[House Hearing, 114 Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
COUNTERTERRORISM SCREENING AND
ASSISTANCE ACT OF 2015; IRAN TERROR
FINANCE TRANSPARENCY ACT; AND END
NEGLECTED TROPICAL DISEASES ACT
=======================================================================
MARKUP
BEFORE THE
COMMITTEE ON FOREIGN AFFAIRS
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
ONE HUNDRED FOURTEENTH CONGRESS
SECOND SESSION
ON
H.R. 4314, H.R. 3662 and H.R. 1797
__________
JANUARY 7, 2016
__________
Serial No. 114-134
__________
Printed for the use of the Committee on Foreign Affairs
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Available via the World Wide Web: http://www.foreignaffairs.house.gov/
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______
U.S. GOVERNMENT PUBLISHING OFFICE
98-188 PDF WASHINGTON : 2016
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Washington, DC 20402-0001
COMMITTEE ON FOREIGN AFFAIRS
EDWARD R. ROYCE, California, Chairman
CHRISTOPHER H. SMITH, New Jersey ELIOT L. ENGEL, New York
ILEANA ROS-LEHTINEN, Florida BRAD SHERMAN, California
DANA ROHRABACHER, California GREGORY W. MEEKS, New York
STEVE CHABOT, Ohio ALBIO SIRES, New Jersey
JOE WILSON, South Carolina GERALD E. CONNOLLY, Virginia
MICHAEL T. McCAUL, Texas THEODORE E. DEUTCH, Florida
TED POE, Texas BRIAN HIGGINS, New York
MATT SALMON, Arizona KAREN BASS, California
DARRELL E. ISSA, California WILLIAM KEATING, Massachusetts
TOM MARINO, Pennsylvania DAVID CICILLINE, Rhode Island
JEFF DUNCAN, South Carolina ALAN GRAYSON, Florida
MO BROOKS, Alabama AMI BERA, California
PAUL COOK, California ALAN S. LOWENTHAL, California
RANDY K. WEBER SR., Texas GRACE MENG, New York
SCOTT PERRY, Pennsylvania LOIS FRANKEL, Florida
RON DeSANTIS, Florida TULSI GABBARD, Hawaii
MARK MEADOWS, North Carolina JOAQUIN CASTRO, Texas
TED S. YOHO, Florida ROBIN L. KELLY, Illinois
CURT CLAWSON, Florida BRENDAN F. BOYLE, Pennsylvania
SCOTT DesJARLAIS, Tennessee
REID J. RIBBLE, Wisconsin
DAVID A. TROTT, Michigan
LEE M. ZELDIN, New York
DANIEL DONOVAN, New York
Amy Porter, Chief of Staff Thomas Sheehy, Staff Director
Jason Steinbaum, Democratic Staff Director
C O N T E N T S
----------
Page
MARKUP OF
H.R. 4314, To require a plan to combat international travel by
terrorists and foreign fighters, accelerate the transfer of
certain border security systems to foreign partner governments,
establish minimum international border security standards,
authorize the suspension of foreign assistance to countries not
making significant efforts to comply with such minimum
standards, and for other purposes.............................. 2
Amendment to H.R. 4314 offered by the Honorable Edward R.
Royce, a Representative in Congress from the State of
California, and chairman, Committee on Foreign Affairs....... 19
H.R. 3662, To enhance congressional oversight over the
administration of sanctions against certain Iranian terrorism
financiers, and for other purposes............................. 25
H.R. 1797, To facilitate effective research on and treatment of
neglected tropical diseases, including Ebola, through
coordinated domestic and international efforts................. 44
Amendment to H.R. 1797 offered by the Honorable Christopher H.
Smith, a Representative in Congress from the State of New
Jersey....................................................... 68
LETTERS, STATEMENTS, ETC., SUBMITTED FOR THE RECORD
APPENDIX
Markup notice.................................................... 80
Markup minutes................................................... 81
Markup summary................................................... 83
The Honorable Christopher H. Smith:
Prepared statement............................................. 84
Material submitted for the record.............................. 85
COUNTERTERRORISM SCREENING AND
ASSISTANCE ACT OF 2015; IRAN TERROR
FINANCE TRANSPARENCY ACT; AND END
NEGLECTED TROPICAL DISEASES ACT
----------
THURSDAY, JANUARY 7, 2016
House of Representatives,
Committee on Foreign Affairs,
Washington, DC.
The committee met, pursuant to notice, at 10:06 a.m., in
room 2172, Rayburn House Office Building, Hon. Ed Royce
(chairman of the committee) presiding.
Chairman Royce. This committee will come to order.
Pursuant to notice, we meet today to mark up three bills.
And, without objection, all members may have 5 days to submit
statements for the record and any extraneous material on any of
today's business.
As members were notified yesterday, we are going to
consider each bill separately. For each item, after the opening
remarks by myself and the ranking member, I will recognize any
member seeking recognition to speak on the bill.
So, for the purpose of marking up, I now call up H.R. 4314,
the Counterterrorism Screening and Assistance Act. Without
objection, it is considered read, and it is open for amendment
at any point. And also without objection, as members were
notified yesterday, we are going to consider this item en bloc
with Royce Amendment 92, a manager's amendment that was
provided to your offices. And that amendment is in your
packets.
