I 
114TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 5222 
To impose sanctions with respect to persons responsible for knowingly engag-
ing in significant activities undermining cybersecurity on behalf of or 
at the direction of the Government of Iran, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
MAY 12, 2016 
Mr. RATCLIFFE introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Com-
mittee on Foreign Affairs, and in addition to the Committee on the Judi-
ciary, 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 impose sanctions with respect to persons responsible for 
knowingly engaging in significant activities undermining 
cybersecurity on behalf of or at the direction of the 
Government of Iran, and for other purposes. 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Iran Cyber Sanctions 
Act of 2016’’. 
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SEC. 2. IMPOSITION OF SANCTIONS WITH RESPECT TO PER-
SONS RESPONSIBLE FOR KNOWINGLY EN-
GAGING IN SIGNIFICANT ACTIVITIES UNDER-
MINING CYBERSECURITY ON BEHALF OF OR 
AT THE DIRECTION OF THE GOVERNMENT OF 
IRAN. 
(a) CYBERSECURITY REPORT REQUIRED.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 90 days after 
the date of the enactment of this Act, and not less 
frequently than once every 180 days thereafter, the 
President shall submit to the appropriate congres-
sional committees a report on significant activities 
undermining cybersecurity conducted by persons on 
behalf of or at the direction of the Government of 
Iran (including members of paramilitary organiza-
tions 
such 
as 
Ansar-e-Hezbollah 
and 
Basij-e 
Mostaz’afin) against the Government of the United 
States or any United States person. 
(2) INFORMATION.—The report required under 
paragraph (1) shall include the following: 
(A) The identity of persons that have 
knowingly facilitated, participated or assisted 
in, engaged in, directed, or provided material 
support for significant activities undermining 
cybersecurity described in paragraph (1). 
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(B) A description of the conduct engaged 
in by each person identified under subpara-
graph (A). 
(C) An assessment of the extent to which 
the Government of Iran or another foreign gov-
ernment directed, facilitated, or provided mate-
rial support in the conduct of significant activi-
ties undermining cybersecurity described in 
paragraph (1). 
(D) A strategy to counter efforts by per-
sons to conduct significant activities under-
mining cybersecurity described in paragraph 
(1), including efforts to engage foreign govern-
ments to halt the capability of persons to con-
duct those activities described in paragraph (1). 
(3) FORM.—The report required under para-
graph (1) shall be submitted in unclassified form but 
may include a classified annex. 
(b) DESIGNATION OF PERSONS.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para-
graph (2), the President shall include on the spe-
cially designated nationals and blocked persons list 
maintained by the Office of Foreign Assets Control 
of the Department of the Treasury— 
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(A) any person identified under subsection 
(a)(2)(A); and 
(B) any person for which the Department 
of Justice has issued an indictment in connec-
tion with significant activities undermining cy-
bersecurity against the Government of the 
United States or any United States person. 
(2) EXCEPTION.—The President is not required 
to include a person described in paragraph (1)(A) or 
(1)(B) on the specially designated nationals and 
blocked persons list maintained by the Office of For-
eign Assets Control of the Department of the Treas-
ury if the President submits to the appropriate con-
gressional committees an explanation of the reasons 
for not including that person on that list. 
(c) SANCTIONS DESCRIBED.—The President shall 
use authority provided in Executive Order 13694 (April 
1, 2015, relating to blocking the property of certain per-
sons engaging in significant malicious cyber-enabled ac-
tivities) to impose sanctions against any person included 
on the specially designated nationals and blocked persons 
list maintained by the Office of Foreign Assets Control 
of the Department of the Treasury pursuant to subsection 
(b). 
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(d) PRESIDENTIAL BRIEFINGS TO CONGRESS.—Not 
later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of 
this Act, and periodically thereafter, the President shall 
provide a briefing to the appropriate congressional com-
mittees on efforts to implement this section. 
(e) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 
(1) APPROPRIATE
CONGRESSIONAL
COMMIT-
TEES.—The term ‘‘appropriate congressional com-
mittees’’ means— 
(A) the Committee on Foreign Relations, 
the Committee on Homeland Security and Gov-
ernmental Affairs, and the Committee on Bank-
ing, Housing, and Urban Affairs of the Senate; 
and 
(B) the Committee on Foreign Affairs, the 
Committee on Homeland Security, the Com-
mittee on Financial Services, and the Com-
mittee on Ways and Means of the House of 
Representatives. 
(2) SIGNIFICANT ACTIVITIES UNDERMINING CY-
BERSECURITY.—The term ‘‘significant activities un-
dermining cybersecurity’’ includes— 
(A) significant efforts to— 
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(i) deny access to or degrade, disrupt, 
or destroy an information and communica-
tions technology system or network; or 
(ii) exfiltrate information from such a 
system or network without authorization; 
(B) significant destructive malware at-
tacks; 
(C) significant denial of service activities; 
and 
(D) such other significant activities as may 
be described in regulations prescribed to imple-
ment this section. 
(3) 
UNITED
STATES
PERSON.—The 
term 
‘‘United States person’’ means— 
(A) an individual who is a citizen of the 
United States or an alien lawfully admitted for 
permanent residence to the United States; 
(B) an entity organized under the laws of 
the United States or any jurisdiction within the 
United States, including a foreign branch of 
such an entity; or 
(C) any government (Federal, State, or 
local) entity. 
Æ 
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