The Foreign Assistance Act (, et seq.) is a

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

law Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior,Robertson, ''Crimes against humanity'', 90. with its precise definition a matter of longstanding debate. It has been vario ...

governing

foreign aid In international relations, aid (also known as international aid, overseas aid, foreign aid, economic aid or foreign assistance) is – from the perspective of governments – a voluntary transfer of resources from one country to another. Ai ...

policy. It outlined the political and ideological principles of U.S. foreign aid, significantly overhauled and reorganized the structure U.S.

foreign assistance In international relations, aid (also known as international aid, overseas aid, foreign aid, economic aid or foreign assistance) is – from the perspective of governments – a voluntary transfer of resources from one country to another. Ai ...

programs, legally distinguished military from nonmilitary aid, and created a new agency, the

United States Agency for International Development The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) is an independent agency of the U.S. federal government that is primarily responsible for administering civilian foreign aid and development assistance. With a budget of over $27 bi ...

(USAID) to administer nonmilitary economic assistance programs. Following its enactment by Congress on September 4, 1961, President

John F. Kennedy John Fitzgerald Kennedy (May 29, 1917 – November 22, 1963), often referred to by his initials JFK and the nickname Jack, was an American politician who served as the 35th president of the United States from 1961 until his assassination ...

signed the Act into law on November 3, 1961, issuing Executive Order 10973 detailing the reorganization. USAID unified already existing U.S. aid efforts, combining the economic and technical assistance operations of the

International Cooperation Administration The International Cooperation Administration (ICA) was a United States government agency operating from June 30, 1955 until September 4, 1961, responsible for foreign assistance and 'nonmilitary security' programs. It was the predecessor of the ...

, the loan activities of the

Development Loan Fund The Development Loan Fund (DLF) was the lending arm of the United States International Cooperation Administration. It was established in 1957 as part of a revision of the Mutual Security Act. Its main purpose was extending loans to foreign nations, ...

, the local currency functions of the Export-Import Bank, and the agricultural surplus distribution activities of the

Food for Peace In different administrative and organizational forms, the Food for Peace program of the United States has provided food assistance around the world for more than 60 years. Approximately 3 billion people in 150 countries have benefited directly fro ...

program of the Department of Agriculture. The Act provides that no assistance is to be provided to a government which "engages in a consistent pattern of gross violations of internationally recognized

human rights Human rights are Morality, moral principles or Social norm, normsJames Nickel, with assistance from Thomas Pogge, M.B.E. Smith, and Leif Wenar, 13 December 2013, Stanford Encyclopedia of PhilosophyHuman Rights Retrieved 14 August 2014 for ce ...

, including

torture Torture is the deliberate infliction of severe pain or suffering on a person for reasons such as punishment, extracting a confession, interrogation for information, or intimidating third parties. Some definitions are restricted to acts c ...

or cruel,

inhuman, or degrading treatment Cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment (CIDT) is treatment of persons which is contrary to human rights or dignity, but is not classified as torture. It is forbidden by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Article 3 of the European Convention ...

or punishment, prolonged detention without

charges Charge or charged may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Films * ''Charge, Zero Emissions/Maximum Speed'', a 2011 documentary Music * ''Charge'' (David Ford album) * ''Charge'' (Machel Montano album) * '' Charge!!'', an album by The Aqu ...

, causing the disappearance of persons by the abduction and clandestine detention of those persons, or other flagrant denial of the

right to life The right to life is the belief that a being has the right to live and, in particular, should not be killed by another entity. The concept of a right to life arises in debates on issues including capital punishment, with some people seeing it as ...

liberty Liberty is the ability to do as one pleases, or a right or immunity enjoyed by prescription or by grant (i.e. privilege). It is a synonym for the word freedom. In modern politics, liberty is understood as the state of being free within society fr ...

, and the

security of person Security of the person is a basic entitlement guaranteed by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, adopted by the United Nations in 1948. It is also a human right explicitly defined and guaranteed by the European Convention on Human Rights, th ...

, unless such assistance will directly benefit the needy people in such country." The Act also provides that no assistance is to be provided to any

Communist Communism (from Latin la, communis, lit=common, universal, label=none) is a far-left sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology and current within the socialist movement whose goal is the establishment of a communist society, a s ...

country. However, the President may waive this prohibition if he determines that such assistance is vital to the national security of the United States, that the country is not controlled by the international Communist conspiracy, and that the assistance will promote the country's independence from international Communism. The President may also remove a country from the application of this provision for a certain time which the President determines. In order to remove a country from the application of this provision, the President must determine and report to Congress that such action is important to the national security of the United States. The Act was amended in 2004 specific to the treatment of

orphan An orphan (from the el, ορφανός, orphanós) is a child whose parents have died. In common usage, only a child who has lost both parents due to death is called an orphan. When referring to animals, only the mother's condition is usuall ...

s and other vulnerable children. This amendment allows the president to provide aid to the peoples of other countries to look after children in cases of

HIV/AIDS Human immunodeficiency virus infection and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (HIV/AIDS) is a spectrum of conditions caused by infection with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), a retrovirus. Following initial infection an individual ...

and to set up schools and other programs for the advancement of child treatment. Under the authority of this Act on March 16, 2022, President Biden authorized $800 million in new security assistance to Ukraine.

Amendments to 1961 Act

Chronological timeline of amendments and revisions to the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961.

Notes

External links

* Foreign Assistance Act of 1961, as amended, i
HTMLPDFdetails
in the

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br>Statute Compilations collection

Information from USAID

Foreign Operations Appropriations: General Provisions

FAA-related documents and publications
available through USAID's Development Experience Clearinghouse * * {{Authority control 1961 in American law United States foreign relations legislation United States Agency for International Development 1961 in international relations

Amendments to 1961 Act

See also

Notes

External links