Facts
- Menachem Binyamin Zivotofsky, a U.S. citizen born in Jerusalem in 2002 to U.S.-citizen parents, sought a U.S. passport listing his place of birth as “Israel.”
- The State Department’s longstanding policy was to list the birthplace of U.S. citizens born in Jerusalem as “Jerusalem” without a country, reflecting an executive determination not to recognize any nation’s sovereignty over Jerusalem.
- Congress enacted § 214(d) of the Foreign Relations Authorization Act, Fiscal Year 2003, directing the Secretary of State, upon request, to record “Israel” as the place of birth for a U.S. citizen born in Jerusalem on passport and related nationality documents.
- After the Secretary refused to list “Israel,” Zivotofsky (through his parents) sued to enforce § 214(d).
- After prior litigation established the dispute was justiciable, the district court and D.C. Circuit held § 214(d) unconstitutional because it conflicted with the President’s recognition authority.
Issues
- Whether the Constitution grants the President an exclusive power to recognize foreign states and their territorial boundaries.
- Whether § 214(d), as applied to passports and related documents, impermissibly compels the Executive to contradict the President’s recognition position regarding Jerusalem.
- Whether Congress’s powers over passports and foreign affairs permit it to require the “Israel” designation notwithstanding executive nonrecognition policy.
Decision
- The Court affirmed the judgment for the Secretary of State and held § 214(d) unconstitutional to the extent it required listing “Israel” for a U.S. citizen born in Jerusalem upon request.
- The Court held that the President possesses the exclusive power to grant formal recognition to foreign sovereigns and their territorial bounds.
- The Court concluded § 214(d) would force the Executive to make an official statement inconsistent with the President’s recognition determination regarding Jerusalem.
- The majority opinion was authored by Justice Kennedy and joined by Justices Ginsburg, Breyer, Sotomayor, and Kagan; Chief Justice Roberts and Justices Scalia and Alito dissented, and Justice Thomas concurred in part and dissented in part.
Legal Principles
- The President holds an exclusive constitutional power to make formal recognition determinations of foreign states and governments, including recognition as to territorial sovereignty.
- Congress may not compel the Executive, through statute, to issue official documents that contradict the President’s recognition determination.
- Passports and consular nationality documents may carry foreign-relations significance; when their content is used to communicate a recognition position, it implicates the President’s recognition authority.
- Congress retains broad authority in foreign affairs and passport regulation, but that authority does not extend to overriding a presidential recognition decision.
Conclusion
The Court held that because formal foreign recognition is an exclusive presidential power, Congress cannot require the State Department to list “Israel” as the birthplace for U.S. citizens born in Jerusalem when that designation would contradict the President’s nonrecognition position regarding sovereignty over Jerusalem; § 214(d) was therefore invalid.