,,ii ,calendar ,no4 #hh #aagth          
,,congress  #ast ,session  ,s4 #ad  ,,in
 ,,the ,,senate ,,of ,,the ,,united     
,,states  ,january #bb1 #bjba,mr4       
,cardin 7for himself1 ,mr4 ,young1 ,mr4 
,merkley1 ,mr4 ,durbin1 ,mr4 ,wyden1    
,mr4 ,coons1 ,mr4 ,whitehouse1 ,ms4     
,sinema1 and ,ms4 ,collins7 introduced  
the following bill2 which was read twice
 and referred to the ,committee on      
,foreign ,relations  ,june #bd1         
#bjba,reported by ,mr4 ,menendez1 with  
an amendment,strike out all after the   
enacting clause and insert the part     
printed in italic  ,a ,,bill  ,to       
identify and combat corruption in       
countries1 to establish a tiered system 
of countries with respect to levels of  
corruption by their governments and     
their efforts to combat such corruption1
 and to evaluate foreign persons engaged
 in grand corruption for inclusion as   
specially designated nationals under the
 ,global ,magnitsky ,human ,rights      
,accountability ,act4  #a4 ,short title 

,this ,act may be cited as the          
,combating ,global ,corruption ,act of  
#bjba4  #b4 ,definitions ,in this ,act3 
7#a7 ,appropriate congressional         
committees ,the term appropriate        
congressional committees means-- 7,a7   
the ,committee on ,foreign ,relations of
 the ,senate2  7,b7 the ,committee on   
,armed ,services of the ,senate2  7,c7  
the ,committee on ,appropriations of the
 ,senate2  7,d7 the ,committee on       
,foreign ,affairs of the ,house of      
,representatives2  7,e7 the ,committee  
on ,armed ,services of the ,house of    
,representatives2 and  7,f7 the         
,committee on ,appropriations of the    
,house of ,representatives4  7#b7       
,corrupt actor ,the term corrupt actor  
means-- 7,a7 any foreign person or      
entity that is a government official or 
government entity responsible for1 or   
complicit in1 an act of corruption2 and 
7,b7 any company1 in which a person or  
entity described in subparagraph 7,a7   
has a significant stake1 which is       

responsible for1 or complicit in1 an act
 of corruption4  7#c7 ,corruption ,the  
term corruption means the exercise of   
public power for private gain1 including
 by bribery1 nepotism1 fraud1 or        
embezzlement4  7#d7 ,grand corruption   
,the term grand corruption means        
corruption committed at a high level of 
government that-- 7,a7 distorts policies
 or the central functioning of the      
country2 and  7,b7 enables leaders to   
benefit at the expense of the public    
good4  7#e7 ,petty corruption ,the term 
petty corruption means the abuse of     
entrusted power by low- or mid-level    
public officials in their interactions  
with ordinary citizens4  #c4            
,publication of tiered ranking list  7a7
 ,in general ,the ,secretary of ,state  
shall annually publish1 on a publicly   
accessible website1 a tiered ranking of 
all foreign countries4  7b7 ,tier #a    
countries ,a country shall be ranked as 
a tier #a country in the ranking        
published under subsection 7a7 if the   

government of such country is complying 
with the minimum standards set forth in 
section #d4  7c7 ,tier #b countries ,a  
country shall be ranked as a tier #b    
country in the ranking published under  
subsection 7a7 if the government of such
 country is making efforts to comply    
with the minimum standards set forth in 
section #d1 but is not achieving the    
requisite level of compliance to be     
ranked as a tier #a country4  7d7 ,tier 
#c countries ,a country shall be ranked 
as a tier #c country in the ranking     
published under subsection 7a7 if the   
government of such country is making de 
minimis or no efforts to comply with the
 minimum standards set forth in section 
#d4  #d4 ,minimum standards for the     
elimination of corruption and assessment
 of efforts to combat corruption  7a7   
,in general ,the government of a country
 is complying with the minimum standards
 for the elimination of corruption if   
the government-- 7#a7 has enacted laws  
and established government structures1  

