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[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 5252 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

<DOC>

118th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 5252

  To amend title 18, United States Code to require accountability in 
        deferred prosecution agreements, and for other purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                           September 25, 2024

 Mr. Welch (for himself and Mr. Hawley) introduced the following bill; 
  which was read twice and referred to the Committee on the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL

 
  To amend title 18, United States Code to require accountability in 
        deferred prosecution agreements, and for other purposes.

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

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Hold Corporate Criminals Accountable 
Act of 2024''.

SEC. 2. ACCOUNTABILITY IN DEFERRED PROSECUTION AGREEMENTS.

    Section 3161(h)(2) of title 18, United States Code, is amended--
            (1) by striking ``Any'' and inserting ``(A) Any''; and
            (2) by adding at the end the following:
            ``(B)(i) If the defendant described in subparagraph (A) is 
        a person other than an individual, the court may not approve an 
        agreement described in that subparagraph unless the court 
        determines that the agreement is in the public interest.
            ``(ii) In determining whether to approve an agreement under 
        clause (i), the court shall consider the following factors:
                    ``(I) The reasonableness of punitive measures, 
                including financial penalties.
                    ``(II) Compliance terms or safeguards within the 
                agreement.
                    ``(III) Effective independent monitoring of 
                agreement terms to ensure compliance by the defendant.
                    ``(IV) Cooperation of the defendant with law 
                enforcement, including identifying culpable individuals 
                related to the conduct at issue.
                    ``(V) The underlying goals of the substantive law 
                violation and whether the agreements contains terms 
                unreleated to those goals.
                    ``(VI) Collateral consequences related to the 
                agreement.
                    ``(VII) The impact of the offense on the public, 
                including victims of the offense.
                    ``(VIII) The effects of the agreement on the 
                regulatory scheme.
                    ``(IX) The effects of the agreement on applicable 
                statutes of limitations and other time-related 
                interests.
                    ``(X) The appropriateness of any restitution.
                    ``(XI) The adequacy and specificity of public 
                admissions regarding the conduct at issue.
                    ``(XII) Prior criminal investigations and 
                prosecutions of the defendant.
                    ``(XIII) Any other compelling reasons to affirm or 
                reject the agreement.''.

SEC. 3. EMPIRICALLY BASED COMPLIANCE MONITORING.

    (a) In General.--Any person other than an individual who is placed 
on probation or enters into a deferred prosecution agreement that 
contains a condition of compliance monitoring shall employ independent 
monitoring that uses objective and methodologically sound metrics.
    (b) Report.--Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of 
this Act, the Attorney General shall publish a report on efforts by the 
Department of Justice to identify guidelines and increase the use of 
compliance monitoring described in subsection (a) through criminal 
prosecutions.

SEC. 4. TRANSPARENCY REQUIREMENTS ON FEDERAL AGENCIES TO ENTER INTO 
              DEFERRED PROSECUTION AGREEMENTS.

