I 

116TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 47 

To create an alternative prosecutor for certain Federal offenses. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JANUARY 3, 2019 

Ms. JACKSON LEE introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 

Committee on the Judiciary 

A BILL 

To create an alternative prosecutor for certain Federal 

offenses. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Trusted, Reliable, Un5 questioned Method of Procedure for Special Counsel Ap6 pointment, Limitations, and Powers Act of 2019’’ or the 

7 ‘‘TRUMP Special Counsel Act’’. 

8 SEC. 2. GROUNDS FOR APPOINTING A SPECIAL COUNSEL. 

9 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Attorney General shall ap10 point a Special Counsel when the Attorney General deter11 mines that— 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS
2 

•HR 47 IH

1 (1) criminal investigation of a person or matter 

2 is warranted; 

3 (2) that investigation or prosecution of that 

4 person or matter by a United States Attorney’s Of5 fice or litigating Division of the Department of Jus6 tice would present a conflict of interest for the De7 partment or other extraordinary circumstances; and 

8 (3) under the circumstances, it would be in the 

9 public interest to appoint an outside Special Counsel 

10 to assume responsibility for the matter. 

11 (b) EXTRAORDINARY CIRCUMSTANCES.—For the 

12 purposes of subsection (a) extraordinary circumstances 

13 exist in any criminal investigation— 

14 (1) of the President, Vice President, their 

15 spouses or children, or any organization, enterprise, 

16 or entity owned by, under the control of, or serving 

17 the interests of the President or Vice President; or 

18 (2) which involves the activities of agents or en19 tities under the control of or allied with a foreign 

20 state acting in concert with agents, organizations or 

21 entities associated with the President or the Vice 

22 President. 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS
3 

•HR 47 IH

1 SEC. 3. ALTERNATIVES AVAILABLE TO THE ATTORNEY 

2 GENERAL. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—When matters are brought to the 

4 attention of the Attorney General that might warrant con5 sideration of appointment of a Special Counsel, the Attor6 ney General may— 

7 (1) appoint a Special Counsel; 

8 (2) direct that an initial investigation, con9 sisting of such factual inquiry or legal research as 

10 the Attorney General deems appropriate, be con11 ducted in order to better inform the decision; or 

12 (3) conclude that under the circumstances of 

13 the matter, the public interest would not be served 

14 by removing the investigation from the normal proc15 esses of the Department, and that the appropriate 

16 component of the Department should handle the 

17 matter. 

18 (b) MITIGATION OF CONFLICTS OF INTEREST.—If 

19 the Attorney General reaches the conclusion described in 

20 subsection (a)(3), the Attorney General may direct that 

21 appropriate steps be taken to mitigate any conflicts of in22 terest, such as recusal of particular officials. 

23 SEC. 4. QUALIFICATIONS OF THE SPECIAL COUNSEL. 

24 (a) IN GENERAL.—An individual named as Special 

25 Counsel shall be a lawyer with a reputation for integrity 

26 and impartial decisionmaking, and with appropriate expeVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:21 Jan 09, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H47.IH H47

kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS
4 

•HR 47 IH

1 rience to ensure both that the investigation will be con2 ducted ably, expeditiously and thoroughly, and that inves3 tigative and prosecutorial decisions will be supported by 

4 an informed understanding of the criminal law and De5 partment of Justice policies. The Special Counsel shall be 

6 selected from outside the United States Government. Spe7 cial Counsels shall agree that their responsibilities as Spe8 cial Counsel shall take first precedence in their profes9 sional lives, and that it may be necessary to devote their 

10 full time to the investigation, depending on its complexity 

11 and the stage of the investigation. 

12 (b) METHOD OF APPOINTMENT; BACKGROUND IN13 VESTIGATION.—The Attorney General shall consult with 

14 the Assistant Attorney General for Administration to en15 sure an appropriate method of appointment, and to ensure 

16 that a Special Counsel undergoes an appropriate back17 ground investigation and a detailed review of ethics and 

18 conflicts of interest issues. A Special Counsel shall be ap19 pointed as a ‘‘confidential employee’’ as defined in section 

20 7511(b)(2)(C) of title 5, United States Code. 

