22 U.S.C. § 4833
Section 4833 · Procedures
Current version, with additions and removals from the August 27, 1986 version.
(1) United States Government personnel and contractors
(A) With respect to any individual described in subparagraph (B), a Board may—
(i) administer oaths and affirmations;
(ii) require that depositions be given and interrogatories answered; and
(iii) require the attendance and presentation of testimony and evidence by such individual.
Failure of any such individual to comply with a request of the Board shall be grounds for disciplinary action by the head of the Federal agency in which such individual is employed or serves, or in the case of a contractor, debarment.
(B) The individuals referred to in subparagraph (A) are—
(i) employees as defined by section 2105 of title 5 (including members of the Foreign Service);
(ii) members of the uniformed services as defined by section 101(3) of title 37;
(iii) employees of instrumentalities of the United States; and
(iv) individuals employed by any person or entity under contract with agencies or instrumentalities of the United States Government to provide services, equipment, or personnel.
(2) Other persons
With respect to a person who is not described in paragraph (1)(B), a Board may administer oaths and affirmations and require that depositions be given and interrogatories answered.
(1) Initiation upon reported incident
A United States mission shall submit an initial report of a Serious Security Incident not later than 3 days after such incident occurs, whenever feasible, at which time an investigation of the incident shall be initiated.
(2) Initial congressional notification
The Secretary shall notify the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate, the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives, the majority and minority leaders of the Senate, and the Speaker and minority leader of the House of Representatives not later than 8 days after a possible Serious Security Incident has been identified by the Department. Such notification shall include a preliminary description of the incident, of an incident described in paragraph (1), including any known individuals involved, when and where the incident took place, and the next steps in the investigation.
(A) The Board may issue a subpoena for the attendance and testimony of any person (other than a person described in clause (i), (ii), or (iii) of paragraph (1)(B)) and the production of documentary or other evidence from any such person if the Board finds that such a subpoena is necessary in the interests of justice for the development of relevant evidence.
(B) In the case of contumacy or refusal to obey a subpoena issued under this paragraph, a court of the United States within the jurisdiction of which a person is directed to appear or produce information, or within the jurisdiction of which the person is found, resides, or transacts business, may upon application of the Attorney General, issue to such person an order requiring such person to appear before the Board to give testimony or produce information as required by the subpoena.
(C) Subpoenaed witnesses shall be paid the same fee and mileage allowances which are paid subpoenaed witnesses in the courts of the United States.
Not later than 10 days after the submission of a report pursuant to paragraph (1), the Secretary shall direct the Diplomatic Security Service to assemble an investigative team to investigate the incident and independently establish what occurred. Each investigation under this subsection shall cover—
(A) an assessment of what occurred, who perpetrated or is suspected of having perpetrated the Serious Security Incident, and whether applicable security procedures were followed;
(B) in the event the Serious Security Incident involved a United States diplomatic compound, motorcade, residence, or other facility, an assessment of whether adequate security countermeasures were in effect based on a known threat at the time of the incident;
(C) if the incident involved an individual or group of officers, employees, or family members under Chief of Mission security responsibility conducting approved operations or movements outside the United States mission, an assessment of whether proper security briefings and procedures were in place and whether weighing of risk of the operation or movement took place; and
(D) an assessment of whether the failure of any officials or employees to follow procedures or perform their duties contributed to the security incident.
(4) Investigative team
The investigative team assembled pursuant to paragraph (3) shall consist of individuals from the Diplomatic Security Service who shall provide an independent examination of the facts surrounding the incident and what occurred. The Secretary, or the Secretary's designee, shall review the makeup of the investigative team for a conflict, appearance of conflict, or lack of independence that could undermine the results of the investigation and may remove or replace any members of the team to avoid such an outcome.
Not later than 90 days after the occurrence of a Serious Security Incident, the investigative team investigating the incident shall prepare and submit a Report of Investigation to the Security Review Committee that includes—
(1) a detailed description of the matters set forth in subparagraphs (A) through (D) of subsection (a)(2), including all related findings;
(2) a complete and accurate account of the casualties, injuries, and damage resulting from the incident; and
(3) a review of security procedures and directives in place at the time of the incident.
Records pertaining to administrative proceedings under this subchapter shall be separated from all other records of the Department of State and shall be maintained under appropriate safeguards to preserve confidentiality and classification of information. Such records shall be prohibited from disclosure to the public until such time as a Board completes its work and is dismissed. The Department of State shall turn over to the Director of Central Intelligence intelligence information and information relating to intelligence personnel which shall then become records of the Central Intelligence Agency. After that time, only such exemptions from disclosure under section 552(b) of title 5 (relating to freedom of information), as apply to other records of the Department of State, and to any information transmitted under section 4834(c) of this title to the head of a Federal agency or instrumentality, shall be available for the remaining records of the Board.
The provisions of the Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App. 1 et seq.) and section 552b of title 5 (relating to open meetings) shall not apply to any Board.