[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 156 (Tuesday, September 27, 2022)]
[Senate]
[Page S5074]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

  SA 5685. Mr. KAINE submitted an amendment intended to be proposed to 
amendment SA 5499 submitted by Mr. Reed (for himself and Mr. Inhofe) 
and intended to be proposed to the bill H.R. 7900, to authorize 
appropriations for fiscal year 2023 for military activities of the 
Department of Defense, for military construction, and for defense 
activities of the Department of Energy, to prescribe military personnel 
strengths for such fiscal year, and for other purposes; which was 
ordered to lie on the table; as follows:

        At the end of subtitle F of title XII, add the following:

     SEC. 1276. LIMITATION ON WITHDRAWAL FROM NORTH ATLANTIC 
                   TREATY.

       (a) Opposition of Congress to Suspension, Termination, 
     Denunciation, or Withdrawal From North Atlantic Treaty.--The 
     President shall not suspend, terminate, denounce, or withdraw 
     the United States from the North Atlantic Treaty, done at 
     Washington, DC, April 4, 1949, except by and with the advice 
     and consent of the Senate, provided that two-thirds of the 
     Senators present concur, or pursuant to an Act of Congress.
       (b) Limitation on the Use of Funds.--No funds authorized or 
     appropriated by any Act may be used to support, directly or 
     indirectly, any efforts on the part of any United States 
     Government official to take steps to suspend, terminate, 
     denounce, or withdraw the United States from the North 
     Atlantic Treaty, done at Washington, DC, April 4, 1949, until 
     such time as both the Senate and the House of Representatives 
     pass, by an affirmative vote of two-thirds of Members, a 
     joint resolution approving the withdrawal of the United 
     States from the treaty or pursuant to an Act of Congress.
       (c) Notification of Treaty Action.--
       (1) Consultation.--Prior to the notification described in 
     paragraph (2), the President shall consult with the Committee 
     on Foreign Relations of the Senate and the Committee on 
     Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives in relation 
     to any effort to suspend, terminate, denounce, or withdraw 
     the United States from the North Atlantic Treaty.
       (2) Notification.--The President shall notify the Committee 
     on Foreign Relations of the Senate and the Committee on 
     Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives in writing of 
     any effort to suspend, terminate, denounce, or withdraw the 
     United States from the North Atlantic Treaty, as soon as 
     possible but in no event later than 180 days prior to taking 
     such action.
       (d) Authorization of Legal Counsel to Represent Congress.--
     Both the Senate Legal Counsel and the General Counsel to the 
     House of Representatives are authorized to independently or 
     collectively represent Congress in initiating or intervening 
     in any judicial proceedings in any Federal court of competent 
     jurisdiction on behalf of Congress in order to oppose any 
     effort to suspend, terminate, denounce, or withdraw the 
     United States from the North Atlantic Treaty in a manner 
     inconsistent with this section.
       (e) Reporting Requirement.--Any legal counsel operating 
     pursuant to subsection (d) shall report as soon as 
     practicable to the Committee on Foreign Relations of the 
     Senate and the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of 
     Representatives with respect to any judicial proceedings 
     which the Senate Legal Counsel or the General Counsel to the 
     House of Representatives, as the case may be, initiates or in 
     which it intervenes pursuant to subsection (d).
       (f) Rule of Construction.--Nothing in this section shall be 
     construed to authorize, imply, or otherwise indicate that the 
     President may suspend, terminate, denounce, or withdraw from 
     any treaty to which the Senate has provided its advice and 
     consent without the advice and consent of the Senate to such 
     act or pursuant to an Act of Congress.
       (g) Severability.--If any provision of this section or the 
     application of such provision is held by a Federal court to 
     be unconstitutional, the remainder of this section and the 
     application of the provisions of such to any person or 
     circumstance shall not be affected thereby.
       (h) Definitions.--In this section, the terms 
     ``withdrawal'', ``denunciation'', ``suspension'', and 
     ``termination'' have the meaning given the terms in the 
     Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties, concluded at Vienna 
     May 23, 1969.
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