Mr. COMBEST. Mr. Chairman, I offer an amendment.
The Clerk read as follows:
Amendment offered by Mr. COMBEST: In section 303--
(1) Insert `(a) Authorization of Appropriations.--' before `Section 307'; and
(2) add at the end thereof the following:
(b) Transfers.--The second sentence of section 307(a) of the Intelligence Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 1996 is amended to read as follows: `Within the amount authorized to be used by this section, the Director, consistent with his duty to protect intelligence sources and methods, may transfer such amounts to the agencies within the National Foreign Intelligence Program for the purpose of automatic declassification of records over 25 years old.
Mr. COMBEST (during the reading). Mr. Chairman, I ask unanimous consent that the amendment be considered as read and printed in the Record.
The CHAIRMAN. Is there objection to the request of the gentleman from Texas?
There was no objection.
Mr. COMBEST. Mr. Chairman, again this is basically a technical amendment. The section provides the Director of Central Intelligence the authority to transfer funds authorized for automatic declassification within the national foreign intelligence community to execute section 3.4 of Executive Order 12958. This provision would allow that money which is basically in one pool to be dispensed within the NFIP agencies, depending upon the need of that agency to comply with the declassification order of Executive Order 12958. It is my understanding that there are no objections to this amendment.
[TIME: 1330]
Mr. DICKS. Mr. Chairman, I move to strike the last word.
Mr. Chairman, the amendment of the gentleman from Texas clarifies that the DCI may transfer the funds authorized by section 303 of the bill to the agencies within the National Foreign Intelligence Program for the automatic declassification of records over 25 years old.
The community management staff has pointed out that this transfer authority is necessary to move the money the bill provides in the community management account back to the various agency programs. I have no problem with this technical correction.
The gentleman's amendment also states that the DCI is to make these transfers consistent with his duty to protect sources and methods. This particular language is superfluous because the DCI is already required by current law to protect sources and methods in everything he does.
Because I am certain the gentleman does not mean to imply by the inclusion of this redundant language that the DCI has any intention of violating the requirements of current law in transferring money we authorize in this area, I am prepared to accept the amendment for this side.
The CHAIRMAN. The question is on the amendment offered by the gentleman from Texas [Mr. Combest].
The amendment was agreed to.