H.R. 1238

118 HR 1238 IH: Cartel Marque and Reprisal Authorization Act of 2025
 U.S. House of Representatives
 2025-02-12
 text/xml
 EN
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 I  119th CONGRESS  1st Session  H. R. 1238  IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES   February 12, 2025   Mr. Burchett  (for himself and  Mr. Messmer ) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the  Committee on Foreign Affairs    A BILL
To authorize the President of the United States to issue letters of marque and reprisal with respect to acts of aggression against the United States by a member of a cartel, or a member of a cartel-linked organization, or any conspirator associated with a cartel, and for other purposes.
1.
Short title
This Act may be cited as the   Cartel Marque and Reprisal Authorization Act of 2025  .
2.
Findings
The Congress finds the following:
(1)
Article I, Section 8 of the Constitution grants the Congress the power to grant letters of marque and reprisal to punish, deter, and prevent the acts of aggression and depredations and other acts of war committed by cartel conspirators.
(2)
Cartels present an unusual and extraordinary threat to national security and foreign policy of the United States.
3.
Issuance of letters of marque and reprisal
(a)
Authority of President
The President of the United States is authorized and requested to commission, under officially issued letters of marque and reprisal, so many of privately armed and equipped persons and entities as, in the judgment of the President, the service may require, with suitable instructions to the leaders thereof, to employ all means reasonably necessary to seize outside the geographic boundaries of the United States and its territories the person and property of any individual who the President determines is a member of a cartel, a member of a cartel-linked organization, or a conspirator associated with a cartel or a cartel-linked organization, who is responsible for an act of aggression against the United States.
(b)
Security Bonds
No letter of marque and reprisal shall be issued by the President without requiring the posting of a security bond in such amount as the President shall determine is sufficient to ensure that the letter be executed according to the terms and conditions thereof.
(c)
Definition of cartel
In this section, the term  cartel  means an organization that—
(1)
is described in section 1 of the executive order titled  Designating Cartels And Other Organizations As Foreign Terrorist Organizations and Specially Designated Global Terrorists  and dated January 20, 2025; or
(2)
is a  transnational criminal organization  under the meaning given that term in section 3003(5) of the  Public Law 118–50  ( 21 U.S.C. 2341(5) ).