Stopping Terrorist Minerals Trade Act
Bill: H.R.5088 | Sponsor: Rep. Gosar, Paul A. (R-AZ)
Policy area: Foreign Trade and International Finance

Summary:
Stopping Terrorist Minerals Trade Act
This bill requires the President to prohibit the importation into or transit through the United States of any mineral or mineral product from Afghanistan.
The President may waive this requirement for up to one year after certifying that (1) a mineral was mined (or a mineral product was produced) prior to August 16, 2021; (2) the waiver is in U.S. national interests; or (3) a fair, free, and democratic government has control of Afghanistan and is not funding, supporting, or engaging in global terrorism.
The President must develop and maintain a list of countries engaged in the trade of minerals with Afghanistan and require the heads of federal departments and agencies to review the standards, practices, and procedures of U.S. persons seeking to import any mineral or mineral product of a country on this list. Such U.S. person must keep a full record of complete information relating to the mineral or mineral product sought to be imported.
The bill provides for enforcement through fines and through customs laws relating to seizure and forfeiture.
The President must also establish an Oversight Coordinating Committee to coordinate implementation of the bill's requirements.
The Government Accountability Office must report on the effectiveness of these requirements in preventing the importation of minerals or mineral products from Afghanistan.

To prohibit the importation into, or transit through, the United States 
 of any mineral, or product produced with minerals, from Afghanistan, 
                        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.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Stopping Terrorist Minerals Trade 
Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds the following:
            (1) Funds derived from the sale of minerals in Afghanistan 
        will be used by the Taliban and its allies to finance terrorist 
        and military activities, overthrow legitimate governments, 
        subvert international efforts to promote peace and stability, 
        and commit horrifying atrocities against unarmed civilians.
            (2) The United States spent 20 years and two trillion 
        dollars to attempt to bring peace and international comity to 
        Afghanistan, only to see the Taliban supported by other 
        international actors overthrow the legal government in a matter 
        of hours.
            (3) The United States spent tens of millions of dollars 
        funding critical mineral surveys and mineral exploration to 
        help build an alternative economy for the legitimate peaceful 
        Government of Afghanistan and that data has now fallen into the 
        hands of the Taliban and its allies.
            (4) Prohibiting the Taliban and its allies from profiting 
        from the use of these mineral resources will ensure that 
        threats to international peace and security posed by the 
        Taliban will not be funded with these minerals.

SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) Mineral.--The term ``mineral'' means any mined 
        material.
            (2) United states.--The term ``United States'', when used 
        in the geographic sense, means the several States, the District 
        of Columbia, and any commonwealth, territory, or possession of 
        the United States.
            (3) United states person.--The term ``United States 
        person'' means--
                    (A) any United States citizen or any alien admitted 
                for permanent residence into the United States;
                    (B) any entity organized under the laws of the 
                United States or any jurisdiction within the United 
                States (including its foreign branches); and
                    (C) any person in the United States.

SEC. 4. MEASURES TO PROHIBIT THE IMPORTATION INTO, OR TRANSIT THROUGH, 
              THE UNITED STATES OF MINERALS AND PRODUCTS PRODUCED WITH 
              MINERALS FROM AFGHANISTAN.

    (a) Prohibition.--The President shall prohibit the importation 
into, or transit through, the United States of any mineral, or product 
produced with minerals, from Afghanistan.
    (b) Waiver.--The President may waive the requirements set forth in 
subsection (a) with respect to the importation of any mineral, or 
product produced with minerals, from Afghanistan for periods of not 
more than 1 year each, if, with respect to each such waiver the 
President determines and reports to the appropriate congressional 
committees that--
            (1) such mineral was mined, or such product was produced, 
        prior to August 16, 2021;
            (2) the waiver is in the national interests of the United 
        States, together with the reasons therefor; or
            (3) a fair, free, and democratic government has control of 
        Afghanistan and is not funding, supporting, or engaging in 
        global terrorism.
    (c) Measures To Prevent Circumvention.--
            (1) In general.--Not later than 180 days after the date of 
        the enactment of this Act, and semi-annually thereafter, the 
        President shall develop and maintain a list of countries 
        engaged in the trade of minerals with Afghanistan.
            (2) Recordkeeping.--Any United States person seeking to 
        import into the United States any mineral, or product produced 
        with minerals, from a country on the list of countries required 
        under paragraph (1) shall keep a full record of, in the form of 
        reports, blockchain, or otherwise, complete information 
        relating to the mineral, or product produced with minerals, 
        including source, volume, and nation of origin. The President 
        may require such person to furnish such information under oath, 
        including the production of books of account, records, 
        contracts, letters, memoranda, or other papers, in the custody 
        or control of such person.
            (3) Oversight.--The President shall require the heads of 
        appropriate Federal departments and agencies to conduct annual 
        reviews of the standards, practices, and procedures of United 
        States persons seeking to import into the United States any 
        mineral, or product produced with minerals, from a country on 
        the list of countries required under paragraph (1) to determine 
        whether such standards, practices, and procedures are in 
        accordance with the prohibition on the importation into, or 
        transit through, the United States of any mineral, or product 
        produced with minerals, from Afghanistan required under 
        subsection (a).

