# 119-hr-5274: Western Balkans Democracy and Prosperity Act 119-hr-5274, Western Balkans Democracy and Prosperity Act, is a 119th Congress bill sponsored by Rep. Keating, William R. [D-MA-9] (D-MA); status introduced; PRIA reads it as touching household money (as of 2026-04-21). - Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-5274 - As of: 2026-04-21 - Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts. ## Facts - Bill: 119-hr-5274 - Congress: 119 - Title: Western Balkans Democracy and Prosperity Act - Status: introduced - Introduced: 2025-09-10 - Sponsor: Rep. Keating, William R. [D-MA-9] (D-MA) - Cosponsors: 3 - Policy area: International Affairs - Touches household money: yes - Last recorded action: 2026-04-21 ## Summary **Strengthening democratic governance and resilience in the Western Balkans** is the bill's central goal. It would deepen U.S. engagement across anti-corruption, trade, energy diversification, cyber resilience, and youth and educational programs. - Would expand people-to-people and workforce pathways by broadening the Young Balkan Leaders Initiative, authorizing fellowships for young leaders ages 18–35, and directing a Peace Corps expansion report within 180 days. - Would create an Anti-Corruption Initiative led by the Secretary of State to support judicial independence, election oversight, public procurement integrity, independent media, and require a public 5-year strategy within 180 days that prioritizes cyber resilience, regional trade, and economic competitiveness. - Would strengthen security and economic tools by codifying sanctions authorities with an 8-year sunset, ordering interagency cyber resilience reporting within one year, and authorizing a regional trade and development program to boost U.S. exports and deter malign investment. ## Cosponsors (3) - Rep. Malliotakis, Nicole [R-NY-11] (R-NY), 2025-09-10T00:00:00.000Z - Rep. Goldman, Daniel S. [D-NY-10] (D-NY), 2025-09-10T00:00:00.000Z - Rep. Fitzpatrick, Brian K. [R-PA-1] (R-PA), 2025-10-17T00:00:00.000Z ## Provisions PRIA read - Anti-corruption push in Western Balkans: benefit, medium. The State Department would set up an anti-corruption program in each Western Balkans country. It would train police, courts, and agencies, and support free media and journalist training. Extra technical help would only expand if a host government agrees to make a new national anti-corruption strate… - More exchanges for Balkan students and youth: benefit, medium. The government would fund partnerships between U.S. and Western Balkans universities. Grants could support research on policy, cyber resilience, and disinformation, plus curriculum reforms, English teaching, and job skills for at-risk youth, women, and people with disabilities. The BOLD program wou… - Plan to grow Balkan trade and startups: benefit, medium. State and USAID would deliver a regional economic and democratic resilience strategy within 180 days, with a progress briefing in 90 days. The plan would coordinate with the EU and others, and cover clean energy, agriculture, small businesses, health, and cybersecurity, plus a public diplomacy plan… - Defines which countries count as Western Balkans: benefit, low. The bill would define the Western Balkans as Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia, and Serbia. These definitions would set which countries could get help or face rules under this Act. They would take effect upon enactment. - Regular reports on foreign influence and cyber: benefit, low. The Secretary of State would report within 180 days, and every two years after, on Russian and Chinese influence operations in the Western Balkans. The reports would assess goals, tactics, effects on alliances, and U.S. countermeasures, and recommend next steps. A separate interagency report would… - Sanctions rules with humanitarian carve-outs: mixed, medium. This would keep certain Western Balkans sanctions designations in place under prior executive orders and keep those authorities active. It would exclude the importation of goods from blocking and create humanitarian exceptions for food, medicine, medical devices, and related transactions. The Presi… ## Related bills - 119-hr-2725: Affordable Housing Credit Improvement Act of 2025 - 119-hr-1229: United States-Israel Defense Partnership Act of 2025 - 119-hr-7977: Energy Bills Relief Act - 119-hr-3151: SHIPS for America Act of 2025 - 119-hr-1262: Mikaela Naylon Give Kids a Chance Act - 119-hr-1065: Protect Our Letter Carriers Act of 2025 ## Sources - [119-hr-5274 on Congress.gov](https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/house-bill/5274) ## Related - [119-hr-2725: Affordable Housing Credit Improvement Act of 2025](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-2725) - [119-hr-1229: United States-Israel Defense Partnership Act of 2025](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-1229) - [119-hr-7977: Energy Bills Relief Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-7977) - [119-hr-3151: SHIPS for America Act of 2025](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-3151) - [119-hr-1262: Mikaela Naylon Give Kids a Chance Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-1262) - [119-hr-1065: Protect Our Letter Carriers Act of 2025](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-1065) - [All bills in Congress](https://policyrisk.com/legislation) Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-hr-5274 (as of 2026-04-21).