I 

110TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 1754 

To establish the House Ethics Commission, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

MARCH 29, 2007 

Mr. HILL (for himself, Mr. PATRICK J. MURPHY of Pennsylvania, Mr. MOORE

of Kansas, Mr. MAHONEY of Florida, Mr. MCNERNEY, Mr. COHEN, Mr. 

VISCLOSKY, Mr. ELLSWORTH, Ms. CASTOR, Mr. BRALEY of Iowa, and 

Mr. WALZ of Minnesota) introduced the following bill; which was referred 

to the Committee on House Administration, and in addition to the Committee on Rules, 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 establish the House Ethics Commission, 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 ‘‘House Ethics Commis5 sion Establishment Act of 2007’’. 

6 SEC. 2. ESTABLISHMENT OF HOUSE ETHICS COMMISSION. 

7 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established an inde8 pendent ethics commission within the legislative branch of 


ycherry on PROD1PC64 with BILLS
2 

•HR 1754 IH 

1 the Government to be known as the House Ethics Com2 mission (in this Act referred to as the ‘‘Commission’’). 

3 (b) MEMBERSHIP AND TERMS OF OFFICE.—(1) The 

4 Commission shall consist of 12 individuals. Six former 

5 Democratic Members shall be appointed by the Republican 

6 leader and 6 former Republican Members by the Demo7 cratic leader of the House of Representatives. Except as 

8 provided by paragraph (2), the terms of all members of 

9 the Commission shall be 2 years and no member may serve 

10 for more than 6 years. 

11 (2) Of the members first appointed— 

12 (A) 2 appointed by each leader shall be for a 

13 term of 2 years; 

14 (B) 2 appointed by each leader shall be for a 

15 term of 4 years; and 

16 (C) 2 appointed by each leader shall be for a 

17 term of 6 years; 

18 as designated by each such leader at the time of appoint19 ment. 

20 (c) CHAIRMAN AND VICE CHAIRMAN.—The chairman 

21 and the vice chairman of the Commission shall be selected 

22 by the members of the Commission at its first meeting. 

23 No member may serve for more than one 2-year term as 

24 chairman and no member may serve for more than one 

25 2-year term as vice chairman. 


ycherry on PROD1PC64 with BILLS
3 

•HR 1754 IH 

1 (d) QUALIFICATIONS.—Only former Members of the 

2 House of Representatives shall be eligible for appointment 

3 to the Commission. 

4 (1) DISQUALIFICATIONS FOR APPOINTMENTS.— 

5 (A) LOBBYING.—No individual who has 

6 been a lobbyist registered under the Lobbying 

7 Disclosure Act of 1995 or engages in, or is oth8 erwise employed in, lobbying of the Congress or 

9 who is an agent of a foreign principal registered 

10 under the Foreign Agents Registration Act 

11 within the 4-year period immediately preceding 

12 appointment shall be eligible for appointment 

13 to, or service on, the Commission. 

14 (B) INCOMPATIBLE OFFICE.—No member 

15 of the Commission appointed under subsection 

16 (b) may be an elected public official or an offi17 cer or employee of the Government. 

18 (2) VACANCIES.—A vacancy on the Commission 

19 shall be filled in the manner in which the original 

20 appointment was made. 

21 (e) COMPENSATION.—Members shall each be entitled 

22 to receive the daily equivalent of the maximum annual rate 

23 of basic pay in effect for Level III of the Executive Sched24 ule for each day (including travel time) during which they 


ycherry on PROD1PC64 with BILLS
4 

•HR 1754 IH 

1 are engaged in the actual performance of duties vested in 

2 the Commission. 

3 (f) QUORUM.—A majority of the members of the 

4 Commission shall constitute a quorum. 

5 (g) MEETINGS.—The Commission shall meet at the 

6 call of the chairman or a majority of its members. 

