Rosatom Sanctions Enforcement Act

Bill: 118-hr-8046
Sponsor: full_name: Rep. Kean, Thomas H. [R-NJ-7]
Introduced: 2024-04-17
Policy area: International Affairs
Subjects: Administrative law and regulatory procedures

Asia

Civil actions and liability

Congressional oversight

Congressional-executive branch relations

Europe

Foreign and international banking

Foreign property

International law and treaties

Licensing and registrations

Nuclear power

Presidents and presidential powers, Vice Presidents

Russia

Sanctions
Latest action: action_date: 2024-05-16
text: Ordered to be Reported in the Nature of a Substitute (Amended) by Unanimous Consent.

Summaries:
action_date: 2024-04-17
action_desc: Introduced in House
text: <p><strong>Rosatom Sanctions Enforcement Act</strong></p><p>This bill requires the President to take actions against Russian nuclear suppliers (e.g., Rosatom). (Rosatom is Russia's state nuclear power conglomerate.)</p><p>Specifically, the bill requires the President to impose property-blocking sanctions on Rosatom and others, including foreign persons involved in&nbsp;Rosatom’s construction of nuclear reactors.</p><p>Additionally, the President must submit to Congress a strategy to (1) replace Rosatom and other Russian nuclear suppliers with those from the United States and U.S. allies and partners, and (2) effect a permanent&nbsp;decoupling from the Russian nuclear industry. Within 60 days of submitting this strategy, the President must issue a directive prohibiting U.S. persons from engaging in any significant transaction with&nbsp;Rosatom and others involved with&nbsp;Rosatom.</p><p>The bill also requires the President to prescribe regulations to prohibit or impose strict conditions with respect to certain financial accounts held by foreign financial institutions.</p><p>The bill allows the President to waive the aforementioned sanctions under specified circumstances.</p><p>The President must, within 60 days of receiving a request from Congress, determine whether a person or foreign financial institution described in the request meets the criteria to be subject to sanctions imposed in two specified regulations relating to Russia. The President must submit a report to Congress stating whether the President imposed or intends to impose sanctions on persons or institutions described in the request from Congress.</p><p>The President must also pause the issuance of export licenses granted under a civil nuclear cooperation agreement with Russia until certain conditions are met.</p>

tv_txt: I 118th CONGRESS 2d Session H. R. 8046 IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES April 17, 2024 Mr. Kean of New Jersey introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs , and in addition to the Committee on Financial Services , for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned A BILL To impose sanctions with respect to Rosatom, and for other purposes.

