S. 1364 · 118th Congress
Foreign Agents Disclosure and Registration Enhancement Act of 2023
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Never voted on. It didn't reach a floor vote before the 118th Congress ended, so it expired. A bill has to be introduced again to be considered in a new Congress.
R
GrassleySponsor5 cosponsors · 1 D, 4 R
5 signed on when it was introduced; the rest joined later. Cosponsors who withdrew aren't shown.
Foreign Agents Disclosure and Registration Enhancement Act of 2023
What it does: CRS summary · Introduced in Senate · Apr 27, 2023
Foreign Agents Disclosure and Registration Enhancement Act of 2023
This bill provides the Department of Justice (DOJ) with a mechanism to demand evidence for investigating compliance with foreign-agent disclosure requirements and increases penalties relating to such requirements.
DOJ may issue civil investigative demands to a person who may have information relevant to an investigation related to the Foreign Agents Registration Act of 1938 (FARA). Such demands may be for documents, written answers to questions, or oral testimony. The bill prescribes various procedures and requirements, such as minimum notice periods when seeking oral testimony. Investigative demands may be enforced or challenged in district court.
Such investigative demands may not require the production of information that would be protected from disclosure under (1) the rules governing grand jury subpoenas, or (2) the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure to the extent the rules are consistent with this bill.
The bill increases the maximum criminal fine for certain FARA violations from $10,000 to $200,000. Agents of a foreign principal must disclose being a FARA-registered agent before or during a meeting with a Member of Congress (or with staff of a Member or congressional committee).
The bill provides for various civil penalties for failing to meet agent registration requirements. The foreign principal of a penalized agent may not pay the imposed fines.
The Government Accountability Office shall (1) analyze the effectiveness of FARA enforcement, and (2) audit the exemption of certain foreign agents from FARA-registration if the agent has engaged in lobbying activities and has registered under the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995.
Written by the nonpartisan Congressional Research Service. All summary versions on Congress.gov
About this bill and sources
Official title: Foreign Agents Disclosure and Registration Enhancement Act of 2023
Latest action (Apr 27, 2023): Read twice and referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations.
Policy area: International Affairs · Origin: Senate · Introduced: Apr 27, 2023
Official page on Congress.gov · Bill text (GovInfo) · Status record (XML)
No recorded floor vote found.