7 SEC. 3. DUTIES OF COMMISSION. 

8 The Commission is authorized— 

9 (1) to investigate any alleged violation, by a 

10 Member, officer, or employee of the House of Rep11 resentatives, of any law, rule, regulation, or other 

12 standard of conduct applicable to the conduct of 

13 such Member, officer, or employee in the perform14 ance of his duties or the discharge of his responsibil15 ities, and after notice and hearing (unless the right 

16 to a hearing is waived by the Member, officer, or 

17 employee), shall report to the House of Representa18 tives its findings of fact and recommendations, if 

19 any, upon the final disposition of any such investiga20 tion, and such action as the Commission may deem 

21 appropriate in the circumstances; 

22 (2) to issue any letter of reproval or admonish23 ment with respect to such an alleged violation; 

24 (3) to report to the appropriate Federal or 

25 State authorities any substantial evidence of a violaVerDate Aug 31 2005 21:41 Apr 10, 2007 Jkt 059200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H1754.IH H1754

ycherry on PROD1PC64 with BILLS
5 

•HR 1754 IH 

1 tion, by a Member, officer, or employee of the House 

2 of Representatives, of any law applicable to the per3 formance of his duties or the discharge of his re4 sponsibilities, which may have been disclosed in a 

5 Commission investigation; and 

6 (4) to adopt rules governing its procedures to 

7 provide protections to respondents comparable to 

8 those that were provided by clause 3 of rule XI of 

9 the Rules of the House of Representatives in effect 

10 immediately before the amendments to such rule 

11 made by section 8. 

12 SEC. 4. POWERS OF COMMISSION. 

13 (a) HEARINGS AND EVIDENCE.—The Commission or, 

14 on the authority of the Commission, the chairman or vice 

15 chairman, may, for the purpose of carrying out this Act— 

16 (1) hold such hearings and sit and act at such 

17 times and places, take such testimony, receive such 

18 evidence, administer such oaths; and 

19 (2) subject to subsection (b), require, by sub20 poena or otherwise, the attendance and testimony of 

21 such witnesses and the production of such books, 

22 records, correspondence, memoranda, papers, and 

23 documents, as the Commission or the chairman or 

24 vice chairman may determine advisable. 

25 (b) SUBPOENAS.— 


ycherry on PROD1PC64 with BILLS
6 

•HR 1754 IH 

1 (1) IN GENERAL.—A subpoena may be issued 

2 only under the signature of the chairman or the vice 

3 chairman, and may be served by any person des4 ignated by the chairman or the vice chairman. 

5 (c) OBTAINING INFORMATION.—Upon request of the 

6 Commission, the head of any agency or instrumentality 

7 of the Government shall furnish information deemed nec8 essary by the panel to enable it to carry out its duties. 

9 SEC. 5. PROCEDURAL RULES. 

10 (a) MAJORITY APPROVAL.—No report or rec11 ommendation relating to the official conduct of a Member, 

12 officer, or employee of the House of Representatives shall 

13 be made by the Commission, and no investigation of such 

14 conduct shall be undertaken by the Commission, unless 

15 approved by the affirmative vote of a majority of the mem16 bers of the Commission. 

17 (b) INVESTIGATIONS.—Except in the case of an in18 vestigation undertaken by the Commission on its own ini19 tiative, the Commission may undertake an investigation 

20 relating to the official conduct of an individual Member, 

21 officer, or employee of the House of Representatives 

22 only— 

23 (1) upon receipt of a complaint, in writing and 

24 under oath, made by or submitted to a Member of 


ycherry on PROD1PC64 with BILLS
7 

•HR 1754 IH 

1 the House of Representatives and transmitted to the 

2 Commission by such Member, or 

3 (2) upon receipt of a complaint from the chair4 man of the Committee on Standards of Official Con5 duct of the House of Representatives, in writing and 

6 under oath, made by that committee. 

7 (c) PROHIBITION OF CERTAIN INVESTIGATIONS.—No 

8 investigation shall be undertaken by the Commission of 

9 any alleged violation of a law, rule, regulation, or standard 

10 of conduct not in effect at the time of the alleged violation. 

