Transparent and Accessible Sanctions Coordinating Office Act or the TASCO Act
This bill requires the President to ensure that all materials related to the imposition of sanctions are available in a consolidated, machine-readable database.
The bill also establishes the Transparent and Accessible Sanctions Coordinating Office (TASCO) within the executive branch. TASCO must set up a publicly available database of individuals and entities subject to U.S. sanctions. The database must include sanctions data from various federal agencies, including the Department of the Treasury, Department of Commerce, and Department of State.
[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1132 Introduced in House (IH)]
<DOC>
118th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 1132
To require publicly available information relating to sanctions to be
both user-friendly and consolidated on a publicly accessible website,
and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
February 21, 2023
Mr. Keating (for himself, Mr. Wilson of South Carolina, Mr. Cohen, and
Ms. Salazar) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the
Committee on Foreign Affairs, and in addition to the Committee on the
Judiciary, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker,
in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the
jurisdiction of the committee concerned
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To require publicly available information relating to sanctions to be
both user-friendly and consolidated on a publicly accessible website,
and for other purposes.
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 ``Transparent and Accessible Sanctions
Coordinating Office Act'' or the ``TASCO Act''.
SEC. 2. SENSE OF CONGRESS.
It is the sense of Congress as follows:
(1) The United States will increasingly use sanctions as an
important foreign policy tool in holding accountable malign
actors in the international community and to compel state and
non-state actors to conform to international norms.
(2) The increasing volume of data related to United States
sanctions will become more crucial in determining its efficacy.
(3) The data related to United States sanctions must be
centralized and regularly managed.
(4) Data from various departments and agencies must be
aggregated and updated, including travel sanctions, financial
sanctions, trade sanctions, and export controls. Although
various agencies will still maintain their jurisdiction over
implementing these various sanctions, one office must be
responsible for compiling and displaying such data in an easily
accessible format. Various systems handing such data should
interface and automatically update such data in regular and
frequent intervals.
(5) The United States will make available this critical
data related to United States sanctions to individuals,
academic institutions, media outlets, and non-governmental
organizations, conducting analysis on sanctions programs
through an online platform.
SEC. 3. ESTABLISHMENT OF TRANSPARENT AND ACCESSIBLE SANCTIONS
COORDINATING OFFICE.
(a) In General.--The President shall take such steps as may be
necessary to ensure that all materials relating to the imposition of
sanctions, including guidance, lists of sanctioned persons, and
procedures relating to general and specific licenses, are made
available in a consolidated, machine-readable database.
(b) Establishment.--There is established in the executive branch of
the Federal Government the Transparent and Accessible Sanctions
Coordinating Office (``TASCO''), which shall be responsible for
carrying out the duties described in subsection (d).
(c) Director and Staff.--
(1) Appointment.--The head of the TASCO shall be a Director
appointed by the Secretary of State. The position of Director
shall be a career position in the civil service.
(2) Staff.--The Director of the TASCO may appoint personnel
as the Director considers appropriate.
(3) Applicability of certain civil service laws.--The
Director and the staff of the TASCO shall be appointed subject
to the provisions of title 5, United States Code, governing
appointments made in the competitive service, and shall be paid
in accordance with the provisions of chapter 51 and subchapter
III of chapter 53 of that title relating to classification and
General Schedule Pay rates.
(d) Duties.--
(1) Database.--
(A) In general.--Not later than 180 days after the
enactment of this Act, the Director of the TASCO shall
establish a publicly available, downloadable,
searchable, sortable, and machine-readable database of
individuals and entities subject to United States
sanctions. Such database shall be published on a
publicly available website of the TASCO.
(B) Standardized format.--In developing the
database under subparagraph (A), the Director of the
TASCO, in consultation with each covered Federal actor,
shall establish a standardized format for the
compilation, storage, and display of all data included
in such database.
(C) Required consolidation of sanctions lists.--The
database under subparagraph (A) shall include the
following--
(i) The List of Specially Designated
Nationals and Blocked Persons maintained by the
Office of Foreign Asset Control of the
Department of the Treasury.
(ii) The Entity List maintained by the
Bureau of Industry and Security of the
Department of Commerce.
(iii) Individuals or entities subject to
sanctions maintained and enforced by the Office
of Economic Sanctions Policy and Implementation
of the Department of State.
(iv) Any other individual or entity subject
to sanctions imposed under United States law,
including sanctions relating to ineligibility
for visas or other authorization to enter the
United States.
(D) Minimum data attribute requirements.--The
Director of the TASCO shall ensure that the data for
each sanction included in the database under
subparagraph (A) includes, at a minimum, the following:
(i) The name, and any alias, of the
sanctioned individual or entity (including an
aircraft or vessel).
(ii) The country of origin or citizenship
of such individual or entity.
(iii) The industry type, if applicable.
(iv) The position of the individual in
their organization, if applicable.
(v) The reason for sanction, including but
not limited to the criminal violation or malign
act.
(vi) The date of sanction.
(vii) The region of sanction and if
available, address of registration.
(viii) If available, any unique tax
identification number.
(ix) The type of sanctions, including but
not limited to travel, financial, and/or trade.
(x) Harmonized System code, if applicable.
(xi) Any other data attribute relevant to
the notification and reporting of sanctions
activities.
(E) Maintenance of currency of database and
website.--Beginning not later than 90 days after the
date of the establishment of the database under
subparagraph (A), and not later than 30 days after the
entry into force of any new statutory authority or
Executive order relating to new or additional
sanctions, the Director of the TASCO shall update the
database, and the website on which the database is
published.
(F) Coordination.--In carrying out this paragraph,
the Director of the TASCO shall coordinate, as
appropriate, with covered Federal actors.
(2) Report to congress.--Not later than one year after the
date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State,
acting through the Director of the TASCO and in consultation
with each covered Federal actor, shall submit to the
appropriate congressional committees a report on the
transparency and accessibility of the database under
subparagraph (A) and the website on which the database is
published. Such report shall identify the following:
(A) The number of individual users who have
accessed the database through the website.
(B) Any technical actions that have been taken to
ensure the accessibility and transparency of data
available on the database.
(C) Any stakeholder engagement that has been
conducted to ensure that all relevant parties,
including those with decision-making authority, members
of the business community, and other members of civil
society, may effectively access such data.
(e) Definitions.--In this section:
(1) Appropriate congressional committees.--The term
``appropriate congressional committees'' means--
(A) the Committee on Foreign Affairs and the
Committee on Financial Services of the House of
Representatives; and
(B) the Committee on Foreign Relations and the
Committee on Finance of the Senate.
(2) Civil service.--The term ``civil service'' has the
meaning given that term in section 2101 of title 5, United
States Code.
(3) Covered federal actor.--The term ``covered Federal
actor'' means the following:
(A) The Secretary of State.
(B) The Secretary of the Treasury.
(C) The Secretary of Commerce.
(D) The head of any other Federal department or
agency relevant to the imposition or enforcement of
United States sanctions.
<all>
Introduced in House
Introduced in House
Referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs, and in addition to the Committee on the Judiciary, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
Referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs, and in addition to the Committee on the Judiciary, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned.
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