I 
112TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 4077 
To authorize the Secretary of State to pay a reward to combat transnational 
organized crime and for information concerning foreign nationals wanted 
by international criminal tribunals, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
FEBRUARY 17, 2012 
Mr. ROYCE introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee 
on Foreign Affairs 
A BILL 
To authorize the Secretary of State to pay a reward to 
combat transnational organized crime and for informa-
tion concerning foreign nationals wanted by international 
criminal tribunals, 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 ‘‘Department of State 
Rewards Program Update and Technical Corrections Act 
of 2012’’. 
SEC. 2. FINDINGS; SENSE OF CONGRESS. 
(a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following: 
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(1) The Department of State’s existing rewards 
programs permit the payment of reward for informa-
tion leading to the arrest or conviction of— 
(A) individuals who have committed, or at-
tempted or conspired to commit, certain acts of 
international terrorism; 
(B) individuals who have committed, or at-
tempted or conspired to commit, certain nar-
cotics-related offenses; and 
(C) individuals who have been indicted by 
certain international criminal tribunals. 
(2) The Department of State considers the re-
wards program to be ‘‘one of the most valuable as-
sets the U.S. Government has in the fight against 
international terrorism.’’. Since the program’s incep-
tion in 1984, the United States has rewarded over 
60 people who provided actionable information that, 
according to the Department of State, prevented 
international terrorist attacks or helped convict indi-
viduals involved in terrorist attacks. 
(3) The program has been credited with pro-
viding information in several high-profile cases, in-
cluding the arrest of Ramzi Yousef, who was con-
victed in the 1993 bombing of the World Trade Cen-
ter, the deaths of Uday and Qusay Hussein, who 
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United States military forces located and killed in 
Iraq after receiving information about their loca-
tions, and the arrests or deaths of several members 
of the Abu Sayyaf group, believed to be responsible 
for the kidnappings and deaths of Americans and 
Filipinos in the Philippines. 
(b) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con-
gress that the rewards program of the Department of 
State should be expanded in order to— 
(1) address the growing threat to important 
United States interests from transnational criminal 
activity, such as intellectual property rights piracy, 
money laundering, trafficking in persons, arms traf-
ficking, and cybercrime; and 
(2) target other individuals indicted by inter-
national, hybrid, or mixed tribunals for genocide, 
war crimes, or crimes against humanity. 
SEC. 3. ENHANCED REWARDS AUTHORITY. 
Section 36 of the State Department Basic Authorities 
Act of 1956 (22 U.S.C. 2708) is amended— 
(1) in subsection (a)(2), by inserting ‘‘serious 
violations 
of 
international 
humanitarian 
law, 
transnational organized crime,’’ after ‘‘international 
narcotics trafficking,’’; 
(2) in subsection (b)— 
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(A) in the matter preceding paragraph (1), 
by striking ‘‘Attorney General’’ and inserting 
‘‘heads of other relevant departments or agen-
cies’’; 
(B) in paragraphs (4) and (5), by striking 
‘‘paragraph (1), (2), or (3)’’ each place it ap-
pears and inserting ‘‘paragraph (1), (2), (3), 
(8), or (9)’’; 
(C) in paragraph (6)— 
(i) by inserting ‘‘or transnational or-
ganized crime group’’ after ‘‘terrorist orga-
nization’’; and 
(ii) by striking ‘‘or’’ at the end; 
(D) in paragraph (7)— 
(i) in the matter preceding subpara-
graph (A), by striking ‘‘, including the use 
by the organization of illicit narcotics pro-
duction or international narcotics traf-
ficking’’ and inserting ‘‘or transnational 
organized crime group, including the use 
by such organization or group of illicit nar-
cotics production or international narcotics 
trafficking’’; 
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(ii) in subparagraph (A), by inserting 
‘‘or transnational organized crime’’ after 
‘‘international terrorism’’; and 
(iii) in subparagraph (B)— 
(I) by inserting ‘‘or transnational 
organized crime group’’ after ‘‘ter-
rorist organization’’; and 
(II) by striking the period at the 
end and inserting a semicolon; and 
(E) by adding at the end the following new 
paragraphs: 
‘‘(8) the arrest or conviction in any country of 
any individual for participating in, primarily outside 
the United States, transnational organized crime; 
‘‘(9) the arrest or conviction in any country of 
any individual conspiring to participate in or at-
tempting to participate in transnational organized 
crime; or 
‘‘(10) the arrest or conviction in any country, 
or the transfer to or conviction by an international 
criminal tribunal (including a hybrid or mixed tri-
bunal), of any foreign national accused of war 
crimes, crimes against humanity, or genocide, as de-
fined under the statute of such tribunal.’’; and 
(3) in subsection (k)— 
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(A) by redesignating paragraphs (5) and 
(6) as paragraphs (7) and (8), respectively; and 
(B) by inserting after paragraph (4) the 
following new paragraphs: 
‘‘(5) TRANSNATIONAL ORGANIZED CRIME.—The 
term ‘transnational organized crime’ means— 
‘‘(A) racketeering activity (as such term is 
defined in section 1961 of title 18, United 
States Code) that involves at least one jurisdic-
tion outside the United States; or 
‘‘(B) any other criminal offense punishable 
by a term of imprisonment of at least four 
years under Federal, State, or local law that in-
volves at least one jurisdiction outside the 
United States and that is intended to obtain, 
directly or indirectly, a financial or other mate-
rial benefit. 
‘‘(6) 
TRANSNATIONAL
ORGANIZED
CRIME 
GROUP.—The term ‘transnational organized crime 
group’ means a group of persons that includes one 
or more citizens of a foreign country, exists for a pe-
riod of time, and acts in concert with the aim of en-
gaging in transnational organized crime.’’. 
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SEC. 4. TECHNICAL CORRECTION. 
Section 36(e)(1) of the State Department Basic Au-
thorities Act of 1956 (22 U.S.C. 2708) is amended by 
striking ‘‘The Secretary shall authorize a reward of 
$50,000,000 for the capture or death or information lead-
ing to the capture or death of Osama bin Laden.’’. 
SEC. 5. RULE OF CONSTRUCTION. 
Nothing in this Act shall be construed as authorizing 
the use of activity precluded under the American 
Servicemembers’ Protection Act of 2002 (Public Law 
107–206). 
Æ 
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