Church Committee

E26973

The Church Committee was a 1975–76 U.S. Senate committee that investigated abuses by the CIA, FBI, NSA, and other intelligence agencies, leading to major reforms and increased oversight of American intelligence activities.

Aliases (1)

Statements (55)
Predicate Object
instanceOf United States Senate select committee
congressional investigative committee
appliesToJurisdiction federal intelligence agencies of the United States
chairperson Frank Church
chairpersonParty Democratic Party
chairpersonState Idaho
contemporaneousWith Pike Committee
Rockefeller Commission
country United States
dissolved 1976
endTime 1976
hasMember Barry Goldwater
Charles Mathias
Frank Church
Gary Hart
Howard Baker
John Tower
Philip Hart
Richard Schweiker
Robert Morgan
Walter Mondale
William G. Miller
hasTopic abuses of power by U.S. intelligence agencies
civil liberties and privacy in intelligence operations
separation of powers and intelligence oversight
inception January 1975
investigated Central Intelligence Agency
Federal Bureau of Investigation
Internal Revenue Service intelligence activities
National Security Agency
legislativeBody United States Senate
legislativeTerm 94th United States Congress
location Washington, D.C.
namedAfter Frank Church
officialName United States Senate Select Committee to Study Governmental Operations with Respect to Intelligence Activities
partOf post-Watergate congressional investigations
positionHeld staff director: William G. Miller
publication Final Report of the Select Committee to Study Governmental Operations with Respect to Intelligence Activities
publicationDate 1976
resultedIn Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act
creation of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence
creation of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence
establishment of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court
executive orders restricting U.S. involvement in assassinations
increased congressional oversight of intelligence agencies
new guidelines for FBI domestic security investigations
shortName Senate Select Committee on Intelligence Activities
startTime 1975
subjectOf CIA mail-opening programs
FBI COINTELPRO operations
NSA warrantless surveillance programs
United States intelligence activities
assassination plots against foreign leaders
covert action programs abroad
domestic surveillance by U.S. intelligence agencies

Referenced by (3)
Subject (surface form when different) Predicate
Frank Church
knownFor
Frank Church
notableWork
William Colby ("Church Committee hearings")
subjectOf

Please wait…