II 

Calendar No. 54 

114TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 615 

To provide for congressional review and oversight of agreements relating 

to Iran’s nuclear program, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

FEBRUARY 27, 2015 

Mr. CORKER (for himself, Mr. MENENDEZ, Mr. GRAHAM, Mr. KAINE, Mr. 

MCCAIN, Mr. DONNELLY, Mr. RUBIO, Ms. HEITKAMP, Ms. AYOTTE, Mr. 

NELSON, Mr. RISCH, Mr. KING, Mr. PAUL, Ms. COLLINS, Mr. BENNET, 

Mr. ROUNDS, Mr. BLUMENTHAL, Mr. ALEXANDER, Ms. MURKOWSKI, 

Mr. HELLER, Mr. SCHUMER, Mr. SASSE, Mr. FLAKE, Mr. CARDIN, Mrs. 

CAPITO, Mr. COONS, Mr. PORTMAN, Mr. CASEY, Mr. ROBERTS, Mr. 

BOOKER, Mr. WICKER, Mr. WARNER, Mr. BOOZMAN, Mr. CRUZ, Mr. 

CORNYN, Mr. GARDNER, Mr. LEE, Mrs. ERNST, Mr. CRAPO, Mr. BLUNT, 

Mr. SESSIONS, Mr. TOOMEY, Mr. GRASSLEY, Mr. THUNE, Mr. 

LANKFORD, Mr. SULLIVAN, Mr. PERDUE, Mrs. FISCHER, Mr. DAINES, 

Mr. INHOFE, and Mr. ISAKSON) introduced the following bill; which was 

read twice and referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations 

APRIL 14, 2015 

Reported by Mr. CORKER, with an amendment 

[Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic] 

A BILL 

To provide for congressional review and oversight of agreements relating to Iran’s nuclear program, 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 Nuclear Agree5 ment Review Act of 2015’’. 

6 SEC. 2. CONGRESSIONAL REVIEW AND OVERSIGHT OF 

7 AGREEMENTS WITH IRAN RELATING TO THE 

8 NUCLEAR PROGRAM OF IRAN. 

9 The Atomic Energy Act of 1954 (42 U.S.C. 2011 et 

10 seq.) is amended by inserting after section 134 the fol11 lowing new section: 

12 ‘‘SEC. 135. CONGRESSIONAL REVIEW AND OVERSIGHT OF 

13 AGREEMENTS WITH IRAN. 

14 ‘‘(a) TRANSMISSION TO CONGRESS OF NUCLEAR

15 AGREEMENTS WITH IRAN AND VERIFICATION ASSESS16 MENT WITH RESPECT TO SUCH AGREEMENTS.— 

17 ‘‘(1) TRANSMISSION OF AGREEMENTS.—Not 

18 later than 5 calendar days after reaching an agree19 ment with Iran relating to the nuclear program of 

20 Iran, the President shall transmit to the appropriate 

21 congressional committees— 

22 ‘‘(A) the text of the agreement and all re23 lated materials and annexes; 


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1 ‘‘(B) a verification assessment report of 

2 the Secretary of State prepared under para3 graph (2) with respect to the agreement; and 

4 ‘‘(C) a certification that— 

5 ‘‘(i) the agreement includes the appro6 priate terms, conditions, and duration of 

7 the agreement’s requirements with respect 

8 to Iran’s nuclear activities and provisions 

9 describing any sanctions to be waived, sus10 pended, or otherwise reduced by the 

11 United States, and any other nation or en12 tity, including the United Nations; and 

13 ‘‘(ii) the President determines the 

14 agreement meets United States non-pro15 liferation objectives, does not jeopardize 

16 the common defense and security, provides 

17 an adequate framework to ensure that 

18 Iran’s nuclear activities permitted there19 under will not be inimical to or constitute 

20 an unreasonable risk to the common de21 fense and security, and ensures that Iran’s 

22 nuclear activities permitted thereunder will 

23 not be used to further any nuclear-related 

24 military or nuclear explosive purpose, in25 cluding for any research on or development 


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1 of any nuclear explosive device or any 

2 other nuclear-related military purpose. 

3 ‘‘(2) VERIFICATION ASSESSMENT REPORT.— 

4 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of 

5 State shall prepare, with respect to an agree6 ment described in paragraph (1), a report as7 sessing— 

8 ‘‘(i) the extent to which the Secretary 

9 will be able to verify that Iran is complying 

10 with its obligations under the agreement; 

11 ‘‘(ii) the adequacy of the safeguards 

12 and other control mechanisms and other 

13 assurances contained in the agreement 

14 with respect to Iran’s nuclear program to 

15 ensure Iran’s activities permitted there16 under will not be used to further any nu17 clear-related military or nuclear explosive 

18 purpose, including for any research on or 

19 development of any nuclear explosive de20 vice or any other nuclear-related military 

21 purpose; and 

22 ‘‘(iii) the capacity and capability of 

23 the International Atomic Energy Agency to 

24 effectively implement the verification re25 gime required by the agreement, including 


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1 whether the International Atomic Energy 

2 Agency has the required funding, man3 power, and authority to do so. 

4 ‘‘(B) ASSUMPTIONS.—In preparing a re5 port under subparagraph (A) with respect to an 

6 agreement described in paragraph (1), the Sec7 retary shall assume that Iran could— 

8 ‘‘(i) use all measures not expressly 

9 prohibited by the agreement to conceal ac10 tivities that violate its obligations under 

11 the agreement; and 

12 ‘‘(ii) alter or deviate from standard 

13 practices in order to impede efforts to 

14 verify that Iran is complying with those 

15 obligations. 

16 ‘‘(C) CLASSIFIED ANNEX.—A report under 

17 subparagraph (A) shall be transmitted in un18 classified form, but shall include a classified 

19 annex prepared in consultation with the Direc20 tor of National Intelligence, summarizing rel21 evant classified information. 

22 ‘‘(3) EXCEPTION.—The requirements of sub23 paragraphs (B) and (C) of paragraph (1) shall not 

24 apply to an agreement defined in subsection (i)(4). 


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1 ‘‘(b) PERIOD FOR REVIEW BY CONGRESS OF NU2 CLEAR AGREEMENTS WITH IRAN.— 

3 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—During the 60-day period 

4 following transmittal by the President of an agree5 ment pursuant to subsection (a), the Committee on 

6 Foreign Relations of the Senate and the Committee 

7 on Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives 

8 shall, as appropriate, hold hearings and briefings 

9 and otherwise obtain information in order to fully 

10 review such agreement. 

11 ‘‘(2) LIMITATION ON ACTIONS DURING PERIOD

12 OF REVIEW.—Notwithstanding any other provision 

13 of law, except as provided in paragraph (3), during 

14 the period for review provided in paragraph (1), the 

15 President may not waive, suspend, reduce, provide 

16 relief from, or otherwise limit the application of stat17 utory sanctions with respect to Iran under any pro18 vision of law or refrain from applying any such sanc19 tions pursuant to an agreement described in sub20 section (a). 

21 ‘‘(3) EXCEPTION.—The prohibition under para22 graph (2) does not apply to any deferral, waiver, or 

23 other suspension of statutory sanctions pursuant to 

24 the Joint Plan of Action if that deferral, waiver, or 

25 other suspension is made— 


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1 ‘‘(A) consistent with the law in effect on 

2 the date of the enactment of the Iran Nuclear 

3 Agreement Review Act of 2015; and 

4 ‘‘(B) not later than 45 days before the 

5 transmission by the President of an agreement, 

6 assessment report, and certification under sub7 section (a). 

8 ‘‘(c) EFFECT OF CONGRESSIONAL ACTION WITH RE9 SPECT TO NUCLEAR AGREEMENTS WITH IRAN.— 

10 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other 

11 provision of law, action involving any measure of 

12 statutory sanctions relief by the United States pur13 suant to an agreement subject to subsection (a) or 

14 the Joint Plan of Action— 

15 ‘‘(A) may be taken, consistent with exist16 ing statutory requirements for such action, if, 

17 during the period for review provided in sub18 section (b)(1), the Congress adopts, and there 

19 is enacted, a joint resolution stating in sub20 stance that the Congress does favor the agree21 ment; 

22 ‘‘(B) may not be taken if, during the pe23 riod for review provided in subsection (b)(1), 

24 the Congress adopts, and there is enacted, a 


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1 joint resolution stating in substance that the 

2 Congress does not favor the agreement; or 

3 ‘‘(C) may be taken, consistent with exist4 ing statutory requirements for such action, if, 

5 following the period for review provided in sub6 section (b)(1), there is not enacted any such 

7 joint resolution. 

8 ‘‘(2) DEFINITION.—For the purposes of this 

9 subsection, the phrase ‘action involving any measure 

10 of statutory sanctions relief by the United States’ 

11 shall include waiver, suspension, reduction, or other 

12 effort to provide relief from, or otherwise limit the 

13 application of statutory sanctions with respect to, 

14 Iran under any provision of law or any other effort 

15 to refrain from applying any such sanctions. 

16 ‘‘(d) CONGRESSIONAL OVERSIGHT OF IRANIAN COM17 PLIANCE WITH NUCLEAR AGREEMENTS.— 

18 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The President shall, within 

19 10 days of receiving credible and accurate informa20 tion relating to a potentially significant breach or 

21 compliance incident by Iran with respect to an 

22 agreement subject to subsection (a), submit such in23 formation to the appropriate congressional commit24 tees. 


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1 ‘‘(2) MATERIAL BREACH REPORT.—Not later 

2 than 10 days after submitting information about a 

3 potentially significant breach or compliance incident 

4 pursuant to paragraph (1), the President shall make 

5 a determination whether such potentially significant 

6 breach or compliance issue constitutes a material 

7 breach and shall submit to the appropriate congres8 sional committees such determination, accompanied 

9 by, as appropriate, a report on the action or failure 

10 to act by Iran that led to the material breach, ac11 tions necessary for Iran to cure the breach, and the 

12 status of Iran’s efforts to cure the breach. 

13 ‘‘(3) SEMI-ANNUAL REPORT.—Not later than 

14 180 days after entering into an agreement described 

15 in subsection (a), and not less frequently than once 

16 every 180 days thereafter, the President shall sub17 mit to the appropriate congressional committees a 

18 report on Iran’s nuclear program and the compli19 ance of Iran with the agreement during the period 

20 covered by the report, including the following ele21 ments: 

22 ‘‘(A) Any action or failure to act by Iran 

23 that breached the agreement or is in noncompli24 ance with the terms of the agreement. 


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1 ‘‘(B) Any delay by Iran of more than one 

2 week in providing inspectors access to facilities, 

3 people, and documents in Iran as required by 

4 the agreement. 

5 ‘‘(C) Any progress made by Iran to resolve 

6 concerns by the International Atomic Energy 

7 Agency about possible military dimensions of 

8 Iran’s nuclear program. 

9 ‘‘(D) Any procurement by Iran of mate10 rials in violation of the agreement. 

11 ‘‘(E) Any centrifuge research and develop12 ment conducted by Iran that— 

13 ‘‘(i) is not in compliance with the 

14 agreement; or 

15 ‘‘(ii) may substantially enhance the 

16 enrichment capacity of Iran if deployed. 

17 ‘‘(F) Any diversion by Iran of uranium, 

18 carbon-fiber, or other materials for use in 

19 Iran’s nuclear program in violation of the 

20 agreement. 

21 ‘‘(G) Any covert nuclear activities under22 taken by Iran. 

23 ‘‘(H) An assessment of whether any Ira24 nian financial institutions are engaged in money 

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1 ing names of specific financial institutions if ap2 plicable. 

3 ‘‘(I) An assessment of— 

4 ‘‘(i) whether, and the extent to which, 

5 Iran supported acts of terrorism; and 

6 ‘‘(ii) whether Iran directly supported, 

7 financed, planned, or carried out an act of 

8 terrorism against the United States or a 

9 United States person anywhere in the 

10 world. 

11 ‘‘(4) ADDITIONAL REPORTS AND INFORMA12 TION.— 

13 ‘‘(A) AGENCY REPORTS.—Following sub14 mission of an agreement pursuant to subsection 

15 (a) to the appropriate congressional committees, 

16 the Department of State, the Department of 

17 Energy, and the Department of Defense shall, 

18 upon the request of either of those committees, 

19 promptly furnish to those committees their 

20 views as to whether the safeguards and other 

21 controls contained in the agreement with re22 spect to Iran’s nuclear program provide an ade23 quate framework to ensure that Iran’s activities 

24 permitted thereunder will not be inimical to or 


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1 constitute an unreasonable risk to the common 

2 defense and security. 

3 ‘‘(B) PROVISION OF INFORMATION ON NU4 CLEAR INITIATIVES WITH IRAN.—The President 

5 shall keep the appropriate congressional com6 mittees fully and currently informed of any ini7 tiative or negotiations with Iran relating Iran’s 

8 nuclear program, including any new or amended 

9 agreement. 

10 ‘‘(5) CERTIFICATION.—After the review period 

11 provided in subsection (b)(1), the President shall, 

12 not less than every 90 days— 

13 ‘‘(A) determine whether the President is 

14 able to certify that— 

15 ‘‘(i) Iran is transparently, verifiably, 

16 and fully implementing the agreement, in17 cluding all related technical or additional 

18 agreements; 

19 ‘‘(ii) Iran has not committed a mate20 rial breach with respect to the agreement 

21 or, if Iran has committed a material 

22 breach, Iran has cured the material 

23 breach; 

24 ‘‘(iii) Iran has not taken any action, 

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1 cantly advance its nuclear weapons pro2 gram; 

3 ‘‘(iv) Iran has not directly supported 

4 or carried out an act of terrorism against 

5 the United States or a United States per6 son anywhere in the world; and 

7 ‘‘(v) suspension of sanctions related to 

8 Iran pursuant to the agreement is— 

9 ‘‘(I) appropriate and propor10 tionate to the specific and verifiable 

11 measures taken by Iran with respect 

12 to terminating its illicit nuclear pro13 gram; and 

14 ‘‘(II) vital to the national secu15 rity interests of the United States; 

16 and 

17 ‘‘(B) if the President determines he is able 

18 to make the certification described in subpara19 graph (A), make such certification to the appro20 priate congressional committees. 

21 ‘‘(e) EXPEDITED CONSIDERATION OF LEGISLA22 TION.— 

23 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In the event the President 

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1 section (d)(2) that Iran has materially breached an 

2 agreement subject to subsection (a), Congress may 

3 initiate within 60 days expedited consideration of 

4 qualifying legislation pursuant to this subsection. 

5 ‘‘(2) QUALIFYING LEGISLATION DEFINED.—For 

6 purposes of this subsection, the term ‘qualifying leg7 islation’ means only a bill of either House of Con8 gress— 

9 ‘‘(A) the title of which is as follows: ‘A bill 

10 reinstating statutory sanctions imposed with re11 spect to Iran.’; and 

12 ‘‘(B) the matter after the enacting clause 

13 of which is: ‘Any statutory sanctions imposed 

14 with respect to Iran pursuant to llllll 

15 that were waived, suspended, reduced, or other16 wise relieved pursuant to an agreement sub17 mitted pursuant to section 135(a) of the Atomic 

18 Energy Act of 1954 are hereby reinstated and 

19 any action by the United States Government to 

20 facilitate the release of funds or assets to Iran 

21 pursuant to such agreement, or provide any 

22 further waiver, suspension, reduction, or other 

23 relief is hereby prohibited.’, with the blank 

24 space being filled in with the law or laws under 

25 which sanctions are to be reinstated. 


