H.R. 4737: Foreign Extortion Prevention Act

117th Congress · introduced 2021-07-28 · Crime and Law Enforcement · Latest: Referred to the Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security.

federal

Follow this bill, step by step

Where it came from: introduced 2021-07-28 · official record
Who proposed it: Rep. Jackson Lee, Sheila [D-TX-18] · what a sponsor is
What happened next: no floor votes in our records yet. Why?
Where it stands now: Referred to the Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security. 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

Foreign Extortion Prevention Act

Plain summary

Foreign Extortion Prevention Act This bill establishes a federal criminal offense involving bribery by foreign officials. Specifically, the bill makes it a crime for foreign officials to demand or accept anything of value personally or for another person or a nongovernmental entity to influence the performance of an official act or otherwise confer an improper advantage. The bill explicitly grants extraterritorial jurisdiction over the offense. A violation is subject to criminal penalties—a fine, a prison term of up to 15 years, or both. Finally, the bill establishes a Victims of Kleptocracy Fund in the Treasury and directs fines and penalties for violations to be deposited into the fund for anti-corruption initiatives.

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

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If it passes both chambers and is signed, it becomes law.

A “Nay” vote

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What does this mean? (plain words)

Official text

Foreign Extortion Prevention Act

Source: Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in House)

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

Officials and money

Sponsor: Rep. Jackson Lee, Sheila [D-TX-18] · 10 cosponsors

Cost estimate: No cost estimate published yet.

Cosponsors on this site

John R. Curtis (R-UT), Brian K. Fitzpatrick (R-PA), Steve Cohen (D-TN), Maria Elvira Salazar (R-FL), William R. Keating (D-MA), Marcy Kaptur (D-OH)

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 (3)

Ballot initiative: A proposed law or constitutional amendment that citizens place on the ballot by gathering enough voter signatures, so voters decide it directly. About half the states allow some form of it.
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).
Jurisdiction: The area or the matters a government or court has authority over.

Plain meanings written from linked sources. All words.

Sources

Congressional Research Service summary (Introduced in House)
Congress.gov
Data: GovInfo BILLSTATUS bulk data (Library of Congress), BILLSTATUS-117hr4737.xml <https://www.govinfo.gov/bulkdata/BILLSTATUS/117/hr>

Record fed-us-cong117-hr4737 · catalog fed-us-congress-bills-cong117 · updated 2026-11-15 by psicol fed-bills-cong117