The Emoluments clause, U.S. Constitution Article I, Section 9, Clause 8 (art. I, § 9, cl. 8), provides:
- No Title of Nobility shall be granted by the United States: And no Person holding any Office of Profit or Trust under them, shall, without the Consent of the Congress, accept of any present, Emolument, Office, or Title, of any kind whatever, from any King, Prince, or foreign State.
The Emoluments clause was adopted unanimously at the Constitutional Convention, and was intended to protect foreign ministers and other officers of the United States from undue influence and corruption by foreign governments.
This provision of the United States Constitution prohibits anyone who holds an "Office of Profit or Trust" in the Government from accepting a position with a foreign state, whether compensated or uncompensated, or from accepting any compensation or other items of value, including salary, honoraria, and travel expenses, from a foreign state, except as authorized by Congress.
The Department of Justice has advised that most members of Federal advisory committees are deemed to hold an "Office of Profit or Trust" within the meaning of the Emoluments clause, unless they serve strictly in a representative capacity (an individual who only represents the views of a third party). For purposes of the Emoluments clause, a "foreign state" is deemed to include an international organization in which the United States is NOT a member.
In addition, a foreign public university is presumed to be part of the foreign state, unless the university is independent of the foreign government with respect to decisions regarding the terms and conditions of faculty appointment. The employee or committee member has the responsibility for obtaining and providing to DoD information sufficient to make such determinations.
Under the Emoluments clause, U.S. Constitution, article I, § 9, cl. 8, a Federal employee cannot receive any present, emolument, office, or title from a foreign state without the consent of Congress. Thus according to the Emoluments clause and its interpretation by the US Department of Justice, TTF-Bucksfan and the Fifth World Council are foreign states since they are international organisations in which the United States is NOT a member. In addition, for the purposes of the emoluments clause Bucksfan University is presumed to be part of the foreign state.