I 

111TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 1248 

To establish the National Commission on the Anthrax Attacks Upon the 

United States to examine and report upon the facts and causes relating 

to the anthrax letter attacks of September and October 2001, and investigate and report to the President and Congress on its findings, conclusions, and recommendations for corrective measures that can be taken 

to prevent and respond to acts of bioterrorism. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

MARCH 2, 2009 

Mr. HOLT (for himself, Mr. NADLER of New York, and Mr. CUMMINGS) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary 

A BILL 

To establish the National Commission on the Anthrax Attacks Upon the United States to examine and report 

upon the facts and causes relating to the anthrax letter 

attacks of September and October 2001, and investigate 

and report to the President and Congress on its findings, 

conclusions, and recommendations for corrective measures that can be taken to prevent and respond to acts 

of bioterrorism. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 


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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

2 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Anthrax Attacks Inves3 tigation Act’’. 

4 SEC. 2. ESTABLISHMENT OF COMMISSION. 

5 There is established a commission to be known as the 

6 ‘‘National Commission on the Anthrax Attacks Upon the 

7 United States’’ (in this Act referred to as the ‘‘Commis8 sion’’). 

9 SEC. 3. PURPOSES. 

10 The purposes of the Commission are to— 

11 (1) examine and report upon the facts and 

12 causes relating to the anthrax letter attacks of Sep13 tember and October 2001; 

14 (2) ascertain, evaluate, and report on the evi15 dence developed by all relevant governmental agen16 cies regarding the facts and circumstances sur17 rounding the attacks; 

18 (3) determine whether all credible leads and in19 formation regarding the potential perpetrator of the 

20 attacks were pursued with due diligence by Federal 

21 investigators; 

22 (4) ascertain the full range of individuals who 

23 could have had access to the type of anthrax used 

24 in the attacks, and determine the full extent to 

25 which all such individuals were thoroughly inves26 tigated for any potential involvement in the attacks; 


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1 (5) make a full and complete accounting of the 

2 circumstances surrounding the attacks, and the ex3 tent of the Federal Governments’ preparedness for, 

4 and immediate response to, the attacks; and 

5 (6) investigate and report to the President and 

6 Congress on its findings, conclusions, and rec7 ommendations for corrective measures that can be 

8 taken to prevent and respond to acts of bioterrorism. 

9 SEC. 4. MEMBERSHIP. 

10 (a) NUMBER AND APPOINTMENT.—The Commission 

11 shall be composed of 11 members appointed as follows: 

12 (1) 1 member appointed by the President. 

13 (2) 1 member appointed by the majority leader 

14 of the Senate, in consultation with the minority lead15 er of the Senate, who shall serve as chairman of the 

16 Commission. 

17 (3) 1 member appointed by the Speaker of the 

18 House of Representatives, in consultation with the 

19 minority leader of the House, who shall serve as vice 

20 chairman of the Commission. 

21 (4) 2 members appointed by the majority leader 

22 of the Senate. 

23 (5) 2 members appointed by the majority leader 

24 of the House of Representatives. 


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1 (6) 2 members appointed by the minority leader 

2 of the Senate. 

3 (7) 2 members appointed by the minority leader 

4 of the House of Representatives. 

5 (b) QUALIFICATIONS.— 

6 (1) POLITICAL PARTY AFFILIATION.—Not more 

7 than 6 members appointed to the Commission shall 

8 be from the same political party. 

9 (2) NONGOVERNMENTAL APPOINTEES.—An in10 dividual appointed to the Commission may not be an 

11 officer or employee of the Federal Government or 

12 any State or local government. 

13 (3) OTHER QUALIFICATIONS.—It is the sense of 

14 Congress that individuals appointed to the Commis15 sion should be prominent United States citizens with 

16 national recognition and significant depth of experi17 ence in professions such as governmental service, 

18 law enforcement, law, public health, public adminis19 tration, science and technology, intelligence gath20 ering, commerce, transportation, and foreign affairs. 

21 (4) DEADLINE FOR APPOINTMENT.—All mem22 bers of the Commission shall be appointed no later 

23 than 60 days of the enactment of this Act. 


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1 (c) SUBCOMMITTEES.—The Chairman may establish 

2 subcommittees for the purpose of carrying out the duties 

3 of the Commission. 

4 (d) MEETINGS.— 

5 (1) INITIAL MEETING.—The Commission shall 

6 meet and begin the operations of the Commission as 

7 soon as practicable following the appointment of the 

8 11 members. 

