PlainBillCongress, translated.Legislation. Context. Public interest.Read twice and referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations.
Congressional Research Service
Version 00 · Introduced in Senate · Apr 5, 2017
Combating Global Corruption Act of 2017
This bill directs the the Department of State to annually publish on a publicly accessible website a three-tiered ranking based upon the extent of compliance by a foreign country's government with the minimum anti-corruption standards prescribed in this bill.
The bill states that a government is complying with such standards if it:
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has enacted and judicially enforces laws, and has established structures and practices, that prohibit corruption;
prescribes punishment for grand corruption that is commensurate with the punishment for serious crimes;
prescribes punishment for petty corruption that provides a sufficient deterrent and reflects the nature of the offense; and
is making sustained anti-corruption efforts.
The State Department shall, prior to the obligation of any foreign assistance (except humanitarian, disaster, and anti-corruption assistance) to a tier 3 country:
conduct a corruption risk assessment and create a corruption mitigation strategy for all foreign assistance programs to that country,
require the inclusion of anti-corruption clauses for all foreign assistance contracts and grants,
require the inclusion of clawback clauses for all foreign assistance contracts and grants to recover U.S. taxpayer funds that have been misappropriated through corruption,
require disclosure of the beneficial ownership of all entities receiving foreign assistance funding, and
establish a mechanism for investigating allegations of misappropriated foreign assistance funds or equipment.
The State Department and the U.S. Agency for International Development shall: (1) consolidate existing reports with anti-corruption components into one online, public platform; and (2) incorporate anti-corruption components into existing Foreign Service and Civil Service training courses.
People & committees
Sen. Cardin, Benjamin L. [D-MD] · D–MD
Legislative record
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Read twice and referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations.
Introduced in Senate
Primary sources
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Source last updated: Aug 11, 2025. Consult Congress.gov for the current record.
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