[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 5993 Introduced in House (IH)]







110th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 5993

   To promote congressional and public awareness, understanding, and 
      political accountability of presidential signing statements.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                              May 8, 2008

 Mr. Jones of North Carolina introduced the following bill; which was 
               referred to the Committee on the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
   To promote congressional and public awareness, understanding, and 
      political accountability of presidential signing statements.

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

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

     This Act may be cited as the ``Presidential Signing Statements Act 
of 2008''.

SEC. 2. PURPOSE.

    The purpose of this Act is to promote congressional and public 
awareness, understanding, and political accountability of Presidential 
signing statements.

SEC. 3. FINDINGS.

    Congress makes the following findings:
            (1) Signing statements that declare the President's intent 
        to disregard provisions of bills he has signed into law because 
        he believes they may offend the Constitution raise serious 
        constitutional concerns.
            (2) The statements are in tension with the President's 
        constitutional obligation to take care that the laws be 
        faithfully executed.
            (3) The statements are in tension with the President's duty 
        to defend and uphold the Constitution in determining whether a 
        bill should be signed when the President believes it contains 
        unconstitutional provisions.
            (4) The statements are in tension with the decision of the 
        United States Supreme Court holding the line-item veto 
        unconstitutional in Clinton v. New York; the statements seem 
        indistinguishable from an absolute line-item veto which 
        Congress has no opportunity to override, and which skew the 
        balance of power over legislation in favor of the President.
            (5) Seeking judicial review of the constitutionality of 
        signing statements is problematic because of the difficulty of 
        discovering a plaintiff with ``standing'' under Article III of 
        the Constitution.
            (6) Most Members of Congress and the public neither know 
        nor understand the significance of presidential signing 
        statements.
            (7) Fashioning an enlightened congressional and public 
        response to presidential signing statements would profit 
        enormously by greater scrutiny.

SEC. 4. TRANSMITTING AND PUBLISHING PRESIDENTIAL SIGNING STATEMENTS.

    The President shall transmit to the Speaker of the House of 
Representatives and the chairman of the Committee on the Judiciary of 
the House of Representatives and the majority leader of the Senate and 
the chairman of the Committee on the Judiciary of the Senate each 
signing statement that declares or insinuates the intention of the 
President to disregard provisions of any bill he has signed into law 
because he believes it is unconstitutional. The transmissions shall be 
made no later than three calendar days after the issuance of the 
statements. The President shall also have such statements published in 
the Federal Register according to the same terms and conditions as if 
they were substantive final rules issued by the Department of Justice.

SEC. 5. TESTIMONY BY THE ATTORNEY GENERAL, DEPUTY ATTORNEY GENERAL, OR 
              WHITE HOUSE COUNSEL.

    The Attorney General, Deputy Attorney General, or White House 
Counsel shall testify before the Committees on the Judiciary of the 
House of Representatives or Senate at the behest of any single Member 
of either committee to explain the meaning and justification of every 
presidential signing statement covered by this Act. Executive privilege 
shall not be recognized as a valid basis for refusing to appear or 
refusing to answer a question pertinent to the legal reasoning behind a 
signing statement or its legal ramifications.

SEC. 6. LIMITATION.

    No monies of the United States shall be authorized or expended to 
implement any law accompanied by a signing statement covered by this 
Act if either section 4 or section 5 have been violated in any respect.
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