SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Haiti Development, 
Accountability, and Institutional Transparency Initiative 
Act’’. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 
Congress finds the following: 
(1) On January 12, 2010, a massive earth-
quake struck near the Haitian capital city of Port- 
au-Prince, leaving at least 220,000 people dead, in-
cluding 103 United States citizens, 101 United Na-
tions personnel, and nearly 18 percent of Haiti’s 
civil service, as well as 300,000 injured, 115,000 
homes destroyed, and 1,500,000 Haitians displaced. 
(2) The international community, led by the 
United States and the United Nations, mounted an 
unprecedented humanitarian response to the earth-
quake 
in 
Haiti. 
Through 
2018, 
more 
than 
$8,000,000,000 has been disbursed by donors. Since 
the 2010 earthquake, the United States Government 
has disbursed more than $4,000,000,000 in recovery 
and development funding. 
(3) On October 4, 2016, Hurricane Matthew 
struck southwestern Haiti on the Tiburon Peninsula, 
causing widespread damage and flooding and leaving 
1.4 million people in need of immediate assistance.
Recovery efforts continue more than four years 
later. 
(4) Prior to both the 2010 earthquake and 
2016 hurricane, Haiti registered among the lowest 
in socioeconomic indicators and had the second high-
est rate of income disparity in the world—conditions 
that have further complicated disaster recovery and 
resilience efforts. As of November 2020, 4,400,000 
people were in need of humanitarian assistance in 
Haiti. 
(5) Since 2018, tens of thousands of Haitians 
have participated in popular demonstrations de-
manding accountability over government manage-
ment of Petrocaribe resources. In early 2019, the 
Haitian superior court of auditors released a series 
of reports implicating high-level government officials 
in the misappropriation of funds. 
(6) The United Nations Human Rights Office 
of the High Commissioner and the Human Rights 
Service jointly found a 333 percent increase in 
human rights violations and abuses against the 
rights of life and security in Haiti from July 2018 
through December 2019. There were 131 violations 
in 2018 and 567 violations in 2019, including the
shooting of at least five Haitian journalists covering 
the protests. 
(7) Leading members of civil society have faced 
attacks, including Monferrier Dorval, a constitu-
tional law expert and president of the Port-au- 
Prince bar who was killed on August 28, 2020. 
(8) On November 13, 2018, according to the 
Haitian National Human Rights Defense Network, 
at least 71 people were killed and 18 people were 
raped in the Port-au-Prince neighborhood of La Sa-
line. 
(9) On December 10, 2020, the Department of 
the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control des-
ignated former Haitian National Police officer 
Jimmy Cherizier, former Director General of the 
Ministry of the Interior Fednel Monchery, and 
former Departmental Delegate Joseph Pierre Rich-
ard Duplan pursuant to the Global Magnitsky Exec-
utive Order for being foreign persons responsible for 
or complicit in, or having directly or indirectly en-
gaged in, serious human rights abuse for their con-
nection to the La Saline massacre. 
(10) Following the La Saline massacre, similar 
attacks have occurred in Port-au-Prince neighbor-
hoods, including the November 2019 and August
2020 attacks on Bel Air, in which 24 people were 
killed and hundreds of families were displaced. 
(11) Parliamentary elections scheduled for Oc-
tober 2019 did not take place, and since January 
13, 2020, President Jovenel Moı¨se has ruled by de-
cree. The United States and international commu-
nity have urged President Moise to limit the use of 
executive decrees during this period and have ex-
pressed concern over several decrees issued, includ-
ing those creating the National Intelligence Agency 
and appointing three new judges to the Supreme 
Court outside of constitutional procedures. Haitian 
civil society organizations have denounced the presi-
dent’s use of decrees as an attempt to consolidate 
power. 
(12) Due to institutional weakness and other 
challenges exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic, 
Haiti’s economy contracted by an estimated 4 per-
cent in 2020 and inflation neared 20 percent. Al-
though there has been no parliament in place since 
January 2020, the Haitian Government approved a 
budget on September 30, 2020. However, the delay 
prevented the International Monetary Fund and 
other multilaterals from disbursing millions in inter-
national assistance.