policies1 and practices that prohibit   
corruption1 including grand corruption  
and petty corruption2  7#b7 enforces the
 laws described in paragraph 7#a7 by    
punishing any person who is found1      
through a fair judicial process1 to have
 violated such laws2  7#c7 prescribes   
punishment for grand corruption that is 
commensurate with the punishment        
prescribed for serious crimes2  7#d7    
prescribes punishment for petty         
corruption that-- 7,a7 provides a       
sufficiently stringent deterrent2 and   
7,b7 adequately reflects the nature of  
the offense2 and  7#e7 is making serious
 and sustained efforts to eliminate     
corruption4  7b7 ,factors for assessing 
government efforts ,to combat corruption
 ,in determining whether a government is
 making serious and sustained efforts to
 eliminate corruption1 the ,secretary of
 ,state shall consider-- 7#a7 whether   
the government of the country vigorously
 investigates and prosecutes acts of    
corruption and convicts and sentences   

persons responsible for such acts that  
take place wholly or partly within such 
country1 including1 as appropriate1     
requiring incarceration of individuals  
convicted of such acts2  7#b7 whether   
the government of the country vigorously
 investigates1 prosecutes1 convicts1 and
 sentences public officials who         
participate in or facilitate corruption1
 including nationals of the country who 
are deployed in foreign military        
assignments1 trade delegations abroad1  
or other similar missions1 who engage in
 or facilitate severe forms of          
corruption2  7#c7 whether the government
 of the country has adopted measures to 
prevent corruption1 such as measures to 
inform and educate the public1 including
 potential victims1 about the causes and
 consequences of corruption2  7#d7 what 
steps the government of the country has 
taken to prohibit government officials  
from participating in1 facilitating1 or 
condoning corruption1 including the     
investigation1 prosecution1 and         

conviction of such officials2  7#e7 the 
extent to which the country provides    
access1 or1 as appropriate1 makes       
adequate resources available1 to civil  
society organizations and other         
institutions to combat corruption1      
including reporting1 investigating1 and 
monitoring2  7#f7 whether an independent
 judiciary or judicial body in the      
country responsible for1 and effectively
 capable of1 deciding corruption cases  
impartially1 on the basis of facts and  
in accordance with the law1 without any 
restrictions1 improper influences1      
inducements1 pressures1 threats1 or     
interferences 7direct or indirect7 from 
any quarter or for any reason2  7#g7    
whether the government of the country is
 assisting in international             
investigations of transnational         
corruption networks and in other        
cooperative efforts to combat grand     
corruption1 including cooperating with  
the governments of other countries to   
extradite corrupt actors2  7#h7 whether 

the government of the country recognizes
 the rights of victims of corruption1   
ensures their access to justice1 and    
takes steps to prevent victims from     
being further victimized or persecuted  
by corrupt actors1 government officials1
 or others2  7#i7 whether the government
 of the country refrains from           
prosecuting victims of corruption or    
whistleblowers due to such persons      
having assisted in exposing corruption1 
and refrains from other discriminatory  
treatment of such persons2 and  7#aj7   
such other information relating to      
corruption as the ,secretary of ,state  
considers appropriate4  #e4 ,imposition 
of sanctions under ,global ,magnitsky   
,human ,rights ,accountability ,act  7a7
 ,in general ,the ,secretary of ,state1 
in coordination with the ,secretary of  
the ,treasury1 shall evaluate foreign   
persons engaged in grand corruption in  
all countries identified as tier #c     
countries under section #c for the      
imposition of sanctions under the       

,global ,magnitsky ,human ,rights       
,accountability ,act 7subtitle ,f of    
title ,,xii of ,public ,law #aad-cbh2   
#bb ,u4,s4,c4 #bfef note74  7b7 ,report 
required ,not later than #fj days after 
publishing the list required by section 
#c7;a71 the ,secretary of ,state shall  
submit to the committees specified in   
subsection 7e7 a report that includes-- 
7#a7 a list of foreign persons evaluated
 under subsection 7a72  7#b7 a list of  
foreign persons with respect to which   
the ,president imposed sanctions        
pursuant to that evaluation2  7#c7 the  
dates on which such sanctions were      
imposed2 and  7#d7 the reasons for      
imposing such sanctions4  7c7 ,form of  
report  7#a7 ,in general ,each report   
required by subsection 7b7 shall be     
submitted in unclassified form but may  
include a classified annex4  7#b7       
,exception ,the name of a foreign person
 to be included in the list required by 
subsection 7b77#a7 may be submitted in  
the classified annex authorized by      

