House Intelligence Committee Approves Schakowsky Amendment to Prohibit Use of Contractors for Interrogation

HOUSE INTELLIGENCE COMMITTEE APPROVES SCHAKOWSKY AMENDMENT TO PROHIBIT USE OF CONTRACTORS FOR INTERROGATION

Washington, D.C.–The House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence today approved an amendment offered by U.S. Representative Jan Schakowsky (D-IL) to prohibit the CIA from using contractors to interrogate detainees. Schakowsky's amendment was included in the Fiscal Year 2009 Intelligence Authorization Act, H.R. 5959, which passed the Committee by voice vote. H.R. 5959 now awaits consideration by the full House of Representatives.

The FY09 Intelligence Authorization Act also included several provisions from contracting legislation recently introduced by U.S. Representatives David Price (D-NC) and Jan Schakowsky (D-IL). Price and Schakowsky introduced H.R. 5973, Transparency and Accountability in Contracting Act, which would prohibit the use of contractors for detention-related activities. The bill would require the Director of National Intelligence to report to Congress annually about the size, scope and cost of contractors employed by the intelligence community. H.R. 5973 would also require intelligence contractors to disclose the details of their contracts and to provide a description of their hiring and training practices.

Schakowsky has led the charge on contractor accountability issues in Congress as a member of the House Intelligence Committee. Last year, Schakowsky worked closely with Rep. Price to amend the National Defense Authorization Act to create a database to track contracts and to make them available, for the first time, to members of Congress. In November 2007, Schakowsky introduced the Stop Outsourcing Security (S.O.S.) Act, which would phase out the use of private military contractors in Iraq and Afghanistan.