PlainBillCongress, translated.Legislation. Context. Public interest.Referred to the House Committee on Foreign Affairs.
Congressional Research Service
Version 00 · Introduced in House · Sep 19, 2012
Foreign Prison Conditions Improvement Act of 2012 - Directs the Secretary of State to report annually to Congress for 5 years describing prison and detention facility conditions in at least 30 countries receiving U.S. assistance or under U.S. sanction selected as a result of the Secretary's determination that such conditions raise the most serious human rights or humanitarian concerns.
Urges the Secretary and the Administrator of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) to provide assistance to eliminate inhumane conditions in prisons and other detention facilities. Prohibits such funds from being used to construct new prisons.
Directs the Secretary to enter into negotiations to achieve the purposes of this Act with a government listed in the report as not making significant compliance efforts. Authorizes the Secretary and the Administrator to restructure or reduce U.S. assistance to such government in order to achieve such purposes.
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Directs the Secretary to: (1) establish within the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor a full-time equivalent Deputy Assistant Secretary level position to advance the purposes of this Act; and (2) provide training for Foreign Service officers in assessing foreign prison and detention facility conditions.
People & committees
Rep. Smith, Christopher H. [R-NJ-4] · R–NJ
Legislative record
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Referred to the House Committee on Foreign Affairs.
Introduced in House
Introduced in House
Primary sources
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Source last updated: Dec 5, 2025. Consult Congress.gov for the current record.
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