paragraph 7#a7 only if the ,president-- 
7,a7 determines that it is vital for the
 national security interests of the     
,united ,states to do so2  7,b7 uses the
 annex in a manner consistent with      
congressional intent and the purposes of
 this ,act2 and  7,c7 not later than #ae
 days before submitting the name in the 
classified annex1 provides to the       
committees specified in subsection 7e7  
notice of1 and a justification for1     
including the name in the classified    
annex despite any publicly available    
credible information indicating that the
 person engaged in an activity that     
would subject the person to the         
imposition of sanctions under the       
,global ,magnitsky ,human ,rights       
,accountability ,act4  7d7 ,public      
availability of report  7#a7 ,in general
 ,the unclassified portion of the report
 required by subsection 7b7 shall be    
made available to the public1 including 
through publication in the ,federal     
,register4  7#b7 ,nonapplicability of   

confidentiality requirement with respect
 to visa records ,the ,president shall  
publish the list required by subsection 
7b77#a7 without regard to the           
requirements of section #bbb7;f7 of the 
,immigration and ,nationality ,act 7#h  
,u4,s4,c4 #abjb7;f77 with respect to    
confidentiality of records pertaining to
 the issuance or refusal of visas or    
permits to enter the ,united ,states4   
7e7 ,committees specified ,the          
committees specified in this subsection 
are-- 7#a7 the ,committee on            
,appropriations1 the ,committee on      
,banking1 ,housing1 and ,urban ,affairs1
 the ,committee on ,foreign ,relations1 
and the ,committee on the ,judiciary of 
the ,senate2 and  7#b7 the ,committee on
 ,appropriations1 the ,committee on     
,financial ,services1 the ,committee on 
,foreign ,affairs1 and the ,committee on
 the ,judiciary of the ,house of        
,representatives4  #f4 ,designation of  
embassy anti-corruption points of       
contact  7a7 ,in general ,the ,secretary

 of ,state shall annually designate an  
anti-corruption point of contact at the 
,united ,states diplomatic post to each 
country identified as tier #b or tier #c
 under section #c1 or which the         
,secretary otherwise determines is in   
need of such a point of contact4 ,the   
point of contact shall be the chief of  
mission or the chief of mission's       
designee4  7b7 ,responsibilities ,each  
anti-corruption point of contact        
designated under subsection 7a7 shall be
 responsible for coordinating and       
overseeing the implementation of a      
whole-of-government approach among the  
relevant ,federal departments and       
agencies operating programs that-- 7#a7 
promote good governance in foreign      
countries2 and  7#b7 enhance the ability
 of such countries-- 7,a7 to combat     
public corruption2 and  7,b7 to develop 
and implement corruption risk assessment
 tools and mitigation strategies4  7c7  
,training ,the ,secretary of ,state     
shall implement appropriate training for

 anti-corruption points of contact      
designated under subsection 7a74  #a4   
,short title ,this ,act may be cited as 
the ,combating ,global ,corruption ,act 
of #bjba4  #b4 ,definitions ,in this    
,act3 7#a7 ,corrupt actor ,the term     
corrupt actor means-- 7,a7 any foreign  
person or entity that is a government   
official or government entity           
responsible for1 or complicit in1 an act
 of corruption2 and  7,b7 any company1  
in which a person or entity described in
 subparagraph 7,a7 has a significant    
stake1 which is responsible for1 or     
complicit in1 an act of corruption4     
7#b7 ,corruption ,the term corruption   
means the unlawful exercise of entrusted
 public power for private gain1         
including by bribery1 nepotism1 fraud1  
or embezzlement4  7#c7 ,significant     
corruption ,the term significant        
corruption means corruption committed at
 a high level of government that has    
some or all of the following            
characteristics3 7,a7 ,illegitimately   

distorts major decision-making1 such as 
policy or resource determinations1 or   
other fundamental functions of          
governance4  7,b7 ,involves economically
 or socially large-scale government     
activities4  #c4 ,publication of tiered 
ranking list  7a7 ,in general ,the      
,secretary of ,state shall annually     
publish1 on a publicly accessible       
website1 a tiered ranking of all foreign
 countries4  7b7 ,tier #a countries ,a  
country shall be ranked as a tier #a    
country in the ranking published under  
subsection 7a7 if the government of such
 country is complying with the minimum  
standards set forth in section #d4  7c7 
,tier #b countries ,a country shall be  
ranked as a tier #b country in the      
ranking published under subsection 7a7  
if the government of such country is    
making efforts to comply with the       
minimum standards set forth in section  
#d1 but is not achieving the requisite  
level of compliance to be ranked as a   
tier #a country4  7d7 ,tier #c countries