21 SEC. 5. JURISDICTION. 

22 (a) ORIGINAL JURISDICTION.—The jurisdiction of a 

23 Special Counsel shall be established by the Attorney Gen24 eral. The Attorney General shall provide to the Special 

25 Counsel a specific factual statement of the matter to be 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS
5 

•HR 47 IH

1 investigated. The jurisdiction of a Special Counsel shall 

2 also include the authority to investigate and prosecute 

3 Federal crimes committed in the course of, and with intent 

4 to interfere with, the Special Counsel’s investigation, such 

5 as perjury, obstruction of justice, destruction of evidence, 

6 and intimidation of witnesses; and to conduct appeals aris7 ing out of any matter being investigated or prosecuted. 

8 (b) ADDITIONAL JURISDICTION.—If in the course of 

9 an investigation the Special Counsel concludes that addi10 tional jurisdiction beyond that specified in the original ju11 risdiction is necessary in order to fully investigate and re12 solve the matters assigned, or to investigate new matters 

13 that come to light in the course of the investigation, the 

14 Special Counsel shall consult with the Attorney General, 

15 who will determine whether to include the additional mat16 ters within the Special Counsel’s jurisdiction or assign 

17 them elsewhere. 

18 (c) CIVIL AND ADMINISTRATIVE JURISDICTION.—If 

19 in the course of an investigation the Special Counsel deter20 mines that administrative remedies, civil sanctions or 

21 other governmental action outside the criminal justice sys22 tem might be appropriate, the Special Counsel shall con23 sult with the Attorney General with respect to the appro24 priate component to take any necessary action. A Special 

25 Counsel shall not have civil or administrative authority unVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:21 Jan 09, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H47.IH H47

kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS
6 

•HR 47 IH

1 less specifically granted such jurisdiction by the Attorney 

2 General. 

3 SEC. 6. STAFF. 

4 A Special Counsel may request the assignment of ap5 propriate Department employees to assist the Special 

6 Counsel. The Department shall gather and provide the 

7 Special Counsel with the names and re ́sume ́s of appro8 priate personnel available for detail. The Special Counsel 

9 may also request the detail of specific employees, and the 

10 office for which the designated employee works shall make 

11 reasonable efforts to accommodate the request. The Spe12 cial Counsel shall assign the duties and supervise the work 

13 of such employees while they are assigned to the Special 

14 Counsel. If necessary, the Special Counsel may request 

15 that additional personnel be hired or assigned from out16 side the Department. All personnel in the Department 

17 shall cooperate to the fullest extent possible with the Spe18 cial Counsel. 

19 SEC. 7. POWERS AND AUTHORITY. 

20 Subject to the limitations in section 8, the Special 

21 Counsel shall exercise, within the scope of the Special 

22 Counsel’s jurisdiction, the full power and independent au23 thority to exercise all investigative and prosecutorial func24 tions of any United States Attorney. Except as provided 

25 in this part, the Special Counsel shall determine whether 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS
7 

•HR 47 IH

1 and to what extent to inform or consult with the Attorney 

2 General or others within the Department about the con3 duct of the Special Counsel’s duties and responsibilities. 

4 SEC. 8. CONDUCT AND ACCOUNTABILITY. 

5 (a) RULES OF THE DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE.—A 

6 Special Counsel shall comply with the rules, regulations, 

7 procedures, practices and policies of the Department of 

8 Justice. The Special Counsel shall consult with appro9 priate offices within the Department for guidance with re10 spect to established practices, policies and procedures of 

11 the Department, including ethics and security regulations 

12 and procedures. Should the Special Counsel conclude that 

13 the extraordinary circumstances of any particular decision 

14 would render compliance with required review and ap15 proval procedures by the designated Departmental compo16 nent inappropriate, the Special Counsel may consult di17 rectly with the Attorney General. 

18 (b) SUPERVISION BY OFFICIALS OF DEPARTMENT OF

19 JUSTICE.—The Special Counsel shall not be subject to the 

20 day-to-day supervision of any official of the Department. 

21 However, the Attorney General may request that the Spe22 cial Counsel provide an explanation for any investigative 

23 or prosecutorial step, and may after review conclude that 

24 the action is so inappropriate or unwarranted under estab25 lished Departmental practices that it should not be purVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:21 Jan 09, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H47.IH H47

kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS
8 

•HR 47 IH

1 sued. In conducting that review, the Attorney General will 

2 give great weight to the views of the Special Counsel. If 

3 the Attorney General concludes that a proposed action by 

4 a Special Counsel should not be pursued, the Attorney 

5 General shall notify Congress as specified in section 

6 11(a)(3). 

