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Enhanced Partnership with Pakistan Act of 2009

Public Law 111-73 · S. 1707 · 111th Congress · began in the Senate

Signed by Barack Obama (D) on Oct 15, 2009 · International Affairs

Sponsor: Sen. John Kerry (D-MA)

Cosponsors (1): Sen. Richard Lugar

Passage votes

  • HouseVoice vote
  • SenateUnanimous consent
Data notes

The final version of the law, as each chamber passed it. A chamber that passed it by voice vote or unanimous consent has no count. “Method not stated” means the record does not say how the chamber voted. Where the record has a member-by-member vote, the “Who voted for it” section shows who voted yea.

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Summary

The Congressional Research Service’s plain-language summary of what the law does.

Enhanced Partnership with Pakistan Act of 2009 - (Sec. 4) Specifies principles that Congress declares should be the basis of the relationship between the United States and Pakistan.

Title I: Democratic, Economic, and Development Assistance for Pakistan - (Sec. 101) Authorizes the President to provide assistance to Pakistan to support: (1) democratic institutions; (2) efforts to expand the rule of law, build capacity, transparency, and trust in government institutions, as well as promote human rights; (3) economic freedom and development; (4) investments in people, particularly women and children; and (5) public diplomacy to combat militant extremism and promote a better understanding of the United States. Encourages the President to use Pakistani firms and organizations to provide such assistance.

Obligates specified funds for: (1) FY2010 police professionalization, equipping, and training; (2) administrative expenses; and (3) establishment of a Chief of Mission fund to provide assistance to address urgent needs or opportunities or for humanitarian relief.

Directs the President to notify Congress prior to obligating FY2010-FY2014 assistance under this section and to include in such notification a description of the purpose and conditions attached to any such assistance.

(Sec. 102) Authorizes FY2010-FY2014 appropriations for assistance to Pakistan under this title and the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961.

Prohibits any of such funds from being made available to Pakistan unless the Pakistan Assistance Strategy Report has been submitted to Congress.

Limits the amount of such funds available to Pakistan unless the President's Special Representative to Afghanistan and Pakistan certifies to Congress that assistance to Pakistan has made or is making substantial progress toward achieving U.S. assistance objectives.

Provides for a national security waiver of funding restrictions.

Expresses the sense of Congress that, subject to an improving political and economic climate in Pakistan, there should be authorized to be appropriated up to $1.5 billion for each of FY2015-FY2019 for assistance to Pakistan under the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961.

(Sec. 103) Directs the Inspector General of the Department, the Inspector General of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), and the inspectors general of other federal departments and agencies (other than the Inspector General of the Department of Defense (DOD)) carrying out programs under this title to audit fund expenditures. Authorizes the establishment of in-country field offices in Pakistan.

Allocates FY2010-FY2014 funds for such purposes.

Title II: Security Assistance for Pakistan - (Sec. 201) States that the purposes of assistance under this title are to: (1) support Pakistan's paramount national security need to win the ongoing counterinsurgency within its borders in accordance with its national security interests; (2) work with the government of Pakistan to improve border security and to coordinate action against extremist and terrorist targets; and (3) help strengthen the institutions of democratic governance and promote control of military institutions by a democratically elected civilian government.

(Sec. 202) Authorizes FY2010-FY2014 appropriations for Pakistan for: (1) military education and training under the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961; and (2) purchase of defense articles, defense services, and military education and training under the Arms Export Control Act.

Expresses the sense of Congress that: (1) a substantial amount of such funds should be used for counterinsurgency, counterterrorism, and civil-military relations purposes; and (2) the United States should facilitate Pakistan's establishment of a program to provide reconstruction assistance in areas damaged by combat operations.

Authorizes the Secretary, in order to foster greater mutual respect for and understanding of the principle of civilian rule of the military, to establish an exchange program between military and civilian personnel of Pakistan and: (1) military and civilian personnel of countries determined to be in the process of consolidating and strengthening a democratic form of government; or (2) military and civilian personnel of North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) member countries. Authorizes FY2010-FY2014 appropriations.

(Sec. 203) Prohibits FY2010-FY2014 security-related assistance and arms transfers to Pakistan until the Secretary certifies that: (1) Pakistan's government is continuing to cooperate with the United States to dismantle supplier networks relating to the acquisition of nuclear weapons-related materials; (2) Pakistan's government is making significant efforts towards combating terrorist groups; and (3) Pakistan's security forces are not subverting Pakistan's political or judicial processes. Prohibits any funds appropriated for security-related assistance for FY2010-FY2014, or any amounts appropriated to the Pakistan Counterinsurgency Capability Fund established under the Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2009, from being used to make payments relating to specified letters of offer and acceptance between the Pakistan and the United States, other than for construction. Provides for a national security waiver of such prohibitions.

