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H.R. 621House117th Congress (2021-2023)In Committee

BOLIVAR Act

Sponsored by Michael WaltzRep. Michael Waltz (R-FL)
Introduced January 28, 2021

AI-Generated Summary

Updated February 7, 2026 at 9:53 PM UTC

The BOLIVAR Act bars U.S. executive agencies from awarding contracts for goods or services to any person that conducts business with the Maduro government of Venezuela, which the United States does not recognize as legitimate. The ban applies to all federal procurement but includes exceptions for humanitarian aid, disaster relief, non‑combatant evacuations, vital national‑security interests, entities holding an OFAC license, and contracts supporting U.S. diplomatic posts in Venezuela.

Key Provisions

  • Prohibits executive‑agency contracts with any person that has business operations with the Maduro regime, unless an exception applies.
  • Allows contracts deemed necessary for humanitarian assistance, disaster relief, non‑combatant evacuations, or vital U.S. national‑security interests, provided the agency head and Secretary of State jointly approve them and notify the appropriate congressional committees.
  • Exempts entities that possess a valid Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) license to operate in Venezuela.
  • Exempts contracts related to operating and maintaining U.S. consular and diplomatic facilities in Venezuela.
  • Defines “business operations” broadly to include any commercial activity and defines “person” to cover individuals, corporations, partnerships, governmental entities, and related subsidiaries or affiliates.

Legislative Activity

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HouseIntro Referral Latest Action

Referred to the House Committee on Oversight and Reform.

Oversight and Government Reform Committee

January 28, 2021

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HouseIntro Referral

Introduced in House

January 28, 2021

HouseIntro Referral

Referred to the House Committee on Oversight and Reform.

Oversight and Government Reform Committee

January 28, 2021

Bill Text

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Introduced in HouseIssued January 28, 2021

I

117th CONGRESS

1st Session

H. R. 621

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

January 28, 2021

Mr. Waltz (for himself, Ms. Wasserman Schultz, Mr. Diaz-Balart, Mrs. Murphy of Florida, Ms. Salazar, Miss González-Colón, Mr. Gimenez, Mr. Gaetz, Mr. Hastings, Mr. Fitzpatrick, Mr. Posey, and Mr. Gonzalez of Ohio) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Oversight and Reform

A BILL

To prohibit contracting with persons that have business operations with the Maduro regime, and for other purposes.

1.

Short title

This Act may be cited as the Banning Operations and Leases with the Illegitimate Venezuelan Authoritarian Regime Act or the BOLIVAR Act.

2.

Prohibition on contracting with persons that have business operations with the Maduro regime

(a)

Prohibition

Except as provided under subsections (c), (d), and (e), the head of an executive agency may not enter into a contract for the procurement of goods or services with any person that has business operations with an authority of the government of Venezuela that is not recognized as the legitimate government of Venezuela by the United States Government.

(b)

Exceptions

(1)

In general

The prohibition under subsection (a) does not apply to a contract that the head of an executive agency and the Secretary of State jointly determine—

(A)

is necessary—

(i)

for purposes of providing humanitarian assistance to the people of Venezuela;

(ii)

for purposes of providing disaster relief and other urgent life-saving measures; or

(iii)

to carry out noncombatant evacuations; or

(B)

is vital to the national security interests of the United States.

(2)

Notification requirement

The head of an executive agency shall notify each appropriate congressional committee, the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives, and the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate of any contract entered into on the basis of an exception provided for under paragraph (1).

(c)

Office of foreign assets control licenses

The prohibition in subsection (a) shall not apply to a person that has a valid license to operate in Venezuela issued by the Office of Foreign Assets Control of the Department of the Treasury.

(d)

American diplomatic mission in Venezuela

The prohibition in subsection (a) shall not apply to contracts related to the operation and maintenance of the United States Government’s consular offices and diplomatic posts in Venezuela.

(e)

Definitions

In this section:

(1)

Business operations

The term business operations means engaging in commerce in any form, including acquiring, developing, maintaining, owning, selling, possessing, leasing, or operating equipment, facilities, personnel, products, services, personal property, real property, or any other apparatus of business or commerce.

(2)

Executive agency

The term executive agency has the meaning given the term in section 133 of title 41, United States Code.

(3)

Government of Venezuela

The term government of Venezuela includes the government of any political subdivision of Venezuela, and any agency or instrumentality of the Government of Venezuela. For purposes of this paragraph, the term agency or instrumentality of the Government of Venezuela means an agency or instrumentality of a foreign state as defined in section 1603(b) of title 28, United States Code, with each reference in such section to a foreign state deemed to be a reference to Venezuela.

(4)

Person

The term person means—

(A)

a natural person, corporation, company, business association, partnership, society, trust, or any other nongovernmental entity, organization, or group;

(B)

any governmental entity or instrumentality of a government, including a multilateral development institution (as defined in section 1701(c)(3) of the International Financial Institutions Act (22 U.S.C. 262r(c)(3))); and

(C)

any successor, subunit, parent entity, or subsidiary of, or any entity under common ownership or control with, any entity described in subparagraph (A) or (B).

(f)

Applicability

This section shall apply with respect to any contract entered into on or after the date of the enactment of this section.