pointment or employed by any law enforcement agency
within the period beginning 1 year before appointment.
(e) REGULATIONS.—The Review Commission is au-
thorized to promulgate such rules and regulations as may
be necessary to carry out this Act including procedures
for the filing, investigation, and resolution of complaints.
SEC. 6. OPERATIONS OF REVIEW COMMISSION.
(a) COMPLAINT FORMS.—
(1) Complaint forms shall be made available at
all Service facilities and shall be available upon re-
quest from the Review Commission.
(2) The complaint forms shall be written in lan-
guages reflecting the languages of the immigrant
population.
(b) FILING OF COMPLAINTS.—
(1) Complaints may be filed in person, by mail,
by telephone, by facsimile, or by any other reason-
able means. Complaints may be filed by any person,
including anonymously, and may be filed on behalf
of third parties. Complaints need not be filed on the
official complaint forms.
(2) The Review Commission shall establish and
operate a multilingual, 24-hour, toll-free hotline to
receive complaints.
(3) Whenever possible, upon receipt of a com-
plaint, the Review Commission shall provide to the
complainant information which describes the review
procedures of the Review Commission. Such infor-
mation shall be available in languages reflecting the
languages of the immigrant population.
(c) PUBLIC OUTREACH.—
(1) The Review Commission shall educate mem-
bers of the public about its functions and shall re-
ceive and actively seek out suggestions from the pub-
lic to improve the functioning of the Review Com-
mission.
(2) The Review Commission shall develop out-
reach materials, which shall include, a description of
the Review Commission, its duties, and complaint
procedures. Such materials shall be made available
to the public in languages reflecting the languages
of the immigrant population.
(3) The Review Commission shall oversee the
display and dissemination of outreach materials at
all Service facilities.
(d) SERVICE EMPLOYEES’ DUTY TO INFORM COM-
MISSION.—
(1) When a complaint of agent misconduct is
brought to the attention of any Service employee,
the employee shall promptly inform the complainant
of proper procedures for filing a complaint.
(2) A Service employee who witnesses or other-
wise obtains actual knowledge of the use of force,
that is unreasonable in light of the facts and cir-
cumstances and involves another Service employee,
shall report such incident to the Review Commission
within 24 hours of the acquisition of knowledge of
such incident.
(3) The Review Commission may promulgate
regulations requiring Service employees to report to
the Commission other violations of the Services’ op-
erating procedures.
(e) INVESTIGATION
OF COMPLAINTS.—Each com-
plaint shall be investigated by an investigator who shall
complete and submit a written report to the Board of
Commissioners within 60 days of the assignment, unless
the Board authorizes an extension. The Services shall
grant investigators access to information, documents, or
other items relevant to the matter under investigation.
The Board may issue subpoenas. Service employees shall
cooperate fully with Review Commission investigations,
subject to the protections afforded by the Constitution.
Service employees shall be advised of their constitutional
rights and the procedural rights afforded under this Act.
(f) DISPOSITION OF COMPLAINTS.—
(1) When the Board receives a written report
on a complaint from an investigator, the Board shall
designate a panel of 3 of its members (hereinafter
referred to as the ‘‘Panel’’) to review the report.
(2) The Panel shall conduct hearings on the
complaint if—
(A) the alleged abuse is of a serious na-
ture, as defined by the regulations prescribed
under authority of this Act; or
(B) the Panel, by majority vote, decides to
hold a hearing.
(3) The Panel shall issue a written finding on
the complaint based on the report alone or on the
report and a hearing, if one is held.
(4) The Panel shall forward its finding to both
the complainant and the Service employee. The com-
plainant and the Service employee shall have 30
days in which to review the Panel’s official finding.
During the 30-day period, either the complainant or
the Service employee may take one of the following
actions:
(A) If no hearing was held, request that
the Panel conduct a hearing. A hearing shall be
held if one member of the Panel votes to hold
a hearing.
(B) Regardless of whether a hearing was
held, request an en banc review of the Panel’s
decision. An en banc review will be granted if
a majority of the Board votes to conduct such
review.
(5) If neither party makes a request pursuant
to subparagraphs (A) or (B) of paragraph (4), or if
such a request is denied, then the Board, promptly,
shall report its finding to the appropriate Service.
(6) All findings made by the Board of Commis-
sioners sitting en banc shall be reported directly to
the appropriate Service with copies to the complain-
ant and the Service employee.
(g) HEARINGS.—
(1) Both the complainant and the subject Serv-
ice employee shall have the right to be represented
by counsel or other representative at Board hear-
ings, to present witnesses, and to cross-examine wit-
nesses.
(2) Any finding of a violation on the part of a
Service employee by the Board must be established
by a preponderance of the evidence.
(3)(A) Except as provided in subparagraph (B),
hearings shall be open to the public and transcripts
of hearings shall be available to the public.
(B) For good cause the Board of Commis-
sioners may close to the public all or any part of a
hearing and may seal all or any part of the tran-
script of a hearing.
(4) Unless mandated by unusual circumstances,
a hearing shall be conducted in one location within
the United States that is generally convenient to the
complainant and any potential witnesses.
(h) DISCIPLINARY RECOMMENDATIONS.—
(1) When a finding of a violation may con-
stitute a criminal offense, the Board of Commis-
sioners shall inform the appropriate Federal or State
authorities so that appropriate prosecutorial action
may be considered. Prosecutorial action shall not re-
lieve the Board of its duties under this Act.
(2) When a complaint has been substantiated,
the Board shall recommend disciplinary action
against the subject Service employee. The Board’s
recommendations shall be based on a schedule of
sanctions determined by the Commission. If the
Services do not adopt the recommendations of the
Board, they shall provide a written explanation of