Rep. Dan Newhouse, R-Wash., a member of the House Select Committee on China, has introduced a bill that would prevent Chinese Communist Party agents or businesses from buying real estate next to U.S. federal land, the panel announced June 12. Committee Chairman John Moolenaar, R-Mich., is among the co-sponsors of the No American Land for Communist China Act, which is intended to protect sensitive national security sites from spying. The bill was referred to the House Foreign Affairs Committee.
The Biden administration this week will announce a new set of export controls and sanctions aimed at impeding Russia’s ability to continue fighting Ukraine, National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby said June 11.
Rep. Ben Cline, R-Va., has been appointed to fill a vacancy on the House Select Committee on China, the panel announced last week. Cline, a former prosecutor, said he favors “tough policies that tactically confront the [Chinese Communist Party] at home and abroad and safeguard our nation’s interests.” Former Rep. Mike Gallagher, R-Mich., who used to chair the committee, created an opening on the panel by leaving Congress in April (see 2403250066).
Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, introduced a bill last week that would prohibit the Bureau of Industry and Security from using federal funds to finalize, implement or enforce a new interim final rule restricting firearms exports.
Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., introduced a bill last week that would reauthorize the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act for five years. The 2019 law, which expires later this year, requires the president to sanction Chinese and Hong Kong officials responsible for human rights violations in Hong Kong. Rubio's bill was referred to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
House Select Committee on China Chairman John Moolenaar, R-Mich., and Reps. Zach Nunn, R-Iowa, and Bill Huizenga, R-Mich., introduced a bill June 7 that would require the Committee on Foreign Investment in the U.S. to notify Congress if CFIUS denied a member agency’s request to review a transaction.
Four Republican senators asked Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen in a letter last week to explain why her department hasn’t made greater use of its authority to sanction those who commit human rights violations against China’s Uyghur minority.
The nearly 700 companies that the Bureau of Industry and Security has flagged for potentially sending export controlled goods to Russia include foreign suppliers in China, Turkey, India and others across Asia, Europe, Africa and the Middle East, according to a list obtained by Export Compliance Daily.
Lawmakers are proposing dozens of export control-, sanctions- and foreign investment-related amendments to the House version of the FY 2025 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), including measures aimed at China, Iran and Russia.
The House of Representatives voted 247-155 on June 4 to pass a bill that would sanction International Criminal Court (ICC) officials if they issue arrest warrants for Israeli leaders over the war in Gaza.