 ,a country shall be ranked as a tier #c
 country in the ranking published under 
subsection 7a7 if the government of such
 country is making de minimis or no     
efforts to comply with the minimum      
standards set forth in section #d4  #d4 
,minimum standards for the elimination  
of corruption and assessment of efforts 
to combat corruption  7a7 ,in general   
,the government of a country is         
complying with the minimum standards for
 the elimination of corruption if the   
government-- 7#a7 has enacted and       
implemented laws and established        
government structures1 policies1 and    
practices that prohibit corruption1     
including significant corruption2  7#b7 
enforces the laws described in paragraph
 7#a7 by punishing any person who is    
found1 through a fair judicial process1 
to have violated such laws2  7#c7       
prescribes punishment for significant   
corruption that is commensurate with the
 punishment prescribed for serious      
crimes2 and  7#d7 is making serious and 

sustained efforts to address corruption1
 including through prevention4  7b7     
,factors for assessing government       
efforts ,to combat corruption ,in       
determining whether a government is     
making serious and sustained efforts to 
address corruption1 the ,secretary of   
,state shall consider1 to the extent    
relevant or appropriate1 factors such   
as-- 7#a7 whether the government of the 
country has criminalized corruption1    
investigates and prosecutes acts of     
corruption1 and convicts and sentences  
persons responsible for such acts over  
which it has jurisdiction1 including1 as
 appropriate1 incarcerating individuals 
convicted of such acts2  7#b7 whether   
the government of the country vigorously
 investigates1 prosecutes1 convicts1 and
 sentences public officials who         
participate in or facilitate corruption1
 including nationals of the country who 
are deployed in foreign military        
assignments1 trade delegations abroad1  
or other similar missions1 who engage in

 or facilitate significant corruption2  
7#c7 whether the government of the      
country has adopted measures to prevent 
corruption1 such as measures to inform  
and educate the public1 including       
potential victims1 about the causes and 
consequences of corruption2  7#d7 what  
steps the government of the country has 
taken to prohibit government officials  
from participating in1 facilitating1 or 
condoning corruption1 including the     
investigation1 prosecution1 and         
conviction of such officials2  7#e7 the 
extent to which the country provides    
access1 or1 as appropriate1 makes       
adequate resources available1 to civil  
society organizations and other         
institutions to combat corruption1      
including reporting1 investigating1 and 
monitoring2  7#f7 whether an independent
 judiciary or judicial body in the      
country is responsible for1 and         
effectively capable of1 deciding        
corruption cases impartially1 on the    
basis of facts and in accordance with   

the law1 without any improper           
restrictions1 influences1 inducements1  
pressures1 threats1 or interferences    
7direct or indirect72  7#g7 whether the 
government of the country is assisting  
in international investigations of      
transnational corruption networks and in
 other cooperative efforts to combat    
significant corruption1 including1 as   
appropriate1 cooperating with the       
governments of other countries to       
extradite corrupt actors2  7#h7 whether 
the government of the country recognizes
 the rights of victims of corruption1   
ensures their access to justice1 and    
takes steps to prevent victims from     
being further victimized or persecuted  
by corrupt actors1 government officials1
 or others2  7#i7 whether the government
 of the country protects victims of     
corruption or whistleblowers from       
reprisal due to such persons having     
assisted in exposing corruption1 and    
refrains from other discriminatory      
treatment of such persons2  7#aj7       

whether the government of the country is
 willing and able to recover and1 as    
appropriate1 return the proceeds of     
corruption2  7#aa7 whether the          
government of the country is taking     
steps to implement financial            
transparency measures in line with the  
,financial ,action ,task ,force         
recommendations1 including due diligence
 and beneficial ownership transparency  
requirements2  7#ab7 whether the        
government of the country is            
facilitating corruption in other        
countries in connection with            
state-directed investment1 loans or     
grants for major infrastructure1 or     
other initiatives2 and  7#ac7 such other
 information relating to corruption as  
the ,secretary of ,state considers      
appropriate4  7c7 ,assessing government 
efforts to combat corruption in relation
 to relevant international commitments  
,in determining whether a government is 
making serious and sustained efforts to 
address corruption1 the ,secretary of   

