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115th Congress } { Report
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
2d Session } { 115-512
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SOCIAL MEDIA USE IN CLEARANCE INVESTIGATIONS ACT OF 2017
_______
January 11, 2018.--Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the
State of the Union and ordered to be printed
_______
Mr. Gowdy, from the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform,
submitted the following
R E P O R T
[To accompany H.R. 3737]
[Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]
The Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, to whom
was referred the bill (H.R. 3737) to provide for a study on the
use of social media in security clearance investigations,
having considered the same, report favorably thereon without
amendment and recommend that the bill do pass.
CONTENTS
Page
Committee Statement and Views.................................... 1
Section-by-Section............................................... 3
Explanation of Amendments........................................ 3
Committee Consideration.......................................... 3
Roll Call Votes.................................................. 3
Application of Law to the Legislative Branch..................... 3
Statement of General Performance Goals and Objectives............ 4
Duplication of Federal Programs.................................. 4
Disclosure of Directed Rule Makings.............................. 4
Federal Advisory Committee Act................................... 4
Unfunded Mandates Statement...................................... 4
Earmark Identification........................................... 4
Committee Estimate............................................... 4
Budget Authority and Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate... 4
Committee Statement and Views
PURPOSE AND SUMMARY
H.R. 3737, The Social Media Use in Clearance Investigations
Act of 2017 requires the Office of Management and Budget (OMB)
to provide pertinent data on the current and potential use of
social media for clearance investigation purposes.
Specifically, the bill requires OMB to submit a one-time report
describing the current use of social media for investigative
purposes, the legal impediments related to the use of social
media for that purpose, and the results of any pilot programs
conducted to incorporate social media into background
investigations. Additionally, the report will include the
available options for broader implementation of social media
checks and the cost estimates for such a program.
BACKGROUND AND NEED FOR LEGISLATION
H.R. 3737 is a much needed first step in modernizing
federal security clearance background investigations. In recent
years, there have been several cases in which federal
contractor employees with security clearances leaked classified
information after previously sharing suspicious posts on
publicly available social media sites. Two high profile
examples are the cases of Edward Snowden and Reality Winner,
both of whom were National Security Agency (NSA) insiders with
access to very sensitive information.\1\
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\1\See Donie O'Sullivan and David Shortell, Accused leaker Reality
Winner called Trump an `orange fascist' on Twitter, CNN, June 6, 2017,
http://www.cnn.com/2017/06/06/politics/reality-winner-twitter-account/
index.html; Joe Mullin, NSA leaker Ed Snowden's life on Ars Technica,
Ars Technica, Jun. 12, 2013, https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2013/
06/nsa-leaker-ed-snowdens-life-on-ars-technica/.
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Examining the options available to implement these social
media investigations will help inform and expedite security
clearance reform. A preliminary check of a subject's social
media could prove more effective than many current parts of
clearance investigations.
Over roughly the past decade, other agencies have created
similar programs including the Army,\2\ the Office of the
Director of National Intelligence (ODNI),\3\ and the NSA.\4\
Only some of the results of these programs are publicly
available, and what is available does not contain clear
analyses or conclusions.
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\2\Defense Personnel And Security Research Center, TR 13-04, Army
G2 Continuous Evaluation Pilot, (June 2013).
\3\Corporate Risk International, Final Report & Analysis, Open
Source Research Project, (June 10, 2009), https://www.eff.org/files/
20100514_odni_socialnetworking.pdf.
\4\Aliya Sternstein, What's your `insider threat score?' It could
determine if you keep your clearance, NextGov, Apr. 29, 2016, http://
www.nextgov.com/cybersecurity/2016/04/cleared-personnel-fico-score-
will-decide-what-secrets-you-can-see/127903/.
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OMB oversees the security clearance system as a whole
through its delegation of responsibility to the Suitability and
Security Executive Agents (the Office of Personnel Management
[OPM] and ODNI, respectively). OMB is thus well positioned to
analyze and report on the results of the disparate pilot
programs, allowing Congress to understand what worked
previously and what needs improvement.
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY
On May 13, 2016, the Committee on Oversight and Government
Reform, Subcommittee on Government Operations held a hearing
entitled, ``Incorporating Social Media into Federal Background
Investigations.''\5\ The hearing largely discussed the legality
of performing investigative practices such as examining
someone's social media postings. The challenge of finding a
balance between privacy and national security is one that still
remains today.
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\5\H. Comm. on Oversight & Gov't Reform, Subcomm. on Gov't
Operations, Hearing: Incorporating Social Media into Federal Background
Investigations, Ser. No. 114-158, 114th Cong. (May 13, 2016).
