I
105TH CONGRESS
2D SESSION
H. R. 4826
To provide victims of the Holocaust access to their insurance policies.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
OCTOBER 13, 1998
Mr. SHERMAN (for himself, Mr. LANTOS, Mr. MCGOVERN, Mr. YATES, Mr.
WAXMAN, and Mr. FROST) introduced the following bill; which was re-
ferred to the Committee on Commerce, and in addition to the Committee
on International Relations, for a period to be subsequently determined by
the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall with-
in the jurisdiction of the committee concerned
A BILL
To provide victims of the Holocaust access to their insurance
policies.
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 ‘‘Holocaust Victim In-
surance Relief Act of 1998’’.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress makes the following findings:
(1) During World War II, 6,000,000 victims of
the Holocaust lost their lives and property.
(2) In addition to the many atrocities that be-
fell the victims of the Nazi regime, many of the in-
surance claims that rightfully should have been paid
to the victims and their families were not.
(3) In many instances, insurance company
records are the only proof of the existence of these
insurance policies belonging to Holocaust victims.
(4) Many Holocaust survivors and their de-
scendants have been fighting for 50 years to per-
suade insurance companies to settle unpaid claims.
(5) Holocaust survivors and families of victims
have asked that insurance companies disclose any in-
formation they possess that could show proof of in-
surance policies held by Holocaust victims and sur-
vivors.
(6) Insurance companies doing business in the
United States have a responsibility to ensure that
any involvement they or their related companies may
have had with insurance policies of Holocaust vic-
tims are disclosed to the Federal Government and to
ensure the rapid resolution of these questions, elimi-
nating the further victimization of these policy-
holders and their families.
(7) The international Jewish community is ne-
gotiating with responsible insurance companies to
establish an international commission to resolve the
issue of outstanding insurance claims.
SEC. 3. ESTABLISHMENT OF HOLOCAUST INSURANCE REG-
ISTRY.
The Secretary of the Treasury, Secretary of State,
and Secretary of Commerce shall jointly establish and
maintain a central registry containing records and infor-
mation relating to insurance policies of victims, living and
deceased, of the Holocaust. The registry shall be known
as the Holocaust Insurance Registry and shall be acces-
sible to the public.
SEC. 4. FULL DISCLOSURE BY INSURANCE FIRMS.
Any insurer currently doing business in the United
States that sold life, property, liability, health, annuity,
dowry, educational, or casualty insurance policies, directly
or through a related company, to persons in Europe, which
were in effect between 1920 and 1945, whether the sale
occurred before or after the insurer and the related com-
pany became related, shall, within 180 days following the
date of the enactment of this Act, file or cause to be filed
the following information with the Departments of the
Treasury, State, or Commerce to be entered into the Holo-
caust Insurance Registry:
(1) The number of such insurance policies.
(2) The holder, beneficiary, and current status
of such policies.
(3) A comparison of the names of holders and
beneficiaries of such policies and the names of the
victims of the Holocaust.
The names of victims of the Holocaust shall be provided
by the Department of State and may additionally be ob-
tained from the Yad Vashem repository in Israel.
SEC. 5. CERTIFICATION BY INSURANCE COMPANIES.
Each insurer subject to section 4 shall certify under
penalty of perjury to any of the following:
(1) The proceeds of the policies described in
section 4 have been paid to the designated bene-
ficiaries or their heirs where that person or persons,
after diligent search, could be located and identified.
(2) The proceeds of the policies where the bene-
ficiaries or heirs could not, after diligent search, be
located or identified, have been distributed to Holo-
caust survivors or to qualified charitable nonprofit
organizations for the purpose of assisting Holocaust
survivors.
(3) A court of law has certified in a legal pro-
ceeding resolving the rights of unpaid policyholders,
their heirs, and beneficiaries, a plan for the distribu-
tion of the proceeds.
(4) The proceeds have not been distributed and
the amount of those proceeds.
An insurer currently doing business in the United States
that did not sell any insurance policies in Europe prior
to 1945, shall not be subject to this section if a related
company, whether or not authorized and currently doing
business in the United States, has made a filing under
this section.
SEC. 6. PENALTIES FOR FAILURE TO DISCLOSE INFORMA-
TION.
(a) IN GENERAL.—Any insurer that knowingly files
information required by this Act that is false shall be lia-
ble for a civil penalty not to exceed $5,000 for each viola-
tion, which penalty is hereby appropriated to the Depart-
ments of Treasury, State, and Commerce to be used to
aid in the resolution of Holocaust insurance claims.
(b) SUSPENSION.—Any insurance company that fails
to comply with the requirements of this Act by the 210th
day after the date of the enactment of this Act, shall be
suspended from practicing in the insurance business until
the time that the insurer complies with this Act.
(c) REGULATION.—The Secretary of the Treasury,
Secretary of State, and Secretary of Commerce shall joint-
ly adopt regulations to implement this Act.
SEC. 7. SENSE OF CONGRESS.
It is the sense of Congress that outstanding claims
under insurance policies held by Holocaust victims and
survivors be resolved at the earliest possible time.
SEC. 8. DEFINITIONS.
For purposes of this Act:
(1) The term ‘‘Holocaust victim’’ means any
person who was persecuted during the period of
1929 to 1945, inclusive, by Nazi Germany, its allies,
or sympathizers.
(2) The term ‘‘related company’’ means any
parent, subsidiary, reinsurer, successor in interest,
managing general agent, or affiliate company of the
insurer.
(3) The term ‘‘proceeds’’ means the face value
or other payout value of insurance policies and an-
nuities plus reasonable interest to date of payment
without diminution for wartime or immediate post-
war currency devaluation.
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