Citing it as an investment in the nation’s Intelligence Community, Senate Select Committee on Intelligence Chairman Richard Burr (R-NC) and Vice Chairman Mark Warner (D-VA) recently commended the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) passage.
The NDAA, which addresses fiscal year 2020, included the Damon Paul Nelson and Matthew Young Pollard Intelligence Authorization Act (IAA), a specific point of praise from the two lawmakers.
“The IAA was approved unanimously by the Senate Intelligence Committee last month, and I am glad to see it included in this year’s bipartisan defense bill,” Burr said. “This legislation is critical for advancing the IC’s mission of deterring foreign adversaries, strengthening our election security, protecting our technology supply chains, and building a capable workforce. It strikes the right balance between giving our intelligence agencies the resources they need to operate effectively while keeping them accountable to American taxpayers.”
The bill deters aggression from Russia and other nations by increasing the capability of detecting malign activities, such as active measure campaigns, illicit financial transactions, and other intelligence activities, and secures elections from foreign meddling by requiring strategic assessments of Russian cyber threats and influence campaigns, and facilitating increased information sharing between local, state and federal government officials. It also enhances the security clearance process by requiring a plan to reduce the backlog, increase efficiencies, create an interagency information sharing program for positions of trust, and ensure compliance with uniform clearance eligibility procedures within the federal government.
“I am thrilled to know that the Senate Intelligence Committee’s bipartisan authorization act passed today through the Senate as part of our nation’s defense authorization bill,” Warner said. “The bipartisan authorization bill ensures that the women and men of our intelligence agencies have the resources they need to do their jobs.”