[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 6618 Introduced in House (IH)]
<DOC>
118th CONGRESS
1st Session
H. R. 6618
To require the transfer of regulatory control of certain munitions
exports from the Department of Commerce to the Department of State, and
for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
December 6, 2023
Mr. Castro of Texas (for himself, Mrs. Torres of California, Mr.
Goldman of New York, Mrs. Cherfilus-McCormick, Mr. Grijalva, Ms.
Velazquez, Mr. McGovern, Mr. Connolly, Ms. Wasserman Schultz, Ms.
Titus, Mr. Vargas, Mr. Espaillat, Mr. Garcia of Illinois, Ms. Omar, Ms.
Jacobs, Ms. Kamlager-Dove, and Mr. Magaziner) introduced the following
bill; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To require the transfer of regulatory control of certain munitions
exports from the Department of Commerce to the Department of State, 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 ``Americas Regional Monitoring of Arms
Sales Act of 2023'' or the ``ARMAS Act of 2023''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress finds the following:
(1) Violence in Mexico, Central America, and the Caribbean
is exacerbated by firearms originating in the United States.
(2) While firearms are trafficked to Mexico from a variety
of countries, firearms originating in the United States account
for 70 percent of the firearms recovered and traced from crimes
in Mexico, according to the 2021 Government Accountability
Office (GAO) report published by the Comptroller General of the
United States titled ``Firearms Trafficking: U.S. Efforts to
Disrupt Gun Smuggling into Mexico Would Benefit from Additional
Data and Analysis''.
(3) United States-origin firearm flows contribute to human
rights violations, organized crime and gang violence,
extrajudicial killings, high homicide rates, domestic violence,
and femicides in Mexico, Central America, and the Caribbean.
(4) Firearms trafficking from the United States and firearm
violence are key drivers of immigration and asylum claims from
Central America.
(5) According to the United Nations Regional Centre for
Peace, Disarmament and Development in Latin America and the
Caribbean, firearms are used in 70 percent of homicides in the
Caribbean compared to 30 percent globally, and while the
Caribbean constitutes less than one percent of the global
population, it is responsible for 23 percent of all recorded
homicides.
(6) In an August 2022 press conference, United States
officials of Homeland Security Investigations reported a
``marked uptick in the number of weapons'', and an increase in
the caliber and type of weapons, being illegally trafficked to
Haiti and the rest of the Caribbean.
(7) The Caribbean Basin Security Initiative of the
Department of State that commenced in 2009 is the regional
foreign assistance program of the United States that seeks to
reduce illicit trafficking in the Caribbean region and advance
public safety and security. The program includes improving the
capacity of Caribbean countries to intercept smuggled weapons
at airports and seaports, as well as support for forensic
ballistics and firearms destruction and stockpile management.
Assistance under the Caribbean Basin Security Initiative has
also included support for regional organizations, including--
(A) the Caribbean Community Implementation Agency
for Crime and Security (CARICOM IMPACS), based in
Trinidad and Tobago, the lead agency involved in the
issue of illicit firearms trafficking and increasing
the capacity of member states to detect and prevent
firearms trafficking; and
(B) the Eastern Caribbean's Regional Security
System, based in Barbados.
(8) Two GAO reports (published in 2021 and 2022,
respectively) on firearms trafficking have affirmed that
firearms trafficking to Mexico and Central America continues to
represent a security concern to the United States, as United
States-origin firearms are diverted from legitimate owners and
end up in the hands of violent criminals, including drug
traffickers and other transnational criminal organizations. A
GAO report on the effect of firearms trafficking in the
Caribbean has not yet been compiled.
(9) In these reports, the Comptroller General found that
Federal departments and agencies lacked information and
analysis of the firearms trafficking networks in Mexico and
Central America, that few efforts of the United States
Government in the region focused on firearms trafficking, and
that, as a result, such agencies lack a detailed understanding
of the firearms trafficking that fuels violence and enables
criminals in Belize, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and
Mexico.
(10) Firearms used to kidnap and kill a group of United
States citizens traveling in Matamoros, Mexico were illegally
smuggled from the United States into Mexico. The suspect in
these killings admitted to federal agents that he purchased
firearms in the United States, smuggled them across the border,
and knowingly provided them to members of the Gulf Cartel.
