[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 130 (Thursday, September 19, 1996)]
[House]
[Page H10606]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




         HOW LONG DOES IT TAKE FOR A REASONABLE INVESTIGATION?

  (Mrs. SCHROEDER asked and was given permission to address the House 
for 1 minute and to revise and extend her remarks.)
  Mrs. SCHROEDER. Mr. Speaker, I listen to my words of my friend, the 
gentleman from Wisconsin [Mr. Gunderson], and I would agree with him 
that clearly we do not want any half-baked anything here. But as I get 
ready to leave this body, I am beginning to think about what I could 
will to the Committee on Standards of Official Conduct, and I am 
thinking about willing them an outbox. I guess the question is, how 
long does it take for a reasonable investigation? Our problem is 2 
years seems like a very long time.
  In the past, and we can bring those charts to the floor except they 
probably would be ruled out of order, but we have charts showing that 
all sorts of serious complaints before were dealt with in a matter of 
weeks or months, and sometimes days. But 2 years, 2 long years? And 
there is some suspicion that we may not see this until after the term 
is over and that people will then think, oh, well, it is moot now and 
we start all over again.
  I think, if that happens, this body will really be operating under a 
very dark cloud.

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