Washington, D.C. – Today, the House Foreign Affairs Committee, chaired by Rep. Ed Royce (R-CA), passed three bipartisan measures.  A summary of the Committee action, including adopted amendments, will be available HERE.

The Committee passed H.R. 3662, Iran Terror Finance Transparency Act (introduced by Rep. Russell (R-OK)), which enhances congressional oversight and ensures the administration does not lift sanctions against individuals involved in Iran’s ballistic missiles program or terrorism.

Upon passage of H.R. 3662, Chairman Royce said:  “Since the Obama Administration sealed the Iran nuclear deal, Tehran has been on a roll.  It has accelerated its missile program, taken more Americans hostage, and stepped up its slaughter in Syria. And in a few weeks, it will cash-in with tens of billions in sanctions relief.  All of this comes with no pushback from the Administration.  And now we understand that some entities set for sanctions relief – like Iran’s Bank Meli and Bank Sepah – will be given a pass for backing ballistic missile development and terrorism. 

“As Members will recall from Secretary Kerry’s testimony before us, it wasn’t supposed to be this way.  The Administration repeatedly told us while pursuing a nuclear deal that it would not let up the pressure on Iran’s support for terrorism, or its ballistic missile program.  This legislation holds the Administration to those commitments.” 

Also, the Committee passed, as amended, H.R. 4314, Counterterrorism Screening and Assistance Act of 2016 (introduced by Rep. Lee Zeldin (R-NY)), which requires a plan to combat international travel by terrorists and foreign fighters, accelerates the transfer of certain border security systems to foreign partner governments, establishes minimum international border security standards, and authorizes the suspension of foreign assistance to countries not making significant efforts to comply with such minimum standards.

Upon passage of H.R. 4314, Chairman Royce said:  “The horrific terrorist attacks in Paris showed how easy it has become for terrorists and foreign fighters to move across open borders.  This important legislation makes several changes to combat this problem by requiring the Departments of State and Homeland Security to produce an annual ‘score card’ assessing the border security efforts of countries around the world and establishing minimum standards for border security.” 

Additionally, the Committee passed, as amended, H.R. 1797, End Neglected Tropical Diseases Act (introduced by Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ)), which facilitates effective research on and treatment of neglected tropical diseases, including Ebola, through coordinated domestic and international efforts.

A summary of the Committee action, including adopted amendments, will be available HERE.

###