Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism Act
Latest action · Dec 11, 2014 Held at the desk.
Progress
Where this bill reached, and when. A stage with no date was not reached; one that failed a vote and later carried shows the date it carried.
- IntroducedSep 19, 2013
- Passed SenateDec 11, 2014
- Passed HouseNot reached
- To the PresidentNot reached
- Became lawNot reached
Summary
Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism Act - Amends the federal judicial code to include among the exceptions to U.S. jurisdictional immunity of foreign states any statutory or common law tort claim arising out of an act of extrajudicial killing, aircraft sabotage, hostage taking, terrorism, or the provision of material support or resources for such an act, or any claim for contribution or indemnity relating to a claim arising out of such an act.
Amends the federal criminal code to: (1) impose liability on any person who aids, abets, or conspires with a person who commits an act of international terrorism that is committed, planned, or authorized by a designated foreign terrorist organization and that injures a U.S. national; and (2) repeal provisions prohibiting civil actions against foreign states or foreign officials for damages related to acts of terrorism.
Grants U.S. district courts personal jurisdiction, to the maximum extent permissible under the Fifth Amendment, over any person who commits or aids and abets an act of international terrorism, or who otherwise sponsors such act or the person who committed such an act, that injures a U.S. national.
Makes this Act applicable to any civil action: (1) pending on, or commenced on or after, this Act's enactment date; and (2) arising out of an injury to a person, property, or business on or after September 11, 2001.
Cosponsors 15
Members who signed on, in the order they did. Signatures ran from Sep 19, 2013 to Sep 11, 2014; 9 are original cosponsors, there from the day it was introduced.
| Seat | Cosponsor | Signed on | |
|---|---|---|---|
| D-MN | Amy Klobuchar | Original | Sep 19, 2013 |
| D-DE | Christopher A. Coons | Original | Sep 19, 2013 |
| D-CA | Dianne Feinstein | Original | Sep 19, 2013 |
| D-MA | Edward J. Markey | Original | Sep 19, 2013 |
| R-TX | John Cornyn | Original | Sep 19, 2013 |
| R-SC | Lindsey Graham | Original | Sep 19, 2013 |
| R-UT | Orrin G. Hatch | Original | Sep 19, 2013 |
| D-NJ | Robert Menendez | Original | Sep 19, 2013 |
| D-RI | Sheldon Whitehouse | Original | Sep 19, 2013 |
| R-AZ | Jeff Flake | Oct 2, 2013 | |
| R-UT | Mike Lee | Oct 16, 2013 | |
| D-MN | Al Franken | Sep 10, 2014 | |
| R-IA | Chuck Grassley | Sep 10, 2014 | |
| R-TX | Ted Cruz | Sep 10, 2014 | |
| D-CT | Richard Blumenthal | Sep 11, 2014 |
Committees 1
Where it was sent and what each committee and subcommittee did with it, in order.
| Chamber | Committee | What it did |
|---|---|---|
| Senate | Judiciary Committee | Referred Sep 19, 2013Markup Sep 11, 2014Reported Sep 15, 2014 |
Actions 11
Everything that happened, newest first.
- Dec 11, 2014Measure laid before Senate by unanimous consent. (consideration: CR S6657-6660)
- Dec 11, 2014The committee substitute as amended agreed to by Unanimous Consent.
- Dec 11, 2014Passed/agreed to in Senate: Passed Senate with an amendment by Unanimous Consent. (text: CR S6657-6658)
- Dec 11, 2014Message on Senate action sent to the House.
- Dec 11, 2014Received in the House.
- Dec 11, 2014Held at the desk.
- Sep 15, 2014Committee on the Judiciary. Reported by Senator Leahy with an amendment in the nature of a substitute. Without written report.
- Sep 15, 2014Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 560.
- Sep 11, 2014Committee on the Judiciary. Ordered to be reported with an amendment in the nature of a substitute favorably.
- Sep 19, 2013Introduced in Senate
- Sep 19, 2013Read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary.
In the Congressional Record 2
Days the Record’s own index lists this bill, newest first, with the pages and the members it names. Pages starting H are the House, S the Senate, E Extensions of Remarks.
| Where | In the Record | Members | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| Senate | Debate and remarks S6657–S6660Text printed S6657Amendments S6638 | Charles E. Schumer D-NY (amendment), John Cornyn R-TX (amendment) | Dec 11, 2014 |
| Senate | Debate and remarks S5526, S5529 | John Cornyn R-TX, Richard Blumenthal D-CT | Sep 11, 2014 |
Research
What has been written about this bill: committee reports, cost estimates, the sponsor’s authority statement, printed hearings and the Congressional Research Service’s work.
Congressional Budget Office cost estimate
- Oct 7, 2014S. 1535, Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism ActAs ordered reported by the Senate Committee on the Judiciary on September 15, 2014
CRS reports 2
Congressional Research Service work that CRS links to this bill or the law it became, newest first.
Cite it 2
Products on other subjects that cite it, usually among other measures.
| Product | Title | Kind | Published |
|---|---|---|---|
| RL34726 | In Re Terrorist Attacks on September 11, 2001: Claims Against Saudi Defendants Under the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act (FSIA) Archived | Report | May 17, 2016 |
| R41379 | Samantar v. Yousef: The Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act (FSIA) and Foreign Officials Archived | Report | Dec 16, 2013 |
Amendments 1
Amendments offered to this bill.
| Amendment | Description | Offered by | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| SA 4096 | In the nature of substitute. | Charles E. Schumer D-NY | Amendment SA 4096 agreed to in Senate by Unanimous Consent. |
Related bills 1
Companion bills and other measures the record links to this one.
| Bill | Title | Relationship | Latest action |
|---|---|---|---|
| HR 3143 | Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism Act | Identical bill | Jan 9, 2014 |
Titles 4
Every title it has carried, official and short, at each stage.
- Official Title as Introduced
- A bill to deter terrorism, provide justice for victims, and for other purposes.
- Short Titles as Introduced
- Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism Act
- Short Titles as Reported to Senate
- Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism Act
- Short Titles as Passed Senate
- Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism Act
Subjects
Assigned by the Library of Congress. Policy area: Crime and Law Enforcement.
Text 3
Each version as it was printed, newest first.
- Dec 11, 2014Engrossed in Senate
- Sep 15, 2014Reported to Senate
- Sep 19, 2013Introduced in Senate
Everything here is as published by Congress: the summary is the Congressional Research Service's, the action wording is the clerks', and the subjects are the Library of Congress's. How far it got is read from the actions themselves, taking the most recent one of each kind, so a bill that failed a vote and later passed is shown as having passed. Records come from this bill on Congress.gov and govinfo.gov; cost estimates are the Congressional Budget Office's, and the hearings are the printed hearings GovInfo publishes, which can appear months after the hearing.
