II 

Calendar No. 307 

116TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 764 

[Report No. 116–159] 

To provide for congressional approval of national emergency declarations, 

and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MARCH 12, 2019 

Mr. LEE (for himself, Mr. GRASSLEY, Mr. TILLIS, Ms. ERNST, Mr. TOOMEY, 

Mr. JOHNSON, Mr. MORAN, Mr. ALEXANDER, Mr. SASSE, Mr. BLUNT, 

Mr. PORTMAN, Mr. YOUNG, Mr. ROMNEY, Mr. CRUZ, Mr. WICKER, Mr. 

CORNYN, Ms. MCSALLY, Mr. ISAKSON, and Ms. MURKOWSKI) introduced 

the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee 

on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs 

NOVEMBER 18, 2019 

Reported by Mr. JOHNSON, with an amendment 

[Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed in italic] 

A BILL 

To provide for congressional approval of national emergency 

declarations, and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 


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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

2 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Assuring that Robust, 

3 Thorough, and Informed Congressional Leadership is Ex4 ercised Over National Emergencies Act’’ or the ‘‘ARTI5 CLE ONE Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. REQUIREMENTS RELATING TO DECLARATION AND 

7 RENEWAL OF NATIONAL EMERGENCIES. 

8 Section 201 of the National Emergencies Act (50 

9 U.S.C. 1621) is amended to read as follows: 

10 ‘‘SEC. 201. DECLARATIONS AND RENEWALS OF NATIONAL 

11 EMERGENCIES. 

12 ‘‘(a) AUTHORITY TO DECLARE NATIONAL EMER13 GENCIES.—With respect to Acts of Congress authorizing 

14 the exercise, during the period of a national emergency, 

15 of any special or extraordinary power, the President is au16 thorized to declare such a national emergency by procla17 mation. Such proclamation shall immediately be trans18 mitted to Congress and published in the Federal Register. 

19 ‘‘(b) SPECIFICATION OF PROVISIONS OF LAW TO BE

20 EXERCISED.—No powers or authorities made available by 

21 statute for use during the period of a national emergency 

22 shall be exercised unless and until the President specifies 

23 the provisions of law under which the President proposes 

24 that the President, or other officers will act in— 

25 ‘‘(1) a proclamation declaring a national emer26 gency under subsection (a); or 


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1 ‘‘(2) one or more Executive orders relating to 

2 the emergency published in the Federal Register and 

3 transmitted to Congress. 

4 ‘‘(c) TEMPORARY EFFECTIVE PERIODS.— 

5 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A declaration of a national 

6 emergency under subsection (a), shall last for 30 

7 days from the issuance of the proclamation (not 

8 counting the day on which the proclamation was 

9 issued) and shall terminate when that 30-day period 

10 expires unless there is enacted into law a joint reso11 lution of approval under section 203 with respect to 

12 the proclamation. 

13 ‘‘(2) EXERCISE OF POWERS AND AUTHORI14 TIES.—Any power or authority made available under 

15 a provision of law described in subsection (a) and 

16 specified pursuant to subsection (b) may be exer17 cised for 30 days from the issuance of the proclama18 tion or Executive order (not counting the day on 

19 which such proclamation or Executive order was 

20 issued). That power or authority cannot be exercised 

21 once that 30-day period expires, unless there is en22 acted into law a joint resolution of approval under 

23 section 203 approving— 

24 ‘‘(A) the proclamation of the national 

25 emergency or the Executive order; and 


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1 ‘‘(B) the exercise of the power or authority 

2 specified by the President in such proclamation 

3 or Executive order. 

4 ‘‘(3) EXCEPTION IF CONGRESS IS UNABLE TO

5 CONVENE.—If Congress is physically unable to con6 vene as a result of an armed attack upon the United 

7 States or another national emergency, the 30-day 

8 periods described in paragraphs (1) and (2) shall 

9 begin on the first day Congress convenes for the 

10 first time after the attack or other emergency. 

11 ‘‘(d) RENEWAL OF NATIONAL EMERGENCIES.—A na12 tional emergency declared by the President under sub13 section (a) or previously renewed under this subsection, 

14 and not already terminated pursuant to subsection (c) or 

15 section 202(a), shall terminate on the date that is one year 

16 after the President transmitted to Congress the proclama17 tion declaring the emergency under subsection (a) or Con18 gress approved a previous renewal pursuant to this sub19 section, unless— 

20 ‘‘(1) the President publishes in the Federal 

21 Register and transmits to Congress an Executive 

22 order renewing the emergency; and 

23 ‘‘(2) there is enacted into law a joint resolution 

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1 tion 203 before the termination of the emergency or 

2 previous renewal of the emergency. 

3 ‘‘(e) EFFECT OF FUTURE LAWS.—No law enacted 

4 after the date of the enactment of this Act shall supersede 

5 this title unless it does so in specific terms, referring to 

6 this title, and declaring that the new law supersedes the 

7 provisions of this title.’’. 

8 SEC. 3. TERMINATION OF NATIONAL EMERGENCIES. 

9 Section 202 of the National Emergencies Act (50 

10 U.S.C. 1622) is amended to read as follows: 

11 ‘‘SEC. 202. TERMINATION OF NATIONAL EMERGENCIES. 

