S.Amdt. 5976

This amendment, submitted by Mr. Cornyn and Mr. Kaine, adds a new section to bill S. 4784 called the United States Legal Gold and Mining Partnership Act.

The purpose of this amendment is to create a comprehensive plan to stop illegal gold mining in the Western Hemisphere. It aims to break the link between gold mining and criminal actors, such as terrorist groups and drug traffickers, who use the trade to make money.

Key additions to the bill include:

• The Legal Gold and Mining Partnership Strategy: Requires the Secretary of State to develop a multi-year plan to fight illicit mining. This plan includes stopping the financing of criminal actors, protecting the environment from contamination, and helping small-scale miners move into legal, regulated business.

• Accountability and Oversight: The President must submit this strategy to Congress within 180 days, and the Secretary must provide briefings every six months for the next three years.

• Focus on Venezuela: Requires a classified briefing on illicit gold activities in Venezuela and calls for international financial investigations to track assets stolen from the Venezuelan people.

• Public-Private Partnerships: Directs the Secretary to work with governments like Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru to create partnerships that support legal mining standards, traceability, and certification of gold.

• Legal Changes: Updates the U.S. Code to include the exploitation of precious metals by criminal and terrorist organizations as a primary money laundering concern.

• Limitation on Force: Explicitly states that nothing in this section allows for the use of U.S. military force or the introduction of U.S. forces into hostilities.