,i  #aagth ,,congress  #b;d ,session    
,h4 ,r4 #ieci  ,,in ,,the ,,house ,,of  
,,representatives  ,december #ad1       
#bjbb,mr4 ,castro of ,texas 7for        
himself1 ,mrs4 ,torres of ,california1  
,mr4 ,sires1 ,mr4 ,grijalva1 ,ms4 ,omar1
 ,ms4 ,barragn1 and ,mr4 ,espaillat7    
introduced the following bill2 which was
 referred to the ,committee on ,foreign 
,affairs  ,a ,,bill  ,to require the    
development of an inter-agency strategy 
and the submission of certain reports   
relating to the illegal export and      
trafficking of firearms from the ,united
 ,states to recipients in ,mexico and   
certain ,central ,american and          
,caribbean countries1 and for other     
purposes4  #a4 ,short title ,this ,act  
may be cited as the ,americas ,regional 
,monitoring of ,arms ,sales ,act of     
#bjbb or the ,,armas ,act of #bjbb4  #b4
 ,findings ,congress finds the          
following3 7#a7 ,violence in ,mexico1   
,central ,america1 and the ,caribbean is
 exacerbated by firearms originating in 

the ,united ,states4  7#b7 ,while       
firearms are trafficked to ,mexico from 
a variety of countries1 firearms        
originating in the ,united ,states      
account for #gj percent of the firearms 
recovered and traced from crimes in     
,mexico1 according to the #bjba ,,gao   
report ,firearms ,trafficking3 ,u4,s4   
,efforts to ,disrupt ,gun ,smuggling    
into ,mexico ,would ,benefit from       
,additional ,data and ,analysis4  7#c7  
,united ,states-origin firearm flows    
contribute to human rights violations1  
organized crime and gang violence1      
extrajudicial killings1 high homicide   
rates1 domestic violence1 and femicides 
in ,mexico1 ,central ,america1 and the  
,caribbean4  7#d7 ,according to the     
,executive ,secretariat of ,national    
,system for ,public ,security of        
,mexico1 during the period beginning in 
#bjab and ending in #bjba1 ,mexico      
experienced more than #afh1jjj firearms 
homicides4  7#e7 ,according to the      
,united ,nations ,regional ,centre for  

,peace1 ,disarmament and ,development in
 ,latin ,america and the ,caribbean1    
firearms are used in #gj percent of     
homicides in the ,caribbean compared to 
#cj percent globally2 the ,caribbean has
 less than one percent of the world's   
population1 but #bc percent of all      
recorded homicides4  7#f7 ,in an ,august
 #bjbb press conference1 ,u4,s4         
authorities from ,homeland ,security    
,investigations reported a marked uptick
 in the number of weapons1 and an       
increase in the caliber and type of     
weapons1 being illegally trafficked to  
,haiti and the rest of the ,caribbean4  
7#g7 ,the ,caribbean ,basin ,security   
,initiative of the ,department of ,state
 that commenced in #bjji is the regional
 ,u4,s4 foreign assistance program that 
seeks to reduce illicit trafficking in  
the region and advance public safety and
 security4 ,the program includes        
improving the capacity of ,caribbean    
countries to intercept smuggled weapons 
at airports and seaports1 as well as    

support for forensic ballistics and     
firearms destruction and stockpile      
management4 ,assistance under the       
,caribbean ,basin ,security ,initiative 
has also included support for regional  
organizations1 including-- 7,a7 the     
,caribbean ,community ,implementation   
,agency for ,crime and ,security        
7,,caricom ,,impacs71 based in ,trinidad
 and ,tobago1 the lead agency involved  
in the issue of illicit arms trafficking
 and increasing the capacity of member  
states to detect and prevent firearms   
trafficking2 and  7,b7 the ,eastern     
,caribbean's ,regional ,security        
,system1 based in ,barbados4  7#h7      
,firearms trafficking from the ,united  
,states and firearm violence are key    
drivers of immigration and asylum claims
 from ,central ,america4  7#i7 ,two     
,,gao reports 7published in #bjba and   
#bjbb1 respectively7 on firearms        
trafficking have affirmed that firearms 
trafficking to ,mexico and ,central     
,america continues to represent a       

