[Congressional Bills 119th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2960 Reported in Senate (RS)]
<DOC>
Calendar No. 245
119th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 2960
To develop economic tools to deter aggression by the People's Republic
of China against Taiwan.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
October 1, 2025
Mr. Risch (for himself, Mrs. Shaheen, Mr. Coons, and Mr. Ricketts)
introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the
Committee on Foreign Relations
October 30, 2025
Reported by Mr. Risch with an amendment
[Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed
in italic]
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To develop economic tools to deter aggression by the People's Republic
of China against Taiwan.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
<DELETED>SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.</DELETED>
<DELETED> This Act may be cited as the ``Deter PRC Aggression
Against Taiwan Act''.</DELETED>
<DELETED>SEC. 2. SENSE OF CONGRESS.</DELETED>
<DELETED> It is the sense of Congress that the United States must be
prepared to take immediate action to impose sanctions with respect to
any military or non-military entities owned, controlled, or acting at
the direction of the Government of the PRC or the Chinese Communist
Party that are supporting actions by the Government of the PRC or by
the Chinese Communist Party--</DELETED>
<DELETED> (1) to overthrow or dismantle the governing
institutions in Taiwan;</DELETED>
<DELETED> (2) to occupy any territory controlled or
administered by Taiwan;</DELETED>
<DELETED> (3) to violate the territorial integrity of
Taiwan; or</DELETED>
<DELETED> (4) to take significant action against Taiwan,
including--</DELETED>
<DELETED> (A) conducting a naval blockade of
Taiwan;</DELETED>
<DELETED> (B) seizing any outlying island of Taiwan;
or</DELETED>
<DELETED> (C) perpetrating a significant physical or
cyber attack on Taiwan that erodes the ability of the
governing institutions in Taiwan to operate or provide
essential services to the citizens of Taiwan.</DELETED>
<DELETED>SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.</DELETED>
<DELETED> In this Act:</DELETED>
<DELETED> (1) Appropriate congressional committees.--The
term ``appropriate congressional committees'' means--</DELETED>
<DELETED> (A) the Committee on Foreign Relations of
the Senate;</DELETED>
<DELETED> (B) the Committee on Banking, Housing, and
Urban Affairs of the Senate;</DELETED>
<DELETED> (C) the Committee on Commerce, Science,
and Transportation of the Senate;</DELETED>
<DELETED> (D) the Committee on Finance of the
Senate;</DELETED>
<DELETED> (E) the Committee on Foreign Affairs of
the House of Representatives;</DELETED>
<DELETED> (F) the Committee on Financial Services of
the House of Representatives;</DELETED>
<DELETED> (G) the Committee on Energy and Commerce
of the House of Representatives; and</DELETED>
<DELETED> (H) the Committee on Ways and Means of the
House of Representatives.</DELETED>
<DELETED> (2) PRC.--The term ``PRC'' means the People's
Republic of China.</DELETED>
<DELETED> (3) PRC sanctions task force; task force.--The
terms ``PRC Sanctions Task Force'' and ``Task Force'' mean the
task force established pursuant to section 4.</DELETED>
<DELETED>SEC. 4. PRC SANCTIONS TASK FORCE.</DELETED>
<DELETED> (a) Establishment.--Not later than 180 days after the date
of the enactment of this Act, the Coordinator for Sanctions of the
Department of State and the Director of the Office of Foreign Assets
Control of the Department of the Treasury, in coordination with the
Director of National Intelligence and the heads of other Federal
agencies, as appropriate, shall establish an interagency task force to
identify military and non-military entities that could be subject to
sanctions or other economic actions imposed by the United States
immediately following any action taken by the PRC that demonstrates an
attempt to achieve, or has the significant effect of achieving, the
physical or political control of Taiwan, including by taking any of the
actions described in paragraphs (1) through (4) of section 2.</DELETED>
<DELETED> (b) Strategy.--Not later than 180 days after the
establishment of the PRC Sanctions Task Force, the Task Force shall
provide a briefing to the appropriate congressional committees for
identifying proposed targets for sanctions or other economic actions
referred to in subsection (a), which shall--</DELETED>
<DELETED> (1) assess how existing sanctions programs could
be used to impose sanctions with respect to entities identified
by the Task Force;</DELETED>
<DELETED> (2) develop or propose, as appropriate, new
sanctions authorities that might be required to impose
sanctions with respect to such entities;</DELETED>
