I 
117TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 7338 
To require congressional notification prior to payments of Department of 
State rewards using cryptocurrencies, authorize the appointment of a 
Director of Digital Currency Security in the Office of Economic Sanc-
tions Policy and Implementation of the Department of State, and for 
other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
MARCH 31, 2022 
Mr. MEEKS (for himself and Mr. MCCAUL) introduced the following bill; which 
was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs, and in addition to the 
Committee on Financial Services, for a period to be subsequently deter-
mined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions 
as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 
A BILL 
To require congressional notification prior to payments of 
Department of State rewards using cryptocurrencies, au-
thorize the appointment of a Director of Digital Currency 
Security in the Office of Economic Sanctions Policy and 
Implementation of the Department of State, and for 
other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
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SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Russia Cryptocurrency 
Transparency Act’’. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 
Congress finds the following: 
(1) On February 24, 2022, the Government of 
the Russian Federation, led by Vladimir Putin, 
launched an unprovoked, full-scale invasion of 
Ukraine. 
(2) This unprovoked act of aggression violates 
Ukraine’s right to independence, sovereignty, and 
territorial integrity, and constitutes an emergency in 
international relations. 
(3) The invasion by the Government of the 
Russian Federation of Ukraine caused significant 
displacement in Ukraine and triggered a broader hu-
manitarian crisis in Europe. 
(4) On March 23, 2022, the Department of 
State released a statement assessing that the Rus-
sian Armed Forces committed war crimes by launch-
ing indiscriminate attacks on civilians and non-mili-
tary infrastructure, including apartment buildings, 
schools, and hospitals, leaving thousands of innocent 
civilians killed or wounded. 
(5) The United Nations Office for Coordination 
of Humanitarian Affairs has projected that, over the 
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next three months, 12,000,000 people living in 
Ukraine 
will 
need 
humanitarian 
assistance, 
6,700,000 people will be internally displaced, and 
4,000,000 people will flee Ukraine. 
(6) Rapid humanitarian assistance is necessary 
across sectors to address the needs of refugees and 
internally displaced persons from Ukraine. 
(7) Cryptocurrency has been used as an effec-
tive cross-border payment tool to send millions to 
the Ukrainian Government, Ukrainian army, and 
Ukrainian refugees with limited access to financial 
services. 
(8) In response to the war of aggression by the 
Government of the Russian Federation, the United 
States has imposed an array of sanctions, cutting off 
major Russian financial institutions from Western 
markets and freezing the assets of numerous Rus-
sian oligarchs. 
(9) Given the growing development and adop-
tion of blockchain technologies and digital cur-
rencies, there are increasing concerns that digital as-
sets, such as cryptocurrencies, may be used to cir-
cumvent the United States sanctions regime, as well 
as those of foreign countries. 
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SEC. 3. CONGRESSIONAL NOTIFICATION FOR REWARDS 
PAID USING CRYPTOCURRENCIES. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Section 36(e)(6) of the State De-
partment Basic Authorities Act of 1956 (22 U.S.C. 
2708(e)(6)) is amended by adding at the end the following 
new sentence: ‘‘Not later than 15 days before making a 
reward in a form that includes cryptocurrency, the Sec-
retary of State shall notify the Committee on Foreign Af-
fairs of the House of Representatives and the Committee 
on Foreign Relations of the Senate of such form for the 
reward.’’ 
(b) REPORT.—Not later than 180 days after the date 
of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State shall 
submit to the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House 
of Representatives and the Committee on Foreign Rela-
tions of the Senate a report on the use of cryptocurrency 
as a part of the Department of State Rewards program 
established under section 36(a) of the State Department 
Basic Authorities Act of 1956 (22 U.S.C. 2708(a)) that— 
(1) justifies any determination of the Secretary 
to make rewards under such program in a form that 
includes cryptocurrency; 
(2) lists each cryptocurrency payment made 
under such program as of the date of the submission 
of the report; 
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(3) provides evidence of the manner and extent 
to which cryptocurrency payments would be more 
likely to induce whistleblowers to come forward with 
information than rewards paid out in United States 
dollars or other forms of money or nonmonetary 
items; and 
(4) examines whether the Department’s use of 
cryptocurrency could provide bad actors with addi-
tional hard-to-trace funds that could be used for 
criminal or illicit purposes. 
SEC. 4. AUTHORIZATION FOR DIRECTOR OF DIGITAL CUR-
RENCY SECURITY. 
(a) APPOINTMENT.—Not later than 90 days after the 
date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State 
shall appoint a Director of Digital Currency Security in 
the Office of Economic Sanctions Policy and Implementa-
tion. 
(b) DUTIES.—The Director appointed pursuant to 
subsection (a) shall be responsible for the following: 
(1) Reviewing and analyzing the manner and 
extent to which digital currencies are impacting the 
United States sanctions regime. 
(2) Assisting in the development of sanctions 
policy and implementation that is resilient to the use 
of digital currencies by malevolent actors. 
