[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 170 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
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118th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 170
To establish a Joint Select Committee on Afghanistan to conduct a full
investigation and compile a joint report on the United States
withdrawal from Afghanistan.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
January 31, 2023
Mr. Scott of Florida (for himself, Mr. Hawley, Mr. Hoeven, Mr. Tillis,
Mr. Tuberville, Mr. Cassidy, Mr. Braun, and Mr. Cramer) introduced the
following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on
Rules and Administration
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To establish a Joint Select Committee on Afghanistan to conduct a full
investigation and compile a joint report on the United States
withdrawal from Afghanistan.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. JOINT SELECT COMMITTEE ON AFGHANISTAN.
(a) Establishment.--There is established a joint select committee
of Congress to be known as the ``Joint Select Committee on
Afghanistan'' (in this section referred to as the ``Joint Committee'').
(b) Membership.--
(1) In general.--The Joint Committee shall be composed of
12 members appointed pursuant to paragraph (2).
(2) Appointment.--Members of the Joint Committee shall be
appointed as follows:
(A) The majority leader of the Senate shall appoint
3 members from among Members of the Senate.
(B) The minority leader of the Senate shall appoint
3 members from among Members of the Senate.
(C) The Speaker of the House of Representatives
shall appoint 3 members from among Members of the House
of Representatives.
(D) The minority leader of the House of
Representatives shall appoint 3 members from among
Members of the House of Representatives.
(3) Co-chairs.--
(A) In general.--Two of the appointed members of
the Joint Committee shall serve as co-chairs. The
Speaker of the House of Representatives and the
majority leader of the Senate shall jointly appoint one
co-chair, and the minority leader of the House of
Representatives and the minority leader of the Senate
shall jointly appoint the second co-chair. The co-
chairs shall be appointed not later than 14 calendar
days after the date of the enactment of this Act.
(B) Staff director.--The co-chairs, acting jointly,
shall hire the staff director of the Joint Committee.
(4) Date.--Members of the Joint Committee shall be
appointed not later than 14 calendar days after the date of the
enactment of this Act.
(5) Period of appointment.--Members shall be appointed for
the life of the Joint Committee. Any vacancy in the Joint
Committee shall not affect its powers, but shall be filled not
later than 14 calendar days after the date on which the vacancy
occurs, in the same manner as the original designation was
made. If a member of the Joint Committee ceases to be a Member
of the House of Representatives or the Senate, as the case may
be, the member is no longer a member of the Joint Committee and
a vacancy shall exist.
(c) Investigation and Report.--
(1) In general.--Not later than 90 days after the date of
the enactment of this Act, the Joint Committee shall conduct an
investigation and submit to Congress a report on the United
States 2021 withdrawal from Afghanistan.
(2) Elements.--The report required under paragraph (1)
shall include the following elements:
(A) A summary of any intelligence reports that
indicated an imminent threat at the Hamid Karzai
International Airport preceding the deadly attack on
August 26, 2021, and the risks to United States and
allied country civilians as well as Afghan partners for
various United States withdrawal scenarios.
(B) A summary of any intelligence reports that
indicated that withdrawing military personnel and
closing United States military installations in
Afghanistan before evacuating civilians would
negatively affect the evacuation of United States
citizens, green card holders, and Afghan partners and
thus put them at risk.
(C) A full review of planning by the National
Security Council, the Department of State, and the
Department of Defense for a noncombatant evacuation
from Afghanistan, including details of all scenarios
used by the Department of State or the Department of
Defense to plan and prepare for noncombatant evacuation
operations.
(D) An analysis of the relationship between the
retrograde and noncombatant evacuation operation plans
and operations.
(E) A description of any actions that were taken by
the United States Government to protect the safety of
United States forces and neutralize threats in any
withdrawal scenarios.
(F) A full review of all withdrawal scenarios
compiled by the intelligence community and the
Department of Defense with timelines for the decisions
taken, including all advice provided by military
leaders to President Joseph R. Biden and his national
security team beginning in January 2021.
(G) An analysis of why the withdrawal timeline
expedited from the September 11, 2021, date set by
President Biden earlier this year.
(H) An analysis of United States and allied
intelligence shared with the Taliban.
(I) An analysis of any actions taken by the United
States Government to proactively prepare for a
successful withdrawal.
(J) A summary of intelligence that informed
statements and assurances made to the American people
that the Taliban would not take over Afghanistan with
the speed that it did in August 2021.
(K) A full and unredacted transcript of the phone
call between President Joe Biden and President Ashraf
Ghani of Afghanistan on July 23, 2021.
(L) A summary of any documents, reports, or
intelligence that indicates whether any members of the
intelligence community, the United States Armed Forces,
or NATO partners supporting the mission warned that the
Taliban would swiftly reclaim Afghanistan.
(M) A description of the extent to which any
members of the intelligence community, the United
States Armed Forces, or NATO partners supporting the
mission advised steps to be taken by the White House
that were ultimately rejected.
(N) An assessment of the decision not to order a
noncombatant evacuation operation until August 14,
2021.
