IIB 

110TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 2347 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

AUGUST 1, 2007 

Received 

AUGUST 3, 2007 

Read twice and referred to the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban 

Affairs 

AN ACT 

To authorize State and local governments to direct divestiture from, and prevent investment in, companies with 

investments of $20,000,000 or more in Iran’s energy 

sector, companies that sell arms to the Government of 

Iran, and financial institutions that extend $20,000,000 

or more in credit to the Government of Iran for 45 

days or more, and for other purposes. 


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1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Iran Sanctions Ena5 bling Act of 2007’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 The Congress finds as follows: 

8 (1) The Convention on the Prevention and Pun9 ishment of the Crime of Genocide, completed at 

10 Paris, December 9, 1948 (commonly referred to as 

11 the ‘‘Genocide Convention’’) defines genocide as, 

12 among other things, the act of killing members of a 

13 national, ethnic, racial, or religious group with the 

14 intent to destroy, in whole or in part, the targeted 

15 group. In addition, the Genocide Convention also 

16 prohibits conspiracy to commit genocide, as well as 

17 ‘‘direct and public incitement to commit genocide’’. 

18 (2) 133 member states of the United Nations 

19 have ratified the Genocide Convention and thereby 

20 pledged to prosecute individuals who violate the 

21 Genocide Convention’s prohibition on incitement to 

22 commit genocide, as well as those individuals who 

23 commit genocide directly. 

24 (3) On October 27, 2005, at the World Without 

25 Zionism Conference in Tehran, Iran, the President 


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1 of Iran, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, called for Israel to 

2 be ‘‘wiped off the map,’’ described Israel as ‘‘a dis3 graceful blot [on] the face of the Islamic world,’’ and 

4 declared that ‘‘[a]nybody who recognizes Israel will 

5 burn in the fire of the Islamic nation’s fury.’’ Presi6 dent Ahmadinejad has subsequently made similar 

7 types of comments, and the Government of Iran has 

8 displayed inflammatory symbols that express similar 

9 intent. 

10 (4) On December 23, 2006, the United Nations 

11 Security Council unanimously approved Resolution 

12 1737, which bans the supply of nuclear technology 

13 and equipment to Iran and freezes the assets of cer14 tain organizations and individuals involved in Iran’s 

15 nuclear program, until Iran suspends its enrichment 

16 of uranium, as verified by the International Atomic 

17 Energy Agency. 

18 (5) Following Iran’s failure to comply with Res19 olution 1737, on March 24, 2007, the United Na20 tions Security Council unanimously approved Reso21 lution 1747, to tighten sanctions on Iran, imposing 

22 a ban on arms sales and expanding the freeze on as23 sets, in response to the country’s uranium-enrich24 ment activities. 


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1 (6) There are now signs of domestic discontent 

2 within Iran, and targeted financial and economic 

3 measures could produce further political pressure 

4 within Iran. According to the Economist Intelligence 

5 Unit, the nuclear crisis ‘‘is imposing a heavy oppor6 tunity cost on Iran’s economic development, slowing 

7 down investment in the oil, gas, and petrochemical 

8 sectors, as well as in critical infrastructure projects, 

9 including electricity’’. 

10 (7) Targeted financial measures represent one 

11 of the strongest non-military tools available to con12 vince Tehran that it can no longer afford to engage 

13 in dangerous, destabilizing activities such as its nu14 clear weapons program and its support for ter15 rorism. 

16 (8) Foreign persons that have invested in Iran’s 

17 energy sector, despite Iran’s support of international 

18 terrorism and its nuclear program, have provided 

19 additional financial means for Iran’s activities in 

20 these areas, and many United States persons have 

21 unknowingly invested in those same foreign persons. 

22 (9) There is an increasing interest by States, 

23 local governments, educational institutions, and pri24 vate institutions to seek to disassociate themselves 

25 from companies that directly or indirectly support 


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1 the Government of Iran’s efforts to achieve a nu2 clear weapons capability. 

3 (10) Policy makers and fund managers may 

4 find moral, prudential, or reputational reasons to di5 vest from companies that accept the business risk of 

6 operating in countries that are subject to inter7 national economic sanctions or that have business 

8 relationships with countries, governments, or entities 

9 with which any United States company would be 

10 prohibited from dealing because of economic sanc11 tions imposed by the United States. 

