Today, the Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations of America issued the following statement in response to Reps. Nita Lowey and Steve Israel’s Iran Sanctions violation legislation in the FY2010 Supplemental Appropriations Act:

“We welcome Reps. Nita Lowey and Steve Israel’s statement today regarding consequences for federal contractors who violate the Iran Sanctions Act. This language, which Rep. Israel requested in the FY2010 Supplemental Appropriations Act, and Rep. Lowey supported, would prohibit federal contractors from receiving federal tax dollars in the event that contractors fail to abide by the guidelines of the Iran Sanctions Act.

We applaud this measure, which will ensure that taxpayer dollars are kept out of the hands of businesses who engage with Tehran. Enforcing the Iran Sanctions Act sends a strong message to Iran and the world community that the United States will not tolerate increased Iranian nuclear activity.

We thank Reps. Lowey and Israel for their leadership on this issue, as well as Reps. Mark Kirk, Steve Rothman and Ben Chandler for supporting this provision.

We respectfully ask for swift passage of this measure.”

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