Iran Freedom and Support Act of 2004

Mr. President, I am joined today by Senator Daniel K. Akaka in introducing the Financial Accountability Expansion Act of 2004, which would ensure the fiscal accountability of Federal entities. This bill would strengthen Federal financial management by subjecting all Federal entities in the Executive Branch to the stringent financial audit requirements that currently apply to most cabinet level departments and major agencies.

Congressional efforts to improve financial management and to reduce the waste, fraud, and abuse of taxpayer dollars began almost 25 years ago with the enactment of the Federal Managers Financial Integrity Act of 1982, which intended to strengthen internal controls and accounting systems. Another important financial management reform initiative was the Chief Financial Officers Act (CFO) of 1990. Among other things, the CFO Act created 24 CFO and deputy CFO positions in cabinet departments and major Executive Branch agencies, and required the annual preparation and audit of financial statements.

I would briefly like to mention that the Department of Homeland Security, which is now the third largest Federal department, is the only cabinet level department that is not subject to the CFO Act. Therefore, on August 1, 2003, Senator Akaka and I introduced S. 1567, the Department of Homeland Security Financial Accountability Act, that would subject the Department to the same financial management practices currently required of all other major Federal agencies. We are pleased that the Senate passed this bill, as amended, and the House of Representatives is expected to pass its version of the bill in the near future.

The CFO Act improved the financial management of cabinet departments and major Federal agencies; however, it did not address the fiscal policies and practices of the rest of the Executive Branch. Therefore, in 2002, I was the Senate sponsor of the Accountability of Tax Dollars Act (ATDA). This Act, which became law on November 7, 2002, amended the CFO Act to require agencies with budget authority of over $25 million to prepare annual financial statements and have them independently audited. Due to the enactment of the ATDA, an additional 76 agencies are now subject to requirements for annually audited financial statements.

The ATDA also provided authority to the Director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to waive or exempt certain agencies from the Act's requirements. The OMB Director may waive these requirements during the first two years of implementation if an agency lacks the budgeted resources or requires additional time to develop financial management practices and systems. The OMB Director may exempt agencies with budget authority under $25 million if it is determined that there is an absence of risk associated with the agency's operations.

To improve upon the legislative changes Congress passed in 2002, the Financial Accountability Expansion Act of 2004 would further expand the audit requirements of the CFO Act to every remaining Federal entity in the Executive Branch. Each Executive Branch agency or entity, regardless of its size or budget authority, would be subject to the financial oversight and accountability that annual audits of financial statements provide. In order to assist small agencies that may not have adequate financial resources or personnel to comply with these requirements, this bill would authorize the Secretary of the Treasury to enter into one or more contracts on behalf of the agency, or multiple agencies through ``bundling,'' for the preparation and independent audit of the financial statement.

The bill also would require OMB to conduct a thorough assessment and submit a report to Congress regarding those Federal entities not currently required to prepare financial statements and have them independently audited. This study is necessary to ensure that OMB and Congress have an accurate and complete picture of the breadth and depth of the gaps in the financial accountability of the Executive Branch.

Senator Akaka and I have long had an interest in ensuring that the Federal Government operates effectively and efficiently, and does not waste taxpayer dollars through poor fiscal management. The independent audits of financial statements that this bill would require of the entire Executive Branch would strengthen the fiscal accountability of the entire Federal Government and reduce the opportunities for waste, fraud, and abuse.

I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.

Mr. President, I rise today to offer remarks about a bill that Senator Cornyn of Texas and I have introduced, the Iran Freedom and Support Act of 2004. This legislation seeks to promote the transformation of the Islamic Republic of Iran to a democratic form of government.

Our bill expresses the sense of the Congress that it should be the policy of the United States to support regime change in Iran and that the U.S. government should promote the transition to a new democratic Iranian government. In addition, so as to help make this transition possible, our bill authorizes the President to provide up to $10 million in assistance to qualified foreign and domestic pro-democracy groups opposed to the non-democratic government of Iran. To maximize the efforts of these pro-democracy groups, our bill authorizes activities such as aid to pro-democracy radio and television broadcasting organizations as a way of directly reaching the people of Iran.

