The U.S. Senate has not ratified, and therefore the United States is not a party to, the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, commonly known as the "Law of the Sea Treaty," or LOST. The Bush Administration's fiscal year 2009 budget proposal, however, requests nearly $5 million to fund the LOST organization as well as the international tribunal established by the treaty. The Administration's request is both fiscally irresponsible and opposed to U.S. national interest. If it is not withdrawn, Congress should reject the Administration's proposal and any other request to provide funding for international organizations of which the United States is not a member.

A Flawed Treaty