International Security Assistance Act of 1979
Latest action. Referred to House Committee on Foreign Affairs.
International Security Assistance Act of 1979 - Amends the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 to increase the amount the President is authorized to use for emergency purposes. Requires the President to report to Congress each time such authority is used. Authorizes appropriations through fiscal year 1981 for: (1) international narcotics control; (2) military assistance (with limitations on the amounts to Portugal, Spain, Jordan, and the Philippines); (3) security supporting assistance; and (4) international military education and training. Authorizes the President to draw down defense articles and services, not to exceed $10,000,000 in value in any fiscal year, to provide emergency military assistance without first finding that failure to respond immediately to such emergency will result in serious harm to vital U.S. security interests. Permits an authorization for military assistance to a particular country to remain available for three years after such assistance has been authorized. Increases the monetary limits of military stockpiles in foreign countries. Permits such stockpiles to be located in South Korea. Authorizes the President to assign military personnel during fiscal year 1980 to manage international security assistance programs in specified countries, including Greece. Revises the number of defense attaches that may be assigned to any one country. Repeals the provisions authorizing assistance for peacekeeping operations. Authorizes the President to provide nonmilitary security assistance, including assistance for peacekeeping operations. Amends the Arms Export Control Act to authorize the President to provide, without charge, quality assurance, inspection, and contract audit services in connection with defense contracts with North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) member nations if such nation provides the same services to the United States. Authorizes the President to reduce or waive certain administrative and reimbursement charges in connection with cooperative agreements with NATO or NATO member countries for research and development of defense articles. Requires the President to transmit to Congress such a proposed cooperative agreement describing the cooperative project. Exempts such cooperative projects from congressional reporting and licensing requirements. Authorizes appropriations through fiscal year 1981 for military sales to Israel. Reduces the ceiling on foreign military sales credits. Raises the ceiling on aggregate acquisition costs for excess defense articles ordered for foreign countries. Repeals the ceiling on military sales to African countries. Requires the President to report within 60 days (instead of 30 days) to Congress concerning military exports. Repeals the requirement that such reports describe the services performed by, and number of, Federal employees. Requires the President to report annually to Congress on the number of Federal employees performing under this Act for which reimbursement is provided by the country receiving such services. Includes as a defense article certain source material. Authorizes the President to transfer to Taiwan U.S. property and war reserve material located on Taiwan on January 1, 1979. Releases Thailand from its contractual obligation to pay the United States for certain ammunition.
Written by analysts at the Congressional Research Service and published on Congress.gov, not by Civibrief. Summarized at the "Introduced in House" stage on February 28, 1979. It describes the bill, it is not the legal text.
Where is it in the process, and what happens next?
4 steps remain before this bill could become law.
The record's latest action, on February 28, 1979: Referred to House Committee on Foreign Affairs.
- Clearing the committees it was referred to, and being scheduled for a floor vote
- Passage by the House
- Passage by the Senate
- The President's signature. If the President vetoes it, two-thirds of both chambers must vote to override.
How likely is it to become law?
Civibrief does not forecast outcomes and this page has no opinion about this one. What the record supports is a base rate, which is a fact about the whole pile, not a prediction about this measure.
In the 96th Congress (1979-80), 613 of the 12,581 bills and joint resolutions introduced became law, about 4.9 percent. That count covers every measure at every stage, including the many that never left committee.
This one is not there yet: 4 steps are still outstanding, listed above.
Has anyone actually voted on it?
No. No roll call in this Congress cites this measure. That is the ordinary outcome: most measures never reach a recorded floor vote, and a committee ends most of them simply by not acting.
A vote is not the only thing that happens to a measure. Hearings, markups, and referrals are all recorded actions, and none of them is a vote of the full chamber.
Who is behind it?
CLEMENT ZABLOCKI (D-WI) introduced it on February 28, 1979, and 1 member has since signed on as a cosponsor.
They are 1 Republican.
Cosponsoring is a formal signature on the text. It is not a commitment to vote for the measure, it does not bind anyone's party, and a long list of cosponsors is a measure of attention rather than of prospects.
How long has it been in play?
It was introduced on February 28, 1979, 17361 days ago. The most recent recorded action was 17361 days ago, on February 28, 1979.
Measures do not carry over. Anything the 96th Congress has not finished by January 3, 1981 dies when the term ends, and has to be introduced again from the start in the next Congress.
Every answer above is assembled from this measure's own record on Congress.gov and from published counts of what Congress has passed before. Civibrief does not predict outcomes and takes no position on any measure.
Vote history
- HouseIn committee, no floor vote yet
- SenateAwaits House passage
- PresidentAwaits both chambers