1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Rosatom Sanctions Enforcement Act . 2. Statement of policy It shall be the policy of the United States— (1) to end United States reliance on the nuclear energy sector of the Russian Federation, including Rosatom, in light of Russia’s unprovoked war of aggression against Ukraine, a grave breach of international law; (2) to work with United States allies and partners to find alternative nuclear energy suppliers to Russia and help these allies and partners end their reliance on Rosatom; (3) to limit access of the Government of Russia to revenue through the implementation of sanctions and export controls against Rosatom; and (4) to inhibit the Government of Russia from using Rosatom as a tool of malign influence internationally. 3. Strategy (a) In general Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, and biannually thereafter for 5 years, the President shall submit to the appropriate congressional committees a strategy that contains the contents described in subsection (b). (b) Contents described The contents of the strategy required by subsection (a) shall include the following: (1) A strategy to— (A) replace Rosatom and other nuclear suppliers of the Russian Federation with those from the United States and United States allies and partners; (B) effect a permanent decoupling from the Russian nuclear industry; and (C) replace Rosatom as the primary entity that can provide reactor safety and operation services to the existing Rosatom and Russian Federation designed and constructed nuclear reactor fleet. (2) A description of key vulnerabilities in the infrastructure and supply chains of United States allies and partners. (3) A description of consultations carried out with United States allies and partners in implementing the sanctions required by section 5. (4) A description of proposed assistance by the United States and United States allies and partners to the International Atomic Energy Agency’s international low-enriched uranium fuel bank in Kazakhstan. (c) Form The strategy required by subsection (a) shall be submitted in unclassified form, but may contain a classified annex. 4. Issuance of directive pursuant to executive order 14024 Not later than 60 days after the submission of the strategy described in section 2, the President shall issue a directive pursuant to Executive Order 14024 (86 Fed. Reg. 20249; relating to blocking property with respect to specified harmful foreign activities of the Government of the Russian Federation) prohibiting United States persons from engaging in any significant transaction or dealing with— (1) Rosatom; (2) any person that is a corporate officer or principal of, or shareholder with a controlling interest in, Rosatom; or (3) any foreign person that is directly or indirectly owned or controlled by or acting for or on behalf of Rosatom. 5. Imposition of sanctions with respect to rosatom (a) Sanctions required On and after the date that is 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the President shall impose the sanctions described in subsection (b) with respect to— (1) Rosatom; (2) any foreign person that is a member of the supervisory board or management board of Rosatom; (3) a foreign person that knowingly directly or indirectly engages in any significant transaction for nuclear reactor construction and related services with Rosatom; (4) any foreign person that is responsible for or complicit in, or responsible for ordering, controlling, or otherwise directing, the activities at Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant since February 24, 2022, and while illegally under occupation of the Russian Federation; or (5) any foreign person that is owned, controlled, or directed by, or has knowingly provided support for or acted or purported to act for or on behalf of, directly or indirectly, any foreign person described in paragraph (1), (2), (3), or (4). (b) Sanctions described The President shall exercise all of the powers granted by the International Emergency Economic Powers Act ( 50 U.S.C. 1701 et seq. ) to block and prohibit all transactions in all property and interests in property of the foreign person if such property and interests in property are in the United States, come within the United States, or are or come within the possession or control of a United States person. 6. Prohibitions and conditions with respect to certain accounts held by foreign financial institutions (a) In general The President shall prescribe regulations to prohibit, or impose strict conditions on, the opening or maintaining in the United States of a correspondent account or a payable-through account by a foreign financial institution that the President determines facilitates the activities of a foreign person described in paragraph (2), (3), (4), or (5) of section 5(a). (b) Definitions In this section— (1) the terms account , correspondent account , and payable-through account have the meanings given those terms in section 5318A of title 31, United States Code; and (2) the term financial institution means a financial institution specified in subparagraph (A), (B), (C), (D), (E), (F), (G), (H), (I), (J), (M), or (Y) of section 5312(a)(2) of title 31, United States Code. 7. General provisions applicable to sections 4, 5, and 6 (a) Waivers (1) In general The President may waive the application of sanctions under section 4, 5, or 6 for a transaction or transactions with a United States person, a foreign person, or a foreign financial institution (as the case may be) described under such section if the President certifies to the appropriate congressional committees that such waiver is vital to the national security interests of the United States— (A) for renewable periods of 180 days until January 1, 2028; and (B) on a case-by-case basis from January 2, 2028 to January 1, 2032. (2) Transactions relating to activities necessary to the production of medical and industrial radioactive and stable isotopes (A) In general The President may waive the application of sanctions under section 4, 5, or 6 for a transaction or transactions with a United States person, a foreign person, or a foreign financial institution (as the case may be) described under such section for one year, renewable for up to 10 years, if— (i) the President determines that the transaction relates to activities necessary to the production of medical isotopes or industrial isotopes; and (ii) the President certifies to the appropriate congressional committees that— (I) domestic medical isotope or industrial isotope production is insufficient to meet United States patient and industry requirements; and (II) the United States is taking measurable steps to establish medical isotope or industrial isotope supply chains that are not reliant on Rosatom or other Russian source material. (B) Definitions In this paragraph— (i) the term industrial isotope means a radioactive or stable form of an element that is used primarily for industrial (non-medical) purposes; and (ii) the term medical isotope means a radioactive or stable form of an element that is either administered directly into a patient or is combined with a carrier molecule for diagnosis and treatment of disease. (3) Special rule (A) In general The President shall not be required to impose the application of sanctions under section 4, 5, or 6 for a transaction or transactions with a United States person, a foreign person, or a foreign financial institution (as the case may be) described