I 

108TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 1623

To amend title 44, United States Code, to direct the Archivist of the United 

States to maintain an inventory of all gifts received from domestic 

sources for the President, the Executive Residence at the White House, 

or a Presidential archival depository. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

APRIL 3, 2003

Mr. OSE introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee 

on Government Reform 

A BILL

To amend title 44, United States Code, to direct the Archivist of the United States to maintain an inventory of 

all gifts received from domestic sources for the President, 

the Executive Residence at the White House, or a Presidential archival depository.

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 ‘‘Presidential Gifts Ac5 countability Act’’.

6 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

7 The Congress finds the following: 
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1 (1) There is no clear accountability for Presi2 dential gifts, since multiple lists of such gifts are 

3 separately maintained by different Federal agencies, 

4 including by the White House Gifts Unit, the Na5 tional Park Service, and the National Archives and 

6 Records Administration. 

7 (2) House Report 107–768, ‘‘Problems with the 

8 Presidential Gifts System’’, presents additional in9 formation about the complexity of and problems with 

10 the current system. 

11 (3) The lack of a consolidated record of the re12 ceipt, administration, and disposition of Presidential 

13 gifts creates confusion about the status of some of 

14 those gifts. 

15 (4) Requiring the National Archives and 

16 Records Administration to maintain an inventory of 

17 Presidential gifts would eliminate such confusion 

18 and ensure accountability. 

19 SEC. 3. INVENTORY OF PRESIDENTIAL GIFTS. 

20 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 22 of title 44, United 

21 States Code, is amended by adding at the end the fol22 lowing: 

23 ‘‘§ 2208. Inventory of Presidential gifts 

24 ‘‘(a) The Archivist shall maintain a current inventory 

25 of all Presidential gifts. 
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1 ‘‘(b) The inventory shall include, with respect to each 

2 Presidential gift, the following information: 

3 ‘‘(1) The date of receipt by the Federal Govern4 ment. 

5 ‘‘(2) A description. 

6 ‘‘(3) The estimated cost or appraised value. 

7 ‘‘(4) The donor. 

8 ‘‘(5) Any indication of whether the intent of the 

9 donor was to make the gift to the United States or 

10 to the President personally. 

11 ‘‘(6) The current location and status of the gift, 

12 including identification of the Federal agency or 

13 other person having control of the gift.

14 ‘‘(c) The head of a Federal office or agency, including 

15 any unit in the Executive Office of the President, having 

16 possession of any record containing information regarding 

17 the receipt, location, control, or disposition of a Presi18 dential gift shall, upon receipt of such information, report 

19 such information to the Archivist in accordance with regu20 lations issued by the Archivist under this section. 

21 ‘‘(d)(1) The Archivist shall make available to the pub22 lic, upon request, any information in the inventory main23 tained under this section. 

24 ‘‘(2)(A) With respect to each Presidential gift in a 

25 year from any person who makes Presidential gifts in the 
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1 year having a cumulative value of $100 or more, the Ar2 chivist shall disclose to the public by not later than May 

3 15 of the succeeding year the following information: 

4 ‘‘(i) The date of receipt by the Federal Govern5 ment. 

6 ‘‘(ii) A description. 

7 ‘‘(iii) The estimated cost or appraised value. 

8 ‘‘(iv) The donor and the donor’s employer. 

9 ‘‘(v) The circumstance under which the gift was 

10 made. 

11 ‘‘(B) Subparagraph (A) shall not apply with respect 

12 to any gift from a foreign government (as that term is 

13 defined in section 7342(a) of title 5). 

14 ‘‘(e) The Archivist shall report to the Committee on 

15 Governmental Affairs of the Senate and the Committee 

16 on Government Reform of the House of Representatives 

17 each disposition of a Presidential gift other than a gift 

18 having a value of less than $100.

19 ‘‘(f)(1) The Archivist shall issue regulations imple20 menting this section. 

21 ‘‘(2) The Archivist may not issue any nonbinding 

22 guidance for purposes of this section. 

