U.S. War Powers Resolution

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United States federal law war powers statute

The U.S. War Powers Resolution is a 1973 federal law intended to limit the president’s ability to commit U.S. armed forces to hostilities without congressional authorization, enacted in response to concerns raised by the Vietnam War.

Aliases (4)

Statements (51)

Predicate	Object
instanceOf	United States federal law → war powers statute →
affects	war powers of the President of the United States → war powers of the United States Congress →
appliesTo	U.S. armed forces →
authorizes	Congress to direct removal of U.S. armed forces engaged in hostilities through a concurrent resolution →
codifiedAt	50 U.S.C. §§ 1541–1548 →
codifiedIn	United States Code →
congressionalView	mechanism to reassert congressional authority over decisions to use military force →
constitutionalBasisClaimed	Article I war powers of the U.S. Constitution →
country	United States →
dateEnacted	1973-11-07 →
defines	circumstances under which the president may introduce U.S. armed forces into hostilities →
enactedIn	93rd United States Congress →
historicalContext	Vietnam War →
imposesTimeLimit	60 days for unauthorized hostilities → additional 30-day withdrawal period for U.S. armed forces absent congressional authorization →
jurisdiction	federal →
language	English →
legalStatus	in force →
limits	presidential authority to engage U.S. armed forces in hostilities without a declaration of war → presidential authority to engage U.S. armed forces in hostilities without a national emergency created by attack upon the United States, its territories or possessions, or its armed forces → presidential authority to engage U.S. armed forces in hostilities without specific statutory authorization →
presidentialView	often regarded by presidents as an unconstitutional infringement on executive power →
publicLawNumber	Public Law 93-148 →
purpose	to ensure the collective judgment of both Congress and the president in decisions to introduce U.S. armed forces into hostilities → to limit the president’s ability to commit U.S. armed forces to hostilities without congressional authorization →
reasonForEnactment	congressional concern over presidential expansion of war-making powers during the Vietnam War →
requires	periodic reports from the president to Congress on the status of hostilities involving U.S. armed forces → president to consult with Congress before introducing U.S. armed forces into hostilities or situations of imminent hostilities → president to report to Congress when U.S. armed forces are introduced into foreign territory while equipped for combat → president to report to Congress when U.S. armed forces are substantially enlarged in a foreign nation where they are already stationed → president to report to Congress within 48 hours of introducing U.S. armed forces into hostilities or imminent hostilities →
section	50 U.S.C. § 1541 → 50 U.S.C. § 1542 → 50 U.S.C. § 1543 → 50 U.S.C. § 1544 → 50 U.S.C. § 1545 → 50 U.S.C. § 1546 → 50 U.S.C. § 1547 → 50 U.S.C. § 1548 →
shortName	War Powers Act → War Powers Resolution →
subjectMatter	foreign relations law → separation of powers → use of military force →
vetoedBy	Richard Nixon →
vetoOverride	United States House of Representatives → United States Senate →
vetoOverrideDate	1973-11-07 →
yearEnacted	1973 →

Referenced by (9)

Subject (surface form when different)	Predicate
National Emergencies Act ("War Powers Resolution") → National Emergencies Act ("War Powers Resolution") → Public Law 94-412 ("War Powers Resolution") →	relatedTo
U.S. War Powers Resolution ("War Powers Resolution") → U.S. War Powers Resolution ("War Powers Act") →	shortName
93rd United States Congress ("War Powers Resolution") →	enacted
Emergency Alert System (United States) ("War Powers Act authorities") →	legalBasis
President of the United States as Commander in Chief of the militia of the several states when called into federal service ("War Powers of Congress") →	limitedBy
Vietnam War →	politicalImpact