security concern to the ,united ,states1
 as ,united ,states-origin firearms are 
diverted from legitimate owners and end 
up in the hands of violent criminals1   
including drug traffickers and other    
transnational criminal organizations4 ,a
 ,,gao report on the effect of firearms 
trafficking in the ,caribbean has not   
yet been compiled4  7#aj7 ,in these     
reports1 the ,comptroller ,general found
 that ,federal departments and agencies 
lacked information and analysis of the  
firearms trafficking networks in ,mexico
 and ,central ,america1 that few efforts
 of the ,united ,states ,government in  
the region focused on firearms          
trafficking1 and that1 as a result1 such
 agencies lack a detailed understanding 
of the firearms trafficking that fuels  
violence and enables criminals in       
,belize1 ,el ,salvador1 ,guatemala1     
,honduras1 and ,mexico4  7#aa7 ,in the  
#bjbb ,,gao report ,firearms            
,trafficking3 ,more ,information ,needed
 to ,inform ,u4,s4 ,efforts in ,central 

,america1 the ,comptroller ,general     
found that efforts of the ,united       
,states ,government focused on firearms 
trafficking in ,belize1 ,el ,salvador1  
,guatemala1 and ,honduras lacked        
information about relevant country      
conditions and performance measures to  
ensure such efforts were designed and   
implemented to achieve the intended     
objectives and1 as a result1 the        
,comptroller ,general recommended that  
the ,secretary of ,state obtain         
information about the conditions in such
 countries1 to support the development  
of effective programs to reduce the     
availability of illicit firearms4  7#ab7
 ,data on firearms trafficking is       
limited and to understand the problem1  
data compilation is crucial4  7#ac7 ,in 
#bjba and #bjbb1 the annual ,country    
,reports on ,human ,rights ,practices of
 the ,department of ,state included     
unlawful and arbitrary killings as a    
significant human rights issue in       
,guatemala1 yet despite such inclusion1 

the ,under ,secretary of ,commerce for  
,industry and ,security has authorized  
approximately #ii1bgj firearms exports  
to ,guatemala since assuming            
responsibility for firearms licensing in
 #bjbj4  7#ad7 ,when firearms were      
controlled under the ,united ,states    
,munitions ,list and the licensing of   
firearms was the responsibility of the  
,secretary of ,state1 the average number
 of firearms licensed for export to     
,guatemala was approximately #d1jjj per 
year4  7#ae7 ,the current number of     
exports specified in paragraph 7#aj7    
represents an extraordinary increase 7as
 much as #be times the average7 from the
 number specified in paragraph 7#aa71   
and the ,under ,secretary of ,commerce  
for ,industry and ,security has only    
been able to conduct a very limited     
number of end-use checks1 according to  
the #bjbb ,,gao report ,firearms        
,trafficking3 ,more ,information ,needed
 to ,inform ,u4,s4 ,efforts in ,central 
,america4  7#af7 ,the proposed security 

cooperation plan titled ,u4,s4-,mexico  
,bicentennial ,framework for ,security1 
,public ,heath1 and ,safe ,communities  
and other new initiatives to address    
root causes of migration from ,central  
,america offer an opportunity to        
reaffirm commitments and strengthen     
cooperation on addressing firearms      
trafficking4  #c4 ,reports and strategy 
on disruption of illegal export and     
trafficking of firearms to ,mexico and  
certain ,central ,american countries    
7a7 ,report ,not later than #ahj days   
after the date of the enactment of this 
,act1 the ,secretary of ,state 7in      
consultation with the ,secretary of     
,commerce1 the ,attorney ,general1 the  
,director of the ,bureau of ,alcohol1   
,tobacco1 ,firearms and ,explosives1 and
 the heads of such other ,federal       
departments or agencies as the          
,secretary of ,state may determine      
relevant7 shall submit to the           
appropriate congressional committees a  
report on the efforts of the ,secretary 