<DELETED> (3) analyze the potential economic consequences to
the United States, and to allies and partners of the United
States, of imposing various types of such sanctions with
respect to such entities;</DELETED>
<DELETED> (4) assess measures that could be taken to
mitigate the consequences referred to in paragraph (3),
including through the use of licenses, exemptions, carve-outs,
and other approaches;</DELETED>
<DELETED> (5) include coordination with allies and partners
of the United States--</DELETED>
<DELETED> (A) to leverage sanctions and other
economic tools including actions targeting the PRC's
financial and industrial sectors to deter or respond to
aggression against Taiwan;</DELETED>
<DELETED> (B) to identify and resolve potential
impediments to coordinating sanctions-related efforts
or other economic actions with respect to responding to
or deterring aggression against Taiwan;</DELETED>
<DELETED> (C) to identify industries, sectors, or
goods and services where the United States and allies
and partners of the United States can take coordinated
action through sanctions or other economic tools that
will have a significant negative impact on the economy
of the PRC; and</DELETED>
<DELETED> (D) to coordinate actions with partners
and allies to provide economic support to Taiwan and
other countries being threatened by the PRC, including
measures to counter economic coercion by the
PRC;</DELETED>
<DELETED> (6) assess the resource gaps and needs at the
Department of State, the Department of the Treasury, the
Department of Commerce, the United States Trade Representative,
and other Federal agencies, as appropriate, to most effectively
use sanctions and other economic tools to respond to the
threats posed by the PRC;</DELETED>
<DELETED> (7) recommend how best to target sanctions and
other economic tools against individuals, entities, and
economic sectors in the PRC, which shall take into account--
</DELETED>
<DELETED> (A) the role of such targets in supporting
policies and activities of the Government of the PRC,
or of the Chinese Communist Party, that pose a threat
to the national security or foreign policy interests of
the United States;</DELETED>
<DELETED> (B) the negative economic implications of
such sanctions and tools for the Government of the PRC,
including its ability to achieve its objectives with
respect to Taiwan; and</DELETED>
<DELETED> (C) the potential impact of such sanctions
and tools on the stability of the global financial
system, including with respect to--</DELETED>
<DELETED> (i) state-owned
enterprises;</DELETED>
<DELETED> (ii) officials of the Government
of the PRC and of the Chinese Communist
Party;</DELETED>
<DELETED> (iii) financial institutions
associated with the Government of the PRC;
and</DELETED>
<DELETED> (iv) companies in the PRC that are
not formally designated by the Government of
the PRC as state-owned enterprises;
and</DELETED>
<DELETED> (8) identify any foreign military or non-military
entities that would likely be used to achieve the outcomes
specified in section 2, including entities in the shipping,
logistics, energy (including oil and gas), maritime, aviation,
ground transportation, and technology sectors.</DELETED>
<DELETED>SEC. 5. ANNUAL REPORT.</DELETED>
<DELETED> Not later than 180 days after the briefing required under
section 4(b), and annually thereafter, the PRC Sanctions Task Force
shall submit a classified report to the appropriate congressional
committees that includes information regarding--</DELETED>
<DELETED> (1) any entities identified pursuant to section
4(b)(8);</DELETED>
<DELETED> (2) any new authorities required to impose
sanctions with respect to such entities;</DELETED>
<DELETED> (3) potential economic impacts on the PRC, the
United States, and allies and partners of the United States
resulting from the imposition of sanctions with respect to such
entities;</DELETED>
<DELETED> (4) mitigation measures that could be employed to
limit any deleterious economic impacts on the United States and
allies and partners of the United States of such
sanctions;</DELETED>
<DELETED> (5) the status of coordination with allies and
partners of the United States regarding sanctions and other
economic tools identified under this Act;</DELETED>
<DELETED> (6) resource gaps and recommendations to enable
the Department of State and the Department of the Treasury to
use sanctions to more effectively respond to the malign
activities of the Government of the PRC; and</DELETED>
<DELETED> (7) any additional resources that may be necessary
to carry out the strategies and recommendations included in the
report submitted pursuant to section 4(b).</DELETED>
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Deter PRC Aggression Against Taiwan
Act''.