(11) As the incident specified in paragraph (11)
demonstrates, United States-sourced firearms are being smuggled
and diverted to cartels implicated in the supply and flow of
illegal fentanyl and other dangerous drugs, threatening the
public health and safety of United States citizens.
(12) In the 2022 GAO report ``Firearms Trafficking: More
Information Needed to Inform U.S. Efforts in Central America'',
the Comptroller General found that efforts of the United States
Government focused on firearms trafficking in Belize, El
Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras lacked information about
relevant country conditions and performance measures to ensure
such efforts were designed and implemented to achieve the
intended objectives and, as a result, the Comptroller General
recommended that the Secretary of State obtain information
about the conditions in such countries, to support the
development of effective programs to reduce the availability of
illicit firearms.
(13) Data on firearms trafficking is limited and to
understand the problem, data compilation is crucial.
(14) As of the date of the publication of the report
specified in paragraph (12), the Secretary of Commerce had not
assigned any agents to Central America on permanent assignment.
(15) In 2021 and 2022, 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
Guatemala, yet despite such inclusion, the Under Secretary of
Commerce for Industry and Security has authorized approximately
99,270 firearms exports to Guatemala since assuming
responsibility for firearms licensing in 2020.
(16) When firearms were controlled under the United States
Munitions List and the licensing of firearms was the
responsibility of the Secretary of State, the average number of
firearms licensed for export to Guatemala was approximately
4,000 per year.
(17) The current number of exports specified in paragraph
(15) represents an extraordinary increase (as much as 25 times
the average) from the number specified in paragraph (16), and
the Under Secretary of Commerce for Industry and Security has
only been able to conduct a very limited number of end-use
checks, according to the 2022 GAO report ``Firearms
Trafficking: More Information Needed to Inform U.S. Efforts in
Central America''.
(18) Since the Department of Commerce gained jurisdiction
over the control of firearm export licensing, there has been a
30 percent increase in firearm exports in comparison to
averages for such exports when the control of such exports was
under the jurisdiction of the Department of State. The
Secretary of Commerce has also approved 95 percent of license
applications for such exports.
(19) According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Mexico,
Guatemala, and Brazil have been among the top 10 destinations
for United States-manufactured semiautomatic firearm exports.
(20) The proposed security cooperation plan titled ``U.S.-
Mexico Bicentennial Framework for Security, Public Heath, and
Safe Communities'' and other new initiatives to address root
causes of migration from Central America offers an opportunity
to reaffirm commitments and strengthen cooperation on
addressing firearms trafficking.
(21) Recent high-level conversations between the United
States and Mexico, including on the bicentennial framework
specified in paragraph (18), have identified opportunities of
cooperation on anti-firearm trafficking efforts between the
Attorney General, the Secretary of State, the Director of the
Executive Office for United States Attorneys, and the Director
of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
(22) The Bipartisan Safer Communities Act (Public Law 117-
159), which was enacted into law on June 25, 2022, implemented
key efforts to address firearm trafficking, including by
establishing a Federal criminal offense for firearm trafficking
and by strengthening the capability of the Bureau of Alcohol,
Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives to interdict firearms.
(23) A growing number of firearms exported by United States
manufacturers are found involved in violent crimes worldwide.
For instance, the pistol used in a mass shooting of 23 children
and two teachers in Thailand in October 2022 was linked to a
United States factory.
SEC. 3. TRANSFER OF REGULATORY CONTROL OF CERTAIN MUNITIONS EXPORTS
FROM DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE TO DEPARTMENT OF STATE.
(a) Transfer.--Not later than 1 year after the date of the
enactment of this Act--
(1) the Secretary of Commerce shall transfer the control
over the export of each previously covered item to the
jurisdiction of the Department of State; and
(2) following such transfer, the Secretary of State may not
transfer the control over the export of any covered munition to
the jurisdiction of the Department of Commerce.
(b) Regulations.--The Secretary of State and the Secretary of
Commerce shall prescribe such regulations as may be necessary to
implement this section by the date specified in subsection (a).