12 SEC. 3. TRANSPARENCY IN CAPITAL MARKETS. 

13 (a) LIST OF PERSONS INVESTING IN IRAN ENERGY

14 SECTOR OR SELLING ARMS TO THE GOVERNMENT OF

15 IRAN.— 

16 (1) PUBLICATION OF LIST.—Not later than 6 

17 months after the date of the enactment of this Act 

18 and every 6 months thereafter, the President or a 

19 designee of the President shall, using only publicly 

20 available (including proprietary) information, ensure 

21 publication in the Federal Register of a list of each 

22 person, whether within or outside of the United 

23 States, that, as of the date of the publication, has 

24 an investment of more than $20,000,000 in the en25 ergy sector in Iran, sells arms to the Government of 


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1 Iran, or is a financial institution that extends 

2 $20,000,000 or more in credit to the Government of 

3 Iran for 45 days or more. To the extent practicable, 

4 the list shall include a description of the investment 

5 made by each such person, including the dollar 

6 value, intended purpose, and status of the invest7 ment, as of the date of the publication. 

8 (2) PRIOR NOTICE TO PERSONS.—The Presi9 dent or a designee of the President shall, at least 30 

10 days before the list is published under paragraph 

11 (1), notify each person that the President or the des12 ignee, as the case may be, intends to include on the 

13 list. 

14 (3) DELAY IN INCLUDING PERSONS ON THE

15 LIST.—After notifying a person under paragraph 

16 (2), the President or a designee of the President 

17 may delay including that person on the list for up 

18 to 60 days if the President or the designee deter19 mines and certifies to the Congress that the person 

20 has taken specific and effective actions to terminate 

21 the involvement of the person in the activities that 

22 resulted in the notification under paragraph (2). 

23 (4) REMOVAL OF PERSONS FROM THE LIST.— 

24 The President or a designee of the President may 

25 remove a person from the list before the next publiVerDate Aug 31 2005 21:42 Aug 06, 2007 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2347.RFS H2347

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1 cation of the list under paragraph (1) if the Presi2 dent or the designee determines that the person does 

3 not have an investment of more than $20,000,000 in 

4 the energy sector in Iran, does not sell arms to the 

5 Government of Iran, and is not a financial institu6 tion that extends $20,000,000 or more in credit to 

7 the Government of Iran for 45 days or more. 

8 (b) PUBLICATION ON WEBSITE.—The President or a 

9 designee of the President shall ensure that the list is pub10 lished on an appropriate government website, updating the 

11 list as necessary to take into account any person removed 

12 from the list under subsection (a)(4). 

13 (c) DEFINITION.—In this section, the term ‘‘invest14 ment’’ has the meaning given that term in section 14(9) 

15 of the Iran Sanctions Act (50 U.S.C. 1701 App.). 

16 SEC. 4. AUTHORITY OF STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS 

17 TO DIVEST FROM CERTAIN COMPANIES IN18 VESTED IN IRAN’S ENERGY SECTOR. 

19 (a) STATEMENT OF POLICY.—It is the policy of the 

20 United States to support the decision of State govern21 ments, local governments, and educational institutions to 

22 divest from, and to prohibit the investment of assets they 

23 control in, persons that have investments of more than 

24 $20,000,000 in Iran’s energy sector, persons that sell 

25 arms to the Government of Iran, and financial institutions 


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1 that extend $20,000,000 or more in credit to the Govern2 ment of Iran for 45 days or more. 

3 (b) AUTHORITY TO DIVEST.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other 

5 provision of law, a State or local government may 

6 adopt and enforce measures to divest the assets of 

7 the State or local government from, or prohibit in8 vestment of the assets of the State or local govern9 ment in— 

10 (A) persons that are included on the list 

11 most recently published under section 3(a)(1), 

12 as modified under section 3(a)(4); 

13 (B) persons that sell arms to the Govern14 ment of Iran; 

15 (C) financial institutions that extend 

16 $20,000,000 or more in credit to the Govern17 ment of Iran for 45 days or more; and 

18 (D) persons that are included on any list 

19 of entities with investments in Iran, entities 

20 doing business in Iran, or entities doing busi21 ness with the Government of Iran, which is 

22 issued pursuant to a law that— 

23 (i) authorizes a State or local govern24 ment to divest from, or prohibits a State 


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1 or local government from investing assets 

2 in, the persons; and 

3 (ii) is enacted by a State or local gov4 ernment on or before the first publication 

5 of a list under section 3. 

6 (2) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection: 

7 (A) INVESTMENT.—The ‘‘investment’’ of 

8 assets includes— 

9 (i) a commitment or contribution of 

10 assets; and 

11 (ii) a loan or other extension of credit 

12 of assets. 

13 (B) ASSETS.—The term ‘‘assets’’ refers to 

14 public monies and includes any pension, retire15 ment, annuity, or endowment fund, or similar 

16 instrument, that is controlled, directly or indi17 rectly, by a State or local government. 

18 (c) PREEMPTION.—A measure of a State or local gov19 ernment that is authorized by subsection (b) is not pre20 empted by any Federal law or regulation. 

