Leslie J. Hagin, is NACDL's Legislative Direc-tor, and was previously counsel to the House Judiciary Committee. Her e-mail address is NACDLlegis@aol.com.
As we head into the final weeks of Congress, the need for active involvement by NACDL members has never been greater. While these last hurried legislative days are dangerous, we are poised to turn the tide on some key issues.
The one thing Congress must do is finish work on its appropriation bills. The bill we care about is the one for the Departments of Commerce, State, Justice, and the Federal Judiciary. This is always a favorite vehicle for crime-related amendments. It's no different this year, except some of the amendments are good. In a conference committee starting in early September, House and Senate appropriators must reconcile the differences between the House and Senate versions of this measure. The conferees will decide the fate of the following important matters:
Require Ethics at DOJ!
There is a provision in the House version of the DOJ appropriation bill (Title VIII of HR 4276), that will outlaw the infamous Thornburgh Memorandum/Reno Regulation, and re-subject federal prosecutors to the neutral state supreme court and federal court rules of ethical conduct. August 5, the measure survived a motion to strike from three former U.S. Attorneys. The effort to kill it lost by a whopping 345-82. A friendly amendment to the provision also passed by a wide margin, which makes it plain that independent counsels are covered.This measure is not in the Senate version of the bill. House and Senate conferees must decide whether to retain this House measure in the final, unified House/Senate version of the bill to be reported out by the conference. DOJ is working to convince Senate conferees to kill the provision. Weigh in on its behalf.
Defeat Cutbacks on Court-Appointed Counsel Fees!
There is a very ill-conceived proposal in the Senate's version of the bill. Senator Don Nickles (R-OK) secured an amendment that would cap the monthly amount of federal court-appointed attorney compensation by artificially linking it to the salary of U.S. Attorneys. He alleges that defense counsel in McVeigh made more than the U.S. Attorney. He does not recognize the anomaly of that case. And he fails to appreciate that U.S. Attorneys do not pay overhead, so his link is like comparing apples and tangerines. Urge the conferees to strike this bad idea from the final bill.
Conferees
The House and Senate conferees on this important appropriation bill for the Departments of Commerce, State and Justice, and the Judiciary are:Senate
1. Full Appropriations Committee Chair Ted Stevens (R-AK)
2. Ranking Democrat, Full Appropria-tions Committee, Robert Byrd (D-WV)
3. Chair, Subcommittee on Commerce, State, Justice, and Judiciary, Judd Gregg (R-NH)
4. Ranking Democrat, Subcommittee on Commerce, State, Justice, and Judiciary, Ernest Hollings (D-SC)
5. Pete Domenici (R-NM)
6. Mitch McConnell (R-KY)
7. Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-TX)
8. Ben Nighthorse Campbell (R-CO)
9. Daniel Inouye (D-HI)
10. Dale Bumpers (D-AR)
11. Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ)
12. Barbara Mikulski (D-MD)
House
1. Full Appropriations Committee Chair Bob Livingston (R-LA)
2. Ranking Democratic, Full Appropria-tions Committee, David Obey(D-WI)
3. Chair, Subcommittee on Commerce, State, Justice and Judiciary, Harold Rogers (R-KY)
4. Ranking Democrat, Subcommittee on Commerce, State, Justice and Judiciary, Alan Mollohan (D-WV)
5. Jim Kolbe (R-AZ)
6. Charles Taylor (R-NC)
7. Ralph Regula (R-OH)
8. Michael Forbes (R-NY)
9. Tom Latham (R-IA)
10. David Skaggs (D-CO)
11. Julian Dixon (D-CA)
Outreach
It is critical that you contact those conferees who represent your area. If your legislators do not sit on the conference, contact your Senators and Representatives anyway. Urge them to weigh in with those conferees with whom they enjoy a good working relationship.A personal meeting with your legislators in the home district is the best way to make a difference. Phone calls are the next best thing. Letters, faxes and e-mails are also important.
Senators can be reached through their local home district office or through the U.S. Senate Switchboard Operator at (202) 224-3121.
Representatives can be reached through their local office or through the U.S. House Switchboard Operator at (202) 225-3121.
Should you need any background material, it is available through the website, at www.criminaljustice.org, or by contacting me.