[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 4240 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
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116th CONGRESS
2d Session
S. 4240
To prohibit the use of funds to withdraw the United States from the
World Health Organization.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
July 21, 2020
Mr. Coons (for himself and Mr. Leahy) introduced the following bill;
which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To prohibit the use of funds to withdraw the United States from the
World Health Organization.
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 ``No WHO Withdrawal Act''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress makes the following findings:
(1) In 1948, the United States became a state party to the
Constitution of the World Health Organization, done at New York
July 22, 1946, and entered into force April 7, 1948 (62 Stat.
2679; TIAS 1808), a multilateral treaty to which the United
States was an original signatory and the terms of which the
United States helped draft.
(2) Pursuant to Article 4 of the Constitution of the World
Health Organization, the United States accepted that
Constitution's terms in accordance with the provisions of that
Constitution and in accordance with the constitutional
processes of the United States.
(3) The Constitution of the World Health Organization lacks
an explicit withdrawal provision.
(4) Congress passed the joint resolution entitled ``Joint
Resolution providing for membership and participation by the
United States in the World Health Organization and authorizing
an appropriation therefor.'', approved June 14, 1948 (62 Stat.
441, chapter 469), authorizing the President to accept United
States membership in the World Health Organization and
specifying that the United States could withdraw from the
Organization upon the satisfaction of the following two
conditions:
(A) The United States would provide notice one year
before withdrawing.
(B) The United States would continue to meet its
financial obligations to the World Health Organization
for the Organization's current fiscal year.
(5) That joint resolution authorized an annual
appropriation to the Department of State for the payment by the
United States of its share of the expenses of the World Health
Organization, and in doing so, Congress exercised both its
constitutional power of the purse and its power to approve
international agreements.
(6) President Harry Truman's statement of the acceptance of
the United States of the Constitution of the World Health
Organization expressly acknowledged that he was ``acting
pursuant to the authority granted by the joint resolution . . .
and subject to the provisions of that joint resolution'' (62
Stat. 2792).
(7) On July 2, 1948, the World Health Assembly unanimously
recognized the validity of the ratification of the Constitution
of the World Health Organization by the United States.
(8) The World Health Organization plays an essential role
in the global governance of health and infectious disease,
including through setting norms and sharing information,
facilitating international coordination, providing technical
support, and monitoring health trends around the world.
(9) The United States was the World Health Organization's
largest donor in 2018 and 2019, providing $893,000,000, or
about 15 percent, of the Organization's budget.
(10) On January 30, 2020, the World Health Organization
declared the coronavirus disease 2019 (commonly known as
``COVID-19'') outbreak a public health emergency of
international concern.
(11) The World Health Organization is working to help
countries manage and respond to COVID-19 and a multitude of
other public health threats, including by improving
preparedness and response capacity, accelerating research and
development for treatment and therapeutics, distributing
essential supplies, and coordinating across regions to assess,
respond, and mitigate risk.
(12) On April 14, 2020, in the midst of the deadliest
global pandemic in decades, President Donald J. Trump announced
the suspension of United States funding to the World Health
Organization pending a review into the Organization's response
to the spread of COVID-19.
(13) On July 6, 2020, President Trump sent a formal notice
to Congress and the World Health Organization that the United
States will withdraw from the Organization after 72 years of
membership, despite the Organization's vital role in the global
response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
(14) The United States may not legally withdraw from the
World Health Organization Constitution until, at the earliest,
July 6, 2021, one year after the date of the formal withdrawal
notice, and the United States would still be legally obligated
to pay the balance of its financial obligations to the World
Health Organization.
SEC. 3. STATEMENT OF POLICY.
It is the policy of the United States--
(1) to remain a member in good standing of the World Health
Organization, including by payment of the financial obligations
of the United States to the Organization;
(2) to reject any efforts to withdraw the United States
from the World Health Organization, either directly, or
indirectly through condemnation of the Organization; and
(3) to continue to work within the World Health
Organization to reform and improve the Organization.
SEC. 4. PROHIBITION ON THE USE OF FUNDS TO WITHDRAW FROM THE WORLD
HEALTH ORGANIZATION.
(a) In General.--Notwithstanding any other provision of law, no
funds described in subsection (b) may be obligated or expended to take
any action to withdraw the United States from the World Health
Organization.
(b) Funds Described.--The funds described in this subsection are
funds--
(1) authorized to be appropriated or otherwise made
available for fiscal year 2021 or any fiscal year thereafter;
or
(2) authorized to be appropriated or otherwise made
available for any fiscal year before fiscal year 2021 and
available for obligation as of the date of the enactment of
this Act.
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