MEJA Expansion and Enforcement Act of 2007

MEJA EXPANSION AND ENFORCEMENT ACT OF 2007 -- (House of Representatives - October 03, 2007)

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Ms. SCHAKOWSKY. Madam Chairman, I offer an amendment.

The CHAIRMAN. The Clerk will designate the amendment.

The text of the amendment is as follows:

Amendment No. 2 offered by Ms. Schakowsky:

In section 2(b)(2) of the bill--

(1) in subparagraph (A)(iv), strike ``and'' after the semicolon;

(1) in subparagraph (B), strike the period and insert ``; and''; and

(1) at the end of the paragraph, add the following new subparagraph:

(C) with respect to covered contracts where the work under such contracts is carried out in Iraq or Afghanistan--

(i) a list of each charge brought against contractors or contract personnel performing work under such a covered contract, including--

(I) a description of the offense with which a contractor or contract personnel were charged; and

(II) the disposition of such charge; and

(ii) a description of any legal actions taken by the United States Government against contractors or contract personnel as a result of--

(I) a criminal charge brought against such contractors or contract personnel; or

(II) a complaint received regarding the activities of such contractors or contract personnel.

The CHAIRMAN. Pursuant to House Resolution 702, the gentlewoman from Illinois (Ms. Schakowsky) and a Member opposed each will control 5 minutes.

The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from Illinois.

Ms. SCHAKOWSKY. Madam Chairman, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

I want to thank my friend Mr. Price for bringing this important legislation to the floor and would like to thank Chairman Conyers, Subcommittee Chairman Scott and the Judiciary Committee for their hard work on this very important issue.

My amendment would simply require the Department of Justice to issue descriptions of all charges that have been brought against contractors and contract employees in Iraq and Afghanistan and a description of the legal actions taken by the U.S. Government against them as a result of those charges.

H.R. 2740 requires the Department of Justice to issue a report that contains a list and descriptions of investigations that it is conducting into possible violations of U.S. law committed by contract personnel. This report must list the number of complaints it's received, the number of investigations it's begun, the number of criminal cases it has opened and the result of those cases.

My amendment would expand that requirement a bit further to ensure that the report includes a description of the charges that have been brought against contractors in Iraq and Afghanistan and a description of the legal action taken as a result of those charges.

Madam Chairman, I reserve the balance of my time.

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Ms. SCHAKOWSKY. First, I would like to thank my colleague from Virginia for his support of the amendment and just close with these remarks.

U.S. taxpayers have paid billions to private security contractors in Iraq and Afghanistan. I believe that Congress must know if they are engaging in criminal behavior that puts the U.S. Armed Forces and our mission at risk, and what the government is doing to address it.

Congress and the American people are beginning to understand the vast impact that contractors are playing in our military operations. These private contractors are not, right now, accountable to the military, but their actions often put our brave military men and women at risk.

Currently, the U.S. military is using an estimated 180,000 private contractors in operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. Many are performing duties that are often considered inherently governmental functions, such as military operations, intelligence gathering, law enforcement, security and criminal justice functions. But despite the critical role that contractors are playing, Congress is unable to determine the full impact of contractors on U.S. military operations.

We have all heard about the tragic incident in Iraq on September 16 when Blackwater employees reportedly killed 11 Iraqi civilians, and another unconscionable incident on Christmas Eve 2006 when a drunk Blackwater guard killed an Iraqi security guard for the Iraqi Vice President. He was flown out of the country within 36 hours and has faced no charge or punishment for his crime.

We should be outraged that with incidents like these reported prominently in the press, and with the hundreds of thousands of contractors who have served in Iraq and Afghanistan, that only two have ever been charged with any crime.

I urge support for the amendment.

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