US House passes sanctions bill allowing 100% tariffs on buyers of Russian oil

Congressional approval

The United States House of Representatives voted 262 to 159 on 16 September 2026 to pass a sanctions package against Russia. The bill, which passed the Senate 86 to 11 in August, now heads to Donald Trump for his signature. The legislation codifies existing sanctions against Russian political and military figures, financial institutions, and the energy sector. It also authorizes measures targeting tankers in Russia's shadow fleet that transport crude oil outside Western price caps. The package passed with the backing of 203 Republicans and 58 Democrats, while 152 Democrats and seven Republicans voted against it.

Tariff powers on energy importers

Under the provisions, the president is instructed to impose tariffs of up to 100% within 30 days on goods from the five largest importers of Russian crude oil, the five largest importers of Russian gas, and five nations facilitating sanctions evasion. The text does not name specific countries, but Senate data identifies potential targets including China, India, Slovakia, Hungary, Azerbaijan, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates, Kazakhstan, and Singapore. The legislation includes an exemption for nations that import less than 15% of Russian gas exports and show clear reductions in their purchases. Proponents designed the measures to cut revenues funding Russia's war in Ukraine before the upcoming winter. Republican Representative Michael McCaul from Texas argued for confronting nations buying Russian fossil fuels.

These countries have a choice to make on whether they will continue to sustain Putin's aggression.

Division over executive tariff authority

Opposition in the House centered on the broad latitude granted to the White House to apply tariffs against foreign trading partners. Several Democratic lawmakers expressed concern that the statute lacks binding oversight and could allow the administration to levy tariffs against European Union allies. Representative Don Beyer of Virginia warned that the definition of facilitating sanctions evasion remains open to presidential discretion.

This bill contains a loophole that would allow him to define basically any country as facilitating evasion of Russian sanctions. He could then hit them with tariffs reaching up to 100 percent, without any guardrails, oversight, or expiration date.

House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries questioned whether the sanctions would ever take effect, citing the broad presidential waiver provisions embedded in the text.

There are so many loopholes in this bill that I think it is very unlikely that the sanctions contemplated in this bill will see the light of day.

Other Democrats favored passage to maintain international pressure against Moscow. Representative Steny Hoyer of Maryland maintained that failing to approve the legislation would weaken support for Kyiv.

If we fail to pass this bill, there will be cheers in the Kremlin and tears in Kyiv.

Legislative timeline and negotiations

The package bears the name of the late Senator Lindsey Graham, who negotiated with Donald Trump over more than a year to secure White House backing. Efforts to draft the statutory framework began in April 2025. In June 2026, the House approved an earlier sanctions bill that excluded tariff provisions, but the Senate did not take up that version. The White House, which opposed the legislation for more than a year, endorsed the compromise after the tariff and waiver mechanisms were finalized.