NSA Internal Watchdog Act
Latest action. Referred to the subcommitteeA smaller panel inside a standing committee with jurisdiction over a slice of its subject matter. Most hearings and the first markup usually happen here.Read the full definition (opens a new tab) on the Constitution and Civil Justice.
NSA Internal Watchdog Act - Amends the Inspector General Act of 1978 to require the President to appoint, with advice and consent of the Senate, the Inspector General of the National Security Agency (NSA). (Currently, the NSA Inspector General is appointed by the NSA Director.)
Directs the Inspector General to include in an annual report to Congress a review of the mechanisms for NSA employees or contractors to submit complaints.
Establishes a General Counsel to the NSA Inspector General, to be appointed by the Inspector General.
Requires the General Counsel to prescribe professional rules of ethics and responsibilities for NSA employees, officers, and contractors.
Authorizes the Inspector General, after providing the Attorney General (DOJ) with seven days' advance notice, to subpoena the attendance and testimony of former NSA employees or NSA contractors, former contractors, or former detailees.
Requires the Inspector General to provide Congress with an evaluation of any notice or statement of reasons the Inspector General receives from the Secretary of Defense (DOD) regarding the Secretary's exercise of authority in the interest of national security to prohibit the Inspector General from initiating, carrying out, or completing any audit or investigation.
Directs the Inspector General, in carrying out any audit or investigation of a surveillance or data collection program, to assess the impact of such program on civil rights and liberties.
Requires the Inspector General's reports to Congress to be made available to all Members of Congress.
Directs the Inspector General to audit and report to Congress regarding the effectiveness and use (including improper or illegal use) of NSA surveillance and data collection programs, including programs under the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act of 1978 (FISA) that authorize: (1) the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) to submit applications to the FISA court for an order requiring the production of tangible things (commonly referred to as business records, including books, records, papers, documents, and other items); and (2) the Attorney General and the Director of National Intelligence (DNI), with the approval of the FISA court or under exigent circumstances, to authorize the targeting of persons located outside the United States.
The summary continues for 1 more paragraph. Read it in full on Congress.gov
Written by analysts at the Congressional Research Service and published on Congress.gov, not by Civibrief. Summarized at the "Introduced in House" stage on April 30, 2014. It describes the bill, it is not the legal text.
Where is it in the process, and what happens next?
4 steps remain before this bill could become law.
The record's latest action, on July 21, 2014: Referred to the Subcommittee on the Constitution and Civil Justice.
- Clearing the committees it was referred to, and being scheduled for a floor vote
- Passage by the House
- Passage by the Senate
- The President's signature. If the President vetoes it, two-thirds of both chambers must vote to override.
How likely is it to become law?
Civibrief does not forecast outcomes and this page has no opinion about this one. What the record supports is a base rate, which is a fact about the whole pile, not a prediction about this measure.
In the 113th Congress (2013-14), 296 of the 9,091 bills and joint resolutions introduced became law, about 3.3 percent. That count covers every measure at every stage, including the many that never left committee.
This one is not there yet: 4 steps are still outstanding, listed above.
Has anyone actually voted on it?
No. No roll call in this Congress cites this measure. That is the ordinary outcome: most measures never reach a recorded floor vote, and a committee ends most of them simply by not acting.
A vote is not the only thing that happens to a measure. Hearings, markups, and referrals are all recorded actions, and none of them is a vote of the full chamber.
Who is behind it?
JAMES COOPER (D-TN) introduced it on April 30, 2014, and 2 members have since signed on as cosponsors.
They come from both major parties: 1 Democrat, 1 Republican.
Cosponsoring is a formal signature on the text. It is not a commitment to vote for the measure, it does not bind anyone's party, and a long list of cosponsors is a measure of attention rather than of prospects.
How long has it been in play?
It was introduced on April 30, 2014, 4516 days ago. The most recent recorded action was 4434 days ago, on July 21, 2014.
Measures do not carry over. Anything the 113th Congress has not finished by January 3, 2015 dies when the term ends, and has to be introduced again from the start in the next Congress.
Every answer above is assembled from this measure's own record on Congress.gov and from published counts of what Congress has passed before. Civibrief does not predict outcomes and takes no position on any measure.
Vote history
- HouseIn committee, no floor vote yet
- SenateAwaits House passage
- PresidentAwaits both chambers