New Act Targets Foreign Harassment on U.S. Soil, Mandates New Training for FBI and State Dept. Staff

The Transnational Repression Policy Act is the government’s new playbook for dealing with foreign governments that try to harass, intimidate, or harm people living here in the U.S. or U.S. citizens abroad. Think of it as a formal strategy to stop nations from reaching across borders to silence critics, journalists, or activists who have sought refuge or are simply living their lives here.

This isn’t just a policy statement; the bill sets a 270-day deadline for the Secretary of State to deliver a comprehensive, interagency strategy. This strategy must cover everything from diplomatic efforts to supporting victims and updating U.S. law enforcement tools. Essentially, the U.S. is trying to make it much more expensive, politically and legally, for foreign regimes to treat the U.S. as an extension of their police state.

When Your Boss Is a Foreign Government

For the purposes of this law, "transnational repression" is defined broadly to cover all the ways a foreign government or its proxies try to mess with people outside their country—this includes activists, journalists, students, and diaspora communities. If you’re a software engineer whose family back home is being threatened because you criticized the government online, or a journalist who finds out your foreign-owned work laptop is compromised, this law is aimed at protecting you.

One of the most immediate changes is the push for better training. The bill mandates specialized training for State Department staff—especially those working overseas—on how to spot these tactics, including digital surveillance tools and cooperation between repressive governments (SEC. 5). Domestically, the Attorney General and Homeland Security must train FBI agents, Customs, ICE, and local law enforcement on who is at risk and how to handle these threats without endangering the victims further.

The Fine Print: Expanding Law Enforcement Power

While the goal is protection, the strategy report requires a serious look at expanding existing law enforcement powers, which is where things get tricky. Specifically, the government must assess updating laws like the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA) and 18 U.S.C. § 951. They are considering making it a crime to gather information on private individuals in diaspora communities on behalf of a foreign government specifically to help harass them (SEC. 4).

For regular folks, this means the government is trying to close legal loopholes used by foreign agents. But for members of diaspora communities, the concern is that expanding who qualifies as a “foreign agent” could unintentionally lead to overreach or create a chilling effect on legitimate political expression or cultural activities. The bill does include a crucial safeguard, requiring the strategy to consider how any new legal powers might accidentally affect the civil liberties of the very communities they’re trying to protect, taking input from those communities into account. The effectiveness of this bill hinges entirely on how seriously that safeguard is taken during implementation.

The Data Trail and Unofficial Police Stations

The Act also addresses modern digital threats. The Attorney General must produce a report assessing how data—the kind foreign governments buy on the open market—is being misused to track and target victims. This assessment specifically looks at companies exporting spyware and those buying and selling personal information (SEC. 6). This is a direct acknowledgment that the digital tools of repression are often bought, not built.

Finally, the strategy must examine the legality of foreign governments setting up unofficial overseas police stations here in the U.S. (SEC. 4). If you’ve heard reports of these stations operating in major U.S. cities, this bill forces the government to formally investigate and determine how to shut down these unauthorized operations. This provision is a clear response to the most brazen examples of foreign governments trying to assert jurisdiction on U.S. soil.