[The information referred to follows:]
[GRAPHIC(S) NOT AVAILABLE IN TIFF FORMAT]
Chairman Royce. I now recognize myself to speak.
So I would like to begin by thanking Mr. Zeldin for his
work on this legislation. This is the Counterterrorism
Screening and Assistance Act.
Last year, the horrific terrorist attack in Paris, I think,
showed us how easy it has become for terrorists and for foreign
fighters to move across open borders. This important
legislation makes several important changes. It requires the
Departments of State and Homeland Security to produce an annual
scorecard. That scorecard would assess the border security
efforts of countries around the world. This will identify
weaknesses and areas for improvement abroad, and it will
streamline our own efforts to assist partners overseas with
border security programs. The administration will then submit a
plan to Congress for prioritizing U.S. assistance.
The bill also requires the establishment of minimum
standards for border security. Countries that fail to meet
these minimum standards can have U.S. foreign assistance
suspended, employing the same incentive already in place for
trafficking and for human rights violations.
This bill reflects the recommendations made by our
colleagues on the Committee on Homeland Security's bipartisan
Task Force on Combating Terrorist and Foreign Fighter Travel,
which we have worked together on, by the way.
And I again thank Mr. Zeldin for his leadership on this
critical issue and recognize Homeland Security Chairman Mike
McCaul for his efforts on this legislation as well.
I now recognize the ranking member, Mr. Eliot Engel, for
his remarks on this legislation.
Mr. Engel. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Happy new year to you,
and happy new year to all the members of our committee. I am
happy the committee is getting back to work, and I am happy to
support our first measure today, Mr. Zeldin's bill, the
Counterterrorism Screening and Assistance Act.
The United States and our partners need to do whatever we
can to stop terrorists and foreign fighters from traveling
across borders. Here at home, this bill would ramp up
coordination among relevant government agencies. Around the
world, it would help our partners by speeding up the transfer
of the software and technology we use to track international
travel, to collect biometric data, and to assess the risk
individuals might pose. And this bill would put a particular
focus on the countries where the danger of terrorists and
foreign fighters is most acute.
The bill is certainly a step in the right direction. I
thank Mr. Zeldin for his hard work. I will support the measure.
And I yield back, Mr. Chairman.
Chairman Royce. Mr. Lee Zeldin.
Mr. Zeldin. Thank you, Chairman.
Today, I am asking for everyone's support of the
Counterterrorism Screening and Assistance Act of 2016.
First off, I would like to thank our committee chairman, Ed
Royce, and his amazing staff here at the House Foreign Affairs
Committee. Their incredible leadership and assistance on this
issue and so many others do so much every day to keep Americans
safe.
I also wish to thank Chairman McCaul, who sits on this
committee and serves as the chairman of the House Homeland
Security Committee, for his efforts on this very important
issue as well.
I also thank the ranking member, Eliot Engel, for his
support of this effort.
The Counterterrorism Screening and Assistance Act of 2016
is so important for resolving the vulnerabilities that
currently exist with international security abroad which pose a
concerning threat to our homeland.
The horrific terror attacks in Paris, France, that killed
over 100 people were largely carried out by European nationals,
many of whom traveled to train and fight in Syria and then
later returned to Europe through Greece and Turkey. Although
local authorities already knew some of the attackers, they were
still able to move across borders without detection and, in
some cases, use fraudulent passports.
With the rise of terrorism in the U.S. and around the world
and with the high number of foreign fighters returning from
ISIS strongholds in Syria, Iraq, and elsewhere, there is a very
serious and well-recognized need for improved border security
and information-sharing between governments. It is essential
that the United States work together with the global community
to monitor and stop the movement of terrorists abroad.
The Counterterrorism Screening and Assistance Act of 2016
would establish a plan to close security gaps that currently
exist that allow terrorists and foreign fighters to travel
internationally.
The plan would establish international border security
standards that would be developed in coordination with all
relevant U.S. Government departments and agencies, in
consultation with the Secretary of Defense, Attorney General,
Director of National Intelligence, and Director of the FBI.
Under the plan, U.S. resources would be utilized in the
most efficient way possible, with a special focus on high-risk
and medium-risk countries.
Under this legislation, a reporting system would also be
established to monitor efforts of foreign governments to combat
terrorism and foreign fighter travel and to suspend foreign
assistance to countries not making significant efforts to
comply.
Furthermore, the legislation would put a monitoring system
in place that would screen for infectious diseases to contain
and prevent any potential outbreaks.
This is a measure that is long overdue, and I am proud to
help lead the effort in the House. I strongly encourage my
colleagues in Congress to join in this effort to address a
serious national security threat and vote today to pass the
Counterterrorism Screening and Assistance Act of 2016 to keep
Americans safe.
Thank you again, Chairman, for your leadership, and I yield
back.
Chairman Royce. Thank you, Mr. Zeldin.
Do any other members seek recognition?
Mr. McCaul?
Mr. McCaul. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I want to thank you
for your hard work on this bill, and the ranking member.
And, of course, this came out of our Counterterrorism Task
Force, spearheaded by the majority leader. And I think it was a
great, sort of, concert of work between the Homeland Security
Committee and this Committee on Foreign Affairs.
This holiday season provided, I think, further evidence of
the high terror threat environment that has become a new norm.
