§112a. United States Treaties and Other International Agreements; contents; admissibility in evidence

(a) The Secretary of State shall cause to be compiled, edited, indexed, and published, beginning as of January 1, 1950, a compilation entitled "United States Treaties and Other International Agreements," which shall contain all treaties to which the United States is a party that have been proclaimed during each calendar year, and all international agreements other than treaties to which the United States is a party that have been signed, proclaimed, or with reference to which any other final formality has been executed, during each calendar year. The said United States Treaties and Other International Agreements shall be legal evidence of the treaties, international agreements other than treaties, and proclamations by the President of such treaties and agreements, therein contained, in all the courts of the United States, the several States, and the Territories and insular possessions of the United States.

(b) The Secretary of State may determine that publication of certain categories of agreements is not required, if the following criteria are met:

(1) such agreements are not treaties which have been brought into force for the United States after having received Senate advice and consent pursuant to section 2(2) of Article II of the Constitution of the United States;

(2) the public interest in such agreements is insufficient to justify their publication, because (A) as of the date of enactment of the Foreign Relations Authorization Act, Fiscal Years 1994 and 1995, the agreements are no longer in force,¹ (B) the agreements do not create private rights or duties, or establish standards intended to govern government action in the treatment of private individuals; (C) in view of the limited or specialized nature of the public interest in such agreements, such interest can adequately be satisfied by an alternative means; or (D) the public disclosure of the text of the agreement would, in the opinion of the President, be prejudicial to the national security of the United States; and

(3) copies of such agreements (other than those in paragraph (2)(D)), including certified copies where necessary for litigation or similar purposes, will be made available by the Department of State upon request.

(c) Any determination pursuant to subsection (b) shall be published in the Federal Register.

(Added Sept. 23, 1950, ch. 1001, §2, 64 Stat. 980 ; amended Pub. L. 103–236, title I, §138, Apr. 30, 1994, 108 Stat. 397 .)

References in Text

The date of enactment of the Foreign Relations Authorization Act, Fiscal Years 1994 and 1995, referred to in subsec. (b)(2)(A), is the date of enactment of Pub. L. 103–236, which was approved Apr. 30, 1994.

Amendments

1994-Pub. L. 103–236 designated existing provisions as subsec. (a) and added subsecs. (b) and (c).

Effect of Repeal of Section 73 of Act Jan. 12, 1895

This section and section 112 of this title as not affected by the repeal of section 73 of act Jan. 12, 1895, ch. 23, 28 Stat. 615 , which related to the same subject matter, see section 56(i) of act Oct. 31, 1951, ch. 655, 65 Stat. 729 .

Written Requests for Documents

Copies of United States Treaties and Other International Agreements not available to Senators or Representatives unless specifically requested by them, in writing, see Pub. L. 94–59, title VIII, §801, July 25, 1975, 89 Stat. 296 , set out as a note under section 1317 of Title 44, Public Printing and Documents.

¹ So in original. The comma probably should be a semicolon.