S504-118

1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Denying Earnings to the Military Oligarchy in Cuba and Restricting Activities of the Cuban Intelligence Apparatus Act or the DEMOCRACIA Act.

2. Findings; sense of Congress Congress finds the following: The Cuban Communist takeover of 1959 established in Cuba a one-party authoritarian state of the Cuban Communist Party. Cuba is a totalitarian state, in which the Cuban Communist Party has brutally oppressed the people of Cuba for more than 60 years. Cuban democracy activists, including Las Damas de Blanco (also known as Ladies in White), a group composed of wives and relatives of political prisoners, prisoners of conscience, and peaceful activists in Cuba, are routinely repressed, censured, beaten, and unjustly imprisoned by the Cuban Communist Party. On July 11, 2021, protesters marched in the streets throughout Cuba voicing their opposition against the communist regime of Cuba. During those protests, Cubans in more than 40 cities held demonstrations chanting Freedom!, Down with the Dictatorship!, and Patria y Vida (Homeland and Life). Through those protests, the people of Cuba demanded the end to communism in Cuba and access to food, medicine, water, and electricity, basic needs that the communist system in Cuba cannot provide. Cubans gathered outside of the headquarters of the Cuban Communist Party chanting, Cuba isn’t yours!. In a clear message, Cubans exercised their fundamental God-given rights to peaceably assemble, express their political opinions, and live free of censorship and oppression and demanded the ruling elites, especially the Cuban Communist Party, release its control of their government and give the power back to the people. During the July 11, 2021, protests, the Cuban Communist Party deployed a wave of terror throughout Cuba by— unleashing its secret police and some military forces on peaceful protesters and unlawfully detained them, including by— harassing and threatening people in their homes; abducting and torturing civil society leaders and other Cubans peacefully exercising their fundamental rights; and detaining more than 800 Cubans for peacefully protesting, who have gone missing since the protests and demonstrations began, including leaders from Cuban civil society groups such as UNPACU, the San Isidro Movement, the Ladies in White, and religious leaders; and in a crude and savage effort to silence the Cuban people, cutting internet connectivity and mobile services throughout Cuba, which prevented the Cuban people from organizing and hid from the outside world images and videos of the oppressive and brutal crackdown by the Government of Cuba. In response to these demonstrations and protests, the regime blocked access to social media, messaging platforms and cellular services, and arrested and detained hundreds of protesters, activists, and journalists, according to Cuban human rights groups. The Human Rights Report on Cuba for 2020 set forth by the Department of State found that Cuba is an authoritarian state. A new constitution ratified in February 2019 codified that Cuba remains a one-party system in which the Cuban Communist Party is the only legal political party. Elections in Cuba were neither free, fair, nor competitive. The Ministry of Interior of Cuba (MININT) controls police, internal security forces, and the prison system. The National Revolutionary Police are the primary law enforcement organization of the Ministry. Specialized units of the state security branch of the Ministry are responsible for monitoring, infiltrating, and suppressing independent political activity. The national leadership of Cuba, including members of the military, maintain effective control over the security forces. Members of the security forces have committed numerous abuses. Significant human rights issues in Cuba include the following: Unlawful or arbitrary killings by the Government of Cuba, including extrajudicial killings. Forced disappearances by the Government of Cuba. Torture and cruel, inhuman, and degrading treatment of political dissidents, detainees, and prisoners by security forces. Harsh and life-threatening prison conditions. Arbitrary arrests and detentions. The detaining of political prisoners. Significant problems with the independence of the judiciary. Arbitrary or unlawful interference with privacy. Functional lack of freedom of the press, as criminal libel laws are used against persons who criticize leadership of the Government of Cuba and that Government has engaged in censorship and internet site blocking. Severe limitations on academic and cultural freedom. Severe restrictions on the right of peaceful assembly and denial of freedom of association, including refusal to recognize independent associations. Severe restrictions on religious freedom. Restrictions on internal and external freedom of movement. Inability of citizens to change their government through free and fair elections. Restrictions on political participation to members of the ruling party. Corruption by officials of the Government of Cuba. Trafficking in persons, including compulsory labor. Outlawing of independent trade unions. Officials of the Government of Cuba, at the direction of their superiors, have committed most human rights abuses. As a matter of policy, officials failed to investigate or prosecute the individuals who committed those abuses. Impunity for the perpetrators has remained widespread. The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom recommended in its 2021 Annual Report that the United States Government again place Cuba on the special watch list under section 402(b)(1)(A)(iii) of the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998 (22 U.S.C. 6442(b)(1)(A)(iii)) and