1 cosponsor.
Allows the U.S. president to receive the claims of and pay compensation to U.S. citizens or their estates who have obtained a judgment on a claim in U.S. court against a foreign state for injuries endured during a hostage situation; for those taken hostage anytime on or after 8/2/1990; was not a member of the armed forces; or was a plaintiff in specific legal cases cited in the bill. It establishes a “Hostage Vicitims Fund” (HVF) in the Dept. of Treasury that will make payments to said victims with a ceiling of $500m to any individual and that pertains only to portions of the obtained judgment that have not been satisfied. Where hostages survived, compensation will be set at $10k for every day they were held or if they died or were tortured during captivity, the maximum allowable will be awarded. Funds will be deposited to the HVF from blocked assets of “terrorists,” compensation received by the U.S. resulting from legal action taken against individuals who profited from the Oil for Food Program at the UN, and 7 other laws related to aiding or doing business with ‘terrorists.’
It also includes a provision to allow similar compensation for hostages taken by Iran on 11/4/1979 or by Hezbollah in Lebanon on 12/4/1984. Funds for this section shall be designated from the Iran Foreign Military Sales Fund account within the Foreign Military Sales Fund.
Note: a similar bill, H.R. 3369, was introduced on 8/3/07 but is not listed in this Monitor.
See also: companion measure S. 1944 on 8/2/07; identical measure H.R. 3369 on 8/3/07.