9 (2) SUBSEQUENT MEETINGS.—The Commission 

10 shall meet upon the call of the chairman or a major11 ity of its members. All such meetings shall be open 

12 to the public unless classified information or internal 

13 personnel matters involving the Commission are to 

14 be discussed, in which case such meetings shall be 

15 closed to the public. 

16 (e) QUORUM.—Six members of the Commission shall 

17 constitute a quorum. 

18 (f) VACANCIES.—Any vacancy in the Commission 

19 shall not affect its powers, but shall be filled in the same 

20 manner in which the original appointment was made. 

21 SEC. 5. DUTIES OF COMMISSION. 

22 (a) IN GENERAL.—The duties of the Commission are 

23 to— 

24 (1) conduct an investigation relating to the an25 thrax letter attacks of September and October 2001 


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1 that investigates relevant facts and circumstances 

2 surrounding the attacks, including any relevant leg3 islation, Executive order, regulation, plan, policy, 

4 practice, or procedure; 

5 (2) ascertain, evaluate, and report on the evi6 dence developed by all relevant governmental agen7 cies regarding the facts and circumstances sur8 rounding the attacks; 

9 (3) determine whether all credible leads and in10 formation regarding the potential perpetrator of the 

11 attacks were pursued with due diligence by Federal 

12 investigators; 

13 (4) ascertain the full range of individuals who 

14 could have had access to the type of anthrax used 

15 in the attacks and determine the full extent to which 

16 all such individuals were thoroughly investigated for 

17 any potential involvement in the attacks; 

18 (5) make a full and complete accounting of the 

19 circumstances surrounding the attacks, and the ex20 tent of the Federal Governments’ preparedness for, 

21 and immediate response to, the attacks; 

22 (6) identify, review, and evaluate the lessons 

23 learned from the attacks regarding the structure, co24 ordination, management policies, and procedures of 

25 the Federal Government, and, if appropriate, State 


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1 and local governments and nongovernmental entities, 

2 relative to detecting, preventing, and responding to 

3 bioterrorism attacks; 

4 (7) submit to the President and Congress re5 ports in accordance with section 10; and 

6 (8) bring to the attention of the Attorney Gen7 eral and Congress any evidence of potential viola8 tions of Federal law or regulations uncovered by the 

9 Commission during the course of its investigation. 

10 (b) INVESTIGATIONS AND REPORTS.—The investiga11 tion and report authorized under subsection (a) may in12 clude relevant facts and circumstances relating to— 

13 (1) intelligence and law enforcement agencies; 

14 (2) diplomacy; 

15 (3) the delivery, processing, and handling of 

16 mail, parcels, or packages within the United States 

17 or its territories by either government or commercial 

18 entities world-wide; 

19 (4) the ability of individuals or terrorist organi20 zations to acquire the scientific knowledge and 

21 means to manufacture and deliver chemical, biologi22 cal, or radiological weapons via mail, parcels, or 

23 packages; 

24 (5) the physical and personnel security meas25 ures and procedures employed by government, nonVerDate Nov 24 2008 00:37 Mar 03, 2009 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1248.IH H1248

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1 profit, and private sector laboratories or other enti2 ties using, storing or shipping agents on the Centers 

3 for Disease Control’s Select Agents and Toxins List; 

4 (6) the role of Congressional oversight and re5 source allocation; and 

6 (7) other areas of the public and private sectors 

7 determined relevant by the Commission for its in8 quiry. 

9 SEC. 6. POWERS OF COMMISSION. 

10 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Commission or, on the au11 thority of the Commission, any subcommittee or member 

12 thereof, shall, for the purpose of carrying out its duties— 

13 (1) hold hearings and sit and act at such times 

14 and places as the Commission considers appropriate, 

15 take testimony, receive evidence, and administer 

16 oaths; and 

17 (2) in accordance with subsection (b), require, 

18 by subpoena or otherwise, the attendance and testi19 mony of witnesses and the production of books, 

20 records, correspondence, memoranda, papers, and 

21 documents, as the Commission or designated sub22 committee or member may determine advisable. 

23 (b) SUBPOENAS.— 

24 (1) ISSUANCE.—A subpoena may be issued by 

25 the Commission only— 


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1 (A) by the agreement of the chairman and 

2 the vice chairman; or 

3 (B) by the affirmative vote of a majority of 

4 members of the Commission. 

