Description:
H.R. 3289 would require the Administration to impose sanctions on foreign persons (individuals or entities) responsible for human rights violations in Hong Kong. By requiring sanctions, CBO estimates that enacting H.R. 3289 would increase the number of people who would be denied visas by the Department of State and the number who would be subject to civil or criminal penalties. Most visa fees are retained by the department and spent without further appropriation, but some fees are deposited in the Treasury as revenues. Penalties also are recorded as revenues, and a portion of those penalties can be spent without further appropriation. Because CBO expects that very few additional people would be affected, CBO estimates that those provisions would have insignificant effects on both revenues and direct spending. H.R. 3289 also would require the department to report to the Congress on: Hong Kong’s autonomy and whether it should retain its current treatment under U.S. law, treaties, and agreements; The risk to U.S. citizens and interests from legislation proposed by the Hong Kong government; and Sanctions imposed under the bill. In addition, the Department of Commerce would be required to report on violations in Hong Kong of U.S. laws governing exports and sanctions. On the basis of information about the costs of administering similar sanctions and preparing reports, CBO estimates that implementing H.R. 3289 would cost less than $500,000 each year and total $1 million over the 2020-2024 period; such spending would be subject to the availability of appropriated funds.