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1 ‘‘(3) INTRODUCTION.—During the 60-day pe2 riod provided for in paragraph (1), qualifying legis3 lation may be introduced— 

4 ‘‘(A) in the House of Representatives, by 

5 the Speaker (or the Speaker’s designee) or the 

6 minority leader (or the minority leader’s des7 ignee); and 

8 ‘‘(B) in the Senate, by the majority leader 

9 (or the majority leader’s designee) or the mi10 nority leader (or the minority leader’s des11 ignee). 

12 ‘‘(4) COMMITTEE REFERRAL.—Qualifying legis13 lation introduced in the Senate shall be referred to 

14 the Committee on Foreign Relations and in the 

15 House of Representatives to the Committee on For16 eign Affairs. 

17 ‘‘(5) DISCHARGE.—If the committee of either 

18 House to which qualifying legislation has been re19 ferred has not reported such qualifying legislation 

20 within 10 session days after the date of referral of 

21 such legislation, that committee shall be discharged 

22 from further consideration of such legislation and 

23 the qualifying legislation shall be placed on the ap24 propriate calendar. 


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1 ‘‘(6) FLOOR CONSIDERATION IN HOUSE OF

2 REPRESENTATIVES.— 

3 ‘‘(A) PROCEEDING TO CONSIDERATION.— 

4 After each committee authorized to consider 

5 qualifying legislation reports it to the House of 

6 Representatives or has been discharged from its 

7 consideration, it shall be in order to move to 

8 proceed to consider the qualifying legislation in 

9 the House. All points of order against the mo10 tion are waived. Such a motion shall not be in 

11 order after the House has disposed of a motion 

12 to proceed on the qualifying legislation. The 

13 previous question shall be considered as ordered 

14 on the motion to its adoption without inter15 vening motion. The motion shall not be debat16 able. A motion to reconsider the vote by which 

17 the motion is disposed of shall not be in order. 

18 ‘‘(B) CONSIDERATION.—The qualifying 

19 legislation shall be considered as read. All 

20 points of order against the qualifying legislation 

21 and against its consideration are waived. The 

22 previous question shall be considered as ordered 

23 on the qualifying legislation to its passage with24 out intervening motion except 2 hours of debate 

25 equally divided and controlled by the proponent 


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1 and an opponent. A motion to reconsider the 

2 vote on passage of the qualifying legislation 

3 shall not be in order. No amendment to, or mo4 tion to recommit, qualifying legislation shall be 

5 in order. 

6 ‘‘(C) APPEALS.—All appeals from the 

7 Chair relating to the application of the Rules of 

8 the House of Representatives to the procedure 

9 relating to the qualifying legislation shall be de10 cided without debate. 

11 ‘‘(7) FLOOR CONSIDERATION IN THE SEN12 ATE.— 

13 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding Rule 

14 XXII of the Standing Rules of the Senate, it is 

15 in order at any time after the committee au16 thorized to consider qualifying legislation re17 ports it to the Senate or has been discharged 

18 from its consideration (even though a previous 

19 motion to the same effect has been disagreed 

20 to) to move to proceed to the consideration of 

21 qualifying legislation, and all points of order 

22 against qualifying legislation (and against con23 sideration of the qualifying legislation) are 

24 waived. The motion to proceed is not debatable. 

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1 pone. A motion to reconsider the vote by which 

2 the motion is agreed to or disagreed to shall not 

3 be in order. If a motion to proceed to the con4 sideration of the qualifying legislation is agreed 

5 to, the qualifying legislation shall remain the 

6 unfinished business until disposed of. 

7 ‘‘(B) DEBATE.—Debate on qualifying leg8 islation, and on all debatable motions and ap9 peals in connection therewith, shall be limited 

10 to not more than 10 hours, which shall be di11 vided equally between the majority and minority 

12 leaders or their designees. A motion to further 

13 limit debate is in order and not debatable. An 

14 amendment to, or a motion to postpone, or a 

15 motion to proceed to the consideration of other 

16 business, or a motion to recommit the quali17 fying legislation is not in order. 

18 ‘‘(C) VOTE ON PASSAGE.—The vote on 

19 passage shall occur immediately following the 

20 conclusion of the debate on the qualifying legis21 lation and a single quorum call at the conclu22 sion of the debate, if requested in accordance 

23 with the rules of the Senate. 

24 ‘‘(D) RULINGS OF THE CHAIR ON PROCE25 DURE.—Appeals from the decisions of the Chair 


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1 relating to the application of the rules of the 

2 Senate, as the case may be, to the procedure re3 lating to qualifying legislation shall be decided 

4 without debate. 

5 ‘‘(E) CONSIDERATION OF VETO MES6 SAGES.—Debate in the Senate of any veto mes7 sage with respect to qualifying legislation, in8 cluding all debatable motions and appeals in 

9 connection with such qualifying legislation, shall 

10 be limited to 10 hours, to be equally divided be11 tween, and controlled by, the majority leader 

12 and the minority leader or their designees. 

13 ‘‘(8) RULES RELATING TO SENATE AND HOUSE

14 OF REPRESENTATIVES.— 

15 ‘‘(A) COORDINATION WITH ACTION BY

16 OTHER HOUSE.—If, before the passage by one 

17 House of qualifying legislation of that House, 

18 that House receives qualifying legislation from 

19 the other House, then the following procedures 

20 shall apply: 

21 ‘‘(i) The qualifying legislation of the 

22 other House shall not be referred to a com23 mittee. 


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1 ‘‘(ii) With respect to qualifying legis2 lation of the House receiving the legisla3 tion— 

4 ‘‘(I) the procedure in that House 

5 shall be the same as if no qualifying 

6 legislation had been received from the 

7 other House; but 

8 ‘‘(II) the vote on passage shall be 

9 on the qualifying legislation of the 

10 other House. 

11 ‘‘(B) TREATMENT OF JOINT RESOLUTION

12 OF OTHER HOUSE.—If one House fails to intro13 duce or consider qualifying legislation under 

14 this section, the qualifying legislation of the 

15 other House shall be entitled to expedited floor 

16 procedures under this section. 

17 ‘‘(C) TREATMENT OF COMPANION MEAS18 URES.—If, following passage of the qualifying 

19 legislation in the Senate, the Senate then re20 ceives a companion measure from the House of 

21 Representatives, the companion measure shall 

22 not be debatable. 

23 ‘‘(f) RULES OF HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES AND

24 SENATE.—Subsection (e) is enacted by Congress— 


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1 ‘‘(1) as an exercise of the rulemaking power of 

2 the Senate and the House of Representatives, re3 spectively, and as such are deemed a part of the 

4 rules of each House, respectively, but applicable only 

5 with respect to the procedure to be followed in that 

6 House in the case of legislation described in those 

7 sections, and supersede other rules only to the ex8 tent that they are inconsistent with such rules; and 

9 ‘‘(2) with full recognition of the constitutional 

10 right of either House to change the rules (so far as 

11 relating to the procedure of that House) at any time, 

12 in the same manner, and to the same extent as in 

13 the case of any other rule of that House. 