12 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Any national emergency declared 

13 by the President under section 201(a) shall terminate on 

14 the earliest of— 

15 ‘‘(1) the date provided for in section 201(c); 

16 ‘‘(2) the date on which Congress, by statute, 

17 terminates the emergency; 

18 ‘‘(3) the date on which the President issues a 

19 proclamation terminating the emergency; or 

20 ‘‘(4) the date provided for in section 201(d). 

21 ‘‘(b) EFFECT OF TERMINATION.— 

22 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Effective on the date of the 

23 termination of a national emergency under sub24 section (a)— 


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1 ‘‘(A) except as provided by paragraph (2), 

2 any powers or authorities exercised by reason of 

3 the emergency shall cease to be exercised; 

4 ‘‘(B) any amounts reprogrammed or trans5 ferred under any provision of law with respect 

6 to the emergency that remain unobligated on 

7 that date shall be returned and made available 

8 for the purpose for which such amounts were 

9 appropriated; and 

10 ‘‘(C) any contracts entered into under any 

11 provision of law for construction relating to the 

12 emergency shall be terminated unless construc13 tion commenced under the contract before that 

14 date. 

15 ‘‘(2) SAVINGS PROVISION.—Except as specifi16 cally provided in subparagraph (B) or (C) of para17 graph (1), the termination of a national emergency 

18 shall not affect— 

19 ‘‘(A) any action taken or proceeding pend20 ing not finally concluded or determined on the 

21 date of the termination under subsection (a); 

22 ‘‘(B) any action or proceeding based on 

23 any act committed prior to that date; or 


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1 ‘‘(C) any rights or duties that matured or 

2 penalties that were incurred prior to that 

3 date.’’. 

4 SEC. 4. REVIEW BY CONGRESS OF NATIONAL EMER5 GENCIES. 

6 Title II of the National Emergencies Act (50 U.S.C. 

7 1621 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the fol8 lowing: 

9 ‘‘SEC. 203. REVIEW BY CONGRESS OF NATIONAL EMER10 GENCIES. 

11 ‘‘(a) JOINT RESOLUTIONS OF APPROVAL.— 

12 ‘‘(1) JOINT RESOLUTION OF APPROVAL DE13 FINED.—For purposes of this section, the term 

14 ‘joint resolution of approval’ means a joint resolution 

15 that contains only the following provisions after its 

16 resolving clause— 

17 ‘‘(A) a provision approving— 

18 ‘‘(i) a proclamation of a national 

19 emergency made under section 201(a); 

20 ‘‘(ii) an Executive order issued under 

21 section 201(b)(2); or 

22 ‘‘(iii) an Executive order issued under 

23 section 201(d); and 

24 ‘‘(B) a provision approving a list of all or 

25 a portion of the provisions of law specified by 


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1 the President under section 201(b) in the proc2 lamation or Executive order that is the subject 

3 of the joint resolution. 

4 ‘‘(2) PROCEDURES FOR CONSIDERATION OF

5 JOINT RESOLUTIONS OF APPROVAL.— 

6 ‘‘(A) INTRODUCTION.—After the President 

7 transmits to Congress a proclamation declaring 

8 a national emergency under section 201(a), or 

9 an Executive order renewing an emergency 

10 under section 201(d) or specifying emergency 

11 powers or authorities under section 201(b)(2), a 

12 joint resolution of approval may be introduced 

13 in either House of Congress by any member of 

14 that House. 

15 ‘‘(B) REQUESTS TO CONVENE CONGRESS

16 DURING RECESSES.—If, when the President 

17 transmits to Congress a proclamation declaring 

18 a national emergency under section 201(a), or 

19 an Executive order renewing an emergency 

20 under section 201(d) or specifying emergency 

21 powers or authorities under section 201(b)(2), 

22 Congress has adjourned sine die or has ad23 journed for any period in excess of 3 calendar 

24 days, the Speaker of the House of Representa25 tives and the President pro tempore of the SenVerDate Sep 11 2014 23:37 Nov 18, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S764.RS S764

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1 ate, if they deem it advisable (or if petitioned 

2 by at least one-third of the membership of their 

3 respective Houses) shall jointly request the 

4 President to convene Congress in order that it 

5 may consider the proclamation or Executive 

6 order and take appropriate action pursuant to 

7 this section. 

8 ‘‘(C) COMMITTEE REFERRAL.—A joint res9 olution of approval shall be referred in each 

10 House of Congress to the committee or commit11 tees having jurisdiction over the emergency au12 thorities invoked by the proclamation or Execu13 tive order that is the subject of the joint resolu14 tion. 

15 ‘‘(D) CONSIDERATION IN SENATE.—In the 

16 Senate, the following shall apply: 

17 ‘‘(i) REPORTING AND DISCHARGE.—If 

18 the committee to which a joint resolution 

19 of approval has been referred has not re20 ported it at the end of 10 calendar days 

21 after its introduction, that committee shall 

22 be automatically discharged from further 

23 consideration of the resolution and it shall 

24 be placed on the calendar. 