recommended imposing sanctions on the Office of Religious Affairs of Cuba. In the report specified in paragraph (15), the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom raised concerns regarding the denial in Cuba of religious freedom for human rights activists, independent journalists, and protesters, particularly in the wake of demonstrations that started on November 13, 2020, calling for greater freedom of expression in Cuba. Cuba was ground zero for a series of yet unexplained attacks in 2016 on members of the diplomatic community of the United States in Havana, Cuba. Cuba continues to provide safe harbor for adversaries of the United States, including multiple fugitives from justice in the United States, including William Morales, Charles Hill, Victor Manuel Gerena, and Joanne Chesimard, who executed New Jersey State Trooper Werner Foerster during a routine traffic stop in May 1973. The Trade Sanctions Reform and Export Enhancement Act of 2000 (22 U.S.C. 7201 et seq.) prohibits the President from imposing unilateral agricultural or medical sanctions against Cuba. The defense, security, and intelligence sectors of Cuba are the primary perpetrators of beatings, arrests, detainments, and unjust imprisonments of the Cuban people. The Cuban Communist Party has a long history of racism. No high level positions within the Cuban Communist Party are occupied by Afro-Cubans. Many Cubans who suffered the worst treatment at the hands of the security forces of the Cuban Communist Party are Afro-Cuban, such as Dr. Óscar Elías Biscet, Jorge Luis Garcia Pérez, Berta Soler of Las Damas de Blanco, Guillermo Fariñas Hernández, Orlando Zapata Tamayo, Luis Manuel Otero Alcántara, and Iván Hernández Carrillo. On January 12, 2021, the Department of State determined that Cuba has repeatedly provided support for acts of international terrorism and was designated a state sponsor of terrorism. On May 14, 2021, Secretary of State Antony Blinken determined and certified to Congress that Cuba is not cooperating fully with United States antiterrorism efforts. The Cuban Communist Party continues to support international terrorist groups such as the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) and the National Liberation Army (ELN). Commercial engagement with the defense, security, and intelligence sectors of Cuba empowers the human rights abuses, racism against Afro-Cubans, and support for international terrorism by the Cuban Communist Party. It is the sense of Congress that Congress— reaffirms subsection (a) of section 1704 of the Cuban Democracy Act of 1992 (22 U.S.C. 6003), which states that the President should encourage foreign countries to restrict trade and credit relations with Cuba in a manner consistent with the purposes of that Act; and urges the President to take immediate steps to apply the sanctions described in subsection (b)(1) of that section with respect to countries assisting Cuba.

3. Statement of policy It shall be the policy of the United States— to support the desire of the people of Cuba for freedom and democracy; and to work with allies and the international community to seek to restrict and reduce the financial resources of the Cuban dictatorship, which supports terrorism and perpetrates injustice and human rights abuses against the Cuban people, that being the Cuban military, security, and intelligence sectors.

4. Imposition of sanctions with respect to foreign persons that engage in certain transactions relating to Cuba The President shall impose the sanctions described in subsection (b) with respect to a foreign person if the President determines that the foreign person, on or after the date of the enactment of this Act, knowingly engages in an activity described in paragraph (2). Except as provided in paragraph (3), a foreign person engages in an activity described in this paragraph if the foreign person provides financial, material, or technological support to, or engages in a transaction with— a covered sector of the Government of Cuba, or any entity or individual affiliated with such sector (including an immediate adult family member of such individual); an agency, instrumentality, or other entity owned by an entity that is part of or associated with a covered sector, entity, or individual described in subparagraph (A) in a percentage share exceeding 25 percent; an individual who is a senior official of a covered sector or entity described in subparagraph (A) (including an immediate adult family member of such individual); an agency, instrumentality, or other entity operated or controlled by a covered sector, entity, or individual described in subparagraph (A); an entity or individual— for the purpose of avoiding a financial transaction with, or the transfer of funds to, an entity or individual specified in any of subparagraphs (A) through (D); or for the benefit of an entity or individual specified in any of subparagraphs (A) through (D); a foreign person that is a military contractor, mercenary, or a paramilitary force knowingly operating in a military, security, or intelligence capacity for or on behalf of the Government of Cuba; or a foreign person subject to sanctions pursuant to the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.) or the Trading with the Enemy Act (50 U.S.C. 4301 et seq.) with respect to Cuba or any other provision of law that imposes sanctions or other economic restrictions or limitations with respect to Cuba. The following activities engaged in by a foreign person shall not be considered to be activities described in paragraph (2) for purposes of imposing sanctions described in subsection (b) with respect to the person: The sale of agricultural commodities, medicines, and medical devices sold to Cuba consistent with the Trade