I
107TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION
H. R. 3408
To require foreign insurance companies doing business in the United States
to disclose any financial dealings they had with individuals who survived
or died in the Holocaust, to provide for the Attorney General of the
United States to submit requests to such companies regarding claims
on behalf of such individuals, and to prohibit insured depository institu-
tions from transacting any business with or on behalf of any such
foreign insurance companies that fail to comply with such disclosure
requirements or fail to adequately respond to such requests, and for
other purposes.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
DECEMBER 5, 2001
Mr. FOLEY introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee
on Financial Services
A BILL
To require foreign insurance companies doing business in
the United States to disclose any financial dealings they
had with individuals who survived or died in the Holo-
caust, to provide for the Attorney General of the United
States to submit requests to such companies regarding
claims on behalf of such individuals, and to prohibit
insured depository institutions from transacting any busi-
ness with or on behalf of any such foreign insurance
companies that fail to comply with such disclosure re-
quirements or fail to adequately respond to such re-
quests, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Comprehensive Holo-
caust Accountability in Insurance Measure’’.
TITLE I—PROVISIONS APPLICA-
BLE WITH RESPECT TO CER-
TAIN 
FOREIGN 
INSURANCE
COMPANIES
SEC. 101. PROHIBITION RELATING TO FAILURE TO DIS-
CLOSE FINANCIAL TRANSACTION INFORMA-
TION.
(a) IN GENERAL.—Any covered foreign insurance
company (as such term is defined in section 104), or any
subsidiary thereof, may not conduct any form of business
in the United States, including participating, directly or
indirectly, in any aspect of the payment system within the
jurisdiction of the United States (including any clearing
or electronic fund transfer system) or conducting any busi-
ness with a United States bank, unless the company dis-
closes to the Attorney General, in accordance with sub-
section (b), the name of any listed Holocaust victim (as
such term is defined in section 104) with whom the com-
pany had any financial dealing.
(b) MANAGEMENT
OF DISCLOSURES
BY DEPART-
MENT OF JUSTICE.—The Attorney General shall designate
an office in the Department of Justice to which disclosures
shall be made in accordance with subsection (a). Such of-
fice shall take such action as may be appropriate to make
the disclosures available to the public.
SEC. 102. SUBMISSION OF REQUESTS TO COVERED FOR-
EIGN INSURANCE COMPANIES BY ATTORNEY
GENERAL.
(a) OBTAINING
INFORMATION
REGARDING
RE-
QUESTS.—The Attorney General shall take any action nec-
essary to obtain, from the International Commission on
Holocaust Era Insurance Claims and covered foreign in-
surance companies, information regarding any out-
standing requests (as such term is defined in section 104)
that is necessary to carry out this section.
(b) NOTIFICATION OF VICTIMS.—The Attorney Gen-
eral shall notify, in writing, each listed Holocaust victim,
or the heirs or beneficiaries of such victim, of—
(1) the requirement under subsection (a) to ob-
tain information;
(2) the requirement under subsection (c) to
submit requests; and
(3) the opportunity of such victim, or heirs or
beneficiaries, under subsection (d) to request that
the Attorney General not submit the request regard-
ing such listed Holocaust victim.
(c) SUBMISSION
OF REQUESTS
ON BEHALF
OF
BENEFICIARIES.—Subject to subsection (d), as soon as
practicable after receipt of information pursuant to sub-
section (a) regarding an outstanding request but not later
than 60 days after such receipt, the Attorney General shall
submit the request, on behalf of the maker of such out-
standing request, to the covered foreign insurance com-
pany involved.
(d) OPT-OUT.—If, before the submission of an out-
standing request pursuant to subsection (d), the Attorney
General receives a written request from a listed Holocaust
victim, or the heirs or beneficiaries of such victim, not to
submit the outstanding request, the Attorney General
shall not submit such request and shall notify the victim,
or the heirs or beneficiaries, that the outstanding request
was not submitted.
(e) PROHIBITION RELATING TO FAILURE TO COM-
PLY WITH REQUEST.—If any covered foreign insurance
company does not respond in a satisfactory manner to a
request submitted to such company pursuant to subsection
(b) before the expiration of the 60-day period beginning
upon receipt of such request by such company, the Attor-
ney General may issue an order prohibiting such covered
foreign insurance company, and any subsidiary thereof,
from conducting any form of business in the United
States, including participating, directly or indirectly, in
any aspect of the payment system within the jurisdiction
of the United States (including any clearing or electronic
fund transfer system) or conducting any business with a
United States bank. The Attorney General shall vacate
such order upon a satisfactory response by the company
to such request.
