To amend title 10, United States Code, to restore the provisions of chapter 76 of that title (relating to missing persons) as in effect before the amendments made by the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 1997.

Summary: Restores Federal armed forces provisions relating to the status of missing persons as in effect before amendments made by the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 1997.

SECTION 1. RESTORATION OF MISSING PERSONS AUTHORITIES APPLICABLE TO 
              DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE AS IN EFFECT BEFORE ENACTMENT OF 
              NATIONAL DEFENSE AUTHORIZATION ACT FOR FISCAL YEAR 1997.

    (a) Applicability to Department of Defense Civilian Employees and 
Contractor Employees.--(1) Section 1501 of title 10, United States 
Code, is amended--
            (A) by striking out subsection (c) and inserting in lieu 
        thereof the following:
    ``(c) Covered Persons.--Section 1502 of this title applies in the 
case of the following persons:
            ``(1) Any member of the armed forces on active duty who 
        becomes involuntarily absent as a result of a hostile action, 
        or under circumstances suggesting that the involuntary absence 
        is a result of a hostile action, and whose status is 
        undetermined or who is unaccounted for.
            ``(2) Any civilian employee of the Department of Defense, 
        and any employee of a contractor of the Department of Defense, 
        who serves with or accompanies the armed forces in the field 
        under orders who becomes involuntarily absent as a result of a 
        hostile action, or under circumstances suggesting that the 
        involuntary absence is a result of a hostile action, and whose 
        status is undetermined or who is unaccounted for.''; and
            (B) by adding at the end the following new subsection:
    ``(f) Secretary Concerned.--In this chapter, the term `Secretary 
concerned' includes, in the case of a civilian employee of the 
Department of Defense or contractor of the Department of Defense, the 
Secretary of the military department or head of the element of the 
Department of Defense employing the employee or contracting with the 
contractor, as the case may be.''.
    (2) Section 1503(c) of such title is amended--
            (A) in paragraph (1), by striking out ``one military 
        officer'' and inserting in lieu thereof ``one individual 
        described in paragraph (2)'';
            (B) by redesignating paragraphs (2) and (3) as paragraphs 
        (3) and (4), respectively; and
            (C) by inserting after paragraph (1) the following new 
        paragraph (2):
    ``(2) An individual referred to in paragraph (1) is the following:
            ``(A) A military officer, in the case of an inquiry with 
        respect to a member of the armed forces.
            ``(B) A civilian, in the case of an inquiry with respect to 
        a civilian employee of the Department of Defense or of a 
        contractor of the Department of Defense.''.
    (3) Section 1504(d) of such title is amended--
            (A) in paragraph (1), by striking out ``who are'' and all 
        that follows in that paragraph and inserting in lieu thereof 
        ``as follows:
            ``(A) In the case of a board that will inquire into the 
        whereabouts and status of one or more members of the armed 
        forces (and no civilians described in subparagraph (B)), the 
        board shall be composed of officers having the grade of major 
        or lieutenant commander or above.
            ``(B) In the case of a board that will inquire into the 
        whereabouts and status of one or more civilian employees of the 
        Department of Defense or contractors of the Department of 
        Defense (and no members of the armed forces), the board shall 
        be composed of--
                    ``(i) not less than three employees of the 
                Department of Defense whose rate of annual pay is equal 
                to or greater than the rate of annual pay payable for 
                grade GS-13 of the General Schedule under section 5332 
                of title 5; and
                    ``(ii) such members of the armed forces as the 
                Secretary considers advisable.
            ``(C) In the case of a board that will inquire into the 
        whereabouts and status of both one or more members of the armed 
        forces and one or more civilians described in subparagraph 
        (B)--
                    ``(i) the board shall include at least one officer 
                described in subparagraph (A) and at least one employee 
                of the Department of Defense described in subparagraph 
                (B)(i); and
                    ``(ii) the ratio of such officers to such employees 
                on the board shall be roughly proportional to the ratio 
                of the number of members of the armed forces who are 
                subjects of the board's inquiry to the number of 
                civilians who are subjects of the board's inquiry.''; 
                and
            (B) in paragraph (4), by striking out ``section 
        1503(c)(3)'' and inserting in lieu thereof ``section 
        1503(c)(4)''.
    (4) Paragraph (1) of section 1513 of such title is amended to read 
as follows:
            ``(1) The term `missing person' means--
                    ``(A) a member of the armed forces on active duty 
                who is in a missing status; or
                    ``(B) a civilian employee of the Department of 
                Defense or an employee of a contractor of the 
                Department of Defense who serves with or accompanies 
                the armed forces in the field under orders and who is 
                in a missing status.''.
    (b) Report on Preliminary Assessment of Status.--(1) Section 1502 
of such title is amended--
            (A) in subsection (a)(2)--
                    (i) by striking out ``10 days'' and inserting in 
                lieu thereof ``48 hours''; and
                    (ii) by striking out ``Secretary concerned'' and 
                inserting in lieu thereof ``theater component commander 
                with jurisdiction over the missing person'';
            (B) in subsection (a), as amended by subparagraph (A)--
                    (i) by redesignating paragraphs (1) and (2) as 
                subparagraphs (A) and (B), respectively;
                    (ii) by inserting ``(1)'' after ``Commander.--''; 
                and
                    (iii) by adding at the end the following new 
