 (110 Stat. 1436)) as section 620J and inserting 

16 such section after section 620I; and 

17 (2) by adding at the end the following new sec18 tion: 

19 ‘‘SEC. 620K. LIMITATION ON ASSISTANCE TO A PALES20 TINIAN STATE. 

21 ‘‘(a) LIMITATION.—

22 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other 

23 provision of law, direct assistance may be provided 

24 under this Act or any other provision of law to the 

25 government of a Palestinian state only during a pe-
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1 riod for which a certification described in subsection 

2 (c) is in effect. The limitation contained in the pre3 ceding sentence shall not apply (A) to humanitarian 

4 or development assistance that is provided through 

5 nongovernmental organizations for the benefit of the 

6 Palestinian people in the West Bank and Gaza, or 

7 (B) to assistance that is intended to reform the Pal8 estinian Authority and affiliated institutions, or a 

9 newly elected Palestinian governing entity, in order 

10 to help meet the requirements contained in subpara11 graphs (A) through (H) of subsection (c)(3) or to 

12 address the matters described in subparagraphs (A) 

13 through (E) of section 5(2) of the Israeli-Palestinian 

14 Peace Enhancement Act of 2004. 

15 ‘‘(2) WAIVER.—The President may waive the 

16 limitation of the first sentence of paragraph (1) if 

17 the President determines and certifies to the Com18 mittee on International Relations and the Committee 

19 on Appropriations of the House of Representatives 

20 and the Committee on Foreign Relations and the 

21 Committee on Appropriations of the Senate that it 

22 is vital to the national security interest of the United 

23 States to do so. 

24 ‘‘(b) CONGRESSIONAL NOTIFICATION.—
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1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Assistance made available 

2 under this Act or any other provision of law to a 

3 Palestinian state may not be provided until 15 days 

4 after the date on which the President has provided 

5 notice thereof to the Committee on International Re6 lations and the Committee on Appropriations of the 

7 House of Representatives and to the Committee on 

8 Foreign Relations and the Committee on Appropria9 tions of the Senate in accordance with the proce10 dures applicable to reprogramming notifications 

11 under section 634A(a) of this Act. 

12 ‘‘(2) SUNSET.—Paragraph (1) shall cease to be 

13 effective beginning ten years after the date on which 

14 notice is first provided under such paragraph. 

15 ‘‘(c) CERTIFICATION.—A certification described in 

16 this subsection is a certification transmitted by the Presi17 dent to Congress that—

18 ‘‘(1) a Palestinian state exists and has been 

19 recognized by the United States and Israel and ad20 mitted to the United Nations; 

21 ‘‘(2) a binding international peace agreement 

22 exists between Israel and the Palestinian state 

23 that—

24 ‘‘(A) was freely signed by both parties; 
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1 ‘‘(B) guarantees both parties’ commitment 

2 to a mutually agreed border between two states 

3 that constitutes a secure and internationally 

4 recognized boundary for both states, with no re5 maining territorial claims; 

6 ‘‘(C) provides a permanent resolution for 

7 both Palestinian refugees and Jewish refugees 

8 from Arab countries; 

9 ‘‘(D) provides for mutually agreeable ar10 rangements on all remaining permanent status 

11 issues, including borders, settlements, water re12 sources, and Jerusalem; and 

13 ‘‘(E) includes a renunciation of all remain14 ing claims through provisions that commit both 

15 sides to the end of the conflict; and 

16 ‘‘(3) the new Palestinian government—

17 ‘‘(A) has been democratically elected 

18 through free and fair elections, has exclusive 

19 authority and responsibility for governing the 

20 national affairs of the Palestinian state, and 

21 has achieved the reforms outlined by President 

22 Bush in his June 24, 2002, speech; 

23 ‘‘(B) has completely renounced the use of 

24 violence against the State of Israel and its citi25 zens, is vigorously attempting to prevent any 
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1 acts of terrorism against Israel and its citizens, 

2 and punishes the perpetrators of such acts in a 

3 manner commensurate with their actions; 

4 ‘‘(C) has dismantled, and terminated the 

5 funding of, any group within its territory that 

6 conducts terrorism against Israel; 

7 ‘‘(D) is engaging in ongoing and extensive 

8 security cooperation with the State of Israel; 

9 ‘‘(E) refrains from any officially sanctioned 

10 or funded statement or act designed to incite 

11 Palestinians or others against the State of 

12 Israel and its citizens; 

13 ‘‘(F) has an elected leadership not com14 promised by terror; 