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On September 13, 2017, Representative Ron DeSantis (R-FL)
introduced H.R. 3737, the Social Media Use in Clearance
Investigations Act of 2017, with Representative Stephen Lynch
(D-MA). H.R. 3737 was referred to the Committee on Oversight
and Government Reform. The Committee considered H.R. 3737 at a
business meeting on September 13, 2017, and ordered the bill
reported favorably, without amendment, by voice vote.
Section-by-Section
Section 1. Short title
Section 1 establishes the short title of the bill as the
``Social Media Use in Clearance Investigations Act of 2017.''
Section 2. Study on use of social media in security clearance
investigations
Section 2 requires the Director of OMB to submit a report
within six months of enactment regarding the examination of
social media activity as part of the security clearance
investigation process. The report must include information on:
(1) the current use of publicly available social media in
clearance investigations; (2) any legal impediments to
examining the social media activity of clearance applicants;
(3) the results of pilot programs for the incorporation of
social media data into clearance investigations; (4) options
for widespread implementation of social media checks in
clearance investigations; and (5) cost estimates for some of
those options.
Explanation of Amendments
There were no amendments to H.R. 3737 offered or adopted
during Committee consideration of the bill.
Committee Consideration
On September 13, 2017, the Committee met in open session
and, with a quorum being present, ordered the bill favorably
reported by voice vote.
Roll Call Votes
There were no roll call votes requested or conducted during
Committee consideration of H.R. 3737.
Application of Law to the Legislative Branch
Section 102(b)(3) of Public Law 104-1 requires a
description of the application of this bill to the legislative
branch where the bill relates to the terms and conditions of
employment or access to public services and accommodations.
This bill provides for a study on the use of social media in
security clearance investigations. As such, this bill does not
relate to employment or access to public services and
accommodations.
Statement of General Performance Goals and Objectives
In compliance with clause 3(c)(1) of rule XIII and clause
(2)(b)(1) of rule X of the Rules of the House of
Representatives, the Committee's oversight findings and
recommendations are reflected in the descriptive portions of
this report.
Duplication of Federal Programs
In accordance with clause 2(c)(5) of rule XIII no provision
of this bill establishes or reauthorizes a program of the
Federal Government known to be duplicative of another Federal
program, a program that was included in any report from the
Government Accountability Office to Congress pursuant to
section 21 of Public Law 111-139, or a program related to a
program identified in the most recent Catalog of Federal
Domestic Assistance.
Disclosure of Directed Rule Makings
This bill does not direct the completion of any specific
rule makings within the meaning of section 551 of title 5,
United States Code.
Federal Advisory Committee Act
The Committee finds that the legislation does not establish
or authorize the establishment of an advisory committee within
the definition of Section 5(b) of the appendix to title 5,
United States Code.
Unfunded Mandates Statement
Pursuant to section 423 of the Congressional Budget and
Impoundment Control Act (Pub. L. 113-67) the Committee has
included a letter received from the Congressional Budget Office
below.
Earmark Identification
This bill does not include any congressional earmarks,
limited tax benefits, or limited tariff benefits as defined in
clause 9 of rule XXI of the House of Representatives.
Committee Estimate
Pursuant to clause 3(d)(2)(B) of rule XIII of the Rules of
the House of Representatives, the Committee includes below a
cost estimate of the bill prepared by the Director of the
Congressional Budget Office under section 402 of the
Congressional Budget Act of 1974.
Budget Authority and Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate
Pursuant to clause 3(c)(3) of rule XIII of the House of
Representatives, the cost estimate prepared by the
Congressional Budget Office and submitted pursuant to section
402 of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 is as follows:
U.S. Congress,
Congressional Budget Office,
Washington, DC, September 22, 2017.
Hon. Trey Gowdy,
Chairman, Committee on Oversight and Government Reform,
House of Representatives, Washington, DC.
Dear Mr. Chairman: The Congressional Budget Office has
prepared the enclosed cost estimate for H.R. 3737, the Social
Media Use in Clearance Investigations Act of 2017.
If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be
pleased to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Matthew
Pickford.
Sincerely,
Keith Hall,
Director.
Enclosure.
H.R. 3737--Social Media Use in Clearance Investigations Act of 2017
H.R. 3737 would require the Office of Management and Budget
(OMB) to report to the Congress within six months on how social
media activity is examined during security clearance
investigations and related matters. Based on the cost of
similar activities, CBO estimates that implementing the bill
would cost less than $500,000; such spending would be subject
to the availability of appropriated funds.
Enacting H.R. 3737 would not affect direct spending or
revenues; therefore, pay-as-you-go procedures do not apply.
CBO estimates that enacting H.R. 3737 would not increase
net direct spending or on-budget deficits in any of the four
consecutive 10-year periods beginning in 2028.
H.R. 3737 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector
mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act and
would impose no costs on state, local, or tribal governments.
The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Matthew
Pickford. The estimate was approved by H. Samuel Papenfuss,
Deputy Assistant Director for Budget Analysis.
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