I 

118TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 6051 

To require the Secretary of the Treasury to report on financial institutions’ 

involvement with officials of the Iranian Government, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

OCTOBER 25, 2023 

Mr. HILL (for himself and Mr. VARGAS) introduced the following bill; which 

was referred to the Committee on Financial Services, and in addition to 

the Committee on Foreign Affairs, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions 

as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 

A BILL 

To require the Secretary of the Treasury to report on financial institutions’ involvement with officials of the Iranian 

Government, and for other purposes. 

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 ‘‘Holding Iranian Lead5 ers Accountable Act of 2023’’. 

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 The Congress finds the following: 

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1 (1) Iran is characterized by high levels of offi2 cial and institutional corruption, and substantial in3 volvement by Iran’s security forces, particularly the 

4 Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), in the 

5 economy. 

6 (2) The Department of the Treasury in 2019 

7 designated the Islamic Republic of Iran’s financial 

8 sector as a jurisdiction of primary money laundering 

9 concern, concluding, ‘‘Iran has developed covert 

10 methods for accessing the international financial sys11 tem and pursuing its malign activities, including 

12 misusing banks and exchange houses, operating pro13 curement networks that utilize front or shell compa14 nies, exploiting commercial shipping, and masking il15 licit transactions using senior officials, including 

16 those at the Central Bank of Iran (CBI).’’. 

17 (3) In June 2019, the Financial Action Task 

18 Force (FATF) urged all jurisdictions to require in19 creased supervisory examination for branches and 

20 subsidiaries of financial institutions based in Iran. 

21 The FATF later called upon its members to intro22 duce enhanced relevant reporting mechanisms or 

23 systematic reporting of financial transactions, and 

24 require increased external audit requirements, for fiVerDate Sep 11 2014 21:59 Oct 27, 2023 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H6051.IH H6051
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1 nancial groups with respect to any of their branches 

2 and subsidiaries located in Iran. 

3 (4) According to the State Department’s 

4 ‘‘Country Reports on Terrorism’’ in 2021, ‘‘Iran 

5 continued to be the leading state sponsor of ter6 rorism, facilitating a wide range of terrorist and 

7 other illicit activities around the world. Regionally, 

8 Iran supported acts of terrorism in Bahrain, Iraq, 

9 Lebanon, Syria, and Yemen through proxies and 

10 partner groups such as Hizballah and Hamas.’’. 

11 SEC. 3. REPORT ON FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS AND ASSETS 

12 CONNECTED TO CERTAIN IRANIAN OFFI13 CIALS. 

14 (a) FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS AND ASSETS RE15 PORT.— 

16 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days 

17 after the date of the enactment of this Act, and 

18 every 2 years thereafter, the President shall submit 

19 a report to the appropriate Members of Congress 

20 containing— 

21 (A) the estimated total funds or assets 

22 that are under direct or indirect control by each 

23 of the natural persons described under sub24 section (b), and a description of such funds or 

25 assets, except that the President may limit covVerDate Sep 11 2014 21:59 Oct 27, 2023 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H6051.IH H6051
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1 erage of the report to not fewer than 5 of such 

2 natural persons in order to meet the submission 

3 deadline described under this paragraph; 

4 (B) a description of how such funds or as5 sets were acquired, and how they have been 

6 used or employed; 

7 (C) a list of any non-Iranian financial in8 stitutions that— 

9 (i) maintain an account in connection 

10 with funds or assets described in subpara11 graph (A); or 

12 (ii) knowingly provide significant fi13 nancial services to a natural person cov14 ered by the report; and 

15 (D) a description of any illicit or corrupt 

16 means employed to acquire or use such funds or 

17 assets. 

18 (2) EXEMPTIONS.—The requirements described 

19 under paragraph (1) may not be applied with re20 spect to a natural person or a financial institution, 

21 as the case may be, if the President determines: 

22 (A) The funds or assets described under 

23 subparagraph (A) of paragraph (1) were ac24 quired through legal or noncorrupt means. 

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1 (B) The natural person has agreed to pro2 vide significant cooperation to the United 

3 States for an important national security or law 

4 enforcement purpose with respect to Iran. 

5 (C) A financial institution that would oth6 erwise be listed in the report required by para7 graph (1) has agreed to— 

8 (i) no longer maintain an account de9 scribed under subparagraph (C)(i) of para10 graph (1); 

11 (ii) no longer provide significant fi12 nancial services to a natural person cov13 ered by the report; or 

14 (iii) provide significant cooperation to 

15 the United States for an important na16 tional security or law enforcement purpose 

17 with respect to Iran. 

