Editor's note: this story was translated from the original VOA Korean article.
It has been more than four years since the North Korean Human Rights Act expired; with little chance the legislation will be reauthorized by U.S. Congress this year.
With the expiration of the law in 2022, all major provisions that were extended during the re-approval in 2018 have passed the time limit. This includes the basis for budget approval for programs aimed at promoting human rights and democracy in North Korea and humanitarian assistance to North Koreans outside the border.
As a result, the legal obligation for the administration to regularly report to the parliament on the human rights situation in North Korea and the status of North Korean defectors also has expired.
Late last year, Republican Representative Young Kim and Democratic Representative Ami Bera introduced the North Korean Human Rights Reauthorization Act of 2025. The bill calls for China to immediately halt the forced repatriation of North Korean residents. It also encourages reunification of Korean American families with their war-torn loved ones.
The bill also requires the East Asia and Pacific Assistant Secretary to provide an annual report on activities to coordinate and promote human rights for the next five years and ensures that the position of special envoy for North Korean Human Rights Issues is filled in a timely manner.
Eleven members of both parties cosponsored the bill, but no further action has been taken since it was referred to the House Foreign Affairs Committee.
In the U.S. Senate, Democratic Representative Tim Kaine and Republican Representative Dan Sullivan introduced legislation in June that would re-apply humanitarian aid and democracy programs by 2030, and place sanctions on Chinese and Russian officials responsible for the forced repatriation of North Korean defectors. It also included a provision that requires the administration to report to Congress if the North Korean human rights special envoy position remains vacant, and what steps are being taken to fill it.
"Kim Jong-un's administration has committed terrible human rights violations against its own people," Congressman Kaine told VOA in a written statement. "The bipartisan North Korean human rights re-approval law will re-approve more resources to promote North Korean human rights... And I will continue to cooperate with fellow lawmakers so that the bill can pass the final gate."
VOA contacted Kim, Bera and Sullivan's offices for additional comments but did not receive a reply at the time of publication.
Congress is adjourned ahead of the midterm elections on November 3 and will return to Capitol Hill the week of November 9. There are less than two months left until the end of the legislative session. Given the number of pressing issues that U.S. lawmakers are dealing with, in addition to the slim majority in both the Senate and the House of Representatives, it is uncertain if Congress will take up the issue and pass North Korea human rights legislation this year.