PAAIA Celebrates Passage of Our Amendment in the House of Representatives
Contact: Aman Ardalan
Email: aman@paaia.org
Phone: (202) 828-8370
Washington, DC – Today, the Public Affairs Alliance of Iranian Americans (PAAIA) celebrates the news that the House of Representatives has passed a bipartisan amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) which PAAIA helped spearhead which would assist the Iranian people’s access to telecommunications tools. This amendment is a direct result of significant effort by PAAIA working directly with congressional to urge the Biden Administration to expand General License D-1.
Sponsored by Representatives Tom Malinowski (D-NJ) and Brian Fitzpatrick (R-PA), this amendment would have the Department of Treasury, in coordination with the Department of State, review and potentially expand allowable activities under the U.S. Treasury’s General License D-1 (GL D-1), a federal regulation which exempts personal communications tools from sanctions for the Iranian people.
“This move by the House of Representatives to pass our General License D-1 amendment is a significant victory for the Iranian American community, and an invaluable step in supporting civil society in Iran and ensuring that the Iranian people have access to critical telecommunications tools. Our advocacy on General License D-1 has been one of our top priorities for this year, and we could not be more excited.” said Leila Austin, Executive Director of PAAIA.
The amendment follows a bipartisan congressional letter sent last year urging the Biden Administration to support the free flow of information and internet freedom for civil society in Iran. The bipartisan initiative was spearheaded by PAAIA and the Center for Human Rights in Iran (CHRI) and aimed at enabling people in Iran to access the internet and internet services, so that civil society can communicate and share information with the outside world freely and safely.
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About PAAIA
The Public Affairs Alliance of Iranian Americans (PAAIA) is a nonprofit, nonpartisan, nonsectarian organization that serves the interests of Iranian Americans and represents the community before U.S. policymakers and the American public at large.
