Banning Operations and Leases with the Illegitimate Venezuelan Authoritarian Regime Act
Floor Speech
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Mr. FRY. Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 825) to prohibit contracting with persons that have business operations with the Maduro regime, and for other purposes, as amended.
The Clerk read the title of the bill.
The text of the bill is as follows: H.R. 825
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 ``Banning Operations and Leases with the Illegitimate Venezuelan Authoritarian Regime Act'' or the ``BOLIVAR Act''. SEC. 2. PROHIBITION ON CONTRACTING WITH PERSONS THAT HAVE BUSINESS OPERATIONS WITH THE MADURO REGIME.
(a) Prohibition.--Except as provided in subsections (b), (c), and (d), the head of an executive agency may not enter into a contract for the procurement of goods or services with any person that the head of an executive agency determines, with the concurrence of the Secretary of State, in consultation with the Director of the Office of Management and Budget, knowingly engages in significant business operations, as defined by the Secretary in consultation with the Director, with an authority of the Government of Venezuela that is not recognized as the legitimate Government of Venezuela by the United States.
(b) Exceptions.--
(1) In general.--The prohibition under subsection (a) does not apply to a contract that the Secretary of State, in consultation with the Director of the Office of Management and Budget, determines--
(A) is necessary--
(i) for purposes of providing humanitarian assistance to the people of Venezuela;
(ii) for purposes of providing disaster relief and other urgent humanitarian aid or life-saving measures; or
(iii) to carry out noncombatant evacuations; or
(B) is in the national security interests of the United States.
(2) Support for united states government activities.--The prohibition in subsection (a) shall not apply to contracts and agreements that support United States Government activities in Venezuela, including those necessary for the maintenance of United States Government facilities in Venezuela, or to contracts with international organizations.
(3) Notification requirement.--The Secretary of State shall notify the appropriate congressional committees of any contract entered into on the basis of an exception provided for under paragraph (1), which may be submitted in a classified form, as appropriate.
(c) Office of Foreign Assets Control Licenses.--The prohibition in subsection (a) does not apply to a person that has a valid license to operate in Venezuela issued by the Office of Foreign Assets Control.
(d) American Diplomatic Mission in Venezuela.--The prohibition in subsection (a) does not apply to contracts related to the operation and maintenance of the United States Government's consular offices and diplomatic posts in Venezuela.
(e) Exception for Intelligence Activities.--The prohibition in subsection (a) does not apply to any activity subject to the reporting requirements under title V of the National Security Act of 1947 (50 U.S.C. 3091 et seq.), any authorized intelligence activity of the United States, or any activity or procurement that supports an authorized intelligence activity.
(f) Waiver.--The Secretary of State may waive the requirements of subsection (a) if the Secretary of State determines that to do so is in the national interest of the United States.
(g) Definitions.--In this section:
(1) Appropriate congressional committees.--The term ``appropriate congressional committees'' means the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs and the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate and the Committee on Homeland Security and the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives.
(2) Business operations.--The term ``business operations'' means engaging in commerce in any form, including acquiring, developing, maintaining, owning, selling, possessing, leasing, or operating equipment, facilities, personnel, products, services, personal property, real property, or any other apparatus of business or commerce.
(3) Executive agency.--The term ``executive agency'' has the meaning given the term in section 133 of title 41, United States Code.
(4) Government of venezuela.--(A) The term ``Government of Venezuela'' includes the government of any political subdivision of Venezuela, and any agency or instrumentality of the Government of Venezuela.
(B) For purposes of subparagraph (A), the term ``agency or instrumentality of the Government of Venezuela'' means an agency or instrumentality of a foreign state as defined in section 1603(b) of title 28, United States Code, with each reference in such section to ``a foreign state'' deemed to be a reference to ``Venezuela''.
(5) Person.--The term ``person'' means--
(A) a natural person, corporation, company, business association, partnership, society, trust, or any other nongovernmental entity, organization, or group;
(B) any governmental entity or instrumentality of a government; and
(C) any successor, subunit, parent entity, or subsidiary of, or any entity under common ownership or control with, any entity described in subparagraph (A) or (B).
(h) Term of Applicability.--This section shall apply with respect to any contract entered into during the three-year period beginning on the date that is 180 days after the enactment of this Act.
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Mr. FRY. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Madam Speaker, the people of Venezuela have faced years of repression. Political persecution, human rights abuses, and press censorship are all commonplace under the brutal, illegitimate, and anti-American regime of Nicolas Maduro, a regime closely allied with Russia, Iran, Cuba, and the People's Republic of China.
The American Government should always stand in solidarity with the long-suffering people of Venezuela and against the Maduro dictatorship. Part of that solidarity should be to ensure that the Maduro regime is denied any resources that will allow it to continue the oppression of its own citizenry.
This past July, Maduro and his representatives falsely claimed victory in Venezuela's Presidential election. Maduro has since been accused of intimidating and repressing his opposition in order to cling to power.
A couple of months ago, on September 12, the United States sanctioned 16 of Nicolas Maduro's allies in response to accusations that they engaged in human rights abuses and election obstruction. While not all of Maduro's allies will be subject to sanctions, the money of hardworking U.S. taxpayers should not ultimately find its way to those who support the regime of a ruthless dictator.
H.R. 825 is straightforward. It requires Federal agencies to ensure that they are not contracting with any entity that conducts significant business operations with Maduro and his allies.
That said, it also includes appropriate exceptions, such as situations of national security, for the purposes of providing humanitarian assistance, disaster relief, and other urgent lifesaving measures or to carry out noncombatant evacuations.
This is not a new concept to the U.S. Congress. The fiscal year 2020 National Defense Authorization Act contained a provision in section 890 that prohibited the Pentagon from entering into contracts with companies that also have contracts with any Venezuelan Government entity under Maduro's control. As with H.R. 825, there are waivers for contracts related to providing humanitarian assistance and disaster relief, among other exceptions.
The BOLIVAR Act would extend prohibitions under section 890 to the rest of the Federal Government.
I support the BOLIVAR Act and thank my colleagues on the committee, Representative Mike Waltz and Representative Debbie Wasserman Schultz, for leading this bill.
Madam Speaker, I ask that all of my colleagues support H.R. 825, a measured response and most timely piece of legislation, and I reserve the balance of my time.
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Mr. FRY. Madam Speaker, I encourage my House colleagues to support this bill to ensure that Federal agencies not contract with any entity that conducts business with the Maduro dictatorship and his allies, and I yield back the balance of my time.
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