23 ‘‘(g) In this section: 
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1 ‘‘(1) The term ‘gift’ has the meaning that term 

2 has under section 109 of the Ethics in Government 

3 Act of 1978. 

4 ‘‘(2) The term ‘Presidential gift’—

5 ‘‘(A) subject to subparagraph (B), means 

6 any gift to or for the benefit of—

7 ‘‘(i) the President personally, the 

8 spouse of the President, or any dependent 

9 child of the President; 

10 ‘‘(ii) the President in his or her offi11 cial capacity; 

12 ‘‘(iii) the Executive Residence at the 

13 White House; or 

14 ‘‘(iv) a Presidential archival deposi15 tory (as that term is used in chapter 21); 

16 and 

17 ‘‘(B) does not include a gift from a relative 

18 of an individual to whom the gift is made. 

19 ‘‘(3) The term ‘relative’, with respect to an in20 dividual—

21 ‘‘(A) means another individual—

22 ‘‘(i) who is related to the individual 

23 concerned, as father, mother, son, daugh24 ter, brother, sister, uncle, aunt, great aunt, 

25 great uncle, first cousin, nephew, niece, 
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1 husband, wife, grandfather, grandmother, 

2 grandson, granddaughter, father-in-law, 

3 mother-in-law, son-in-law, daughter-in-law, 

4 brother-in-law, sister-in-law, stepfather, 

5 stepmother, stepson, stepdaughter, step6 brother, stepsister, half brother, half sister, 

7 or 

8 ‘‘(ii) who is the grandfather or grand9 mother of the spouse of the individual con10 cerned; and 

11 ‘‘(B) includes the fiance or fiancee of the 

12 individual concerned.’’. 

13 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 

14 for chapter 22 of title 44, United States Code, is amended 

15 by adding at the end the following:

‘‘2208. Inventory of Presidential gifts.’’.

16 SEC. 4. RESTRICTIONS RELATING TO GIFTS TO THE PRESI17 DENT OR SPOUSE OF THE PRESIDENT. 

18 Title I of the Ethics in Government Act of 1978 (5 

19 App. U.S.C.) is amended by adding at the end the fol20 lowing: 

21 ‘‘RESTRICTIONS RELATING TO GIFTS TO THE PRESIDENT

22 OR SPOUSE OF THE PRESIDENT. 

23 ‘‘SEC. 112. (a) The President, and the spouse of the 

24 President, may not—
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1 ‘‘(1) accept any gift of stock in a corporation or 

2 any gift certificate; 

3 ‘‘(2) accept gifts from a single source in a year 

4 having a cumulative value greater than $1,000, ex5 cept a personalized, honorific award; 

6 ‘‘(3) accept any gift in the period beginning on 

7 the date of any presidential election occurring in the 

8 President’s term of office and ending on the date of 

9 the beginning of the next presidential term of office, 

10 unless the President is reelected to serve as Presi11 dent for that next term; 

12 ‘‘(4) solicit or coordinate the making of any gift 

13 to the President or the spouse of the President; or 

14 ‘‘(5) seek to have any other person solicit or co15 ordinate the making of any gift to the President or 

16 the spouse of the President. 

17 ‘‘(b) An individual elected as President, and the 

18 spouse of the individual, may not accept any gift in the 

19 period beginning on the date of the election of the indi20 vidual as President and ending on the date of the begin21 ning of the next presidential term of office. 

22 ‘‘(c) Any gift that a President, individual elected as 

23 President, or spouse is prohibited from accepting under 

24 this section—
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1 ‘‘(1) shall be returned to the person making the 

2 gift, by not later than 90 days after the date the gift 

3 is made; or 

4 ‘‘(2) if not returned within that period—

5 ‘‘(A) shall be the property of the United 

6 States; and 

7 ‘‘(B) shall not be deposited in a Presi8 dential archival depository, as that term is used 

9 in chapter 21 of title 44, United States Code. 

10 ‘‘(d) This section does not apply with respect to any 

11 gift from a foreign government (as that term is defined 

12 in section 7342(a) of title 5) or from a relative of an indi13 vidual to whom the gift is made.’’.

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