21 SEC. 5. SAFE HARBOR FOR CHANGES OF INVESTMENT 

22 POLICIES BY MUTUAL FUNDS. 

23 Section 13 of the Investment Company Act of 1940 

24 (15 U.S.C. 80a–13) is amended by adding at the end the 

25 following new subsection: 


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1 ‘‘(c) SAFE HARBOR FOR CHANGES IN INVESTMENT

2 POLICIES.—Notwithstanding any other provision of Fed3 eral or State law, no person may bring any civil, criminal, 

4 or administrative action against any registered investment 

5 company or person providing services to such registered 

6 investment company (including its investment adviser), or 

7 any employee, officer, or director thereof, based solely 

8 upon the investment company divesting from, or avoiding 

9 investing in, securities issued by companies that are in10 cluded on the most recent list published under section 

11 3(a)(1) of the Iran Sanctions Enabling Act of 2007, as 

12 modified under section 3(b) of that Act. For purposes of 

13 this subsection the term ‘person’ shall include the Federal 

14 government, and any State or political subdivision of a 

15 State.’’. 

16 SEC. 6. SAFE HARBOR FOR CHANGES OF INVESTMENT 

17 POLICIES BY EMPLOYEE BENEFIT PLANS. 

18 Section 502 of the Employee Retirement Income Se19 curity Act of 1974 (29 U.S.C. 1132) is amended by adding 

20 at the end the following new subsection: 

21 ‘‘(n) No person shall be treated as breaching any of 

22 the responsibilities, obligations, or duties imposed upon fi23 duciaries by this title, and no action may be brought under 

24 this section against any person, for divesting plan assets 

25 from, or avoiding investing plan assets in, persons that 


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1 are included on the most recent list published under sec2 tion 3(a)(1) of the Iran Sanctions Enabling Act, as modi3 fied under section 3(a)(4) of such Act.’’. 

4 SEC. 7. RULE OF INTERPRETATION. 

5 Nothing in this Act shall be interpreted to limit the 

6 authority of any person to divest, or avoid investment in, 

7 any asset, or to adopt or enforce any measure to do so. 

8 SEC. 8. DEFINITIONS. 

9 In this Act: 

10 (1) IRAN.—the term ‘‘Iran’’ includes any agen11 cy or instrumentality of Iran. 

12 (2) ENERGY SECTOR.—The term ‘‘energy sec13 tor’’ refers to activities to develop petroleum or nat14 ural gas resources, or nuclear power. 

15 (3) PERSON.—The term ‘‘person’’ means— 

16 (A) a natural person as well as a corpora17 tion, business association, partnership, society, 

18 trust, any other nongovernmental entity, orga19 nization, or group; 

20 (B) any governmental entity or instrumen21 tality of a government, including a multilateral 

22 development institution (as defined in section 

23 1701(c)(3) of the International Financial Insti24 tutions Act); and 


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1 (C) any successor, subunit, or subsidiary of 

2 any entity described in subparagraph (A) or 

3 (B). 

4 (4) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ includes the 

5 District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto 

6 Rico, the United States Virgin Islands, Guam, 

7 American Samoa, and the Commonwealth of the 

8 Northern Mariana Islands. 

9 (5) STATE OR LOCAL GOVERNMENT.— 

10 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘State or 

11 local government’’ includes— 

12 (i) any State and any agency or in13 strumentality thereof; 

14 (ii) any local government within a 

15 State, and any agency or instrumentality 

16 thereof; 

17 (iii) any other governmental instru18 mentality; and 

19 (iv) any public institution of higher 

20 education. 

21 (B) PUBLIC INSTITUTION OF HIGHER EDU22 CATION.—The term ‘‘public institution of high23 er education’’ means a public institution of 

24 higher education within the meaning of the 

25 Higher Education Act of 1965. 


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1 SEC. 9. SUNSET. 

2 This Act shall terminate 30 days after the date on 

3 which the President has certified to Congress that— 

4 (1) the Government of Iran has ceased pro5 viding support for acts of international terrorism 

6 and no longer satisfies the requirements for designa7 tion as a state-sponsor of terrorism for purposes of 

8 section 6(j) of the Export Administration Act of 

9 1979, section 620A of the Foreign Assistance Act of 

10 1961, section 40 of the Arms Export Control Act, 

11 or any other provision of law; and 

12 (2) Iran has ceased the pursuit, acquisition, 

13 and development of nuclear, biological, and chemical 

14 weapons and ballistic missiles and ballistic missile 

15 launch technology. 

Passed the House of Representatives July 31, 2007. 

Attest: LORRAINE C. MILLER, 

Clerk. 


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