7 (c) ETHICAL DUTIES.—The Special Counsel and 

8 staff shall be subject to disciplinary action for misconduct 

9 and breach of ethical duties under the same standards and 

10 to the same extent as are other employees of the Depart11 ment of Justice. Inquiries into such matters shall be han12 dled through the appropriate office of the Department 

13 upon the approval of the Attorney General. 

14 (d) DISCIPLINE AND REMOVAL.—The Special Coun15 sel may be disciplined or removed from office only by the 

16 personal action of the Attorney General. The Attorney 

17 General may remove a Special Counsel for misconduct, 

18 dereliction of duty, incapacity, conflict of interest, or for 

19 other good cause, including violation of Departmental poli20 cies. The Attorney General shall inform the Special Coun21 sel in writing of the specific reason for the removal. 

22 SEC. 9. NOTIFICATION AND REPORTS BY THE SPECIAL 

23 COUNSEL. 

24 (a) BUDGET.— 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS
9 

•HR 47 IH

1 (1) A Special Counsel shall be provided all ap2 propriate resources by the Department of Justice. 

3 Within the first 60 days of appointment, the Special 

4 Counsel shall develop a proposed budget for the cur5 rent fiscal year with the assistance of the Justice 

6 Management Division for the Attorney General’s re7 view and approval. Based on the proposal, the Attor8 ney General shall establish a budget for the oper9 ations of the Special Counsel. The budget shall in10 clude a request for assignment of personnel, with a 

11 description of the qualifications needed. 

12 (2) Thereafter, 90 days before the beginning of 

13 each fiscal year, the Special Counsel shall report to 

14 the Attorney General the status of the investigation, 

15 and provide a budget request for the following year. 

16 The Attorney General shall determine whether the 

17 investigation should continue and, if so, establish the 

18 budget for the next year. 

19 (b) NOTIFICATION OF SIGNIFICANT EVENTS.—The 

20 Special Counsel shall notify the Attorney General of events 

21 in the course of the investigation in conformity with the 

22 Departmental guidelines with respect to Urgent Reports. 

23 (c) CLOSING DOCUMENTATION.—At the conclusion of 

24 the Special Counsel’s work, the Special Counsel shall pro25 vide the Attorney General with a confidential report exVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:21 Jan 09, 2019 Jkt 089200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H47.IH H47

kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS
10 

•HR 47 IH

1 plaining the prosecution or declination decisions reached 

2 by the Special Counsel. 

3 SEC. 10. NOTIFICATION AND REPORTS BY THE ATTORNEY 

4 GENERAL. 

5 (a) NOTIFICATION.—The Attorney General shall no6 tify the Chairman and Ranking Minority Member of the 

7 Judiciary Committees of each House of Congress, with an 

8 explanation for each action— 

9 (1) upon appointing a Special Counsel; 

10 (2) upon removing any Special Counsel; and 

11 (3) upon conclusion of the Special Counsel’s in12 vestigation, including, to the extent consistent with 

13 applicable law, a description and explanation of in14 stances (if any) in which the Attorney General con15 cluded that a proposed action by a Special Counsel 

16 was so inappropriate or unwarranted under estab17 lished Departmental practices that it should not be 

18 pursued. 

19 (b) DELAY OF NOTIFICATION.—The notification re20 quirement in subsection (a)(1) of this section may be 

21 tolled by the Attorney General upon a finding that legiti22 mate investigative or privacy concerns require confiden23 tiality. At such time as confidentiality is no longer needed, 

24 the notification shall be provided. 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS
11 

•HR 47 IH

1 (c) PUBLIC RELEASE.—The Attorney General may 

2 determine that public release of these reports would be 

3 in the public interest, to the extent that release would 

4 comply with applicable legal restrictions. All other releases 

5 of information by any Department of Justice employee, 

6 including the Special Counsel and staff, concerning mat7 ters handled by Special Counsels shall be governed by the 

8 generally applicable Departmental guidelines concerning 

9 public comment with respect to any criminal investigation, 

10 and relevant law. 

11 SEC. 11. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

12 (a) IN GENERAL.—There are authorized to be appro13 priated to carry out this Act $100,000,000 for each of 

14 the fiscal years 2020 through 2024. 

15 (b) AVAILABILITY.—Funds appropriated under sub16 section (a) shall remain available until expended. 

Æ 


kjohnson on DSK79L0C42 with BILLS