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1 ‘‘(ii) PROCEEDING TO CONSIDER2 ATION.—Notwithstanding Rule XXII of 

3 the Standing Rules of the Senate, when 

4 the committee to which a joint resolution 

5 of approval is referred has reported the 

6 resolution, or when that committee is dis7 charged under clause (i) from further con8 sideration of the resolution, it is at any 

9 time thereafter in order (even though a 

10 previous motion to the same effect has 

11 been disagreed to) for a motion to proceed 

12 to the consideration of the joint resolution, 

13 and all points of order against the joint 

14 resolution (and against consideration of 

15 the joint resolution) are waived. The mo16 tion to proceed is subject to 4 hours of de17 bate divided equally between those favoring 

18 and those opposing the joint resolution of 

19 approval. The motion is not subject to 

20 amendment, or to a motion to postpone, or 

21 to a motion to proceed to the consideration 

22 of other business. 

23 ‘‘(iii) FLOOR CONSIDERATION.—A 

24 joint resolution of approval shall be subject 

25 to 10 hours of debate, to be divided evenly 


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1 between the proponents and opponents of 

2 the resolution. 

3 ‘‘(iv) AMENDMENTS.— 

4 ‘‘(I) IN GENERAL.—Except as 

5 provided in subclause (II), no amend6 ments shall be in order with respect to 

7 a joint resolution of approval. 

8 ‘‘(II) AMENDMENTS TO STRIKE

9 OR ADD SPECIFIED PROVISIONS OF

10 LAW.—Subclause (I) shall not apply 

11 with respect to any amendment to 

12 strike or add from the list required by 

13 paragraph (1)(B) a provision or provi14 sions of law specified by the President 

15 under section 201(b) in the proclama16 tion or Executive order. 

17 ‘‘(v) MOTION TO RECONSIDER FINAL

18 VOTE.—A motion to reconsider a vote on 

19 final passage of a joint resolution of ap20 proval shall not be in order. 

21 ‘‘(vi) APPEALS.—Points of order, in22 cluding questions of relevancy, and appeals 

23 from the decision of the Presiding Officer, 

24 shall be decided without debate. 


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1 ‘‘(E) CONSIDERATION IN HOUSE OF REP2 RESENTATIVES.—In the House of Representa3 tives, if any committee to which a joint resolu4 tion of approval has been referred has not re5 ported it to the House at the end of 10 cal6 endar days after its introduction, such com7 mittee shall be discharged from further consid8 eration of the joint resolution, and it shall be 

9 placed on the appropriate calendar. On Thurs10 days it shall be in order at any time for the 

11 Speaker to recognize a Member who favors pas12 sage of a joint resolution that has appeared on 

13 the calendar for at least 3 calendar days to call 

14 up that joint resolution for immediate consider15 ation in the House without intervention of any 

16 point of order. When so called up a joint resolu17 tion shall be considered as read and shall be de18 batable for 1 hour equally divided and con19 trolled by the proponent and an opponent, and 

20 the previous question shall be considered as or21 dered to its passage without intervening motion. 

22 It shall not be in order to reconsider the vote 

23 on passage. If a vote on final passage of the 

24 joint resolution has not been taken on or before 

25 the close of the tenth calendar day after the 


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1 resolution is reported by the committee or com2 mittees to which it was referred, or after such 

3 committee or committees have been discharged 

4 from further consideration of the resolution, 

5 such vote shall be taken on that day. 

6 ‘‘(F) RECEIPT OF RESOLUTION FROM

7 OTHER HOUSE.—If, before passing a joint reso8 lution of approval, one House receives from the 

9 other a joint resolution of approval from the 

10 other House, then— 

11 ‘‘(i) the joint resolution of the other 

12 House shall not be referred to a committee 

13 and shall be deemed to have been dis14 charged from committee on the day it is 

15 received; and 

16 ‘‘(ii) the procedures set forth in sub17 paragraphs (D), (E), and (F), as applica18 ble, shall apply in the receiving House to 

19 the joint resolution received from the other 

20 House to the same extent as such proce21 dures apply to a joint resolution of the re22 ceiving House. 

23 ‘‘(G) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—The en24 actment of a joint resolution of approval under 

25 this subsection shall not be interpreted to serve 


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1 as a grant or modification by Congress of statu2 tory authority for the emergency powers of the 

3 President. 

4 ‘‘(b) RULES OF THE HOUSE AND SENATE.—Sub5 section (a) is enacted by Congress— 

6 ‘‘(1) as an exercise of the rulemaking power of 

7 the Senate and the House of Representatives, re8 spectively, and as such is deemed a part of the rules 

9 of each House, respectively, but applicable only with 

10 respect to the procedure to be followed in the House 

11 in the case of joint resolutions of approval, and su12 persede other rules only to the extent that it is in13 consistent with such other rules; and 

14 ‘‘(2) with full recognition of the constitutional 

15 right of either House to change the rules (so far as 

16 relating to the procedure of that House) at any time, 

17 in the same manner, and to the same extent as in 

18 the case of any other rule of that House.’’. 

