Fighting Foreign Influence Act
Bill: H.R.8106 | Sponsor: Rep. Golden, Jared F. (D-ME)
Policy area: Government Operations and Politics

Summary:
Fighting Foreign Influence Act
This bill addresses foreign influence in federal elections.
For example, the bill (1) requires tax-exempt charitable organizations to disclose in annual reports contributions and gifts exceeding $50,000 received from foreign governments and foreign political parties; and (2) prohibits any individual from registering or otherwise serving as the agent of a foreign principal if the individual at any time served as a Member of Congress, a senior political appointee, or a general or flag officer of the Armed Forces.

To provide for disclosures of certain foreign contributions, and for 
                            other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.

    (a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``Fighting Foreign 
Influence Act''.
    (b) Table of Contents.--The table of contents for this Act is as 
follows:

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.
     TITLE I--THINK TANK AND NONPROFIT FOREIGN INFLUENCE DISCLOSURE

Sec. 101. Short title.
Sec. 102. Annual disclosure of contributions from foreign governments 
                            and political parties by certain tax-exempt 
                            organizations.
       TITLE II--CONGRESSIONAL AND EXECUTIVE FOREIGN LOBBYING BAN

Sec. 201. Short title.
Sec. 202. Prohibiting certain individuals from acting as agents of 
                            foreign principals.
       TITLE III--STOP FOREIGN DONATIONS AFFECTING OUR ELECTIONS

Sec. 301. Short title.
Sec. 302. Requiring disclosure of credit verification value as 
                            condition of acceptance of online 
                            contributions to Federal election.
Sec. 303. Prohibiting foreign agents from delivering contributions to 
                            Federal candidates.

     TITLE I--THINK TANK AND NONPROFIT FOREIGN INFLUENCE DISCLOSURE

SEC. 101. SHORT TITLE.

    This title may be cited as the ``Think Tank and Nonprofit Foreign 
Influence Disclosure Act''.

SEC. 102. ANNUAL DISCLOSURE OF CONTRIBUTIONS FROM FOREIGN GOVERNMENTS 
              AND POLITICAL PARTIES BY CERTAIN TAX-EXEMPT 
              ORGANIZATIONS.

    (a) Reporting Requirement.--Section 6033(b) of the Internal Revenue 
Code of 1986 is amended by striking ``and'' at the end of paragraph 
(15), by redesignating paragraph (16) as paragraph (17) and by 
inserting after paragraph (15) the following new paragraph:
            ``(16) with respect to each government of a foreign country 
        (within the meaning of section 1(e) of the Foreign Agents 
        Registration Act of 1938 (22 U.S.C. 611(e))) and each foreign 
        political party (within the meaning of section 1(f) of such Act 
        (22 U.S.C. 611(f)) which made aggregate contributions and gifts 
        to the organization during the year in excess of $50,000, the 
        name of such government or political party and such aggregate 
        amount, and''.
    (b) Public Disclosure.--Section 6104 of such Code is amended by 
adding at the end the following new subsection:
    ``(e) Public Disclosure of Certain Information.--The Secretary 
shall make publicly available in a searchable database the following 
information:
            ``(1) The information furnished under section 6033(b)(16) 
        of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986.
            ``(2) The name of the organization furnishing the 
        information described in paragraph (1).
            ``(3) The aggregate amount reported under paragraph (1) as 
        having been received as contributions or gifts in each year 
        from each government of a foreign country and each foreign 
        political party.''.
    (c) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section shall 
apply to returns filed for taxable years beginning after the date of 
the enactment of this Act.

       TITLE II--CONGRESSIONAL AND EXECUTIVE FOREIGN LOBBYING BAN

SEC. 201. SHORT TITLE.

    This title may be cited as the ``Congressional and Executive 
Foreign Lobbying Ban Act''.

SEC. 202. PROHIBITING CERTAIN INDIVIDUALS FROM ACTING AS AGENTS OF 
              FOREIGN PRINCIPALS.

    (a) Former Members of Congress; General or Flag Officers of Armed 
Forces.--
            (1) Prohibiting registration as agent.--The Foreign Agents 
        Registration Act of 1938, as amended (22 U.S.C. 611 et seq.) is 
        amended--
                    (A) by redesignating sections 12 through 14 as 
                sections 13 through 15; and
                    (B) by inserting after section 11 the following new 
                section:

``SEC. 12. PROHIBITING REGISTRATION OF CERTAIN INDIVIDUALS.

    ``(a) Prohibition.--No individual may register under this Act or 
otherwise serve as the agent of a foreign principal if the individual 
at any time served as a Member of Congress, as a senior political 
appointee, or as a general or flag officer of the armed forces.
    ``(b) Definitions.--In this section--
            ``(1) the term `Member of Congress' means a Senator or 
        Representative in, or Delegate or Resident Commissioner to, the 
        Congress; and
            ``(2) the term `senior political appointee'--
                    ``(A) means--
                            ``(i) any individual occupying a full-time 
                        senior position and who is appointed by the 
                        President or the Vice President;
                            ``(ii) any noncareer appointee in the 
                        Senior Executive Service (or other SES-type 
                        system); and
                            ``(iii) any appointee to a position, at or 
                        above the level of a noncareer member of the 
                        Senior Executive Service, that has been 
                        excepted from the competitive service by reason 
                        of being of a confidential or policymaking 
                        character (schedule C and other positions 
                        excepted under comparable criteria) in an 
                        executive agency; and
                    ``(B) does not include any individual appointed as 
                a member of the Senior Foreign Service or, except for a 
                general or flag officer of the armed forces, solely as 
                a uniformed service commissioned officer.''.
            (2) Other representation of foreign entities.--Section 
        207(f)(1) of title 18, United States Code, is amended by 
        inserting after ``within 1 year'' the following: ``(or, in the 
        case of a person who is subject to any of such restrictions and 
        who is a Member of Congress, a senior political appointee (as 
        that term is defined in section 12 of the Foreign Agents 
        Registration Act of 1938, as amended (22 U.S.C. 611 et seq.)), 
        or a general or flag officer of the armed forces, at any 
        time)''.
    (b) Effective Date.--The amendments made by subsection (a) shall 
apply with respect to any individual whose service as a Member of 
Congress or as a general or flag officer of the Armed Forces terminates 
on or after the date of the enactment of this Act.