14 ‘‘(g) RULES OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in the sec15 tion shall be construed as— 

16 ‘‘(1) modifying, or having any other impact on, 

17 the President’s authority to negotiate, enter into, or 

18 implement appropriate executive agreements, other 

19 than the restrictions on implementation of the agree20 ments specifically covered by this Act; 

21 ‘‘(2) allowing any new waiver, suspension, re22 duction, or other relief from statutory sanctions with 

23 respect to Iran under any provision of law, or allow24 ing the President to refrain from applying any such 

25 sanctions pursuant to an agreement described in 


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1 subsection (a) during the period for review provided 

2 in subsection (b)(1); 

3 ‘‘(3) revoking or terminating any statutory 

4 sanctions imposed on Iran; or 

5 ‘‘(4) authorizing the use of military force 

6 against Iran. 

7 ‘‘(h) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con8 gress that— 

9 ‘‘(1) the sanctions regime imposed on Iran by 

10 Congress is primarily responsible for bringing Iran 

11 to the table to negotiate on its nuclear program; 

12 ‘‘(2) these negotiations are a critically impor13 tant matter of national security and foreign policy 

14 for the United States and its closest allies; and 

15 ‘‘(3) it is critically important that Congress 

16 have the opportunity to consider and, as appro17 priate, take action on any agreement affecting the 

18 statutory sanctions regime imposed by Congress. 

19 ‘‘(i) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

20 ‘‘(1) AGREEMENT AND ALL RELATED MATE21 RIALS AND ANNEXES.—The term ‘agreement and all 

22 related materials and annexes’ means the agreement 

23 itself and any additional materials related thereto, 

24 including annexes, appendices, codicils, side agree25 ments, implementing materials, documents, and 


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1 guidance, technical or other understandings, and any 

2 related agreements, whether entered into or imple3 mented prior to the agreement or to be entered into 

4 or implemented in the future. 

5 ‘‘(2) APPROPRIATE CONGRESSIONAL COMMIT6 TEES.—The term ‘appropriate congressional com7 mittees’ has the meaning given that term in section 

8 14 of the Iran Sanctions Act of 1996 (Public Law 

9 104–172; 50 U.S.C. 1701 note). 

10 ‘‘(3) IRANIAN FINANCIAL INSTITUTION.—The 

11 term ‘Iranian financial institution’ has the meaning 

12 given the term in section 104A(d) of the Com13 prehensive Iran Sanctions, Accountability, and Di14 vestment Act of 2010 (22 U.S.C. 8513b(d)). 

15 ‘‘(4) JOINT PLAN OF ACTION.—The term ‘Joint 

16 Plan of Action’ means the Joint Plan of Action, 

17 signed at Geneva November 24, 2013, by Iran and 

18 by France, Germany, the Russian Federation, the 

19 People’s Republic of China, the United Kingdom, 

20 and the United States, and all implementing mate21 rials and agreements related to the Joint Plan of 

22 Action, including the technical understandings 

23 reached on January 12, 2014, the extension thereto 

24 agreed to on July 18, 2014, the extension agreed to 

25 on November 24, 2014, and any extension that is 


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1 agreed to on or after the date of the enactment of 

2 the Iran Nuclear Agreement Review Act of 2015. 

3 ‘‘(5) MATERIAL BREACH.—The term ‘material 

4 breach’ means, with respect to an agreement de5 scribed in subsection (a), any breach of the agree6 ment that substantially— 

7 ‘‘(A) benefits Iran’s nuclear program; 

8 ‘‘(B) decreases the amount of time re9 quired by Iran to achieve a nuclear weapon; or 

10 ‘‘(C) deviates from or undermines the pur11 poses of such agreement. 

12 ‘‘(6) NONCOMPLIANCE DEFINED.—The term 

13 ‘noncompliance’ means any departure from the 

14 terms of an agreement described in subsection (a) 

15 that is not a material breach. 

16 ‘‘(7) P5+1 COUNTRIES.—The term ‘P5+1 

17 countries’ means the United States, France, the 

18 Russian Federation, the People’s Republic of China, 

19 the United Kingdom, and Germany. 

20 ‘‘(8) UNITED STATES PERSON.—The term 

21 ‘United States person’ has the meaning given that 

22 term in section 101 of the Comprehensive Iran 

23 Sanctions, Accountability, and Divestment Act of 

24 2010 (22 U.S.C. 8511).’’. 


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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

2 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Iran Nuclear Agreement 

3 Review Act of 2015’’. 

4 SEC. 2. CONGRESSIONAL REVIEW AND OVERSIGHT OF 

5 AGREEMENTS WITH IRAN RELATING TO THE 

6 NUCLEAR PROGRAM OF IRAN. 

7 The Atomic Energy Act of 1954 (42 U.S.C. 2011 et 

8 seq.) is amended by inserting after section 134 the following 

9 new section: 

10 ‘‘SEC. 135. CONGRESSIONAL REVIEW AND OVERSIGHT OF 

11 AGREEMENTS WITH IRAN. 

12 ‘‘(a) TRANSMISSION TO CONGRESS OF NUCLEAR

13 AGREEMENTS WITH IRAN AND VERIFICATION ASSESSMENT

14 WITH RESPECT TO SUCH AGREEMENTS.— 

15 ‘‘(1) TRANSMISSION OF AGREEMENTS.—Not later 

16 than 5 calendar days after reaching an agreement 

17 with Iran relating to the nuclear program of Iran, the 

18 President shall transmit to the appropriate congres19 sional committees and leadership— 

20 ‘‘(A) the agreement, as defined in subsection 

21 (h)(1), including all related materials and an22 nexes; 

23 ‘‘(B) a verification assessment report of the 

24 Secretary of State prepared under paragraph (2) 

25 with respect to the agreement; and 

26 ‘‘(C) a certification that— 


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1 ‘‘(i) the agreement includes the appro2 priate terms, conditions, and duration of 

3 the agreement’s requirements with respect to 

4 Iran’s nuclear activities and provisions de5 scribing any sanctions to be waived, sus6 pended, or otherwise reduced by the United 

7 States, and any other nation or entity, in8 cluding the United Nations; and 

9 ‘‘(ii) the President determines the 

10 agreement meets United States non-pro11 liferation objectives, does not jeopardize the 

12 common defense and security, provides an 

13 adequate framework to ensure that Iran’s 

14 nuclear activities permitted thereunder will 

15 not be inimical to or constitute an unrea16 sonable risk to the common defense and se17 curity, and ensures that Iran’s nuclear ac18 tivities permitted thereunder will not be 

19 used to further any nuclear-related military 

20 or nuclear explosive purpose, including for 

21 any research on or development of any nu22 clear explosive device or any other nuclear23 related military purpose. 

24 ‘‘(2) VERIFICATION ASSESSMENT REPORT.— 


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1 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of State 

2 shall prepare, with respect to an agreement de3 scribed in paragraph (1), a report assessing— 

4 ‘‘(i) the extent to which the Secretary 

5 will be able to verify that Iran is complying 

6 with its obligations and commitments under 

7 the agreement; 

8 ‘‘(ii) the adequacy of the safeguards 

9 and other control mechanisms and other as10 surances contained in the agreement with 

11 respect to Iran’s nuclear program to ensure 

12 Iran’s activities permitted thereunder will 

13 not be used to further any nuclear-related 

14 military or nuclear explosive purpose, in15 cluding for any research on or development 

16 of any nuclear explosive device or any other 

17 nuclear-related military purpose; and 

18 ‘‘(iii) the capacity and capability of 

19 the International Atomic Energy Agency to 

20 effectively implement the verification regime 

21 required by or related to the agreement, in22 cluding whether the International Atomic 

23 Energy Agency will have sufficient access to 

24 investigate suspicious sites or allegations of 

25 covert nuclear-related activities and whether 


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1 it has the required funding, manpower, and 

2 authority to undertake the verification re3 gime required by or related to the agree4 ment. 

