IV 
108TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. RES. 837
Amending the Rules of the House of Representatives to establish a standing 
Committee on Homeland Security and a standing Committee on Intel-
ligence (with jurisdiction over appropriations for intelligence activities), 
and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
OCTOBER 7, 2004
Mrs. MALONEY (for herself, Mr. SHAYS, Mr. CASE, Mr. SANDLIN, Mr. DIN-
GELL, and Mr. CARDOZA) submitted the following resolution; which was 
referred to the Committee on Rules 
RESOLUTION 
Amending the Rules of the House of Representatives to 
establish a standing Committee on Homeland Security 
and a standing Committee on Intelligence (with jurisdic-
tion over appropriations for intelligence activities), and 
for other purposes.
Resolved, That clause 1 of rule X of the Rules of the 
House of Representatives is amended by redesignating 
paragraphs (i) through (s) as paragraphs (j) through (t), 
respectively, and by inserting after paragraph (h) the fol-
lowing new paragraph: 
‘‘(i) Committee on Homeland Security. 
‘‘(1) The Department of Homeland Security.
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‘‘(2) Homeland security, generally. 
The committee shall have exclusive jurisdiction over the 
matters referred to in subparagraphs (1) and (2).’’. 
COMMITTEE ON INTELLIGENCE 
SEC. 2. (a) Clause 1 of rule X of the Rules of the 
House of Representatives (as amended by the first section 
of this resolution) is further amended by redesignating 
paragraphs (k) through (t) as paragraphs (l) through (u), 
respectively, and by inserting after paragraph (j) (as re-
designated by such first section) the following new para-
graph: 
‘‘(k) Committee on Intelligence. 
‘‘(1) The Central Intelligence Agency, the Di-
rector of Central Intelligence, and the National For-
eign Intelligence Program as defined in section 3(6) 
of the National Security Act of 1947. 
‘‘(2) Intelligence and intelligence-related activi-
ties of all other departments and agencies of the 
Government, including the tactical intelligence and 
intelligence-related activities of the Department of 
Defense. 
‘‘(3) The organization or reorganization of a de-
partment or agency of the Government to the extent 
that the organization or reorganization relates to a 
function or activity involving intelligence or intel-
ligence-related activities.
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‘‘(4) Authorizations for appropriations, both di-
rect and indirect, for the following: 
‘‘(A) The Central Intelligence Agency, the 
Director of Central Intelligence, and the Na-
tional Foreign Intelligence Program as defined 
in section 3(6) of the National Security Act of 
1947. 
‘‘(B) Intelligence and intelligence-related 
activities of all other departments and agencies 
of the Government, including the tactical intel-
ligence and intelligence-related activities of the 
Department of Defense. 
‘‘(C) A department, agency, subdivision, or 
program that is a successor to an agency or 
program named or referred to in subdivision 
(A) or (B). 
‘‘(5) Appropriations for the revenue for the sup-
port of the matters referred to in subparagraphs (1) 
through (4). 
The committee shall have exclusive jurisdiction over the 
matters referred to in subparagraphs (1) through (5).’’. 
(b) Clause 4 of rule X of the Rules of the House of 
Representatives is amended by adding at the end the fol-
lowing new paragraph:
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ployed or the sources of information on which the reports 
are based or the amount of funds authorized to be appro-
priated for intelligence and intelligence-related activities. 
‘‘(3) Within six weeks after the President submits a 
budget under section 1105(a) of title 31, United States 
Code, or at such time as the Committee on the Budget 
may request, the Committee on Intelligence shall submit 
to the Committee on the Budget the views and estimates 
described in section 301(d) of the Congressional Budget 
Act of 1974 regarding matters within the jurisdiction of 
the committee. 
‘‘(4)(A) Except as specified in subdivision (B), 
clauses 8(a), (b), and (c) and 9(a), (b), and (c) of this 
rule, and clauses 1, 2, and 4 of rule XI shall apply to 
the Committee on Intelligence to the extent not incon-
sistent with this clause. 
‘‘(B) Notwithstanding the requirements of the first 
sentence of clause 2(g)(2) of rule XI, in the presence of 
the number of members required under the rules of the 
Committee on Intelligence for the purpose of taking testi-
mony or receiving evidence, the committee may vote to 
close a hearing whenever a majority of those present deter-
mines that the testimony or evidence would endanger the 
national security.
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‘‘(5) An employee of the Committee on Intelligence, 
or a person engaged by contract or otherwise to perform 
services for or at the request of the committee, may not 
be given access to any classified information by the com-
mittee unless such employee or person has—
‘‘(A) agreed in writing and under oath to be 
bound by the Rules of the House, including the ju-
risdiction of the Committee on Standards of Official 
Conduct and of the Committee on Intelligence con-
cerning the security of classified information during 
and after the period of his employment or contrac-
tual agreement with the committee; and 
‘‘(B) received an appropriate security clearance, 
as determined by the Committee on Intelligence in 
consultation with the Director of Central Intel-
ligence, that is commensurate with the sensitivity of 
the classified information to which such employee or 
person will be given access by the committee. 
‘‘(6) The Committee on Intelligence shall formulate 
and carry out such rules and procedures as it considers 
necessary to prevent the disclosure, without the consent 
of each person concerned, of information in the possession 
of the committee that unduly infringes on the privacy or 
that violates the constitutional rights of such person. 
