ExecutiveOrdersEO
DetDeterminationObama · D

Presidential Determination

Suspension of Limitations Under the Jerusalem Embassy Act

President Obama suspended for six months the statutory requirements of the Jerusalem Embassy Act that would have forced the U.S. embassy in Israel to move from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem and cut State Department funding if not moved. This determination, made on national security grounds, must be transmitted to Congress with a report and published in the Federal Register before taking effect.

Federal Register Open PDF 76 FR 82073

Impact dates

  1. 6-month suspension period expires

Key directives

  • Suspend limitations in sections 3(b) and 7(b) of Jerusalem Embassy Act for 6 months
  • Transmit determination to Congress accompanied by report per section 7(a)
  • Publish determination in Federal Register

Who is ordered

Timeline

Immediate

  • Determination signed and issued
  • Directive to Secretary of State to transmit to Congress and publish in Federal Register

Near term (90d)

  • 6-month suspension period runs from effective date of transmission to Congress
  • Congressional report due with transmission

Long term

  • Potential repeated suspensions under recurring 6-month authority
  • Ongoing delay of embassy relocation to Jerusalem

Risks & tensions

  • Recurrent exercise of waiver authority since 1995 creates persistent tension with pro-embassy-movement constituencies
  • National security justification is formulaic; Congress may view repeated suspensions as circumventing legislative intent
  • Timing in December 2011 precedes election-year pressures on Israel policy
Presidential Determination: Suspension of Limitations Under the Jerusalem Embassy Act · Executive Orders