18 (3) WAIVER.—The President may waive for up 

19 to 1 year at a time any requirement under para20 graph (1) with respect to a natural person or a fi21 nancial institution after reporting in writing to the 

22 appropriate Members of Congress that the waiver is 

23 in the national interest of the United States, with a 

24 detailed explanation of the reasons therefor. 

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1 (b) PERSONS DESCRIBED.—The natural persons de2 scribed in this subsection are the following: 

3 (1) The Supreme Leader of Iran. 

4 (2) The President of Iran. 

5 (3) Members of the Council of Guardians. 

6 (4) Members of the Expediency Council. 

7 (5) The Minister of Intelligence and Security. 

8 (6) The Commander and the Deputy Com9 mander of the IRGC. 

10 (7) The Commander and the Deputy Com11 mander of the IRGC Ground Forces. 

12 (8) The Commander and the Deputy Com13 mander of the IRGC Aerospace Force. 

14 (9) The Commander and the Deputy Com15 mander of the IRGC Navy. 

16 (10) The Commander of the Basij-e17 Mostaz’afin. 

18 (11) The Commander of the Qods Force. 

19 (12) The Commander in Chief of the Police 

20 Force. 

21 (13) The head of the IRGC Joint Staff. 

22 (14) The Commander of the IRGC Intelligence. 

23 (15) The head of the IRGC Imam Hussein Uni24 versity. 

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1 (16) The Supreme Leader’s Representative at 

2 the IRGC. 

3 (17) The Chief Executive Officer and the 

4 Chairman of the IRGC Cooperative Foundation. 

5 (18) The Commander of the Khatam-al-Anbia 

6 Construction Head Quarter. 

7 (19) The Chief Executive Officer of the Basij 

8 Cooperative Foundation. 

9 (20) The head of the Political Bureau of the 

10 IRGC. 

11 (21) The senior leadership as determined by the 

12 President of the following groups: 

13 (A) Hizballah. 

14 (B) Hamas. 

15 (C) Palestinian Islamic Jihad. 

16 (D) Kata’ib Hizballah. 

17 (c) FORM OF REPORT; PUBLIC AVAILABILITY.— 

18 (1) FORM.—The report required under sub19 section (a) and any waiver under subsection (a)(3) 

20 shall be submitted in unclassified form but may con21 tain a classified annex. 

22 (2) PUBLIC AVAILABILITY.—The Secretary of 

23 the Treasury shall make the unclassified portion of 

24 such report public if the Secretary notifies the ap25 propriate Members of Congress that the publication 

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1 is in the national interest of the United States and 

2 would substantially promote— 

3 (A) deterring or sanctioning official cor4 ruption in Iran; 

5 (B) holding natural persons or financial in6 stitutions listed in the report accountable to the 

7 people of Iran; 

8 (C) combating money laundering or the fi9 nancing of terrorism; or 

10 (D) achieving any other strategic objective 

11 with respect to the Government of Iran. 

12 (3) FORMAT OF PUBLICLY AVAILABLE RE13 PORTS.—If the Secretary makes the unclassified 

14 portion of a report public pursuant to paragraph 

15 (2), the Secretary shall make it available to the pub16 lic on the website of the Department of the Treas17 ury— 

18 (A) in English, Farsi, Arabic, and Azeri; 

19 and 

20 (B) in precompressed, easily downloadable 

21 versions that are made available in all appro22 priate formats. 

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1 SEC. 4. RESTRICTIONS ON CERTAIN FINANCIAL INSTITU2 TIONS. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than the date that is 

4 90 days after submitting a report described under section 

5 3(a)(1), the Secretary of the Treasury shall undertake the 

6 following with respect to a financial institution that is de7 scribed under section 3(a)(1)(C) and listed in the report: 

8 (1) If the financial institution is a United 

9 States financial institution, require the closure of 

10 any account described in section 3(a)(1)(C)(i), and 

11 prohibit the provision of significant financial serv12 ices, directly or indirectly, to a natural person cov13 ered by the report. 

14 (2) If the financial institution is a foreign fi15 nancial institution, actively seek the closure of any 

16 account described in section 3(a)(1)(C)(i), and the 

17 cessation of significant financial services to a natural 

18 person covered by the report, using any existing au19 thorities of the Secretary of the Treasury, as appro20 priate. 

21 (b) SUSPENSION.—The Secretary of the Treasury 

22 may suspend the application of subsection (a) with respect 

23 to a financial institution upon reporting to the appropriate 

24 Members of Congress that the suspension is in the na25 tional interest of the United States, with a detailed expla26 nation of the reasons therefor. 

