Number: 98-349
Title: Global Climate Change: Selected Legal Questions About the Kyoto Protocol
Authors: David M. Ackerman, American Law Division 
Abstract: On November 12, 1998, the United States signed the Kyoto Protocol to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change. This report addresses several legal questions about the Protocol and its possible implementation, namely, whether the United States is now legally bound by the Protocol, the legal implications of signing it, whether it could be implemented as an executive agreement without submission to the Senate, and whether the Protocol could be used as the legal basis for regulation of emissions even prior to ratification.
Pages: 6
Date: Updated October 1, 2002