McCaul Pushes Biden Admin to Implement New Iran Sanctions

House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Michael McCaul, R-Texas, said Aug. 14 that the Biden administration should move more quickly to implement new Iran sanctions that Congress approved four months ago. “The only way to deter Iran and its proxies is through a clear display of strength and resolve," McCaul said in a statement.

Although McCaul didn't mention specific sanctions, Rep. Jim Banks, R-Ind., said last month that the administration missed a deadline for implementing his new Mahsa Amini Human Rights and Security Accountability (MAHSA) Act, which calls for sanctioning Iranian leaders for human rights abuses and support for terrorism. President Joe Biden was supposed to have issued an assessment of potential sanctions under the MAHSA Act by late July, Banks said.

The White House had no immediate comment on the statements by McCaul and Banks.

The MAHSA Act was among several Iran sanctions bills included in the 21st Century Peace through Strength Act, which was folded into the FY 2024 national security supplemental appropriations bill that Biden signed into law in April (see 2404240043).

A State Department official recently told Rep. Mike Lawler, R-N.Y., that the administration is reviewing the requirements of two new laws authorizing sanctions on Iranian oil (see 2408120032). Those laws, which were included in the 21st Century Peace through Strength Act, are required to be implemented by October but could be used sooner, a Lawler spokesperson said.