S. 3135

To prohibit any officer or employee of the Federal Government who has exercised extreme carelessness in the handling of classified information from being granted or retaining a security clearance.

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

Mr. Gardner (for himself, Mr. Cornyn, Mrs. Capito, Mr. Scott, Mr. Risch, Mr. Roberts, Mr. Heller, Ms. Ayotte, Mr. Barrasso, Mr. Perdue, and Mr. Isakson) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs

A BILL

To prohibit any officer or employee of the Federal Government who has exercised extreme carelessness in the handling of classified information from being granted or retaining a security clearance.

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. Short title.

This Act may be cited as the “Taking Responsibility Using Secured Technologies Act of 2016”.

SEC. 2. Findings; sense of Congress.

(a) Findings.—Congress finds the following:

(1) On July 5, 2016, the Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (in this section referred to as the “FBI”), James B. Comey, made a statement relating to the investigation into the use of a personal e-mail system by Hillary Clinton during the period that she was Secretary of State.

(2) The FBI found evidence that Secretary Clinton and her colleagues were extremely careless in handling very sensitive, highly classified information.

(3) The FBI also found that any reasonable individual in the position of Secretary Clinton, or in the position of the Federal employees with whom Secretary Clinton was corresponding about these matters, should have known that using an unclassified system was inappropriate when conducting classified conversations.

(4) Because of the conduct of Secretary Clinton and her colleagues, the FBI concluded that it is possible that hostile actors gained access to the e-mail account of Secretary Clinton.

(5) In similar circumstances, other individuals who engaged in this kind of activity would often face adverse consequences, including security or administrative sanctions.

(6) Presidential candidates typically receive classified briefings even if the candidates lack the requisite security clearance.

(b) Sense of Congress.—It is the sense of Congress that—

(1) Secretary Clinton should—

(A) have any security clearance that she holds revoked; and

(B) be denied access to classified information unless and until she earns the legal right to such access; and

(2) colleagues of Secretary Clinton who demonstrated extreme carelessness in their handling of classified information should no longer have access to that information.

SEC. 3. Security clearances with respect to individuals who have mishandled classified information.

(a) Granting of clearances.—No officer or employee of the Federal Government who has exercised extreme carelessness in the handling of classified information may be granted a security clearance.

(b) Revocation of clearances.—The security clearance of any officer or employee of the Federal Government who has exercised extreme carelessness in the handling of classified information shall be revoked.

SEC. 4. Definition of gross negligence.

Section 793(f) of title 18, United States Code, is amended—

(1) by inserting “(1)” after “(f)”;

(2) by striking “(1) through” and inserting “(A) through”;

(3) by striking “(2) having” and inserting “(B) having”; and

(4) by adding at the end the following: