United States

The topic of corruption and methods address it features heavily in the U.S. NAP.

Foreword [page 1]

“The United States is committed to promoting human rights and leading the global fight against corruption. Corruption is not only immoral, it diverts public and private resources away from priorities such as feeding children, improving schools, and building the infrastructure that promotes development. Corruption enables the abuse of human rights, erodes democratic institutions, fuels organized crime and terrorism, and contributes to economic inequality. For companies investing overseas, corruption is a significant market access barrier that impedes business and economic growth.

Through our partnerships with the private sector, labor groups, civil society, other governments, and international organizations, the United States has fought corruption overseas by encouraging companies to embrace high standards of responsible business conduct. U.S. companies are among the most sought-after partners across the globe because they take seriously their responsibility to follow the rule of law, uphold human and labor rights, and strengthen the communities in which they operate.”

Introduction

Purpose of the NAP [page 5]

“The NAP focuses on a broad range of issues including but not limited to: … anti-corruption …”

The National Action Plan

Leading by Example [page 7]

“The U.S. government remains committed to working with governments to raise global standards for RBC, including on labor rights, human rights, and anti-corruption, and to lead a race to the top. Promoting RBC benefits companies from all countries that fight corruption, combat human trafficking, promote labor and human rights, and adhere to high standards. Through leadership on these issues in various international organizations, including the UN and OECD, the U.S. government will continue to advocate for effective implementation of relevant international provisions in order to advance RBC”

Outcome 1.1: Promoting RBC Globally

New Actions [page 8]

“Corruption Consortium: An important deliverable from the International Anti-Corruption Summit held in the United Kingdom in May 2016, State and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) will launch the Global Anti-Corruption Consortium (GACC), a new initiative to support international efforts to expose corruption, raise public awareness, and facilitate action by government, law enforcement, and multilateral organizations. GACC will expand the quality and scope of civil society investigations and reporting by mentoring investigative journalists and facilitating collaboration among anticorruption civil society actors. The initiative will improve civil society’s ability to pursue action by government and international bodies to combat corruption.” – Implementing Department or Agency: State, USAID

Ongoing Commitments and Initiatives [page 8]

“Inter-American Convention Against Corruption: The United States will continue to actively support implementation of the Inter-American Convention Against Corruption, including through active participation in the country review process” – Implementing Department or Agency: DOJ, State, Treasury, Commerce

“Asia–Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC): The U.S. government has played an important role in numerous APEC initiatives to combat corruption, including the recent APEC Principles on the Prevention of Bribery and Enforcement of Anti-Bribery Laws, as well as the APEC General Elements of Effective Voluntary Corporate Compliance Programs adopted by APEC Leaders in 2014. For example, in August the United States and Peru hosted an all-day APEC Workshop on anti-bribery corporate compliance programs and incentives, organized by the Peruvian High-Level Anticorruption Commission and the Department of Commerce. The U.S. government is also actively engaged in the Business Ethics for APEC Small and Medium Enterprise Initiative, the world’s largest collective action mechanism to strengthen ethical business practices in the medical device, biopharmaceutical, and construction and engineering sectors.” – Implementing Department or Agency: State, Commerce

Outcome 1.2: Utilize U.S. Law, Multilateral Agreements, and Diplomacy to Promote and Enforce High Standards

Ongoing Commitments and Initiatives [page 9-10]

“Free Trade Agreements: … All U.S. FTAs since 2004 also contain transparency and anti-corruption provisions, including requiring our trading partners to criminalize both domestic and foreign bribery. For instance, the TPP includes a historic transparency and anti-corruption chapter. The TPP Parties have also agreed to encourage companies to voluntarily adopt corporate social responsibility principles that the TPP parties have themselves supported or endorsed relating to labor and environment issues.” – Implementing Department or Agency: USTR, State, Commerce, DOL

 “Anti-Bribery and the OECD: The United States plays a leadership role in the Anti-Bribery Convention’s monitoring mechanism, conducted by the OECD Working Group on Bribery in International Business Transactions, which has been instrumental in increasing the number of countries enacting and enforcing foreign bribery laws. In the coming year, the U.S. government – led by State, the Departments of Justice (DOJ) and Commerce, and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) – will continue to push for robust country reviews of Parties to the Antibribery Convention and examine obstacles to advancing the global efforts to address international bribery and corruption.” – Implementing Department or Agency: State, Commerce, DOJ, SEC

Outcome 1.2: Utilize U.S. Law, Multilateral Agreements, and Diplomacy to Promote and Enforce High Standards

Ongoing Commitments and Initiatives [page 10]

“International Anti-corruption and Good Governance Act (IAGGA): The U.S. government will continue its commitment to implement the IAGGA.” – Implementing Department or Agency: State, USAID, Commerce

Collaborating with Stakeholders [page 13]

“U.S. companies doing business around the world encounter a range of challenges, from lack of infrastructure, to corruption, to difficult operating environments. These challenges can hinder their ability to produce and deliver goods and services, and can also present dilemmas for companies seeking to operate responsibly and adhere to high standards.”