5 ‘‘(B) ASSUMPTIONS.—In preparing a report 

6 under subparagraph (A) with respect to an 

7 agreement described in paragraph (1), the Sec8 retary shall assume that Iran could— 

9 ‘‘(i) use all measures not expressly pro10 hibited by the agreement to conceal activi11 ties that violate its obligations and commit12 ments under the agreement; and 

13 ‘‘(ii) alter or deviate from standard 

14 practices in order to impede efforts to verify 

15 that Iran is complying with those obliga16 tions and commitments. 

17 ‘‘(C) CLASSIFIED ANNEX.—A report under 

18 subparagraph (A) shall be transmitted in unclas19 sified form, but shall include a classified annex 

20 prepared in consultation with the Director of 

21 National Intelligence, summarizing relevant clas22 sified information. 

23 ‘‘(3) EXCEPTION.— 

24 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Neither the require25 ments of subparagraphs (B) and (C) of paraVerDate Sep 11 2014 02:22 Apr 15, 2015 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00028 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S615.RS S615

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1 graph (1), nor subsections (b) through (g) of this 

2 section, shall apply to an agreement described in 

3 subsection (h)(5) or to the EU–Iran Joint State4 ment made on April 2, 2015. 

5 ‘‘(B) ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENT.—Not6 withstanding subparagraph (A), any agreement 

7 as defined in subsection (h)(1) and any related 

8 materials, whether concluded before or after the 

9 date of the enactment of this section, shall not be 

10 subject to the exception in subparagraph (A). 

11 ‘‘(b) PERIOD FOR REVIEW BY CONGRESS OF NUCLEAR

12 AGREEMENTS WITH IRAN.— 

13 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—During the 30-calendar day 

14 period following transmittal by the President of an 

15 agreement pursuant to subsection (a), the Committee 

16 on Foreign Relations of the Senate and the Committee 

17 on Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives 

18 shall, as appropriate, hold hearings and briefings and 

19 otherwise obtain information in order to fully review 

20 such agreement. 

21 ‘‘(2) EXCEPTION.—The period for congressional 

22 review under paragraph (1) shall be 60 calendar days 

23 if an agreement, including all materials required to 

24 be transmitted to Congress pursuant to subsection 


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1 (a)(1), is transmitted pursuant to subsection (a) be2 tween July 10, 2015, and September 7, 2015. 

3 ‘‘(3) LIMITATION ON ACTIONS DURING INITIAL

4 CONGRESSIONAL REVIEW PERIOD.—Notwithstanding 

5 any other provision of law, except as provided in 

6 paragraph (6), prior to and during the period for 

7 transmission of an agreement in subsection (a)(1) 

8 and during the period for congressional review pro9 vided in paragraph (1), including any additional pe10 riod as applicable under the exception provided in 

11 paragraph (2), the President may not waive, suspend, 

12 reduce, provide relief from, or otherwise limit the ap13 plication of statutory sanctions with respect to Iran 

14 under any provision of law or refrain from applying 

15 any such sanctions pursuant to an agreement de16 scribed in subsection (a). 

17 ‘‘(4) LIMITATION ON ACTIONS DURING PRESI18 DENTIAL CONSIDERATION OF A JOINT RESOLUTION OF

19 DISAPPROVAL.—Notwithstanding any other provision 

20 of law, except as provided in paragraph (6), if a joint 

21 resolution of disapproval described in subsection 

22 (c)(2)(B) passes the Congress, the President may not 

23 waive, suspend, reduce, provide relief from, or other24 wise limit the application of statutory sanctions with 

25 respect to Iran under any provision of law or refrain 


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1 from applying any such sanctions pursuant to an 

2 agreement described in subsection (a) for a period of 

3 12 calendar days following the date of passage of the 

4 joint resolution of disapproval. 

5 ‘‘(5) LIMITATION ON ACTIONS DURING CONGRES6 SIONAL RECONSIDERATION OF A JOINT RESOLUTION

7 OF DISAPPROVAL.—Notwithstanding any other provi8 sion of law, except as provided in paragraph (6), if 

9 a joint resolution of disapproval described in sub10 section (c)(2)(B) passes the Congress, and the Presi11 dent vetoes such joint resolution, the President may 

12 not waive, suspend, reduce, provide relief from, or 

13 otherwise limit the application of statutory sanctions 

14 with respect to Iran under any provision of law or 

15 refrain from applying any such sanctions pursuant to 

16 an agreement described in subsection (a) for a period 

17 of 10 calendar days following the date of the Presi18 dent’s veto. 

19 ‘‘(6) EXCEPTION.—The prohibitions under para20 graphs (3) through (5) do not apply to any new defer21 ral, waiver, or other suspension of statutory sanctions 

22 pursuant to the Joint Plan of Action if that deferral, 

23 waiver, or other suspension is made— 


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1 ‘‘(A) consistent with the law in effect on the 

2 date of the enactment of the Iran Nuclear Agree3 ment Review Act of 2015; and 

4 ‘‘(B) not later than 45 calendar days before 

5 the transmission by the President of an agree6 ment, assessment report, and certification under 

7 subsection (a). 

8 ‘‘(c) EFFECT OF CONGRESSIONAL ACTION WITH RE9 SPECT TO NUCLEAR AGREEMENTS WITH IRAN.— 

10 ‘‘(1) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of 

11 Congress that— 

12 ‘‘(A) the sanctions regime imposed on Iran 

13 by Congress is primarily responsible for bringing 

14 Iran to the table to negotiate on its nuclear pro15 gram; 

16 ‘‘(B) these negotiations are a critically im17 portant matter of national security and foreign 

18 policy for the United States and its closest allies; 

19 ‘‘(C) this section does not require a vote by 

20 Congress for the agreement to commence; 

21 ‘‘(D) this section provides for congressional 

22 review, including, as appropriate, for approval, 

23 disapproval, or no action on statutory sanctions 

24 relief under an agreement; and 


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1 ‘‘(E) even though the agreement may com2 mence, because the sanctions regime was imposed 

3 by Congress and only Congress can permanently 

4 modify or eliminate that regime, it is critically 

5 important that Congress have the opportunity, 

6 in an orderly and deliberative manner, to con7 sider and, as appropriate, take action affecting 

8 the statutory sanctions regime imposed by Con9 gress. 

10 ‘‘(2) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other 

11 provision of law, action involving any measure of 

12 statutory sanctions relief by the United States pursu13 ant to an agreement subject to subsection (a) or the 

14 Joint Plan of Action— 

15 ‘‘(A) may be taken, consistent with existing 

16 statutory requirements for such action, if, during 

17 the period for review provided in subsection (b), 

18 the Congress adopts, and there is enacted, a joint 

19 resolution stating in substance that the Congress 

20 does favor the agreement; 

21 ‘‘(B) may not be taken if, during the period 

22 for review provided in subsection (b), the Con23 gress adopts, and there is enacted, a joint resolu24 tion stating in substance that the Congress does 

25 not favor the agreement; or 


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1 ‘‘(C) may be taken, consistent with existing 

2 statutory requirements for such action, if, fol3 lowing the period for review provided in sub4 section (b), there is not enacted any such joint 

5 resolution. 

6 ‘‘(3) DEFINITION.—For the purposes of this sub7 section, the phrase ‘action involving any measure of 

8 statutory sanctions relief by the United States’ shall 

9 include waiver, suspension, reduction, or other effort 

10 to provide relief from, or otherwise limit the applica11 tion of statutory sanctions with respect to, Iran under 

12 any provision of law or any other effort to refrain 

13 from applying any such sanctions. 

