[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 77 (Wednesday, May 10, 1995)]
[Senate]
[Pages S6469-S6470]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


                   THE MISSING SERVICE PERSONNEL ACT

 Mrs. FEINSTEIN. Mr. President, I am pleased to cosponsor the 
Missing Service Personnel Act of 1995, introduced by Senators Dole and 
Lautenberg earlier this year.
  The Missing Service Personnel Act is a significant and an appropriate 
piece of legislation. It would establish new methods for determining 
the status of missing service personnel and improving the means by 
which full accountability is achieved. Due in part to the handling of 
POW/MIA cases by the Department of Defense and the United States 
Government since the Vietnam war, existing procedures have been 
criticized as being unresponsive to the
[[Page S6470]] needs of effected families. In fact, current law does 
not adequately address issues that have emerged over the past 25 years 
regarding how missing persons and their families are treated by 
Government officials. S. 256 would implement procedures which foster a 
sense of trust and credibility between the Government and families of 
missing personnel, while attempting to ensure fairness to all involved.
  Considering the tremendous sacrifices our men and women make when 
facing combat, maintaining credibility and trust are crucial. Soldiers 
face the terrible prospect of capture and, in turn, their loved ones 
face the horrible possibility of intense anguish and heartache. We must 
assure our armed services personnel and their civilian counterparts 
that the United States will do everything possible to return them home 
safely in the event they turn up missing in action. At the same time, 
they must also be assured that more open and fair procedures will be 
established to determine their exact status. S. 256 takes concrete 
steps to achieve these objectives.
  There are, however, some issues with the bill that I think still need 
to be reviewed. For instance, S. 256 restricts identification of 
recovered remains to licensed practitioners of forensic medicine. 
Utilization of personnel in disciplines other than medicine which may 
be appropriate are not permitted. According to DOD, such a requirement 
would be unreasonable during combat operations or on the battlefield. 
Moreover, as this legislation would be retroactive to World War II, DOD 
may be required to review thousands of cases. The Defense Department 
has indicated that it does not have the personnel or budget to handle 
such a workload. These are some issues that I hope the Senate Armed 
Services Committee will look into when reviewing this legislation.
  Overall, I believe that S. 256 is an important and noteworthy bill. 
The Government has been perceived as being unresponsive to the needs of 
families whose loved ones are classified as missing in action. This 
legislation would safeguard the rights of missing armed service members 
while addressing the concerns of their effected families and the 
Federal Government. I am pleased to cosponsor the Missing Service 
Personnel Act.


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