LegiStorm

Summary:

Cuba under Fidel Castro remains a hard-line communist state with a poor record on human rights that has deteriorated significantly since 2003. With the cutoff of assistance from the former Soviet Union, Cuba experienced severe economic deterioration from 1989 to 1993. While there has been some improvement since 1994, as Cuba has implemented limited reforms, the economy remains in poor shape. Since the early 1960s, U.S. policy toward Cuba has consisted largely of isolating the island nation through comprehensive economic sanctions. Another component of U.S. policy consists of support measures for the Cuban people, including private humanitarian donations and U.S.-sponsored radio and television broadcasting to Cuba. The Bush Administration has further tightened restrictions on travel for family visits, other categories of travel, and on sending private humanitarian assistance to Cuba. While there appears to be broad agreement on the overall objective of U.S. policy toward Cuba -- to help bring democracy and respect for human rights to the island, there are several schools of thought on how to achieve that objective. Some advocate maximum pressure on the Cuban government until reforms are enacted; others argue for lifting some U.S. sanctions that they believe are hurting the Cuban people. Still others call for a swift normalization of U.S.-Cuban relations. Several FY2005 appropriations bills had provisions that would have eased Cuba sanctions, but ultimately these provisions were not included in the FY2005 omnibus appropriations measure ( H.R. 4818 , H.Rept. 108-792 ). The House-passed version of the FY2005 Commerce, Justice, and State appropriations bill, H.R. 4754 , would have prohibited funds to implement recent restrictions on gift parcels and on baggage for travelers. The House-passed version of the FY2005 Transportation/Treasury appropriations bill, H.R. 5025 , had three Cuba provisions that would have eased sanctions on family and educational travel, and on private commercial sales of agricultural and medical products; the Senate committee version of the bill, S. 2806 , would have prohibited funds from administering or enforcing restrictions on Cuba travel. The Senate committee version of the FY2005 Agriculture appropriation bill, S. 2803 , would have eased restrictions on travel to Cuba if it was related to the commercial sale of agricultural and medical products. The Administration had threatened to veto both the Transportation/Treasury and Agriculture appropriations measures if they had provisions weakening Cuba sanctions. In other action, the 108th Congress demonstrated concern about the poor human rights situation by approving four resolutions: S.Res. 97 , H.Res. 179 , S.Res. 62 , and S.Res. 328 . Numerous additional legislative initiatives were introduced that would have eased sanctions on Cuba, but no action was completed on these bills: H.R. 187 , H.R. 188 , H.R. 1698 , H.R. 2071 , H.R. 3422 , H.R. 4678 , S. 403 , S. 950 , and S. 2449 / H.R. 4457 . Two initiatives, H.R. 3470 and H.R. 3670 , would have tightened sanctions. H.R. 2494 / S. 2002 would have repealed a provision in law that prohibits trademark registration or courts from considering trademark claims if the trademark was used in connection with confiscated assets in Cuba; in contrast, H.R. 4225 / S. 2373 would have applied a narrow fix to the law so that it conformed with a World Trade Organization ruling.