S.Amdt. 3795

SA 3795. Mr. MERKLEY submitted an amendment intended to be proposed
by him to the bill S. 2296, to authorize appropriations for fiscal year
2026 for military activities of the Department of Defense, for military
construction, and for defense activities of the Department of Energy,
to prescribe military personnel strengths for such fiscal year, and for
other purposes; which was ordered to lie on the table; as follows:

At the appropriate place in subtitle F of title X, insert
the following:

SEC. 10___. PROTECTING AMERICAN HOUSEHOLDS FROM RISING ENERGY
COSTS.

(a) Prohibition on Exports of Liquefied Natural Gas to
Certain Countries.--
(1) Prohibitions.--
(A) In general.--Notwithstanding any other provision of
law, unless a waiver has been issued under paragraph (2), no
person or entity may export or resell, either directly or
indirectly through 1 or more third parties, liquefied natural
gas--
(i) to any entity operating in the territory of, or
territory owned by, the People's Republic of China (or the
Chinese Communist Party), the Russian Federation, the
Democratic People's Republic of Korea, or the Islamic
Republic of Iran; or
(ii) to any entity that is under the ownership or control,
as determined by the Secretary of Energy (referred to in this
section as the ``Secretary'') in consultation with the
Secretary of the Treasury and the Secretary of Commerce, of
the People's Republic of China (or the Chinese Communist
Party), the Russian Federation, the Democratic People's
Republic of Korea, or the Islamic Republic of Iran.
(B) Responsibility.--It is the responsibility of the export
authorization holder to ensure compliance with this section
and any other applicable law or policy, including rules,
regulations, orders, and other determinations made by--
(i) the Office of Foreign Assets Control of the Department
of the Treasury; and
(ii) the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.
(2) Waiver.--
(A) In general.--On application by an exporter, the
Secretary may waive, prior to the date of the applicable
contract, the prohibitions described in paragraph (1) with
respect to the sale of liquefied natural gas.
(B) Requirement.--The Secretary may issue a waiver under
this paragraph only if the Secretary determines that an
imminent and acute national security emergency to the United
States exists and that other means of responding to the
emergency would be inadequate.
(C) Applications.--An exporter seeking a waiver under this
paragraph shall submit to the Secretary an application by
such date, in such form, and containing such information as
the Secretary may require.
(D) Notice to congress.--Not later than 15 days after
issuing a waiver under this paragraph, the Secretary shall
provide a copy of the waiver to the Committee on Energy and
Natural Resources of the Senate and the Committee on Energy
and Commerce of the House of Representatives.
(3) Rulemaking.--The Secretary may promulgate, amend, and
rescind rules and regulations, as the Secretary determines to
be appropriate, to carry out this section.
(b) Enforcement Provisions.--
(1) Unlawful acts.--It shall be unlawful for a person to
violate, attempt to violate, conspire to violate, or cause a
violation of any prohibition of, or any waiver, license,
order, or regulation issued pursuant to this section.
(2) Civil penalty.--
(A) In general.--The Secretary may impose a civil penalty
on any person who commits an unlawful act described in
paragraph (1) in an amount not to exceed the greater of--
(i) $250,000,000; and
(ii) an amount that is twice the amount of the transaction
that is the basis of the violation with respect to which the
penalty is imposed.
(B) Notice and opportunity for hearing.--A civil penalty
under subparagraph (A) may be imposed by the Secretary by an
order made on the record after providing written notice to
the person to be assessed the civil penalty and an
opportunity for a hearing in accordance with this section and
sections 554 through 557 of title 5, United States Code.
(C) Civil action.--If a person described in subparagraph
(A) fails to pay a civil penalty imposed by the Secretary
under this paragraph after receiving notice and an
opportunity for a hearing under subparagraph (B), the
Secretary may bring a civil action against that person in an
appropriate district court of the United States.
(D) Relief.--If a civil action brought by the Secretary
under subparagraph (C) is successful, the applicable court
may grant appropriate relief, including--
(i) a temporary injunction;
(ii) a permanent injunction; and
(iii) enforcing the civil penalties described in
subparagraph (A).
(3) Criminal penalty.--A person who knowingly commits,
knowingly attempts to commit, or knowingly conspires to
commit, or aids or abets in the commission of, an unlawful
act described in paragraph (1) shall be fined not more than
$100,000,000, imprisoned for not more than 20 years, or both.
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