No Tax Dollars for Terrorists Act
The No Tax Dollars for Terrorists Act would require the United States to adopt a formal strategy aimed at stopping foreign governments and nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) from providing financial or material support to the Taliban. The bill directs the State Department to identify actors that assist the Taliban, assess how U.S. aid is used by those actors, and develop a strategy to discourage such support—leveraging U.S. foreign assistance to influence these actors. It also imposes a series of reporting requirements related to Afghanistan-focused cash assistance programs and the Afghan Fund, including how funds are distributed, monitored, and protected from Taliban access or misuse. The overarching purpose is to cut off or deter external support that could empower the Taliban, while increasing transparency around U.S.-funded programs and financial flows in Afghanistan. Key elements include a required rapid report on actors providing support to the Taliban, a State Department strategy to discourage such support with implementation timelines, ongoing reporting on strategy effectiveness, a separate report detailing U.S.-funded direct cash assistance programs in Afghanistan (with specifics on payment methods, hawala networks, and oversight), and regular status updates on the Afghan Fund and Taliban influence over Da Afghanistan Bank. The bill uses the term hawala to describe informal money transfer networks and aims to tighten oversight to prevent Taliban access to U.S.-funded funds.
Key Points
- 1Policy objective and scope: The bill instructs the United States to oppose foreign government and NGO financial or material support to the Taliban, especially for entities receiving U.S. foreign assistance, and to review U.S. aid to those actors.
- 2Initial identification and reporting: Within 30 days of enactment, the Secretary of State must identify foreign countries and NGOs that have supported the Taliban, report on the amount of U.S. aid those actors receive, outline how they’ve supported the Taliban, and summarize U.S. efforts since August 2021 to oppose such support.
- 3Strategy development and implementation: The Secretary of State must develop a strategy within 30 days and implement it within 60 days, including using U.S. foreign assistance to discourage Taliban-supporting actors; the Secretary must also provide an initial strategy report and then ongoing reports every 180 days on implementation and impact.
- 4Afghanistan direct cash assistance program reporting: Within 60 days, a report detailing U.S.-funded direct cash programs in Afghanistan (Aug 1, 2021 to 30 days after enactment) is required, covering partners, recipients, payment methods, currency exchanges, hawala usage, oversight, and measures to prevent Taliban access.
- 5Afghan Fund oversight and Taliban influence: The bill requires ongoing reports on the status of the Afghan Fund every 180 days, including a list of Taliban members connected to Da Afghanistan Bank, Taliban influence over the bank, vetting and governance of the Afghan Fund’s Board of Trustees, disbursement conditions, Board decision criteria, and safeguards to prevent misuse or diversion of funds.