A resolution expressing the sense of the Senate that the congressional review provision of the Iran Nuclear Agreement Review Act of 2015 does not apply to the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action announced on July 14, 2015, because the President failed to transmit the entire agreement as required by such Act, and that the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action would only preempt existing Iran sanctions laws as "the supreme Law of the Land" if ratified by the Senate as a treaty with the concurrence of two thirds of the Senators present pursuant to Article II, section 2, clause 2, of the Constitution or if Congress were to enact new implementing legislation that supersedes the mandatory statutory sanctions that the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action announced on July 14, 2015, purports to supersede.

Bill: 114-sres-251
Sponsor: Sen. Johnson, Ron [R-WI]
Introduced: 2015-09-10 in the Senate
Policy area: International Affairs
Subjects: Arms control and nonproliferation
Congressional oversight
Congressional-executive branch relations
Constitution and constitutional amendments
International law and treaties
Iran
Middle East
Nuclear weapons
Presidents and presidential powers, Vice Presidents
Sanctions
Senate
Trade restrictions

Summary:
action_date: 2015-09-10
text: 
Declares the sense of the Senate that: 
 
 
the congressional review requirement of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as added by the Iran Nuclear Agreement Review Act of 2015 (Act), does not apply to the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPA) announced on July 14, 2015, because the President failed to comply with the transmission to Congress requirements; 
 
because the President did not transmit to Congress all related materials and annexes within five days of reaching agreement with Iran the congressional review period did not occur, at least not in the manner envisioned by the members of Congress who voted for the Act; 
 
in light of the President's failure to submit the entire agreement relating to Iran's nuclear program, including side agreements, to Congress within five days the congressional review requirement by its own terms does not apply to the partial agreement (JCPA), and so for the substance of the transmission to become &quot;the supreme Law of the Land'' it would need either to be treated by the Senate as a treaty or Congress would need to enact new implementing legislation that supersedes the mandatory sanctions the JCPA purports to supersede; 
 
the Comprehensive Iran Sanctions, Accountability, and Divestment Act of 2010, the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2012, the Iran Freedom and Counter-Proliferation Act of 2012, and the Iran Threat Reduction and Syria Human Rights Act of 2012 remain &quot;the supreme Law of the Land'' until a Senate-ratified treaty or duly enacted statute repeals or otherwise supersedes them; and 
 
the Senate, which has the power to consent to treaties under Article II of the Constitution, has not and does not consent to the JCPA, which is therefore not &quot;the supreme Law of the Land,'' and the President therefore has a constitutional duty to ensure that the Iran sanctions laws continue to be executed faithfully.



Legislative actions:
action_date: 2015-09-10
text: Referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations. (text of measure as introduced: CR S6608-6609)
action_date: 2015-09-10
text: Introduced in Senate