Jerusalem Embassy and Recognition Act

Bill: 115-s-11
Sponsor: full_name: Sen. Heller, Dean [R-NV]
Introduced: 2017-01-03
Policy area: International Affairs
Subjects: Appropriations

Arab-Israeli relations

Building construction

Congressional oversight

Department of State

Diplomacy, foreign officials, Americans abroad

Government buildings, facilities, and property

Government information and archives

Israel

Middle East

Presidents and presidential powers, Vice Presidents

Sovereignty, recognition, national governance and status
Latest action: action_date: 2017-01-03
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations.

Summaries:
action_date: 2017-01-03
action_desc: Introduced in Senate
text: <p><strong>Jerusalem Embassy and Recognition Act </strong></p> <p> This bill states that it should be U.S. policy to recognize Jerusalem as the undivided capital of Israel. </p> <p> The bill expresses the sense of Congress that: (1) Jerusalem must remain an undivided city in which the rights of every ethnic and religious group are protected as they have been by Israel, (2) every Israeli citizen should have the right to reside anywhere in Jerusalem, (3) the President and the Department of State should affirm as a matter of U.S. policy that Jerusalem must remain the undivided capital of Israel, (4) the President should implement the provisions of the Jerusalem Embassy Act of 1995 and begin the process of relocating the U.S. Embassy in Israel to Jerusalem, (5) U.S. officials should refrain from actions that contradict U.S. law on this subject, and (6) any official U.S. government document that lists countries and their capital cities should identify Jerusalem as Israel's capital.</p> <p>The Jerusalem Embassy Act of 1995 is amended to eliminate the President's authority to waive certain funding limitations for State Department acquisition and maintenance of buildings abroad until the U.S. Embassy in Jerusalem has officially opened.</p> <p> The bill: (1) prohibits more than 50% of the amounts appropriated to the State Department for FY2017 for embassy security, construction, and maintenance from being obligated until the U.S. Embassy in Jerusalem has officially opened; and (2) restricts the availability and expenditure of amounts authorized for such purpose for FY 2018 and FY2019 to construction and other costs associated with the establishment of the U.S. Embassy in Jerusalem.</p>

tv_txt: II 115th CONGRESS 1st Session S. 11 IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES January 3, 2017 Mr. Heller (for himself, Mr. Cruz , Mr. Rubio , Mr. Cotton , and Mr. Inhofe ) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations A BILL To recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, to relocate to Jerusalem the United States Embassy in Israel, and for other purposes.

1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Jerusalem Embassy and Recognition Act . 2. Recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and relocation of the United States Embassy to Jerusalem (a) Statement of policy It should be the policy of the United States to recognize Jerusalem as the undivided capital of the State of Israel, both de jure and de facto. (b) Sense of Congress It is the sense of Congress that— (1) Jerusalem must remain an undivided city in which the rights of every ethnic and religious group are protected as they have been by Israel since 1967; (2) every citizen of Israel should have the right to reside anywhere in the undivided city of Jerusalem; (3) the President and the Secretary of State should publicly affirm as a matter of United States policy that Jerusalem must remain the undivided capital of the State of Israel; (4) the President should immediately implement the provisions of the Jerusalem Embassy Act of 1995 ( Public Law 104–45 ) and begin the process of relocating the United States Embassy in Israel to Jerusalem; (5) United States officials should refrain from any actions that contradict United States law on this subject; and (6) any official document of the United States Government which lists countries and their capital cities should identify Jerusalem as the capital of Israel. (c) Definition In this section, the term United States Embassy means the offices of the United States diplomatic mission and the residence of the United States chief of mission. (d) Amendment of waiver authority The Jerusalem Embassy Act of 1995 ( Public Law 104–45 ) is amended— (1) by striking section 7; and (2) by redesignating section 8 as section 7. (e) Restriction on funding subject to opening determination Not more than 50 percent of the amounts appropriated to the Department of State for fiscal year 2017 under the heading Embassy Security, Construction, and Maintenance may be obligated until the Secretary of State determines and reports to Congress that the United States Embassy in Jerusalem has officially opened. (f) Funding (1) Fiscal year 2018 Of the amounts authorized to be appropriated under the heading Embassy Security, Construction, and Maintenance for the Department of State for fiscal year 2018, such sums as may be necessary should be made available until expended only for construction and other costs associated with the establishment of the United States Embassy in Jerusalem. (2) Fiscal year 2019 Of the amounts authorized to be appropriated under the heading Embassy Security, Construction, and Maintenance for the Department of State for fiscal year 2019, such sums as may be necessary should be made available until expended only for construction and other costs associated with the establishment of the United States Embassy in Jerusalem. 3. Implementation report Not later than 30 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of State shall submit a report to Congress that— (1) details the Department of State’s plan to implement this Act; (2) includes estimated dates of completion for each phase of the establishment of the United States Embassy, including— (A) site identification; (B) land acquisition; (C) architectural, engineering, and construction surveys; (D) site preparation; and (E) construction; and (3) includes an estimate of the funding needed to implement this Act, including all costs associated with establishing the United States Embassy in Jerusalem.