Nothing herein shall be construed to prevent the com-
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mittee from publicly disclosing classified information in a 
case in which it determines that national interest in the 
disclosure of classified information clearly outweighs any 
infringement on the privacy of a person. 
‘‘(7)(A) The Committee on Intelligence may disclose 
publicly any information in its possession after a deter-
mination by the committee that the public interest would 
be served by such disclosure. With respect to the disclo-
sure of information for which this subparagraph requires 
action by the committee—
‘‘(i) the committee shall meet to vote on the 
matter within five days after a member of the com-
mittee requests a vote; and 
‘‘(ii) a member of the committee may not make 
such a disclosure before a vote by the committee on 
the matter, or after a vote by the committee on the 
matter except in accordance with this subparagraph. 
‘‘(B)(i) In a case in which the Committee on Intel-
ligence votes to disclose publicly any information that has 
been classified under established security procedures, that 
has been submitted to it by the executive branch, and that 
the executive branch requests be kept secret, the com-
mittee shall notify the President of such vote. 
‘‘(ii) The Committee on Intelligence may disclose 
publicly such information after the expiration of a five-
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day period following the day on which notice of the vote 
to disclose is transmitted to the President unless, before 
the expiration of the five-day period, the President, per-
sonally in writing, notifies the committee that he objects 
to the disclosure of such information, provides his reasons 
therefor, and certifies that the threat to the national inter-
est of the United States posed by the disclosure is of such 
gravity that it outweighs any public interest in the disclo-
sure. 
‘‘(iii) If the President, personally in writing, notifies 
the committee of his objections to the disclosure of infor-
mation as provided in clause (ii), the committee may, by 
majority vote, refer the question of the disclosure of such 
information, with a recommendation thereon, to the 
House. The committee may not publicly disclose such in-
formation without leave of the House. 
‘‘(iv) Whenever the committee votes to refer the ques-
tion of disclosure of any information to the House under 
clause (iii), the chairman shall, not later than the first 
day on which the House is in session following the day 
on which the vote occurs, report the matter to the House 
for its consideration.
‘‘(v) If the chairman of the committee does not offer 
in the House a motion to consider in closed session a mat-
ter reported under clause (iv) within four calendar days
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on which the House is in session after the recommendation 
described in clause (iii) is reported, then such a motion 
shall be privileged when offered by a Member, Delegate, 
or Resident Commissioner. In either case such a motion 
shall be decided without debate or intervening motion ex-
cept one that the House adjourn. 
‘‘(vi) Upon adoption by the House of a motion to re-
solve into closed session as described in clause (v), the 
Speaker may declare a recess subject to the call of the 
Chair. At the expiration of the recess, the pending ques-
tion, in closed session, shall be, ‘Shall the House approve 
the recommendation of the committee?’. 
‘‘(vii) Debate on the question described in clause (vi) 
shall be limited to two hours equally divided and controlled 
by the chairman and ranking minority party member of 
the committee. After such debate the previous question 
shall be considered as ordered on the question of approv-
ing the recommendation without intervening motion except 
one motion that the House adjourn. The House shall vote 
on the question in open session but without divulging the 
information with respect to which the vote is taken. If the 
recommendation of the committee is not approved, then 
the question is considered as recommitted to the com-
mittee for further recommendation.
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‘‘(C)(i) Information in the possession of the Com-
mittee on Intelligence relating to the lawful intelligence 
or intelligence-related activities of a department or agency 
of the United States that has been classified under estab-
lished security procedures, and that the committee has de-
termined should not be disclosed under subdivision (A) or 
(B), may not be made available to any person by a Mem-
ber, Delegate, Resident Commissioner, officer, or em-
ployee of the House except as provided in clause (ii). 
‘‘(ii) The Committee on Intelligence shall, under such 
regulations as it may prescribe, make information de-
scribed in clause (i) available to a committee or a Member, 
Delegate, or Resident Commissioner, and permit a Mem-
ber, Delegate, or Resident Commissioner to attend a hear-
ing of the committee that is closed to the public. Whenever 
the committee makes such information available, it shall 
keep a written record showing, in the case of particular 
information, which committee or which Member, Delegate, 
or Resident Commissioner received the information. A 
Member, Delegate, or Resident Commissioner who, and a 
committee that, receives information under this clause 
may not disclose the information except in a closed session 
of the House. 
‘‘(D) The Committee on Standards of Official Con-
duct shall investigate any unauthorized disclosure of intel-
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ligence or intelligence-related information by a Member, 
Delegate, Resident Commissioner, officer, or employee of 
the House in violation of subdivision (C) and report to 
the House concerning any allegation that it finds to be 
substantiated. 
‘‘(E) Upon the request of a person who is subject to 
an investigation described in subdivision (D), the Com-
mittee on Standards of Official Conduct shall release to 
such person at the conclusion of its investigation a sum-
mary of its investigation, together with its findings. If, at 
the conclusion of its investigation, the Committee on 
Standards of Official Conduct determines that there has 
been a significant breach of confidentiality or unauthor-
ized disclosure by a Member, Delegate, Resident Commis-
sioner, officer, or employee of the House, it shall report 
its findings to the House and recommend appropriate ac-
tion. Recommendations may include censure, removal 
from committee membership, or expulsion from the House, 
in the case of a Member, or removal from office or employ-
ment or punishment for contempt, in the case of an officer 
or employee. 
‘‘(F) The Committee on Intelligence may permit a 
personal representative of the President, designated by the 
President to serve as a liaison to the committee, to attend 
any closed meeting of the committee.