Vladimir Putin Transparency Act

Floor Speech

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Ms. STEFANIK. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Madam Speaker, today I rise in strong support of H.R. 1404, the Vladimir Putin Transparency Act.

According to the 2017 Intelligence Community Assessment produced by the CIA, NSA, the FBI, and an indictment issued by the Attorney General in 2018, it is clear that Russian actors conspired to interfere and influence U.S. political processes and the Presidential election in 2016. This assessment stated that ``Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered an influence campaign in 2016 aimed at the U.S. Presidential election. Russia's goals were to undermine public faith in the U.S. democratic process.''

Madam Speaker, the Russian Government has been known to employ a system of corruption and illicit financial ties as a tool for consolidating its domestic political control and projecting power abroad to weaken not only the United States but other democratic countries as well.

That is why I proudly co-sponsored H.R. 1404. The bill would require that within 180 days of enactment, the Director of National Intelligence, in coordination with the Secretary of the Treasury and the Secretary of State, shall submit a congressional report on the personal net worth and assets owned by Russian President Vladimir Putin.

The report would also include accounts, holdings, shell companies, and intermediaries, and identify senior Russian political figures and oligarchs who facilitate corrupt practices. Vladimir Putin and his corrupt allies seek to weaken democracies globally by consolidating political control through unethical means, and they must be brought to account for their actions.

This bipartisan legislation is an important step to ensuring the security of our elections and upholding democracy around the world. I urge my colleagues to support this commonsense bill. I also want to thank my colleague, Representative Val Demings, for her leadership on this issue. I am proud to work across the aisle with her to pass this important bill.

Madam Speaker, in closing, as I have noted in my remarks, this is important bipartisan legislation. It is about transparency, it is about accountability, and it is about standing up to the corrupt practices of Russian President Vladimir Putin. This is bipartisan, commonsense legislation, and I urge my colleagues to support this bill on the floor.

Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Source