15 ‘‘(G) has instituted clearly defined and 

16 agreed upon limits on its military; and 

17 ‘‘(H) has no alliances or agreements that 

18 pose a threat to the security of the State of 

19 Israel. 

20 ‘‘(d) RECERTIFICATIONS.—Not later than 90 days 

21 after the date on which the President transmits to Con22 gress an initial certification under subsection (c), and 

23 every 6 months thereafter for the 10-year period beginning 

24 on the date of transmittal of such certification—
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1 ‘‘(1) the President shall transmit to Congress a 

2 recertification that the requirements contained in 

3 subsection (c) are continuing to be met; or 

4 ‘‘(2) if the President is unable to make such a 

5 recertification, the President shall transmit to Con6 gress a report that contains the reasons therefor. 

7 ‘‘(e) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—A certification 

8 under subsection (c) shall be deemed to be in effect begin9 ning on the day after the last day of the 10-year period 

10 described in subsection (d) unless the President subse11 quently determines that the requirements contained in 

12 subsection (c) are no longer being met and the President 

13 transmits to Congress a report that contains the reasons 

14 therefor.’’. 

15 SEC. 7. AUTHORIZATION OF ASSISTANCE TO A PALES16 TINIAN STATE. 

17 Chapter 1 of part III of the Foreign Assistance Act 

18 of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2351 et seq.), as amended by section 

19 6, is further amended by adding at the end the following 

20 new section: 

21 ‘‘SEC. 620L. AUTHORIZATION OF ASSISTANCE TO A PALES22 TINIAN STATE. 

23 ‘‘(a) ASSISTANCE.—The President is authorized to 

24 provide assistance to a Palestinian state in accordance 

25 with the requirements of this section. 
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1 ‘‘(b) ACTIVITIES TO BE SUPPORTED.—Assistance 

2 provided under subsection (a) shall be used to support ac3 tivities within a Palestinian state to substantially improve 

4 the economy and living conditions of the Palestinians by, 

5 among other things, providing for economic development 

6 in the West Bank and Gaza, continuing to promote democ7 racy and the rule of law, developing water resources, as8 sisting in security cooperation between Israelis and Pal9 estinians, and helping with the compensation and rehabili10 tation of Palestinian refugees. 

11 ‘‘(c) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—Of the 

12 amounts made available to carry out chapter 4 of part 

13 II of this Act for a fiscal year, there are authorized to 

14 be appropriated to the President to carry out subsections 

15 (a) and (b) such sums as may be necessary for each such 

16 fiscal year. 

17 ‘‘(d) COORDINATION OF INTERNATIONAL ASSIST18 ANCE.—

19 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Beginning on the date on 

20 which the President transmits to Congress an initial 

21 certification under section 620K(c), the Secretary of 

22 State shall—

23 ‘‘(A) seek to convene one or more donors 

24 conferences to gain commitments from other 

25 countries, multilateral institutions, and non-
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1 governmental organizations to provide economic 

2 assistance to Palestinians; 

3 ‘‘(B) seek to ensure that such commit4 ments to provide assistance are honored in a 

5 timely manner; 

6 ‘‘(C) promote coordination of assistance 

7 among the United States and such other coun8 tries, multilateral institutions, and nongovern9 mental organizations; 

10 ‘‘(D) monitor the assistance to ensure that 

11 the assistance provided to Palestinians is used 

12 for the purposes for which it was provided; and 

13 ‘‘(E) seek to ensure that other countries, 

14 multilateral institutions, and nongovernmental 

15 organizations do not provide assistance to Pal16 estinians through entities that are designated 

17 as terrorist organizations under United States 

18 law. 

19 ‘‘(2) ANNUAL REPORTS.—Not later than 180 

20 days after the date of the enactment of this section, 

21 and on an annual basis thereafter, the Secretary of 

22 State shall prepare and submit to the Committee on 

23 International Relations and the Committee on Ap24 propriations of the House of Representatives and the 

25 Committee on Foreign Relations and the Committee 
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1 on Appropriations of the Senate a report that de2 scribes the activities undertaken to meet the require3 ments of paragraph (1). 

4 ‘‘(3) BURDENSHARING.—Each report under 

5 paragraph (2) shall include a description of the 

6 amounts committed, and the amounts provided, to a 

7 Palestinian state or Palestinians during the report8 ing period by each country and organization.’’.

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