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1 1 (March 11, 2026)

handle is hein.crs/govettq0001 and id is 1 raw text is: International Agreements and Non-binding Instruments: The Case-Zablocki Act (Case Act) March 11, 2026 In the early 1970s, Congress passed legislation to address concerns that Presidents were increasingly bypassing the Article II treaty process by using executive agreements to make international legal commitments for the United States-sometimes without congressional involvement or knowledge. The legislation, generally known as the Case-Zablocki Act of 1972 (Case Act), originally required the Secretary of State to submit to Congress the text of all international agreements entered into force not submitted to the Senate as treaties. Fifty years later, in 2022, Congress amended the Case Act (codified as amended at I U.S.C. § 112b) to require, among other things, the Secretary to submit the text of international agreements and qualifying non-binding instruments (QNIs), and to provide the legal authority relied on for each international agreement and QNI. According to a report prepared by the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations at the time of enactment, this amendment-entitled Enhancing Transparency on International Agreements and Non-binding Instruments-strengthens and modernizes the Case Act and makes it applicable, for the first time, to non-binding instruments. This Legal Sidebar first explicates the international agreements and QNIs that are covered by the amendment's requirements as well as the requirement that the State Department describe the legal authorities relied on to conclude such agreements and QNIs. It then analyzes the authorities that the State Department has cited for a selection of international agreements and QNIs. Finally, this Sidebar discusses considerations for Congress. Binding International Agreements and QNIs As amended in 2022, the Case Act requires the Secretary of State to submit on a monthly basis to the majority and minority leaders of the House and Senate and to the Senate Foreign Relations and House Foreign Affairs Committees (SFRC and HFAC) a list and the texts of all international agreements and QNIs that were signed, concluded, or otherwise finalized during the prior month. It also requires the Secretary to submit a list of all international agreements that entered into force and [QNIs] that became operative ... during the prior month, as well as the text if it differs from the text previously provided after the international agreement or QNI was signed, concluded, or otherwise finalized. Congressional Research Service https://crsreports.congress.gov LSB11403 CRS Legal Sidebar Prepared for Members and Committees of Congress