Congress Could Spur More Sanctions by Tweaking Reporting Demands, Researcher Says
Congress could encourage greater use of sanctions by changing the reporting requirements it imposes on the executive branch, a think-tank leader told the Senate Foreign Relations Committee Jan. 30.
Sign up for a free preview to unlock the rest of this article
Export Compliance Daily combines U.S. export control news, foreign border import regulation and policy developments into a single daily information service that reliably informs its trade professional readers about important current issues affecting their operations.
The State Department and other agencies often avoid using sanctions authorities because they don’t want to report their actions to Congress, Jamestown Foundation President Peter Mattis said in prepared written testimony. Requiring those agencies to report on unused authorities regularly, such as every 90 days, would increase congressional oversight and “create a better incentive” for the agencies to use those authorities, said Mattis, a former senior fellow at the House Select Committee on China.
Mattis also recommended that congressionally mandated reports on China's "malign influence" focus less on “situational awareness,” which can be obtained from many sources outside the executive branch, and more on information that “enables action,” such as sanctions or entity list placements. While presidents often resist being told by Congress to sanction companies or individuals, “demanding the compilation of materials required for specific executive actions” would “create reports that entrepreneurial U.S. officials can leverage to drive action either in the moment or at some time in the future," Mattis said.