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Committee recommends interim study on USS Liberty, urges federal follow-up
Summary
The State-Federal Relations and Veterans Affairs Committee voted unanimously (14–0) to recommend HB 1041 for future legislation, endorsing an interim study of the 1967 USS Liberty attack and urging that testimony and findings be forwarded to the federal delegation for further investigation.
The State-Federal Relations and Veterans Affairs Committee voted unanimously to recommend HB 1041 — an interim-study proposal to investigate the 1967 USS Liberty incident — for future legislation, with members saying a state-level study can preserve testimony but lacks subpoena power.
"I move, recommend for future legislation," said Representative Mannion, the subcommittee chair, after summarizing the subcommittee’s review. Mannion told the committee that earlier drafts of the bill had raised concerns about membership and scope and that the panel recommended narrowing the proposal so it would function more like a legislative subcommittee.
The chair framed the measure as a historical inquiry: the USS Liberty, an American naval vessel, was attacked in the Mediterranean Sea in 1967 during the Six-Day War; American sailors were injured and killed and questions about the incident have persisted despite an apology from Israel. Committee members noted that several survivors traveled long distances to testify before the subcommittee.
Members acknowledged limits on state authority. Representative Mannion and other members said the state cannot easily compel federal records or witnesses and recommended preserving on‑the‑record testimony and sending the recorded materials to the state’s federal delegation so those members can pursue subpoenas or other federal remedies.
Representative Gagne, a former navy servicemember, asked why a gag order had been imposed on some participants and questioned why an unescorted, unarmed ship had been in the area; he described a need for federal answers. Other members urged sensitivity to veterans’ wishes for closure while being transparent about what the state can accomplish.
The clerk recorded a committee roll call on the motion to recommend HB 1041 for future legislation; the motion passed 14–0. The committee’s recommendation is procedural — an interim-study endorsement — not a final enactment of law. The chair said that, should the committee’s report be finalized, it would be appropriate to share the vote and the recorded testimony with the federal delegation and other interested parties.
Next steps: HB 1041 was forwarded as a committee recommendation for future legislation; any further investigative authority would rest with federal officials, to whom committee members said they intend to send the subcommittee record.
