[Congressional Bills 113th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2439 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

113th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 2439

To amend the Inspector General Act of 1978 to provide for the Inspector 
    General of the National Security Agency to be appointed by the 
 President, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, and for 
                            other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                              June 5, 2014

 Mrs. McCaskill (for herself, Mr. Coats, Ms. Mikulski, Mr. Tester, and 
 Ms. Collins) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and 
            referred to the Select Committee on Intelligence

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To amend the Inspector General Act of 1978 to provide for the Inspector 
    General of the National Security Agency to be appointed by the 
 President, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, and for 
                            other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``NSA Internal Watchdog Act''.

SEC. 2. INSPECTOR GENERAL OF THE NATIONAL SECURITY AGENCY.

    (a) Elevation of Inspector General Status.--The Inspector General 
Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App.) is amended--
            (1) in section 8G(a)(2), by striking ``the National 
        Security Agency,''; and
            (2) in section 12--
                    (A) in paragraph (1), by inserting ``the Director 
                of the National Security Agency;'' after ``Export-
                Import Bank;''; and
                    (B) in paragraph (2), by inserting ``the National 
                Security Agency,'' after ``the National Aeronautics and 
                Space Administration,''.
    (b) Date of Appointment.--Not later than 90 days after the date of 
the enactment of this Act, the President shall nominate a person for 
appointment, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, as 
Inspector General of the National Security Agency under section 3(a) of 
the Inspector General Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App.) consistent with the 
amendments made by subsection (a).
    (c) Transition Rule.--An individual serving as Inspector General of 
the National Security Agency on the date of the enactment of this Act 
pursuant to an appointment made under section 8G of the Inspector 
General Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App.)--
            (1) may continue so serving until the President makes an 
        appointment under section 3(a) of such Act with respect to the 
        National Security Agency consistent with the amendments made by 
        subsection (a); and
            (2) shall, while serving under paragraph (1), remain 
        subject to the provisions of section 8G of such Act that, 
        immediately before the date of the enactment of this Act, 
        applied with respect to the Inspector General of the National 
        Security Agency and suffer no reduction in pay.

SEC. 3. ANNUAL REVIEW OF MECHANISMS FOR REPORTING EMPLOYEE OR 
              CONTRACTOR COMPLAINTS.

    Section 8H(g)(1) of the Inspector General Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. 
App.) is amended by adding at the end the following new subparagraph:
                    ``(E) In the case of the Inspector General of the 
                National Security Agency, a review of the mechanisms 
                for submitting complaints that are available to an 
                employee of or contractor to the National Security 
                Agency and any recommendations of the Inspector General 
                for improving such mechanisms.''.

SEC. 4. SPECIAL PROVISIONS CONCERNING THE NATIONAL SECURITY AGENCY.

    The Inspector General Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App.) is amended by 
inserting after section 8J the following new section:

``SEC. 8K. SPECIAL PROVISIONS CONCERNING THE NATIONAL SECURITY AGENCY.