Sanctions Reform and Export Enhancement Act of 2000 (22 U.S.C. 7201 et seq.). A remittance to an immediate family member, other than— an individual who is a high-level member of the Cuban Communist Party; or an individual who is an immediate family member of an individual described in clause (i). A payment in furtherance of the lease agreement for, or other financial transactions necessary for maintenance and improvements of, the military base at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, including any adjacent areas under the control or possession of the United States. Assistance or support in furtherance of democracy-building efforts for Cuba described in section 109 of the Cuban Liberty and Democratic Solidarity (LIBERTAD) Act of 1996 (22 U.S.C. 6039). Customary and routine financial transactions necessary for the maintenance, improvements, or regular duties of the United States Embassy in Havana, Cuba, including outreach to the pro-democracy opposition. Accessing the internet or providing cellular services if the internet and cellular services have been restored, are without interference from the Cuban regime, and do not include any technology, services, or communications backed by the Communist Party of the People's Republic of China. It is the sense of Congress that the President should, in making a determination of whether a foreign person engages in an activity described in paragraph (2), consider the provision of loans, credits, or export credits by the person to be a form of significant financial, material, or technological support as described in such paragraph. In this subsection, the term covered sector means— the defense sector; the security sector; the intelligence sector; or any other sector of the Government of Cuba beginning 15 days after the date on which the President certifies to Congress that such sector is involved in carrying out human rights abuses or providing support for international terrorism. The sanctions to be imposed with respect to a foreign person subject to subsection (a) are the following: The President shall exercise all of the powers granted to the President under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.) and the Trading with the Enemy Act (50 U.S.C. 4301 et seq.) to the extent necessary to block and prohibit all transactions in 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. An alien who the Secretary of State or the Secretary of Homeland Security (or a designee of one of such Secretaries) knows, or has reason to believe, has knowingly engaged in any activity described in subsection (a)(2) is— inadmissible to the United States; ineligible to receive a visa or other documentation to enter the United States; and otherwise ineligible to be admitted or paroled into the United States or to receive any other benefit under the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101 et seq.). The issuing consular officer, the Secretary of State, or the Secretary of Homeland Security (or a designee of one of such Secretaries) shall, in accordance with section 221(i) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1201(i)), revoke any visa or other entry documentation issued to an alien described in clause (i) regardless of when the visa or other entry documentation is issued. A revocation under subclause (I)— shall take effect immediately; and shall automatically cancel any other valid visa or entry documentation that is in the alien’s possession. 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 any regulation, license, or order issued to carry out paragraph (1)(A) to the same extent that such penalties apply to a person that commits an unlawful act described in subsection (a) of that section. Sanctions under paragraph (1)(B) shall not apply with respect to an alien if admitting or paroling the alien into the United States is necessary to permit the United States to comply with the Agreement regarding the Headquarters of the United Nations, signed at Lake Success June 26, 1947, and entered into force November 21, 1947, between the United Nations and the United States, or other applicable international obligations. The President shall exercise all authorities under sections 203 and 205 of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1702 and 1704) to carry out this section, except that the President— shall not issue any general license authorizing, or otherwise authorize, any activity subject to sanctions under subsection (a); and shall require any United States person seeking to engage in a financial transaction or transfer of funds subject to sanctions under subsection (a) to submit a written request to the Office of Foreign Assets Control of the Department of the Treasury. The President may waive the application of sanctions described in subsection (b) with respect to a foreign person for a period of 180 days (and such waiver may not be renewed) if the President determines and certifies to Congress that such waiver is in the vital national security interest of the United States. In this section: The terms admitted and alien have the meanings given those terms in section 101 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101). The term entity means a partnership, association, trust, joint venture, corporation, group, subgroup, or other organization. The term foreign person means a person that is not a United States person. The term person means an individual or entity. The term United States person means— a United States citizen or an alien lawfully admitted to the United States for permanent residence; an entity organized under the laws of the United States or any jurisdiction within the United States (including any foreign branch of such an entity); and any person in the United States.

