Requiring Reports to Congress on Iran’s Financing of Airliner Purchases & Money Laundering (H.R. 4324)

What is H.R. 4324?

(Updated October 5, 2018)

This bill would require the Treasury Dept. to report to Congress on the Iranian government’s financing of civilian aircraft purchases. The Treasury Secretary would have to certify whether or not financial transactions to facilitate the export of aircraft to Iran involve activities that could be sanctioned under current law.

The first report would be required within 60 days of enactment, and reports would be required every 180 days thereafter. The reports would be required unless the president certifies to Congress that Iran isn’t at risk of financing terrorism, money laundering, and that ending the reports is in the interest of national security.

Argument in favor

Congress needs to be informed about whether Iran is using its purchases of commercial airliners to launder money so that it can finance terrorism. These reports are common sense.

Argument opposed

These reports are intended to prevent the U.S. from allowing Iran to purchase commercial airliners which is allowed under the nuclear deal, putting the U.S. at risk of violating the agreement.

Impact

Iran’s government; the Treasury Department; and Congress.

Cost of H.R. 4324

The CBO estimates that enacting this bill would have no significant cost.

Additional Info

In-Depth: Sponsoring Rep. Roger Williams (R-TX) introduced this bill to require the Treasury to report to Congress about financial transactions it authorizes involving Iran’s purchases of commercial airliners:

“The security of our nation is of the utmost importance, and I was proud to introduce a bill to increase congressional oversight on aircraft sales authorized by the U.S. Treasury Department to Iran. H.R. 4324 protects the interests of the United States’ financial institutions. Furthermore, it requires the Treasury Department to submit to Congress a report detailing certifications that must be made under the license agreement, and a review of Iran’s compliance under that agreement every 180 days. This is commonsense legislation that prioritizes American interests, and I urge House Leadership to consider this bill on the floor as soon as possible.”

House Democrats opposed this bill in its committee report:

"The sale of safe commercial planes to Iranian airlines allowed under the terms of the JCPOA will not appreciably increase Iran's military capability -- meanwhile, it's clear that these sales get Iran to spend tens of billions of dollars on Western commercial aircraft and not missile development, militant salaries, and weapons. Directing Iran's spending away from these things is a plus for U.S. national security, as hawks who worried very much about an Iranian "windfall" should recognize."

This legislation passed the House Financial Services Committee on a 38-21 vote and has the support of 12 cosponsors in the House, all of whom are Republicans.

Media:

• Sponsoring Rep. Roger Williams (R-TX) Press Release
  
• CBO Cost Estimate
  
• Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association