[Weekly Compilation of Presidential Documents Volume 38, Number 38 (Monday, September 23, 2002)]
[Pages 1576-1577]
[Online from the Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]

<R04>
Statement on Signing the John F. Kennedy Center Plaza Authorization Act of 2002

September 18, 2002

    Today I have signed into law H.R. 5012, an Act to amend the John F. 
Kennedy Center Act, authorizing a construction project to improve, among 
other things, pedestrian, vehicular, and bicycle access to the Kennedy 
Center.
    As added by H.R. 5012, however, section 12(b)(5) purports to make 
the Secretary of Transportation's (Secretary) entry into contracts 
``[s]ubject to the approval of the Board.'' Because the membership of 
the Board of Trustees of the Kennedy Center (Board) by law includes 
Members of Congress, the Board cannot constitutionally exercise 
executive power, such as the power to approve the exercise of 
contracting authority by the head of an executive department. The 
exercise of such power by Members of Congress would violate the 
separation of powers embodied in our Constitution.
    It is not evident that the Congress would have withheld contracting 
authority from the Secretary absent the invalid Board approval 
requirement. Therefore the executive branch shall treat the Board 
approval requirement as severable from the remainder of section 
12(b)(5), leaving fully operative the contracting authority granted to 
the Secretary.

[[Page 1577]]

As a matter of comity, the Secretary shall consult the Board as 
appropriate in relation to the Secretary's exercise of the authority to 
enter into contracts under section 12(b)(5).
                                                George W. Bush
 The White House,
 September 18, 2002.

Note: H.R. 5012, approved September 18, was assigned Public Law No. 107-
224.