22 U.S.C. § 6723 — Authority to conduct inspections

(a) Prohibition. No inspection of a plant, plant site, or other facility or location in the United States may take place under the Convention without authorization from the United States National Authority in accordance with this subchapter. (b) Authority. (1) Technical Secretariat inspection teams. Any duly designated member of an inspection team of the Technical Secretariat may inspect any plant, plant site, or other facility or location in the United States that is subject to inspection under the Convention. (2) United States Government representatives. The United States National Authority must coordinate the designation of Federal Government employees to accompany the Technical Secretariat inspection team. If the inspection is of a United States Government facility, it must coordinate the designation of contractor personnel, who must be led by a Federal Government employee. In doing so, the National Authority must ensure that (A) an FBI-designated special agent accompanies each inspection-team visit under paragraph (1); (B) no Environmental Protection Agency or Occupational Safety and Health Administration employee accompanies any inspection-team visit under paragraph (1); and (C) the number of duly designated representatives is kept to the minimum necessary. (3) Objections to individuals serving as inspectors. (A) In general. When deciding whether to use the United States’ right under the Convention to object to an individual serving as an inspector, the President must give great weight to the President’s reasonable belief that (i) the individual is or has been a member of, or a participant in, any group or organization that has engaged in, attempted or conspired to engage in, or aided or abetted the commission of, any terrorist act or activity; (ii) the individual has committed any act or activity that would be a felony under United States law; or (iii) the individual’s participation as a member of an inspection team would pose a risk to the national security or economic well-being of the United States. (B) Not subject to judicial review. An objection by the President to an individual serving as an inspector, whether made under this section or otherwise, may not be reviewed by any court. (c) Exception. The requirement under subsection (b)(2)(A) does not apply to inspections of United States chemical-weapons-destruction facilities, as that term is used in part IV(C)(13) of the Convention’s Verification Annex.