Just last week, authorities in the United States and Europe
disrupted multiple ISIS plots aimed at innocent civilians
celebrating the new year.
Good intelligence, cooperation, and law enforcement
vigilance helped prevent these potential massacres, but our
enemies are still dead-set on conducting external operations
against us, and they are more capable than ever of doing so.
ISIS has now inspired or directed nearly 70 terrorist plots
or attacks against Western countries, and, as we saw on the
streets of Paris, they are deploying some of their 30,000
foreign fighters to carry out operations across the world. As
we all now know, it is too easy for these extremists to get to
and from terrorist hotspots undetected. Indeed, the mastermind
of the Paris attacks bragged on ISIS' online magazine, and I
quote, ``I was able to leave and come despite being chased
after by so many intelligence services.''
As chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee, last
year I launched a bipartisan Task Force on Combating Terrorist
and Foreign Fighter Travel to examine this threat. The panel
conducted the widest review on the subject since the 9-11
Commission. They uncovered shocking security gaps, especially
overseas. For instance, many countries lack effective
counterterrorism vetting systems. They fail to screen travelers
against key law enforcement databases or do little to stop
passport fraud. Make no mistake, these weaknesses overseas put
us in danger here at home.
Our task force issued more than 50 recommendations to close
security loopholes, and this legislation today by Mr. Zeldin
implements several of them. It will help our allies put in
place effective counterterrorism tools to more quickly ramp up
screening of foreign travelers. It will also reduce U.S.
Government waste, overlap, and duplication. For example, the
bill requires agencies for the first time ever to coordinate
and streamline their numerous assistance programs and to focus
resources on the highest-risk countries.
I want to commend John Katko, who led the Task Force on
Combating Terrorist and Foreign Fighter Travel, and then also
Mr. Zeldin from New York for his hard work on this bill. I
would like to thank this committee, also, again, for their
close collaboration with my committee.
We have a lot more work to do, but I believe this is a very
important step in keeping terrorists and foreign fighters from
getting into the United States and from threatening Americans.
And, with that, I yield back.
Chairman Royce. Any other members seeking recognition?
Judge Poe.
Mr. Poe. I want to thank the chairman.
As chairman of the Terrorism Subcommittee, Ranking Member
Keating and I have had numerous hearings on the problem of
foreign fighters traveling to Iraq and Syria to fight for ISIS
and then going back to home countries. They are coming into
Syria by the tens of thousands. It is a pace so high that just
as many new fighters are coming in as our strikes are killing.
These fighters are dangerous because, unlike local fighters,
they easily launch attacks back in their home countries,
primarily the West. We know there are dozens of Americans
fighting in Iraq and Syria right now.
I do want to thank the chairman and ranking member for
passing out of this committee and on the House floor the
Foreign Terrorist Organization Passport Revocation Act, which
helps stop the flow of foreign fighters back here into the U.S.
by revoking their passports. And hopefully the Senate will take
this bill up soon.
I support the Counterterrorism Screening Assistance Act
because the foreign-fighter problem is not a problem we can
solve by ourselves. We need our partners to have a strong
border security. We should not be giving any foreign aid to
countries who do not take this threat seriously.
And I will yield back.
Chairman Royce. Mr. Rohrabacher was seeking recognition.
Mr. Rohrabacher. Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman.
First of all, I would like to thank you and Ranking Member
Engel for the great leadership that you are providing to our
country at this pivotal moment in our history when our people
are in danger. And you and Mr. Engel have shown the bipartisan
spirit that I think could give confidence to our people that
their elected Representatives are united to defeat this threat
that would murder our children if they had the chance.
I would also like to congratulate Chairman McCaul for the
energetic leadership that he is providing on that half of this
operation to protect our people.
But I would like to add one note here on this bill and to
our approach. I was somewhat shocked to find out that lie-
detector tests are playing such a small role in trying to help
us accomplish our mission.
And all I can say is that I may have an amendment that I
would provide on the floor, if it is considered a legally
acceptable amendment, that would in some way require us--I
mean, when we are talking about screening for terrorism, at the
very least anybody coming here should have to go through, like,
a 5-minute lie-detector test. We have new lie-detector
technologies that are very simple and don't have to have, you
know, three or four people there--you have one person--and we
can tell if someone is lying to us.
No one--no one--should come into this country, who has any
potential of being involved with terrorism, without taking a
lie-detector test. That could have stopped--for example, in San
Bernardino, all we needed to do was ask that lady who was
getting her visa to come in, just ask, ``Would you be inclined
to commit an act of violence against Americans?'' And if the
answer is yes, of course we are not going to let that person
in. Right now, we do not have that screening.
So, Mr. Chairman, both Mr. Chairmans, I hope that we can
work together so that within a very short period of time people
who are coming from these terrorist countries, in particular,
but perhaps on a global scale--is there any reason why, when
they are asking for a visa, we can't just ask two or three
questions on a very cheap lie-detector machine? Because they
are now available. So that would be my goal. I am looking
forward to working with both of you to see if we can implement
that.
By the way, just to note, this was Ken Calvert's idea. And
when he said that to me, I just said, ``That is terrific,'' and
that is why I am running with it.
So thank you.
Chairman Royce. Thank you, Mr. Rohrabacher.