(13) In September 2020, President Moı¨se by-
passed the Supreme Court to appoint a Provisional 
Electoral Council (CEP) by executive decree Several 
civil society groups that traditionally participate in 
Haiti’s electoral councils criticized the decision and 
have declined to be represented in the CEP. 
(14) The Moı¨se administration lacks the credi-
bility to oversee a proposed constitutional ref-
erendum scheduled for June 2021, which legal ex-
perts consider unconstitutional. 
(15) There are concerns that, given the lack of 
democratic checks and balances, the dispute over the 
credibility of the electoral council, and the deterio-
rating security situation, elections scheduled for Sep-
tember 2021 will not be free or fair. Additionally, 
the security situation remains volatile and on Feb-
ruary 7, 2021, President Moı¨se alleged that a coup 
had been attempted against him leading to 23 ar-
rests and the forced retirement of three Supreme 
Court judges. 
SEC. 3. STATEMENT OF POLICY. 
It is the policy of the United States to support the 
sustainable rebuilding and development of Haiti in a man-
ner that—
(1) recognizes Haitian independence, self-reli-
ance, sovereignty, democratic governance, and effi-
ciency; 
(2) promotes efforts that are led by and sup-
port the people and Government of Haiti at all levels 
so that Haitians lead the course of reconstruction 
and development of Haiti; 
(3) builds the long-term capacity of the Govern-
ment of Haiti, civil society in Haiti, and the private 
sector to foster economic opportunities in Haiti; 
(4) fosters collaboration between the Haitian di-
aspora in the United States, including dual citizens 
of Haiti and the United States, with the Haitian 
Government and the business community in Haiti; 
(5) supports anti-corruption efforts, promotes 
press freedom, and addresses human rights con-
cerns, including through the enforcement of sanc-
tions imposed in accordance with the Global 
Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act on in-
dividuals implicated in human rights violations; 
(6) respects and helps restore Haiti’s natural 
resources, as well as strengthens community-level re-
silience to environmental and weather-related im-
pacts;
(7) promotes the holding of free, fair, and time-
ly elections in accordance with democratic principles 
and the Haitian Constitution; 
(8) provides timely and comprehensive reporting 
on Haiti and the United States Government’s goals 
and progress, as well as transparent post program 
evaluations and contracting data; 
(9) promotes the participation of Haitian 
women and youth in governmental and nongovern-
mental institutions and in economic development and 
governance assistance programs funded by the 
United States; and 
(10) does not provide support to facilitate the 
proposed June 2021 constitutional referendum, in-
cluding through multilateral organizations. 
SEC. 
4. 
STRENGTHENING 
HUMAN 
RIGHTS 
AND 
ANTICORRUPTION EFFORTS IN HAITI AND 
HOLDING PERPETRATORS OF THE LA SALINE 
MASSACRE ACCOUNTABLE. 
(a) SECRETARY
OF STATE PRIORITIZATION.—The 
Secretary of State shall prioritize the protection of human 
rights and anticorruption efforts in Haiti by the following 
methods: 
(1) Fostering strong relationships with inde-
pendent civil society groups focused on monitoring
corruption and human rights abuses and promoting 
democracy in Haiti. 
(2) Supporting the efforts of the Haitian Gov-
ernment to identify persons involved in human rights 
violations and significant acts of corruption in Haiti, 
including public and private sector actors, and hold 
them accountable for their actions. 
(3) Addressing concerns of impunity for the al-
leged perpetrators, as well as the intellectual au-
thors, of the La Saline massacre. 
(4) Urging authorities to continue to investigate 
attacks in the La Saline and Bel Air neighborhoods 
from 2018 through 2021that left dozens dead in 
order to bring the perpetrators to justice. 
