Bloomberg, Washington, 2 Nov 2011 – The House Foreign Affairs Committee voted today to tighten sanctions on Iran, partly by targeting Iran’s oil industry.
The bill, passed by voice vote, is “designed to clamp new and tougher sanctions on Iran’s energy sector,” which funds ‘Iran’s nuclear program , said Representative Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, the committee chairman and a Florida Republican.
The so-called Iran Threat Reduction Act, introduced in May, would close loopholes in existing sanctions laws, increase the number of sanctions the Obama administration is required to impose, and deny visas to individuals who do business with Iran’s energy sector, according to a committee press release.
“We have watched the threat develop,” Ros-Lehtinen said of Iran. “Now we must act before time runs out.”
The bill also includes an amendment by Representative Howard Berman of California , the panel’s ranking Democrat, that would impose sanctions on the Central Bank of Iran if it is found to support terrorist activities.
The bill, H.R. 1905, has bipartisan support with more than 300 co-sponsors and goes next to the full House for consideration.