Any other members seeking recognition?
Hearing none, the question occurs on agreeing to the bill
en bloc.
All those in favor, say aye.
All those opposed, no.
In the opinion of the Chair, the ayes have it, and the en
bloc items are agreed to.
Without objection, this legislation, H.R. 4314, is ordered
favorably reported, as amended. Staff is directed to make any
technical and conforming changes. And the Chair is authorized
to seek House consideration under suspension of the rules.
All right. Moving on to the next bill, this is H.R. 3662,
the Iran Terror Finance Transparency Act. Without objection,
the bill is considered read and open for amendment at any
point.
[The information referred to follows:]
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Chairman Royce. And I would recognize myself to speak here.
First, I want to recognize Congressman Russell for his work
on this legislation.
Since the Obama administration completed the Iran nuclear
deal, Iran has taken a series of steps that I think were
unanticipated by most of us. It has accelerated its missile
program; it has violated the U.N. sanctions in doing so. It has
taken an additional American hostage. It has stepped up the
slaughter that is going on in Syria. Recently, we watched on
television the torching of the Saudi Embassy, with the
authorities arriving there too late after that. And we saw the
launch of a rocket within 1,500 yards of our carrier, the
Truman, in the Gulf.
So the situation is such that these violations of U.N.
sanctions are coming at the same time when, in a few weeks,
Iran is going to receive out of escrow tens of billions in
sanctions relief. So the question here is one of pushback,
given the violation of U.N. sanctions.
Indeed, reported sanctions on Iran's missile network were
just shelved. There was an intention--Congress had been
notified or the indication was that this condition was going to
be taken, and then a decision was made, after pushback from
Iran, not to go forward.
So, as members will recall from Secretary Kerry's testimony
before us, it was not supposed to be this way. The
administration told us while pursuing a nuclear deal that it
would not let up the pressure on Iran's ballistic missile
program, nor would it let up the pressure on terrorism that was
supported by Iran. And that is the point here of this
legislation. And it is an attempt here to hold Iran to this
commitment.
Before sanctions on a particular person or institution can
be lifted, the President must certify that they have not done
business in a way that supported Iran's ballistic missile or
conventional weapons programs--after all, it is supposed to be
5 years on the conventional and 8 years on the ballistic
missiles before Iran is able to go forward, according to the
U.N. sanctions on that--nor that that individual has done
business with a terrorist organization--you know, for example,
the Quds Force, which Soleimani is responsible, literally, for
assassinations outside of Iran. That is his job description.
And so connection with that, those individuals should still be
on that list.
Unfortunately, we now understand that some of those set for
sanctions relief--and we will take an example of one of their
banks. Iran's Bank Melli will be given a pass for backing
ballistic missile development and also, by the way, backing
terrorism. And when the Treasury Department sanctioned Bank
Melli back in 2007, it noted that the institution had provided
banking services first to the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps
and then to the Quds Force. And, as we all know, the IRGC has
committed acts of terrorism, gross human rights violations, and
has done the missile tests that we saw very recently, in
violation of the U.N. sanctions.
Bank Sepah, one of Iran's largest banks, will be another
prime winner of sanctions relief in the coming days. And when
that bank was designated, again, January 2007, Treasury Under
Secretary Stuart Levey at the time noted, ``Bank Sepah is the
financial lynchpin of Iran's missile procurement network, and
it has actively assisted Iran's pursuit of missiles capable of
carrying,'' in his words, ``weapons of mass destruction.''
With Iran's ballistic missile program accelerating,
including a December rocket launch, again, that came within
1,500 yards of our carrier, is anyone comfortable giving what
Treasury called the ``financial lynchpin'' here a jackpot?
To be clear, those Iranian banks and individuals not
supporting terrorism, not supporting ICBMs, they can be
delisted. That is the agreement. They should be delisted. But
not so for those threatening our national security. That is
what this legislation does.
And it is the policy the administration explained to this
committee as the way that the agreement was structured, the way
that our conduct was supposed to be structured going forward
that, frankly, this legislation attempts to implement here.
So I now recognize the ranking member for his remarks on
the bill.
Mr. Engel. Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman.
As I have said many, many times, I am so proud of this
committee and its members on both sides of the aisle. We are
really an exception to the typical partisan fighting the
American people so often unfortunately associate with Congress.
And under your leadership, Mr. Chairman, we have taken up bill
after bill with bipartisan backing; we have carried out
oversight on key national security objectives; we haven't
wasted our times on political targets, as so many other
committees have done; and we have embodied the spirit that
politics should end at the water's edge. I have used that
phrase many, many times. And, as you know, Mr. Chairman, I
profoundly value our personal friendship and our excellent
working relationship.
I must say, though, that I have to oppose this bill. This
bill is an exception, I think, to bipartisanship, in that no
Democrats were consulted in terms of the drafting of the bill.
I know the bill is well-intended, but it isn't done the way
things should be done, where we put our heads together in a
bipartisan fashion, we come up with a bill, and we go back and
forth and eliminate some things, add some things, and move
forward in a bipartisan way.
This measure really has no chance of becoming law. And what
bothers me--you know, yesterday, we had a vote on the
Affordable Care Act to repeal it 62 times. Now this is the
second time we have tried to overturn the JCPOA agreement.
