Caribbean Basin Security Initiative Authorization Act
This bill would formally authorize the Caribbean Basin Security Initiative (CBSI), a U.S. government program led by the State Department and USAID, to operate in a defined set of Caribbean beneficiary countries. It lays out broad purposes centered on improving citizen safety, strengthening the rule of law, countering transnational crime and corruption, and boosting natural disaster resilience. The bill assigns specific activities—such as maritime and border security cooperation, law enforcement and judiciary capacity building, anti-corruption work, and cybersecurity—while also prioritizing strategies to counter malign influence from authoritarian regimes and to improve public diplomacy about U.S. security assistance. It authorizes a total of $88 million annually, for fiscal years 2025 through 2029, and requires a detailed implementation plan within 180 days of enactment, plus annual progress reports. The plan must outline objectives, measurable benchmarks, agency role delineations to avoid overlap, coordination across federal departments, and a strategy to co-locate certain projects. Additionally, the bill adds a five-year, dedicated program to increase natural disaster response and resilience, with its own strategy and annual updates.
Key Points
- 1Authorized program: Creates the Caribbean Basin Security Initiative, to be carried out by the Secretary of State and USAID in beneficiary Caribbean countries to achieve security, rule-of-law, and resilience goals.
- 2Purposes (8 core aims):
- 3Beneficiary countries: Antigua and Barbuda; Bahamas; Barbados; Dominica; Dominican Republic; Grenada; Guyana; Jamaica; Saint Lucia; Saint Kitts and Nevis; Saint Vincent and the Grenadines; Suriname; Trinidad and Tobago.
- 4Funding: Authorization of $88 million per fiscal year from 2025 through 2029 for CBSI activities.
- 5Implementation planning: Within 180 days, the State Department and USAID must deliver an implementation plan with a multi-year strategy, measurable benchmarks, clear agency roles to prevent overlap, a plan to track activities across agencies (in line with the Foreign Aid Transparency and Accountability Act), and a plan to co-locate certain development and law enforcement funding where needed.
- 6Accountability and reporting: Annual progress updates on strategy implementation, benchmarks, and funding by country.
- 7Natural disaster resilience program: A separate five-year program to improve disaster response and resilience, including cross-government coordination, best-practice sharing, and rapid-response improvements, with its own strategy and annual progress reporting.