S. 3282 — Targeting Environmental and Climate Recklessness Act of 2025

This section states congressional findings concerning (1) the domestic and global impacts of climate change, including severe weather, wildfires, droughts, flooding, and health risks expected to intensify with warming beyond 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels; (2) ongoing international activities such as new coal plants and illegal deforestation that increase emissions and destroy carbon sinks, often linked to human rights abuses and criminal networks; (3) the need for collective global action under the Paris Agreement to achieve emissions reductions and adaptation; (4) the U.S. withdrawal from the Paris Agreement in 2025 and related climate policy changes; and (5) the potential use of U.S. financial system restrictions against actors threatening national interests through climate-related harms.

This section states the sense of Congress that (1) the targeted measures in this Act are only one component of the comprehensive approach needed to address climate change and mitigate its effects; (2) the U.S. government must ensure through law and regulation that U.S. entities are not engaged in or complicit in the egregious behaviors targeted against foreign persons under this Act; (3) the U.S. government should continue progress toward scaling international climate finance to more than $11 billion annually and promote international efforts for climate change adaptation and mitigation; (4) the U.S. government must work proactively with foreign governments, including through positive incentives, to address climate change and promote economic development that does not needlessly increase carbon emissions, deforestation, or corruption risk; (5) the targeted measures in this Act should be used if engagement fails to prevent significant actions exacerbating climate change and deforestation; and (6) given broad international support for countering climate change, the Secretary of State should encourage other countries to implement similar targeted measures, with support from the Secretary of the Treasury, to enhance U.S. actions against climate-exacerbating activities, including related corruption and human rights violations.

This section declares it the policy of the United States to consider applying sanctions under Executive Order 13818—relating to blocking the property of persons involved in serious human rights abuse or corruption—to activities described in section 5(b), including acts of corruption and serious human rights abuses against specified individuals. Such individuals are those who (1) advocate for the protection of the environment, public health, Indigenous rights, or community land rights; (2) investigate, expose, or raise awareness of harm or corruption related to natural resource use; or (3) are forced to leave their habitual home due to sudden or progressive environmental changes caused by human activities or attributable to climate change that adversely affect their life or living conditions.

This section authorizes the President to impose sanctions on any foreign person determined to have knowingly engaged in, materially assisted, or been owned or controlled by persons engaged in specified activities exacerbating climate change (i.e., greenhouse gas emissions not aligned with Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change pathways to limit warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels), illegal deforestation or loss of carbon sinks, environmental misrepresentation, or harm to environmental defenders (including government officials enabling such acts). Sanctions include (1) visa ineligibility or revocation for individuals; (2) blocking of all property and interests in property under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (without requiring a national emergency declaration); or (3) any sanctions under 22 U.S.C. 9529 (i.e., Export-Import Bank restrictions on guarantees, insurance, or credit for exports to the person; U.S. government export license denials; prohibitions on U.S. financial institution loans or credits exceeding $10 million in any 12-month period unless for human suffering relief; U.S. opposition to international financial institution loans benefiting the person; or, if a financial institution, ineligibility as a primary dealer in U.S. government debt or as a U.S. government funds repository). In determining whether to impose sanctions, the President must consider information from relevant congressional committees and credible reports from other countries or nongovernmental organizations monitoring environmental harm or human rights violations. The section includes exceptions for U.S. intelligence and law enforcement activities and admissions necessary to comply with U.S. obligations under the UN Headquarters Agreement or Vienna Convention on Consular Relations.

This section authorizes appropriations to the Secretary of the Treasury, as necessary, for the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) to support targeting of persons under this Act and to enhance OFAC's ability to target persons for sanctions under the Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act (i.e., sanctions on foreign persons responsible for human rights abuses or significant corruption).