§429a Expenditure of Funds for Department of Defense Intelligence and Counterintelligence Activities

Summary

The Secretary of Defense may use money from the Military Intelligence Program for intelligence and counterintelligence work that is confidential, extraordinary, or emergency in nature. The Secretary’s decision that a use fits those categories is final for government accounting. No more than 5% of the program’s funds in any fiscal year may be spent this way unless the Secretary tells the congressional defense committees and the congressional intelligence committees about the planned spending and waits 30 days. For every such payment, the Secretary must certify it was for a confidential, extraordinary, or emergency purpose. By December 31 each year, the Secretary must report to those committees on the prior fiscal year’s expenditures and include a description, purpose, program element, and the required certification. The Secretary cannot delegate authority for any single expenditure over $200,000. This authority is the only one the Secretary has to spend Military Intelligence Program funds for these secret, extraordinary, or emergency items. Congressional intelligence committees: the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence and the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence.