Sec. 622. Alternate procedures for enforcement of criminal contempt of Congress
1,262 words·~6 min read·
/bill/118/hr/8597/ih/section-622·A research copy — for the controlling text, always check the official state or federal source. Not legal advice.
If the House of Representatives finds a current or former officer or employee of the Executive branch has violated section 102 of the Revised Statutes of the United States ( 2 U.S.C. 192 ) or that any person has violated such section at the direction of the President or another officer of the Executive branch, the procedures of this section apply. In accordance with section 104 of the Revised Statutes of the United States ( 2 U.S.C. 194 ), upon the finding by the House of Representatives of a violation to which this section applies, the Speaker shall certify that finding to the appropriate United States attorney, whose duty it shall be to bring the matter before the grand jury for its action.
If— the Attorney General or the United States attorney to whom the finding was certified informs the court or the House that the Department of Justice will not prosecute the case; or by the end of the 30th day after the date of receipt of a certification made under paragraph
(2)a grand jury has not returned an indictment based on the violation alleged in the certification; the Special Division established under subsection
(b)(hereinafter in this Act referred to as the Special Division ) shall appoint a special counsel under subsection (c). It shall be the duty of the Attorney General to inform that court and the House if a grand jury does not return an indictment by the end of the 30-day period. The Speaker of the House, or any interested congressional party, may file with the Special Division a suggestion that circumstances giving rise to a duty to appoint a special counsel have occurred after the 30-day period ends without the return of an indictment. There is hereby established within the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia a Special Division to carry out the appointment of special counsels under this section. The Chief Justice of the United States shall designate three judges or justices of the United States, one of whom shall be an active judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia, to serve on the Special Division, except that none of the judges or justices serving on the Special Division may serve or have served on the same court. In designating judges and justices to serve on the Special Division, the Chief Justice shall give priority to senior circuit judges and retired justices of the United States Supreme Court. The Chief Justice shall make the first such designation not later than 45 days after the date of the enactment of this Act. Each designation to the Special Division shall be for a term of 2 years, but the Chief Justice may fill any vacancy arising before the end of a term for the remainder of that term. The Special Division shall appoint the special counsel, who must be an attorney in good standing with substantial prosecutorial experience— who has not served in any capacity in the administration of the President who is or who was in office at the time the Speaker of the House certified the finding of a violation; and who is or who was not a Member, officer, or employee of Congress at the time the Speaker of the House certified the finding of a violation. The Special Division shall define the special counsel’s prosecutorial jurisdiction as comprising the investigation and prosecution of the alleged violation, any conspiracy to commit the alleged violation, and any perjury, false statement, or obstruction of justice occurring in relation to such investigation and prosecution. With respect to all matters in that special counsel’s prosecutorial jurisdiction, a special counsel appointed under this section shall have full power and independent authority to exercise all prosecutorial functions and powers, and any other functions and powers normally ancillary thereto, of the Department of Justice, the Attorney General, and any other officer or employee of the Department of Justice, except that the Attorney General shall exercise direction or control as to those matters that specifically require the Attorney General’s personal action under section 2516 of title 18, United States Code. A special counsel shall, except to the extent that to do so would be inconsistent with the purposes of this section, comply with the written or other established policies of the Department of Justice respecting enforcement of the criminal laws. A special counsel shall comply with guidelines and procedures used by the Department in the handling and use of classified material. The special counsel shall receive a salary equivalent to the salary of the United States Attorney for the District of Columbia. The special counsel may appoint and fix the salaries of such staff, not to exceed 12 in number, as the special counsel deems necessary to carry out the functions of the special counsel under this section. However, no salary of a member of such staff may exceed the salary of the special counsel. The Department of Justice shall pay all costs relating to the establishment and operation of any office of special counsel. The Attorney General shall submit to the Congress, not later than 30 days after the end of each fiscal year, a report on amounts paid during that fiscal year for expenses of investigations and prosecutions the special counsel. Each special counsel shall report to Congress annually on the special counsel’s activities under this section. The report shall include a description of the progress of any investigation or prosecution conducted by the special counsel and provide information justifying the costs of the activities reported on. A special counsel may be removed from office, other than by impeachment and conviction, only by the personal action of the Attorney General, and only for good cause, physical or mental disability, or any other condition that substantially impairs the performance of that special counsel’s duties. If a special counsel is removed from office, the Attorney General shall promptly submit to the Special Division and to Congress a report specifying the facts found and the ultimate grounds for the removal. A special counsel removed from office may obtain judicial review of the removal in a civil action. The Special Division may not hear or determine any appeal of a decision in any such civil action. The special counsel may be reinstated or granted other appropriate relief by order of the court. Upon removal of a special counsel, the Special Division shall appoint a similarly qualified individual to continue the functions of the special counsel. The authority of the special counsel shall cease 2 years after the date of the special counsel’s appointment, but the Special Division may extend that authority for an additional period not to exceed one year, if the Special Division finds good cause to do so. Good cause to do so includes that the investigation or prosecution undertaken by the special counsel has been delayed by dilatory tactics by persons who could provide evidence that would significantly assist the investigation or prosecution, and also includes the need to allow the special counsel to participate in any appellate proceedings related to prosecutions engaged in by the special counsel. The Special Division, either on the Special Division’s own motion or upon the request of the Attorney General, may terminate an office of special counsel at any time, on the ground that the investigation of all matters within the prosecutorial jurisdiction of such special counsel, and any resulting prosecutions, have been completed or so substantially completed that it would be appropriate for the Department of Justice to complete such investigations and prosecutions.
Connectionstraces to 2
Citation graph
cites case law
Cites 2Cited by 0 across 0 sources