of ,state and the heads of other        
relevant ,federal departments and       
agencies to disrupt the illegal export  
or diversion of firearms from the       
,united ,states to unauthorized         
recipients in countries designated as   
covered countries under section #d      
7including through unauthorized         
third-party transfers71 and the illegal 
trafficking of firearms obtained in the 
,united ,states to such recipients4     
,such report shall include the          
following3 7#a7 ,an identification of   
any such efforts1 including efforts to  
accomplish the following objectives3    
7,a7 ,tracking and verifying information
 regarding the end-users of firearms so 
exported1 including by entering into    
data-sharing agreements with appropriate
 counterparts from the governments of   
such covered countries4  7,b7 ,ensuring 
the destruction of surplus firearms so  
exported4  7,c7 ,ensuring that firearms 
so exported are not used to commit      
extrajudicial killings or other gross   

violations of internationally recognized
 human rights4  7,d7 ,building the      
capacity of such covered countries to   
prevent the trafficking of firearms so  
exported1 including through current     
programs supported or implemented by the
 ,united ,states ,government4  7,e7     
,tracking and verifying information     
regarding the end-users of firearms     
obtained in the ,united ,states and     
illegally trafficked to such covered    
countries4  7,f7 ,combating all forms of
 cross-border smuggling of firearms from
 the ,united ,states4  7,g7 ,engaging   
with subnational government officials in
 such covered countries to effectively  
implement and enforce agreements        
relating to the trafficking of firearms 
that have been concluded between the    
,united ,states ,government and the     
national government of the respective   
covered country4  7,h7 ,identifying the 
origin of trafficked weapons1 including 
through the serial numbers of trafficked
 firearms4  7#b7 ,an assessment of the  

results of the efforts identified       
pursuant to paragraph 7#a74  7#c7 ,a    
description of how homicides1           
extrajudicial killings1 and other gross 
violations of internationally recognized
 human rights committed in such covered 
countries using firearms exported from  
or obtained in the ,united ,states have 
been investigated4  7b7 ,inter-,agency  
strategy  7#a7 ,in general ,the         
,secretary of ,commerce and the         
,secretary of ,state1 taking into       
account the findings of the report under
 subsection 7a71 shall jointly develop  
an inter-agency strategy for the        
disruption of the trafficking of        
firearms exported from the ,united      
,states to recipients in countries      
designated as covered countries under   
section #d4  7#b7 ,elements ,the        
strategy under paragraph 7#a7 shall     
include the following3 7,a7 ,a plan for 
the ,secretaries to accomplish each of  
the objectives specified in subsection  
7a77#a74  7,b7 ,an identification of    

specific performance measures1 targets  
7including the baselines for such       
targets71 and timelines with respect to 
such objectives4  7,c7 ,an estimate of  
the resources and personnel necessary to
 carry out the strategy4  7#c7 ,required
 considerations2 consultations ,in      
developing the strategy under paragraph 
7#a71 the ,secretaries shall-- 7,a7     
consider how the strategy may support or
 otherwise align with broader efforts of
 the ,secretaries relating to security  
assistance1 anti-corruption1 and the    
prevention of organized crime and drug  
and gang violence2  7,b7 consider       
whether the placement in the ,western   
,hemisphere of an export control officer
 of the ,bureau of ,industry and        
,security of the ,department of         
,commerce1 or other personnel of the    
,department of ,commerce or the         
,department of ,state1 would support the
 strategy2 and  7,c7 seek to consult    
with appropriate counterparts from the  
government of each country designated as

 a covered country under section #d4    
7#d7 ,submission to ,congress ,not later
 than ,january #a of the year following 
the date of the enactment of this ,act1 
the ,secretary of ,commerce and the     
,secretary of ,state shall jointly      
submit to the appropriate congressional 
committees the strategy under paragraph 
7#a74  7c7 ,annual report  7#a7         
,submission ,not later than one year    
after the date of the enactment of this 
,act1 and annually thereafter1 the      
,secretary of ,commerce 7in consultation
 with the ,secretary of ,state and the  
heads of such other ,federal departments
 or agencies as the ,secretary of       
,commerce may determine relevant7 shall 
submit to the appropriate congressional 
committees a report on the export of    
covered items to countries designated as
 covered countries under section #d4    
7#b7 ,matters ,each report under        
paragraph 7#a7 shall include1 with      
respect to the year for which the report
 is submitted1 the following information

