S. 1591: Otto Warmbier Banking Restrictions Involving North Korea Act of 2017

115th Congress · introduced 2017-07-19 · International Affairs · Latest: Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs. Hearings held. Hearings printed: S.Hrg. 115-161.

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Follow this bill, step by step

Where it came from: introduced 2017-07-19 · official record
Who proposed it: Sen. Van Hollen, Chris [D-MD] · what a sponsor is
What happened next: no floor votes in our records yet. Why?
Where it stands now: Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs. Hearings held. Hearings printed: S.Hrg. 115-161. Not final yet: this can still change. We check for updates every day.
If it becomes law and spends money: follow the money to money laws, then agencies and contracts and grants.

What does this mean?

Official title

Otto Warmbier Banking Restrictions Involving North Korea Act of 2017

Plain summary

Banking Restrictions Involving North Korea (BRINK) Act of 2017 This bill requires the President to: (1) submit to Congress a list of financial institutions that are providing financial or banking support to the government of North Korea; (2) impose specified financial and asset blocking sanctions on an institution that has knowingly engaged in such conduct, and (3) impose specified civil penalties upon a U.S. institution based upon whether it has taken steps to prevent a recurrence of such conduct. The President: (1) may suspend, renew, or terminate sanctions subject to prior congressional notification and review; and (2) may not take an action if Congress enacts a joint resolution of disapproval of such action. The President shall prohibit, with specified exceptions, transactions involving the manufacture, sale, purchase, transfer, import, or export of certain North Korean goods, services, or technology (covered property) by a U.S. person or such transactions that are conducted in the United States. The President may impose specified sanctions with respect to: (1) persons providing specialized financial messaging services to North Korean financial institutions or sanctioned persons, and (2) governments that fail to take specified actions against North Korean financial institutions or persons designated under a United Nations Security Council resolution. A state or local government may divest its assets from, or prohibit investment of its assets in, any person engaging in investment activities involving North Korean covered property valued at more than $10,000. The bill expresses the sense of Congress with respect to: (1) blocking of property of North Korean officials, (2) divestiture of certain employee benefit plan funds involving North Korean covered property, and (3) the Kaesong Industrial Complex and North Korean nuclear disarmament.

Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in Senate), quoted unchanged (nonpartisan). Read the source.

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What does this mean? (plain words)

Official text

Otto Warmbier Banking Restrictions Involving North Korea Act of 2017

Source: Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in Senate)

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How did my representative vote? · This bill's floor votes

Officials and money

Sponsor: Sen. Van Hollen, Chris [D-MD] · 15 cosponsors

Cost estimate: CBO cost estimate: S. 1591, Otto Warmbier Banking Restrictions Involving North Korea Act of 2017 (2017-12-08)

Cosponsors on this site

Ted Cruz (R-TX), Tim Scott (R-SC), Mazie K. Hirono (D-HI), Tom Cotton (R-AR), Catherine Cortez Masto (D-NV), Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Brian Schatz (D-HI), John Kennedy (R-LA), Mike Crapo (R-ID), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Richard J. Durbin (D-IL)

Sponsor's campaign money: Sen. Van Hollen, Chris [D-MD] reported raising $2.5 million (2025–2026). Details. Shown for context only; it does not mean any donor supported this bill.

No linked floor roll calls in our collected records yet. This does not mean the bill has never had a vote. Check the official bill history.

Words on this page, explained (4)

Bill: A proposed law. It becomes law only if it passes the legislature and is signed by the president or governor (or a veto is overridden).
Joint resolution: In Texas, the type of measure the Legislature uses to propose a constitutional amendment (marked HJR or SJR). The governor does not sign or veto it; the voters decide. In Congress a joint resolution can also be used like a bill. In Florida, a joint resolution passed by three-fifths of the members of each chamber puts a constitutional amendment on the ballot.
Resolution: A formal statement or decision by a legislative body. Simple resolutions often only express an opinion or set rules for one chamber; they do not become law.
Securities: Financial investments that can be bought and sold, such as stocks and bonds.

Plain meanings written from linked sources. All words.

Sources

Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in Senate)
Congress.gov
Data: GovInfo BILLSTATUS bulk data (Library of Congress), BILLSTATUS-115s1591.xml <https://www.govinfo.gov/bulkdata/BILLSTATUS/115/s>

Record fed-us-cong115-s1591 · catalog fed-us-congress-bills-cong115 · updated 2026-11-15 by psicol fed-bills-cong115