19 SEC. 5. REPORTING REQUIREMENTS. 

20 Section 401 of the National Emergencies Act (50 

21 U.S.C. 1641) is amended by adding at the end the fol22 lowing: 

23 ‘‘(d) REPORT ON EMERGENCIES.—The President 

24 shall transmit to Congress, with any proclamation declar25 ing a national emergency under section 201(a), or ExecuVerDate Sep 11 2014 23:37 Nov 18, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00014 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6401 E:\BILLS\S764.RS S764

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1 tive order renewing an emergency under section 201(d) 

2 or specifying emergency powers or authorities under sec3 tion 201(b)(2), a report, in writing, that includes the fol4 lowing: 

5 ‘‘(1) A description of the circumstances necessi6 tating the declaration of a national emergency, the 

7 renewal of such an emergency, or the use of a new 

8 emergency authority specified in the Executive 

9 order, as the case may be. 

10 ‘‘(2) The estimated duration of the national 

11 emergency. 

12 ‘‘(3) A summary of the actions the President or 

13 other officers intend to take, including any re14 programming or transfer of funds, and the statutory 

15 authorities the President and such officers expect to 

16 rely on in addressing the national emergency. 

17 ‘‘(4) In the case of a renewal of a national 

18 emergency, a summary of the actions the President 

19 or other officers have taken in the preceding one20 year period, including any reprogramming or trans21 fer of funds, to address the emergency. 

22 ‘‘(e) PROVISION OF INFORMATION TO CONGRESS.— 

23 The President shall provide to Congress such other infor24 mation as Congress may request in connection with any 

25 national emergency in effect under title II. 


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1 ‘‘(f) PERIODIC REPORTS ON STATUS OF EMER2 GENCIES.—If the President declares a national emergency 

3 under section 201(a), the President shall, not less fre4 quently than every 180 days for the duration of the emer5 gency, report to Congress on the status of the emergency 

6 and the actions the President or other officers have taken 

7 and authorities the President and such officers have relied 

8 on in addressing the emergency.’’. 

9 SEC. 6. CONFORMING AMENDMENTS. 

10 (a) NATIONAL EMERGENCIES ACT.—Title III of the 

11 National Emergencies Act (50 U.S.C. 1631) is repealed. 

12 (b) INTERNATIONAL EMERGENCY ECONOMIC POW13 ERS ACT.—Section 207 of the International Emergency 

14 Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1706) is amended— 

15 (1) in subsection (b), by striking ‘‘if the na16 tional emergency’’ and all that follows through 

17 ‘‘under this section.’’ and inserting the following: 

18 ‘‘if— 

19 ‘‘(1) the national emergency is terminated pur20 suant to section 202(a)(2) of the National Emer21 gencies Act; or 

22 ‘‘(2) a joint resolution of approval is not en23 acted as required by section 203 of that Act to ap24 prove— 

25 ‘‘(A) the national emergency; or 


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1 ‘‘(B) the exercise of such authorities.’’; and 

2 (2) in subsection (c)(1), by striking ‘‘para3 graphs (A), (B), and (C) of section 202(a)’’ and in4 serting ‘‘section 202(b)(2)’’. 

5 SEC. 7. APPLICABILITY. 

6 (a) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in subsection 

7 (b), this Act and the amendments made by this Act shall 

8 take effect upon enactment. 

9 (b) APPLICATION TO NATIONAL EMERGENCIES PRE10 VIOUSLY DECLARED.—A national emergency declared 

11 under section 201 of the National Emergencies Act before 

12 the date of the enactment of this Act shall be unaffected 

13 by the amendments made by this Act except that such 

14 emergencies shall terminate on the date that is one year 

15 after such date of enactment unless the emergency is re16 newed under subsection (d) of section 201, as amended 

17 by section 2 of this Act. 

18 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

19 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Assuring that Robust, 

20 Thorough, and Informed Congressional Leadership is Exer21 cised Over National Emergencies Act’’ or the ‘‘ARTICLE 

22 ONE Act’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. CONGRESSIONAL REVIEW OF NATIONAL EMER2 GENCIES. 

3 Title II of the National Emergencies Act (50 U.S.C. 

4 1621 et seq.) is amended by striking sections 201 and 202 

5 and inserting the following: 

6 ‘‘SEC. 201. DECLARATIONS OF NATIONAL EMERGENCIES. 

7 ‘‘(a) AUTHORITY TO DECLARE NATIONAL EMER8 GENCIES.—With respect to Acts of Congress authorizing the 

9 exercise, during the period of a national emergency, of any 

10 special or extraordinary power, the President is authorized 

11 to declare such a national emergency by proclamation. Such 

12 proclamation shall immediately be transmitted to Congress 

13 and published in the Federal Register. 

14 ‘‘(b) SPECIFICATION OF PROVISIONS OF LAW TO BE

15 EXERCISED.—No powers or authorities made available by 

16 statute for use during the period of a national emergency 

17 shall be exercised unless and until the President specifies 

18 the provisions of law under which the President proposes 

19 that the President or other officers will act in— 

20 ‘‘(1) a proclamation declaring a national emer21 gency under subsection (a); or 

22 ‘‘(2) one or more Executive orders relating to the 

23 emergency published in the Federal Register and 

24 transmitted to Congress. 