11 (d) DISCLOSURE.—No information or testimony re12 ceived, or the contents of a complaint or the fact of its 

13 filing, shall be publicly disclosed by any member of the 

14 Commission or staff of the Commission unless specifically 

15 authorized in each instance by a vote of the Commission. 

16 SEC. 6. STAFF OF COMMISSION. 

17 The Commission may appoint and fix the compensa18 tion of such staff as the Commission considers necessary 

19 to perform its duties. The director shall be appointed 

20 jointly by the Speaker and minority leader and shall be 

21 paid at a rate not to exceed the rate of basic pay payable 

22 for Level III of the Executive Schedule. 

23 SEC. 7. ACTION ON COMMISSION RECOMMENDATIONS. 

24 (a) PRINTING OF REPORTS IN CONGRESSIONAL

25 RECORD.—Upon receipt by the Committee on Standards 


ycherry on PROD1PC64 with BILLS
8 

•HR 1754 IH 

1 of Official Conduct of the House of Representatives of any 

2 report of the Commission, the Speaker of the House of 

3 Representatives shall have the report printed in the Con4 gressional Record. 

5 (b) HOUSE CONSIDERATION OF INDEPENDENT ETH6 ICS COMMISSION RECOMMENDATIONS.—Within 14 cal7 endar days after a report referred to in subsection (a) is 

8 printed in the Congressional Record, that portion of the 

9 report recommending action by the House of Representa10 tives respecting any alleged violation, by a Member, offi11 cer, or employee of the House of Representatives, of any 

12 law, rule, regulation, or other standard of conduct applica13 ble to the conduct of such Member, officer, or employee 

14 in the performance of his duties or the discharge of his 

15 responsibilities shall be introduced (by request) in the 

16 House by the Speaker of the House, for himself and the 

17 minority leader of the House in the form of a resolution. 

18 This resolution shall constitute a question of privilege 

19 under rule IX of the Rules of the House of Representa20 tives. Any Member favoring the resolution may call it up 

21 as a question of privilege but only on the third day after 

22 the calendar date upon which such Member announces to 

23 the House his intention to do so. 


ycherry on PROD1PC64 with BILLS
9 

•HR 1754 IH 

1 SEC. 8. AMENDMENTS TO THE RULES OF THE HOUSE TO 

2 CHANGE THE DUTIES OF THE COMMITTEE ON 

3 STANDARDS OF OFFICIAL CONDUCT. 

4 (a) HOUSE RULES AMENDMENTS.—Clause 3 of rule 

5 XI of the Rules of the House of Representatives is amend6 ed as follows: 

7 (1) In paragraph (a), strike subparagraphs (1), 

8 (2), and (3), and redesignate subparagraphs (4), 

9 (5), and (6), as subparagraphs (1), (2), and (3), re10 spectively. 

11 (2)(A) Paragraph (b)(1) is amended by striking 

12 ‘‘(A)’’, by striking ‘‘a resolution, report, rec13 ommendation, or’’ and inserting ‘‘an’’, and by strik14 ing ‘‘, or, except as provided in subparagraph (2), 

15 undertake an investigation’’, and by striking subdivi16 sion (B). 

17 (B) Paragraph (b) is further amended by strik18 ing subparagraphs (2), (3), (4), and (5) and by re19 designating subparagraphs (6) and (7) as subpara20 graphs (2) and (3), respectively. 

21 (3) Strike paragraphs (j) (k), (l), (m), (n), (o), 

22 (p), and (q). 

23 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—Section 803 of the 

24 Ethics Reform Act of 1989 (2 U.S.C. 29d) is amended 

25 by striking subsections (c) and (d). 


ycherry on PROD1PC64 with BILLS
10 

•HR 1754 IH 

1 SEC. 9. EFFECTIVE DATE. 

2 This Act shall take effect upon the date of its enact3 ment, except that sections 3, 4, and 8 shall not take effect 

4 until the later of 6 months after such date of enactment 

5 or immediately prior to noon January 3, 2009. 

Æ 


ycherry on PROD1PC64 with BILLS