[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 39, Number 18 (Monday, May 5, 2003)]
[Pages 491-492]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Statement on Signing the Clean Diamond Trade Act

April 25, 2003

    I have today signed into law H.R. 1584, the ``Clean Diamond Trade 
Act.'' The Act enables this Nation to implement procedures developed by 
more than 50 countries to exclude rough ``conflict diamonds'' from 
international trade, while promoting legitimate trade. Conflict diamonds 
have been used by rebel groups in Africa to finance their atrocities 
committed on civilian populations and their insurrections against 
internationally recognized governments. The United States has played a 
key role over the past 2 years in forging an international consensus to 
curb such damaging trade and has therefore strongly supported the 
``Kimberley Process.'' Diamonds also are critical to the economic growth 
and development of African and other countries, so preserving their 
legitimate trade is an important foreign policy objective.
    This Act directs the President to implement regulations to carry out 
the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme (KPCS). Although under this 
Act I have discretion to issue regulations consistent with future 
changes to the KPCS, under the Constitution, the President cannot be 
bound to accept or follow changes that might be made to the KPCS at some 
future date absent subsequent legislation. I will construe this Act 
accordingly.
    Section 15 of the Act provides that the legislation takes effect on 
the date the President certifies to the Congress that either of two 
specified events has occurred. The first event is that ``an applicable 
waiver that has been granted by the World Trade Organization is in 
effect.'' The second event is that ``an applicable decision in a 
resolution adopted by the United Nations Security Council pursuant to 
Chapter VII of the Charter of the United Nations is in effect.'' Once 
the Act takes effect, it ``shall thereafter remain in effect during 
those periods in which, as certified by the President to the Congress, 
an applicable waiver or decision'' by the World Trade Organization or 
the United Nations Security Council, respectively, ``is in effect.''
    If section 15 imposed a mandatory duty on the President to certify 
to the Congress whether either of the two specified events has occurred 
and whether either remains in effect, a serious question would exist as 
to whether section 15 unconstitutionally delegated legislative power to 
international bodies. In order to avoid this constitutional question, I 
will construe the certification process set forth in section 15 as 
conferring broad discretion on the President. Specifically, I will 
construe section 15 as giving the President broad discretion whether to 
certify to the Congress that an applicable waiver or decision is in 
effect. Similarly, I will construe section 15 as imposing no obligation 
on the President to withdraw an existing certification in response to 
any particular event. Rather, I will construe section 15 as giving the 
President the discretion to determine when a certification that an 
applicable waiver or decision is no longer in effect is warranted.
                                                George W. Bush
 The White House,
 April 25, 2003.

Note: H.R. 1584, approved April 25, was assigned Public Law No. 108-19. 
This item was not received in time for publication in the appropriate 
issue.

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