[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 36 (Friday, March 15, 1996)]
[Senate]
[Pages S2197-S2198]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. HATCH:
  S. 1622. A bill to amend the independent counsel statute to permit 
appointees of an independent counsel to receive travel reimbursements 
for successive 6-month periods after 1 year of service; to the 
Committee on the Judiciary.


       amendments to the independent counsel reauthorization act

  Mr. HATCH. Mr. President, I rise to introduce an amendment to the 
Independent Counsel Reauthorization Act of 1994. My legislation would 
provide travel expense reimbursements to appointees of the Office of 
Independent Counsel for successive 6-month periods after 1 year of 
service.
  This legislation is necessary because the Independent Counsel 
Reauthorization Act precludes attorneys and other staff fired by an 
independent counsel from receiving reimbursements for travel expenses 
they incur after they have worked for an independent counsel 
investigation for 18 months. Currently, the act authorizes only one 6-
month extension for travel reimbursement purposes after 1 year of 
service.
  As a result, employees of the Independent Counsel may be forced to 
resign as they approach their 18-month anniversaries in order to avoid 
incurring the additional expense of living away from home for an 
extended period of time. These employees must then be replaced with new 
personnel having less knowledge and experience, thereby causing harm 
and delay to the Independent Counsel's investigation.
  The reimbursement limitation will begin to have full effect in the 
next 2 months, which is a critical time for the Independent Counsel's 
investigation. As the decision of the eighth circuit on March 15, 1996, 
reinstating the indictments against Gov. Jim Guy Tucker makes clear, 
the Independent Counsel's work has been effective in bringing to light 
public corruption at the highest levels. The trial of United States 
versus McDougal started on March 4, 1996. Seven employees, including 
four attorneys, will have reached their 18-month anniversaries by the 
end of the trial.
  Mr. President, Congress included the 18 month limitation to control 
spending and fiscal irresponsibility. But we did not anticipate an 
investigation such as this one, in which many individuals have been 
temporarily relocated to a remote office. The Independent Counsel's 
ability to complete the investigation in a timely manner may be 
seriously hindered, and costs may actually increase, if we do not pass 
this legislation.
  My legislation will remedy this problem by permitting Independent 
Counsel

[[Page S2198]]

employees to receive travel reimbursements for successive 6-month 
periods after their first year of service, provided that such payment 
is certified at the beginning of each 6-month period as being in the 
public interest to carry out the purposes of the 1994 act. While some 
of us may have reservations about the constitutionality of an 
Independent Counsel or the current matters being investigated, we 
should all agree that if we are going to have an Independent Counsel, 
it must be given the necessary resources to do a thorough, complete 
job.
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