I 

118TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 7219 

To ensure that Federal agencies rely on the best reasonably available scientific, technical, demographic, economic, and statistical information and 

evidence to develop, issue or inform the public of the nature and bases 

of Federal agency rules and guidance, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

FEBRUARY 5, 2024 

Mrs. MCCLAIN (for herself and Ms. PORTER) introduced the following bill; 

which was referred to the Committee on Oversight and Accountability, 

and in addition to the Committee on the Judiciary, for a period to be 

subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration 

of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 

A BILL 

To ensure that Federal agencies rely on the best reasonably 

available scientific, technical, demographic, economic, and 

statistical information and evidence to develop, issue or 

inform the public of the nature and bases of Federal 

agency rules and guidance, and for other purposes. 

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 ‘‘Information Quality 

5 Assurance Act of 2024’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. INFORMATION QUALITY ASSURANCE. 

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subchapter 1 of chapter 35 of 

3 title 44, United States Code, is amended by adding at the 

4 end the following: 

5 ‘‘§ 3522. Information Quality Assurance. 

6 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year after the 

7 date of the enactment of the Information Quality Assur8 ance Act of 2024, the Director shall— 

9 ‘‘(1) with public and Federal agency involve10 ment, update the guidelines issued under subsection 

11 (a) of the Information Quality Act— 

12 ‘‘(A) to provide policy and procedural guid13 ance to the heads of Federal agencies for better 

14 ensuring and maximizing the quality, objec15 tivity, utility, and integrity of influential infor16 mation or evidence— 

17 ‘‘(i) used by the heads of Federal 

18 agencies to develop or issue rules and guid19 ance; or 

20 ‘‘(ii) disseminated to the public to in21 form the public about the nature and bases 

22 of such rules and guidance; and 

23 ‘‘(B) in a manner consistent with— 

24 ‘‘(i) this chapter; and 

25 ‘‘(ii) the amendments made by the 

26 Foundations for Evidence-Based PolicyVerDate Sep 11 2014 06:27 Feb 07, 2024 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H7219.IH H7219

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1 making Act of 2018 (Public Law 115– 

2 435); and 

3 ‘‘(2) make the guidelines updated under para4 graph (1) available on the website of the Office of 

5 Management and Budget. 

6 ‘‘(b) CONTENT OF GUIDELINES.—In updating the 

7 guidelines under subsection (a), the Director shall require 

8 that the head of each Federal agency to which the guide9 lines apply, not later than 1 year after the Director up10 dates such guidelines— 

11 ‘‘(1) update any guidelines issued by the head 

12 of the Federal agency under the Information Quality 

13 Act to ensure that, in the case of influential infor14 mation or evidence, the best reasonably available in15 formation and evidence is relied on in developing, 

16 issuing, or informing the public about the rules and 

17 guidance of the Federal agency; 

18 ‘‘(2) publish the guidelines updated by the head 

19 of the Federal agency under paragraph (1) on the 

20 website of the Federal agency; 

21 ‘‘(3) ensure the administrative mechanisms es22 tablished under subparagraph (B) of section (b)(2) 

23 of the Information Quality Act are available with re24 spect to seeking and obtaining the correction of any 

25 influential information or evidence that the Federal 


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1 agency uses to develop or issue a rule or guideline, 

2 or disseminates to the public to inform the public of 

3 the nature and basis of any rule or guidance of the 

4 Federal agency, that does not comply with the 

5 guidelines issued under paragraph (1); and 

6 ‘‘(4) include in the report required under sub7 paragraph (C) of subsection (b)(2) of the Informa8 tion Quality Act the information described under 

9 that subparagraph with respect to any complaints 

10 received by the Federal agency related to the accu11 racy of influential information or evidence the Fed12 eral agency uses to develop, issue, or inform the 

13 public of the nature and bases of rules or guidance. 

14 ‘‘(c) PUBLIC DISCLOSURE.— 

15 ‘‘(1) AVAILABILITY.—Except as provided under 

16 paragraph (2), the head of the Federal agency shall 

17 make available in the docket for the rulemaking of 

18 any rule of the Federal agency, or in the administra19 tive record for any guidance, in a timely manner be20 fore the promulgation of the rule or issuance of the 

21 guidance document— 

22 ‘‘(A) any model, methodology, or source of 

23 scientific, technical, demographic, economic, or 

24 statistical information or evidence upon which 

25 the head of the Federal agency— 


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1 ‘‘(i) relied on in developing or issuing 

2 such rule or guidance; or 

3 ‘‘(ii) proposes to rely on in developing 

4 or issuing such rule or guidance; and 

5 ‘‘(B) an identification of whether each 

6 such model, methodology, or source constitutes, 

7 or may constitute, influential information or 

8 evidence. 

9 ‘‘(2) EXCEPTION.— 

10 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The head of the Fed11 eral agency— 

12 ‘‘(i) shall implement paragraph (1) in 

13 a manner consistent with this chapter and 

14 section 552a of title 5; and 

15 ‘‘(ii) may not make available in the 

16 docket for the rulemaking of any rule of 

17 the Federal agency, or in the administra18 tive record for any guidance, information 

19 that is prohibited from being disclosed to 

20 the public under any statute. 

21 ‘‘(B) EXPLANATION TO BE INCLUDED IN

22 DOCKET OR ADMINISTRATIVE RECORD.—If the 

23 head of the Federal agency does not make a 

24 model, methodology, or source available under 

25 paragraph (1)(A) pursuant to paragraph 


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1 (2)(A), the head of the Federal agency shall in2 clude in the docket for the rulemaking or the 

3 administrative record for the guidance docu4 ment— 

5 ‘‘(i) an explanation as to why such in6 formation cannot be made publicly avail7 able, including a citation to the applicable 

8 law and policy; and 

9 ‘‘(ii) a description of any steps being 

10 taken to increase access to such informa11 tion, even if the information cannot be 

12 made public. 

13 ‘‘(3) FORMAT OF SOURCE.—The head of each 

14 Federal agency shall make any model, methodology, 

15 or source required to be made available under para16 graph (1)(A) available as an open Government data 

17 asset. 

18 ‘‘(d) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

19 ‘‘(1) EVIDENCE.—The term ‘evidence’ has the 

20 meaning given that term in section 3561. 

21 ‘‘(2) INFLUENTIAL INFORMATION OR EVI22 DENCE.—The term ‘influential information or evi23 dence’ means information or evidence (including sci24 entific, technical, demographic, economic, financial, 

25 and statistical information or evidence) that the 


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1 head of the Federal agency can reasonably deter2 mine will have or does have a clear or substantial 

3 impact on— 

4 ‘‘(A) developing or issuing a proposed or 

5 final rule of the Federal agency; or 

6 ‘‘(B) informing the public of the nature 

7 and basis of any rule or guidance of the Fed8 eral agency. 

9 ‘‘(3) INFORMATION QUALITY ACT.—The term 

10 ‘Information Quality Act’ means section 515 of the 

11 Treasury and General Government Appropriations 

12 Act, 2001 (Public Law 106–554).’’. 

13 (b) TABLE OF CONTENTS.—The table of contents for 

14 subchapter I of chapter 35 of title 44, United States Code, 

15 is amended by adding after the item relating to section 

16 3521 the following: 

‘‘3522. Information Quality Assurance.’’. 

Æ 


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