69–010 

Calendar No. 418 

110TH CONGRESS REPORT " ! SENATE 1st Session 110–195 

TO REQUIRE PERIODIC REPORTS RELATED TO ACTS OF 

TERRORISM AGAINST AMERICANS PERPETRATED OR 

SUPPORTED BY THE GOVERNMENT OF LIBYA 

OCTOBER 15, 2007.—Ordered to be printed 

Mr. BIDEN, from the Committee on Foreign Relations, 

submitted the following 

R E P O R T 

[To accompany S. 1839] 

The Committee on Foreign Relations, having had under consideration the bill (S. 1839) to require periodic reports on claims related 

to acts of terrorism against Americans perpetrated or supported by 

the Government of Libya, reports favorably thereon without 

amendment and recommends that the bill do pass. 

CONTENTS 

Page 

I. Purpose ........................................................................................................... 1 

II. Committee Action .......................................................................................... 1 

III. Discussion ....................................................................................................... 2 

IV. Cost Estimate ................................................................................................. 2 

V. Evaluation of Regulatory Impact .................................................................. 3 

VI. Changes in Existing Law .............................................................................. 3 

I. PURPOSE

This legislation is designed to better inform Congress, and by extension the American people, of the status of outstanding legal 

claims by American victims of Libyan terrorism and their families 

and of the efforts of the Department of State on their behalf. 

II. COMMITTEE ACTION

S. 1839 was introduced by Senator Biden on July 19, 2007, with 

Senators Levin and Lautenberg as original cosponsors. On September 11, 2007, the committee ordered the bill reported favorably 

by voice vote. 


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III. DISCUSSION

During the rule of Colonel Muammar el-Qaddafi, several hundred Americans have been killed or injured by acts of terrorism 

sponsored by the Government of Libya. In December 2003, Col. 

Qaddafi renounced terrorism, bringing Libya closer to rejoining the 

community of nations. Earlier that year, Libya accepted responsibility for the heinous Pan Am 103 bombing, which killed 189 Americans in 1988. That admission also helped pave the way to the negotiations that led to Libya’s renunciation of its support for terrorism and its WMD programs. But the families of the victims of 

Pan Am 103 are still waiting for the final resolution to their case. 

In 2006, the Libyan government agreed to terms with the victims 

of the bombing of the La Belle discotheque in Germany in 1986. 

Unfortunately, it has since refused to honor the previously agreed 

upon terms. Other American victims of Libyan terror are still waiting for justice. Their cases may be smaller in scale, but the pain 

that the victims and their families have suffered is no less real. 

It is in the strategic interest of the United States to develop better relations with Libya. But doing so requires that Libya fully 

come to terms with its past. S. 1938 is intended to facilitate that 

process by helping American victims of Libyan terrorism and their 

families receive justice for the terrible crimes committed against 

them. It requires the administration to submit to Congress twice 

yearly reports on the status of the outstanding legal claims by 

these American victims and their families against the government 

of Libya. It also requires the administration to explain its own efforts on their behalf. The prospect of a regular, public report to 

Congress provides a means to keep the pressure on both U.S. and 

Libyan officials to resolve these cases. 

IV. COST ESTIMATE

In accordance with Rule XXVI, paragraph 11(a) of the Standing 

Rules of the Senate, the committee provides this estimate of the 

costs of this legislation prepared by the Congressional Budget Office. 

UNITED STATES CONGRESS, CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE, 

Washington, DC, September 19, 2007. 

Hon. JOSEPH R. BIDEN, JR., Chairman, Committee on Foreign Relations, 

U.S. Senate, Washington, DC. 

DEAR MR. CHAIRMAN: The Congressional Budget Office has prepared the enclosed cost estimate for S. 1839, a bill to require periodic reports related to acts of terrorism against Americans perpetrated or supported by the government of Libya. 

If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be pleased 

to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Sunita D’Monte. 

Sincerely, 

ROBERT A. SUNSHINE

(For Peter R. Orszag, Director). 


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S. 1839—A bill to require periodic reports on claims related to acts 

of terrorism against Americans perpetrated or supported by the 

government of Libya 

S. 1839 would require the Secretary of State to report periodically to the Congress on negotiations to resolve legal claims made 

by citizens of the United States against the government of Libya 

for acts of terrorism. CBO estimates that implementing the bill 

would cost less than $500,000 a year over the 2008–2012 period, 

assuming the availability of appropriated funds. Enacting the bill 

would not affect direct spending or revenues. 

S. 1839 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act and would 

not affect the budgets of state, local, or tribal governments. 

The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Sunita D’Monte. This 

estimate was approved by Peter H. Fontaine, Assistant Director for 

Budget Analysis. 

V. EVALUATION OF REGULATORY IMPACT

Pursuant to Rule XXVI, paragraph 11(b) of the Standing Rules 

of the Senate, the committee has determined that there is no regulatory impact as a result of this legislation. 

VI. CHANGES IN EXISTING LAW

In compliance with paragraph 12 of Rule XXVI of the Standing 

Rules of the Senate, the committee notes that no changes to existing law are made by this bill. 

Æ 


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