5. Imposition of sanctions with respect to human rights abuse and corruption in Cuba The President shall impose the sanctions described in subsection (b) with respect to the following persons: Any foreign person determined by the Secretary of the Treasury, in consultation with the Secretary of State and the Attorney General— to be responsible for or complicit in, or to have directly or indirectly engaged in, serious human rights abuse in Cuba; to be a current or former official of the Government of Cuba, or a person acting for or on behalf of such an official, who is responsible for or complicit in, or has directly or indirectly engaged in— corruption, including the misappropriation of state assets, the expropriation of private assets for personal gain, corruption related to government contracts or the extraction of natural resources, or bribery; or the transfer or the facilitation of the transfer of the proceeds of corruption; to be or have been a leader or official of— an entity, including a government entity, that has engaged in, or whose members have engaged in, any of the activities described in subparagraph (A) or (B) relating to the tenure of the leader or official; or an entity whose property and interests in property are blocked under subsection (b)(1) as a result of activities related to the tenure of the leader or official; to have materially assisted, sponsored, or provided financial, material, or technological support for, or goods or services to or in support of— any activity described in subparagraph (A) or (B) that is conducted by a foreign person; any person whose property and interests in property are blocked under subsection (b)(1); or any entity, including a government entity, that has engaged in, or whose members have engaged in, any of the activities described in subparagraph (A) or (B) of paragraph (1), if the activity is conducted by a foreign person; to have received any contribution or provision of funds, goods, or services from any person whose property and interests in property are blocked under subsection (b)(1); to be owned or controlled by, or to have acted or purported to act for or on behalf of, directly or indirectly, any person whose property and interests in property are blocked under subsection (b)(1); to be under the control of, or to act for or on behalf of, the military, intelligence, or security services or personnel of Cuba; to be an official of the Government of Cuba who works with the Ministry of Justice or the Office of the Attorney General and who violates due process rights of an individual in Cuba; or to have attempted to engage in any of the activities described in subparagraph (A) or (B). Members of the Communist Party of Cuba, including— members of the Politburo; members, department heads, and employees of the Central Committee; secretaries and first secretaries of the provincial party central committees; and members of the Office of Religious Affairs. Members of the Council of State. Members of the Council of Ministers. Members of the Committees for the Defense of the Revolution. The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Cuba. The Ministry of the Interior of Cuba, including the National Revolutionary Police Force. The Office of the President of Cuba. The spouse and children of any individual subject to sanctions under this section. The sanctions to be imposed with respect to a foreign person subject to subsection (a) are the following: The President shall exercise all of the powers granted to the President under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.) to the extent necessary to block and prohibit all transactions in 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. An alien who the Secretary of State or the Secretary of Homeland Security (or a designee of one of such Secretaries) knows, or has reason to believe, is a foreign person subject to subsection (a) is— inadmissible to the United States; ineligible to receive a visa or other documentation to enter the United States; and otherwise ineligible to be admitted or paroled into the United States or to receive any other benefit under the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101 et seq.). The issuing consular officer, the Secretary of State, or the Secretary of Homeland Security (or a designee of one of such Secretaries) shall, in accordance with section 221(i) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1201(i)), revoke any visa or other entry documentation issued to an alien described in clause (i) regardless of when the visa or other entry documentation is issued. A revocation under subclause (I)— shall take effect immediately; and shall automatically cancel any other valid visa or entry documentation that is in the alien’s possession. 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 any regulation, license, or order issued to carry out paragraph (1)(A) to the same extent that such penalties apply to a person that commits an unlawful act described in subsection (a) of that section. Sanctions under paragraph (1)(B) shall not apply with respect to an alien if admitting or paroling the alien into the United States is necessary to permit the United States to comply with the Agreement regarding the Headquarters of the United Nations, signed at Lake Success June 26, 1947, and entered into force November 21, 1947, between the United Nations and the United States, or other applicable international obligations. The President shall exercise all authorities under sections 203 and 205 of the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1702 and 1704) to carry out this section, except that the President— shall not issue any general license authorizing, or otherwise authorize, any activity subject to sanctions under subsection (a); and shall require any United States person seeking to engage in a financial transaction or transfer of funds subject to sanctions under subsection (a) to submit a written request to the Office of Foreign Assets Control of the Department of the Treasury. The President may not impose sanctions under this section with respect to any person for— donating food or agricultural commodities to— an independent, nongovernmental organization not controlled by the Government of Cuba; or individuals in Cuba who are not high-level members of the Communist Party of Cuba or the immediate family member of any such individual; or exporting medicines or medical supplies, instruments, or equipment that would be permitted under section 1705(c) of the Cuban Democracy Act of 1992 (22 U.S.C. 6004(c)). The President may waive the application of sanctions under this section with respect to a person if the President determines that such a waiver is in the national security interests of the United States. The President, the Secretary of the Treasury, the Secretary of State, and the Attorney General, and any other official of the United States Government are not required to provide any prior notice of a determination made under subsection (a) or of any other determination to impose sanctions under this section. In this section: The terms admitted and alien have the meanings given those terms in section 101 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101). The term entity means a partnership, association, trust, joint venture, corporation, group, subgroup, or other organization. The term foreign person means a person that is not a United States person. The term person means an individual or entity. The term United States person means— a United States citizen or an alien lawfully admitted to the United States for permanent residence; an entity organized under the laws of the United States or any jurisdiction within the United States (including any foreign branch of such an entity); and any person in the United States.

