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What is House Bill H.R. 757?

This bill would direct the President to investigate "sanctionable activities" related to North Korea any time the U.S. government receives credible intelligence. The bill lays out a comprehensive list of sanctionable offenses that can apply to any person, business entity, government entity, or nongovernment entity that deals with North Korea.

The bill includes a laundry list of other measures designed to economically cripple North Korea’s government, from mandating the seizure of property used to facilitate sanctionable activity to officially identifying North Korea as a major source of money laundering.

Activities that can be punished with sanctions under this bill include:

Helping North Korea get nuclear, radiological, chemical or biological weapons and weapon systems;
Helping North Korea export or import defense equipment and services;
Exporting luxury goods to North Korea;
Assisting North Korea in procuring, buying, leasing, registering or reflagging any type of transportation vehicle used to import or export goods that facilitate unlawful activities;
Engaging in any kind of property transaction with the government of North Korea that would facilitate unlawful activity or evade other regulations;
Committing or helping North Korea commit human rights abuse.

Impact

North Korea; it's leaders and citizens; and any individual government, financial institution, non-government organization, or political entity that has economic or political ties with North Korea.

Cost of House Bill H.R. 757

$10.00 Million

The CBO estimates that the Department of State and the Department of the Treasury would have to hire 10 additional employees to implement this bill. It also estimates that additional appropriations of about $2 million would be required each year between 2015-2019.

More Information

In Depth: In this bill, sanctions cover virtually any entity that has helped North Korea financially or militarily. Specifically, sanctions apply to any entity that has:

Been sanctioned by the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA), the UN Security Council, or through executive orders for illegally helping North Korea proliferate weapons of mass destruction;
Been convicted of committing sanctionable activities;
Engaged in sanctionable activities involving North Korea or failed to freeze economic assets in North Korea;
Allowed new branches of North Korean financial institutions or transfer of bulk cash to and from North Korea to start;
Financially supported trade with North Korea or facilitated bribery of North Korean officials.

Through the IEEPA, the President can exercise IEEPA authorities against the government of North Korea and any foreign entity that has violated the provisions included in the Act.

The President can waive specific designations and sanctions for up to a year as long as Congress determines that the waiver will protect vital U.S. interests or serve a humanitarian purpose.

Lastly, the bill strips North Korea of its immunity as a foreign state, which means plaintiffs can seek damages against North Korea regardless of its status as a state sponsor of terrorism.

Of Note: Recent sanctions on North Korean leader Kim Jong-un for human rights abuses have caused the country to threaten to sever its ties with the U.S. The North Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) stated on July 10 this year:

“Because the U.S. did not accept our demand that the sanctions be retracted, we are taking concrete actions one by one, the first of which is to completely cut off the New York channel of communication, the only official point of contact that existed between the two sides.”

North Korea, already under sanctions for nuclear and ballistic missile tests, has called recent sanctions on Kim Jong-un an “open declaration of war.”

Media:

Summary by Meera Santhanam and Eli Wolfe

(Photo Credit: Flickr user petersnoopy)

AKA

North Korea Sanctions and Policy Enhancement Act of 2016

Official Title

To improve the enforcement of sanctions against the Government of North Korea, and for other purposes.

bill Progress

EnactedFebruary 18th, 2016
The President signed this bill into law
The senate Passed February 10th, 2016
Roll Call Vote 96 Yea / 0 Nay
The house Passed February 12th, 2016
Roll Call Vote 408 Yea / 2 Nay
IntroducedFebruary 5th, 2015