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FRIDAY, APRIL 2, 1976

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PROPOSED STANDING COMMITTEE ON INTELLIGENCE

ACTIVITIES

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 31, 1976

U.S. SENATE,

COMMITTEE ON RULES AND ADMINISTRATION,
Washington, D.C.

The committee met in room 301, Russell Senate Office Building, at
10:10 a.m., Hon. Howard W. Cannon (chairman), presiding.
Present: Senators Cannon, Pell, Robert C. Byrd, Allen, Clark,
Hugh Scott, and Griffin.

Staff present: William McWhorter Cochrane, staff director; Chester H. Smith, chief counsel; Hugh Q. Alexander, senior counsel; John P. Coder, professional staff member; Dr. Floyd M. Riddick, professional staff member; Jack L. Sapp, professional staff member; Ray Nelson, professional staff member; Larry E. Smith, minority staff director; Andrew Gleason, minority counsel; and Peggy Parrish, assistant chief clerk.

OPENING STATEMENT OF HON. HOWARD W. CANNON, CHAIRMAN OF THE COMMITTEE ON RULES AND ADMINISTRATION

The CHAIRMAN. The committee will come to order.

Today, the Committee on Rules and Administration is conducting a hearing on Senate Resolution 400, to establish a standing Committee of the Senate on Intelligence Activities, and for other purposes.

Senate Resolution 400 was reported by the Committee on Government Operations on March 1, 1976, and on the same day was referred to the Committee on Rules and Administration for a period extending no later than March 20, 1976. Subsequently, on March 18, 1976, the resolution was referred simultaneously to the Committee on the Judiciary and the Committee on Rules and Administration with instructions that the Committee on the Judiciary make its recommendations to the Committee on Rules and Administration no later than March 29, 1976, and that the Committee on Rules and Administration file its report on Senate Resolution 400 no later than April 5, 1976. By unanimous-consent agreement on March 25, 1976, those reporting dates were extended 3 days, to April 1, 1976, and April 8, 1976, respectively.

There is no question that, in the light of recent disclosures of illegal or improper actions by certain of our intelligence agencies, the Congress should certainly review carefully its oversight vote on this most vital area. The Committee on Government Operations has spent 8 days of hearings and considerable additional time in arriving at the proposal we are considering today.

Briefly, that proposal-Senate Resolution 400-would establish a new standing Committee of the Senate on Intelligence Activities to oversee and make continuing studies of the intelligence activities and programs of the U.S. Government, and to submit to the Senate appro priate proposals for legislation concerning such activities. The new committee would have 11 members, 6 majority and 5 minority. Con tinuous service on the committee would be limited to 6 years. Th majority members would select the committee chairman, and th minority members would select its vice chairman.

The proposed committee would have legislative jurisdiction over the Central Intelligence Agency and the intelligence activities of al other departments and agencies of the Government, including, but no limited to, the intelligence activities of the Defense Intelligence Agency, the National Security Agency, and other agencies of the Department of Defense, the Department of State, the Department of Justice, and the Department of the Treasury. Also, the proposed committee would have authorization authority in respect to the strictly intelligence agencies, and in respect to the intelligence activities of the other departments and agencies I have just listed.

The jurisdiction of the standing Committees on Armed Services. Foreign Relations, Government Operations, and Judiciary would be accordingly modified or qualified.

Service by staff members of the proposed Committee on Intelligence Activities would be strictly limited to 6 years, and such employees would require strict security clearance.

The resolution contains lengthy provisions relating to disclosure by the committee of intelligence information it receives from the executive agencies, including procedures in case of objection by the President to any such disclosure.

The Select Committee on Standards and Conduct would investigate any alleged unauthorized disclosure of intelligence information by a Member or employee of the Senate, and recommend appropriate action to the Senate.

The records of the Select Committee on Government Operations With Respect to Intelligence Activities would be transferred to the new standing committee.

In addition, the proposed standing committee would be directed to engage in a study of a wide variety of subjects bearing on intelligence information and report back to the Senate thereon no later than July 1. 1977.

Without objection, I will insert the text of Senate Resolution 400 in the hearing record at this point.

[The text of S. Res. 400 follows:]

4TH CONGRESS

2D SESSION

S. RES. 400

[Report No. 94_675]

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

MARCH 1, 1976

Mr. MANSFIELD (for Mr. RIBICOFF) (for himself, Mr. CHURCH, Mr. PERCY, Mr. BAKER, Mr. BROCK, Mr. CHILES, Mr. GLENN, Mr. HUDDLESTON, Mr. JACKSON, Mr. JAVITS, Mr. MATHIAS, Mr. METCALF, Mr. MONDALE, Mr. MORGAN, Mr. MUSKIE, Mr. NUNN, Mr. Roтn, Mr. SCHWEIKER, and Mr. WEICKER) submitted the following resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Government Operations

MARCH 1, 1976

Reported by Mr. MANSFIELD (for Mr. RIBICOFF), without amendment

MARCH 1, 1976

Referred to the Committee on Rules and Administration for a period extending no later than March 20, 1976

MARCH 18, 1976

Reported by Mr. MANSFIELD (for Mr. CANNON), without amendment

MARCH 18, 1976

Referred simultaneously to the Committee on the Judiciary and the Committee on Rules and Administration with instructions that the Committee on the Judiciary make its recommendations to the Committee on Rules and Administration no later than March 29, 1976, and that the Committee on Rules and Administration files the report no later than April 5, 1976

RESOLUTION

To establish a Standing Committee of the Senate on Intelligence Activities, and for other purposes.

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Resolved, That it is the purpose of this resolution to

2 establish a new standing committee of the Senate, to be

3 known as the Committee on Intelligence Activities, to over

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see and make continuing studies of the intelligence activities

5 and programs of the United States Government, and to

6 submit to the Senate appropriate proposals for legislation

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1 concerning such intelligence activities and programs. In 2 carrying out this purpose, the Committee on Intelligence 3 Activities shall make every effort to assure that the appro4 priate departments and agencies of the United States provide 5 informed and timely intelligence necessary for the executive

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and legislative branches to make sound decisions affecting the 7 security and vital interests of the Nation. It is further the 8 purpose of this resolution to provide vigilant legislative over9 sight over the intelligence activities of the United States to assure that such activities are in conformity with the Con11 stitution and laws of the United States.

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SEC. 2. Rule XXIV of the Standing Rules of the Senate 13 is amended by adding at the end thereof a new paragraph 14 as follows:

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"3. (a) Six members of the Committee on Intelligence 16 Activities shall be from the majority party of the Senate and 17 five members shall be from the minority party of the Senate. "(b) No Senator may serve on the Committee on In19 telligence Activities for more than six years of continuous 20 service, exclusive of service by any Senator on such commit21 tee during the Ninety-fourth Congress. To the greatest extent 22 practicable, at least three but not more than four Members 23 of the Senate appointed to the Committee on Intelligence 24 Activities at the beginning of the Ninety-sixth Congress and 25 each Congress thereafter shall be Members of the Senate

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