(O) An assessment of whose advice the President
heeded in maintaining the timeline and the status of
forces on the ground before Thursday, August 12, 2021.
(P) A description of the initial views and advice
of the United States Armed Forces and the intelligence
community given to the National Security Council and
the White House before the decisions were taken
regarding closure of United States military
installations, withdrawal of United States assets, and
withdrawal of United States military personnel.
(Q) An assessment of United States assets, as well
as any assets left behind by allies, that could now be
used by the Taliban, ISIS-K, and other terrorist
organizations operating within the region.
(R) An assessment of United States assets slated to
be delivered to Afghanistan, if any, the delivery of
which was paused because of the President's decision to
withdraw, and the status of and plans for those assets
now.
(S) An assessment of vetting procedures for Afghan
civilians to be evacuated with a timeline for the
decision making and ultimate decisions taken to ensure
that no terrorist suspects, persons with ties to
terrorists, or dangerous individuals would be admitted
into third countries or the United States.
(T) An assessment of the discussions between the
United States Government and allies supporting our
efforts in Afghanistan and a timeline for decision
making regarding the withdrawal of United States
forces, including discussion and decisions about how to
work together to repatriate all foreign nationals
desiring to return to their home countries.
(U) A review of the policy decisions with timeline
regarding all Afghan nationals and other refugees
evacuated from Afghanistan by the United States
Government and brought to third countries and the
United States, including a report on what role the
United States Armed Forces performed in vetting each
individual and what coordination the Departments of
State and Defense engaged in to safeguard members of
the Armed Forces from infectious diseases and terrorist
threats.
(3) Form.--The report required under paragraph (1) shall be
submitted in unclassified form but may contain a classified
annex.
(d) Meetings.--
(1) Initial meeting.--Not later than 30 days after the date
on which all members of the Joint Committee have been
appointed, the Joint Committee shall hold its first meeting.
(2) Frequency.--The Joint Committee shall meet at the call
of the co-chairs.
(3) Quorum.--A majority of the members of the Joint
Committee shall constitute a quorum, but a lesser number of
members may hold hearings.
(4) Voting.--No proxy voting shall be allowed on behalf of
the members of the Joint Committee.
(e) Administration.--
(1) In general.--To enable the Joint Committee to exercise
its powers, functions, and duties, there are authorized to be
disbursed by the Senate the actual and necessary expenses of
the Joint Committee approved by the co-chairs, subject to the
rules and regulations of the Senate.
(2) Expenses.--In carrying out its functions, the Joint
Committee is authorized to incur expenses in the same manner
and under the same conditions as the Joint Economic Committee
is authorized by section 11 of Public Law 79-304 (15 U.S.C.
1024 (d)).
(3) Hearings.--
(A) In general.--The Joint Committee may, for the
purpose of carrying out this section, hold such
hearings, sit and act at such times and places, require
attendance of witnesses and production of books,
papers, and documents, take such testimony, receive
such evidence, and administer such oaths as the Joint
Committee considers advisable.
(B) Hearing procedures and responsibilities of co-
chairs.--
(i) Announcement.--The co-chairs of the
Joint Committee shall make a public
announcement of the date, place, time, and
subject matter of any hearing to be conducted,
not less than 7 days in advance of such
hearing, unless the co-chairs determine that
there is good cause to begin such hearing at an
earlier date.
(ii) Written statement.--A witness
appearing before the Joint Committee shall file
a written statement of proposed testimony at
least 2 calendar days before the appearance of
the witness, unless the requirement is waived
by the co-chairs, following their determination
that there is good cause for failure to comply
with such requirement.
(4) Cooperation from federal agencies.--
(A) Technical assistance.--Upon written request of
the co-chairs, a Federal agency shall provide technical
assistance to the Joint Committee in order for the
Joint Committee to carry out its duties.
(B) Provision of information.--The Secretary of
State, the Secretary of Defense, the Director of
National Intelligence, the heads of the elements of the
intelligence community, the Secretary of Homeland
Security, and the National Security Council shall
expeditiously respond to requests for information
related to compiling the report under subsection (c).
(f) Staff of Joint Committee.--
(1) In general.--The co-chairs of the Joint Committee may
jointly appoint and fix the compensation of staff as they deem
necessary, within the guidelines for employees of the Senate
and following all applicable rules and employment requirements
of the Senate.
(2) Ethical standards.--Members on the Joint Committee who
serve in the House of Representatives shall be governed by the
ethics rules and requirements of the House. Members of the
Senate who serve on the Joint Committee and staff of the Joint
Committee shall comply with the ethics rules of the Senate.
(g) Termination.--The Joint Committee shall terminate on the date
that is one year after the date of the enactment of this Act.
(h) Funding.--Funding for the Joint Committee shall be derived in
equal portions from--
(1) the applicable accounts of the House of
Representatives; and
(2) the contingent fund of the Senate from the
appropriations account ``Miscellaneous Items'', subject to the
rules and regulations of the Senate.
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