Senator Olympia Snowe (R-Maine) has asked for all information regarding the rationale for the decision to reassign Mr. Dale Jones and Mr. Charles Juliand.
WASHINGTON – Nov. 1, 2010 – Senator Olympia Snowe (R-Maine) has asked the Commerce Department to provide any and all information to the Subcommittee regarding the rationale for the decision to reassign Mr. Dale Jones, former head of NOAA's Office for Law Enforcement, and Mr. Charles Juliand, formerly an attorney in the Office of General Counsel for Enforcement and Litigation in the Northeast Region.
Last week, Senators John Kerry and Scott Brown, together with Congressmen Barney Frank and William Delahunt also requested an explanation as to why discredited NOAA employees remain on the payroll. Senator Snowe's request differed in that she invoked her authority as ranking member of the Senate Oceans, Atmosphere, Fisheries, and Coast Guard subcommittee. As Senator Snowe observed, "While the law prevents NOAA from releasing much of this information to the general public, the agency must, by law, provide its rationale to a Congressional Committee with jurisdiction over its activities."
The text of the release from her office follows:
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Senator Olympia J. Snowe (R-Maine), the Ranking Member of the Senate Subcommittee on Oceans, Atmosphere, Fisheries, and Coast Guard, has demanded an explanation why two employees of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), found by the Commerce Department's Inspector General to have committed serious mismanagement infractions against fishermen, have not faced stronger disciplinary action. In a letter to U.S. Department of Commerce Secretary Gary Locke sent Friday October 29, 2010, Senator Snowe asked the Commerce Department to provide any and all information to the Subcommittee regarding the rationale for the decision to reassign Mr. Dale Jones, former head of NOAA's Office for Law Enforcement, and Mr. Charles Juliand, formerly an attorney in the Office of General Counsel for Enforcement and Litigation in the Northeast Region.
"NOAA has a responsibility to explain its decision to retain these individuals on the Federal payroll in spite of clear, confirmed violations of public trust as detailed in reports released by the Inspector General and in testimony by the Inspector General before various Congressional Committees. While the law prevents NOAA from releasing much of this information to the general public, the agency must, by law, provide its rationale to a Congressional Committee with jurisdiction over its activities," said Senator Snowe. "Upon receipt of the Department's response, I pledge I will do my utmost to ensure that justice is done and those responsible for the litany of horrific abuses of power and draconian enforcement tactics uncovered by the Inspector General face appropriate consequences. The perpetrators of these abuses must be held to task for their egregious violations of the public trust, particularly in the northeast."
The Privacy Act of 1974 precludes the Department of Commerce from releasing additional information to the public at this time, but the Department is authorized under section 522a(b)(9) of the statute to release such information to a relevant Congressional committee or subcommittee.
"Systemic mismanagement of law enforcement operations has adversely affected NOAA's ability to regulate fisheries by driving a wedge between regulators and industry members," said Senator Snowe. "To ensure the highest level of accountability for both the fishermen impacted by these serious infractions as well as U.S. taxpayers, the Subcommittee looks forward to reviewing and evaluating a detailed explanation provided by the Department in a timely manner."
Read the letter from Senator Snowe to Secretary Locke.