Title: Secure United States Bases Act
Policy area: Immigration

Summary:
Secure United States Bases Act
Specifically, the bill

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 3409 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

<DOC>






116th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 3409

  To modify the conditions and terms of all foreign military training 
programs operated within the United States by the Department of Defense 
                      and the Department of State.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             March 5, 2020

    Mr. Scott of Florida (for himself and Ms. Ernst) introduced the 
 following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on 
                             the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To modify the conditions and terms of all foreign military training 
programs operated within the United States by the Department of Defense 
                      and the Department of State.

    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 ``Secure United States Bases Act''.

SEC. 2. NEW VISA CATEGORY.

    Section 101(a)(15) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 
1101(a)(15)) is amended--
            (1) in subparagraph (T)(ii)(III), by striking the period at 
        the end and inserting a semicolon;
            (2) in subparagraph (U)(iii), by striking ``or'' at the 
        end;
            (3) in subparagraph (V)(ii)(II), by striking the period at 
        the end and inserting ``; or''; and
            (4) by adding at the end the following:
            ``(W) subject to section 214(s), an alien who has been 
        accepted into a United States Government military training 
        program in the United States.''.

SEC. 3. APPLICATION, VETTING, AND MONITORING REQUIREMENTS FOR MILITARY 
              TRAINING NONIMMIGRANTS.

    (a) In General.--Section 214 of the Immigration and Nationality Act 
(8 U.S.C. 1184) is amended by adding at the end the following:
    ``(s) Military Training Visa.--
            ``(1) In general.--A nonimmigrant visa may only be issued 
        to an alien described in section 101(a)(15)(W) in accordance 
        with this subsection.
            ``(2) Application requirements and vetting procedures.--
                    ``(A) In general.--Not later than 60 days before an 
                alien described in section 101(a)(15)(W) intends to 
                travel to the United States to commence a military 
                training program operated by the Department of Defense 
                or the Department of State, including the International 
                Military Education and Training Program, the alien 
                shall--
                            ``(i) submit an application to the United 
                        States embassy or United States consulate in 
                        his or her country of nationality that 
                        includes--
                                    ``(I) an official endorsement 
                                letter that has been signed by the 
                                Intelligence Chief of the government of 
                                such country; and
                                    ``(II) his or her permanent 
                                physical address in such country;
                            ``(ii) have his or her fingerprints and 
                        other appropriate biometric information 
                        collected and recorded by an authorized United 
                        States official or designee;
                            ``(iii) participate in an in-person 
                        interview at a United States embassy or 
                        consulate; and
                            ``(iv) successfully pass a background check 
                        that includes--
                                    ``(I) a search of all available 
                                United States and international 
                                terrorist screening databases;
                                    ``(II) a review of the foreign 
                                national's social media accounts to 
                                identify any connections to persons or 
                                groups that are hostile to or have 
                                threatened the United States; and
                                    ``(III) a review of the foreign 
                                national's family members and any known 
                                associates to identify any connections 
                                to persons or groups that are hostile 
                                to or have threatened the United 
                                States, including the social media 
                                accounts of such family members and 
                                associates.
                    ``(B) Vetting oversight.--
                            ``(i) In general.--The vetting procedures 
                        described in subparagraph (A) shall be overseen 
                        by representatives of the Director of National 
                        Intelligence, in consultation with appropriate 
                        representatives of the Department of Defense, 
                        the Department of State, the Department of 
                        Homeland Security, and the Department of 
                        Justice.
                            ``(ii) Final decision.--The Director of 
                        National Intelligence shall make the final 
                        decision whether to authorize an applicant who 
                        has completed the vetting procedures described 
                        in subparagraph (A) to participate in a 
                        military training program referred to in such 
                        subparagraph. No official of the department 
                        responsible for implementing the training 
                        program is authorized to make this decision. A 
                        final decision may not rely solely upon the 
                        endorsement of the alien's government.
            ``(3) Visa issuance; terms.--
                    ``(A) In general.--A visa may not be issued under 
                this subsection until after the Director of National 
                Intelligence has made the final vetting decision in 
                accordance with paragraph (2)(B)(ii).
                    ``(B) Renewal.--Each visa issued under this 
                subsection shall be valid for a period of up to 1 year, 
                but may be renewed by submitting a written 
                certification from the Director of National 
                Intelligence that the alien remains eligible and 
                qualified, pursuant to the considerations guiding the 
                final decision provided for in paragraph (2)(B)(ii), to 
                complete the military training program to which he or 
                she was accepted.
                    ``(C) Terms.--An alien to whom a visa is issued 
                under this subsection--
                            ``(i) shall be prohibited from possessing, 
                        acquiring, or using firearms except to the 
                        extent that such use is required to participate 
                        in the alien's military training program;
                            ``(ii) shall have his or her personally 
                        identifying information included in the 
                        National Instant Criminal Background Check 
                        System to enforce the prohibition described in 
                        clause (i);
                            ``(iii) shall be subject to continuous 
                        monitoring of--
                                    ``(I) his or her social media 
                                activity, personal associations, and 
                                travel; and
                                    ``(II) to the fullest degree 
                                possible, the social media of his or 
                                her family members and any known close 
                                associates;
                            ``(iv) shall be subject to, and shall 
                        comply with the authority of, the Commander of 
                        the United States military installation at 
                        which he or she is stationed for training, who 
                        shall be responsible for the continual 
                        monitoring and control of the alien; and
                            ``(v) shall remain in good standing in the 
                        military training program to which he or she 
                        was accepted, as determined by attendance, 
                        participation, and the performance metrics 
                        specific to such program.
            ``(4) Reimbursement for vetting and monitoring costs.--
        Costs incurred by the United States Government that are 
        directly associated with the vetting procedures required under 
        paragraph (2) or the monitoring required under paragraph (3)(C) 
        shall be reimbursed by the government of the country of which 
        the alien being vetted or monitored is a national. The tuition 
        payments charged by the Department of Defense or the Department 
        of State to foreign countries for the education and training of 
        their nationals may be appropriately adjusted to account for 
        such costs.''.
    (b) Transition Period.--
            (1) In general.--The admissions requirements described in 
        section 214(s) of the Immigration and Nationality Act, as added 
        by subsection (a), including the requirement for military 
        training visas and the continuous monitoring of the visa 
        holder's social media, personal associations, and travel, shall 
        be applied retroactively for all foreign military students 
        participating in a military training program in the United 
        States as of the date of the enactment of this Act. All of the 
        vetting procedures described in section 214(s)(2) of such Act 
        shall be completed not later than 120 days after the date of 
        the enactment of this Act.
            (2) Exception.--The retroactive admissions requirements 
        referred to in paragraph (1) shall not apply to--
                    (A) aliens who are nationals of any country that is 
                a member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization;
                    (B) aliens who are nationals of Israel; or
                    (C) aliens who are receiving military training 
                outside of the United States.