(f) MANAGEMENT OF OUTSTANDING REQUESTS BY
DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE.—The Attorney General shall
designate the same office designated under section 101(b)
as the office in the Department of Justice responsible for
collecting the information obtained pursuant to subsection
(a) of this section and submitting requests pursuant to
subsection (b) of this section.
SEC. 103. AVAILABILITY OF CIVIL ACTIONS.
(a) FEDERAL CAUSE OF ACTION.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—There shall exist a Federal
cause of action for any covered claim.
(2) STATUTE
OF
LIMITATIONS.—Any action
brought under paragraph (1) shall be filed not later
than 20 years after the date on which the denial of
the original request was made.
(b) SUBJECT MATTER JURISDICTION.—The district
courts shall have original jurisdiction of any civil action
on a covered claim (whether brought under subsection (a)
or otherwise).
(c) PERSONAL JURISDICTION.—Notwithstanding any
provision of Rule 4 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure
to the contrary, in a civil action on a covered claim (wheth-
er brought under subsection (a) or otherwise) commenced
in a district where the defendant is not a resident—
(1) the court may exercise jurisdiction over
such defendant on any basis not inconsistent with
the Constitution of the United States; and
(2) service of process, summons, and subpoena
may be made on such defendant in any manner not
inconsistent with the Constitution of the United
States.
(d) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this section:
(1) The term ‘‘covered claim’’ means a claim
against a covered foreign insurance company that
arises out of the insurance coverage involved in an
original request.
(2) The term ‘‘original request’’ means a re-
quest that—
(A) seeks payment of any claim on insur-
ance coverage that—
(F) Wiener Allianz Versicherungs AG.
(G) Riunione Adriatica di Sicurta.
(H) Vereinte Lebensversicherungs AG.
(I) Basler Lebens-Versicherungs Gesell-
schaft.
(J) Deutscher Ring Lebensversicherungs
AG.
(K) Nordstern Lebensversicherungs AG.
(L) Gerling Konzern Lebensversicherungs
AG.
(M) Manheimer Lebensversicherung AG.
(N) Der Anker.
(O) Allgemeine Versicherungs AG.
(P) Zuerich Lebensversicherungs Gesell-
schaft.
(Q) Any other foreign insurance company
that the Attorney General determines was in a
position to have financial dealings with any in-
dividual who was subject to the Holocaust.
(2) LISTED
HOLOCAUST
VICTIMS.—The term
‘‘listed Holocaust victim’’ means an individual whose
name which is on either of the following lists:
(A) LIST OF SURVIVORS.—The list of Jew-
ish Holocaust Survivors maintained by the
United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in
Washington, D.C.
(B) LIST OF DECEASED.—The list of indi-
viduals who died in the Holocaust maintained
by the Yad Veshem of Jerusalem in its Hall of
Names.
(3) OUTSTANDING REQUEST.—The term ‘‘out-
standing request’’ means a request that—
(A) seeks payment of any claim on insur-
ance coverage that—
(i) was provided by a covered foreign
insurance company;
(ii) had as the policyholder, insured,
or beneficiary a listed Holocaust victim;
and
(iii) was in effect during any portion
of the 13-year period beginning with 1933
and ending with 1945;
(B) was made by a listed Holocaust victim,
or the heirs or beneficiaries of such victim, to
the covered foreign insurance company or the
International Commission on Holocaust Era In-
surance Claims; and
(C) was not responded to in writing by the
covered foreign insurance company or such
International Commission within the 60-day pe-
riod beginning on receipt of the request by the
covered foreign insurance company.
(4) 
SUBSIDIARY.—The 
term 
‘‘subsidiary’’
means, with respect to a covered foreign insurance
company, any company—
(A) 25 percent or more of whose class of
voting securities is directly or indirectly owned
or controlled by such covered foreign insurance
company, or is held by such insurance company
with the power to vote;
(B) the election of a majority of whose di-
rectors or trustees is controlled in any manner
by such covered foreign insurance company; or
(C) with respect to which the management
or policies of which such covered foreign insur-
ance company has the power, directly or indi-
rectly, to exercise a controlling influence.
TITLE II—PROVISIONS APPLICA-
BLE 
TO 
UNITED 
STATES
BANKING INSTITUTIONS
SEC. 201. LIMITATION ON INSURED DEPOSITORY INSTITU-
TIONS.