25 ‘‘(c) PROHIBITION ON SUBSEQUENT ACTIONS IF

26 EMERGENCIES NOT APPROVED.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) SUBSEQUENT DECLARATIONS.—If a joint 

2 resolution of approval is not enacted under section 

3 203 with respect to a national emergency before the 

4 expiration of the 30-day period described in section 

5 202(a), or with respect to a national emergency pro6 posed to be renewed under section 202(b), the Presi7 dent may not, during the remainder of the term of of8 fice of that President, declare a subsequent national 

9 emergency under subsection (a) with respect to the 

10 same circumstances. 

11 ‘‘(2) EXERCISE OF AUTHORITIES.—If a joint res12 olution of approval is not enacted under section 203 

13 with respect to a power or authority specified by the 

14 President in a proclamation under subsection (a) or 

15 an Executive order under subsection (b)(2) with re16 spect to a national emergency, the President may not, 

17 during the remainder of the term of office of that 

18 President, exercise that power or authority with re19 spect to that emergency. 

20 ‘‘(d) EFFECT OF FUTURE LAWS.—No law enacted 

21 after the date of the enactment of this Act shall supersede 

22 this title unless it does so in specific terms, referring to this 

23 title, and declaring that the new law supersedes the provi24 sions of this title. 


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1 ‘‘SEC. 202. EFFECTIVE PERIODS OF NATIONAL EMER2 GENCIES. 

3 ‘‘(a) TEMPORARY EFFECTIVE PERIODS.— 

4 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A declaration of a national 

5 emergency shall remain in effect for 30 days from the 

6 issuance of the proclamation under section 201(a) 

7 (not counting the day on which the proclamation was 

8 issued) and shall terminate when that 30-day period 

9 expires unless there is enacted into law a joint resolu10 tion of approval under section 203 with respect to the 

11 proclamation. 

12 ‘‘(2) EXERCISE OF POWERS AND AUTHORITIES.— 

13 Any emergency power or authority made available 

14 under a provision of law specified pursuant to section 

15 201(b) may be exercised pursuant to a declaration of 

16 a national emergency for 30 days from the issuance 

17 of the proclamation or Executive order (not counting 

18 the day on which such proclamation or Executive 

19 order was issued). That power or authority may not 

20 be exercised after that 30-day period expires unless 

21 there is enacted into law a joint resolution of ap22 proval under section 203 approving— 

23 ‘‘(A) the proclamation of the national emer24 gency or the Executive order; and 


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1 ‘‘(B) the exercise of the power or authority 

2 specified by the President in such proclamation 

3 or Executive order. 

4 ‘‘(3) EXCEPTION IF CONGRESS IS UNABLE TO

5 CONVENE.—If Congress is physically unable to con6 vene as a result of an armed attack upon the United 

7 States or another national emergency, the 30-day pe8 riods described in paragraphs (1) and (2) shall begin 

9 on the first day Congress convenes for the first time 

10 after the attack or other emergency. 

11 ‘‘(b) RENEWAL OF NATIONAL EMERGENCIES.—A na12 tional emergency declared by the President under section 

13 201(a) or previously renewed under this subsection, and not 

14 already terminated pursuant to subsection (a) or (c), shall 

15 terminate on the date that is one year after the President 

16 transmitted to Congress the proclamation declaring the 

17 emergency or Congress approved a previous renewal pursu18 ant to this subsection, unless— 

19 ‘‘(1) the President publishes in the Federal Reg20 ister and transmits to Congress an Executive order 

21 renewing the emergency; and 

22 ‘‘(2) there is enacted into law a joint resolution 

23 of approval renewing the emergency pursuant to sec24 tion 203 before the termination of the emergency or 

25 previous renewal of the emergency. 


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1 ‘‘(c) TERMINATION OF NATIONAL EMERGENCIES.— 

2 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Any national emergency de3 clared by the President under section 201(a) shall ter4 minate on the earliest of— 

5 ‘‘(A) the date provided for in subsection (a); 

6 ‘‘(B) the date provided for in subsection (b); 

7 ‘‘(C) the date specified in an Act of Con8 gress terminating the emergency; or 

9 ‘‘(D) the date specified in a proclamation of 

10 the President terminating the emergency. 

11 ‘‘(2) EFFECT OF TERMINATION.— 

12 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Effective on the date of 

13 the termination of a national emergency under 

14 paragraph (1)— 

15 ‘‘(i) except as provided by subpara16 graph (B), any powers or authorities exer17 cised by reason of the emergency shall cease 

18 to be exercised; 

19 ‘‘(ii) any amounts reprogrammed or 

20 transferred under any provision of law with 

21 respect to the emergency that remain unob22 ligated on that date shall be returned and 

23 made available for the purpose for which 

24 such amounts were appropriated; and 


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1 ‘‘(iii) any contracts entered into under 

2 any provision of law for construction relat3 ing to the emergency shall be terminated. 

