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WASHINGTON, D.C. – On Wednesday, U.S. Congressman Mike Waltz (FL-6) introduced the Sanctions Lists Harmonization Act to require coordination between the federal agencies managing prohibited party lists whenever a new entity is added.

The U.S. Government maintains various sanctions lists with different jurisdiction authorities.

“Right now, national security agencies do not communicate adequately when a foreign entity is added to their sanction list,” said Waltz. “For example, an entity may be denied an export license by the Department of Commerce, but still allowed to conduct banking transactions regulated by the Department of the Treasury. At the very least, our agencies should proactively notify and coordinate with each other to maximize the penalties on these bad actors when appropriate.”

The bill does not mandate inclusion on any list. After review, if an entity is not included, the bill requires the agency to inform Congress of its reasoning.