“To establish the Pacific Counternarcotics Initiative to assist certain countries with counterdrug interdiction efforts.”
No CRS summary available for this bill.
This section establishes the Pacific Counternarcotics Initiative program to assist beneficiary countries with seizing and destroying listed chemicals (i.e., precursors for illicit drugs); alleviating backlogs of such chemicals and related hazardous waste; preventing reintroduction of seized chemicals into drug production; freeing storage space; reducing environmental impacts; and enhancing law enforcement capabilities and international cooperation. It requires the Secretary to submit to the appropriate congressional committees, within 90 days of enactment, an implementation plan that includes (1) a timeline for assistance; (2) a five-year strategy per beneficiary country with budgetary projections, outcomes, and objectives; (3) measurable benchmarks; (4) roles of relevant federal entities; (5) plans to address security and corruption risks; (6) congressional update procedures; and (7) itemized lists of necessary U.S.-providable law enforcement capabilities lacking in each beneficiary country. It further requires annual progress reports to the congressional committees for five years, beginning one year after the plan's submission, detailing beneficiary countries' progress toward program outcomes and benchmarks, plus quantities of destroyed listed chemicals.
This section defines terms used in the Act. Such terms include— (1) appropriate congressional committees, meaning the House Committee on Foreign Affairs and Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, and the House and Senate Committees on the Judiciary; (2) beneficiary countries, meaning specified Pacific island nations (e.g., Cook Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Republic of Fiji, French Polynesia, Republic of Kiribati) with authority for the Secretary of State to add or remove countries upon written notification to the appropriate congressional committees; (3) listed chemical, having the meaning given the term in 21 U.S.C. 802; (4) relevant Secretary, meaning the Secretary of State, Secretary of Defense, and Attorney General; (5) Secretary, meaning the Secretary of State in consultation with the Secretary of Defense and Attorney General, except as otherwise specified; and (6) interoperable systems, meaning communications, data sharing, and operational equipment enabling seamless coordination between beneficiary countries and U.S. law enforcement agencies.