Section 18 of the Federal Deposit Insurance Act (12
U.S.C. 1828) is amended by adding at the end the fol-
lowing new subsection:
‘‘(x) PROHIBITION ON TRANSACTIONS WITH CER-
TAIN INSURANCE COMPANIES OR THEIR AFFILIATES.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—No insured depository in-
stitution may accept any deposit from, maintain any
deposit on behalf of, offer or provide payment serv-
ices to or on behalf of, participate directly or indi-
rectly in any aspect of the payment system (includ-
ing any clearing or electronic fund transfer system)
for or on behalf of, hold any credit balance for,
make any loan or other extension of credit to or for
the benefit of, or engage in any other financial activ-
ity or transaction with or on behalf of any covered
foreign insurance company, as such term is defined
in section 104 of the Comprehensive Holocaust Ac-
countability in Insurance Measure (including any
company the Attorney General determines is de-
scribed in subparagraph (Q) of such section), or any
affiliate of such company—
‘‘(A) during the period beginning 15 days
after the enactment of the Comprehensive Holo-
caust Accountability in Insurance Measure and
ending on the date on which the Attorney Gen-
eral provides notice through publication in the
Federal Register that such company has com-
plied with the disclosure requirements contained
in section 101(a) of such Act; or
‘‘(B) during the period that an order
issued under section 102(e) of such Act by the
Attorney General, prohibiting such company
from conducting business in the United States,
is in effect.
‘‘(2) LIMITED EXCEPTION FOR AFFILIATES.—
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—If an insured deposi-
tory institution is itself an affiliate of a foreign
insurance company described in paragraph (1),
paragraph (1) shall not apply so as to
prohibit—
‘‘(i) the payment of dividends on any
shares of stock in such insured depository
institution which are held by the foreign
insurance company or any affiliate of such
company; or
‘‘(ii) the investment of additional cap-
ital in such insured depository institution
by the foreign insurance company or affil-
iate.
‘‘(B) REGULATIONS.—Any payment or in-
vestment described in subparagraph (A) shall
be subject to, and shall be made in accordance
with, such regulations, including any limitation,
as the Attorney General or the appropriate
Federal banking agency may prescribe.’’.
SEC. 202. LIMITATION ON UNINSURED BRANCHES, AGEN-
CIES, AND COMMERCIAL LENDING COMPANY
AFFILIATES OF FOREIGN BANKS.
Section 7 of the International Banking Act of 1978
(12 U.S.C. 3105) is amended by adding at the end the
following new subsection:
‘‘(l) PROHIBITION ON TRANSACTIONS WITH CERTAIN
INSURANCE COMPANIES OR THEIR AFFILIATES.—
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—No branch, agency, or com-
mercial lending company which is controlled by a
foreign bank may accept any deposit from, maintain
any deposit on behalf of, offer or provide payment
services to, participate directly or indirectly in any
aspect of the payment system (including any clear-
ing or electronic fund transfer system) for or on be-
half of, hold any credit balance for, make any loan
or other extension of credit to or for the benefit of,
or engage in any other financial activity or trans-
action with or on behalf of any covered foreign in-
surance company, as such term is defined in section
104 of the Comprehensive Holocaust Accountability
in Insurance Measure (including any company the
Attorney General determines is described in sub-
paragraph (Q) of such section), or any affiliate of
such company—
‘‘(A) during the period beginning 15 days
after the enactment of the Comprehensive Holo-
caust Accountability in Insurance Measure and
ending on the date on which the Attorney Gen-
eral provides notice through publication in the
Federal Register that such company has com-
plied with the disclosure requirements contained
in section 101(a) of such Act; or
‘‘(B) during the period that an order
issued under section 102(e) of such Act by the
Attorney General, prohibiting such company
from conducting business in the United States,
is in effect.
‘‘(2) LIMITED EXCEPTION FOR AFFILIATES.—
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—If a branch, agency,
or commercial lending company which is con-
trolled by a foreign bank is itself an affiliate of
a foreign insurance company described in para-
graph (1), paragraph (1) shall not apply so as
to prohibit—
‘‘(i) the payment of dividends on any
shares of stock or a similar investment in
such branch, agency, or company which
are held by the foreign insurance company
or any affiliate of such company; or
‘‘(ii) the investment of additional cap-
ital in branch, agency, or company by the
foreign insurance company or affiliate.
‘‘(B) REGULATIONS.—Any payment or in-
vestment described in subparagraph (A) shall
be subject to, and shall be made in accordance
with, such regulations, including any limitation,
as the Attorney General, the Board, the Comp-
troller of the Currency, or the Federal Deposit
Insurance Corporation may prescribe.’’.
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