4 ‘‘(B) SAVINGS PROVISION.—The termination 

5 of a national emergency shall not affect— 

6 ‘‘(i) any legal action taken or pending 

7 legal proceeding not finally concluded or de8 termined on the date of the termination 

9 under paragraph (1); 

10 ‘‘(ii) any legal action or legal pro11 ceeding based on any act committed prior 

12 to that date; or 

13 ‘‘(iii) any rights or duties that ma14 tured or penalties that were incurred prior 

15 to that date. 

16 ‘‘SEC. 203. REVIEW BY CONGRESS OF NATIONAL EMER17 GENCIES. 

18 ‘‘(a) JOINT RESOLUTION OF APPROVAL DEFINED.—In 

19 this section, the term ‘joint resolution of approval’ means 

20 a joint resolution that contains only the following provi21 sions after its resolving clause: 

22 ‘‘(1) A provision approving— 

23 ‘‘(A) a proclamation of a national emer24 gency made under section 201(a); 


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1 ‘‘(B) an Executive order issued under sec2 tion 201(b)(2); or 

3 ‘‘(C) an Executive order issued under sec4 tion 202(b). 

5 ‘‘(2) A provision approving a list of all or a por6 tion of the provisions of law specified by the President 

7 under section 201(b) in the proclamation or Executive 

8 order that is the subject of the joint resolution. 

9 ‘‘(b) PROCEDURES FOR CONSIDERATION OF JOINT

10 RESOLUTIONS OF APPROVAL.— 

11 ‘‘(1) INTRODUCTION.—After the President trans12 mits to Congress a proclamation declaring a national 

13 emergency under section 201(a), or an Executive 

14 order specifying emergency powers or authorities 

15 under section 201(b)(2) or renewing a national emer16 gency under section 202(b), a joint resolution of ap17 proval may be introduced in either House of Congress 

18 by any member of that House. 

19 ‘‘(2) REQUESTS TO CONVENE CONGRESS DURING

20 RECESSES.—If, when the President transmits to Con21 gress a proclamation declaring a national emergency 

22 under section 201(a), or an Executive order speci23 fying emergency powers or authorities under section 

24 201(b)(2) or renewing a national emergency under 

25 section 202(b), Congress has adjourned sine die or has 


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1 adjourned for any period in excess of 3 calendar days, 

2 the majority leader of the Senate and the Speaker of 

3 the House of Representatives, or their respective des4 ignees, acting jointly after consultation with and with 

5 the concurrence of the minority leader of the Senate 

6 and the minority leader of the House, shall notify the 

7 Members of the Senate and House, respectively, to re8 assemble at such place and time as they may des9 ignate if, in their opinion, the public interest shall 

10 warrant it. 

11 ‘‘(3) COMMITTEE REFERRAL.—A joint resolution 

12 of approval shall be referred in each House of Con13 gress to the committee or committees having jurisdic14 tion over the emergency authorities invoked by the 

15 proclamation or Executive order that is the subject of 

16 the joint resolution. 

17 ‘‘(4) CONSIDERATION IN SENATE.—In the Sen18 ate, the following shall apply: 

19 ‘‘(A) REPORTING AND DISCHARGE.—If the 

20 committee to which a joint resolution of ap21 proval has been referred has not reported it at 

22 the end of 10 calendar days after its introduc23 tion, that committee shall be automatically dis24 charged from further consideration of the resolu25 tion and it shall be placed on the calendar. 


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1 ‘‘(B) PROCEEDING TO CONSIDERATION.— 

2 Notwithstanding Rule XXII of the Standing 

3 Rules of the Senate, when the committee to which 

4 a joint resolution of approval is referred has re5 ported the resolution, or when that committee is 

6 discharged under subparagraph (A) from further 

7 consideration of the resolution, it is at any time 

8 thereafter in order (even though a previous mo9 tion to the same effect has been disagreed to) for 

10 a motion to proceed to the consideration of the 

11 joint resolution, and all points of order against 

12 the joint resolution (and against consideration of 

13 the joint resolution) are waived. The motion to 

14 proceed is subject to 4 hours of debate divided 

15 equally between those favoring and those oppos16 ing the joint resolution of approval. The motion 

17 is not subject to amendment, or to a motion to 

18 postpone, or to a motion to proceed to the consid19 eration of other business. 

20 ‘‘(C) FLOOR CONSIDERATION.—A joint reso21 lution of approval shall be subject to 10 hours of 

22 consideration, to be divided evenly between the 

23 proponents and opponents of the resolution. 

24 ‘‘(D) AMENDMENTS.— 


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1 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided 

2 in clause (ii), no amendments shall be in 

3 order with respect to a joint resolution of 

4 approval. 

5 ‘‘(ii) AMENDMENTS TO STRIKE OR ADD

6 SPECIFIED PROVISIONS OF LAW.—Clause (i) 

7 shall not apply with respect to any amend8 ment— 

9 ‘‘(I) to strike a provision or provi10 sions of law from the list required by 

11 subsection (a)(2); or 

12 ‘‘(II) to add to that list a provi13 sion or provisions of law specified by 

14 the President under section 201(b) in 

15 the proclamation or Executive order 

16 that is the subject of the joint resolu17 tion of approval. 