                paragraph:
    ``(2) However, if the commander determines that operational 
conditions resulting from hostile action or combat constitute an 
emergency that prevents timely reporting under paragraph (1)(B), the 
initial report should be made as soon as possible, but in no case later 
than ten days after the date on which the commander receives such 
information under paragraph (1).'';
            (C) by redesignating subsection (b) as subsection (c);
            (D) by inserting after subsection (a), as amended by 
        subparagraphs (A) and (B), the following new subsection (b):
    ``(b) Transmission Through Theater Component Commander.--Upon 
reviewing a report under subsection (a) recommending that a person be 
placed in a missing status, the theater component commander shall 
ensure that all necessary actions are being taken, and all appropriate 
assets are being used, to resolve the status of the missing person. Not 
later than 14 days after receiving the report, the theater component 
commander shall forward the report to the Secretary of Defense or the 
Secretary concerned in accordance with procedures prescribed under 
section 1501(b) of this title. The theater component commander shall 
include with such report a certification that all necessary actions are 
being taken, and all appropriate assets are being used, to resolve the 
status of the missing person.''; and
            (E) in subsection (c), as redesignated by subparagraph (C), 
        by adding at the end the following new sentence: ``The theater 
        component commander through whom the report with respect to the 
        missing person is transmitted under subsection (b) shall ensure 
        that all pertinent information relating to the whereabouts and 
        status of the missing person that results from the preliminary 
        assessment or from actions taken to locate the person is 
        properly safeguarded to avoid loss, damage, or modification.''.
    (2) Section 1503(a) of such title is amended by striking out 
``section 1502(a)'' and inserting in lieu thereof ``section 1502(b)''.
    (3) Section 1504 of such title is amended by striking out ``section 
1502(a)(2)'' in subsections (a), (b), and (e)(1) and inserting in lieu 
thereof ``section 1502(a)''.
    (4) Section 1513 of such title is amended by adding at the end the 
following new paragraph:
            ``(8) The term `theater component commander' means, with 
        respect to any of the combatant commands, an officer of any of 
        the armed forces who (A) is commander of all forces of that 
        armed force assigned to that combatant command, and (B) is 
        directly subordinate to the commander of the combatant 
        command.''.
    (c) Frequency of Subsequent Reviews.--Subsection (b) of section 
1505 of such title is amended to read as follows:
    ``(b) Frequency of Subsequent Reviews.--(1) In the case of a 
missing person who was last known to be alive or who was last suspected 
of being alive, the Secretary shall appoint a board to conduct an 
inquiry with respect to a person under this subsection--
            ``(A) on or about three years after the date of the initial 
        report of the disappearance of the person under section 1502(a) 
        of this title; and
            ``(B) not later than every three years thereafter.
    ``(2) In addition to appointment of boards under paragraph (1), the 
Secretary shall appoint a board to conduct an inquiry with respect to a 
missing person under this subsection upon receipt of information that 
could result in a change of status of the missing person. When the 
Secretary appoints a board under this paragraph, the time for 
subsequent appointments of a board under paragraph (1)(B) shall be 
determined from the date of the receipt of such information.
    ``(3) The Secretary is not required to appoint a board under 
paragraph (1) with respect to the disappearance of any person--
            ``(A) more than 30 years after the initial report of the 
        disappearance of the missing person required by section 1502(a) 
        of this title; or
            ``(B) if, before the end of such 30-year period, the 
        missing person is accounted for.''.
    (d) Penalties for Wrongful Withholding of Information.--Section 
1506 of such title is amended--
            (1) by redesignating subsection (e) as subsection (f); and
            (2) by inserting after subsection (d) the following new 
        subsection (e):
    ``(e) Wrongful Withholding.--Except as provided in subsections (a) 
through (d), any person who knowingly and willfully withholds from the 
personnel file of a missing person any information relating to the 
disappearance or whereabouts and status of a missing person shall be 
fined as provided in title 18 or imprisoned not more than one year, or 
both.''.
    (e) Information To Accompany Recommendation of Status of Death.--
Section 1507(b) of such title is amended adding at the end the 
following new paragraphs:
            ``(3) A description of the location of the body, if 
        recovered.
            ``(4) If the body has been recovered and is not 
        identifiable through visual means, a certification by a 
        practitioner of an appropriate forensic science that the body 
        recovered is that of the missing person.''.
    (f) Scope of Preenactment Review.--(1) Section 1509 of such title 
is amended--
            (A) by redesignating subsection (c) as subsection (d); and
            (B) by inserting after subsection (b) the following new 
        subsection (c):
    ``(c) Special Rule for Persons Classified as `KIA/BNR'.--In the 
case of a person described in subsection (b) who was classified as 
`killed in action/body not recovered', the case of that person may be 
reviewed under this section only if the new information referred to in 
subsection (a) is compelling.''.
    (2)(A) The heading of such section is amended by inserting ``, 
special interest'' after ``Preenactment''.
    (B) The item relating to such section in the table of sections at 
the beginning of chapter 76 of such title is amended by inserting ``, 
special interest'' after ``Preenactment''.
    (g) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section shall take 
effect immediately after the enactment of the National Defense 
Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 1997.

            Passed the House of Representatives September 27, 1996.

            Attest:

                                                ROBIN H. CARLE,

                                                                 Clerk.