SEC. 4. DIFFERENTIATING MILITARY TRAINING PROGRAMS BASED ON TYPOLOGY OF 
              RISK.

    (a) In General.--In determining who should be accepted in military 
training programs operated in the United States by the Department of 
Defense, the Secretary of Defense, in consultation with the Secretary 
of State, shall develop a method for classifying the relative risk, by 
country, of accepting foreign military personnel into such programs. 
The risk level of an applicant's country of nationality shall be 
considered by the Secretary when making such determinations.
    (b) Positive Risk Factors.--In classifying countries based on 
relative risks under subsection (a), an applicant shall be more likely 
to be accepted into a military training program in the United States if 
the country of his or her nationality--
            (1) has a formal military alliance with the United States; 
        or
            (2) has a long history of close cooperation with the United 
        States Armed Forces that--
                    (A) has created strong relationships of trust; and
                    (B) has demonstrated its ability to vet their own 
                applicants for military training programs in the United 
                States.
    (c) Negative Risk Factors.--In classifying countries based on 
relative risks under subsection (a), an applicant shall be less likely 
to be accepted into a military training program in the United States 
if--
            (1) the country of his or her nationality--
                    (A) has not closely cooperated with the United 
                States Armed Forces; or
                    (B) has not demonstrated its ability to vet their 
                own applicants for military training programs in the 
                United States procedures; or
            (2) hosting applicants from the country of his or her 
        nationality has a high potential to put American communities 
        and military families at risk.
    (d) Alternative Military Training Programs.--If the Secretary of 
Defense determines, in accordance with this section, that applicants 
from specified countries present too high of a risk for acceptance into 
a military training program in the United States and issued a military 
training visa under section 214(s) of the Immigration and Nationality 
Act, as added by section 3(a), the Secretary of State shall provide, to 
the fullest extent possible, an equivalent military training program 
for such applicants in the country of the applicant's nationality or in 
a third country--
            (1) to provide such applicants with military training, 
        consistent with United States national interests; and
            (2) to build camaraderie between such applicants and 
        members of the United States Armed Forces.

SEC. 5. REPORTING REQUIREMENT.

    Not later than 2 years after the date of the enactment of this Act, 
the Secretary of Defense shall provide Congress with a briefing, 
report, or update regarding the impact and effects of this Act, which 
shall address--
            (1) the positive or negative effects on the International 
        Military Education and Training Program;
            (2) any positive or negative impacts on the training of 
        foreign military students in line with national security 
        priorities;
            (3) the effectiveness of the vetting procedures implemented 
        in preventing harm to United States military personnel or 
        communities;
            (4) how any of the negative impacts referred to in 
        paragraphs (1) and (2) have been mitigated; and
            (5) a proposed plan to mitigate any ongoing negative 
        impacts to the vetting and training of foreign military 
        students.
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