Everyone in this room knows how I feel about Iran. I
thought we were wrong to allow Iran to continue enriching
during the talks. I voted against the nuclear deal, and I
continue to believe that the agreement is deeply flawed. I see
Iran for what it is: The world's leading state sponsor of
terrorism and a destabilizing force across the Middle East.
But Congress had an opportunity to vote on the deal, and we
lost. There weren't enough votes to override a veto or even
send a resolution of disapproval to the President, and the
agreement has now gone into effect. I believe it doesn't serve
any purpose to have bills like this that are designed to kill
the deal.
I don't want to vote 62 or 63 times on killing the Iran
agreement. We already had had one several months ago, and this
is now the second one, and I am afraid we are following the
same path that we are following with the Affordable Care Act.
Congress has spoken, and it is done.
And I think that we have to work together on bipartisan
legislation that will hold Iran's feet to the fire on its
nuclear program and hold the regime accountable for its support
of terrorism and other nefarious activities and also to help
our ally Israel with her legitimate security needs.
So I don't think it serves any purpose to take up a
partisan bill like this that is designed to kill the deal. We
know it is not going to go anywhere. We know that if it passes
both Houses the President will veto it.
I would rather put our heads together, as we have done so
many times in the past 3 years, to work together to have a
bipartisan bill that achieves what we all want on both sides of
the aisle. We want to hold Iran's feet to the fire. We want to
make sure that they are sanctioned again for other things than
the nuclear capabilities, that they are sanctioned for their
support of terrorism, and that we have to continue to hold
their feet to the fire.
I was disappointed that the administration this week
mentioned that it was going to impose some sanctions on Iran
and then seemed to pull it back. We have to hold Iran's feet to
the fire.
But the only way we can effectively do that is in a
bipartisan way. So we have been working; my staff has been
working. We are trying to come up with legislation. We have
gone a long way. And I would hope that, ultimately, we can
introduce this legislation with you, Mr. Chairman, with me,
working together in one bill, with other members of this
committee working together with one bill.
I would like to do what we did in this committee, where we
have repeated so many times--and it almost sounds unbelievable.
If people had listened to Chairman Royce and myself back in
2013 when this committee unanimously, with not one negative
vote, passed an additional Iran sanctions bill, which we were
proud of, and then it passed on the floor with 400 ``yes''
votes. That is the kind of bipartisan bill I would like to see
us do now to hold Iran's feet to the fire.
So there is no shortage of good ideas as to how to achieve
these goals, and we can do this. So I am going to oppose this
bill. I hope that we can, again, get together and come up with
a bill that does what this bill does. But a bill like this,
which has sponsors only from one of the political parties--all
the sponsors are Republicans. And to be fair to Mr. Russell, he
did ask me about going on the bill, but Democrats had no part
in drafting the bill, no part in formulating the bill. And if
we are going to have something that moves forward and makes
sense, we have to do it in a bipartisan way. And,
unfortunately, I don't believe this is the way to go about it.
So I am going to oppose it. I hope we can pick up the
pieces because, again, the President will surely veto this if
it pass both houses. And I am hoping to come up with a bill
that the administration can understand that we in the Congress
feel very strongly about holding Iran's feet to the fire.
Mr. Chairman, everything you said, I agree. Everything you
mentioned, I agree. Everything you talked about, with the
threat to Iran, I agree. I just don't believe this is the way
to go about doing it.
Thank you. I yield back.
Chairman Royce. Thank you, Mr. Engel. We have mainly
produced bipartisan legislation on this committee. That is my
preference. It is the preference of the ranking member, I know.
Any additional members seek recognition?
Judge Ted Poe.
Mr. Poe. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
I was one who voted against the Iranian deal. I thought it
was a bad deal. But Mr. Engel is right; it is a deal that is
made with America and Iran.
But the situation is getting worse under the deal. The
administration is bending over backwards and conceding even
more than what is required in that deal. It may be hard to
believe, but, as bad as the deal was, the administration is, it
seems to me, making it worse. And I think Congress has an
obligation to speak out because it is a national security
issue.
The President promised that the non-nuclear-related
sanctions on Iran would still be in place. And after Iran
violated a U.N. resolution restricting ballistic missiles, the
Treasury Department told Congress it would levy new sanctions
on Iran for these violations. But then the State Department
came swooping in at the last minute and stopped those sanctions
from being implemented. So it seems that the administration
continues to give in to Iranian pressure.
I support H.R. 3662 because it prohibits the President from
lifting sanctions on those who are involved in terrorism. Iran
is the world's leader of state sponsors of terrorism. The
nuclear deal was a bad deal, and we don't need to make this
deal worse by lifting sanctions in unrelated matters.
And I will yield back.
Chairman Royce. Other members seeking recognition?
Mr. Sherman.
Mr. Sherman. Mr. Chairman, you have seen me on this
committee for almost 20 years. I have always voted for every
Iran sanctions bill--big ones and small ones, those that were
the product of great drafting, those that were the product of
mediocre drafting--and I asked only why we couldn't make the
bill stronger. This committee should craft good legislation to
impose additional sanctions on Iran.