5 (2) SIGNATURE.—Subject to paragraph (1), 

6 subpoenas issued under this subsection may be 

7 issued under the signature of the chairman or any 

8 member designated by a majority of the Commis9 sion, and may be served by any person designated 

10 by the chairman or by a member designated by a 

11 majority of the Commission. 

12 (3) SERVICE OF SUBPOENAS.—The subpoenas 

13 of the Commission shall be served in the manner 

14 provided for subpoenas issued by a United States 

15 district court under the Federal Rules of Civil Pro16 cedure for the United States district courts. 

17 (4) SERVICE OF PROCESS.—All process of any 

18 court to which an application is made under para19 graph (3) may be served in the judicial district in 

20 which the person required to be served resides or 

21 may be found. 

22 (5) ENFORCEMENT.— 

23 (A) IN GENERAL.—In the case of contu24 macy or failure to obey a subpoena issued 

25 under this subsection, the United States district 


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1 court for the judicial district in which the sub2 poenaed person resides, is served, or may be 

3 found, or where the subpoena is returnable, 

4 may issue an order requiring such person to ap5 pear at any designated place to testify or to 

6 produce documentary or other evidence. Any 

7 failure to obey the order of the court may be 

8 punished by the court as civil contempt. 

9 (B) ADDITIONAL ENFORCEMENT.—In the 

10 case of any failure of any witness to comply 

11 with any subpoena or to testify when sum12 moned under authority of this section, the Com13 mission may, by majority vote, certify a state14 ment of fact constituting such failure to the ap15 propriate United States attorney, who shall 

16 bring the matter before the grand jury for its 

17 action, under the same authority and proce18 dures as if the United States attorney had re19 ceived a certification under section 104 of the 

20 Revised Statutes of the United States (2 U.S.C. 

21 194). 

22 (c) PUBLIC REPORTS; HEARINGS.— 

23 (1) REQUIRING PUBLIC ACCESS.—The Commis24 sion shall hold public hearings and meetings and reVerDate Nov 24 2008 00:37 Mar 03, 2009 Jkt 079200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1248.IH H1248

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1 lease public versions of the reports submitted in ac2 cordance with section 10. 

3 (2) PROTECTION OF INFORMATION.—Any pub4 lic hearings of the Commission shall be conducted in 

5 a manner consistent with the protection of informa6 tion provided to or developed for or by the Commis7 sion as required by any applicable statute, regula8 tion, or Executive order. 

9 (d) CONTRACT AUTHORITY.—The Commission may 

10 contract with and compensate government and private 

11 agencies or persons for services without regard to section 

12 3709 of the Revised Statutes (41 U.S.C. 5). 

13 (e) INFORMATION FROM FEDERAL AGENCIES.— 

14 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Commission is author15 ized to secure directly from any executive depart16 ment, bureau, agency, board, commission, office, 

17 independent establishment, or instrumentality of the 

18 Government, information, suggestions, estimates, 

19 and statistics for the purposes of this Act. 

20 (2) DECLASSIFICATION REQUESTS.—Each de21 partment, bureau, agency, board, commission, office, 

22 independent establishment, or instrumentality 

23 shall— 


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1 (A) review on an expedited basis any re2 quests for declassification of classified material 

3 made by the Commission; and 

4 (B) declassify and supply to the Commis5 sion such information as the Commission re6 quests consistent with applicable requirements 

7 to protect sources and methods. 

8 (f) ASSISTANCE FROM FEDERAL AGENCIES.— 

9 (1) GENERAL SERVICES ADMINISTRATION.— 

10 The Administrator of General Services shall provide 

11 to the Commission on a reimbursable basis adminis12 trative support and other services for the perform13 ance of the Commission’s functions. 

14 (2) OTHER DEPARTMENTS AND AGENCIES.—In 

15 addition to the assistance prescribed in paragraph 

16 (1), departments and agencies of the United States 

17 at the request of the Commission shall provide such 

18 services, funds, facilities, staff, and other support 

19 services as may be authorized by law. 

20 (g) GIFTS.—The Commission may accept, use, and 

21 dispose of gifts, bequests, devises of services or property, 

22 both real and personal, or donations of services or prop23 erty, for the purpose of aiding or facilitating the work of 

24 the Commission. 


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1 (h) POSTAL SERVICES.—The Commission may use 

2 the United States mails in the same manner and under 

3 the same conditions as other departments and agencies of 

4 the United States. 

