FBI director grilled on use of increase in funding level
House Appropriations Committee Chairman David Obey, D-Wisc., wagged a finger at FBI Director Robert Mueller Tuesday, expressing concern with "numerous occasions on which money has been wasted and authority has been abused" at the agency, whose budget has been doubled by the panel since 2001.
He singled out the recent controversy over the FBI's improper use of national security letters as a prime example. Those administrative subpoenas, which allow agents to analyze telephone, computer and bank records without warrants, have been the subject of two Justice Department inspector general investigations and hearings in the House and Senate.
Mueller said he was very aware of congressional concerns about the abuses and said internal mechanisms are in place "to minimize the chance of future lapses." Inspector General Glenn Fine's most recent report, which was released last month, cited progress on the matter over the past year. Mueller told the House Commerce-Justice-Science Appropriations Subcommittee during his testimony on the FBI's fiscal 2009 budget request that "we're on track to make sure this does not happen again."
The FBI has requested $7.1 billion for fiscal 2009, an increase of $447.6 million.
Obey also noted that Fine was scheduled to issue an update soon on the FBI's related use of exigent letters, which are for emergencies but were sent to telecommunications firms in nonemergencies.
His initial 2007 inquiry pointed to hundreds of questionable notices being issued. Obey said that "this cavalier approach toward legal protections may have temporarily gained the agency some useful information" but that it had a long-term cost to the agency's trust and accountability.
Commerce-Justice-Science Subcommittee ranking member Rodney Frelinghuysen, R-N.J., also spoke of the agency's missteps but said he has "great faith in the work of the FBI." He lauded Mueller for having "done your level best" to keep the FBI moving forward.
Commerce-Justice-Science Subcommittee Chairman Alan Mollohan recused himself from the hearing because of to a pending investigation of earmarks steered toward nonprofits he helped start.
The $30 million requested for fiscal 2009 to handle the FBI's growing backlog of DNA evidence worried Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif. "I don't see how that will be enough," particularly with new laws taking effect soon to broaden the pool of convicts and suspects who require processing. A combination of more personnel and new technologies is helping address the buildup, Mueller said.
The FBI chief tiptoed around a question from Rep. C.A. (Dutch) Ruppersberger, D-Md., who asked about what FBI components need budget boosts that were not adequately addressed in the administration's proposal. He said aging buildings at the FBI's academy in Quantico, Va., and ratcheting up resources to improve data collection in an era of new technologies are issues that "I can assure you'll be hearing from us on."
COMMENTS
- Congress is back at it again taking potshots at federal agencies and their budget submissions, with the FBI being the in the hot seat. The comment relative to data collections hopefully will be performed by FBI personnel and not resourced to contractors. The Army presently has data collectors on their payroll and their performance has been substandard. In many instances data collectors excerpted reports formulated by the Government workforce, placed their name in lieu of the Government worker and a different slant on information, taking credit for the work accomplished, while doing nothing in the interim. We've so much fraud, waste and abuse running rampant by contractors, the two IG investigations of the FBI for misuse of NSLs is 'chump change'. Congress should be turning its eye toward the abuses by contractors and rid the system of these overpaid underachievers who do not possess the aptitude to collect data and formulate clear concise reporting without conjecturing, excerpting material and distorting the facts. Although, Congress must tread carefully otherwise contributions to their campaigns will cease as will support provided by these unctuous industry leaders. CAE Posted April 2, 2008 7:57 AM
