Today, during the House Financial Services Committee Markup, Congressman Blaine Luetkemeyer (MO-3) received bipartisan support for his bill, the Iran Sanctions Accountability Act.

Rep. Luetkemeyer’s legislation closes loopholes through which Iran could divert humanitarian aid to fund terrorism and requires the president to prescribe regulations to ensure that humanitarian assistance reaches the intended population in need.

“While our sanctions have long incorporated humanitarian aid for ordinary civilians, we must ensure aid is reaching the intended recipients. This is especially true for a government rife with money laundering risk and a mission to finance terrorism globally,”  Rep. Luetkemeyer said. “We absolutely cannot allow humanitarian aid to become a weapon used to destroy humanity, which, if given the chance, is exactly what Iran and Hamas will do.”

Watch the full clip HERE.

Background: In September, the Biden administration agreed to a transfer of $6 billion in Iranian funds from accounts in South Korea to Qatar. These funds were to be used exclusively for humanitarian purposes. Less than a month later, one of Iran’s terrorist proxies, Hamas, waged a brutal assault on our friends in Israel.

Against this backdrop, Rep. Luetkemeyer’s legislation would help ensure future humanitarian assistance to Iran – whether it relates to the $6 billion in Qatar or not – is subject to appropriate due diligence.

Among the loopholes Rep. Luetkemeyer addresses, his bill aims to ensure that fungibility doesn’t allow for an influx of humanitarian aid to create expansions elsewhere in the Iranian budget. Those funds should add to humanitarian relief, not replace relief that would have occurred regardless. Additionally, the legislation would bar Iran from purchasing and reselling humanitarian goods to supplement Tehran’s revenues.

                                                                                                                                           Read the full bill HERE.