(c) Rule of Construction.--Nothing in this section shall be
construed as limiting any authority relating to the designation,
control, or removal of items under the United States Munitions List or
the Commerce Control List, other than the specific authority to
transfer the control of an item as specified in subsection (a).
(d) Prohibition on Promotion of Certain Munitions Exports by
Department of Commerce.--The Secretary of Commerce may not take any
actions to promote the export of any previously covered item, including
actions before, on, or after the date on which the Secretary transfers
the control over the export of the previously covered item to the
jurisdiction of the Department State under subsection (a).
SEC. 4. REPORTS AND STRATEGY ON DISRUPTION OF ILLEGAL EXPORT AND
TRAFFICKING OF FIREARMS TO MEXICO AND CERTAIN CENTRAL
AMERICAN AND CARIBBEAN COUNTRIES.
(a) Report.--
(1) Submission.--Not later than 180 days after the date of
the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State (in
consultation with the Secretary of Commerce, the Attorney
General, the Director of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco,
Firearms and Explosives, and the heads of such other Federal
departments or agencies as the Secretary of State may determine
relevant) 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 following:
(A) The illegal export or diversion of firearms
from the United States to unauthorized recipients in
countries designated as covered countries under section
5 (including through unauthorized third-party
transfers).
(B) The illegal trafficking of firearms obtained in
the United States to recipients in such countries.
(2) Matters.--The report under paragraph (1) shall include,
with respect to the efforts specified in such paragraph, the
following:
(A) An identification of any such efforts,
including efforts to accomplish the following
objectives:
(i) Tracking and verifying information
regarding the end-users of firearms so
exported, including by entering into data-
sharing agreements--
(I) with appropriate counterparts
from the governments of such covered
countries; and
(II) between the relevant
departments and agencies of the United
States Government.
(ii) Ensuring the destruction of surplus
firearms so exported.
(iii) Ensuring that firearms so exported
are not used to commit extrajudicial killings
or other gross violations of internationally
recognized human rights.
(iv) Building the capacity of such covered
countries to prevent the trafficking of
firearms so exported, including through current
programs supported or implemented by the United
States Government.
(v) Tracking and verifying information
regarding the end-users of firearms obtained in
the United States and illegally trafficked to
such covered countries.
(vi) Combating all forms of cross-border
smuggling of firearms from the United States,
including via maritime vessels and aircraft.
(vii) 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 country.
(viii) Identifying the origin of trafficked
firearms, including through the serial numbers
of trafficked firearms, and sharing such
information with relevant law enforcement
agencies of--
(I) the United States;
(II) the respective covered
country; and
(III) any other country determined
relevant for purposes of such
information sharing.
(ix) Implementing the proposed security
cooperation plan titled ``U.S.-Mexico
Bicentennial Framework for Security, Public
Heath, and Safe Communities'', and any
successor or subsequent bilateral agreements on
combating firearm trafficking, transnational
organizations, or fentanyl.
(x) Cooperating with other relevant Federal
departments and agencies, including the
Attorney General, the Secretary of Homeland
Security, and the Director of the Bureau of
Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, to
combat firearms trafficking and prosecute
illegal firearm smugglers.
(B) An assessment of the results of the efforts
identified pursuant to subparagraph (A).
(C) A description of how homicides, extrajudicial
killings, 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 investigated.
(b) Inter-Agency Strategy.--
(1) In general.--The Secretary of State, in consultation
with the Secretary of Commerce, taking into account the
findings of the report under subsection (a), 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 5.
(2) Elements.--The strategy under paragraph (1) shall
include the following:
(A) A plan for the United States to accomplish each
of the objectives specified in subsection (a)(2)(A).
(B) An identification of specific performance
measures, targets (including the baselines for such
targets), and timelines with respect to such
objectives.
(C) An estimate of the resources and personnel
necessary to carry out the strategy.
(D) A plan for cooperation between the Secretary of
State, the Secretary of Commerce, and the heads of any
other Federal departments or agencies involved in anti-
firearm trafficking efforts, including the Attorney
General, the Secretary of Homeland Security, and the
Director of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms,
and Explosives.
