POLITICS | Thu Jun 29, 2017 | 4:07pm EDT

Senate revises Russia sanctions bill, sends it to House

By Patricia Zengerle | WASHINGTON

The U.S. Senate reached an agreement on Thursday to resolve a technical issue stalling a new package of sanctions on Russia, although the measure's fate in the House of Representatives remained uncertain, lawmakers said.

The legislation passed the Senate by a nearly unanimous 98-2 margin on June 15, looking like it might complicate President Donald Trump's desire for warmer relations with Moscow, where officials have denounced new sanctions.

But it was blocked in the House, where Republican leaders said the Senate bill violated a constitutional requirement that any bill affecting government revenues originate in the House, something known as a "blue slip" violation.

Lawmakers from the two chambers have bickered about the issue since. Democrats accused House Republican leaders of trying to kill the bill to please Trump after administration officials said they had concerns about it.

Senator Ben Cardin, the top Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, told reporters the "blue slip" issue had been fixed without any significant changes to the legislation.

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