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(3) Coordinating with the Office of Foreign As-
sets Control and the Financial Crime Enforcement 
Network of the Department of the Treasury, as ap-
propriate, to share information and develop best 
practices. 
(4) Engaging with private sector actors to 
broaden understanding of the digital currency eco-
system, further comprehend economic costs and ben-
efits, and encourage coordination and partnership in 
isolating bad actors. 
SEC. 5. REPORT ON BLOCKCHAIN TECHNOLOGY USAGE TO 
ADDRESS UKRANIAN HUMANITARIAN NEEDS. 
Not later than 30 days after the date of the enact-
ment of this Act, the Secretary of State, in coordination 
with the Secretary of the Treasury and the Administrator 
of the United States Agency for International Develop-
ment, shall submit to the Committee on Foreign Affairs 
of the House of Representatives and the Committee on 
Foreign Relations of the Senate an unclassified report on 
the possible uses of cryptocurrencies or other technologies 
incorporating blockchains to promote economic develop-
ment and provide humanitarian aid to Ukraine. Such re-
port shall also review and analyze ways in which tech-
nologies incorporating blockchains can— 
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(1) assist in the care, support, or resettlement 
of refugees and internally displaced persons from 
Ukraine; 
(2) address humanitarian access challenges and 
ensure the effective delivery of such assistance to 
persons from Ukraine; 
(3) increase efficiency, accountability, and 
transparency in the administration of humanitarian 
aid provided by the United States to persons from 
Ukraine; 
(4) prevent corruption through the use of 
‘‘web3’’ technologies; 
(5) improve access to capital; and 
(6) bolster the efficiency and reliability of cross- 
border remittances. 
SEC. 6. REPORT ON THE EFFECTIVENESS AND ENFORCE-
MENT OF SANCTIONS. 
(a) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con-
gress as follows: 
(1) On March 9, 2022, President Biden issued 
an Executive order outlining a national policy to 
mitigate the risks, and harness the potential benefits 
of, digital assets and distributed ledger technology. 
(2) The growing development and adoption of 
digital assets have created an urgent need for the 
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United States to play a leading role in the global fi-
nancial system and facilitate technological innova-
tion. 
(3) These developments have had significant 
implications that pose risks to the financial stability 
and national security interest of the United States, 
including issues relating to privacy and surveillance. 
(4) The United States Government must— 
(A) ensure the efficacy and enforcement of 
the United States sanctions regime by pre-
venting the misuse of digital assets, which can 
facilitate transactions by Russian persons sub-
ject to sanctions; 
(B) mitigate national security liabilities 
and systemic financial risks posed by the mis-
use of digital assets by developing policy rec-
ommendations and addressing existing regu-
latory gaps; and 
(C) maintain technological leadership to 
promote U.S. global competitiveness and play a 
leading role in the global governance of digital 
assets. 
(b) REPORT.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 30 days after 
the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary 
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of State, in consultation with the Secretary of the 
Treasury, shall submit to the appropriate congres-
sional committees a report assessing the manner and 
extent to which digital currencies can affect the ef-
fectiveness and enforcement of United States sanc-
tions against the Russian Federation and against ac-
tors subject to sanctions relating to the Russian 
Federation’s invasion of Ukraine. 
(2) MATTERS TO BE INCLUDED.—The report 
required by paragraph (1) shall— 
(A) describe any efforts by the Russian 
Federation or persons subject to sanctions re-
lated to the Russian Federation’s invasion of 
Ukraine to use digital assets to evade the sanc-
tions regime of the United States or its inter-
national allies and partners; 
(B) describe any efforts by persons subject 
to sanctions related to the Russian Federation’s 
invasion of Ukraine to use decentralized finance 
technology or other similar technology to effect 
transactions, including digital wallets, digital 
asset trading platforms, and digital asset ex-
changes; 
(C) assess how the use or adoption of dig-
ital currencies could undermine the national se-
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curity interests of the United States and impact 
the efficacy and enforcement of sanctions and 
anti-money laundering provisions; 
(D) detail actions taken by the United 
States to work with private sector actors to 
combat the evasion of sanctions imposed by the 
United States; and 
(E) include recommendations for new legis-
lative and regulatory measures needed to 
strengthen the ability of the United States to 
prevent states, state-sponsored actors, and non- 
state-sponsored actors from using digital cur-
rencies to evade sanctions imposed by the 
United States. 
(3) APPROPRIATE
CONGRESSIONAL
COMMIT-
TEES.—In this subsection, the term ‘‘appropriate 
congressional committees’’ means— 
(A) the Committee on Foreign Affairs of 
the House of Representatives; 
(B) the Committee on Financial Services 
of the House of Representatives; 
(C) the Committee on Foreign Relations of 
the Senate; and 
(D) the Committee on Banking, Housing, 
and Urban Affairs of the Senate. 
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(4) FORM.—The report required by paragraph 
(1) shall be submitted in unclassified form but may 
include a classified annex. 
Æ 
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