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LaMalfa Votes to Strengthen Financial Oversight on Iran

December 14, 2017

(Washington, DC) – Congressman Doug LaMalfa (R-Richvale) issued the following statement after the House passed H.R. 4324, the Strengthening Oversight of Iran's Access to Finance Act. The bill would require the Secretary of the Treasury to report to Congress any transactions authorized for financial institutions in connection with exporting commercial aircraft to Iran.

LaMalfa said: "It's no secret that Iran exploits the use of civilian planes for military purposes. Iran Air was sanctioned for transporting missiles to Syria in 2011, but the Obama Administration lifted these sanctions under the misguided Iran Nuclear Deal. What was the result? Weapon resupply routes using commercial aircraft resumed. Given Iran's status as a state-sponsor of terrorism, Congress and the American people have the right to know if any of the money from aircraft sales completed after the nuclear deal funded human rights abuses, terrorism, or weapon sales. That's exactly what this legislation accomplishes."

Iran's deployment of missiles, rockets, and other military cargo through the state-owned Iran Air on behalf of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and Iran's Defense Ministry led to the U.S. Department of the Treasury sanctioning the carrier in 2011. It was discovered that Iran Air had also transported weapons to Syria – another state-sponsor of terrorism – where a civil conflict at the time claimed an estimated 400,000 lives. Research by the Foundation for Defense of Democracies shows that Iran Air has conducted at least 134 flights to Syria since 2016, including well-known weapon resupply routes.

In addition, the House also passed H.R. 1638, the Iranian Leadership Asset Transparency Act. This bill requires the Department of the Treasury – in order to prevent the financing of terrorism, money laundering, or related illicit finance and to make financial institutions' required compliance with remaining sanctions more easily understood – to submit within 270 days and annually thereafter for the next two years a report on the assets held by top political and military leaders in Iran.

Congressman Doug LaMalfa is a lifelong farmer representing California's First Congressional District, including Butte, Glenn, Lassen, Modoc, Nevada, Placer, Plumas, Shasta, Sierra, Siskiyou and Tehama Counties.