# Plain Language Summary: STOP CCP Act of 2023

This bill prevents Americans from investing in Chinese companies that work on military equipment or surveillance technology. If you own stocks, mutual funds, or other investments tied to Chinese defense contractors or surveillance companies, this law would make those investments illegal. The ban applies to individual investors, investment firms, pension funds, and basically any American person or company. It also blocks people from helping others make these investments—so financial advisors, brokers, and banks couldn't facilitate these transactions either.

The bill gives the Treasury Department the power to decide which Chinese companies fall into the "military" and "surveillance" categories. This includes not just the companies themselves, but also any companies they own, any companies that own them, and any companies created through mergers or spin-offs involving these military-linked businesses. The Treasury Department has six months to expand an existing government list of Chinese military companies to make it more comprehensive and harder for companies to slip through the cracks.

The law also tries to close what it sees as loopholes in existing sanctions. If a Chinese company gets sanctioned under one law, it automatically gets sanctioned under all other applicable laws too—unless the President specifically waives the sanctions for national security reasons. If the President does grant a waiver, they have to tell Congress within 20 days and explain why. Similarly, if sanctions are lifted, the President must report that to Congress as well.

For most Americans, this mainly affects retirement accounts and investment portfolios that might hold Chinese stocks or index funds tracking Chinese markets. Financial institutions will need to review their holdings and divest from affected companies. The practical impact depends on how broadly the Treasury Department defines "military" and "surveillance" companies when they create the expanded list.

STOP CCP Act of 2023

Self, Keith

Sanction Transactions Originating from Pernicious Chinese Companies and Policies Act of 2023 or the STOP CCP Act of 2023&nbsp;This bill prohibits U.S. persons (generally individuals and entities subject to U.S. jurisdiction) from trading in publicly traded securities with certain ties to China and expands the list of Chinese entities subject to sanctions.The bill prohibits the purchase or sale, or related transaction, of securities issued by any person that operates or has operated in the defense sector or the surveillance technology sector of the economy of China.Further, the Department of the Treasury must expand the Non-Specially Designated Nationals Chinese Military-Industrial Complex Companies List maintained by the Office of Foreign Assets Control to include any entity that supports the Chinese military-industrial complex. (This list identifies individuals and entities subject to U.S. sanctions.)&nbsp;