       TITLE III--STOP FOREIGN DONATIONS AFFECTING OUR ELECTIONS

SEC. 301. SHORT TITLE.

    This title may be cited as the ``Stop Foreign Donations Affecting 
Our Elections Act''.

SEC. 302. REQUIRING DISCLOSURE OF CREDIT VERIFICATION VALUE AS 
              CONDITION OF ACCEPTANCE OF ONLINE CONTRIBUTIONS TO 
              FEDERAL ELECTION.

    (a) In General.--Section 302 of the Federal Election Campaign Act 
of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30102) is amended by adding at the end the 
following:
    ``(j)(1) No political committee shall accept any Internet credit 
card contribution unless--
            ``(A) the individual or entity making such contribution is 
        required, at the time such individual makes such contribution, 
        to disclose the credit verification value of such credit card; 
        and
            ``(B)(i) the billing address associated with such credit 
        card is located in the United States; or
            ``(ii) in the case of a contribution made by an individual 
        who is a United States national or lawful permanent resident 
        living outside of the United States, the individual provides 
        the committee with--
                    ``(I) the United States mailing address the 
                individual uses for voter registration purposes;
                    ``(II) a copy of the individual's United States 
                passport;
                    ``(III) a copy of the individual's permanent 
                resident card; or
                    ``(IV) a copy of a comparable acceptable 
                identification document, or the unique identifying 
                number from such a document, for the individual.
    ``(2) Notwithstanding subsection (b) or (c), in the case of an 
Internet credit card contribution--
            ``(A) no later than 10 days after receiving the 
        contribution, the person who receives the contribution shall 
        forward to the treasurer such contribution, the name and 
        address of the person making the contribution, and the date of 
        receipt; and
            ``(B) the treasurer of a political committee shall keep an 
        account of the name and address of any person making any such 
        contribution, together with the date and amount of such 
        contribution by any person.
    ``(3) In this subsection, the term `Internet credit card 
contribution' means a contribution that--
            ``(A) is made using a credit card; and
            ``(B) is received through an Internet website.''.
    (b) Effective Date.--The amendment made by subsection (a) shall 
apply with respect to contributions made after the expiration of the 
180-day period which begins on the date of the enactment of this Act.

SEC. 303. PROHIBITING FOREIGN AGENTS FROM DELIVERING CONTRIBUTIONS TO 
              FEDERAL CANDIDATES.

    (a) Prohibition.--Section 315 of the Federal Election Campaign Act 
of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30116) is amended by adding at the end the following 
new subsection:
    ``(k) Prohibiting Delivery of Contributions by Foreign Agents.--
            ``(1) Prohibition.--
                    ``(A) In general.--An individual described in 
                subparagraph (B) may not deliver a contribution to a 
                candidate or an authorized committee of a candidate 
                which is made by another person.
                    ``(B) Individuals described.--An individual 
                described in this subparagraph is any of the following:
                            ``(i) An individual who is required under 
                        the Foreign Agents Registration Act of 1938, as 
                        amended (22 U.S.C. 611 et seq.), to register as 
                        the agent of a foreign principal described in 
                        section 1(b)(1) of such Act (22 U.S.C. 
                        611(b)(1)).
                            ``(ii) An individual who is required under 
                        such Act to register as the agent of a foreign 
                        principal described in section 1(b)(2) or 
                        1(b)(3) of such Act (22 U.S.C. 611(b)(2) or 
                        (b)(3)), but only if the beneficial owner of 
                        such foreign principal is a foreign principal 
                        described in section 1(b)(1) of such Act (22 
                        U.S.C. 611(b)(1)), as determined in accordance 
                        with section 5336(a)(3) of title 31, United 
                        States Code.
                            ``(iii) An individual who would be required 
                        to register under such Act as the agent of a 
                        foreign principal described in clause (ii) but 
                        for the exemption under section 3(h) of such 
                        Act (22 U.S.C. 613(h)).
                    ``(C) Treatment of contributions credited to 
                foreign agents.--If a contribution made to a candidate 
                or an authorized committee of a candidate is credited 
                to an individual described in subparagraph (B) by the 
                committee or candidate involved through records, 
                designations, or other means of recognizing that a 
                certain amount of money has been raised by the 
                individual, the individual shall be deemed to have 
                delivered the contribution to the candidate or 
                committee for purposes of this subsection.
            ``(2) Rule of construction.--Nothing in this subsection may 
        be construed to prohibit any individual from making a 
        contribution to a candidate for election for Federal office or 
        from encouraging any other person to make a contribution to or 
        otherwise support or oppose a candidate for election for 
        Federal office.
            ``(3) Definitions.--In this subsection, the term `deliver' 
        means to transport, carry, transfer, or otherwise transmit, 
        either physically or electronically.''.
    (b) Effective Date.--The amendment made by subsection (a) shall 
apply with respect to contributions made on or after the date of the 
enactment of this Act.
                                 <all>