|
Washington,
DC
–
Senators
Tim
Scott
(R-SC),
Pat
Roberts
(R-KS),
and
Cory
Gardner
(R-CO),
today
sent
a
letter
to
the
Honorable
Gene
L.
Dodaro,
Comptroller
General
of
the
United
States
and
head
of
the
Government
Accountability
Office
(GAO),
requesting
an
opinion
on
whether
or
not
the
DoD
violated
the
Consolidated
Appropriations
Act
–
and
thus
the
Antideficiency
Act
–
by
spending
federal
funds
to
survey
potential
sites
to
relocate
Guantanamo
Bay
detainees
to
the
United
Sates.
The
Consolidated
Appropriations
Act,
2016,
which
was
signed
into
law
in
December
of
2015,
specifically
prohibits
appropriated
funds
from
being
used
“to
transfer,
release,
or
assist
in
the
transfer
or
release
to
or
within
the
United
States
.
.
.
[any
Guantanamo
Bay
detainee]”
and
appropriated
funds
from
being
used
“to
construct,
acquire,
or
modify
any
facility
in
the
United
States
.
.
.
to
house
any
.
.
.
[detainee].”
The
letter
reads
in
full:
The
Honorable
Gene
L.
Dodaro
Comptroller
General
U.S.
Government
Accountability
Office
441
G
Street,
NW
Washington,
DC
20548
Dear
Mr.
Dodaro:
This
letter
is
to
request
your
opinion
on
whether
the
Department
of
Defense
(DoD),
by
making
expenditures
surveying
potential
sites
in
three
states
for
the
transfer
of
Guantanamo
Bay
detainees,
violated
Section
527
or
528
of
the
Consolidated
Appropriations
Act,
2016.
As
was
widely
reported,
the
DoD
spent
federal
funds
studying
sites
in
Colorado,
Kansas,
and
South
Carolina
to
relocate
prisoners
held
at
Guantanamo
Bay
despite
specific
prohibitions
in
law.
The
DoD
spent
the
most
money
–
$11,064.33
–
surveying
a
facility
in
Florence,
CO,
as
a
possible
relocation
site.
These
expenditures
were
made
in
contravention
of
the
National
Defense
Authorization
Act
(NDAA)
for
Fiscal
Year
2016,
which
prohibits
the
use
of
any
funds
to
assist
in
the
transfer
of
any
individual
detained
at
Guantanamo
Bay
to
the
United
States
as
well
as
the
use
of
any
funds
to
prepare
any
facility
in
the
United
States
to
house
any
Guantanamo
detainee.
Pub.
L.
No.
114-92,
§§
1031-1032,
129
Stat.
735,
968
(2015).
Moreover,
Sections
527
and
528
of
the
Consolidated
Appropriations
Act,
2016,
reinforce
the
prohibitions
set
forth
in
the
fiscal
2016
NDAA.
Specifically,
Section
527
prohibits
the
DoD
from
using
appropriated
funds
“to
transfer,
release,
or
assist
in
the
transfer
or
release
to
or
within
the
United
States
.
.
.
[any
Guantanamo
Bay
detainee],”
and
Section
528
prohibits
the
DoD
from
using
appropriated
funds
“to
construct,
acquire,
or
modify
any
facility
in
the
United
States
.
.
.
to
house
any
.
.
.
[detainee].”
Pub.
L.
No.
114-113,
129
Stat.
2242,
2329
(2015).
The
meaning
of
Sections
527
and
528
is
clear
and
unambiguous;
no
appropriated
funds
are
legally
available
for
the
relocation
of
Guantanamo
Bay
detainees
to
the
United
States.
Given
that
the
DoD
spent
appropriated
funds
to
survey
potential
relocation
sites
for
Guantanamo
detainees
when
no
money
was
available
for
that
purpose,
we
respectfully
request
your
opinion
as
to
whether
the
DoD
violated
the
Consolidated
Appropriations
Act,
2016,
and
if
so,
whether
the
DoD
also
violated
the
Antideficiency
Act,
31
U.S.C.
§
1341(a).
Thank
you
for
your
timely
assistance.
### |