Outcome 2.1: Enhance the Value of Multi-Stakeholder Initiatives on RBC

New Action [page 14]

“Promoting Rights and Accountability through RBC: In May 2016, USAID launched a new Broad Agency Announcement calling for organizations and companies to collaborate in the development, piloting, testing, and scaling of innovative, practical, and cost-effective interventions to address human rights and anti-corruption in business activities globally. USAID seeks through this announcement to create more strategic, focused, and results-oriented approaches to generate solutions to rights abuses and corrupt practices in global commerce, and form partnerships to target risks and prevent violations. Under this umbrella announcement, USAID will continue its Supply Unchained initiative to better identify — and counter — human trafficking and other labor exploitation at its source.” – Implementing Department or Agency: USAID

“Wildlife Crime Tech Challenge: USAID’s Wildlife Crime Tech Challenge recently selected sixteen Prize Winners and four Grand Prize Winners who submitted the most creative, innovative, and promising science and technology solutions to combat terrestrial and marine wildlife crime, with a focus on combating corruption and reducing consumer demand for illegal wildlife products. Grand Prize Winner New England Aquarium’s solution will digitize customs paperwork and conduct real-time analysis to identify illegal wildlife products hidden in legitimate trade. The National Whistleblower Center, another Grand Prize Winner, will build a secure, transnational reporting system designed to fight corruption by incentivizing insiders to securely report wildlife crime.” – Implementing Department or Agency: USAID

 Ongoing Commitments and Initiatives [page 14-5]

“Open Government Partnership (OGP): In 2011, President Obama joined seven other heads of state to launch the OGP, a global platform between governments and civil society to promote government transparency, participation, and accountability to citizens. By June 2016, OGP had grown to 70 member states that have made over 2,500 commitments to further government transparency and accountability in just five years. OGP member states — and hundreds of civil society leaders — are committed to working together to promote transparency, empower citizens and civil society, fight corruption, and transform how governments deliver services for their citizens. The United States has released three NAPs under OGP, most recently publishing an update to its third action plan this past September. In demonstration of U.S. commitment to OGP, the USG intends to provide $4 million to support the OGP Support Unit over the next four years, potentially including support to members in the development of National Action Plans, government and civil society consultations, peer learning and exchange, and technical assistance programs. In addition, USAID Missions have financed millions of dollars-worth of OGP-related activities — $14 million in FY2015 alone — ranging from sponsoring citizen consultations, to coordinating OGP workshops with senior government officials, to providing technical assistance with implementation of OGP NAP commitments.”

Facilitating RBC by Companies [page 17]

“The U.S. government is supportive of company efforts to voluntarily report on human rights impacts, anti-trafficking measures, transparency and anti-corruption efforts, and other related aspects of their global operations, including the opportunities and challenges they face.”

Outcome 3.1: U.S. Government Reports

Ongoing Commitments and Initiatives [page 18]

“Country Commercial Guides: Commerce will continue to include an anti-corruption section in U.S. and Foreign Commercial Service Country Commercial Guides.” – Implementing Department or Agency: State, DOJ, SEC, Commerce

“Anti-Corruption Publications: U.S. government agencies will continue to provide information to companies through a number of U.S. and international publications designed to assist firms in complying with anti-corruption laws, including The FCPA Resource Guide.” – Implementing Department or Agency: State

Outcome 3.2: Build U.S. Government Officials’ Capacity to Support RBC

Ongoing Commitments and Initiatives [page 19]

“FCPA Training: State and Commerce will continue to provide FCPA and related anticorruption training to Commerce’s U.S. and Foreign Commercial Service officers and State Foreign Service officers so that they may raise awareness about corruption and compliance programs and assist U.S. companies as appropriate when confronted with corruption overseas.” – Implementing Department or Agency: State, Commerce, DOJ, SEC

Outcome 3.3: Capacity Building and Technical Support to Promote Enabling Environments

Ongoing Commitments and Initiatives [page 20]

“Engagement with Companies on Anti-Corruption Issues: DOJ, SEC, Commerce, State and other U.S. government agencies conduct outreach to the business community and will continue to coordinate with the private sector on anti-corruption issues. To this end, DOJ will continue to provide businesses, through its FCPA opinion release procedures, the opportunity to seek an opinion as to whether certain prospective, non-hypothetical conduct conforms with DOJ’s enforcement policy. Commerce and State, including through Foreign Commercial Service officers and State Foreign Service officers, will continue to raise awareness about corruption and the importance of effective compliance programs, and assist U.S. companies as appropriate when confronted with corruption overseas. High-level Commerce officials also meet with business leaders around the world and advocate with government officials on rule of law and anti-corruption issues, and the Commercial Law Development Program (CLDP) meets regularly with U.S. businesses to better understand their concerns about, and provide programming in priority countries on, the legal and regulatory reforms needed to reduce corruption and level the playing field in developing countries for U.S. companies.” – Implementing Department or Agency: DOJ, SEC, State, Commerce

