Statements & Press Releases

House Committee Passes Key Anticorruption Bill with Bipartisan Support

04/21/2021

TI-US calls on full House of Representatives to quickly approve the bill

A statement from the U.S. office of Transparency International 

 April 21, 2021

Today, the U.S. House Foreign Affairs Committee unanimously approved the Countering Russian and Other Overseas Kleptocracy Act (“CROOK Act”). The CROOK Act, which was introduced in the U.S. House in January by Reps. Bill Keating (D-MA) and Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA), would impose a new penalty on the most egregious violators of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act—the U.S.’s leading law against foreign bribery—and invest the proceeds of those penalties into programs that fight corruption overseas.

Scott Greytak, Director of Advocacy for Transparency International’s U.S. Office (TI-US), said the following on the passage of the bill: 

Bribery and other forms of corruption undermine the rule of law and lead to the decay of democratic institutions. We see this in every region of the world. Countries like Honduras and Ukraine have fallen to autocratic leadership, in part, because there were insufficient resources to fully and effectively support those who would stand up and fight back. In many cases, social and economic chaos follow, creating instability, economic hardship, and refugee crises.

The CROOK Act will bring dedicated new resources and strategic, intragovernmental coordination to the fight against corruption. It is a simple idea with the potential for high impact. And there is inherent justice in funding anticorruption efforts with the fees and fines collected from those who engage in corrupt activity.

Today’s unanimous vote proves once again that the fight against foreign corruption is a true bipartisan priority. The full House of Representatives must act on today's shared purpose and sense of urgency by passing the CROOK Act with expediency.

Related Resources

  • Read the text of the CROOK Act;
  • Read TI-US's factsheet on what the CROOK Act does and why it is needed;
  • Read a letter from 30 anticorruption organizations and prominent individuals supporting the CROOK Act.

Media Contact 

Scott Greytak, Director of Advocacy, Transparency International U.S. Office
Telephone: +1 614-668-0258
Email: sgreytak@transparency.org
Twitter: @TransparencyUSA 

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