(E) A plan for coordination between the Secretary
of State, the Secretary of Commerce, and such heads
regarding efforts in countries designated as covered
countries under section 5 to combat the trafficking of
United States-sourced firearms--
(i) from the United States to such
designated countries; and
(ii) from such designated countries to
other countries in the surrounding region.
(3) Required considerations; consultations.--In developing
the strategy under paragraph (1), the Secretary of State
shall--
(A) consider how the strategy may support or
otherwise align with broader efforts of the Secretary
of State relating to security assistance, anti-
corruption, and the prevention of organized crime and
drug and gang violence;
(B) consider whether the placement in the Western
Hemisphere of an export control officer of the Bureau
of Industry and Security of the Department of Commerce,
or other personnel of the Department of Commerce or the
Department of State, would support the strategy; and
(C) seek to consult with appropriate counterparts
from the government of each country designated as a
covered country under section 5.
(4) Submission to congress.--Not later than January 1 of
the year following the date of the enactment of this Act, the
Secretary of State shall submit to the appropriate
congressional committees the strategy under paragraph (1).
(c) Improved Tracking of Trafficked Firearms.--
(1) Assessment of data availability.--Not later than 180
days after the date on which a country is designated (or the
deemed to be designated, as the case may be), under section 5,
the Secretary of State, in consultation with the Secretary of
Commerce, the Attorney General, the Director of the Bureau of
Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and the heads of
such other Federal departments or agencies as the Secretary of
State may determine relevant, shall conduct and submit to the
Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives
and the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate an
assessment of the extent to which the law enforcement agencies
of that designated country make available to the United States
Government forensic information of trafficked firearms.
(2) Addressing gaps in data.--For the duration of the
period during which a country is designated as a covered
country under section 5, the Secretary of State shall--
(A) seek to engage with the foreign counterparts of
the government of such country to improve the
collection and sharing of the forensic information of
trafficked firearms confiscated by the law enforcement
agencies of such country; and
(B) promptly provide any such forensic information
shared pursuant to subparagraph (A) to the relevant
Federal, State, and local law enforcement agencies for
purposes of use in criminal or civil investigations
into violations of relevant United States Federal laws,
including the Arms Export Control Act.
(3) Forensic information defined.--In this subsection, the
term ``forensic information'', with respect to a trafficked
firearm, includes--
(A) the serial number of the firearm; and
(B) any other information that may be used to
identify the origin of the firearm or any person or
organization involved in the trafficking of the
firearm.
(d) Annual Report.--
(1) Submission.--Not later than one year after the date of
the enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter, the
Secretary or Secretaries concerned (in consultation with the
heads of such other Federal departments or agencies as the
Secretary or Secretaries concerned may determine relevant)
shall submit to the appropriate congressional committees a
report on the export of covered munitions to countries
designated as covered countries under section 5.
(2) Matters.--Each report under paragraph (1) shall
include, with respect to the year for which the report is
submitted, the following information (disaggregated by
country):
(A) Information regarding license applications
approved or denied, and previously issued licenses
modified or revoked, for the export of covered
munitions to proposed recipients in covered countries.
(B) Information regarding how evolving country
contexts, including with respect to developments in
human rights, affected the approval of license
applications for such exports.
(C) The number of licenses issued for the export of
covered munitions to proposed recipients in covered
countries.
(D) The number of covered munitions exported to
recipients in covered countries.
(E) With respect to end-user checks for covered
munitions exported to recipients in covered countries
under section 38(g)(7) of the Arms Export Control Act
(22 U.S.C. 2778(g)(7)) (commonly referred to as the
``Blue Lantern'' program), the monitoring program
established under the second section 40A of the Arms
Export Control Act (22 U.S.C. 2785) (as added by
section 150(a) of Public Law 104-164), or other
applicable programs of the Department of Commerce or
Department of State, the following information:
(i) The number of such end-user checks
requested.
(ii) The number of such end-user checks
conducted.
(iii) The type of such end-user checks
conducted.
(iv) The results of such end-user checks
conducted.
(F) Information on the extent to which the heads of
the governments of covered countries shared with the
Secretary or Secretaries concerned and the heads of
other relevant Federal departments and agencies (such
as the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and
Explosives) data relating to the receipt and end-use of
covered munitions exported from the United States, and
the type of data so shared.