SEC. 2. SENSE OF CONGRESS.
(a) Sense of Congress Regarding Preparedness to Impose Sanctions in
the Event of a Taiwan Contingency.--It is the sense of Congress that
the United States must be prepared to take immediate action to impose
sanctions with respect to any military or non-military entities owned,
controlled, or acting at the direction of the Government of the PRC or
the Chinese Communist Party that are supporting actions by the
Government of the PRC or by the Chinese Communist Party--
(1) to overthrow or dismantle the governing institutions in
Taiwan;
(2) to occupy any territory controlled or administered by
Taiwan;
(3) to violate the territorial integrity of Taiwan; or
(4) to take significant action against Taiwan, including--
(A) conducting a naval blockade of Taiwan;
(B) seizing any outlying island of Taiwan; or
(C) perpetrating a significant physical or cyber
attack on Taiwan that erodes the ability of the
governing institutions in Taiwan to operate or provide
essential services to the citizens of Taiwan.
(b) Sense of Congress Regarding United States Policy Toward Taiwan
and the Government of the PRC.--It is the sense of Congress that--
(1) planning and recommendations developed by the PRC
Sanctions Task Force pursuant to section 4 are intended to
compliment other United States responses to PRC aggression and
not contravene long-standing United States policy on Taiwan;
(2) The United States remains committed to its ``One
China'' policy, guided by the Taiwan Relations Act (22 U.S.C.
3301 et seq.), the three United States-People's Republic of
China Joint Communiques, and the Six Assurances;
(3) any attempt by the People's Republic of China to
resolve Taiwan's status through force, coercion, or other non-
peaceful means is contrary to United States policy and national
interests; and
(4) the future of Taiwan should be determined peacefully,
free from the use of military force or any other forms of
military, economic, or other forms of coercion from the
People's Republic of China, and in a manner that is acceptable
to the people of Taiwan.
SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.
In this Act:
(1) Appropriate congressional committees.--The term
``appropriate congressional committees'' means--
(A) the Committee on Foreign Relations of the
Senate;
(B) the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban
Affairs of the Senate;
(C) the Committee on Commerce, Science, and
Transportation of the Senate;
(D) the Committee on Finance of the Senate;
(E) the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House
of Representatives;
(F) the Committee on Financial Services of the
House of Representatives;
(G) the Committee on Energy and Commerce of the
House of Representatives; and
(H) the Committee on Ways and Means of the House of
Representatives.
(2) PRC.--The term ``PRC'' means the People's Republic of
China.
(3) PRC sanctions task force; task force.--The terms ``PRC
Sanctions Task Force'' and ``Task Force'' mean the task force
established pursuant to section 4.
SEC. 4. PRC SANCTIONS TASK FORCE.
(a) Establishment.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the
enactment of this Act, the Coordinator for Sanctions of the Department
of State and the Director of the Office of Foreign Assets Control of
the Department of the Treasury, in coordination with the Director of
National Intelligence and the heads of other Federal agencies, as
appropriate, shall establish an interagency task force to identify
military and non-military entities that could be subject to sanctions
or other economic actions imposed by the United States immediately
following any action taken by the PRC that demonstrates an attempt to
achieve, or has the significant effect of achieving, the physical or
political control of Taiwan, including by taking any of the actions
described in paragraphs (1) through (4) of section 2.
