[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 9649 Introduced in House (IH)]

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118th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 9649

 To restore funding for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for 
              Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA).


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           September 18, 2024

 Mr. Carson (for himself, Ms. Jayapal, Ms. Schakowsky, Ms. Adams, Ms. 
 Balint, Ms. Barragan, Mr. Beyer, Ms. Bonamici, Mr. Bowman, Ms. Bush, 
Mr. Cardenas, Mr. Casar, Mr. Castro of Texas, Ms. Chu, Mr. Cleaver, Mr. 
Courtney, Mr. Davis of Illinois, Ms. Dean of Pennsylvania, Ms. DeGette, 
 Ms. DeLauro, Mr. DeSaulnier, Mrs. Dingell, Mr. Doggett, Ms. Escobar, 
   Mr. Evans, Mrs. Foushee, Mr. Frost, Mr. Garamendi, Mr. Garcia of 
 Illinois, Mr. Green of Texas, Mr. Grijalva, Mrs. Hayes, Mr. Huffman, 
   Mr. Jackson of Illinois, Ms. Jacobs, Mr. Johnson of Georgia, Mr. 
Khanna, Mr. Kildee, Ms. Lee of California, Ms. Lee of Pennsylvania, Ms. 
 Leger Fernandez, Ms. Lofgren, Mr. Lynch, Ms. McCollum, Mr. McGovern, 
 Mr. Mfume, Ms. Moore of Wisconsin, Ms. Norton, Ms. Ocasio-Cortez, Ms. 
 Omar, Ms. Pingree, Mr. Pocan, Ms. Pressley, Mrs. Ramirez, Mr. Raskin, 
   Ms. Sanchez, Ms. Stansbury, Ms. Tlaib, Ms. Tokuda, Mr. Tonko, Ms. 
    Velazquez, Ms. Waters, and Mrs. Watson Coleman) introduced the 
 following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To restore funding for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for 
              Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA).

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``UNRWA Funding Emergency Restoration 
Act of 2024''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress finds the following:
            (1) The humanitarian crisis in Gaza has reached a 
        catastrophic emergency level, with two million Palestinian 
        civilians suffering daily due to escalating conflict and 
        deprivation.
            (2) The Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) 
        has warned of imminent famine in northern Gaza if humanitarian 
        assistance, including food, water, and medicine, are not 
        immediately provided to Palestinian civilians. Hostilities 
        hindering the delivery of aid in southern Gaza threaten to 
        create a similar situation. United States Agency for 
        International Development Director Samantha Power testified 
        that famine is currently underway in parts of Gaza.
            (3) The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for 
        Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) has since 1949 
        played a vital and central role in providing shelter, 
        education, healthcare, and financial assistance to millions of 
        Palestinians living in vulnerable refugee communities across 
        Gaza, the West Bank, Syria, Lebanon, and Jordan.
            (4) UNRWA's aid operations are essential to meeting the 
        humanitarian needs of Palestinian civilians in Gaza and beyond. 
        U.S. United Nations Alternative Representative for Special 
        Political Affairs Robert Wood expressed to the United Nations 
        Security Council that UNRWA is critical to averting a famine in 
        Gaza, stating ``Other United Nations agencies and humanitarian 
        organizations have reiterated they are not equipped to replace 
        UNRWA, as UNRWA performs essential government-like functions 
        their organizations do not have the capacity or structure to 
        deliver.''.
            (5) UNRWA remains the primary distributor of aid in Gaza 
        and is essential to accommodating any humanitarian aid surge to 
        the besieged population.
            (6) Following allegations of direct involvement by 
        individual UNRWA employees in the devastating terrorist attacks 
        of October 7, 2023, UNRWA Commissioner-General Lazzarini acted 
        swiftly and decisively, fully cooperating with Israeli 
        authorities, publicly disclosing the allegations, and 
        immediately terminating all the employees involved.
            (7) United Nations Secretary-General Guterres has taken 
        additional corrective steps, including by completing an 
        investigation into the allegations by the United Nation's 
        highest oversight body, the Office of Internal Oversight 
        Services (OIOS).
            (8) In April 2024, an independent, outside review concluded 
        that UNRWA has established a significant number of mechanisms 
        and procedures to ensure compliance with humanitarian 
        principles with an emphasis on the principle of neutrality. 
        This review included recommendations for steps to strengthen 
        neutrality policies, all of which UNRWA immediately agreed to 
        implement.
            (9) Almost all parties, including the European Union, 
        United Kingdom, Germany, Sweden, Japan, France, Switzerland, 
        Canada, The Netherlands, Australia, Italy, Austria, Finland, 
        Iceland, Romania, and Estonia have already restored funding to 
        UNRWA following these strong actions taken by the United 
        Nations and the commitments made by UNRWA toward complete 
        accountability and reform.
            (10) Ireland, Portugal, Spain, Belgium have since provided 
        resources to UNRWA above their original commitments.
            (11) The United States has historically been the largest 
        funder of UNRWA, and plays a pivotal role in supporting the 
        agency's critical mission.
            (12) Properly vetted funding for UNRWA remains in the 
        comprehensive strategic interests of the United States, and its 
        allies.

SEC. 3. STATEMENT OF POLICY.

    Congress--
            (1) recognizes that preventing further erosion of civilian 
        conditions in Gaza remains in the strategic and moral interests 
        of the United States;
            (2) supports UNRWA's unique and indispensable contribution 
        to immediately addressing urgent humanitarian needs in Gaza, 
        especially in mitigating and stopping the spread of famine;
            (3) urges the Government of Israel to assist the United 
        Nations Office of Internal Oversight Services (OIOS) 
        investigation team in its critical work;
            (4) urges the Administration--
                    (A) to join United States allies in restoring 
                funding to UNRWA given the responsible actions taken by 
                the United Nations and UNRWA as well as the commitments 
                made by UNRWA toward additional accountability, 
                transparency, and reform; and
                    (B) to ensure continued funding to UNRWA is 
                assessed based on UNRWA's ongoing execution of the 
                recommendations of the independent outside review led 
                by former French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna;
            (5) recognizes implementation of some of the independent 
        outside review recommendations will require United Nations 
        member state cooperation, including additional funding, and 
        urges the United States and Israel to assist UNRWA in its 
        implementation efforts; and
            (6) supports appropriating critical funds to UNRWA for 
        fiscal year 2025.

SEC. 4. RESTORATION OF FUNDING FOR UNRWA.

    (a) In General.--Effective on the date of the enactment of this 
Act--
            (1) title III of division G of the Further Consolidated 
        Appropriations Act, 2024 (Public Law 118-47) is hereby 
        repealed;
            (2) section 308 of the Israel Security Supplemental 
        Appropriations Act, 2024 (division A of Public Law 118-50) is 
        hereby repealed; and
            (3) the Secretary of State shall, notwithstanding any other 
        provision of law and as soon as practicable--
                    (A) rescind the temporary pause in funding for 
                UNRWA as described in the press statement entitled 
                ``Statement on UNRWA Allegations'' issued on January 
                26, 2024; and
                    (B) resume the provision of funding to UNRWA under 
                current authorities of the Department of State.
    (b) Reports.--Not later than 90 days after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, and quarterly thereafter through December 31, 
2027, the Secretary of State shall submit to the appropriate 
congressional committees of jurisdiction a report on the steps UNRWA is 
taking to implement any recommendations made by the independent outside 
review led by former French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna.
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