(G) For each covered country, a description of the
United States funding and resources allocated for the
purpose of disrupting trafficking of covered munitions.
(3) Secretary or secretaries concerned defined.--In this
subsection, the term ``Secretary or Secretaries concerned''
means--
(A) if a single Federal department or agency has
jurisdiction over the export control of covered
munitions, the Secretary of that Federal department or
agency; or
(B) if multiple Federal departments or agencies
have jurisdiction over the export control of covered
munitions, each Secretary of such a Federal department
or agency.
SEC. 5. DESIGNATION OF COVERED COUNTRIES.
(a) In General.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the
enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State shall designate each
country that the Secretary determines meets the requirements under
subsection (b) as a covered country for purposes of this Act.
(b) Requirements.--A country meets the requirements under this
subsection if the country--
(1) is located in North America, South America, or the
Caribbean;
(2) is not a member state of the North Atlantic Treaty
Organization; and
(3) meets such other requirements as the Secretary may
determine appropriate.
(c) Initial Designations.--The Bahamas, Belize, Brazil, Colombia,
El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Haiti, Jamaica, and Trinidad
and Tobago--
(1) shall be deemed to have been so designated by the
Secretary of State as of the date of the enactment of this Act;
and
(2) shall continue to be deemed so designated for a five-
year period, during which time the designation may not be
terminated under subsection (d).
(d) Termination of Designation.--Subject to subsection (c)(2), the
Secretary of State may terminate the designation of a country under
this section only if, at least 180 days prior to such termination, the
Secretary submits to the appropriate congressional committees a
notification of such termination.
SEC. 6. CERTIFICATION REQUIREMENTS RELATING TO CERTAIN MUNITIONS
EXPORTS.
(a) Initial Certification; Prohibition.--
(1) In general.--Except as provided in paragraph (2), no
covered munition may be transferred to the government of a
country designated as a covered country under section 5, or any
other organization, citizen, or resident of such covered
country, until the Secretary of State submits to the
appropriate congressional committees a certification that the
program required under subsection (c) has been established.
(2) Waiver.--For the one-year period beginning on the
effective date of this section described in subsection (d), the
Secretary of State may waive the certification requirement
under paragraph (1) with respect to the transfer of a covered
munition to the government of a country described in paragraph
(1) if the Secretary certifies to the appropriate congressional
committees that such waiver is in the national security
interest of the United States and includes a written
justification with the certification.
(b) Review and Recertification.--
(1) In general.--Not later than 3 years after the date of
the submission of the certification under subsection (a) for a
country designated as a covered country under section 5, and
annually thereafter until such time as the designation is
terminated, the Secretary of State shall review, and submit to
the appropriate congressional committees a recertification of,
such certification.
(2) Prohibition.--If the Secretary of State is unable to
recertify a covered country as required under paragraph (1), no
covered munition may be transferred to the government of the
covered country, or any other organization, citizen, or
resident of such covered country, until the date on which the
Secretary is able to so recertify.
(c) Program.--
(1) Establishment.--The Secretary of State shall establish
and carry out a program under which the Secretary shall
prohibit the retransfer of covered munitions transferred to
countries designated as covered countries under section 5
without the consent of the United States and provide for the
registration and end-use monitoring of such covered munitions
in accordance with the following requirements:
(A) The maintenance of a detailed record of the
origin, shipping, and distribution of covered munitions
transferred to countries designated as covered
countries under section 5.
(B) The registration of the serial numbers of all
covered munitions, to be provided to the governments of
such covered countries and other organizations,
citizens, and residents within such covered countries.
(C) The conduct of a program for the end-use
monitoring of covered munitions transferred to the
entities and individuals described in subparagraph (B).
(2) Review of database.--In prohibiting the retransfer of
covered munitions without the consent of the United States
pursuant to the program under paragraph (1), the Secretary of
State, in consultation with the Secretary of Commerce, shall--
(A) review the database of the Department of State
that stores records relating to vetting conducted
pursuant to section 620M of the Foreign Assistance Act
of 1961 (22 U.S.C. 2378d) or section 362 of title 10,
United States Code, known as the ``International
Vetting and Security Tracking-cloud system'' or
``INVEST system'' (or any successor database), for any
such records relating to the prospective recipients of
such retransfer; and
(B) ensure that such consent is not granted for any
such prospective recipient who the Secretary of State
determines, taking into account the review under
subparagraph (A), is credibly implicated in a gross
violation of internationally recognized human rights.
