Kirk, Menendez Introduce New Sanctions Bill

On January 27, Senators Mark Kirk (R-IL) and Robert Menendez (D-NJ) introduced the Nuclear Weapon Free Iran Act of 2015, legislation that would automatically impose sanctions on Iran if talks with the world’s six major powers fail to yield a deal by June 30. President Barack Obama, however, has repeatedly threatened to veto such a bill, arguing that new sanctions legislation could derail talks. If all 54 Senate Republicans vote for the bill, Kirk and Menendez would still need the support of at least 13 Democrats to override a veto.

• Sanctions will be implemented only after the June 30th negotiations deadline, but only if the negotiations fail to produce a deal.
• The Kirk-Menendez legislation increases the current congressional oversight of the negotiations and requires the Administration to formally submit any new nuclear agreement text or extension to Congress within five days.
• Congress is allotted 30 days to review any nuclear agreement before the President can waive, defer or suspend sanctions.
• Subject to a report and certification, the President can only waive sanctions if it is in the vital national security interest of the United States and/or a waiver would make a long-term comprehensive solution with Iran more likely. 
• If there is no final agreement by July 6, 2015, Kirk-Menendez would re-impose sanctions that have been waived while the negotiations have been ongoing, which would begin in August and run through December. 
• New sanctions would close loopholes in existing petroleum sanctions, enhance sanctions on Iran’s oil trade and financial transactions, and impose further sanctions on Iran’s senior government officials, family members and other individuals for weapons of mass destruction proliferation, terrorism sponsorship and other illicit activities, and on Iran’s shipbuilding, automotive, construction, engineering and mining sectors.