Showing 501–510 of 2202

• 6/15/1999

  Authority of the United States to Enter Settlements Limiting the Future Exercise of Executive Branch Discretion

  The Attorney General may enter into settlements that would limit the future exercise of executive branch discretion when that discretion has been conferred upon the executive branch pursuant to statute and there exists no independent statutory limitation on the authority of the executive branch to so limit the future exercise of that discretion. The Attorney General's power to enter into settlements that would limit the future exercise of discretion that has been conferred upon the executive branch directly by the Constitution is constrained by the very constitutional provisions that vest discretionary authority in the President and therefore necessarily preclude the President from subjecting the exercise of that discretion to the control of the other party to a settlement or to judicial enforcement. Article III of the Constitution does not preclude the executive branch from entering into judicially enforceable, discretion limiting settlements as a general matter or bar federal courts from entering consent decrees that limit executive branch discretion whenever such decrees purport to provide broader relief than a court could have awarded pursuant to an ordinary injunction. Article III limitations may arise, however, when, for example, the terms of the governmental promise are too amorphous to be susceptible to Article III federal judicial enforcement. Although there may be sound policy reasons to reaffirm Attorney General Meese's 1986 policy regulating the use of discretion limiting settlements, the concerns that led to its adoption do not, in general, amount to legally binding limitations on the scope of the executive branch's power to settle litigation in a manner that may limit the future exercise of executive branch discretion. The OLC does not provide release dates for its opinions, so the release date listed is the date on which the opinion was authored. The original opinion is available at www.justice.gov/file/19516/download.

  6/15/1999

• 5/27/1999

  Term of a Member of the Mississippi River Commission

  The term of a member of the Mississippi River Commission is set by the statute governing his office, and the term dictated by the statute applies even though the language used in his nomination, confirmation, and commission calls for a different term. The OLC does not provide release dates for its opinions, so the release date listed is the date on which the opinion was authored. The original opinion is available at www.justice.gov/file/19521/download.

  5/27/1999

• 5/26/1999

  Accessibility Guidelines and Federal Lease Renewals

  The Architectural and Transportation Barriers Compliance Board may require, pursuant to the Architectural Barriers Act of 1968, that buildings first leased by federal agencies after 1976 be brought into compliance with current accessibility standards when the agency negotiates renewal of the lease. The OLC does not provide release dates for its opinions, so the release date listed is the date on which the opinion was authored. The original opinion is available at www.justice.gov/file/19526/download.

  5/26/1999

• 5/18/1999

  Relationship Between Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996 and Statutory Requirement for Confidentiality of Census Information

  Section 642(a) of the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996, which concerns the authority of federal, state, and local government officials and entities to disclose to the Immigration and Naturalization Service information regarding an individual's citizenship or immigration status, does not repeal 13 U.S.C. § 9(a), a statutory confidentiality requirement that bars the disclosure of covered census information by census officials. The OLC does not provide release dates for its opinions, so the release date listed is the date on which the opinion was authored. The original opinion is available at www.justice.gov/opinion/file/844106/download.

  5/18/1999

• 5/11/1999

  United States Marshals Service Obligation to Take Steps to Avoid Anticipated Appropriations Deficiency

  Under the apportionment provisions of the Antideficiency Act, the United States Marshals Service has an affirmative obligation to take steps to avoid a deficiency in its Federal Prisoner Detention budget and any drastic curtailment of its prisoner detention services by reducing current expenditures and/or exploring alternative sources of funding that would not depend upon the receipt of additional funds from Congress. The OLC does not provide release dates for its opinions, so the release date listed is the date on which the opinion was authored. The original opinion is available at www.justice.gov/file/19531/download.

  5/11/1999

• 4/30/1999

  Whether Government Reproduction of Copyrighted Materials is a Noninfringing "Fair Use"

  Although government reproduction of copyrighted material for governmental use would in many contexts be a noninfringing fair use under section 107 of the Copyright Act of 1976, such government reproduction of copyrighted material does not invariably qualify as a "fair use." The OLC does not provide release dates for its opinions, so the release date listed is the date on which the opinion was authored. The original opinion is available at www.justice.gov/file/19536/download.

  4/30/1999

• 4/5/1999

  Applicability of Trade Secrets Act to Intra-Governmental Exchange of Regulatory Information

  The disclosure to certain federal financial regulatory agencies of propriety information of the Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight obtained from the finance institutions it regulates would be "authorized by law" within the meaning of the Trade Secrets Act and therefore would not violate that Act's prohibitions against unauthorized agency disclosures of trade secrets or other confidential business information. The OLC does not provide release dates for its opinions, so the release date listed is the date on which the opinion was authored. The original opinion is available at www.justice.gov/file/19546/download.

  4/5/1999

• 3/22/1999

  Guidance on Application of Federal Vacancies Reform Act of 1998

  This memorandum provides guidance on the application of the Federal Vacancies Reform Act of 1998 to vacancies in Senate-confirmed offices within the Executive Branch. The OLC does not provide release dates for its opinions, so the release date listed is the date on which the opinion was authored. The original opinion is available at www.justice.gov/file/19551/download.

  3/22/1999

• 3/12/1999

  Gulf War Veterans Health Statutes

  Section 1604 of the Persian Gulf War Veterans Act of 1998 is constitutionally invalid insofar as it purports to nullify prospectively certain described legislation that might be enacted in the future. Overlapping provisions of the Veterans Programs Enhancement Act of 1998 and the Persian Gulf War Veterans Act of 1998, although redundant and burdensome in some respects if both statutes are given effect, are not inherently conflicting or mutually exclusive and therefore both provisions must be treated as valid and given effect. The OLC does not provide release dates for its opinions, so the release date listed is the date on which the opinion was authored. The original opinion is available at www.justice.gov/file/19556/download.

  3/12/1999

• 2/11/1999

  Attorney's Fees for Legal Service Performed Prior to Federal Employment

  18 U.S.C. § 205 prohibits a Civil Division attorney from receiving attorney's fees for work in a case against the United States performed prior to federal employment when the right to payment depends on a finding of liability and award against the United States that takes place after the attorney's entry into federal employment. The OLC does not provide release dates for its opinions, so the release date listed is the date on which the opinion was authored. The original opinion is available at www.justice.gov/file/19561/download.

  2/11/1999