EMERGENCY POWERS: THREE OPTIONS ON AID

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP87B00858R000200160013-3
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 1
• Document Creation Date: December 22, 2016
• Document Release Date: September 23, 2010
• Sequence Number: 13
• Publication Date: March 17, 1984
• Content Type: OPEN SOURCE

Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/09/23: CIA-RDP87B00858R000200160013-3
d UH
'oreign Policy - 4
Emergency Powers: Three Options on Aid
The administration, looking
for ways to send a quick arms fix to
El Salvador without a bruising
fight in Congress, early this year
considered using emergency powers
contained in foreign aid law.
But, in the face of vigorous op-
position by members of Congress,
whose authority would be by-
passed. administration strategists
set this approach aside, according
to officials. The administration
next moved to attach a $93 million
supplemental for El Salvador to
"must" appropriations legisla-
tion i H -J Res 492) wending its
way through Congress. (Story,
p. 606).
With a protracted confer-
ence fight looming, however,
the administration could wind
up back at square one - emer-
gency powers.
Three provisions in the
two major foreign aid laws (PL
87-195 and PI. 90-629), origi-
nally passed in 1961 and 1968
and heavily amended Since, en-
able the president to provide
emergency aid without the ad-
vance congressional approval
normally required. At the same
time that President Reagan is
considering using these pow-
ers. Congress is looking at ways
to set conditions on them.
'Defense Drawdown'
The rn?,st frequently used
of the powers. -ection 506 of
the foreign aid law enables the
president t,, pro' de up to .?"5
million worth of military sup-
vided by Presidents Carter and
Reagan, and $55 million in fiscal
1982 provided by Reagan. (1981 Al-
manac p. 185; 1982 Weekly Report
p. 2930)
Special Authority
Section 614 of the foreign aid
law gives the president broad dis-
cretion to provide foreign aid, re-
gardless of legal restrictions, if he
notifies Congress in advance. The
most frequent use of this power has
been to provide military training
can exceed the $50 million limit for
any country if he determines that it
is "a victim of active communist or
communist-supported aggression."
The president also can secretly
provide up to $50 million to other
countries, under this authority, if
he certifies to Congress that it is
"inadvisable" to specify the use of
the money.
Deferred Payments
Under section 21D of the Arms
Export Control Act (PL 90-629),
the president is allowed to de-
fer for up to 120 days the re-
quirement that a country pay
on delivery for arms it buys
from the United States. The
president can do so if he deter-
mines that allowing a country
to delay payment would be in
the U.S. national interest and
that the purchasing country
cannot make immediate pay-
ment because of "emergency
requirements."
The president must notify
Congress of the deferred pay-
ment before the end of the 120
days.
This provision was used to
provide large quantities of
arms to Israel during the 197:3
"Yom Kippur" war, but con-
gressional aides said they knew
of no recent uses of the provi-
sion in controversial cases.
Changes Considered
The House Foreign Affairs
Committee is considering
amendments to its foreign aid
Salvadoran soldiers could receive U.S. assis-
tance without advance approval of Congress.
plies, services or training to other
countries in any fiscal year. This
power is called the "Defense draw-
down" because the aid is provided
by the Defense Department. The
president must notify Congress be-
f0,re providing the sid; in his report,
he is required ro state that the aid
is needed he:a'~se of "an unfore-
seen emergency" and he has no
other legal way of providing it. The
president also must keep Congress
"fully and currently intormed" of
what has been provided.
EI Salvador has received $80
million in military aid under this
section: 325 million in 1981 pro-
aid to Yugoslavia in spite of legal
prohibitions on aid to communist
countries.
To provide foreign aid under
this authority, the president must
notify Congress that such action is
"important to the national security
interests" of the United States. To
make arms sales under this author-
ity, the president must tell Congress
that it is "vital to the national secu-
rity interests" of the United States.
The president can use his sec-
tion 614 authority to provide up to
$50 million annually to any one
country, and up to $250 million
each year worldwide. The president
authorization hill iHR 5119) ban-
ning use of the defense drawdown
and deferred payment powers to
provide aid to El Salvador in fiscal
years 1984-85.
The committee's bill also
would require congressional ap-
proval of any decision by the presi-
dent to use his section 614 special
authority to provide aid to El Sal-
vador. Prospects for the changes
are uncertain and it is unlikely that
any action would he taken in time
to stop Reagan from using emer-
gency powers to aid El Salvador.
March 17, 198 - PAGE 611
ExecUtIYr Rteyt t'
iSTAT
Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2010/09/23: CIA-RDP87B00858R000200160013-3