Loading the public record
Loading the public record
Where They Stand is a nonpartisan guide to everyone running for Congress: their money, their own words and how incumbents voted. Find your ballot →
All recent votes114th CongressHouse
(Sec. 3) This bill declares that it shall be U.S. policy not to pay ransom or release prisoners for the purpose of securing the release of U.S. citizens taken hostage abroad.
(Sec. 4) The U.S. government is prohibited from providing monetary instruments or precious metals to the government of Iran.
The conduct of a transaction or payment in connection with an agreement to settle a claim or claims brought before the Iran-United States Claims Tribunal (established on January 19, 1981) may be made only: (1) on a case-by-case basis pursuant to a specific license by the Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control, and (2) in a manner that does not contradict such monetary instruments or precious metals prohibition. The President must publish in the Federal Register a list of such transactions or payments. The term "agreement to settle a claim or claims brought before the Iran-United States Claims Tribunal" shall not be construed to mean a promissory note.
The prohibition on the transfer of monetary instruments or precious metals and the licensing requirement shall remain in effect until the President certifies that: (1) a preliminary or final rule providing for Iran's designation as a jurisdiction of primary money laundering concern has been rescinded, and (2) the Department of State has removed Iran from the list of countries that have repeatedly provided support for acts of international terrorism.
(Sec. 5) The President shall submit within 30 days and every 180 days for up to 3 years a report that evaluates each outstanding claim before the tribunal, including its value, current status, and likelihood of resolution within 6 months.
(Sec. 6) The President shall provide notice not later than 30 days before conducting a transaction or payment from the U.S. government to the government of Iran in connection with a claim settlement agreement.
Such notice shall include:
the total amount of the settlement, including principal and interest;
(Sec. 7) Nothing in this bill shall: (1) apply to activities subject to the non-covert intelligence reporting requirements under title V of the National Security Act of 1947, or (2) be construed to authorize any U.S. government payment to the government of Iran.
(Sec. 9) The "government of Iran" means:
the state and the government of Iran, as well as any related political subdivision, agency, or instrumentality;
(Sec. 10) The bill prohibits the President and all U.S. government officers from making a payment to a government, person, or entity to secure the release of unjustly detained U.S. nationals or permanent resident aliens, except that such prohibition does not prohibit the U.S. government from providing assistance to such nationals or permanent residents.
(Sec. 11) The President shall, within 60 days, block transactions in U.S.-sited or -controlled property and property interests with respect to any Iranian person or entity that:
is involved in the kidnapping or detention of any U.S. national or permanent resident alien;
The requirement to block and prohibit all property and property interest transactions shall not include the authority to impose sanctions on the importation of goods.
(Sec. 12) The U.S. government may not provide monetary instruments or precious metals to the government of, or to an agent working on behalf of, a state sponsor of terrorism.
Such prohibition shall apply to an agency or instrumentality of the government of the Democratic Peoples' Republic of Korea, or an agent acting on its behalf, in the same manner and to the same extent as would apply to an agency or instrumentality of a state sponsor of terrorism.
Written by the nonpartisan Congressional Research Service, describing H.R. 5931 as passed House amended on Sep 22, 2016. It is not the text of the measure; a later amendment may have changed what it does.
Sep 22, 2016Each bar: ✓ Yea from the bottom, ✕ Nay aboveSep 22, 2016
House Sep 22, 2016 · the primary vote
To provide for the prohibition on cash payments to the Government of Iran, and for other purposes
Passed
254 Yea 163 Nay 14 not voting
Party-line vote 17 of 417 voting members broke with their own party: 16 Democrats, 1 Republican.
DemocratsRepublicansFilled: YeaRing: NayGrey: not voting or present
431 members on this roll call, from the official House record. Party majorities need at least five voting members, so an independent never counts as breaking with a party.
Signing on is not a vote: a member can cosponsor H.R. 5931 and vote against it. 26 signed when it was filed.