 7disaggregated by country73 7,a7       
,information regarding license          
applications approved or denied1 and    
previously issued licenses modified or  
revoked1 for the export of covered items
 to proposed recipients in covered      
countries4  7,b7 ,information regarding 
how evolving country contexts1 including
 with respect to developments in human  
rights1 affected the approval of license
 applications for such exports4  7,c7   
,the number of licenses issued for the  
export of covered items to proposed     
recipients in covered countries4  7,d7  
,the number of covered items exported to
 recipients in covered countries4  7,e7 
,with respect to end-user checks for    
covered items exported to recipients in 
covered countries under section         
#ch7;g77#g7 of the ,arms ,export        
,control ,act 7#bb ,u4,s4,c4            
#bggh7;g77#g77 7commonly referred to as 
the ,blue ,lantern program71 the        
monitoring program established under the
 second section #dj;,a of the ,arms     

,export ,control ,act 7#bb ,u4,s4,c4    
#bghe7 7as added by section #aej7;a7 of 
,public ,law #ajd-afd71 or other        
applicable programs of the ,department  
of ,commerce or ,department of ,state1  
the following information3 7i7 ,the     
number of such end-user checks          
requested4  7ii7 ,the number of such    
end-user checks conducted4  7iii7 ,the  
type of such end-user checks conducted4 
7iv7 ,the results of such end-user      
checks conducted4  7,f7 ,information on 
the extent to which the heads of the    
governments of covered countries shared 
with the ,secretary of ,commerce and the
 heads of other relevant ,federal       
departments and agencies 7such as the   
,bureau of ,alcohol1 ,tobacco1 ,firearms
 and ,explosives7 data relating to the  
receipt and end-use of covered items    
exported from the ,united ,states1 and  
the type of data so shared4  7,g7 ,for  
each covered country1 a description of  
the ,u4,s4 funding and resources        
allocated for the purpose of disrupting 

trafficking of covered items4  #d4      
,designation of covered countries  7a7  
,in general ,not later than #ahj days   
after the date of the enactment of this 
,act1 the ,secretary of ,commerce shall 
designate each country that the         
,secretary determines meets the         
requirements under subsection 7b7 as a  
covered country for purposes of this    
,act4  7b7 ,requirements ,a country     
meets the requirements under this       
subsection if the country-- 7#a7 is     
located in ,north ,america1 ,south      
,america1 or the ,caribbean2  7#b7 is   
not a member state of the ,north        
,atlantic ,treaty ,organization2 and    
7#c7 meets such other requirements as   
the ,secretary of ,state may determine  
appropriate4  7c7 ,initial designations 
,the ,bahamas1 ,belize1 ,el ,salvador1  
,guatemala1 ,honduras1 ,mexico1 ,haiti1 
,jamaica1 and ,trinidad and ,tobago--   
7#a7 shall be deemed to have been so    
designated by the ,secretary of         
,commerce as of the date of the         

enactment of this ,act2 and  7#b7 shall 
continue to be deemed so designated for 
a five-year period1 during which time   
the designation may not be terminated   
under subsection 7d74  7d7 ,termination 
of designation ,subject to subsection   
7c77#b71 the ,secretary of ,commerce may
 terminate the designation of a country 
under this section only if1 at least    
#ahj days prior to such termination1 the
 ,secretary submits to the appropriate  
congressional committees a notification 
of such termination4  #e4 ,limitation on
 licenses and other authorizations for  
export of certain items removed from the
 ,united ,states ,munitions ,list and   
included on the ,commerce ,control ,list
  7a7 ,in general ,the ,secretary of    
,commerce may not grant a license or    
other authorization for the export of a 
covered item unless1 before granting the
 license or other authorization1 the    
,secretary submits to the chairman and  
ranking member of the ,committee on     
,foreign ,affairs of the ,house of      