(3) Data storage and sharing.--In carrying out the program
under paragraph (1), the Secretary of State shall--
(A) ensure that any data received pursuant to such
program is stored and maintained in a database of the
Department of State; and
(B) to the extent practicable, provide for the
sharing of such data with the Secretary of Commerce and
the heads of such other Federal departments or agencies
as the Secretary of State may determine relevant.
(d) Effective Date.--This section shall take effect on the date
that is 1 year after the date on which the Secretary of Commerce
completes the transfer of the control over the export of previously
covered items to the jurisdiction of the Department of State under
section 3(a).
SEC. 7. LIMITATION ON LICENSES AND OTHER AUTHORIZATIONS FOR EXPORT OF
CERTAIN ITEMS REMOVED FROM THE COMMERCE CONTROL LIST AND
INCLUDED ON THE UNITED STATES MUNITIONS LIST.
(a) In General.--The Secretary of State may not grant a license or
other authorization for the export of a previously covered item the
control over the export of which the Secretary of Commerce has
transferred to the jurisdiction of the Department of State under
section 3(a) unless, before granting the license or other
authorization, 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--
(1) the name of the person applying for the license or
other authorization;
(2) the name of the person who is the proposed recipient of
the export;
(3) the name of the country or international organization
to which the export will be made;
(4) a description of the items proposed to be exported; and
(5) the value of the items proposed to be exported.
(b) Form.--A certification required under subsection (a) shall be
submitted in unclassified form, 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 States.
(c) Deadlines.--A certification required under subsection (a) shall
be submitted--
(1) at least 15 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 Australia, Japan, the Republic
of Korea, Israel, or New Zealand, and
(2) at least 30 calendar days before a proposed export
license or other authorization is granted in the case of a
transfer of items to any other country.
(d) Congressional Resolution of Disapproval.--A proposed export
license or other authorization described in paragraph (1) of subsection
(c) shall become effective after the end of the 15-day period described
in such paragraph, and a proposed export license or other authorization
described in paragraph (2) of subsection (c) shall become effective
after the end of the 30-day period specified in such paragraph, only if
the Congress does not enact, within the applicable time period, a joint
resolution prohibiting the export of the covered item for which the
export license or other authorization was proposed.
SEC. 8. DEFINITIONS.
In this Act:
(1) Appropriate congressional committees.--The term
``appropriate congressional committees'' means--
(A) the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House
of Representatives; and
(B) the Committee on Foreign Relations and the
Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs of the
Senate.
(2) Covered munition.--The term ``covered munition'' means
the following:
(A) Any previously covered item.
(B) Any item that, following the date of the
enactment of this Act, is designated for control under
Category I, II, or III of the United States Munitions
List pursuant to section 38 of the Arms Export Control
Act (22 U.S.C. 2778) or otherwise subject to control
under any such category.
(3) Previously covered item.--The term ``previously covered
item'' means any item that--
(A) as of March 8, 2020, was included in Category
I, II, or III of the United States Munitions List; and
(B) as of the date of the enactment of this Act, is
included on the Commerce Control List.
(4) Firearm.--The term ``firearm'' includes covered
munitions.
(5) Gross violations of internationally recognized human
rights.--The term ``gross violations of internationally
recognized human rights'' has the meaning given that term in
section 502B(d) of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (22
U.S.C. 2304(d)).
(6) Security assistance.--The term ``security assistance''
includes--
(A) the types of assistance specified in section
502B(d)(2) of the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 (22
U.S.C. 2304); and
(B) assistance furnished under an international
security assistance program of the United States
conducted under any other provision of law, including
under the authorities under chapter 16 of title 10,
United States Code.
(7) United states munitions list.--The term ``United States
Munitions List'' means the list maintained pursuant to part 121
of title 22, Code of Federal Regulations.
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