II

106TH CONGRESS

1ST SESSION S. 1812

To establish a commission on a nuclear testing treaty, and for other purposes.

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

OCTOBER 27, 1999

Mr. WARNER introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred

to the Committee on Foreign Relations

A BILL

To establish a commission on a nuclear testing treaty, and

for other purposes.

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

3 SECTION 1. ESTABLISHMENT OF PRESIDENTIAL AND SEN4 ATORIAL COMMISSION ON A NUCLEAR TEST5 ING TREATY.

6 There is established a commission to be known as the

7 Presidential and Senatorial Commission on a Nuclear

8 Testing Treaty (in this Act referred to as the ‘‘Commis9 sion’’).
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1 SEC. 2. COMPOSITION AND QUALIFICATIONS.

2 (a) MEMBERSHIP.—(1) The Commission shall be

3 composed of 12 members, as follows:

4 (A) Six members shall be appointed by the Ma5 jority Leader of the Senate.

6 (B) Six members shall be appointed by the Mi7 nority Leader of the Senate.

8 (2) Of the members of the Commission appointed

9 under each of subparagraphs (A) and (B) of paragraph

10 (1)—

11 (A) not more than two members may be current

12 employees of the Executive Branch; and

13 (B) the Legislative Branch shall be represented

14 solely by not more than two Senators.

15 (3) The members of the Commission shall be persons

16 of demonstrated ability and accomplishment in govern17 ment who have a substantial background in national secu18 rity matters.

19 (4) Each member of the Commission shall take the

20 oath of office prescribed by section 3331 of title 5, United

21 States Code.

22 (b) CO-CHAIRPERSONS.—(1) Subject to paragraph

23 (2), two members of the Commission shall be designated

24 as Co-Chairpersons of the Commission, and each shall

25 have co-equal authority as Co-Chairperson of the Commis26 sion.
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1 (2)(A) The President shall designate one of the mem2 bers of the Commission appointed by the Minority Leader

3 of the Senate to serve as a Co-Chairperson of the Commis4 sion.

5 (B) The Majority Leader of the Senate shall des6 ignate one of the members of the Commission appointed

7 by the Majority Leader to serve as a Co-Chairperson of

8 the Commission.

9 (C) No individual designated as Co-Chairperson of

10 the Commission may hold public office as of the time of

11 designation as Co-Chairperson, nor may any individual ac12 cept or hold any other public office or position during such

13 individual’s service as Co-Chairperson.

14 (c) PERIOD OF APPOINTMENT; VACANCIES.—Mem15 bers shall be appointed for the duration of the Commis16 sion. Any vacancy in the Commission shall not affect its

17 powers but shall be filled in the same manner as the origi18 nal appointment.

19 (d) DEADLINE FOR APPOINTMENTS.—The appoint20 ments required by subsection (a) shall be made not later

21 than 45 days after the date of the enactment of this Act.

22 (e) MEETINGS.—(1) The Commission shall meet at

23 the call of the Co-Chairpersons of the Commission.
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1 (2) The Commission shall hold its first meeting not

2 later than 30 days after the deadline for appointments to

3 the Commission under subsection (d).

4 (f) QUORUM.—Six members of the Commission vot5 ing and present shall constitute a quorum, but a lesser

6 number of members present may hold hearings, take testi7 mony, or otherwise receive evidence.

8 (g) SECURITY CLEARANCES.—Appropriate security

9 clearances shall be required for members of the Commis10 sion who are private United States citizens. Such clear11 ances shall be processed and completed on an expedited

12 basis by appropriate elements of the Executive Branch of

13 Government and shall, in any case, be completed within

14 90 days of the date such members are appointed.

15 (h) APPLICATION OF CERTAIN PROVISIONS OF

16 LAW.—(1) In light of the extraordinary and sensitive na17 ture of its deliberations, the provisions of the Federal Ad18 visory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.), and the regulations

19 prescribed by the Administrator of General Services pur20 suant to that Act, shall not apply to the Commission.

21 (2) The provisions of section 552 of title 5, United

22 States Code (commonly known as the ‘‘Freedom of Infor23 mation Act’’), shall not apply to the Commission. How24 ever, records of the Commission shall be subject to the

25 Federal Records Act and, when transferred to the Na-
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1 tional Archives and Records Agency, shall no longer be

2 exempt from the provisions of such section 552.

3 SEC. 3. DUTIES OF THE COMMISSION.

4 (a) IN GENERAL.—It shall be the duty of the

5 Commission—

6 (1) to determine under what circumstances a

7 nuclear testing treaty would be in the national secu8 rity interests of the United States;

9 (2) to determine how a nuclear testing treaty

10 would relate to the security interests of other na11 tions;

12 (3) to determine provisions essential to a nu13 clear testing treaty such that the treaty would be in

14 the national security interests of the United States;

15 (4) to determine whether a nuclear testing trea16 ty would achieve the non-proliferation and arms con17 trol objectives of the United States; and

18 (5) to prepare and transmit the report de19 scribed in section 4(c).