18 ‘‘(E) MOTION TO RECONSIDER FINAL

19 VOTE.—A motion to reconsider a vote on passage 

20 of a joint resolution of approval shall not be in 

21 order. 

22 ‘‘(F) APPEALS.—Points of order, including 

23 questions of relevancy, and appeals from the de24 cision of the Presiding Officer, shall be decided 

25 without debate. 


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1 ‘‘(5) CONSIDERATION IN HOUSE OF REPRESENTA2 TIVES.—In the House of Representatives, if any com3 mittee to which a joint resolution of approval has 

4 been referred has not reported it to the House at the 

5 end of 10 calendar days after its introduction, such 

6 committee shall be discharged from further consider7 ation of the joint resolution, and it shall be placed on 

8 the appropriate calendar. On Thursdays it shall be in 

9 order at any time for the Speaker to recognize a 

10 Member who favors passage of a joint resolution that 

11 has appeared on the calendar for at least 3 calendar 

12 days to call up that joint resolution for immediate 

13 consideration in the House without intervention of 

14 any point of order. When so called up a joint resolu15 tion shall be considered as read and shall be debatable 

16 for 1 hour equally divided and controlled by the pro17 ponent and an opponent, and the previous question 

18 shall be considered as ordered to its passage without 

19 intervening motion. It shall not be in order to recon20 sider the vote on passage. If a vote on final passage 

21 of the joint resolution has not been taken on or before 

22 the close of the tenth calendar day after the resolution 

23 is reported by the committee or committees to which 

24 it was referred, or after such committee or committees 


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1 have been discharged from further consideration of the 

2 resolution, such vote shall be taken on that day. 

3 ‘‘(6) RECEIPT OF RESOLUTION FROM OTHER

4 HOUSE.—If, before passing a joint resolution of ap5 proval, one House receives from the other a joint reso6 lution of approval from the other House, then— 

7 ‘‘(A) the joint resolution of the other House 

8 shall not be referred to a committee and shall be 

9 deemed to have been discharged from committee 

10 on the day it is received; and 

11 ‘‘(B) the procedures set forth in paragraphs 

12 (3), (4), and (5), as applicable, shall apply in 

13 the receiving House to the joint resolution re14 ceived from the other House to the same extent 

15 as such procedures apply to a joint resolution of 

16 the receiving House. 

17 ‘‘(c) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—The enactment of a 

18 joint resolution of approval under this section shall not be 

19 interpreted to serve as a grant or modification by Congress 

20 of statutory authority for the emergency powers of the Presi21 dent. 

22 ‘‘(d) RULES OF THE HOUSE AND SENATE.—This sec23 tion is enacted by Congress— 

24 ‘‘(1) as an exercise of the rulemaking power of 

25 the Senate and the House of Representatives, respecVerDate Sep 11 2014 23:37 Nov 18, 2019 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00029 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6203 E:\BILLS\S764.RS S764

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1 tively, and as such is deemed a part of the rules of 

2 each House, respectively, but applicable only with re3 spect to the procedure to be followed in the House in 

4 the case of joint resolutions described in this section, 

5 and supersedes other rules only to the extent that it 

6 is inconsistent with such other rules; and 

7 ‘‘(2) with full recognition of the constitutional 

8 right of either House to change the rules (so far as re9 lating to the procedure of that House) at any time, 

10 in the same manner, and to the same extent as in the 

11 case of any other rule of that House. 

12 ‘‘SEC. 204. EXCLUSION OF CERTAIN NATIONAL EMER13 GENCIES INVOKING INTERNATIONAL EMER14 GENCY ECONOMIC POWERS ACT. 

15 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—In the case of a national emer16 gency described in subsection (b), the provisions of this Act, 

17 as in effect on the day before the date of the enactment of 

18 the Assuring that Robust, Thorough, and Informed Congres19 sional Leadership is Exercised Over National Emergencies 

20 Act, shall continue to apply on and after such date of enact21 ment. 

22 ‘‘(b) NATIONAL EMERGENCY DESCRIBED.— 

23 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A national emergency de24 scribed in this subsection is a national emergency 

25 pursuant to which the President proposes to exercise 


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1 emergency powers or authorities made available 

2 under the International Emergency Economic Powers 

3 Act (50 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.), supplemented as nec4 essary by a provision of law specified in paragraph 

5 (2). 

6 ‘‘(2) PROVISIONS OF LAW SPECIFIED.—The pro7 visions of law specified in this paragraph are— 

8 ‘‘(A) the United Nations Participation Act 

9 of 1945 (22 U.S.C. 287 et seq.); 

10 ‘‘(B) section 212(f) of the Immigration and 

11 Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1182(f)); or 

12 ‘‘(C) any provision of law that authorizes 

13 the implementation, imposition, or enforcement 

14 of economic sanctions with respect to a foreign 

15 country. 