,state shall consider the government of 
a country's compliance with the         
following1 as relevant3 7#a7 ,the       
,inter-,american ,convention against    
,corruption of the ,organization of     
,american ,states1 done at ,caracas     
,march #bi1 #aiif4  7#b7 ,the           
,convention on ,combating ,bribery of   
,foreign ,public ,officials in          
,international ,business ,transactions  
of the ,organisation of ,economic       
,co-operation and ,development1 done at 
,paris ,december #ba1 #aiig 7commonly   
referred to as the ,anti-,bribery       
,convention74  7#c7 ,the ,united        
,nations ,convention against            
,transnational ,organized ,crime1 done  
at ,new ,york ,november #ae1 #bjjj4     
7#d7 ,the ,united ,nations ,convention  
against ,corruption1 done at ,new ,york 
,october #ca1 #bjjc4  7#e7 ,such other  
treaties1 agreements1 and international 
standards as the ,secretary of ,state   
considers appropriate4  #e4 ,imposition 
of sanctions under ,global ,magnitsky   

,human ,rights ,accountability ,act  7a7
 ,in general ,the ,secretary of ,state1 
in coordination with the ,secretary of  
the ,treasury1 should evaluate whether  
there are foreign persons engaged in    
significant corruption for the purposes 
of potential imposition of sanctions    
under the ,global ,magnitsky ,human     
,rights ,accountability ,act 7subtitle  
,f of title ,,xii of ,public ,law       
#aad-cbh2 #bb ,u4,s4,c4 #bfef note7--   
7#a7 in all countries identified as tier
 #c countries under section #c2 or  7#b7
 in relation to the planning or         
construction or any operation of the    
,nord ,stream #b pipeline4  7b7 ,report 
required ,not later than #ahj days after
 publishing the list required by section
 #c7;a7 and annually thereafter1 the    
,secretary of ,state shall submit to the
 committees specified in subsection 7f7 
a report that includes-- 7#a7 a list of 
foreign persons with respect to which   
the ,president imposed sanctions        
pursuant to the evaluation under        

subsection 7a72  7#b7 the dates on which
 such sanctions were imposed2  7#c7 the 
reasons for imposing such sanctions2 and
  7#d7 a list of all foreign persons    
found to have been engaged in           
significant corruption in relation to   
the planning1 construction1 or operation
 of the ,nord ,stream #b pipeline4  7c7 
,form of report ,each report required by
 subsection 7b7 shall be submitted in   
unclassified form but may include a     
classified annex4  7d7 ,briefing in lieu
 of report ,the ,secretary of ,state1 in
 coordination with the ,secretary of the
 ,treasury1 may 7except with respect to 
the list required by subsection 7b77#d77
 provide a briefing to the committees   
specified in subsection 7f7 instead of  
submitting a written report required    
under subsection 7b71 if doing so would 
better serve existing ,united ,states   
anti-corruption efforts or the national 
interests of the ,untied ,states4  7e7  
,termination of requirements relating to
 ,nord ,stream #b ,the requirements     

under subsections 7a77#b7 and 7b77#d7   
shall terminate on the date that is #e  
years after the date of the enactment of
 this ,act4  7f7 ,committees specified  
,the committees specified in this       
subsection are-- 7#a7 the ,committee on 
,foreign ,relations1 the ,committee on  
,appropriations1 the ,committee on      
,banking1 ,housing1 and ,urban ,affairs1
 and the ,committee on the ,judiciary of
 the ,senate2 and  7#b7 the ,committee  
on ,foreign ,affairs1 the ,committee on 
,appropriations1 the ,committee on      
,financial ,services1 and the ,committee
 on the ,judiciary of the ,house of     
,representatives4  #f4 ,designation of  
embassy anti-corruption points of       
contact  7a7 ,in general ,the ,secretary
 of ,state shall annually designate an  
anti-corruption point of contact at the 
,united ,states diplomatic post to each 
country identified as tier #b or tier #c
 under section #c1 or which the         
,secretary otherwise determines is in   
need of such a point of contact4 ,the   

point of contact shall be the chief of  
mission or the chief of mission's       
designee4  7b7 ,responsibilities ,each  
anti-corruption point of contact        
designated under subsection 7a7 shall be
 responsible for enhancing coordination 
and promoting the implementation of a   
whole-of-government approach among the  
relevant ,federal departments and       
agencies undertaking efforts to-- 7#a7  
promote good governance in foreign      
countries2 and  7#b7 enhance the ability
 of such countries-- 7,a7 to combat     
public corruption2 and  7,b7 to develop 
and implement corruption risk assessment
 tools and mitigation strategies4  7c7  
,training ,the ,secretary of ,state     
shall implement appropriate training for
 anti-corruption points of contact      
designated under subsection 7a74  ,june 
#bd1 #bjba,reported with an amendment