Senators Push Biden Admin to Implement New Iran Sanctions Laws

A bipartisan group of seven senators led by Sen. Kyrsten Sinema, I-Ariz., urged the Biden administration last week to speed up implementation of new Iran sanctions laws, including a measure aimed at curbing the country’s oil revenue.

In a letter to several officials, including Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, the senators called on the administration to address the laws' five reporting and regulation-publishing deadlines it has already missed and honor three deadlines set for this month.

“Given the havoc Iran is wreaking in the Middle East and the wider region, this information is both timely and vital for Congress to carry out appropriate sanctions oversight and understand what greater legislative action is required to ensure Iran does not have the resources to harm the United States or our partners and allies,” the letter says. “We look forward to these timely reports and enhanced understanding of the administration’s plan to counter Iranian oil trade and accessible revenue for their funding of terrorism.”

The new laws, enacted in April, include the Stop Harboring Iranian Petroleum (SHIP) Act, which requires sanctions on foreign ports and refineries that process Iranian oil, and the Fight and Combat Rampant Iranian Missile Exports (Fight CRIME) act, which sanctions people involved in Iranian missile proliferation.

Co-signing Sinema’s letter were Sens. Jacky Rosen, D-Nev.; Tammy Baldwin, D-Wis.; Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa; Bob Casey, D-Pa.; Eric Schmitt, R-Mo.; and John Hoeven, R-N.D.

Four Republican lawmakers raised similar concerns in a letter last month (see 2409190053). The administration has said it's working to implement the new laws (see 2408120032 and 2409160054).