SEC. 5. STATEMENT OF POLICY.

     It is the policy of the United States to promote and facilitate 
the adoption by the international community of measures similar to the 
measures to prohibit the importation into, or transit through, the 
United States of minerals and products produced with minerals from 
Afghanistan as described in section 4 in order to prevent the funding 
of terrorist activities by the Taliban.

SEC. 6. ENFORCEMENT.

    (a) In General.--In addition to the enforcement provisions set 
forth in subsection (b)--
            (1) a civil penalty of not to exceed $10,000,000 may be 
        imposed on any person who violates, or attempts to violate, any 
        license, order, or regulation issued under this Act; and
            (2) whoever willfully violates, or willfully attempts to 
        violate, any license, order, or regulation issued under this 
        Act shall, upon conviction, be fined not more than $50,000,000, 
        or, if a natural person, may be imprisoned for not more than 10 
        years, or both, and any officer, director, or agent of any 
        corporation who willfully participates in such violation may be 
        punished by a like fine, imprisonment, or both.
    (b) Import Violations.--Those customs laws of the United States, 
both civil and criminal, including those laws relating to seizure and 
forfeiture, that apply to articles imported in violation of such laws 
shall apply with respect to any mineral, or product produced with 
minerals, imported in violation of this Act.

SEC. 7. TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE.

    The President may direct the appropriate departments and agencies 
of the United States Government to make available technical assistance 
to countries seeking to track, monitor, or enforce the requirements of 
the Act.

SEC. 8. OVERSIGHT COORDINATING COMMITTEE.

    (a) In General.--The President shall establish an Oversight 
Coordinating Committee to coordinate the implementation of this Act.
    (b) Membership.--The Committee shall be composed of the following 
individuals or their designees:
            (1) The Secretary of the Treasury and the Secretary of 
        State, who shall be co-chairpersons.
            (2) The Secretary of Commerce.
            (3) The Secretary of Defense.
            (4) The United States Trade Representative.
            (5) The Secretary of Homeland Security.
            (6) A representative of any other agency the President 
        deems appropriate.

SEC. 9. REPORT.

    (a) In General.--Not later than 1 year after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, and every 12 months thereafter for such period 
as this Act is in effect, the President shall transmit to the Congress 
a report on the implementation of this Act.
    (b) Matters To Be Included.--The report required by subsection (a) 
shall include the following:
            (1) An identification of countries on the list of countries 
        required by section 4(c)(1) and description of actions taken by 
        such countries with respect to the trade of minerals with 
        Afghanistan and potential uses of products produced with 
        minerals from Afghanistan.
            (2) A description of whether there is statistical 
        information or other evidence to indicate efforts to circumvent 
        the prohibition on the importation into, or transit through, 
        the United States of any mineral, or product produced with 
        minerals, from Afghanistan under section 4(a).
            (3) An identification of any problems or obstacles 
        encountered in the implementation of this Act.

SEC. 10. GAO REPORT.

    (a) In General.--Not later than 2 years after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General of the United States 
shall submit to the Congress a report on the effectiveness of the 
provisions of this Act in preventing the importation of minerals or 
products produced with minerals from Afghanistan.
    (b) Matters To Be Included.--The Comptroller General shall include 
in the report any recommendations on any modifications to this Act that 
may be necessary.

SEC. 11. REGULATORY AND OTHER AUTHORITIES; DELEGATION OF AUTHORITIES.

    (a) Regulatory and Other Authorities.--The President is authorized 
to and shall issue such proclamations, regulations, licenses, and 
orders, and conduct such investigations, as may be necessary to carry 
out this Act.
    (b) Delegation of Authorities.--The President may delegate the 
duties and authorities under this Act to such officers, officials, 
departments, or agencies of the United States Government as the 
President deems appropriate.
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