First, the question was, do sanctions work? Well, we just
concluded a deal in which this House and this Government was
incredibly divided. The only thing we agreed on was one thing,
and that is sanctions worked. President Obama came to us and
said, sanctions have worked, and he had secured for us a very
good deal. Those on the other side said, sanctions are working,
keep them in place, you will get a better deal. Those sound
like diametrically opposed positions except they both indicate
that Iranian sanctions worked.
Secretary Kerry was here. President Obama talked to us in
so many ways. And they said they left out of these negotiations
missiles, terrorism, and then four--today it is five--American
hostages because we could use sanctions to achieve those goals
separately. That is why we ought to be adopting new sanctions.
So the question is, do we do it through this bill at this time?
Now, I think Mr. Russell has some good ideas. And if we do
not pass this bill, we ought to incorporate the best of those
in a bipartisan piece of legislation and thank him for his
effort.
This bill has some flaws. As the ranking member points out,
it is the product of a uni-party rather than bipartisan
process. We will do better if we work together.
Second, it is my understanding that this bill focuses on
the 400 entities listed in the JCPOA, this Iran deal, that are
supposed to have their sanctions lifted but does not deal with
300 others, roughly 300 others, that were not specifically
listed. So we are using the power of Congress to go after those
Iranian entities that our negotiators thought should be given a
lifting of at least the nuclear sanctions, and we are not going
after the perhaps even worse roughly 300 entities.
In addition, we are asking the President to certify that
entities have not engaged in various activities since the
beginning of time. This bill would be more reasonable if it was
crafted to say has not engaged in such activities for the last
10 years or the last 15 years.
So I look forward to better Iran sanctions legislation.
Although I will point out one thing about the timing of this
bill. Iran's stockpile of enriched uranium has now been shipped
out of the country, virtually all that they promised to ship
out.
So we have already gotten the good parts of this deal. If
Mr. Machiavelli were advising us, he would say now is the
precise time to pull out of the deal, since we have gotten the
good parts delivered to us already. I don't think that is the
process America will take. I do not think that this is a--that
this is like a spectacularly well-timed bait-and-switch program
with the Iranians.
So I look forward to a better process. I look forward to a
better deal. I will reluctantly oppose this bill. And I think
in the future we need sanctions designed, as the President
promised we would have, to change Iran's behavior in supporting
terrorism, in seizing hostages, and in developing missiles in
violation of U.N. sanctions.
And let me say that if Iran never had a nuclear program but
engaged in violating U.N. sanctions on missiles, seized
American hostages, and killed tens of thousands of people in
Yemen and Syria, we would be imposing sanctions. We shouldn't
fail to do so simply because a deal strictly designed to focus
on their nuclear program was signed by the President but not
endorsed by Congress.
I yield back.
Chairman Royce. Do any other members seek recognition?
Hearing none--Mr. Deutch.
Mr. Deutch. Thank you. Thanks, Mr. Chairman.
Mr. Chairman, as you know, I deeply appreciate the
commitment that you and the ranking member share to prevent
Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons. This committee has been
vigilant in its oversight and has worked in a bipartisan
fashion to move numerous pieces of legislation that have had
significant impact on Iran's nuclear activities.
But, unfortunately, today's legislation doesn't advance our
shared goal of preventing Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons
or halting Iran's dangerous and destabilizing regional
activities.
I opposed the nuclear deal, and, in doing so, I laid out my
express concern that sanctions relief would only further Iran's
unyielding support for terrorism and its regional belligerence.
And those concerns haven't changed. Iran's bellicosity
continues. In the last 3 months, Iran has launched two
ballistic missile tests in blatant violation of U.N. Security
Council resolutions, and it has done so with impunity from the
international community.
And if the U.N. Security Council fails to punish Iran for
its violations, the United States must act. In fact,
Representative Kennedy and I wrote to the President more than a
month ago, asking him to take appropriate action to punish Iran
for these missile tests. And based on this week's public
statements from the White House, I am confident the
administration will do so.
I also expressed directly to the administration the need to
ensure that any entity that is subject to sanctions removal
under the nuclear deal be carefully investigated and
resanctioned if they are found to be engaging in support for
terrorism or human rights abuses.
This bill, unfortunately, doesn't give us the tools to do
that. Instead, it halts the removal of sanctions on those
specific 400 entities named for sanctions relief in the JCPOA
until the President can certify that these entities have never
engaged in activities related to terrorism or the development
of weapons of mass destruction.
This standard will result only in the administration
devoting significant time and resources to a certification that
can never be met, while preventing the implementation of the
JCPOA. I believe that we should instead be ensuring that the
Treasury Department has the resources it needs to build rock-
solid cases against those entities that must be redesignated
for terrorism and human rights abuses.
Let's devote the necessary resources to sanctioning
individuals and entities who support terrorism and violate
human rights, rather than spreading them out in a way that is
going to make that more difficult. Going forward, we should be
giving this and future administrations all the resources needed
to ensure that those subject to sanctions under U.S. law pay
the price for bad behavior.
I have also, Mr. Chairman, repeatedly made the case for
economic sanctions against Iran and its terror allies. As one
of the original sponsors of the Hezbollah International
Financing Prevention Act, which was signed into law by
President Obama last month, we aimed to cut off Iran's terror
proxy from the international financial system.
This bill purports to prevent banks from financing Iran's
terror agenda by amending one of the most important economic
sanctions laws on the books, the Comprehensive Iran Sanctions,
Accountability, and Divestment Act of 2010.