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1 SEC. 5. EXCEPTIONS FOR NATIONAL SECURITY; IMPLEMEN2 TATION AUTHORITY. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—The following activities shall be 

4 exempt from requirements under sections 3 and 4: 

5 (1) Any activity subject to the reporting re6 quirements under title V of the National Security 

7 Act of 1947 (50 U.S.C. 3091 et seq.), or to any au8 thorized intelligence activities of the United States. 

9 (2) The admission of an alien to the United 

10 States if such admission is necessary to comply with 

11 United States obligations under the Agreement be12 tween the United Nations and the United States of 

13 America regarding the Headquarters of the United 

14 Nations, signed at Lake Success June 26, 1947, and 

15 entered into force November 21, 1947, or under the 

16 Convention on Consular Relations, done at Vienna 

17 April 24, 1963, and entered into force March 19, 

18 1967, or other applicable international obligations of 

19 the United States. 

20 (3) The conduct or facilitation of a transaction 

21 for the sale of agricultural commodities, food, medi22 cine, or medical devices to Iran or for the provision 

23 of humanitarian assistance to the people of Iran, in24 cluding engaging in a financial transaction relating 

25 to humanitarian assistance or for humanitarian pur26 poses or transporting goods or services that are necVerDate Sep 11 2014 21:59 Oct 27, 2023 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H6051.IH H6051
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1 essary to carry out operations relating to humani2 tarian assistance or humanitarian purposes. 

3 (b) IMPLEMENTATION.—The President may exercise 

4 all authorities provided under sections 203 and 205 of the 

5 International Emergency Economic Powers Act (50 

6 U.S.C. 1702 and 1704) to carry out this Act. 

7 (c) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this Act 

8 shall be construed to limit the authority of the President 

9 under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act 

10 (50 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.). 

11 SEC. 6. SUNSET. 

12 The provisions of this Act shall have no force or effect 

13 on the earlier of— 

14 (1) the date that is 5 years after the date of en15 actment of this Act; or 

16 (2) 30 days after the Secretary of the Treasury 

17 reports in writing to the appropriate Members of 

18 Congress that— 

19 (A) Iran is not a jurisdiction of primary 

20 money laundering concern; or 

21 (B) the Government of Iran is providing 

22 significant cooperation to the United States for 

23 the purpose of preventing acts of international 

24 terrorism, or for the promotion of any other 

25 strategic objective that is important to the naVerDate Sep 11 2014 21:59 Oct 27, 2023 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H6051.IH H6051
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1 tional interest of the United States, as specified 

2 in the report by the Secretary. 

3 SEC. 7. DEFINITIONS. 

4 For purposes of this Act: 

5 (1) APPROPRIATE MEMBERS OF CONGRESS.— 

6 The term ‘‘appropriate Members of Congress’’ 

7 means the Speaker and minority leader of the House 

8 of Representatives, the majority leader and minority 

9 leader of the Senate, the Chairman and Ranking 

10 Member of the Committee on Financial Services of 

11 the House of Representatives, and the Chairman 

12 and Ranking Member of the Committee on Banking, 

13 Housing, and Urban Affairs of the Senate. 

14 (2) FINANCIAL INSTITUTION.—The term ‘‘fi15 nancial institution’’ means a United States financial 

16 institution or a foreign financial institution. 

17 (3) FOREIGN FINANCIAL INSTITUTION.—The 

18 term ‘‘foreign financial institution’’ has the meaning 

19 given that term in section 561.308 of title 31, Code 

20 of Federal Regulations. 

21 (4) FUNDS.—The term ‘‘funds’’ means— 

22 (A) cash; 

23 (B) equity; 

24 (C) any other asset whose value is derived 

25 from a contractual claim, including bank deposVerDate Sep 11 2014 21:59 Oct 27, 2023 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H6051.IH H6051
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1 its, bonds, stocks, a security as defined in sec2 tion 2(a) of the Securities Act of 1933 (15 

3 U.S.C. 77b(a)), or a security or an equity secu4 rity as defined in section 3(a) of the Securities 

5 Exchange Act of 1934 (15 U.S.C. 78c(a)); and 

6 (D) anything else that the Secretary deter7 mines appropriate. 

8 (5) KNOWINGLY.—The term ‘‘knowingly’’ with 

9 respect to conduct, a circumstance, or a result, 

10 means that a person has actual knowledge, or should 

11 have known, of the conduct, the circumstance, or the 

12 result. 

13 (6) SECRETARY.—The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means 

14 the Secretary of the Treasury. 

15 (7) UNITED STATES FINANCIAL INSTITUTION.— 

16 The term ‘‘United States financial institution’’ has 

17 the meaning given the term ‘‘U.S. financial institu18 tion’’ under section 561.309 of title 31, Code of 

19 Federal Regulations. 

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