Commitments
In addition to the future lease commitments discussed in Note 13, ?Leases,? the Department is committed under obligations for goods and services which have been ordered but not yet received (undelivered orders ? see Note 15, ?Unexpended Appropriations? and Note 17, ?Statement of Budgetary Resources?) at fiscal year end. In FY 2005 appropriations, the Department of State received $6 million to subsidize the cost of a direct loan of up to $1.2 billion to the United Nations to cover the cost of renovating its headquarters in New York City. As of the date of this Report, the loan agreement had not been ratified.
Contingencies
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Rewards for Justice Program. The Department operates rewards programs for information critical to combating international terrorism, narcotics trafficking, and war crimes. The Terrorism Information Rewards Program offers rewards up to $25 million for information leading to: the arrest or conviction in any country of persons committing (or conspiring or attempting to commit, or aiding or abetting the commission of) acts of international terrorism against United States persons or property; the prevention, frustration or favorable resolution of such acts; the identification or location of key leaders of a terrorist organization; or the disruption of financial mechanisms of a foreign terrorist organization. The Narcotics Information Rewards Program offers rewards up to $5 million for information leading to: the arrest or conviction in any country of persons committing (or conspiring or attempting to commit, or aiding and abetting the commission of) major foreign violations of U.S. narcotics laws or the killing or kidnapping of U.S. narcotics law enforcement officers or their family members; or the prevention, frustration or favorable resolution of such criminal acts. The War Crimes Information Rewards Program currently offers rewards up to $5 million for information leading to the arrest, transfer, or conviction of persons indicted by the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia or the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda for serious violations of international humanitarian law, or their arrest or conviction in any country for such violations. Authority exists to create a similar war crimes program for information related to indictees of the Special Court of Sierra Leone.
The Department is a party in various administrative proceedings, legal actions, environmental suits, and claims brought by and against it. Some of the actions are not related directly to Department programs but the Department is involved because of its status as the U.S. Government?s foreign policy agency. In the opinion of management and legal counsel, the ultimate resolution of these proceedings, actions, and claims will not materially affect the financial position or results of operations of the Department.
Claims Filed in Response to Embassy Bombings: Nearly 4,000 Kenyan nationals filed administrative tort claims against the Department alleging that Department negligence was responsible for the damages they suffered when terrorists bombed the American Embassy in Nairobi, Kenya on August 7, 1998. These claims are for sums ranging from $150 to $10,000,000 and total approximately $1.5 billion. Two lawsuits, in the amounts of $1 billion and $500 million, arising from these tort claims were dismissed this year by the Federal District Court in Washington, D.C. Both of the cases have been appealed to the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals. After that court affirmed the District Court?s dismissal of the $1 billion action in July 2003, the plaintiffs in the other, almost identical, suit abandoned their appeal. The plaintiffs in the first case have petitioned the Supreme Court for certiorari, which was denied. In addition, the families of eleven of the twelve Americans killed in the bombing also filed administrative tort claims with the Department alleging that Department negligence led to the death of their family members in Nairobi. These claims, including those by the estates of the deceased, are for a total of $117 million. The Department is vigorously defending against all of the tort claims and lawsuits. Any settlements or judgments in excess of $2,500 would be funded and paid from the Judgment Fund maintained by the Treasury.
North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) Arbitrations: NAFTA allows Canadian and Mexican investors to bring arbitration proceedings against the United States for breaches of certain NAFTA provisions. These cases raise allegations of expropriation as well as other claims of treatment inconsistent with international law or specific treaty commitments that provide investment protections. The United States has successfully defended itself against two claims submitted to arbitration under Chapter 11 of the NAFTA. The United States is currently defending itself against six claims submitted to arbitration and three claims not yet submitted under Chapter 11 of NAFTA. These claims total approximately $2.8 billion. The United States has also received notice of another claim not submitted in the amount of either $5.8 billion or $13.6 billion, depending on how one interprets the notice. The U.S. Government intends to vigorously contest these claims. In no case is the Department a named respondent in these arbitrations. The Department?s involvement is due to its unique experience with international arbitration, particularly with respect to these types of claims. Any adverse award in any of these cases would be paid out of the Judgment Fund.
Certain legal matters to which the Department is a party are administered and, in some instances, litigated and paid by other U.S. Government agencies. Generally, amounts to be paid under any decision, settlement, or award pertaining to these legal matters are funded from the Judgment Fund. None of the amounts paid under the Judgment Fund on behalf of the Department in 2005 and 2004 had a material effect on the financial position or results of operations of the Department.
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