H.R. 885 — Drug Cartel Terrorist Designation Act

This section expresses the sense of Congress that four specified Mexican drug cartels—the Gulf Cartel, Cartel Del Noreste, Cartel de Sinaloa, and Cartel de Jalisco Nueva Generacion—meet the criteria for designation as foreign terrorist organizations (FTOs) under 8 U.S.C. 1189 (i.e., foreign organizations engaging in terrorism that threatens U.S. nationals or national security, subjecting them to sanctions including material support bans under 18 U.S.C. 2339B and asset freezes) and requires the Secretary of State to make such designations. (c) Within 30 days of enactment, the Secretary of State, in consultation with the Director of National Intelligence, must submit to specified congressional committees a report assessing whether the listed cartels and any others identified meet FTO criteria, with justifications if any listed cartel does not qualify; within 30 days after the report, the Secretary must designate as FTOs any additional cartels or factions so identified that meet the criteria. (d) The report must be unclassified with a possible classified annex and provided electronically only, except upon legislative request. This section states that the designations do not expand asylum eligibility for any alien.