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1 1 (January 13, 2025)

handle is hein.crs/govesav0001 and id is 1 raw text is: Con r irk iflOV ~on 1 Research Serv, Lc~i tiv~de at~ o1914 Updated January 13, 2025 Foreign Relations Reauthorization: Background and Issues ntroduction The Constitution gives Congress the power to provide funding, authorize programs, and conduct oversight with respect to the implementation of foreign policy. In exercising these powers, Congress has enacted several laws requiring foreign affairs appropriations to be authorized prior to expenditure. These include Section 504(a)(1) of the National Security Act of 1947 (50 U.S.C. §3094(a)(1)); Section 15 of the State Department Basic Authorities Act of 1956 (22 U.S.C. §2680); Section 10 of An Act to amend the Foreign Military Sales Act, and for other purposes (22 U.S.C. §2412); and Section 313 of the Foreign Relations Authorization Act, Fiscal Years 1994 and 1995 (22 U.S.C. §6212). Foreign affairs authorizing bills are intended in part to assert the role of the foreign affairs authorizing committees in budgetary decisionmaking. Congress also utilizes them to address a range of foreign affairs policies, make changes to agencies or functions, and establish reporting requirements. Authorization-Appropriations Process An avenue for exercising Congress's power of the purse is the authorization and appropriation of federal spending. The formal process generally consists of: (I) enactment of an authorization measure that may create or continue an agency, program, or activity as well as authorize the subsequent enactment of appropriations; and (2) enactment of appropriations to provide funds for the authorized agency, program, or activity. For additional detail, see CRS Report RS20371, Overview of the Authorization-Appropriotions Process, by Bill HeniffJr., and CRS Report R46497, Authorizations and the Appropriations Process, by James V. Saturno. Historically, Congress adhered to authorization requirements by enacting two types of foreign affairs authorizing legislation on a regular basis. One, covering day-to-day State Department (DOS) operations, diplomacy, and international broadcasting, is termed foreign relations authorization or State Department authorization. The second, which is not the focus of this product, is referred to as foreign assistance authorization and authorizes spending on matters such as economic development programs, selected security assistance, disaster assistance, and multilateral aid. The House Foreign Affairs Committee (HFAC) and Senate Foreign Relations Committee (SFRC) have jurisdiction over both authorization measures. In addition to establishing, terminating, and otherwise shaping foreign affairs programs and activities, these bills traditionally authorized funding levels to guide congressional appropriators. Congress last passed a foreign relations reauthorization law that authorized appropriations for the State Department's administration of foreign affairs across numerous appropriations accounts in 2002 (the Foreign Relations Authorization Act, Fiscal Year 2003; P.L. 107-228). Since 2016, Congress has passed five authorizing laws that include new DOS authorities, congressional oversight provisions, and authorizations of funding levels for select programs. Factors inhibiting the passage of more comprehensive reauthorization laws may include disagreements among Members over certain foreign affairs issues and reticence among some Members to vote multiple times for overseas spending that may be unpopular with constituents. Congress typically includes a provision in annual Department of State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs (SFOPS) appropriations measures that waives statutory reauthorization requirements, allowing programs to be funded (see Table 1). Table I. Reauthorization Actions Since FY2003 FY Action P.L. Div. Title Sec. 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 201 6 2017 2018 201 9 2020 2021 2022 2023 Enacted Waived Waived Waived Waived Waived Waived Waived Waived Waived Waived Waived Waived Waived Enacted Waived Waived Waived Enacted Enacted Enacted 2024 Waived 2025 Enacted P.L. 107-228 P.L. 108-199 P.L. 108-447 P.L. 109-108 P.L. 110-5 P.L. 110-161 P.L. 111-8 P.L. 111-117 P.L. 112-10 P.L. 112-74 P.L. 113-6 P.L. 113-76 P.L. 113-235 P.L. 114-113 P.L. 1 14-323 P.L. 115-141 P.L. 116-6 P.L. 116-94 P.L. 117-81 P.L. 1 17-263 P.L. 118-31 P.L. 118-47 P.L. 118-159 B B B j H F B I F K j K K F G E I F F G 407 410 407 108 110 7023 7023 1108 7022 1108 7022 7022 7022 7022 7022 7022 Vil 7022

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