A new bipartisan bill in the Senate and House would allow DOJ to “more quickly” seize sanctioned Russian assets through existing forfeiture processes and transfer proceeds from those assets to help Ukraine’s reconstruction efforts. The Asset Seizure for Ukraine Reconstruction Act, introduced this week, would lift the $500,000 cap on administrative forfeitures of assets owned by Russian oligarchs and others, and would also “clarify DOJ’s transfer authority, ensuring that the U.S. government can transfer to Ukraine all the funds it acquires through seizure of Russian oligarch assets,” according to a news release.

Prominent members of the House of Representatives objected to a USMCA panel ruling last week that said Canada's rewrite of its tariff rate quotas for U.S. dairy exports didn't violate the trade agreement (see 2311240002). U.S. farmers thought they would have the opportunity to sell directly to Canadian consumers, but dairy processors in Canada still control access.

A House bill with Republican support could require the administration to report to Congress any Ukrainian government officials who violate the end-use monitoring agreements for certain U.S. defense assistance. The text of the bill, published last week, said the U.S. would impose visa restrictions on Ukrainian officials guilty of violating those monitoring agreements. “We have so far sent $113 billion to Ukraine and the Biden Administration wants to send them even more,” said Rep. Josh Brecheen, R-Okla., who introduced the bill. “This legislation is needed so that no more of Americans’ hard-earned taxpayer dollars are stolen by corrupt officials in Ukraine.”

Leaders of the Senate and House Armed Services committees should ensure the upcoming 2024 defense spending bill includes new measures protecting U.S. outbound investments when the two chambers work on a compromise text for the legislation, a bipartisan group of lawmakers said in a Nov. 20 letter. The more than 40 lawmakers suggested the final version of the National Defense Authorization Act should feature an amendment included as part of the Senate’s version of the NDAA, passed in June, that would require companies to notify the Treasury Department 14 days before making certain investments in several “countries of concern,” including China (see 2307260029 and 2307280052).

Senate Democrats said they supported the Biden administration’s recent decision to suspend certain sanctions against Venezuela but urged the president to reimpose the measures “absent concrete steps by” the Nicolas Maduro-led regime to end its crackdown on civil society and political opposition.

Rep. Ilhan Omar, D-Minn., introduced a resolution last week to block a $320 million U.S. weapons sale to Israel. The resolution, which is co-sponsored by Reps. Cori Bush, D-Mo.; Summer Lee, D-Pa.; Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y.; Delia Ramirez, D-Ill.; and Rashida Tlaib, D-Mich., seeks to block the “proposed export license” for shipments of Spice Family Guided Bomb Assemblies to Israel. Omar said the weapon has been used by Israel in its siege against Gaza in response to the terrorist attacks carried out by Hamas last month.

The Senate voted 87-11 to approve a laddered temporary spending bill that will continue government appropriations at last fiscal year's level through Jan. 19 for some agencies and through Feb. 2 for others.

The leaders of the House Select Committee on China said they will support a bipartisan bill introduced earlier this week that could expand the Treasury Department’s upcoming outbound investment prohibitions to cover more Chinese technology sectors and additional countries (see 2311140013).

The EU and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization members should sanction Iranian airlines and refuse airport access to Iranian aircraft, Rep. Keith Self, R-Texas, said in a resolution introduced this week. Noting the U.S. has sanctions in place against Mahan Air, Iran Air, Saha Airlines, Qeshm Air and Qeshm Fars Air, Self said some of those airlines reportedly operate in at least 24 airports across Eurasia, including in NATO and EU countries.

Senate and House Democrats sent a letter to the Energy Department this week urging the agency to rethink its approval process for liquefied natural gas (LNG) exports. More than 60 lawmakers said they are concerned the agency’s approach doesn’t “fully or accurately consider how LNG exports negatively impact the climate, environmental justice communities, or increase domestic energy prices” and asked DOE to begin a rulemaking to update its permit review process.