[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 185 (Monday, December 5, 2011)]
[Senate]
[Pages S8179-S8180]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                     TRIBUTE TO FREDERICK M. KAISER

  Mr. AKAKA. Mr. President, I rise today to recognize Frederick M. 
Kaiser, who retired from the Congressional Research Service, CRS, on 
November 3, 2011.
  Mr. Kaiser, a former Specialist in American National Government at 
CRS, was an authority on congressional oversight issues of great 
importance to the Congress.
  Mr. Kaiser's career in service to Congress began in the summer of 
1974, when he worked as a special staff consultant to the House 
Committee on Foreign Affairs, chaired by Representative Thomas E. 
``Doc'' Morgan of Pennsylvania. At the request of Chairman Morgan, Mr. 
Kaiser conducted an evaluation of the committee's oversight activities, 
which was subsequently published by the committee. This early focus on 
congressional oversight foretold key aspects of Mr. Kaiser's CRS 
career.
  Mr. Kaiser began his employment with CRS on February 18, 1975, where 
he was given responsibility for the subjects of general congressional 
oversight, congressional oversight of foreign policy, and the authority 
and role of the General Accounting Office, which is now known as the 
Government Accountability Office, GAO. These are subjects on which Mr. 
Kaiser has advised Congress throughout his career. As a result of his 
high-quality work in service to the Congress, Mr. Kaiser quickly earned 
the title of Specialist in American National Government just 6 years 
after joining CRS. Mr. Kaiser continued his high level of service 
throughout his career, and his areas of expertise gradually expanded. 
He was regularly recognized for his service to Congress through special 
achievement awards and other recognition.
  Mr. Kaiser produced hundreds of CRS publications; testified before 
congressional committees and commissions; and organized policy 
institutes, workshops, and other policy discussions for congressional 
staff. Over the course of his career, Mr. Kaiser developed a reputation 
among colleagues for being supportive and generous in sharing his 
knowledge and insights.
  Mr. Kaiser was regularly at the forefront of emerging legislative 
issues. As the possibility of organizing Federal homeland security 
functions into a new department began to develop, Mr. Kaiser undertook 
studies of agencies that might be included in a new department. As 
Congress considered the Help America Vote Act, he contributed his 
expertise on the organization of agencies that might be established to 
carry out the purposes of the act. Mr. Kaiser's analysis and insights 
were important to informing successful efforts to improve GAO's ability 
to support congressional oversight of the intelligence community. In 
February 2008, Mr. Kaiser testified on congressional oversight of the 
intelligence community before the subcommittee I chair, the 
Subcommittee on Oversight of Government Management, the Federal 
Workforce, and the District of Columbia, of the Homeland Security and 
Governmental Affairs Committee. In his testimony, as well as separate 
research conducted for the subcommittee, he examined the importance of 
intelligence community oversight, congressional structures for 
conducting such oversight, and options for enhancing oversight.
  Other examples of Mr. Kaiser's writing and briefings in the area of 
congressional oversight of the intelligence community include analyses 
of proposals for a joint intelligence committee, organizational reform 
of the House Intelligence Committee, intelligence community 
whistleblower protection, unauthorized disclosure of classified 
information, and use of classified information by Members of Congress. 
Mr. Kaiser also advised Congress on creation of the 9/11 Commission and 
on implementation of its recommendations, particularly concerning the 
Commission's authority and recommendations related to the intelligence 
community.
  Mr. Kaiser has been a leading authority on the management and 
oversight of the executive branch. Mr. Kaiser analyzed the Government 
Performance and Results Act, private citizens' complaint-handling 
mechanisms, postal reorganization, audit institutions in other nations, 
statutory inspectors general, privatization of government background 
investigations, and security clearances. He also authored, with other 
selected CRS specialists, the Congressional Oversight Manual. The 1993 
bipartisan House Joint Committee on the Organization of Congress noted 
the value of this publication, stating:

[[Page S8180]]

``As a way to further enhance the oversight work of Congress, the Joint 
Committee would encourage the Congressional Research Service to conduct 
on a regular basis, as it has done in the past, oversight seminars for 
Members and congressional staff and to update on a regular basis its 
Congressional Oversight Manual.'' Mr. Kaiser contributed the chapter on 
congressional-executive relations to the final report of the Joint 
Committee on the Organization of Congress.
  Mr. Kaiser sought to enhance public understanding of the Federal 
Government as well. He wrote the introductory-level CRS report 
``American National Government: An Overview,'' which explains the 
American national government structure. He also served as project 
coordinator for updates of Congress's booklet on the Federal Government 
for the American people, ``Our American Government.''
  Finally, Mr. Kaiser has been a respected member of the academic 
community, and he has participated in numerous symposia; served as an 
adjunct professor at American University and the University of 
Maryland; and consulted with the Congress, the Department of State, and 
the Agency for International Development on democratic institution 
building in emerging democracies. Mr. Kaiser's work has also appeared 
in numerous journals, including the Administrative Law Review, Annals 
of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, and the 
International Journal of Intelligence and Counterintelligence, and he 
has contributed to the Encyclopedia of the American Presidency and the 
Encyclopedia of the U.S. Congress.
  As chairman of the subcommittee, I thank Mr. Kaiser for his 
dedication, professionalism, and lifetime of service to the Congress 
and our Nation. I wish him the best in retirement with his wife Carol 
and their children and grandchildren, and I am confident Congress, CRS, 
and the academic and professional community will continue to benefit 
from Mr. Kaiser's research and analysis for many years to come.

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