For many years now, the people of Iran have dramatically demonstrated their desire for greater social and political freedoms. Literally millions of Iranians have massed in the streets of the major cities, demanding the right to choose their form of government and their own leaders. Even public opinion polls conducted by the dictatorial regime show upwards of seventy percent of Iranians want democratic change. But Iran remains in the grip of a brutal tyranny that has silenced dissident voices by arbitrary arrests, closure of newspapers and magazines, destruction of satellite television dishes, widespread torture and the second-highest execution rate in the world.

Our bill seeks to help the Iranian people achieve freedom by supporting pro-democracy groups and enabling freedom-supporting Farsi language radio and television broadcasting stations to broadcast information directly to Iran.

The current leaders of the Islamic Republic of Iran are not only brutal tyrants. Their support of anti-American elements and terrorist organizations poses a direct threat to the interests of the United States and our allies. For two decades, the Department of State has identified Iran as THE leading sponsor of international terrorism. Iran has been linked to the deaths of United States military personnel in Beirut, Lebanon, and Saudi Arabia. Iran has long provided financial and operational assistance to Hezbollah and is presently the leading state sponsor of Hamas and Islamic Jihad, who conduct lethal attacks against the citizens of Israel.

Finally, Iran may be engaged in a crash program to develop nuclear weapons. In October 2003, after strong and concerted pressure by the international community, Iran agreed to sign an agreement to suspend uranium enrichment and open its nuclear facilities to more intrusive international inspections. Despite this pledge, Iran has repeatedly withheld key information and documentation about its clandestine nuclear efforts. In February 2004, blueprints containing instructions for building a type of gas centrifuge known as the P2, a super- efficient machine used in producing enriched uranium, were discovered. The Iranians had not revealed these plans.

Additionally, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has found multiple traces of highly-enriched uranium, with no civilian use, at a Kalaye Electric Company workshop in Tehran and at the Natanz pilot fuel enrichment plant 150 miles south of the Iranian capital. To the best of my knowledge, Iran has not offered a satisfactory explanation as to the IAEA's discovery of this materiel.

Reports are that Iran has sought magnets for thousands of such gas centrifuges. Also, Iran has not been able to explain experiments with polonium-210, a radioactive element primarily useful as a bomb trigger. Finally, Iranian government officials have barred access to selected sites for a period of time while--as recent satellite imagery shows-- they almost certainly sanitized them of incriminating evidence.

I believe it urgent for the United States to support regime change in Iran. Without regime change, Iran will soon constitute the world's leading supporter of terrorism armed with nuclear weapons. That would be a great catastrophe for the Middle East, and for the United States and our democratic allies everywhere.

The bill I have introduced with Senator Cornyn will facilitate this change by reaching out to the people of Iran and supporting what President Bush and Secretary of State Powell have called the legitimate desire of the Iranian people to be free.

Mr. President, I rise today to offer remarks about a bill that Senator Cornyn of Texas and I have introduced, the Iran Freedom and Support Act of 2004. This legislation seeks to promote the transformation of the Islamic Republic of Iran to a democratic form of government.

Our bill expresses the sense of the Congress that it should be the policy of the United States to support regime change in Iran and that the U.S. government should promote the transition to a new democratic Iranian government. In addition, so as to help make this transition possible, our bill authorizes the President to provide up to $10 million in assistance to qualified foreign and domestic pro-democracy groups opposed to the non-democratic government of Iran. To maximize the efforts of these pro-democracy groups, our bill authorizes activities such as aid to pro-democracy radio and television broadcasting organizations as a way of directly reaching the people of Iran.

For many years now, the people of Iran have dramatically demonstrated their desire for greater social and political freedoms. Literally millions of Iranians have massed in the streets of the major cities, demanding the right to choose their form of government and their own leaders. Even public opinion polls conducted by the dictatorial regime show upwards of seventy percent of Iranians want democratic change. But Iran remains in the grip of a brutal tyranny that has silenced dissident voices by arbitrary arrests, closure of newspapers and magazines, destruction of satellite television dishes, widespread torture and the second-highest execution rate in the world.

Our bill seeks to help the Iranian people achieve freedom by supporting pro-democracy groups and enabling freedom-supporting Farsi language radio and television broadcasting stations to broadcast information directly to Iran.