5 (i) NONAPPLICABILITY OF FEDERAL ADVISORY COM6 MITTEE ACT.—The Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 

7 U.S.C. App.) shall not apply to the Commission. 

8 SEC. 7. SECURITY CLEARANCES FOR COMMISSION MEM9 BERS AND STAFF. 

10 The appropriate Federal agencies or departments 

11 shall cooperate with the Commission to provide the Com12 mission members appropriate security clearances pursuant 

13 to existing procedures and requirements. 

14 SEC. 8. COMPENSATION AND TRAVEL EXPENSES. 

15 (a) COMPENSATION.—Each member of the Commis16 sion may be compensated at a rate not to exceed the daily 

17 equivalent of the annual rate of basic pay in effect for 

18 a position at level IV of the Executive Schedule under sec19 tion 5315 of title 5, United States Code, for each day dur20 ing which that member is engaged in the actual perform21 ance of the duties of the Commission. 

22 (b) TRAVEL EXPENSES.—While away from their 

23 homes or regular places of business in the performance 

24 of services for the Commission, members of the Commis25 sion shall receive travel expenses, including per diem in 


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1 lieu of subsistence, in the same manner as persons em2 ployed intermittently in the Government service are al3 lowed expenses under section 5703(b) of title 5, United 

4 States Code. 

5 SEC. 9. STAFF OF COMMISSION. 

6 (a) APPOINTMENT AND COMPENSATION.—Subject to 

7 the rules of the Commission, the chairman, in consultation 

8 with the vice chairman, may appoint and fix the com9 pensation of a executive director and such other personnel 

10 as may be necessary to enable the Commission to carry 

11 out its functions, without regard to the provisions of title 

12 5, United States Code, governing appointments in the 

13 competitive service, and without regard to the provisions 

14 of chapter 51 and subchapter III of chapter 53 of such 

15 title relating to classification and General Schedule pay 

16 rates, except that no rate of pay fixed under this sub17 section may exceed the equivalent of that payable for a 

18 position at level V of the Executive Schedule under section 

19 5316 of title 5, United States Code. 

20 (b) DETAILEES.—Any Federal Government employee 

21 may be detailed to the Commission without reimbursement 

22 from the Commission, and shall retain the rights, status, 

23 and privileges of his or her regular employment without 

24 interruption. 


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1 (c) CONSULTANT SERVICES.—The Commission may 

2 procure the services of experts and consultants in accord3 ance with section 3109(b) of title 5, United States Code, 

4 but at rates not to exceed the daily rate paid under level 

5 IV of the Executive Schedule under section 5315 of title 

6 5, United States Code. 

7 (d) NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES STAFF REC8 OMMENDATIONS.—The chairman and vice chairman of the 

9 Commission shall seek the recommendations of the Na10 tional Academy of Sciences regarding the desired quali11 fications of scientific staff to be hired directly or on a con12 sultant basis by the Commission. 

13 (e) PROHIBITING CONFLICTS OF INTEREST.—No in14 dividual who participated in the criminal investigation into 

15 the anthrax letter attacks may be detailed to, or may pro16 vide any paid or unpaid services to, the Commission. 

17 SEC. 10. REPORTS OF THE COMMISSION. 

18 (a) FINAL REPORT.—Not later than 18 months after 

19 the date of the enactment of this Act, the Commission 

20 shall transmit a final report containing such findings, con21 clusions, and recommendations for corrective measures as 

22 have been agreed to by a majority of the Commission, in23 cluding proposing organization, coordination, planning 

24 and management arrangements, procedures, rules, and 


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1 regulations. The final report shall be unclassified but may 

2 include a classified annex, if necessary. 

3 (b) INTERIM REPORTS.—The Commission may sub4 mit to the President and Congress interim reports con5 taining findings, conclusions, and recommendations for 

6 corrective measures as have been agreed to by a majority 

7 of the Commission members. 

8 (c) DISSENTING VIEWS.—Both the interim and final 

9 reports shall contain the dissenting views of any commis10 sion member who wishes to have his or her views pub11 lished. 

12 SEC. 11. TERMINATION. 

13 The Commission shall terminate 60 days after sub14 mitting its final report under section 10(a). 

15 SEC. 12. FUNDING. 

16 There are authorized to be appropriated such sums 

17 as are necessary for the operation of the Commission. 

Æ 


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