under such if the President certifies in writing to the appropriate congressional committees that— (i) the person— (I) is no longer engaging in activities of a foreign person described in paragraph (3), (4), or (5) of section 5(a), or section 6; and (II) has taken and is continuing to take significant verifiable steps toward terminating such activities; and (ii) the President has received reliable assurances that the person will not engage in such activities in the future. (B) Clarification of applicability The authority described in subparagraph (A) may apply to contracts that— (i) have entered into force prior to February 24, 2022, and have not been extended or renegotiated since their entry into force; and (ii) do not extend beyond January 1, 2028, for fuel and services. (4) Notification Not later than 15 days prior to the issuance of the exercise of a waiver under paragraph (1) or (2) or the special rule under paragraph (3) with respect to United States person, a foreign person, or a foreign financial institution (as the case may be), and every 180 days there after while the waiver or special rule (as the case may be) remains in effect, the President shall notify the appropriate congressional committees on the status of the involvement of the person in activities that meet the criteria described in sections 4, 5, and 6. (b) Exceptions Sanctions described under section 4, 5, or section 6 shall not apply to— (1) authorized intelligence, law enforcement, or national security activities of the United States; (2) activities that are for the conduct of the official business of the United Nations, its specialized agencies, programmes, funds, and related organizations by employees, contractors, or grantees of such agencies, programmes and funds; or (3) any activities that are required for the safe operation of nuclear reactors including critical reactor safety, safeguards, and security, in which there are no alternative suppliers. (c) Implementation; penalties (1) Implementation The President may exercise all authorities provided to the President under sections 203 and 205 of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1702 and 1704) to carry out sections 4, 5, and 6 if the President notifies Congress not later than 5 days prior to the issuance of a license relating to such exercise of authorities. (2) Penalties The penalties provided for in subsections (b) and (c) of section 206 of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act ( 50 U.S.C. 1705 ) shall apply to a person that violates, attempts to violate, conspires to violate, or causes a violation of regulations promulgated under subsection (d) to carry out section 4, 5, or 6 to the same extent that such penalties apply to a person that commits an unlawful act described in section 206(a) of that Act. (d) Regulatory authority Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the President shall promulgate regulations as necessary for the implementation of sections 4, 5, and 6. 8. Congressional oversight of certain sanctions imposed with respect to the russian federation (a) In general Not later than 60 days after receiving a request from the chairman and ranking member of one of the appropriate congressional committees with respect to whether a person meets the criteria of a foreign person described in paragraph (2), (3), (4) or (5) of section 5(a) or a foreign financial institution described in section 6(a), as the case may be, or is violating or has violated a covered regulation, the President shall— (1) determine if the person or foreign financial institution, as the case may be, meets such criteria; and (2) submit a classified or unclassified report to such chairman and ranking member with respect to such determination that includes a statement of whether or not the President imposed or intends to impose sanctions with respect to such person or foreign financial institution. (b) Covered regulation defined The term covered regulation means— (1) part 587 of title 31, Code of Federal Regulations (Russia Harmful Foreign Activities Sanctions Regulations); or (2) part 589 of title 31 Code of Federal Regulations (Ukraine/Russia-Related Sanctions Regulations). 9. Pause from the russia 123 agreement The President shall take such actions as may be necessary to pause the issuance of export licenses granted under the United States from the Agreement between the Government of the United States of America and the Government of the Russian Federation for Cooperation in the Field of Peaceful Uses of Nuclear Energy, entered into on January 11, 2011, pursuant to section 123 of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954 ( 42 U.S.C. 2153 ), until such time as the President certifies to the appropriate congressional committees the following: (1) The Russian Federation has ceased hostilities in Ukraine, has withdrawn all of its forces from sovereign Ukrainian territory, and Ukraine’s territorial integrity is fully restored. (2) Rosatom is not or has not contributed to the misuse of United States-origin nuclear material within Zaporizhia Nuclear Power Plant. (3) Russia, through Rosatom, is not using or gaining any benefit of the proceeds from sales related to Rosatom to fund Russia’s illegal occupation of Ukraine or other territory. (4) Russia is in full compliance with the Treaty between the United States of America and the Russian Federation on Measures for the Further Reduction and Limitation of Strategic Offensive Arms. (5) Russia has not conducted any yield producing nuclear test in the 10-year period ending on the date of the certification. (6) Rosatom’s transfer of nuclear materials and assistance to third countries does not contribute to any such third party country’s nuclear weapons activity or illicit nuclear activity. (7) Russia is not transferring nuclear material or cooperating militarily with a country or countries in which the International Atomic Energy Agency has an open investigation or has withdrawn from the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons. (8) Russia has met its obligations under the Plutonium Management and Disposition Agreement. 10. No additional funds authorized No additional funds are authorized to be appropriated to carry out the requirements of this Act. Such requirements shall be carried out using amounts otherwise authorized to be appropriated. 11. Definitions In this Act: (1) Appropriate congressional committees The term appropriate congressional committees means— (A) the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives; and (B) the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate. (2) Foreign person The term foreign person means— (A) an individual who is not a United States citizen or an alien lawfully admitted for permanent residence to the United States; or (B) an entity that is not a United States person. (3) Rosatom The term Rosatom means— (A) the Rosatom State Nuclear Energy Corporation of the Russian Federation or any subsidiary thereof; (B) any entity owned or controlled by the entities described in subparagraph (A); or (C) any successor entity or subsidiary of any entity described in subparagraph (A) or (B). (4) United states person The term United States person means— (A) a United States citizen or an alien lawfully admitted for permanent residence to the United States; (B) an entity organized under the laws of the United States or of any jurisdiction of the United States, including a foreign branch of such an entity; or (C) a person in the United States.