The House passed a bill Monday that would help create an international nuclear fuel bank to discourage countries from enriching uranium that could be used for nuclear weapons.

By voice vote, the House passed legislation (HR 885) that would authorize $50 million in fiscal 2008 to help start the International Nuclear Fuel Bank, to be run by the International Atomic Energy Agency.

The measure was written with Iran in mind. Tehran maintains that its uranium-enrichment effort will help it produce nuclear power for energy, but the Bush administration and others allege that it is seeking to build a nuclear weapon.

“It is imperative that we keep nuclear weapons out of the hands of Iran,” said Tom Lantos, D-Calif., who chairs the Foreign Affairs Committee and who sponsored the bill.

Added Ileana Ros-Lehtinen of Florida, the ranking Republican on Lantos’ panel: “The legislation will prove to be significant to the global non-proliferation effort.”

The authorized amount would match the $50 million offered by the Nuclear Threat Initiative in September. The non-governmental organization, which focuses on non-proliferation, was founded by former Sen. Sam Nunn, D-Ga. (1972-97), and mogul Ted Turner, and is backed by billionaire Warren Buffett.

The bill would require that any fuel made available by the bank be un-subsidized and offered at current market prices, and that any country receiving the fuel have effective nuclear-technology export controls.

It also would bar any country that possessed uranium-enrichment or spent-fuel processing facilities or was a state sponsor of terrorism from receiving fuel from the bank. The president could waive the provision related to sponsorship of terrorism.

The fiscal 2008 Energy-Water spending bill (HR 2641) approved by the House Appropriations Committee would put $100 million toward a fuel bank. Several Senate measures would authorize funds, including the fiscal 2008 defense authorization bill (S 1547).

Michael Teitelbaum contributed to this story.