The current leaders of the Islamic Republic of Iran are not only brutal tyrants. Their support of anti-American elements and terrorist organizations poses a direct threat to the interests of the United States and our allies. For two decades, the Department of State has identified Iran as THE leading sponsor of international terrorism. Iran has been linked to the deaths of United States military personnel in Beirut, Lebanon, and Saudi Arabia. Iran has long provided financial and operational assistance to Hezbollah and is presently the leading state sponsor of Hamas and Islamic Jihad, who conduct lethal attacks against the citizens of Israel.

Finally, Iran may be engaged in a crash program to develop nuclear weapons. In October 2003, after strong and concerted pressure by the international community, Iran agreed to sign an agreement to suspend uranium enrichment and open its nuclear facilities to more intrusive international inspections. Despite this pledge, Iran has repeatedly withheld key information and documentation about its clandestine nuclear efforts. In February 2004, blueprints containing instructions for building a type of gas centrifuge known as the P2, a super- efficient machine used in producing enriched uranium, were discovered. The Iranians had not revealed these plans.

Additionally, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has found multiple traces of highly-enriched uranium, with no civilian use, at a Kalaye Electric Company workshop in Tehran and at the Natanz pilot fuel enrichment plant 150 miles south of the Iranian capital. To the best of my knowledge, Iran has not offered a satisfactory explanation as to the IAEA's discovery of this materiel.

Reports are that Iran has sought magnets for thousands of such gas centrifuges. Also, Iran has not been able to explain experiments with polonium-210, a radioactive element primarily useful as a bomb trigger. Finally, Iranian government officials have barred access to selected sites for a period of time while--as recent satellite imagery shows-- they almost certainly sanitized them of incriminating evidence.

I believe it urgent for the United States to support regime change in Iran. Without regime change, Iran will soon constitute the world's leading supporter of terrorism armed with nuclear weapons. That would be a great catastrophe for the Middle East, and for the United States and our democratic allies everywhere.

The bill I have introduced with Senator Cornyn will facilitate this change by reaching out to the people of Iran and supporting what President Bush and Secretary of State Powell have called the legitimate desire of the Iranian people to be free.

Mr. President, I send to the desk legislation designate the U.S. Post Office located at 222 West 8th Street in Durango, CO, as the Ben Nighthorse Campbell Post Office Building.

My dear friend and colleague, Ben Nighthorse Campbell was born in Auburn, CA on April 13, 1933. His mother, Mary Vierra, was a Portuguese immigrant, and his father, Albert Campbell, was a Northern Cheyenne Indian.

At a young age, Ben developed a passion for the then newly budding sport

of judo. Overcoming numerous, seemingly insurmountable obstacles as a youngster, in college he became the youngest person in the United States to hold the fourth degree black belt. He went on to study in Japan with the most respected judo masters. Ben was never short on determination. One student in particular, was a menacing opponent. He kept his photo on the wall of his room, and shouted to it often, ``I will beat you!''--and he finally did.

Ben was named to the U.S. Olympic Judo team in 1964, but an injury caused him to collapse on the floor during the match, which yielded his opponent the bronze medal by default. Ben went on to bring the sport of judo into a specialized system for kids, teaching them self discipline, self control and self respect, as he established one of the first successful clubs for kids.

With Campbell's determination and magnanimous spirit, it was only natural that he enter the political arena where his perseverance has in fact left its mark on American history. Campbell likes to view himself as a person of passion and this passion has rattled more than a few formidable foes. As the only American Indian in Congress he found himself, de facto, the representative of all Indians throughout the United States. In his time on the Indian Affairs Committee, he got more legislation passed for Indians than anyone in the Nation's history.

Ben is also a renowned jewelry designer, athlete, former truck driver, and trainer of champion quarter horses. He has been married to his wife, Linda, for more than 35 years. He is the father of two grown children, Colin Campbell and Shanan Longfellow. He is a proud grandfather to Luke and Saylor Longfellow and Lauren Campbell.

Ben has been one of the most fascinating figures on the political scene, and will be deeply missed when he retires. I am proud to call him friend. It is only fitting that we can honor his legacy by naming this post office after him.

I ask unanimous consent that the text of the bill be printed in the Record.