[Senate Report 110-195]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
Calendar No. 418
110th Congress Report
SENATE
1st Session 110-195
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TO REQUIRE PERIODIC REPORTS RELATED TO ACTS OF TERRORISM AGAINST
AMERICANS PERPETRATED OR SUPPORTED BY THE GOVERNMENT OF LIBYA
_______
October 15, 2007.--Ordered to be printed
_______
Mr. Biden, from the Committee on Foreign Relations,
submitted the following
REPORT
[To accompany S. 1839]
The Committee on Foreign Relations, having had under
consideration the bill (S. 1839) to require periodic reports on
claims related to acts of terrorism against Americans
perpetrated or supported by the Government of Libya, reports
favorably thereon without amendment and recommends that the
bill do pass.
CONTENTS
Page
I. Purpose..........................................................1
II. Committee Action.................................................1
III. Discussion.......................................................2
IV. Cost Estimate....................................................2
V. Evaluation of Regulatory Impact..................................3
VI. Changes in Existing Law..........................................3
I. Purpose
This legislation is designed to better inform Congress, and
by extension the American people, of the status of outstanding
legal claims by American victims of Libyan terrorism and their
families and of the efforts of the Department of State on their
behalf.
II. Committee Action
S. 1839 was introduced by Senator Biden on July 19, 2007,
with Senators Levin and Lautenberg as original cosponsors. On
September 11, 2007, the committee ordered the bill reported
favorably by voice vote.
III. Discussion
During the rule of Colonel Muammar el-Qaddafi, several
hundred Americans have been killed or injured by acts of
terrorism sponsored by the Government of Libya. In December
2003, Col. Qaddafi renounced terrorism, bringing Libya closer
to rejoining the community of nations. Earlier that year, Libya
accepted responsibility for the heinous Pan Am 103 bombing,
which killed 189 Americans in 1988. That admission also helped
pave the way to the negotiations that led to Libya's
renunciation of its support for terrorism and its WMD programs.
But the families of the victims of Pan Am 103 are still waiting
for the final resolution to their case.
In 2006, the Libyan government agreed to terms with the
victims of the bombing of the La Belle discotheque in Germany
in 1986. Unfortunately, it has since refused to honor the
previously agreed upon terms. Other American victims of Libyan
terror are still waiting for justice. Their cases may be
smaller in scale, but the pain that the victims and their
families have suffered is no less real.
It is in the strategic interest of the United States to
develop better relations with Libya. But doing so requires that
Libya fully come to terms with its past. S. 1938 is intended to
facilitate that process by helping American victims of Libyan
terrorism and their families receive justice for the terrible
crimes committed against them. It requires the administration
to submit to Congress twice yearly reports on the status of the
outstanding legal claims by these American victims and their
families against the government of Libya. It also requires the
administration to explain its own efforts on their behalf. The
prospect of a regular, public report to Congress provides a
means to keep the pressure on both U.S. and Libyan officials to
resolve these cases.
IV. Cost Estimate
In accordance with Rule XXVI, paragraph 11(a) of the
Standing Rules of the Senate, the committee provides this
estimate of the costs of this legislation prepared by the
Congressional Budget Office.
United States Congress,
Congressional Budget Office,
Washington, DC, September 19, 2007.
Hon. Joseph R. Biden, Jr.,
Chairman, Committee on Foreign Relations,
U.S. Senate, Washington, DC.
Dear Mr. Chairman: The Congressional Budget Office has
prepared the enclosed cost estimate for S. 1839, a bill to
require periodic reports related to acts of terrorism against
Americans perpetrated or supported by the government of Libya.
If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be
pleased to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Sunita
D'Monte.
Sincerely,
Robert A. Sunshine
(For Peter R. Orszag, Director).
------
S. 1839--A bill to require periodic reports on claims related to acts
of terrorism against Americans perpetrated or supported by the
government of Libya
S. 1839 would require the Secretary of State to report
periodically to the Congress on negotiations to resolve legal
claims made by citizens of the United States against the
government of Libya for acts of terrorism. CBO estimates that
implementing the bill would cost less than $500,000 a year over
the 2008-2012 period, assuming the availability of appropriated
funds. Enacting the bill would not affect direct spending or
revenues.
S. 1839 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector
mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act and
would not affect the budgets of state, local, or tribal
governments.
The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Sunita D'Monte.
This estimate was approved by Peter H. Fontaine, Assistant
Director for Budget Analysis.
V. Evaluation of Regulatory Impact
Pursuant to Rule XXVI, paragraph 11(b) of the Standing
Rules of the Senate, the committee has determined that there is
no regulatory impact as a result of this legislation.
VI. Changes in Existing Law
In compliance with paragraph 12 of Rule XXVI of the
Standing Rules of the Senate, the committee notes that no
changes to existing law are made by this bill.