COMMITTEE ACTION

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP73B00296R000500050006-5
• Release Decision: RIFPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 3
• Document Creation Date: December 20, 2016
• Document Release Date: November 14, 2005
• Sequence Number: 6
• Content Type: REPORT

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The Committee recommends the inclusion of a provision
to provide interim funding for the support of Radio Free
Europe and Radio Liberty pending the enactment of legis-
lation to provide for open funding of these organizations.
On February 1, 1971, the Committee forwarded copies of S. 18 to
the Department of State and requested "coordinated Executive Branch
comments * * * at an early date." On March 12, the Committe wrote
again to the Department stating tentative hearings on the bill had
been scheduled for April 28. The State Department responded on
April 22 requesting a delay in the hearings until the "latter part of
May."
In an effort to accommodate the Department, the Committee agreed
to change the hearing date from April 28 to May 24. A public hear-
ing was held at that time and the Committee heard from three wit-
nesses : the Honorable Congressman Ogden R. Reid, who introduced
a similar bill in the House of Representatives; the Honorable Martin
J. Hillenbrand, Assistant Secretary of State for European Affairs;
and Mr. Paul C. Bartlett, former President of Radio New York
Worldwide, 'Inc.
In place of commenting on S. 18, Assistant Secretary Hillenbrand
presented the Administration's views on a substitute bill, S. 1936.
Senator Case introduced this bill on the day of the hearing. (See
appendix.)
This alternative legislation would establish an American Council
for Private International Communications, Inc. Although publicly
funded, the Council would be -a "non-governmental, private, non-profit
corporation" with headquarters in the District of Columbia. While the
primary purpose of the corporation would be to channel. Government
funds to Radio Free Europe and Radio Liberty, the Administration's
bill would also make eligible for financing any "private American
organizations with established programs of broadcasting to other
countries, or other ... selected activities in the international mass
media field * * *"
S. 1936 contained an open-ended authorization and provided that
sums appropriated shall remain 'available until expended. In addition
to this funding flexibility, the bill did not specify an agency or depart-
ment to which the funds wouldbe appropriated.
The Committee first considered bath of these proposals in Executive
Session on June 8, at which time it decided that, before making any
definitive, long-term decisions on future funding of the Radios, the
Committee should have available some in-depth, background studies
on them. Following this decision, the Chairman of the Committee
wrote to the Library of Congress and the General Accounting Office
requesting separate studies from each of them on the two Radios.
Senator Fulbright's letters are included in the appendix to this report.
The Committee considered these bills again in Executive Session
on July 21, at which time it rejected, by voice vote, a slightly modified
version of S. 193'6 (see appendix) and then adopted S. 18 with an
amendment increasing the authorization level from $30 to $35 million
for fiscal year 1972.
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fiscal years, the executive branch estimates the total cost of these pro-
grams to be $200-$210 million. For the reasons which are obvious in
this report, the committee is unable to evaluate these estimates. In the
final analysis, of course, the Congress could fund these programs in
accordance with the executive branch estimates or it could, at any
point, terminate them.
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TITLE VII-APPROPRIATIONS
SEC. 701. Appropriations to carry out the purposes of this Act are
hereby authorized.
SEC. 702. The Secretary shall authorize the transfer to other Gov-
ernment agencies for expenditure in the United States and in other
countries, in order to carry out the purposes of this Act, any part of
any appropriations available to the Department for carrying out the
purposes of this Act, for direct expenditure or as a working fund,
and any such expenditures may be made under the specific authority
contained in this Act or under the authority governing the activities
of the Government agency to which a part of any such appropriation
is transferred, provided the activities came within the scope of this
Act.
AUTHORIZATION FOR GRANTS TO RADIO FREE EUROPE AND RADIO LIBERTY
SEC. 703. There are authorized to be appropriated to the department
$35,000,000 for fiscal year 1972 to provide grants, under such terms and
conditions as the Secretary considers appropriate, to Radio, Free
Europe and Radio Liberty. Except for funds appropriated vender this
section, no funds appropriated of ter the date of enactment of this see-
tion for any fiscal year, under this or any other provision of law, may
be made available to or for the use of Radio Free Europe or Radio
Liberty.
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