Texas Insider Report: Washington D.C. -- U.S. Senator John Cornyn (R-TX) joined 11 other members of Members of Congress in sending a letter pressing the Obama Administration to provide and commit to legislative language that ensures agency inspectors general are able to carry out their duties by receiving full access to all agency documents as is intended under current law. Under current law inspectors general are authorized access to all" records belonging to their respective agency but several Congressional committees have recently held hearings that addressed the practice of agencies not providing certain documents to inspectors general.
The letter was sent to Deputy Attorney General Sally Yates and Justice Department Inspector General Michael Horowitz.
It is apparent that Congress needs to act to ensure that Inspectors General have complete and immediate access to all records in the possession of their respective agencies" Cornyn and his co-signers wrote.A copy of the letter is below.
The Honorable Sally Quillian Yates
Deputy Attorney General
U.S. Department of Justice
Washington D.C. 20530
The Honorable Michael Horowitz
Inspector General
U.S. Department of Justice
Washington D.C. 20530
Dear Deputy Attorney General Yates and Inspector General Horowitz:
Last month the Department of Justice (DOJ) made public an Office of Legal Counsel (OLC) opinion that allows DOJ to withhold access to certain records sought by DOJs Office of Inspector General. Under the OLC opinion and subsequent guidance provided by the Office of the Deputy Attorney General the DOJ Inspector General must now obtain agency permission to access certain documents related to grand jury testimony Title III wiretaps and the Fair Credit Reporting Act. This opinion undermines the long-standing presumption that Inspectors General have access to any and all information that they deem necessary for effective oversight as specified in the Inspector General Act of 1978.
On August 5 2015 the Senate Judiciary Committee convened a hearing entitled All Means All: The Justice Departments Failure to Comply with Its Legal Obligation to Ensure Inspector General Access to All Records Needed for Independent Oversight." This hearing brought to light serious questions about the effect the OLC opinion would have on the independence and effectiveness of the Office of Inspector General not just at the Department of Justice but also across the federal government. The opinion has already been relied on by other federal agencies to prevent their Inspectors General complete and timely access to documents necessary to conduct audits and investigations. It is apparent that Congress needs to act to ensure that Inspectors General have complete and immediate access to all records in the possession of their respective agencies unless a statute restricting access to documents expressly states that the provision applies to Inspectors General.
We understand the Office of the Deputy Attorney General and the Office of Inspector General have been working collaboratively on legislative language to address this issue. Accordingly by no later than August 28 2015 please provide your recommended legislative language that would ensure Inspectors General have access to all Department records notwithstanding limitations contained in any of the potentially hundreds of provisions of law or any common-law privilege that might otherwise arguably limit such disclosure.
Thank you for your immediate attention to this matter.
Sincerely
