H.R. 6230, Tehran Incitement to Violence Act

H.R. 6230 would require the Administration to determine whether sanctions that are authorized under current law should be applied to certain foreign persons and entities because they advocate for violence or call for certain political leaders to be assassinated. The bill would require the Administration to report to the Congress on those determinations.

If the enactment of H.R. 6230 leads the Administration to broaden the application of those sanctions, additional persons would be subject to sanctions. More people would be denied visas by the Department of State, resulting in an insignificant decrease in revenues from fees. Although most visa fees are retained by the Department of State and spent, some collections are deposited into the Treasury as revenues. Denying foreign nationals entry into the United States also would reduce direct spending on federal benefits (emergency Medicaid or federal subsidies for health insurance, for example) for which those people might otherwise be eligible.

In addition, if sanctions were applied more broadly under the bill, more transactions involving certain assets either in the United States or under the control of people or entities in the United States would be blocked. Any person or entity violating those prohibitions would be subject to civil or criminal monetary penalties. Those penalties are recorded in the federal budget as revenues, and a portion can be spent without further appropriation.

Using data about similar sanctions, CBO estimates any additional sanctions would affect a small number of people; thus, enacting H.R. 6230 would have insignificant effects on revenues and direct spending, and would, on net, reduce deficits by insignificant amounts over the 2026-2035 period.

Based on the cost of reports similar to those required by the bill, CBO estimates that preparing those reports would cost less than $500,000 over the 2026-2030 period. Such spending would be subject to the availability of appropriated funds.

The CBO staff contact for this estimate is David Rafferty. The estimate was reviewed by Christina Hawley Anthony, Deputy Director of Budget Analysis.