Department of State February 23, 2007 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

Executive Order 11423, of August 16, 1968, as amended, authorizes the Secretary of State to issue Presidential permits for the construction of facilities crossing the international borders of the United States, including, but not limited to, bridges and tunnels connecting the United States with Canada or Mexico. Section 2(a) of Executive Order 13337, dated April 30, 2004, amended Executive Order 11423, inter alia, by authorizing the Secretary of State to issue Presidential permits for ``border crossings for land transportation, including motor or rail vehicles, to or from a foreign country, whether or not in conjunction with the facilities'' to which Executive Order 11423 previously applied. This new language is found in section 1(a)(vi) of Executive Order 11423, as amended. In seeking to provide guidance to the public concerning its exercise of this new permitting authority, the Department has determined, after giving the matter careful consideration, that the new ``land border crossing'' language of section 1(a)(vi) will apply to all new crossings of the international border as well as to all substantial modifications of existing crossings of the international border. The Department assembled an interagency working group, consisting of relevant State Department personnel and personnel from other interested Federal agencies, to prepare further guidance on application of this interpretation of section 1(a)(vi) in the future. Over the course of two years, this working group studied how to implement the new and amended Executive Orders in an efficient manner. DOS intends to review this guidance periodically with participants in the interagency working group, and may modify or amend it accordingly. The guidance document and annexes are quoted in full below, under SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION.