Moskowitz Joins Bipartisan Group Seeking to Crack Down on Wrongful Detention of Americans Abroad

WASHINGTON, DC — Congressmen Jared Moskowitz (D-FL-23), along with Congressmen French Hill (R-AR-02), Josh Gottheimer (D-NJ-05), Mike Lawler (R-NY-17), and Tom Kean Jr. (R-NJ-07), recently introduced their Countering Wrongful Detention Act of 2025. The bipartisan bill cracks down on the wrongful detention of U.S. citizens and permanent residents abroad by empowering Congress and the U.S. Secretary of State to hold state and nonstate actors accountable for the practice.

“For years, my constituent Bob Levinson was illegally, unjustly, and unacceptably held by the Iranian regime,” said Congressman Moskowitz. “Bad actors like these can’t detain Americans without cause and think they can get away with it. I’m helping lead the Countering Wrongful Detention Act becausethis bipartisan bill puts real tools in place that’ll crack down on this practice and send a strong, bipartisan signal that our government will hold accountable any state or nonstate actors who threaten Americans in this way.”

“When Americans are wrongfully detained abroad, it’s not just a personal tragedy — it’s a direct attack on the United States,” said Congressman Hill. “Those who wrongfully detain Americans must know that there will be real consequences for using U.S. citizens as political pawns. That’s why our bill gives the State Department the tools it needs to hold bad actors accountable while keeping Congress firmly engaged in the process. This bipartisan bill is a strong step toward protecting Americans by deterring and punishing them.”

Under the Countering Wrongful Detention Act of 2025, the U.S. Secretary of State would receive new authority to formally designate state or nonstate actors as sponsors of unlawful or wrongful detention, creating a deterrent framework similar to the existing state sponsors of terrorism designation. Once designated, the Secretary may impose a range of penalties, including economic and diplomatic consequences, on the actors.

Sarah (Levinson) Moriarty, Fellow with New America Future Security Program, said, “Since the introduction of PPD30 ten years ago, and the Robert A. Levinson Hostage Recovery and Hostage Taking Accountability Act in 2019, we have seen marked improvement in how our government handles the cases of American nationals held hostage by state and nonstate actors. This important bipartisan legislation, coming at such a critical time when Americans continue to be taken on a weekly basis as political bargaining chips, is a giant leap forward in creating tangible deterrence that stops bad actors from continuing this horrific practice. Thank you to Representatives Hill, Gottheimer, Kean Jr., Lawler, and Moskowitz for their leadership on this issue. We hope to see this legislation passed by Congress and swiftly signed into law, as we know it will help prevent so many Americans from falling victim to the suffering that my father, my family, my friends in the hostage community, and far too many others have experienced.”

Moskowitz is a senior member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, where he leads its Subcommittee on Oversight & Intelligence as Ranking Member. This Congress, Moskowitz is also leading the No Paydays for Hostage-Takers Act. The bill, led alongside Congressman Michael Baumgartner (R-WA-05) strengthens U.S. deterrence of state-sponsored hostage-taking and the wrongful detention of U.S. nationals—particularly against the government of Iran. It recently passed the House Foreign Affairs Committee on a bipartisan 45-6 vote.

For more information on the bipartisan Countering Wrongful Detention Act of 2025, click HERE.

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