Recognizing Positive Performance [page 22]

“Rewarding activities helps affirm and draw attention to the significant efforts of deserving companies, and serves to reinforce how the U.S. government and U.S. firms work together to leverage comparative advantages to accomplish shared objectives, whether it be in environmental sustainability, labor rights and human rights, or anti-corruption measures.”

Annex II: Key Domestic Executive Orders and Regulatory Efforts [page 26-29]

“… The U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act of 1977 (FCPA): In general, the FCPA prohibits certain classes of entities and individuals, including U.S. companies and citizens and companies publicly traded on a U.S. securities exchange, from offering to pay, paying, promising to pay, or authorizing payments to foreign officials to influence their acts or decisions or to secure other improper advantages.

”No Safe Haven” Initiative: The “No Safe Haven” initiative aims to deny entry into the United States and U.S. citizenship to the corrupt, to bribe payers, to those who benefit from corruption, those who commit certain human rights violations, and to human rights abusers and war criminals. The initiative is complemented by Presidential Proclamation 7750, which suspends the entry, in part, of public officials who accept bribes and the individuals who provide them, along with immediate family members of public officials who benefit from the corruption.

Kleptocracy Asset Recovery Initiative: DOJ uses legal tools to trace and recover the proceeds of foreign corruption in the United States. A team of prosecutors works with federal law enforcement agencies to track the proceeds of foreign corruption, prosecute those who launder the proceeds of corruption, and put forfeited assets to use for the benefit of the people of the country victimized by such abuses of public trust. The Initiative ensures that corrupt foreign leaders cannot seek to launder or spend their stolen wealth in the United States. DOJ also participates in various international fora on asset recovery and, along with the Departments of Treasury and State, pushes to strengthen the global implementation of the international anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing standards through the FATF. In addition to the Kleptocracy Initiative established in 2010, DOJ has five other anti-corruption programs. DOJ focuses on investigating and prosecuting domestic public integrity offenders, bribe payers, taxpayers who seek to conceal foreign accounts, and money launderers who facilitate the movement, use, and concealment of corrupt funds, and DOJ continues to provide legal assistance to its foreign partners to fight corruption and ensure it is not a profitable enterprise.

Money Laundering and Bank Integrity: Treasury administers the Bank Secrecy Act (BSA), which, among other things, requires financial institutions to maintain effective anti-money laundering (AML) compliance programs. Effective AML programs include, among other things, the ability to detect and report suspicious activity, including corruption, and to conduct due diligence and enhanced measures when banks, broker-dealers, or other institutions deal with senior foreign political figures. DOJ prosecutes criminal violations of the BSA focusing on criminal violations by financial institutions whose actions threaten the integrity of the individual institution or the wider financial system, as well as professional money launderers and gatekeepers. These unique cases reinforce the obligation on U.S. businesses in the financial sector to harden their infrastructure against financial crime—including bribery, misappropriation, and theft—and reinforce the private sector’s role as a strong line of defense against the introduction of ill-gotten gains to the U.S. financial system. …

 “Transparency: The U.S. government is engaging in efforts to strengthen financial and corporate transparency to make our country even less attractive for the corrupt looking to spend the proceeds of their crimes. To that end, DOJ has submitted to Congress a package of legislative proposals that will improve the United States’ ability to combat money laundering, particularly when linked to foreign official corruption, and to locate and recover stolen assets and other criminal proceeds. Additionally, Treasury recently announced a final rule to increase transparency in the financial system. The final Customer Due Diligence rule, which was first noticed in 2014 and was subject to a public comment process, will require that financial institutions—including banks and other entities—collect and verify the personal information of the real people (also known as beneficial owners) who own, control, and profit from companies when those companies open accounts. It clarifies and expands BSA obligations and will be fully implemented by financial institutions no later than two years after its effective date (i.e. May 11, 2018). Finally, Treasury, on behalf of the Administration, sent to Congress draft legislation that would require companies formed within the United States to file adequate, accurate, and current information on its beneficial owners with Treasury. The proposed legislation includes penalties for failure to comply and is necessary to prevent the misuse of companies formed under state law. To address potential vulnerabilities in the domestic real estate market, Treasury uses its authorities to require certain title insurance companies to identify the natural persons behind shell companies used to pay “all cash” for high-end real estate in six major metropolitan areas.”