14 ‘‘(d) CONGRESSIONAL OVERSIGHT OF IRANIAN COM15 PLIANCE WITH NUCLEAR AGREEMENTS.— 

16 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The President shall keep the 

17 appropriate congressional committees and leadership 

18 fully and currently informed of all aspects of Iranian 

19 compliance with respect to an agreement subject to 

20 subsection (a). 

21 ‘‘(2) POTENTIALLY SIGNIFICANT BREACHES AND

22 COMPLIANCE INCIDENTS.—The President shall, within 

23 10 calendar days of receiving credible and accurate 

24 information relating to a potentially significant 

25 breach or compliance incident by Iran with respect to 


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1 an agreement subject to subsection (a), submit such 

2 information to the appropriate congressional commit3 tees and leadership. 

4 ‘‘(3) MATERIAL BREACH REPORT.—Not later 

5 than 30 calendar days after submitting information 

6 about a potentially significant breach or compliance 

7 incident pursuant to paragraph (2), the President 

8 shall make a determination whether such potentially 

9 significant breach or compliance issue constitutes a 

10 material breach and, if there is such a material 

11 breach, whether Iran has cured such material breach, 

12 and shall submit to the appropriate congressional 

13 committees and leadership such determination, ac14 companied by, as appropriate, a report on the action 

15 or failure to act by Iran that led to the material 

16 breach, actions necessary for Iran to cure the breach, 

17 and the status of Iran’s efforts to cure the breach. 

18 ‘‘(4) SEMI-ANNUAL REPORT.—Not later than 180 

19 calendar days after entering into an agreement de20 scribed in subsection (a), and not less frequently than 

21 once every 180 calendar days thereafter, the President 

22 shall submit to the appropriate congressional commit23 tees and leadership a report on Iran’s nuclear pro24 gram and the compliance of Iran with the agreement 


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1 during the period covered by the report, including the 

2 following elements: 

3 ‘‘(A) Any action or failure to act by Iran 

4 that breached the agreement or is in noncompli5 ance with the terms of the agreement. 

6 ‘‘(B) Any delay by Iran of more than one 

7 week in providing inspectors access to facilities, 

8 people, and documents in Iran as required by 

9 the agreement. 

10 ‘‘(C) Any progress made by Iran to resolve 

11 concerns by the International Atomic Energy 

12 Agency about possible military dimensions of 

13 Iran’s nuclear program. 

14 ‘‘(D) Any procurement by Iran of materials 

15 in violation of the agreement or which could oth16 erwise significantly advance Iran’s ability to ob17 tain a nuclear weapon. 

18 ‘‘(E) Any centrifuge research and develop19 ment conducted by Iran that— 

20 ‘‘(i) is not in compliance with the 

21 agreement; or 

22 ‘‘(ii) may substantially enhance the 

23 breakout time of acquisition of a nuclear 

24 weapon by Iran, if deployed. 


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1 ‘‘(F) Any diversion by Iran of uranium, 

2 carbon-fiber, or other materials for use in Iran’s 

3 nuclear program in violation of the agreement. 

4 ‘‘(G) Any covert nuclear activities under5 taken by Iran, including any covert nuclear 

6 weapons-related or covert fissile material activi7 ties or research and development. 

8 ‘‘(H) An assessment of whether any Iranian 

9 financial institutions are engaged in money 

10 laundering or terrorist finance activities, includ11 ing names of specific financial institutions if ap12 plicable. 

13 ‘‘(I) Iran’s advances in its ballistic missile 

14 program, including developments related to its 

15 long-range and inter-continental ballistic missile 

16 programs. 

17 ‘‘(J) An assessment of— 

18 ‘‘(i) whether Iran directly supported, 

19 financed, planned, or carried out an act of 

20 terrorism against the United States or a 

21 United States person anywhere in the 

22 world; 

23 ‘‘(ii) whether, and the extent to which, 

24 Iran supported acts of terrorism, including 

25 acts of terrorism against the United States 


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1 or a United States person anywhere in the 

2 world; 

3 ‘‘(iii) all actions, including in inter4 national fora, being taken by the United 

5 States to stop, counter, and condemn acts 

6 by Iran to directly or indirectly carry out 

7 acts of terrorism against the United States 

8 and United States persons; 

9 ‘‘(iv) the impact on the national secu10 rity of the United States and the safety of 

11 United States citizens as a result of any 

12 Iranian actions reported under this para13 graph; and 

14 ‘‘(v) all of the sanctions relief provided 

15 to Iran, pursuant to the agreement, and a 

16 description of the relationship between each 

17 sanction waived, suspended, or deferred and 

18 Iran’s nuclear weapon’s program. 

19 ‘‘(K) An assessment of whether violations of 

20 internationally recognized human rights in Iran 

21 have changed, increased, or decreased, as com22 pared to the prior 180-day period. 

23 ‘‘(5) ADDITIONAL REPORTS AND INFORMATION.— 

24 ‘‘(A) AGENCY REPORTS.—Following submis25 sion of an agreement pursuant to subsection (a) 


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1 to the appropriate congressional committees and 

2 leadership, the Department of State, the Depart3 ment of Energy, and the Department of Defense 

4 shall, upon the request of any of those committees 

5 or leadership, promptly furnish to those commit6 tees or leadership their views as to whether the 

7 safeguards and other controls contained in the 

8 agreement with respect to Iran’s nuclear pro9 gram provide an adequate framework to ensure 

10 that Iran’s activities permitted thereunder will 

11 not be inimical to or constitute an unreasonable 

12 risk to the common defense and security. 

13 ‘‘(B) PROVISION OF INFORMATION ON NU14 CLEAR INITIATIVES WITH IRAN.—The President 

15 shall keep the appropriate congressional commit16 tees and leadership fully and currently informed 

17 of any initiative or negotiations with Iran relat18 ing to Iran’s nuclear program, including any 

19 new or amended agreement. 

20 ‘‘(6) COMPLIANCE CERTIFICATION.—After the re21 view period provided in subsection (b), the President 

22 shall, not less than every 90 calendar days— 

23 ‘‘(A) determine whether the President is 

24 able to certify that— 


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1 ‘‘(i) Iran is transparently, verifiably, 

2 and fully implementing the agreement, in3 cluding all related technical or additional 

4 agreements; 

5 ‘‘(ii) Iran has not committed a mate6 rial breach with respect to the agreement or, 

7 if Iran has committed a material breach, 

8 Iran has cured the material breach; 

9 ‘‘(iii) Iran has not taken any action, 

10 including covert action, that could signifi11 cantly advance its nuclear weapons pro12 gram; and 

13 ‘‘(iv) suspension of sanctions related to 

14 Iran pursuant to the agreement is— 

15 ‘‘(I) appropriate and propor16 tionate to the specific and verifiable 

17 measures taken by Iran with respect to 

18 terminating its illicit nuclear pro19 gram; and 

20 ‘‘(II) vital to the national security 

21 interests of the United States; and 

22 ‘‘(B) if the President determines he is able 

23 to make the certification described in subpara24 graph (A), make such certification to the appro25 priate congressional committees and leadership. 


