Vietnam Human Rights Act of 2015
Latest action · May 20, 2015 Referred to the Subcommittee on Asia and the Pacific.
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.
- IntroducedApr 30, 2015
- Passed HouseNot reached
- Passed SenateNot reached
- To the PresidentNot reached
- Became lawNot reached
Summary
Vietnam Human Rights Act of 2015
This bill prohibits U.S. nonhumanitarian assistance to the government of Vietnam in excess of FY2014 amounts unless the President certifies to Congress that the government of Vietnam has made substantial progress respecting political, civil, media, Internet, and religious freedoms, minority rights, access to U.S. refugee programs, and actions to end trafficking in persons and the release of religious and political prisoners.
The President may waive such requirements:
- if increased U.S. nonhumanitarian assistance would promote the purposes of this Act or is otherwise in the U.S. national interest,
- with respect to all U.S. nonhumanitarian assistance to Vietnam, or to one or more programs or projects.
It is the sense of Congress that:
- it shall be U.S. policy that further easing of the prohibition on the sale of lethal military equipment to Vietnam shall require Vietnam to take additional and sustained steps to advance human rights protections;
- the United States should take measures to overcome the jamming of Radio Free Asia by Vietnam and that the Broadcasting Board of Governors should not cut staffing, funding, or broadcast hours for the Vietnamese language services of the Voice of America and Radio Free Asia;
- U.S.-Vietnam educational and cultural exchange programs should promote freedom and democracy in Vietnam;
- Vietnam should be designated as a country of particular concern for religious freedom; and
- Vietnam does not fully comply with the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking and is not making significant efforts to bring itself into compliance.
Cosponsors 18
Members who signed on, in the order they did. Signatures ran from Apr 30, 2015 to Jul 13, 2016; 6 are original cosponsors, there from the day it was introduced.
| Seat | Cosponsor | Signed on | |
|---|---|---|---|
| D-CA | Alan S. Lowenthal | Original | Apr 30, 2015 |
| R-CA | Dana Rohrabacher | Original | Apr 30, 2015 |
| R-CA | Edward R. Royce | Original | Apr 30, 2015 |
| D-VA | Gerald E. Connolly | Original | Apr 30, 2015 |
| D-CA | Loretta Sanchez | Original | Apr 30, 2015 |
| D-CA | Zoe Lofgren | Original | Apr 30, 2015 |
| R-FL | Ileana Ros-Lehtinen | May 12, 2015 | |
| R-MN | Tom Emmer | May 12, 2015 | |
| R-NC | Mark Meadows | Jun 1, 2015 | |
| R-TX | Ted Poe | Jun 12, 2015 | |
| R-PA | Michael G. Fitzpatrick | Jun 23, 2015 | |
| D-TX | Lloyd Doggett | Jun 24, 2015 | |
| R-OK | Steve Russell | Jun 24, 2015 | |
| R-FL | Bill Posey | Jul 7, 2015 | |
| R-TX | Michael T. McCaul | Jul 7, 2015 | |
| R-MI | David A. Trott | Jul 9, 2015 | |
| R-VA | Barbara Comstock | Apr 29, 2016 | |
| D-MD | Chris Van Hollen | Jul 13, 2016 |
Committees 1
Where it was sent and what each committee and subcommittee did with it, in order.
| Chamber | Committee | What it did |
|---|---|---|
| House | Foreign Affairs Committee | Referred Apr 30, 2015 |
| Africa Subcommittee | Referred May 7, 2015Markup May 14, 2015Reported May 14, 2015 | |
| East Asia and Pacific Subcommittee | Referred May 20, 2015 |
Actions 6
Everything that happened, newest first.
- May 20, 2015Referred to the Subcommittee on Asia and the Pacific.
- May 14, 2015Subcommittee Consideration and Mark-up Session Held.
- May 14, 2015Forwarded by Subcommittee to Full Committee by Unanimous Consent .
- May 7, 2015Referred to the Subcommittee on Africa, Global Health, Global Human Rights and International Organizations.
- Apr 30, 2015Introduced in House
In the Congressional Record 1
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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Extensions | Debate and remarks E941 | Christopher H. Smith R-NJ | Jun 23, 2015 |
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.
Constitutional authority
The sponsor’s statement, as printed in the Congressional Record, vol. 161, no. 64, April 30, 2015, page H2770.
Printed hearings 2
Hearings whose printed record names this bill, newest first: hearings on it, and wider hearings where it came up.
| Number | Hearing | Committee | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Serial No. 114-209 | WILL PRESIDENT OBAMA PRIORITIZE THE RELEASE OF PRISONERS OF CONSCIENCE28 pages | Foreign Affairs Committee | May 10, 2016 |
| Serial No. 114-66 | VIETNAM HUMAN RIGHTS ACT OF 2015; AND CONDEMNING THE APRIL 2015 TERRORIST ATTACK AT THE GARISSA UNIVERSITY COLLEGE IN GARISSA, KENYA, AND REAFFIRMING THE UNITED STATES SUPPORT FOR THE PEOPLE AND GOVERNMENT OF KENYA, AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES39 pages | Foreign Affairs Committee | May 14, 2015 |
CRS reports 1
Congressional Research Service work that CRS links to this bill or the law it became, newest first.
Cite it 1
Products on other subjects that cite it, usually among other measures.
| Product | Title | Kind | Published |
|---|---|---|---|
| R44581 | Trafficking in Persons and U.S. Foreign Policy Responses in the 114th Congress Archived | Report | Aug 5, 2016 |
Related bills 1
Companion bills and other measures the record links to this one.
| Bill | Title | Relationship | Latest action |
|---|---|---|---|
| S 2632 | Vietnam Human Rights Act of 2016 | Related bill | Mar 3, 2016 |
Titles 2
Every title it has carried, official and short, at each stage.
- Official Title as Introduced
- To promote freedom, human rights, and the rule of law as part of United States-Vietnam relations.
- Short Titles as Introduced
- Vietnam Human Rights Act of 2015
Subjects
Assigned by the Library of Congress. Policy area: International Affairs.
- Area studies and international education
- Asia
- Congressional oversight
- Cultural exchanges and relations
- Detention of persons
- Employment discrimination and employee rights
- Foreign aid and international relief
- Foreign language and bilingual programs
- Human rights
- Human trafficking
- International Affairs
- International exchange and broadcasting
- International law and treaties
- International organizations and cooperation
- Internet and video services
- Internet, web applications, social media
- Military assistance, sales, and agreements
- News media and reporting
- Political movements and philosophies
- Property rights
- Protest and dissent
- Racial and ethnic relations
- Refugees, asylum, displaced persons
- Religion
- Rule of law and government transparency
- Trade restrictions
- Vietnam
- Youth employment and child labor
Text 1
Each version as it was printed, newest first.
- Apr 30, 2015Introduced in House
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.