(b) BRIEFING.— 
(1) ELEMENTS.—Not later than 180 days after 
the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary 
of State shall brief the appropriate congressional 
committees on the happenings on November 13, 
2018, in the Port-au-Prince neighborhood of La Sa-
line, and its aftermath. The briefing shall include— 
(A) an examination of any links between 
the massacre in La Saline and mass protests 
that occurred concurrently in the country;
(B) an analysis of the reports on the La 
Saline massacre authored by the United Na-
tions, the European Union, and the Govern-
ment of Haiti; 
(C) a detailed description of all known per-
petrators, as well as the intellectual authors, of 
the shootings; 
(D) an overview of efforts taken by the 
Haitian Government to bring the perpetrators, 
as well as the intellectual authors, of the La Sa-
line massacre to justice and to prevent other 
similar attacks; and 
(E) an assessment of the ensuing treat-
ment and displacement of the survivors of the 
La Saline massacre. 
(2) CONSULTATION.—In the briefing required 
under paragraph (1), the Secretary of State shall 
consult with nongovernmental organizations in Haiti 
and the United States. 
SEC. 5. ACTIONS TO PROMOTE FREEDOM OF THE PRESS 
AND ASSEMBLY IN HAITI. 
The Secretary of State shall prioritize the promotion 
of freedom of the press and freedom of assembly, as well 
as the protection of journalists in Haiti by the following 
methods:
(1) Advocating to Haitian authorities for in-
creased protection for journalists and the press and 
for the freedom to peacefully assemble or protest in 
Haiti. 
(2) Collaborating with government officials and 
representatives of civil society to develop and imple-
ment legal protections for journalists in Haiti. 
(3) Supporting efforts to strengthen trans-
parency in Haiti’s public and private sectors, as well 
as access to information in Haiti. 
(4) Supporting efforts to strengthen the capac-
ity of independent journalists and increase access to 
resources for investigative journalism. 
SEC. 6. ACTIONS TO SUPPORT POST-EARTHQUAKE, POST- 
HURRICANE AND POST-COVID–19 RECOVERY 
AND DEVELOPMENT IN HAITI. 
The Secretary of State, in coordination with the Ad-
ministrator of the United States Agency for International 
Development (USAID), shall prioritize post-earthquake 
and post-hurricane recovery and development efforts in 
Haiti by the following methods: 
(1) Collaborating with the Haitian Government 
on a detailed and transparent development plan that 
includes clear objectives and benchmarks.
(2) Building the capacity of Haitian-led public, 
private, and nongovernmental sector institutions in 
Haiti through post-earthquake and post-hurricane 
recovery and development planning. 
(3) Assessing the impact of both the United 
States’ and the international community’s recovery 
and development efforts in Haiti since January 
2010. 
(4) Supporting disaster resilience and recon-
struction efforts. 
(5) Addressing the underlying causes of poverty 
and inequality, and improving access to health re-
sources, clean water, food, and shelter. 
(6) Assessing the impact of the COVID–19 
pandemic on post-disaster recovery efforts and eval-
uating United States support to help with pandemic 
response efforts in Haiti, including providing tech-
nical assistance and preventing other infectious dis-
ease outbreaks. 
SEC. 7. REPORT. 
