[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 39, Number 40 (Monday, October 6, 2003)]
[Pages 1287-1288]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Statement on Signing the Legislative Branch Appropriations Act, 2004

September 30, 2003

    Today I have signed into law H.R. 2657, the ``Legislative Branch 
Appropriations Act, 2004'' for the fiscal year ending September 30, 
2004, and making emergency supplemental appropriations for fiscal year 
2003.
    Section 103 of the Act establishes in the House of Representatives 
an Office of Interparliamentary Affairs. To ensure consistency with the 
President's constitutional authority to conduct the Nation's foreign 
affairs, the executive branch shall construe section 103 as assigning 
the Office functions limited to protocol and travel support for the 
House of Representatives.
    Several provisions of the Act make specified changes in statements 
of managers of the House-Senate conference committees that accompanied 
various bills reported from conference that ultimately became laws. As 
with other committee materials, statements of managers accompanying a 
conference report do not have the force of law. Accordingly, although 
changes to these statements are directed by the terms of the statute, 
the

[[Page 1288]]

statements themselves are not legally binding.
                                                George W. Bush
 The White House,
 September 30, 2003.

Note: H.R. 2657, approved September 30, was assigned Public Law No. 108-
83. An original was not available for verification of the content of 
this statement.