[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 21 (Thursday, March 5, 1998)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E307]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




   TRIBUTE TO THE OFFICERS OF THE DIPLOMATIC SECURITY SERVICE OF THE 
          DEPARTMENT OF STATE; CALL FOR LEAP FOR DSS PERSONNEL

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. TOM LANTOS

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, March 5, 1998

  Mr. LANTOS. Mr. Speaker, the Diplomatic Security Service (DSS) of the 
Department of State has been a vital law enforcement and national 
security asset of the United States government, although the DSS has 
been far less known than other federal law enforcement organizations. 
Mr. Speaker, I want to call the attention of my colleagues to this 
valuable international asset, and pay tribute to DSS officers who play 
such a vital role in our nation's foreign policy and the security of 
all Americans.
  Earlier this year, the normally low profile of the Diplomatic 
Security Service received a well-deserved boost when one of the U.S. 
Marshall Service's most wanted fugitives was apprehended as a result of 
the assistance of the DSS. For two years, Nathan Hill was one of our 
nation's most wanted criminal suspects. Law enforcement officials 
pursued him in Chicago, where he was indicted for the distribution of 
9,000 pounds of cocaine through violent gangs in Chicago, Los Angeles, 
and Houston, and for ordering the killing of two individuals. After his 
indictment in 1996, Hill fled the United States.
  U.S. officials suspected that Hill was in Conakry, Guinea, and the 
Diplomatic Security Service was pressed into service. They carried out 
a discreet investigation to confirm Hill's identity and his location in 
Guinea. DSS officers then worked with Guinean law enforcement officials 
to arrange the arrest of Hill, which was carried out in the presence of 
members of the DSS, and they work with Guinean officials to expedite 
his extradition to the United States to stand trial. He is now being 
held without bond in Chicago, awaiting trial.
  Mr. Speaker, this is only one of the more recent and public examples 
of the kind of outstanding law-enforcement and security assistance that 
the Diplomatic Security Service provides. The DSS has wide-ranging 
domestic and international law enforcement and security 
responsibilities. DSS agents are not only federal law enforcement 
officers, they also serve as members of the U.S. Foreign Service, and 
this combination makes the DSS truly unique.
  For over 75 years, the DSS has been the law enforcement arm of the 
Department of State. It is at the forefront of the struggle against 
terrorism and transnational crime. No law enforcement agency of the 
U.S. government is more broadly represented overseas than the agents of 
the Diplomatic Security Service. Of the 660 special agents of the 
Diplomatic Security Service, some 240 are serving in 133 embassies, 
consulates, and U.S. interest sections abroad, and in most countries 
the DSS officer there is the sole representative of U.S. law 
enforcement.
  DSS officers are trained criminal investigators, since they receive 
the same basic criminal investigative training as the Secret Service, 
U.S. Customs officials, and other federal law enforcement officers. DSS 
officers are given on-the-job training at domestic field offices for 
the first three to five years of their service. Subsequent assignments 
can be either domestic or foreign, and throughout a DSS officer's 
career he or she will have a blend of postings.
  Domestically, DSS has responsibility for the protection of foreign 
dignitaries visiting the United States, and at 21 field offices 
throughout the country they are engaged in criminal passport and visa 
fraud investigations. Such investigations are vital to protecting our 
national security because terrorists and individuals engaged in 
international organized crime frequently use such bogus travel 
documents. For example, Mr. Speaker, four of the conspirators in the 
World Trade Center bombing were charged with passport fraud.
  Overseas, DSS agents serving in U.S. diplomatic missions abroad serve 
as Regional Security Officers (RSO)--the principal advisor on security 
matters to the ambassador or chief of mission. The RSO manages the 
Marine Security Guards, the local guard program, security and 
counterintelligence briefing programs, and a broad criminal and 
personnel investigative program. In addition to these important 
functions for the security of each embassy or foreign mission, the RSO 
administers anti-terrorism assistance training for foreign police, and, 
in just the past decade, over 18,000 foreign law enforcement officers 
have been trained under the Anti-Terrorism Assistance Program. Abroad, 
DSS officers are frequently the principal liaison with foreign police 
and security services, in which position they assist U.S. law 
enforcement initiatives and investigations.
  Mr. Speaker, the Diplomatic Security Service has provided invaluable 
security and law enforcement service in support of United States 
foreign policy and law enforcement objectives. The record of the men 
and women who comprise the DSS clearly reflects their dedication to 
duty and their determination to serve the American people in a wide 
variety of extremely difficult situations.
  Mr. Speaker, I am delighted to report to my colleagues that in the 
First Session of this Congress, the Foreign Relations Authorization Act 
for Fiscal Year 1998 and 1999 (H.R. 1757) which was adopted by this 
House on June 11, 1997, approved the inclusion of members of the 
Diplomatic Security Service under the provisions of the Law Enforcement 
Assistance Pay (LEAP). Section 1327 of H.R. 1757, which I adamantly 
supported in the face of considerable doubt and skepticism as the 
International Relations Committee went through the drafting of the 
legislation, provides the Diplomatic Security personnel who perform law 
enforcement and security functions will receive the same compensation 
as other federal law enforcement personnel, such as the FBI, Secret 
Service, and other agencies.
  In light of the importance of the dedicated agents of the Diplomatic 
Security Service, Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues in this House to 
continue to support the LEAP provisions in the Foreign Relations 
Authorization legislation, and I urge my colleagues on the other side 
of the aisle to work in a cooperative fashion to see that the 
conference report on H.R. 1757 is completed and approved quickly.

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