Today, the House Committee on Foreign Affairs advanced legislation containing provisions from H.R. 4179, known as the Countering Wrongful Detention Act of 2025. The bill was co-led by Rep. French Hill (AR-02), Rep. Josh Gottheimer (NJ-05), Rep. Tom Kean Jr. (NJ-07), Rep. Mike Lawler (NY-17), and Rep. Jared Moskowitz (FL-23). Its language was included in a larger legislative package, the Department of State Policy Provisions Act.
Rep. Hill commented, “At a time when foreign adversaries are increasingly targeting Americans, it’s vital for the U.S. government to have the ability to deter and punish those who would use our citizens as pawns. Including language from the Countering Wrongful Detention Act in the State Authorization bill makes clear that those who wrongfully detain Americans will face real consequences and gives the State Department stronger tools to hold bad actors accountable. Our bipartisan measure is a strong step toward protecting our citizens and keeping Congress fully engaged in the process, and I’m grateful to Chairman Mast and Ranking Member Meeks for their leadership.”
Rep. Kean Jr., another co-lead on the bill, stated, “Far too many American families have endured the fear and heartbreak of having a loved one taken hostage overseas and used as a political pawn. Hostile regimes like Iran continue to exploit innocent Americans as bargaining chips, subjecting them to mistreatment, dehumanization, and even death. The Countering Wrongful Detention Act, which I co-led, was included in the Department of State Policy Provisions Act that passed out of the Foreign Affairs Committee today. This measure sends a clear message that such actions will carry consequences, and the United States will go to great lengths to protect its citizens. I look forward to advancing this legislation through the House and ultimately seeing it signed into law.”
Rep. Gottheimer added, “As the United States faces increasing threats from foreign adversaries, protecting Americans abroad must remain a top priority. I’m proud that the bipartisan Countering Wrongful Detention Act, which I helped introduce with Congressman Hill, has passed out of committee as part of the State Department Policy Provisions Act. This bipartisan bill will help bring home Americans wrongfully detained around the world and strengthen efforts to prevent future hostage-taking. To those being held, and their families, our message is clear: we stand with you and we are fighting every day to bring you home.”
Rep. Lawler remarked on his role as Chairman of the Middle East and North Africa Subcommittee: “As a co-lead on the Countering Wrongful Detention Act, I’m proud to see this bipartisan legislation advance through the Foreign Affairs Committee as part of H.R. 5300. Hostile regimes like China, Russia, and Iran have used American citizens as bargaining chips for too long. The United States will not stand by when our citizens are unlawfully detained abroad.”
The incorporated language gives new authority to designate countries or nonstate actors as state sponsors of unlawful or wrongful detention—similar in approach to how state sponsors of terrorism are designated.
French Hill has represented Arkansas’s 2nd District in Congress since 2015 after succeeding Tim Griffin; he was born in Little Rock in 1956 where he still resides today.