20 (b) IMPLEMENTATION.—In carrying out subsection

21 (a), the Commission shall specifically assess any issues the

22 Commission considers appropriate, including the fol23 lowing:

24 (1) The improvements required for both the

25 United States and the international monitoring sys-
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1 tems in order to enhance detection of nuclear tests

2 to meet the requirements of any treaty that may be

3 recommended by the Commission.

4 (2) The elements of a verification regime that

5 would be required in a nuclear testing treaty in

6 order to minimize any detrimental impact of such

7 treaty to the national security interests of the

8 United States.

9 (3) The current status of the science-based

10 stockpile stewardship program of the Department of

11 Energy, including—

12 (A) the date by which the program is an13 ticipated to be fully implemented and proven as

14 a substitute approach for underground nuclear

15 testing; and

16 (B) the dates of important milestones in

17 the development of the program.

18 (4) The capability of the stockpile stewardship

19 program to assure the safety, reliability, and mili20 tary viability of the United States nuclear weapons

21 stockpile indefinitely, including the capability of the

22 program—

23 (A) to remanufacture, certify, and replace

24 each component in the enduring stockpile;
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1 (B) to add all available, modern nuclear

2 safety and use control devices to weapons in the

3 enduring stockpile; and

4 (C) to modify existing nuclear weapons or

5 design new weapons to meet future military

6 threats.

7 (5) The criteria that would be utilized by appro8 priate officials of the United States (including the

9 Secretary of Defense, the Secretary of Energy, the

10 directors of the Department of Energy national lab11 oratories, and the Commander-in-Chief of the

12 United States Strategic Command) to determine

13 when and if the United States should withdraw from

14 a nuclear testing treaty under a supreme national

15 interest clause of such treaty in order to resume an16 other method of nuclear weapons tests, including un17 derground tests.

18 (6) Whether a nuclear testing treaty will dis19 advantage the United States with respect to the nu20 clear weapons maintenance and modernization pro21 grams carried out by other nations.

22 (7) Whether a nuclear testing treaty that re23 quires a zero yield is in the national security inter24 ests of the United States.
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1 (8) Whether a nuclear testing treaty of perma2 nent duration is in the national security interests of

3 the United States, or whether a treaty with periodic

4 and mandatory reviews of the continuation of such

5 treaty in force is preferable.

6 (9) The capacity of a nuclear testing treaty to

7 prevent, deter, or lessen the proliferation of crude,

8 or first generation, nuclear weapons.

9 (10) In the event a nuclear testing treaty re10 ceives the advice and consent to ratification of the

11 Senate, the extent to which the actual or perceived

12 decline in confidence in the United States nuclear

13 deterrent would affect the national security of the

14 United States and the security of our allies.

15 (11) Whether the elimination of the United

16 States nuclear capability would be in the national se17 curity interests of the United States, both currently

18 and in the future.

19 SEC. 4. REPORTS.

20 (a) INITIAL REPORT.—Not later than two months

21 after the first meeting of the Commission, the Co-Chair22 persons of the Commission shall, on behalf of the Commis23 sion, submit to the Senate a report setting forth a plan

24 for the work of the Commission.
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1 (b) INTERIM REPORTS.—Before the submission of

2 the report required by subsection (c), the Commission may

3 issue such interim reports as it finds necessary and desir4 able.

5 (c) FINAL REPORT.—(1) Not later than March 1,

6 2001, the Commission shall submit to the President and

7 the Senate a report setting forth the activities, findings,

8 and recommendations of the Commission.

9 (2) The report under paragraph (1) shall be in un10 classified form, but may contain a classified annex.

11 SEC. 5. POWERS.

12 (a) HEARINGS; SUBPOENAS.—(1) The Commission

13 or, at its direction, any panel or member of the Commis14 sion, may, for the purpose of carrying out the provisions

15 of this Act, hold hearings, sit and act at times and places,

16 require, by subpoena or otherwise, the attendance of wit17 nesses and the production of records, papers, documents

18 and other materials, take testimony, receive evidence, and

19 administer oaths to the extent that the Commission or any

20 panel or member considers advisable.

21 (2)(A) Subpoenas issued pursuant to paragraph (1)

22 shall bear the signature of the Co-Chairpersons of the

23 Commission and shall be served by any person or class

24 of persons designated by the Co-Chairpersons for that

25 purpose.
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1 (B) In the case of contumacy or failure to obey a

2 subpoena issued under paragraph (1), the United States

3 district court for the judicial district in which the subpoe4 naed person resides, is served, or may be found may issue

5 an order requiring such person to appear at any des6 ignated place to testify or to produce documentary or

7 other evidence. Any failure to obey the order of the court

8 may be punished by the court as a contempt that court.