I was proud to be a member of this committee when we passed
CISADA, and, under that legislation, banks facilitating
transactions that supported Iran's efforts to acquire WMDs,
finance terror, launder money, support the IRGC, et cetera,
will be denied access to U.S. financial markets. In fact,
section 104 of that bill specifically refers to entities that
provide support for organizations designated as foreign
terrorist organizations under section 219(a) of the Immigration
and Nationality Act.
The bill before us today adds the Iranian terror proxies
Hezbollah, Hamas, and Palestinian Islamic Jihad to CISADA. Now,
of course, we want to stop banks from facilitating transactions
to these terrorism organizations, but, unfortunately, some of
our European friends distinguish between the military and
political wings of terrorist groups. They shouldn't, and I have
spoken out against this artificial distinction. But whether we
agree with that policy or not--and I have taken numerous
actions over the years to convince our European friends that
there is no distinction between a political wing and a military
wing of a terror group--they are following EU law. And because
of this discrepancy, by naming these specific groups in CISADA,
as this bill does, it would have the potential to cut off
European banks from the U.S. financial system.
And even as we continue to urge them to recognize that a
terrorist group is a terrorist group, we also ought to be
working with our allies to craft the toughest sanctions to
crack down on Iran's dangerous activities, and let's not lose
that necessary focus on Iran.
Finally, whether you supported the nuclear deal or not--
and, again, I didn't--it is going forward. So instead of
looking for partisan ways to try to stop the deal, we should be
looking for bipartisan ways to try to ensure that it is
enforced with vigor and with the most stringent verification
and compliance and, if a violation occurs, that we have the
tools and the teeth behind those tools to enact punishing new
sanctions, hopefully with the support of our international
partners, but, if not, then certainly with the full weight of
the United States Government, and, finally, to be certain that
sanctions arising from terrorism and human rights abuses that
were never a part of the nuclear deal are fully enforced.
I hope, Mr. Chairman, this committee continues to live up
to its reputation as the most bipartisan committee in Congress
and that we work together to craft legislation that honors our
most solemn duty: To protect the national security interests of
this country.
And I yield back.
Chairman Royce. Thank you, Mr. Deutch.
Mr. Trott.
Mr. Trott. I want to thank Representative Russell and
Chairman Royce for scheduling this markup.
This deal was a bad deal in September; it was a bad deal in
October when we considered it. The deal is predicated on Iran
becoming a productive member of the world community. We are
about 2 months into the deal, and, as has been duly noted by
both sides of this committee, Iran's behavior has gotten worse.
It is also clear that the President--probably because if he
took any action with respect to this deal he would be admitting
failure and be admitting that he made a mistake--it is clear
the President will not take action to enforce the terms of the
deal. So we in Congress have to do something.
I am supporting H.R. 3662 because we in Congress have to
take advantage of every opportunity we can to remind the
President and remind the world you cannot do a good deal with a
bad guy. And so if Ranking Member Engel is correct and the
President vetoes this bill, then I look forward to working on
any and all bipartisan legislation that can protect us and the
world from Iran.
I yield back.
Chairman Royce. Mr. Connolly?
Mr. Connolly. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
I simply want to add my voice to that of Mr. Engel, Mr.
Deutch, Mr. Sherman. I also share concerns about Iranian
behavior and want to find efficacious and bipartisan ways to
address that.
This is not one of those. This is an attempt to embarrass
and to undermine. And that is not how we ought to be doing
business in this committee, and it is not how the Congress, as
a legislative entity, a branch of government, ought to be
contributing to American foreign policy.
Whatever happened to the Arthur Vandenberg standard that
our differences end at the water's edge? That was a good
standard that helped create a much more stable foreign policy
for decades.
So we can yield to this temptation today and make a point,
but at what expense?
The gentleman indicated that the President will veto this
bill and then he looks--then--he looks forward to working in a
bipartisan basis to find solutions. How about now? How about,
just once, resisting the temptation to engage in partisan
activity, especially when it comes to foreign policy?
That is not the standard we have set on this committee. I
applaud the chairman and the ranking member for setting a much
more civil and thoughtful standard on this committee.
Unfortunately, this bill is an exception to that otherwise
commendable approach to a very important subject.
I yield back.
Chairman Royce. Thank you, Mr. Connolly.
Do any other members seek recognition to speak on the bill?
Hearing no further requests for recognition on the
underlying bill, are there any amendments?
Hearing no further requests and seeing that a quorum is
present, the Chair now moves that H.R. 3662 be favorably
reported to the House.
All those in favor, say aye.
All those opposed, no.
In the opinion of the Chair, the ayes have it, and H.R.
3662 is ordered favorably reported to the House.
I have been notified that some of our members may wish to
file additional minority or dissenting views regarding this
bill as part of the committee report, as allowed by the House
and committee rules. If at all possible, I would ask that you
transmit any such views to the committee clerk by 4 p.m. on
Friday. And I want to remind members that such views should be
personally signed by the member in order to be included in the
report.
I now call up our third bill, last bill, H.R. 1797, the End
Neglected Tropical Diseases Act. Without objection, it is
considered read. It is open for amendment at any point.
