Stop Foreign Payoffs Act · Congress.wiki

Legislation Details

Amends title 5, United States Code, to require senior government officials and their family members to divest foreign financial interests.
Establishes the “Stop Foreign Payoffs Act.”
Covered individuals must not hold any foreign financial interest and must divest such interests by converting them to cash or other investments, or by placing them in a qualified blind trust or a diversified trust.
Divestiture of foreign financial interests must occur within 30 days after regulations are promulgated or within 30 days of assuming office for new officials.
Prohibits covered individuals from receiving any wage, salary, dividend, or any other payment from any foreign business.
The Attorney General can bring civil actions against individuals who knowingly, willfully, or negligently violate these provisions, with penalties up to twice the value of the foreign financial interest or payment received unlawfully.
Defines “covered individual” as the President, Members of Congress, cabinet-level positions, and their spouses, children, or the spouses of their children.
Defines “foreign business” and “foreign financial interest,” excluding interests in foreign private issuers of securities publicly traded on U.S. stock exchanges.
Directs the Director of the Office of Government Ethics and the ethics committees of the House and Senate to promulgate regulations to implement these requirements within 120 days of the enactment of the Act.