9 (b) INFORMATION FROM FEDERAL AGENCIES.—(1)

10 The Commission may secure directly from any depart11 ment, agency, or entity of the Federal Government any

12 information that the Commission considers necessary to

13 enable the Commission to carry out its responsibilities

14 under this Act.

15 (2) Upon request of a Co-Chairperson of the Commis16 sion, the head of any such department, agency, or entity

17 shall furnish such information expeditiously to the Com18 mission.

19 (c) POSTAL, PRINTING AND BINDING SERVICES.—

20 The Commission may use the United States mails and ob21 tain printing and binding services in the same manner and

22 under the same conditions as other departments and agen23 cies of the Federal Government.

24 (d) PANELS.—(1) The Commission may establish

25 panels composed of less than the full membership of the
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1 Commission for the purpose of carrying out the Commis2 sion’s duties.

3 (2) The actions of each such panel shall be subject

4 to the review and control of the Commission.

5 (3) Any findings and determinations made by such

6 a panel shall not be considered the findings and deter7 minations of the Commission unless approved by the Com8 mission.

9 (e) AUTHORITY OF INDIVIDUALS TO ACT FOR COM10 MISSION.—Any member or agent of the Commission may,

11 if authorized by the Commission, take any action which

12 the Commission is authorized to take under this Act.

13 SEC. 6. PERSONNEL MATTERS.

14 (a) COMPENSATION OF MEMBERS.—(1) Each mem15 ber of the Commission who is a private United States cit16 izen shall be paid, if requested, at a rate equal to the daily

17 equivalent of the annual rate of basic pay payable for level

18 V of the Executive Schedule under section 5316 of title

19 5, United States Code, for each day (including travel time)

20 during which the member is engaged in the performance

21 of the duties of the Commission.

22 (2) All members of the Commission who are officers

23 or employees of the United States shall serve without com24 pensation in addition to that received for their services as

25 officers or employees of the United States.
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1 (b) TRAVEL EXPENSES.—Each member of the Com2 mission shall be allowed travel expenses, including per

3 diem in lieu of subsistence, at rates authorized for employ4 ees of agencies under subchapter I of chapter 57 of title

5 5, United States Code, while away from their homes or

6 regular places of business in the performance of services

7 for the Commission.

8 (c) STAFF.—(1) The Co-Chairpersons of the Com9 mission may, without regard to the provisions of title 5,

10 United States Code, governing appointments in the com11 petitive service, appoint a staff director and such addi12 tional personnel as may be necessary to enable the Com13 mission to perform its duties. The staff director of the

14 Commission shall be appointed from private life, and such

15 appointment shall be subject to the approval of the Com16 mission as a whole.

17 (2) The Co-Chairpersons of the Commission may fix

18 the pay of the staff director and other personnel without

19 regard to the provisions of chapter 51 and subchapter III

20 of chapter 53 of title 5, United States Code, relating to

21 classification of positions and General Schedule pay rates,

22 except that the rate of pay fixed under this paragraph for

23 the staff director may not exceed the rate payable for level

24 V of the Executive Schedule under section 5316 of such

25 title and the rate of pay for other personnel may not ex-
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1 ceed the maximum rate payable for grade GS–15 of the

2 General Schedule.

3 (d) DETAIL OF GOVERNMENT EMPLOYEES.—Upon

4 request of the Co-Chairpersons of the Commission, the

5 head of any Federal department or agency may detail, on

6 a nonreimbursable basis, any personnel of that depart7 ment or agency to the Commission to assist it in carrying

8 out its administrative and clerical functions.

9 (e) PROCUREMENT OF TEMPORARY AND INTERMIT10 TENT SERVICES.—The Co-Chairpersons of the Commis11 sion may procure temporary and intermittent services

12 under section 3109(b) of title 5, United States Code, at

13 rates for individuals which do not exceed the daily equiva14 lent of the annual rate of basic pay payable for level V

15 of the Executive Schedule under section 5316 of such title.

16 (f) ADMINISTRATIVE AND SUPPORT SERVICES.—The

17 Secretary of Defense and the Secretary of State shall fur18 nish the Commission, on a non-reimbursable basis, any ad19 ministrative and support services requested by the Com20 mission consistent with this Act.

21 SEC. 7. PAYMENT OF COMMISSION EXPENSES.

22 The compensation, travel expenses, per diem allow23 ances of members and employees of the Commission, and

24 other expenses of the Commission shall be paid equally

25 out of funds available to the Secretary of Defense and the
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1 Secretary of State for the payment of compensation, travel

2 allowances, and per diem allowances, respectively, of em3 ployees of the Department of Defense and the Department

4 of State, as the case may be.

5 SEC. 8. TERMINATION OF THE COMMISSION.

6 The Commission shall terminate one month after the

7 date of the submission of the report required by section

8 4(c).

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