22 U.S.C. § 2459 — Immunity from seizure under judicial

Page 977 TITLE 22—FOREIGN RELATIONS AND INTERCOURSE § 2459 § 2459. Immunity from seizure under judicial process of cultural objects imported for tem- porary exhibition or display (a) Agreements; Presidential determination; pub- lication in Federal Register Whenever any work of art or other object of cultural significance is imported into the United States from any foreign country, pursuant to an agreement entered into between the foreign owner or custodian thereof and the United States or one or more cultural, educational, or religious institutions with the capacity to ap- propriately curate such object within the United States providing for temporary storage, con- servation, scientific research, exhibition, or dis- play within the United States at any cultural exhibition, assembly, activity, or festival ad- ministered, operated, or sponsored, without profit, by any such cultural, educational, or reli- gious institution with the capacity to appro- priately curate such object, no court of the United States, any State, the District of Colum- bia, or any territory or possession of the United States may issue or enforce any judicial process, or enter any judgment, decree, or order, for the purpose or having the effect of depriving such institution, or any carrier engaged in trans- porting such work or object within the United States, of custody or control of such object if be- fore the importation of such object the Presi- dent or his designee has determined that such object is of cultural significance and that tem- porary storage, conservation, scientific re- search, exhibition, or display within the United States is in the national interest, and a notice to that effect has been published in the Federal Register. (b) Intervention of United States attorney in pending judicial proceedings If in any judicial proceeding in any such court any such process, judgment, decree, or order is sought, issued, or entered, the United States at- torney for the judicial district within which such proceeding is pending shall be entitled as of right to intervene as a party to that proceeding, and upon request made by either the institution adversely affected, or upon direction by the At- torney General if the United States is adversely affected, shall apply to such court for the denial, quashing, or vacating thereof. (c) Enforcement of agreements and obligations of carriers under transportation contracts Nothing contained in this section shall pre- clude (1) any judicial action for or in aid of the enforcement of the terms of any such agreement or the enforcement of the obligation of any car- rier under any contract for the transportation of any such object of cultural significance; or (2) the institution or prosecution by or on behalf of any such institution or the United States of any action for or in aid of the fulfillment of any obli- gation assumed by such institution or the United States pursuant to any such agreement. (d) Imported and importation defined For purposes of this section, the terms ‘‘im- ported’’ and ‘‘importation’’ include a transfer from a mission of a foreign country located within the United States to a cultural, edu- cational, or religious institution located within the United States. (Pub. L. 89–259, Oct. 19, 1965, 79 Stat. 985; Pub. L. 116–283, div. A, title XII, § 1216(a) Jan. 1, 2021, 134 Stat. 3922.) Editorial Notes CODIFICATION Section was not enacted as a part of the Mutual Edu- cational and Cultural Exchange Act of 1961, which com- prises this chapter. AMENDMENTS 2021—Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 116–283, § 1216(a)(1), sub- stituted ‘‘temporary storage, conservation, scientific research, exhibition, or display’’ for ‘‘temporary exhi- bition or display thereof’’ in two places, ‘‘cultural, edu- cational, or religious institutions with the capacity to appropriately curate such object’’ for ‘‘cultural or edu- cational institutions’’, and ‘‘any such cultural, edu- cational, or religious institution with the capacity to appropriately curate such object’’ for ‘‘any such cul- tural or educational institution’’. Subsec. (d). Pub. L. 116–283, § 1216(a)(2), added subsec. (d). Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries AFGHANISTAN Pub. L. 116–283, div. A, title XII, § 1216(b), Jan. 1, 2021, 134 Stat. 3923, provided that: ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A work of art or other object of cultural significance that is imported into the United States for temporary storage, conservation, scientific research, exhibition, or display shall be deemed to be immune from seizure under such Act of October 19, 1965 (22 U.S.C. 2459) (as amended by subsection (a)), and the provisions of such Act shall apply in the same manner and to the same extent to such work or object, if— ‘‘(A) the work or object is exported from Afghani- stan with an export permit or license duly issued by the Government of Afghanistan; and ‘‘(B)(i) an agreement is entered into between the Government of Afghanistan and the cultural, edu- cational, or religious institution with the capacity to appropriately curate such object within the United States that specifies the conditions for such material to be returned to Afghanistan; or ‘‘(ii) the work or object is transferred to a cultural, educational, or religious institution with the capac- ity to appropriately curate such object in the United States in accordance with an agreement described in clause (i) that also includes an authorization to transfer such work or object to other such institu- tions in the United States.’’ Executive Documents EXECUTIVE ORDER NO. 11312 Ex. Ord. No. 11312, Oct. 14, 1966, 31 F.R. 13415, which related to the delegation of functions to the Secretary of State, was revoked by Ex. Ord. No. 12047, Mar. 27, 1978, 43 F.R. 13359, set out below. EX. ORD. NO. 12047. IMPORTED OBJECTS OF CULTURAL SIGNIFICANCE Ex. Ord. No. 12047, Mar. 27, 1978, 43 F.R. 13359, as amended by Ex. Ord. No. 12388, Oct. 14, 1982, 47 F.R. 46245, provided: By virtue of the authority vested in me by the Act of October 19, 1965, entitled ‘‘An Act to render immune from seizure under judicial process certain objects of cultural significance imported into the United States for temporary display or exhibition, and for other pur- poses’’ (79 Stat. 985, 22 U.S.C. 2459), and as President of the United States of America, it is hereby ordered as follows: Page 978 TITLE 22—FOREIGN RELATIONS AND INTERCOURSE § 2460 1 So in original. Two pars. (10) have been enacted. SECTION 1. The Director of the United States Informa- tion Agency is designated and empowered to perform the functions conferred upon the President by the above-mentioned Act and shall be deemed to be author- ized, without the approval, ratification, or other action of the President, (1) to determine that any work of art or other object to be imported into the United States within the meaning of the Act is of cultural signifi- cance, (2) to determine that the temporary exhibition or display of any such work of art or other object in the United States is in the national interest, and (3) to cause public notices of the determinations referred to above to be published in the Federal Register. SEC. 2. The Director of the United States Information Agency, in carrying out this Order, shall consult with the Secretary of State with respect to the determina- tion of national interest, and may consult with the Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution, the Director of the National Gallery of Art, and with such other offi- cers and agencies of the Government as may be appro- priate, with respect to the determination of cultural significance. SEC. 3. The Director of the United States Information Agency is authorized to delegate within the Agency the functions conferred upon him by this Order. SEC. 4. Executive Order No. 11312 of October 14, 1966 is revoked. SEC. 5. Any order, regulation, determination or other action which was in effect pursuant to the provisions of Executive Order No. 11312 shall remain in effect until changed pursuant to the authority provided in this Order. SEC. 6. This Order shall be effective on April 1, 1978. [For abolition of United States Information Agency (other than Broadcasting Board of Governors and Inter- national Broadcasting Bureau), transfer of functions, and treatment of references thereto, see sections 6531, 6532, and 6551 of this title.] § 2460. Bureau of Educational and Cultural Af- fairs (a) Establishment; responsibilities In order to carry out the purposes of this chap- ter, there is established in the United States In- formation Agency, or in such appropriate agen- cy of the United States as the President shall determine, a Bureau of Educational and Cul- tural Affairs (hereinafter in this section referred to as the ‘‘Bureau’’). The Bureau shall be respon- sible for managing, coordinating, and overseeing programs established pursuant to this chapter, including but not limited to— (1) the J. William Fulbright Educational Ex- change Program which, by promoting the ex- change of scholars, researchers, students, trainees, teachers, instructors, and professors, between the United States and foreign coun- tries, accomplishes the purposes of section 2452(a)(1) of this title; (2) the Hubert H. Humphrey Fellowship Pro- gram which finances (A) study at American universities and institutions of higher learn- ing, including study in degree granting pro- grams, and (B) participation in fellowships, in- ternships, or other programs in American gov- ernmental and nongovernmental institutions for public managers and other individuals from developing countries; (3) the International Visitors Program which provides grants for short-term visits to the United States for foreign nationals who are, or have the potential to be, leaders in their re- spective fields in their own countries; (4) the American Cultural Centers and Li- braries which make available at selected for- eign locations, books, films, sound recordings, and other materials about the United States, its people and culture, and about other topics; (5) the American Overseas Schools Program which provides financial assistance to the op- erations of American-sponsored schools over- seas; (6) the American Studies Program which fos- ters and supports the study of the United States, and its people and culture, in foreign countries; (7) a program of working with private, not- for-profit groups through contracts, grants, or cooperative agreements, as authorized by sec- tion 2452 of this title, so as to provide finan- cial assistance to nongovernmental organiza- tions engaged in implementing and enhancing exchange-of-persons programs; (8) the Samantha Smith Memorial Exchange Program which advances understanding be- tween the United States and the independent states of the former Soviet Union and between the United States and Eastern European coun- tries through the exchange of persons under the age of 21 years and of students at an insti- tution of higher education (as defined in sec- tion 1001 of title 20) who have not received their initial baccalaureate degree or through other programs designed to promote contact between the young peoples of the United States, the independent states of the former Soviet Union, and Eastern European coun- tries; (9) the Arts America program which pro- motes a greater appreciation and under- standing of American art abroad by supporting exhibitions and tours by American artists in other countries; and (10) 1 exchange programs, including in co- ordination and consultation with the private sector, focused on music and the performing arts that provide opportunities for foreign na- tionals and Americans to build cross-cultural understanding and advance peace abroad. (10) 1 the John Lewis Civil Rights Fellowship Program established under section 2465 of this title, which provides funding for international internships and research placements for early- to mid-career individuals from the United States to study nonviolent civil rights move- ments in self-arranged placements with uni- versities or nongovernmental organizations in foreign countries. (b) Revocation or diminution of grants (1) All recipients of Fulbright Academic Ex- change and Humphrey Fellowship awards shall have full academic and artistic freedom, includ- ing freedom to write, publish, and create. No award granted pursuant to this chapter may be revoked or diminished on account of the polit- ical views expressed by the recipient or on ac- count of any scholarly or artistic activity that would be subject to the protections of academic and artistic freedom normally observed in uni- versities in the United States. The Board shall ensure that the academic and artistic freedoms of all persons receiving grants are protected. (2) The J. William Fulbright Foreign Scholar- ship Board shall formulate a policy on revoca-