[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 155 (Friday, November 5, 1999)]
[Senate]
[Page S14225]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       TAX CONVENTION WITH ITALY

  The resolution of ratification is as follows:

       Resolved (two-thirds of the Senators present concurring 
     therein), That the Senate advise and consent to the 
     ratification of the Convention between the Government of the 
     United States of America and the Government of the Italian 
     Republic for the Avoidance of Double Taxation with Respect to 
     Taxes on Income and the Prevention of Fraud or Fiscal 
     Evasion, signed at Washington on August 25, 1999, together 
     with a Protocol (Treaty Doc. 106-11), subject to the 
     reservation of subsection (a), the understanding of 
     subsection (b), the declaration of subsection (c), and the 
     proviso of subsection (d).
       (a) Reservation.--The Senate's advice and consent is 
     subject to the following reservation, which shall be included 
     in the instrument of ratification, and shall be binding on 
     the President:
       (1) Main purpose tests.--Paragraph 10 of Article 10 
     (Dividends), paragraph 9 of Article 11 (Interest), paragraph 
     8 of Article 12 (Royalties), and paragraph 3 of Article 22 
     (Other Income) of the Convention, and paragraph 19 of Article 
     1 of the Protocol (dealing with Article 25 (Mutual Agreement 
     Procedure) of the Convention) shall be stricken in their 
     entirety, and paragraph 20 of Article 1 of the Protocol shall 
     be renumbered as paragraph 19.
       (b) Understanding.--The Senate's advice and consent is 
     subject to the following understanding, which shall be 
     included in the instrument of ratification, and shall be 
     binding on the President:
       (1) Exchange of information.--The United States understands 
     that, pursuant to Article 26 of the Convention, both the 
     competent authority of the United States and the competent 
     authority of the Republic of Italy have the authority to 
     obtain and provide information held by financial 
     institutions, nominees or persons acting in an agency or 
     fiduciary capacity, or respecting interests in a person.
       (c) Declaration.--The Senate's advice and consent is 
     subject to the following declaration, which shall be binding 
     on the President:
       (1) Treaty interpretation.--The Senate affirms the 
     applicability to all treaties of the constitutionally based 
     principles of treaty interpretation set forth in Condition 
     (1) of the resolution of ratification of the INF Treaty, 
     approved by the Senate on May 27, 1988, and Condition (8) of 
     the resolution of ratification of the Document Agreed Among 
     the States Parties to the Treaty on Conventional Armed Forces 
     in Europe, approved by the Senate on May 14, 1997.
       (d) Proviso.--The resolution of ratification is subject to 
     the following proviso, which shall be binding on the 
     President:
       (1) Supremacy of constitution.--Nothing in the Convention 
     requires or authorizes legislation or other action by the 
     United States of America that is prohibited by the 
     Constitution of the United States as interpreted by the 
     United States.

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