6. Termination of sanctions The authority to impose sanctions under sections 4 and 5 shall terminate if— the President submits to Congress a determination and certification that the Government of Cuba— has legalized all political activity; has released all political prisoners and allowed for investigations of Cuban prisons by appropriate international human rights organizations; has dissolved the Department of State Security in the Cuban Ministry of the Interior in place as of the date of the enactment of this Act, including the Committees for the Defense of the Revolution and the Rapid Response Brigades; has made public commitments to organizing free and fair elections for a new government— to be held in a timely manner within a period not to exceed 18 months after such certification; with the participation of multiple independent political parties that have full access to the media on an equal basis, including (in the case of radio, television, or other telecommunications media) in terms of allotments of time for such access and the times of day such allotments are given; and to be conducted under the supervision of internationally recognized observers, such as the Organization of American States, the United Nations, and other election monitors; has ceased any interference with Radio Marti or Television Marti broadcasts; has made public commitments to and is making demonstrable progress in— establishing an independent judiciary; respecting internationally recognized human rights and basic freedoms as set forth in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, to which Cuba is a signatory nation; and allowing the establishment of independent trade unions as set forth in conventions 87 and 98 of the International Labor Organization, and allowing the establishment of independent social, economic, and political associations; does not include Raul Castro or his immediate family; has given adequate assurances that it will allow the speedy and efficient distribution of assistance to the people of Cuba; is demonstrably in transition from a communist totalitarian dictatorship to a representative democracy; has made public commitments to and is making demonstrable progress in— effectively guaranteeing the rights of free speech and freedom of the press, including granting permits to privately owned media and telecommunications companies to operate in Cuba; permitting the reinstatement of citizenship to Cuban-born persons returning to Cuba; assuring the right to private property; and taking appropriate steps to return to United States citizens, and entities that are 50 percent or more beneficially owned by United States citizens, property taken by the Government of Cuba from such citizens and entities on or after January 1, 1959, or to provide equitable compensation to such citizens and entities for such property; has extradited or otherwise rendered to the United States all persons sought by the Department of Justice of the United States for crimes committed in the United States; and has permitted the deployment throughout Cuba of independent and unfettered international human rights monitors; and a joint resolution approving the determination and certification of the President submitted under paragraph (1) is enacted into law in accordance with the procedures described in subsection (b). Joint resolutions described in subsection (a)(2) that are introduced in the House of Representatives shall be referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs and joint resolutions described in subsection (a)(2) that are introduced in the Senate shall be referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations. Any joint resolution described in subsection (a)(2) shall be considered in the Senate in accordance with the provisions of section 601(b) of the International Security Assistance and Arms Export Control Act of 1976 (Public Law 94–329; 90 Stat. 765). For the purpose of expediting the consideration and enactment of a joint resolution described in subsection (a)(2), a motion to proceed to the consideration of any such joint resolution after it has been reported by the appropriate committee shall be treated as highly privileged in the House of Representatives. Not more than one joint resolution described in subsection (a)(2) may be considered in the House of Representatives and the Senate during the 6-month period beginning on the date on which the President submits to Congress a determination and certification under subsection (a)(1).

7. Provision of unrestricted internet service for the people of Cuba Effective immediately upon the date of the enactment of this Act, the President shall use all means possible to provide unrestricted, reliable internet service to the people of Cuba that is not censored, blocked, or otherwise restricted by the Government of Cuba and does not include any technology, services, or communications backed by the Communist Party of the People's Republic of China. The President shall notify the appropriate committees of Congress once an internet connection has been established to provide unrestricted, reliable internet service under subsection (a). Not later than 90 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the President shall establish an interagency task force to develop a long-term solution for providing reliable internet service to the people of Cuba that is not censored or blocked by the Government of Cuba. Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the interagency task force established under paragraph (1) shall submit to the President and the appropriate committees of Congress a report that outlines the best long-term solutions of the interagency task force for providing reliable internet service to the people of Cuba that is not censored, blocked, or otherwise restricted by the Government of Cuba. In this section, the term appropriate committees of Congress means— the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, the Committee on Foreign Relations, and the Select Committee on Intelligence of the Senate; and the Committee on Homeland Security, the Committee on Foreign Affairs, and the Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence of the House of Representatives.