Statement of Administration Policy: H.R. 2748 - Intelligence Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 1990

(House Rules)
(Beilenson (D) California)

The Administration opposes enactment of H.R. 2748, unless the three sections addressed below are deleted:

Section 402. This section would require the Director of Central Intelligence (DCI) to provide the congressional Intelligence Committees, at their request, any inspection, investigation, or audit report prepared by the Agency's Inspector General (IG).

The Department of Justice advises that, pursuant to the Supreme Court's INS v. Chadha decision, congressional committee action of this nature is unconstitutional. In addition, the requirement in section 402 for the DCI to list semiannually for the Intelligence Committees all Agency IG reports may violate the President's Article II powers to protect information important to the national security. Section 402 would also have a serious detrimental effect on management inspection reports because their quality is highly dependent on the willingness of Agency officers to be candid during confidential interviews. The promise of confidentiality could not be maintained if these reports were provided routinely to Congress.

Section 601. This would expand the demonstration project authorizing pay supplements to FBI agents assigned from other locations to the high-cost New York City area. The expansion would apply the pay supplement to all FBI employees in the City, even to those who are not subject to mobility requirements. This would be inconsistent with the intent of the demonstration project, which was to address the difficulties of attracting certain FBI personnel to accept assignments requiring a move to the City. Rather than paying a supplement, recruiting and retention problems for employees already living in New York may be better addressed by using other existing pay authorities, such as special rates.

Section 703. This section would require: (1) that members of the President's Foreign Intelligence Advisory Board (PFIAB) be subject to a Board-specific financial disclosure system; and (2) establishment of regulations for release of classified information to members of PFIAB. These requirements are unnecessary. Members of PFIAB are already subject to a system of confidential financial disclosure designed to prevent conflicts of interest. Also, current procedures prevent PFIAB members and other officials from disclosing or using classified information for personal gain.

The Administration urges the deletion of sections 402, 601, and 703 from H.R. 2748.