The U.S. House of Representatives on Wednesday overwhelmingly passed the Intelligence Authorization Act (IAA) for FY 2017 by a vote of 371-35.
This year’s IAA focuses resources on ongoing threats of terrorism from groups like ISIS, while also prioritizing long-term threats. The legislation includes provisions to enhance congressional oversight of the intelligence community, ensure good governance and fiscal responsibility, and strengthen the technical collection and analysis capabilities across various domains.
Additionally, it ensures that the programs and activities of the intelligence community, including the Department of Defense (DoD) intelligence elements, are authorized in law. Furthermore, the bill sets strong congressional oversight of the intelligence community over its most sensitive aspects.
The bill passed unanimously out of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence on April 29.
Specifics in the bill include an emphasis on long-term threats from aggressive regimes like Russia and China, sustains critical capabilities to fight terrorism, caps fees for mandatory declassification review to match costs of Freedom of Information Act requests, clarifies eligibility for death benefits for Central Intelligence Agency personnel, improves procedures for intelligence community whistleblowers, requires declassification review of intelligence on the past terrorist activities of certain individuals transferred out of the detention camp at Guantanamo Bay, and improves intelligence community reporting to Congress.
“The U.S. Intelligence Community does a tremendous job of protecting our nation from the large, diverse and relentless set of global threats we face,” U.S. Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA) said. “This year’s intelligence authorization bill makes sure our intelligence agencies have the resources, authorities, and capabilities they need to protect our nation, but it also enables the most thorough and tenacious oversight, particularly to make sure privacy and civil liberties are protected. The bill is strong, and I look forward to working with the Senate, the Administration and all my congressional colleagues to further improve it on its way to becoming law.”