June 16, 2017

Crapo Secures Passage of Russia Sanctions Bill

WASHINGTON, D.C.  – U.S. Senator Mike Crapo (R-Idaho), Chairman of the United States Senate Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs, secured passage of the Countering Russian Aggression and Cyberattacks Act of 2017 today, legislation introduced yesterday as an amendment to the underlying Iran sanctions bill. The amendment passed 97-2.

“This legislation signals to the world the United States’ unflagging commitment to the sanctity of territorial integrity, human rights, and good governance,” Chairman Crapo said today just before passage. “It also demonstrates our resolve in responding to cyber-attacks against American citizens and entities and against our allies. The Crapo-Brown-Corker-Cardin bill will result in some very powerful, new sanctions against Russia.”

The legislation maintains and substantially expands sanctions against the government of Russia in response to the violation of the territorial integrity of the Ukraine and Crimea, its brazen cyber-attacks and interference in elections, and its continuing aggression in Syria. The Crapo-Brown-Corker-Cardin amendment has four main objectives: it escalates and expands the current sanctions regime against Russia; it creates new sanctions against Russia; it engages Congress at a higher level than before by providing a mechanism for Congress to vote before lifting any sanctions on Russia; and it increases the Treasury Department’s ability to track illicit finance, including illicit flows linked to Russia.

The amendment to the underlying Iran sanctions bill represents a bipartisan agreement among Banking Committee Chairman Crapo, Ranking Member Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Bob Corker (R-Tennessee) and Ranking Member Ben Cardin (D-Maryland). Co-sponsors include Leader McConnell (R-Kentucky), Senator Schumer (D-New York), Senator McCain (R-Arizona), Senator Graham (R-South Carolina), Senator Shaheen (D-New Hampshire), Senator Perdue (R-Georgia), Senator Menendez (D-New Jersey), Senator Warren (D-Massachusetts), Senator Rubio (R-Florida), Senator Scott (R-South Carolina), Senator Heitkamp (D-North Dakota), Senator Toomey (R-Pennsylvania) and Senator Reed (D-Rhode Island).