,representatives and the chairman and   
ranking member of the ,committee on     
,foreign ,affairs of the ,senate a      
written certification with respect to   
such proposed export license or other   
authorization containing-- 7#a7 the name
 of the person applying for the license 
or other authorization2  7#b7 the name  
of the person who is the proposed       
recipient of the export2  7#c7 the name 
of the country or international         
organization to which the export will be
 made2  7#d7 a description of the items 
proposed to be exported2 and  7#e7 the  
value of the items proposed to be       
exported4  7b7 ,form ,a certification   
required under subsection 7a7 shall be  
submitted in unclassified form1 except  
that information regarding the dollar   
value and number of items proposed to be
 exported may be restricted from public 
disclosure if such disclosure would be  
detrimental to the security of the      
,united ,states4  7c7 ,deadlines ,a     
certification required under subsection 

7a7 shall be submitted-- 7#a7 at least  
#ae calendar days before a proposed     
export license or other authorization is
 granted in the case of a transfer of   
items to a country which is a member of 
the ,north ,atlantic ,treaty            
,organization or ,australia1 ,japan1 the
 ,republic of ,korea1 ,israel1 or ,new  
,zealand2 and  7#b7 at least #cj        
calendar days before a proposed export  
license or other authorization is       
granted in the case of a transfer of    
items to any other country4  7d7        
,congressional resolution of disapproval
 ,a proposed export license or other    
authorization described in paragraph    
7#a7 of subsection 7c7 shall become     
effective after the end of the #ae-;day 
period described in such paragraph1 and 
a proposed export license or other      
authorization described in paragraph    
7#b7 of subsection 7c7 shall become     
effective after the end of the #cj-;day 
period specified in such paragraph1 only
 if the ,congress does not enact1 within

 the applicable time period1 a joint    
resolution prohibiting the export of the
 covered item for which the export      
license or other authorization was      
proposed4  #f4 ,definitions ,in this    
,act3 7#a7 ,appropriate congressional   
committees ,the term appropriate        
congressional committees means-- 7,a7   
the ,committee on ,foreign ,affairs of  
the ,house of ,representatives2 and     
7,b7 the ,committee on ,foreign         
,relations and the ,committee on        
,banking1 ,housing1 and ,urban ,affairs 
of the ,senate4  7#b7 ,covered item ,the
 term covered item means any item that--
 7,a7 as of ,march #h1 #bjbj1 was       
included in ,category ,i1 ,,ii1 or ,,iii
 of the ,united ,states ,munitions      
,list2 and  7,b7 is included on the     
,commerce ,control ,list4  7#c7 ,firearm
 ,the term firearm includes-- 7,a7 any  
item that is included in ,category ,i1  
,,ii1 or ,,iii of the ,united ,states   
,munitions ,list2 and  7,b7 any covered 
item4  7#d7 ,gross violations of        

internationally recognized human rights 
,the term gross violations of           
internationally recognized human rights 
has the meaning given that term in      
section #ejb;,b7d7 of the ,foreign      
,assistance ,act of #aifa 7#bb ,u4,s4,c4
 #bcjd7;d774  7#e7 ,security assistance 
,the term security assistance includes--
 7,a7 the types of assistance specified 
in section #ejb;,b7d77#b7 of the        
,foreign ,assistance ,act of #aifa 7#bb 
,u4,s4,c4 #bcjd72 and  7,b7 assistance  
furnished under an international        
security assistance program of the      
,united ,states conducted under any     
other provision of law1 including under 
the authorities under chapter #af of    
title #aj1 ,united ,states ,code4  7#f7 
,united ,states ,munitions ,list ,the   
term ,united ,states ,munitions ,list   
means the list maintained pursuant to   
part #aba of title #bb1 ,code of        
,federal ,regulations4