[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 74 (Tuesday, June 3, 1997)]
[Senate]
[Page S5250]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




      JOHN F. KENNEDY ASSASSINATION RECORDS REVIEW BOARD EXTENSION

  Mr. SPECTER. Mr. President, in 1992, I sponsored a joint resolution 
in collaboration with Congressman Louis Stokes, who served as chairman 
of the House Select Committee on Assassinations, to expedite disclosure 
of materials relevant to the assassination of President John F. 
Kennedy. That act created the Assassination Review Board, which was 
directed to oversee the identification and release of records related 
to the assassination of President Kennedy. While the review board has 
made significant progress in its important work, it will need 
additional time to complete its task. Today, I am introducing a bill 
that will authorize the board's extension for 1 year.
  Through October 1996, the review board was successful in transferring 
nearly 10,000 documents to the National Archives and Records 
Administration for inclusion in the JFK Collection. Although much has 
been accomplished, Congress, in setting its original 3-year timetable, 
was simply unable to anticipate a number of problems the board has 
encountered since beginning its work. The board was not appointed until 
18 months after the legislation was signed into law. In addition, 
Federal agencies have been slow in identifying records to be processed 
and the hiring and training of new employees to work with the board has 
taken longer than expected. Nevertheless, the review board serves a 
vital function of removing some of the uncertainty and speculation 
about the contents of Government files relating to President Kennedy's 
assassination. An additional year will permit the board to finish its 
important task.
  According to information provided to me, over the past 5 years, the 
review board has worked to facilitate the maximum appropriate 
disclosure of any additional materials which may have been withheld by 
the FBI, CIA, Secret Service, or any other Federal agency.
  In addition, the House committee decided to withhold certain 
materials for 50 years following the publication of its report in 1979, 
or until the year 2029. According to information provided to me, the 
review board has also worked to facilitate the maximum appropriate 
disclosure of any of these materials which may have been withheld by 
the House committee.

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