(Sec. 204) Prescribes FY2010 requirements for the Department's Pakistan Counterinsurgency Capability Fund.

States that Fund amounts are to be used by the Secretary to build Pakistan's counterinsurgency capability under the same conditions as apply to FY2009.

(Sec. 205) Restricts the provision of FY2010-FY2014 direct cash security-related U.S. assistance or non-assistance payments to Pakistan to only civilian authorities of a civilian government. Provides for a national security waiver of such restriction.

Title III: Strategy, Accountability, Monitoring, and Other Provisions - (Sec. 301) Directs the Secretary to submit a Pakistan Assistance Strategy Report to Congress. Requires the Plan to include descriptions of: (1) assistance objectives; (2) programs and assistance levels; (3) roles to be played by Pakistani national, regional, and local entities; and (4) steps taken to prevent assistance from being awarded to terrorist-affiliated individuals or entities.

Expresses the sense of Congress that: (1) the achievement of U.S. national security goals to eliminate terrorist threats and close safe havens in Pakistan requires a comprehensive plan that utilizes all elements of national power; and (2) it is critical to Pakistan's long-term prosperity and security to strengthen regional relationships among India, Pakistan, and Afghanistan.

Directs the President to: (1) develop an interagency regional security strategy to eliminate terrorist threats and close safe havens in Pakistan, including working with the government of Pakistan and other governments and organizations to implement counterinsurgency and counterterrorism efforts in Pakistan's border areas, including the Federally Administered Tribal Areas of Pakistan, the North West Frontier Province of Pakistan, parts of Balochistan, and parts of Punjab; and (2) report to Congress regarding such strategy.

Directs the Secretary to submit a FY2010-FY2014 security-related assistance plan to Congress.

(Sec. 302) Sets forth specified assistance monitoring report requirements for the Secretary and the Comptroller General.

Committees

The record shows no committee referral for this bill.

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Related bills

2 bills the Library of Congress relates to this one.

  • H.R. 3642Identical bill

    Enhanced Partnership with Pakistan Act of 2009

  • S. 962Related bill

    Enhanced Partnership with Pakistan Act of 2009

Data notes

Related bills are identified by the Congressional Research Service, the House and the Senate: companion and identical bills, bills with similar text, bills that were folded into this law, and rules that brought it to the floor. A bill that is itself a public law in this site’s data links here; the others link to Congress.gov.

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Timeline

From introduction to signing, newest first: the committees, the floor and the president. 14 actions.

  1. Oct 15, 2009Became lawBecame law · Became Public Law No: 111-73.
  2. Became lawBecame law · Signed by President.
  3. Oct 5, 2009FloorFloor · Presented to President.
  4. Sep 30, 2009FloorFloor · Motion to reconsider laid on the table Agreed to without objection.
  5. FloorFloor · On motion to suspend the rules and pass the bill Agreed to by voice vote.
  6. FloorFloor · DEBATE - The House proceeded with forty minutes of debate on S. 1707.
  7. FloorFloor · Considered under suspension of the rules.
  8. FloorFloor · Mr. Berman moved to suspend the rules and pass the bill.
  9. OtherOther · Cleared for White House.
  10. Sep 25, 2009FloorFloor · Held at the desk.
  11. FloorFloor · Received in the House.
  12. Sep 24, 2009FloorFloor · Message on Senate action sent to the House.
  13. FloorFloor · Introduced in the Senate, read twice, considered, read the third time, and passed without amendment by Unanimous Consent.
  14. IntroducedIntroduced · Introduced in Senate
Data notes

Every action the Library of Congress lists for the bill, from introduction to signing, plus the dated committee hearings. The source lists many steps twice (the chamber’s own entry and the Library of Congress copy, or a presidential and a became-law entry with the same words); those are shown once. Amendments are listed in their own section.

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Amendments

No amendments to this bill are on record.

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Amendments offered to this bill in either chamber, as the Library of Congress records them: each with a status read from its last recorded step: agreed to, rejected, withdrawn, ruled out of order, fell with another amendment, or offered with no vote recorded (most Senate amendments are only ever offered). The wording of each amendment is the source’s. Amendments to amendments and amendments to other bills are not listed.

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Official record

The bill’s full text is on Congress.gov. Data through Oct 7, 2026.