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1 ‘‘(7) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of 

2 Congress that— 

3 ‘‘(A) United States sanctions on Iran for 

4 terrorism, human rights abuses, and ballistic 

5 missiles will remain in place under an agree6 ment, as defined in subsection (h)(1); 

7 ‘‘(B) issues not addressed by an agreement 

8 on the nuclear program of Iran, including fair 

9 and appropriate compensation for Americans 

10 who were terrorized and subjected to torture 

11 while held in captivity for 444 days after the sei12 zure of the United States Embassy in Tehran, 

13 Iran, in 1979 and their families, the freedom of 

14 Americans held in Iran, the human rights abuses 

15 of the Government of Iran against its own peo16 ple, and the continued support of terrorism 

17 worldwide by the Government of Iran, are mat18 ters critical to ensure justice and the national se19 curity of the United States, and should be expe20 ditiously addressed; 

21 ‘‘(C) the President should determine the 

22 agreement in no way compromises the commit23 ment of the United States to Israel’s security, 

24 nor its support for Israel’s right to exist; and 


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1 ‘‘(D) in order to responsibly implement any 

2 long-term agreement reached between the P5+1 

3 countries and Iran, it is critically important 

4 that Congress have the opportunity to review 

5 any agreement and, as necessary, take action to 

6 modify the statutory sanctions regime imposed 

7 by Congress. 

8 ‘‘(e) EXPEDITED CONSIDERATION OF LEGISLATION.— 

9 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In the event the President 

10 does not submit a certification pursuant to subsection 

11 (d)(6) or has determined pursuant to subsection 

12 (d)(3) that Iran has materially breached an agree13 ment subject to subsection (a) and the material breach 

14 has not been cured, Congress may initiate within 60 

15 calendar days expedited consideration of qualifying 

16 legislation pursuant to this subsection. 

17 ‘‘(2) QUALIFYING LEGISLATION DEFINED.—For 

18 purposes of this subsection, the term ‘qualifying legis19 lation’ means only a bill of either House of Con20 gress— 

21 ‘‘(A) the title of which is as follows: ‘A bill 

22 reinstating statutory sanctions imposed with re23 spect to Iran.’; and 

24 ‘‘(B) the matter after the enacting clause of 

25 which is: ‘Any statutory sanctions imposed with 


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1 respect to Iran pursuant to llllll that 

2 were waived, suspended, reduced, or otherwise re3 lieved pursuant to an agreement submitted pur4 suant to section 135(a) of the Atomic Energy Act 

5 of 1954 are hereby reinstated and any action by 

6 the United States Government to facilitate the 

7 release of funds or assets to Iran pursuant to 

8 such agreement, or provide any further waiver, 

9 suspension, reduction, or other relief pursuant to 

10 such agreement is hereby prohibited.’, with the 

11 blank space being filled in with the law or laws 

12 under which sanctions are to be reinstated. 

13 ‘‘(3) INTRODUCTION.—During the 60-calendar 

14 day period provided for in paragraph (1), qualifying 

15 legislation may be introduced— 

16 ‘‘(A) in the House of Representatives, by the 

17 majority leader or the minority leader; and 

18 ‘‘(B) in the Senate, by the majority leader 

19 (or the majority leader’s designee) or the minor20 ity leader (or the minority leader’s designee). 

21 ‘‘(4) FLOOR CONSIDERATION IN HOUSE OF REP22 RESENTATIVES.— 

23 ‘‘(A) REPORTING AND DISCHARGE.—If a 

24 committee of the House to which qualifying legis25 lation has been referred has not reported such 


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1 qualifying legislation within 10 legislative days 

2 after the date of referral, that committee shall be 

3 discharged from further consideration thereof. 

4 ‘‘(B) PROCEEDING TO CONSIDERATION.— 

5 Beginning on the third legislative day after each 

6 committee to which qualifying legislation has 

7 been referred reports it to the House or has been 

8 discharged from further consideration thereof, it 

9 shall be in order to move to proceed to consider 

10 the qualifying legislation in the House. All 

11 points of order against the motion are waived. 

12 Such a motion shall not be in order after the 

13 House has disposed of a motion to proceed on the 

14 qualifying legislation with regard to the same 

15 agreement. The previous question shall be consid16 ered as ordered on the motion to its adoption 

17 without intervening motion. The motion shall 

18 not be debatable. A motion to reconsider the vote 

19 by which the motion is disposed of shall not be 

20 in order. 

21 ‘‘(C) CONSIDERATION.—The qualifying leg22 islation shall be considered as read. All points of 

23 order against the qualifying legislation and 

24 against its consideration are waived. The pre25 vious question shall be considered as ordered on 


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1 the qualifying legislation to final passage with2 out intervening motion except two hours of de3 bate equally divided and controlled by the spon4 sor of the qualifying legislation (or a designee) 

5 and an opponent. A motion to reconsider the 

6 vote on passage of the qualifying legislation shall 

7 not be in order. 

8 ‘‘(5) CONSIDERATION IN THE SENATE.— 

9 ‘‘(A) COMMITTEE REFERRAL.—Qualifying 

10 legislation introduced in the Senate shall be re11 ferred to the Committee on Foreign Relations. 

12 ‘‘(B) REPORTING AND DISCHARGE.—If the 

13 Committee on Foreign Relations has not reported 

14 such qualifying legislation within 10 session 

15 days after the date of referral of such legislation, 

16 that committee shall be discharged from further 

17 consideration of such legislation and the quali18 fying legislation shall be placed on the appro19 priate calendar. 

20 ‘‘(C) PROCEEDING TO CONSIDERATION.— 

21 Notwithstanding Rule XXII of the Standing 

22 Rules of the Senate, it is in order at any time 

23 after the committee authorized to consider quali24 fying legislation reports it to the Senate or has 

25 been discharged from its consideration (even 


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1 though a previous motion to the same effect has 

2 been disagreed to) to move to proceed to the con3 sideration of qualifying legislation, and all 

4 points of order against qualifying legislation 

5 (and against consideration of the qualifying leg6 islation) are waived. The motion to proceed is 

7 not debatable. The motion is not subject to a mo8 tion to postpone. A motion to reconsider the vote 

9 by which the motion is agreed to or disagreed to 

10 shall not be in order. If a motion to proceed to 

11 the consideration of the qualifying legislation is 

12 agreed to, the qualifying legislation shall remain 

13 the unfinished business until disposed of. 

14 ‘‘(D) DEBATE.—Debate on qualifying legis15 lation, and on all debatable motions and appeals 

16 in connection therewith, shall be limited to not 

17 more than 10 hours, which shall be divided 

18 equally between the majority and minority lead19 ers or their designees. A motion to further limit 

20 debate is in order and not debatable. An amend21 ment to, or a motion to postpone, or a motion 

22 to proceed to the consideration of other business, 

23 or a motion to recommit the qualifying legisla24 tion is not in order. 


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1 ‘‘(E) VOTE ON PASSAGE.—The vote on pas2 sage shall occur immediately following the con3 clusion of the debate on the qualifying legislation 

4 and a single quorum call at the conclusion of the 

5 debate, if requested in accordance with the rules 

6 of the Senate. 

7 ‘‘(F) RULINGS OF THE CHAIR ON PROCE8 DURE.—Appeals from the decisions of the Chair 

9 relating to the application of the rules of the 

10 Senate, as the case may be, to the procedure re11 lating to qualifying legislation shall be decided 

12 without debate. 

13 ‘‘(G) CONSIDERATION OF VETO MES14 SAGES.—Debate in the Senate of any veto mes15 sage with respect to qualifying legislation, in16 cluding all debatable motions and appeals in 

17 connection with such qualifying legislation, shall 

18 be limited to 10 hours, to be equally divided be19 tween, and controlled by, the majority leader and 

20 the minority leader or their designees. 

21 ‘‘(6) RULES RELATING TO SENATE AND HOUSE

22 OF REPRESENTATIVES.— 

23 ‘‘(A) COORDINATION WITH ACTION BY

24 OTHER HOUSE.—If, before the passage by one 

25 House of qualifying legislation of that House, 


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1 that House receives qualifying legislation from 

2 the other House, then the following procedures 

3 shall apply: 

4 ‘‘(i) The qualifying legislation of the 

5 other House shall not be referred to a com6 mittee. 