    ``(a) General Counsel to the Inspector General.--
            ``(1) In general.--There is a General Counsel to the 
        Inspector General of the National Security Agency, who shall be 
        appointed by the Inspector General of the National Security 
        Agency.
            ``(2) Duties.--The General Counsel to the Inspector General 
        of the National Security Agency shall--
                    ``(A) serve as the chief legal officer of the 
                Office of the Inspector General of the National 
                Security Agency;
                    ``(B) provide legal services only to the Inspector 
                General of the National Security Agency;
                    ``(C) perform such functions as the Inspector 
                General may prescribe; and
                    ``(D) serve at the discretion of the Inspector 
                General.
            ``(3) Office of the general counsel.--There is an Office of 
        the General Counsel to the Inspector General of the National 
        Security Agency. The Inspector General may appoint to the 
        Office to serve as staff of the General Counsel such legal 
        counsel as the Inspector General considers appropriate.
    ``(b) Testimony.--
            ``(1) Authority to compel.--The Inspector General of the 
        National Security Agency is authorized to require by subpoena 
        the attendance and testimony of former employees of the 
        National Security Agency or contractors, former contractors, or 
        former detailees to the National Security Agency as necessary 
        in the performance of functions assigned to the Inspector 
        General by this Act.
            ``(2) Refusal to obey.--A subpoena issued under this 
        subsection, in the case of contumacy or refusal to obey, shall 
        be enforceable by order of any appropriate United States 
        district court.
            ``(3) Notification.--The Inspector General shall notify the 
        Attorney General 7 days before issuing any subpoena under this 
        section.
    ``(c) Prohibitions on Investigations for National Security 
Reasons.--
            ``(1) Evaluations of prohibitions.--Not later than 7 days 
        after the date on which the Inspector General of the National 
        Security Agency receives notice or a statement under section 
        8G(d)(2)(C) of the reasons the Secretary of Defense is 
        prohibiting the Inspector General from initiating, carrying 
        out, or completing any audit or investigation, the Inspector 
        General shall submit to the Permanent Select Committee on 
        Intelligence and the Committee on Armed Services of the House 
        of Representatives and the Select Committee on Intelligence and 
        the Committee on Armed Services of the Senate an evaluation of 
        such notice or such statement.
            ``(2) Inclusion in semi-annual report.--The Inspector 
        General shall include in the semiannual report prepared by the 
        Inspector General in accordance with section 5(a) a description 
        of the instances in which the Secretary of Defense prohibited 
        the Inspector General from initiating, carrying out, or 
        completing any audit or investigation during the period covered 
        by such report.
    ``(d) Standard for Audits and Investigations.--In carrying out any 
audit or investigation of a surveillance or data collection program, 
the Inspector General shall--
            ``(1) assess the impact of such program on civil rights and 
        civil liberties;
            ``(2) assess the effectiveness and use, including any 
        improper or illegal use, of such program; and
            ``(3) make any recommendations the Inspector General 
        considers appropriate to improve the protection of civil rights 
        and civil liberties in the operation of such program.
    ``(e) Availability of Reports.--
            ``(1) Availability.--Each report to Congress or a committee 
        of Congress by the Inspector General shall be made available to 
        all Members of Congress.
            ``(2) Member of congress defined.--In this subsection, the 
        term `Member of Congress' means a Senator, a Member of the 
        House of Representatives, or a Delegate or Resident 
        Commissioner to the Congress.''.

SEC. 5. AUDIT OF SURVEILLANCE PROGRAMS AND BACKGROUND INVESTIGATIONS.

    (a) Audit.--The Inspector General of the National Security Agency 
appointed under section 3(a) of the Inspector General Act of 1978 (5 
U.S.C. App.) consistent with the amendments made by section 2(a) of 
this Act shall perform a comprehensive audit of--
            (1) the effectiveness and use, including improper or 
        illegal use, of surveillance and data collection programs of 
        the National Security Agency, including programs conducted 
        pursuant to sections 501 and 702 of the Foreign Intelligence 
        Surveillance Act of 1978 (50 U.S.C. 1861 and 1881a);
            (2) the interactions between the National Security Agency 
        and the court established under section 103(a) of the Foreign 
        Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978 (50 U.S.C. 1803(a)), 
        including the accuracy of the information provided to such 
        court by the Agency and the compliance of the Agency with 
        orders of such court; and
            (3) the process for conducting background investigations of 
        persons for purposes of employment or potential employment by 
        the National Security Agency or for receiving access to 
        classified information.
    (b) Report.--Not later than 180 days after the date on which the 
Inspector General of the National Security Agency is appointed under 
section 3(a) of the Inspector General Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App.) 
consistent with the amendments made by section 2(a) of this Act, the 
Inspector General of the National Security Agency shall submit to the 
Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence of the House of 
Representatives and the Select Committee on Intelligence of the Senate 
a report containing the results of the audit conducted under subsection 
(a).
    (c) Rule of Construction.--Nothing in this section shall be 
construed to alter the responsibility of the Inspector General of the 
National Security Agency to conduct audits or investigations of the 
surveillance programs of the National Security Agency and the 
background investigation process for employment or access to classified 
information on an ongoing basis in accordance with the Inspector 
General Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App.).
                                 <all>