(b) Strategy.--Not later than 180 days after the establishment of
the PRC Sanctions Task Force, the Task Force shall provide a briefing
to the appropriate congressional committees for identifying proposed
targets for sanctions or other economic actions referred to in
subsection (a), which shall--
(1) assess how existing sanctions programs could be used to
impose sanctions with respect to entities identified by the
Task Force;
(2) develop or propose, as appropriate, new sanctions
authorities that might be required to impose sanctions with
respect to such entities;
(3) analyze the potential economic consequences to the
United States, and to allies and partners of the United States,
of imposing various types of such sanctions with respect to
such entities;
(4) assess measures that could be taken to mitigate the
consequences referred to in paragraph (3), including through
the use of licenses, exemptions, carve-outs, and other
approaches;
(5) include coordination with allies and partners of the
United States--
(A) to leverage sanctions and other economic tools
including actions targeting the PRC's financial and
industrial sectors to deter or respond to aggression
against Taiwan;
(B) to identify and resolve potential impediments
to coordinating sanctions-related efforts or other
economic actions with respect to responding to or
deterring aggression against Taiwan; and
(C) to identify industries, sectors, or goods and
services where the United States and allies and
partners of the United States can take coordinated
action through sanctions or other economic tools that
will have a significant negative impact on the economy
of the PRC; and
(D) to coordinate actions with partners and allies
to provide economic support to Taiwan and other
countries being threatened by the PRC, including
measures to counter economic coercion by the PRC;
(6) assess the resource gaps and needs at the Department of
State, the Department of the Treasury, the Department of
Commerce, the United States Trade Representative, and other
Federal agencies, as appropriate, to most effectively use
sanctions and other economic tools to respond to the threats
posed by the PRC;
(7) recommend how best to target sanctions and other
economic tools against individuals, entities, and economic
sectors in the PRC, which shall take into account--
(A) the role of such targets in supporting policies
and activities of the Government of the PRC, or of the
Chinese Communist Party, that pose a threat to the
national security or foreign policy interests of the
United States;
(B) the negative economic implications of such
sanctions and tools for the Government of the PRC,
including its ability to achieve its objectives with
respect to Taiwan; and
(C) the potential impact of such sanctions and
tools on the stability of the global financial system,
including with respect to--
(i) state-owned enterprises;
(ii) officials of the Government of the PRC
and of the Chinese Communist Party;
(iii) financial institutions associated
with the Government of the PRC; and
(iv) companies in the PRC that are not
formally designated by the Government of the
PRC as state-owned enterprises; and
(8) identify any foreign military or non-military entities
that would likely be used to achieve the outcomes specified in
section 2, including entities in the shipping, logistics,
energy (including oil and gas), maritime, aviation, ground
transportation, and technology sectors.
SEC. 5. ANNUAL REPORT.
Not later than 180 days after the briefing required under section
4(b), and annually thereafter, the PRC Sanctions Task Force shall
submit a classified report to the appropriate congressional committees
that includes information regarding--
(1) any entities identified pursuant to section 4(b)(8);
(2) any new authorities required to impose sanctions with
respect to such entities;
(3) potential economic impacts on the PRC, the United
States, and allies and partners of the United States resulting
from the imposition of sanctions with respect to such entities;
(4) mitigation measures that could be employed to limit any
deleterious economic impacts on the United States and allies
and partners of the United States of such sanctions;
(5) the status of coordination with allies and partners of
the United States regarding sanctions and other economic tools
identified under this Act;
(6) resource gaps and recommendations to enable the
Department of State and the Department of the Treasury to use
sanctions to more effectively respond to the malign activities
of the Government of the PRC; and
(7) any additional resources that may be necessary to carry
out the strategies and recommendations included in the report
submitted pursuant to section 4(b).
SEC. 6. RULES OF CONSTRUCTION.
(a) Rule of Construction Regarding Continued United States Policy
Toward Taiwan and the Government of the PRC.--Nothing in this Act may
be construed as a change to the One China Policy of the United States,
which is guided by the Taiwan Relations Act (22 U.S.C. 3301 et seq.),
the three United States-People's Republic of China Joint Communiques,
and the Six Assurances.
(b) Rule of Construction Regarding Sanctions Authorities Identified
or Recommended by the Task Force.--None of the sanctions identified or
recommended pursuant to this Act are self-executing. Any such sanctions
may only be imposed on an entity if they are explicitly authorized
under--
(1) a Federal law that was in effect on the day before the
date of the enactment of this Act; or
(2) an Act of Congress that is enacted after the date of
the enactment of this Act.
Calendar No. 245
119th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 2960
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To develop economic tools to deter aggression by the People's Republic
of China against Taiwan.
_______________________________________________________________________
October 30, 2025
Reported with an amendment