7 ‘‘(ii) With respect to qualifying legisla8 tion of the House receiving the legislation— 

9 ‘‘(I) the procedure in that House 

10 shall be the same as if no qualifying 

11 legislation had been received from the 

12 other House; but 

13 ‘‘(II) the vote on passage shall be 

14 on the qualifying legislation of the 

15 other House. 

16 ‘‘(B) TREATMENT OF A BILL OF OTHER

17 HOUSE.—If one House fails to introduce quali18 fying legislation under this section, the quali19 fying legislation of the other House shall be enti20 tled to expedited floor procedures under this sec21 tion. 

22 ‘‘(C) TREATMENT OF COMPANION MEAS23 URES.—If, following passage of the qualifying 

24 legislation in the Senate, the Senate then receives 

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1 resentatives, the companion measure shall not be 

2 debatable. 

3 ‘‘(D) APPLICATION TO REVENUE MEAS4 URES.—The provisions of this paragraph shall 

5 not apply in the House of Representatives to 

6 qualifying legislation which is a revenue meas7 ure. 

8 ‘‘(f) RULES OF HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES AND

9 SENATE.—Subsection (e) is enacted by Congress— 

10 ‘‘(1) as an exercise of the rulemaking power of 

11 the Senate and the House of Representatives, respec12 tively, and as such are deemed a part of the rules of 

13 each House, respectively, but applicable only with re14 spect to the procedure to be followed in that House in 

15 the case of legislation described in those sections, and 

16 supersede other rules only to the extent that they are 

17 inconsistent with such rules; and 

18 ‘‘(2) with full recognition of the constitutional 

19 right of either House to change the rules (so far as re20 lating to the procedure of that House) at any time, 

21 in the same manner, and to the same extent as in the 

22 case of any other rule of that House. 

23 ‘‘(g) RULES OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in the sec24 tion shall be construed as— 


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1 ‘‘(1) modifying, or having any other impact on, 

2 the President’s authority to negotiate, enter into, or 

3 implement appropriate executive agreements, other 

4 than the restrictions on implementation of the agree5 ments specifically covered by this section; 

6 ‘‘(2) allowing any new waiver, suspension, re7 duction, or other relief from statutory sanctions with 

8 respect to Iran under any provision of law, or allow9 ing the President to refrain from applying any such 

10 sanctions pursuant to an agreement described in sub11 section (a) during the period for review provided in 

12 subsection (b); 

13 ‘‘(3) revoking or terminating any statutory sanc14 tions imposed on Iran; or 

15 ‘‘(4) authorizing the use of military force against 

16 Iran. 

17 ‘‘(h) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

18 ‘‘(1) AGREEMENT.—The term ‘agreement’ means 

19 an agreement related to the nuclear program of Iran 

20 that includes the United States, commits the United 

21 States to take action, or pursuant to which the United 

22 States commits or otherwise agrees to take action, re23 gardless of the form it takes, whether a political com24 mitment or otherwise, and regardless of whether it is 

25 legally binding or not, including any joint comVerDate Sep 11 2014 02:22 Apr 15, 2015 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00050 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S615.RS S615

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51 

•S 615 RS

1 prehensive plan of action entered into or made be2 tween Iran and any other parties, and any addi3 tional materials related thereto, including annexes, 

4 appendices, codicils, side agreements, implementing 

5 materials, documents, and guidance, technical or 

6 other understandings, and any related agreements, 

7 whether entered into or implemented prior to the 

8 agreement or to be entered into or implemented in the 

9 future. 

10 ‘‘(2) APPROPRIATE CONGRESSIONAL COMMIT11 TEES.—The term ‘appropriate congressional commit12 tees’ means the Committee on Finance, the Committee 

13 on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, the Select 

14 Committee on Intelligence, and the Committee on 

15 Foreign Relations of the Senate and the Committee on 

16 Ways and Means, the Committee on Financial Serv17 ices, the Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, 

18 and the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House 

19 of Representatives. 

20 ‘‘(3) APPROPRIATE CONGRESSIONAL COMMITTEES

21 AND LEADERSHIP.—The term ‘appropriate congres22 sional committees and leadership’ means the Com23 mittee on Finance, the Committee on Banking, Hous24 ing, and Urban Affairs, the Select Committee on In25 telligence, and the Committee on Foreign Relations, 


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•S 615 RS

1 and the Majority and Minority Leaders of the Senate 

2 and the Committee on Ways and Means, the Com3 mittee on Financial Services, the Permanent Select 

4 Committee on Intelligence, and the Committee on 

5 Foreign Affairs, and the Speaker, Majority Leader, 

6 and Minority Leader of the House of Representatives. 

7 ‘‘(4) IRANIAN FINANCIAL INSTITUTION.—The 

8 term ‘Iranian financial institution’ has the meaning 

9 given the term in section 104A(d) of the Comprehen10 sive Iran Sanctions, Accountability, and Divestment 

11 Act of 2010 (22 U.S.C. 8513b(d)). 

12 ‘‘(5) JOINT PLAN OF ACTION.—The term ‘Joint 

13 Plan of Action’ means the Joint Plan of Action, 

14 signed at Geneva November 24, 2013, by Iran and by 

15 France, Germany, the Russian Federation, the Peo16 ple’s Republic of China, the United Kingdom, and the 

17 United States, and all implementing materials and 

18 agreements related to the Joint Plan of Action, in19 cluding the technical understandings reached on Jan20 uary 12, 2014, the extension thereto agreed to on July 

21 18, 2014, the extension agreed to on November 24, 

22 2014, and any materially identical extension that is 

23 agreed to on or after the date of the enactment of the 

24 Iran Nuclear Agreement Review Act of 2015. 


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53 

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1 ‘‘(6) EU-IRAN JOINT STATEMENT.—The term 

2 ‘EU-Iran Joint Statement’ means only the Joint 

3 Statement by EU High Representative Federica 

4 Mogherini and Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif 

5 made on April 2, 2015, at Lausanne, Switzerland. 

6 ‘‘(7) MATERIAL BREACH.—The term ‘material 

7 breach’ means, with respect to an agreement described 

8 in subsection (a), any breach of the agreement, or in 

9 the case of non-binding commitments, any failure to 

10 perform those commitments, that substantially— 

11 ‘‘(A) benefits Iran’s nuclear program; 

12 ‘‘(B) decreases the amount of time required 

13 by Iran to achieve a nuclear weapon; or 

14 ‘‘(C) deviates from or undermines the pur15 poses of such agreement. 

16 ‘‘(8) NONCOMPLIANCE DEFINED.—The term ‘non17 compliance’ means any departure from the terms of 

18 an agreement described in subsection (a) that is not 

19 a material breach. 

20 ‘‘(9) P5+1 COUNTRIES.—The term ‘P5+1 coun21 tries’ means the United States, France, the Russian 

22 Federation, the People’s Republic of China, the 

23 United Kingdom, and Germany. 

24 ‘‘(10) UNITED STATES PERSON.—The term 

25 ‘United States person’ has the meaning given that 


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1 term in section 101 of the Comprehensive Iran Sanc2 tions, Accountability, and Divestment Act of 2010 (22 

3 U.S.C. 8511).’’. 


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emcdonald on DSK67QTVN1PROD with BILLS
Calendar No. 54 

114TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 615 

A BILL 

To provide for congressional review and oversight of 

and for other purposes. agreements relating to Iran’s nuclear program, 

APRIL 14, 2015 

Reported with an amendment 


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