(a) REPORT CONTENT.—Not later than 180 days 
after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary 
of State, in coordination with the Administrator of the 
United States Agency for International Development, and 
other relevant agencies and departments, shall submit to
the appropriate congressional committees a report that in-
cludes— 
(1) a strategy for carrying out the initiatives 
described in sections 4, 5, and 6, including estab-
lished baselines, benchmarks, and indicators to 
measure outcomes and impact; 
(2) an assessment of major corruption com-
mitted among the public and private sectors, and, as 
practical and appropriate, an assessment of corrup-
tion prosecutions investigated by the Haitian judici-
ary since January 2015; 
(3) an overview of efforts taken by the Haitian 
Government to address corruption, including the 
Petrocaribe scandal, and corrective measures to 
strengthen and restore trust in Haiti’s public insti-
tutions; 
(4) a description of United States Government 
efforts to consult and engage with Haitian Govern-
ment officials and independent civil society groups 
focused on monitoring corruption and human rights 
abuses and promoting democracy and press freedom 
in Haiti since January 2015; 
(5) a description of the Haitian Government’s 
response to civic protests that have taken place since
July 2018 and any allegations of human rights 
abuses, including attacks on journalists; 
(6) an assessment of United States security as-
sistance to Haiti, including the United States sup-
port to the Haitian National Police and an assess-
ment of compliance with section 620M of the For-
eign Assistance Act of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2378d) and 
section 362 of title 10, United States Code (com-
monly referred to as the ‘‘Leahy Laws’’); 
(7) a description of the Haitian Government’s 
efforts to support displaced survivors of urban and 
gang violence; 
(8) an assessment of the impact of presidential 
decrees on the health of Haiti’s democratic institu-
tions and safeguarding of human rights, including 
reducing the authority of the Superior Court of Ac-
counts and Administrative Litigation, promulgating 
an antiterrorism law, and establishing the National 
Intelligence Agency, as well as retiring and subse-
quently appointing judges to the Supreme Court of 
Haiti; 
(9) a plan in collaboration with the Haitian 
Government on efforts to support development goals 
since January 2015, including steps taken to—
(A) strengthen institutions at the national 
and local levels; and 
(B) strengthen democratic governance at 
the national and local levels; 
(10) an analysis of the effectiveness and sus-
tainability of United States-financed development 
projects, including the Caracol Industrial Park and 
supporting infrastructure; 
(11) a breakdown of procurement from Haitian 
small- and medium-sized businesses and nongovern-
mental organizations by the United States and Hai-
tian governments for development and humanitarian 
activities by year since 2015, and a description of ef-
forts to increase local procurement, including food 
aid; 
(12) a description of United States efforts 
taken since January 2010 to assist the Haitian peo-
ple in their pursuits for free, fair, and timely demo-
cratic elections; 
(13) quantitative and qualitative indicators to 
assess progress and benchmarks for United States 
initiatives focused on sustainable development in 
Haiti, including democracy assistance, economic re-
vitalization, natural disaster recovery, pandemic re-
sponse, resilience, energy and infrastructure, health, 
and food security; and 
(14) a risk assessment of conflict, instability, 
and violence in Haiti that includes information relat-
ing to— 
(A) systemic patterns and causes of vio-
lence and subsequent impunity relating to mas-
sacres, death threats, kidnappings, armed at-
tacks, and firearm-related violence, with anal-
ysis of the roles of the various actors and bene-
ficiaries who play a part, including Haitain 
Government actors; 
(B) gang activity and its role in the recent 
wave of kidnappings and the capacities of the 
police force to address the most serious mani-
festations of insecurity; 
(C) the scope and role of criminal activity 
and its linkages to political forces, particularly 
leading up to elections; and 
(D) implications of the lack of independ-
ence of Haiti’s judicial system. 
(b) CONSULTATION.—In preparing the report re-
quired under subsection (a), the Secretary of State and 
the USAID Administrator shall consult with nongovern-
mental organizations and civil society groups in Haiti and
the United States, as well as the Government of Haiti 
where appropriate. 
(c) PUBLIC AVAILABILITY.—The report required 
under subsection (a) shall be made publicly available on 
the website of the Department of State. 
SEC. 8. SUNSET. 
(a) REPEAL.—The Assessing Progress in Haiti Act 
(22 U.S.C. 2151n; Public Law 113–162) is repealed. 
(b) TERMINATION.—This Act shall terminate on De-
cember 31, 2025. 
SEC. 9. DEFINITIONS. 
In this Act the term ‘‘appropriate congressional com-
mittees’’ means— 
(1) the Committee on Foreign Affairs and the 
Committee on Appropriations of the House of Rep-
resentatives; and 
(2) the Committee on Foreign Relations and 
the Committee on Appropriations of the Senate. 
Passed the House of Representatives June 29, 2021. 
Attest: 
Clerk.
117TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION 
H. R. 2471 
AN ACT 
To measure the progress of post-disaster recovery 
and efforts to address corruption, governance, 
rule of law, and media freedoms in Haiti.