16 ‘‘(c) EFFECT OF ADDITIONAL POWERS AND AUTHORI17 TIES.—Subsection (a) shall not apply to a national emer18 gency or the exercise of emergency powers and authorities 

19 pursuant to the national emergency if, in addition to the 

20 exercise of emergency powers and authorities described in 

21 subsection (b), the President proposes to exercise, pursuant 

22 to the national emergency, any emergency powers and au23 thorities under any other provision of law.’’. 


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1 SEC. 3. REPORTING REQUIREMENTS. 

2 Section 401 of the National Emergencies Act (50 

3 U.S.C. 1641) is amended by adding at the end the following: 

4 ‘‘(d) REPORT ON EMERGENCIES.—The President shall 

5 transmit to Congress, with any proclamation declaring a 

6 national emergency under section 201(a) or any Executive 

7 order specifying emergency powers or authorities under sec8 tion 201(b)(2) or renewing a national emergency under sec9 tion 202(b), a report, in writing, that includes the fol10 lowing: 

11 ‘‘(1) A description of the circumstances necessi12 tating the declaration of a national emergency, the re13 newal of such an emergency, or the use of a new 

14 emergency authority specified in the Executive order, 

15 as the case may be. 

16 ‘‘(2) The estimated duration of the national 

17 emergency, or a statement that the duration of the 

18 national emergency cannot reasonably be estimated at 

19 the time of transmission of the report. 

20 ‘‘(3) A summary of the actions the President or 

21 other officers intend to take, including any re22 programming or transfer of funds, and the statutory 

23 authorities the President and such officers expect to 

24 rely on in addressing the national emergency. 

25 ‘‘(4) In the case of a renewal of a national emer26 gency, a summary of the actions the President or 


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1 other officers have taken in the preceding one-year pe2 riod, including any reprogramming or transfer of 

3 funds, to address the emergency. 

4 ‘‘(e) PROVISION OF INFORMATION TO CONGRESS.—The 

5 President shall provide to Congress such other information 

6 as Congress may request in connection with any national 

7 emergency in effect under title II. 

8 ‘‘(f) PERIODIC REPORTS ON STATUS OF EMER9 GENCIES.—If the President declares a national emergency 

10 under section 201(a), the President shall, not less frequently 

11 than every 6 months for the duration of the emergency, re12 port to Congress on the status of the emergency and the ac13 tions the President or other officers have taken and authori14 ties the President and such officers have relied on in ad15 dressing the emergency.’’. 

16 SEC. 4. EXCLUSION OF IMPOSITION OF DUTIES AND IM17 PORT QUOTAS FROM PRESIDENTIAL AU18 THORITIES UNDER INTERNATIONAL EMER19 GENCY ECONOMIC POWERS ACT. 

20 Section 203 of the International Emergency Economic 

21 Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1702) is amended— 

22 (1) by redesignating subsection (c) as subsection 

23 (d); and 

24 (2) by inserting after subsection (b) the fol25 lowing: 


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1 ‘‘(c)(1) The authority granted to the President by this 

2 section does not include the authority to impose duties or 

3 tariff-rate quotas or (subject to paragraph (2)) other quotas 

4 on articles entering the United States. 

5 ‘‘(2) The limitation under paragraph (1) does not pro6 hibit the President from excluding all articles imported 

7 from a country from entering the United States.’’. 

8 SEC. 5. CONFORMING AMENDMENTS. 

9 (a) NATIONAL EMERGENCIES ACT.—Title III of the 

10 National Emergencies Act (50 U.S.C. 1631) is repealed. 

11 (b) INTERNATIONAL EMERGENCY ECONOMIC POWERS

12 ACT.—Section 207 of the International Emergency Eco13 nomic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1706) is amended— 

14 (1) in subsection (b), by striking ‘‘concurrent res15 olution’’ and inserting ‘‘joint resolution’’; and 

16 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

17 ‘‘(e) In this section, the term ‘National Emergencies 

18 Act’ means the National Emergencies Act, as in effect on 

19 the day before the date of the enactment of the Assuring 

20 that Robust, Thorough, and Informed Congressional Lead21 ership is Exercised Over National Emergencies Act.’’. 

22 SEC. 6. EFFECTIVE DATE; APPLICABILITY. 

23 (a) IN GENERAL.—This Act and the amendments 

24 made by this Act shall— 


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1 (1) take effect on the date of the enactment of 

2 this Act; and 

3 (2) except as provided in subsection (b), apply 

4 with respect to national emergencies declared under 

5 section 201 of the National Emergencies Act on or 

6 after that date. 

7 (b) APPLICABILITY TO RENEWALS OF EXISTING EMER8 GENCIES.—When a national emergency declared under sec9 tion 201 of the National Emergencies Act before the date 

10 of the enactment of this Act would expire or be renewed 

11 under section 202(d) of that Act (as in effect on the day 

12 before such date of enactment), that national emergency 

13 shall be subject to the requirements for renewal under sec14 tion 202(b) of that Act, as amended by section 2. 


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Calendar No. 307 

116TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 764 

[Report No. 116–159] 

A BILL 

To provide for congressional approval of national 

emergency declarations, and for other purposes. 

NOVEMBER 18, 2019 

Reported with an amendment 


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