And also without objection, as members were notified
yesterday, we will consider it en bloc with Smith Amendment 73,
which was provided to your offices on Tuesday.
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Chairman Royce. And I will now recognize myself.
This bill is the End Neglected Tropical Diseases Act. It
will better target and coordinate our ongoing efforts to treat
and control and eliminate neglected tropical diseases, which
affect 1 billion people on this planet. It exacts a devastating
human and economic toll.
And these tropical diseases tend to prey on the world's
most vulnerable, on people living in extreme poverty in
developing countries, but they also pose a public health threat
here in the United States. As we speak, Hawaii is enduring an
outbreak of dengue fever. And that was introduced through
international travel.
So the bill contains two titles. Title I falls under the
jurisdiction of the Foreign Affairs Committee and is what we
are considering today. And we look forward to working with the
Energy and Commerce Committee on Title II.
We really, all of us, I think, want to thank Mr. Smith for
his work on this important bill.
And I now recognize the ranking member to speak on the
bill.
Mr. Engel. Thank you again, Mr. Chairman. I want to also,
as you just did, thank Mr. Chris Smith for offering the End
Neglected Tropical Diseases Act.
When we use this term, ``neglected tropical diseases,'' we
are talking about infectious diseases that thrive in tropical
and subtropical areas. They are spread not just by humans but
through animals and also through infected soil or water. These
diseases take a particularly high toll on poor populations in
developing countries.
Diseases like these stifle growth and progress even when we
know how to treat them. That is why, a decade ago, President
Bush launched the Neglected Tropical Diseases Program at USAID.
The Obama administration carried this work forward, and, by
2014, this effort has led to 1 billion treatments worldwide.
So, again, talk about bipartisan cooperation.
Now we need to stay focused on this work. Mr. Smith's bill
would make sure our existing efforts to deal with these
diseases are working to get treatments where they are needed
most and as quickly as possible. It also supports continued
research and development at USAID so that we can stay on the
cutting edge of diagnostic methods and treatment options.
Let me also note that the challenges posed by neglected
tropical diseases intersect with our other global health
priorities--priorities such as AIDS, tuberculosis, and malaria
relief. It is important not to focus our energies on one
challenge at the expense of another but instead recognize
opportunities for collaboration across health and development
programs. Only when programs work efficiently and in concert
can they bring timely and complete relief to patients.
So I believe we should all support this bill and build on
our record of success in this area.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I yield back.
Chairman Royce. Thank you, Mr. Engel.
Mr. Smith.
Mr. Smith. Thank you so much, Mr. Chairman. Thank you for
your strong support for this legislation, and Ranking Member
Engel, for Joan Condon's wonderful work, Catherine Barnao, and
Greg Simpkins on my staff.
This is a truly bipartisan piece of legislation attacking a
terrible pandemic that has cost the lives of millions of people
and made people extremely ill--the morbidity rate is very, very
high--and susceptible to a great number of opportunistic
diseases that hit when people carry worms and parasites.
And the numbers are off the charts, in terms of people who
have neglected tropical diseases. One-point-four billion people
is the estimation by the World Health Organization, and about 2
billion people, mostly very poor, are at risk.
Although we are finding that tropical diseases know no
borders. And they have found their way big time, as you pointed
out, in Hawaii with dengue fever, but a large number of other
tropical diseases have made their way particularly into the
southern parts of the United States--Chikungunya, as well as
Ebola, although a very, very limited amount there, of course.
These diseases need to be attacked in the greatest way
possible. My subcommittee has had five hearings on tropical
diseases. One of our star witnesses was Dr. Peter Hotez, who
literally wrote the book, from Baylor, and has done wonderful
work in terms of delineating the challenges as well as the huge
gaps that remain.
So, again, we are going to do everything we can with this
legislation to try to be an all-of-Government effort--from CDC,
HHS. And, as you pointed out, Title II of the bill has been
referred to the Energy and Commerce Committee. And one of the
provisions there is to establish a center or centers of
excellence devoted to researching, preventing, and hopefully
treating these NTDs, because they are taking the lives of so
many people.
So I thank you again, Mr. Chairman.
Without objection, I would ask that my statement be made a
part of the record.
This is a bipartisan bill, as I pointed out. And I do want
to thank Chaka Fattah, the chief Democrat cosponsor; Matt
Salmon, who has done yeoman's work on this issue and cares
deeply about it; Mr. Johnson, Mr. Meadows, Rangel, and Walberg;
my ranking member, who is also a cosponsor, for her support for
it.
And, again, we need to move this forward. And I think it
will literally save many lives, not around the world only, but
in this country as well.
I yield back.
Chairman Royce. Thank you, Mr. Smith.
Any other members seeking recognition?
Hearing no further requests, are there any additional
amendments?
Hearing none, the question occurs on agreeing to H.R. 1797
en bloc.
All those in favor, say aye.
All those opposed, no.
In the opinion of the Chair, the ayes have it, and the en
bloc items are agreed to. And, without objection, 1797 is
ordered favorably reported, as amended. And staff is directed
to make any technical and conforming changes.
So that concludes our business for today. And I want to
thank Ranking Member Engel and I want to thank all of you on
the committee and our staff for the work that went into today's
markup.
The committee is adjourned.
[Whereupon, at 10:57 a.m., the committee was adjourned.]
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