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“MOTION TO GO TO CONFERENCE ON H.R. 2215, THE 21ST CENTURY DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE APPROPRIATIONS AUTHORIZATION ACT” mentioning the U.S. Dept. of Justice was published in the Extensions of Remarks section on pages E106 on Feb. 6, 2002.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
MOTION TO GO TO CONFERENCE ON H.R. 2215, THE 21ST CENTURY DEPARTMENT OF
JUSTICE APPROPRIATIONS AUTHORIZATION ACT
______
HON. JOHN CONYERS, JR.
of michigan
in the house of representatives
Wednesday, February 6, 2002
Mr. CONYERS. Mr. Speaker, I commend Chairman Sensenbrenner for defending this committee's jurisdiction and for his bipartisanship. Congress has not authorized the Department of Justice in more than 20 years, instead leaving the responsibility to the appropriators to decide what DOJ programs should be authorized and their maximum funding level; this conference will express the views of the authorizing committees about how they should operate.
For example, both the House and Senate bills recognize the importance of helping victims of violence and preserving congressional oversight of prosecutorial activities. They give the Violence Against Women Office more autonomy so that it may better serve female victims of violence. They also require the Department to report to Congress when they wiretap computers, agree to settlements, and make certain decisions about enforcing Federal statutes. These reports will make it easier for Congress to see how the laws we enact are being interpreted and how they should be changed, it at all.
In the end, I hope this conference is a precursor to more active congressional involvement in the running of the Justice Department.
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