    (a) Requirements for Settlement Agreements.--
            (1) In general.--Chapter 3 of title 5, United States Code, 
        is amended by adding at the end the following:
``Sec. 307. Information regarding settlement agreements
    ``(a) Definition.--In this section, the term `covered settlement 
agreement' means a settlement agreement (including deferred prosecution 
agreements and nonprosecution agreements) that is entered into by an 
Executive agency that--
            ``(1) relates to an alleged violation of Federal civil or 
        criminal law;
            ``(2) involves an agreement to defer prosecution or 
        withhold prosecution of the alleged violation; and
            ``(3) requires the payment of a total of not less than 
        $1,000,000 by 1 or more non-Federal persons.
    ``(b) Information To Be Posted Online.--
            ``(1) Requirement.--
                    ``(A) In general.--Subject to subparagraph (B), the 
                head of each Executive agency shall make publicly 
                available in a searchable format in a prominent 
                location on the website of the Executive agency--
                            ``(i) a list of each covered settlement 
                        agreement entered into by the Executive agency, 
                        which shall include, for each covered 
                        settlement agreement--
                                    ``(I) the date on which the parties 
                                entered into the covered settlement 
                                agreement;
                                    ``(II) the names of the parties 
                                that settled claims under the covered 
                                settlement agreement;
                                    ``(III) a description of the claims 
                                each party settled under the covered 
                                settlement agreement;
                                    ``(IV) the amount each party 
                                settling a claim under the covered 
                                settlement agreement is obligated to 
                                pay under the settlement agreement;
                                    ``(V) the total amount the settling 
                                parties are obligated to pay under the 
                                settlement agreement;
                                    ``(VI) for each settling party--
                                            ``(aa) the amount, if any, 
                                        the settling party is obligated 
                                        to pay that is expressly 
                                        specified under the covered 
                                        settlement agreement as a civil 
                                        or criminal penalty or fine; 
                                        and
                                            ``(bb) the amount, if any, 
                                        that is expressly specified 
                                        under the covered settlement 
                                        agreement as not deductible for 
                                        purposes of the Internal 
                                        Revenue Code of 1986; and
                                    ``(VII) a description of where 
                                amounts collected under the covered 
                                settlement agreement will be deposited, 
                                including, if applicable, the deposit 
                                of such amounts in an account available 
                                for use for 1 or more programs of the 
                                Federal Government; and
                            ``(ii) a copy of each covered settlement 
                        agreement entered into by the Executive agency.
                    ``(B) Confidentiality provisions.--The requirement 
                to disclose information or a copy of a covered 
                settlement agreement under subparagraph (A) shall apply 
                to the extent that the information or copy (or portion 
                thereof) is not subject to a confidentiality provision 
                that prohibits disclosure of the information or copy 
                (or portion thereof).
            ``(2) Period.--The head of each Executive agency shall 
        ensure that--
                    ``(A) information regarding a covered settlement 
                agreement is publicly available on the list described 
                in paragraph (1)(A)(i) for a period of not less than 5 
                years, beginning on the date of the covered settlement 
                agreement; and
                    ``(B) a copy of a covered settlement agreement made 
                available under paragraph (1)(A)(ii) is publicly 
                available--
                            ``(i) for a period of not less than 5 
                        years, beginning on the date of the covered 
                        settlement agreement; or
                            ``(ii) for a covered settlement agreement 
                        under which a non-Federal person is required to 
                        pay not less than $50,000,000, for a period of 
                        not less than 10 years, beginning on the date 
                        of the covered settlement agreement.
    ``(c) Public Statement.--If the head of an Executive agency 
determines that a confidentiality provision in a covered settlement 
agreement, or the sealing of a covered settlement agreement, is 
required to protect the public interest of the United States, the head 
of the Executive agency shall issue a public statement stating why such 
action is required to protect the public interest of the United States, 
which shall explain--
            ``(1) what interests confidentiality protects; and
            ``(2) why the interests protected by confidentiality 
        outweigh the public's interest in knowing about the conduct of 
        the Federal Government and the expenditure of Federal 
        resources.
    ``(d) Requirements for Written Public Statements.--Any written 
public statement issued by an Executive agency that refers to an amount 
to be paid by a non-Federal person under a covered settlement agreement 
shall--
            ``(1) specify which portion, if any, of the amount to be 
        paid under the covered settlement agreement by a non-Federal 
        person--
                    ``(A) is expressly specified under the covered 
                settlement agreement as a civil or criminal penalty or 
                fine to be paid for a violation of Federal law; or
                    ``(B) is expressly specified under the covered 
                settlement agreement as not deductible for purposes of 
                the Internal Revenue Code of 1986;
            ``(2) if no portion of the amount to be paid under the 
        covered settlement agreement by a non-Federal person is 
        expressly specified under the covered settlement agreement as a 
        civil or criminal penalty or fine, include a statement 
        specifying that is the case; and
            ``(3) describe in detail--
                    ``(A) any actions the non-Federal person shall take 
                under the covered settlement agreement in lieu of 
                payment to the Federal Government or a State or local 
                government; and
                    ``(B) any payments or compensation the non-Federal 
                person shall make to other non-Federal persons under 
                the covered settlement agreement.
    ``(e) Confidentiality.--The requirement to disclose information 
under subsection (d) shall apply to the extent that the information to 
be disclosed (or portion thereof) is not subject to a confidentiality 
provision that prohibits disclosure of the information (or portion 
thereof).
    ``(f) Reporting.--
            ``(1) In general.--Not later than January 31 of each year, 
        the head of an Executive agency that entered into a covered 
        settlement agreement during the previous calendar year shall 
        submit to each committee of Congress with jurisdiction over the 
        activities of the Executive agency a report indicating--
                    ``(A) how many covered settlement agreements the 
                Executive agency entered into during that previous 
                calendar year;
                    ``(B) how many covered settlement agreements the 
                Executive agency entered into during that previous 
                calendar year that had any terms or conditions that are 
                required to be kept confidential;
                    ``(C) how many covered settlement agreements the 
                Executive agency entered into during that previous 
                calendar year for which all terms and conditions are 
                required to be kept confidential;
                    ``(D) the total amount of attorney fees, costs, and 
                expenses paid to non-Federal persons under settlement 
                agreements (including consent decrees) of the Executive 
                agency during that previous calendar year; and
                    ``(E) the number of settlement agreements 
                (including consent decrees) between the Executive 
                agency and non-Federal persons that involve regulatory 
                action or regulatory changes, including the 
                promulgation of new rules, during that previous 
                calendar year.
            ``(2) Availability of reports.--The head of an Executive 
        agency that is required to submit a report under paragraph (1) 
        shall make the report publicly available in a searchable format 
        in a prominent location on the Web site of the Executive 
        agency.''.
            (2) Technical and conforming amendment.--The table of 
        sections for chapter 3 of title 5, United States Code, is 
        amended by adding at the end the following:

``307. Information regarding settlement agreements.''.
    (b) Review of Confidentiality of Settlement Agreements.--Not later 
than 6 months after the date of enactment of this Act, the Comptroller 
General of the United States shall submit to Congress a report 
regarding how Executive agencies (as defined under section 105 of title 
5, United States Code) determine whether the terms of a settlement 
agreement or the existence of a settlement agreement will be treated as 
confidential, which shall include recommendations, if any, for 
legislative or administrative action to increase the transparency of 
Government settlements while continuing to protect the legitimate 
interests that confidentiality provisions serve.

SEC. 5. EXTENSION OF STATUTE OF LIMITATIONS FOR CERTAIN CRIMES.

    Section 3282 of title 18, United States Code, is amended by adding 
at the end the following:
    ``(c) Financial Institutions.--Except as otherwise expressly 
provided by law, no person other than an individual shall be 
prosecuted, tried, or punished for any offense involving a financial 
institution, corporation, or a subsidiary of a financial institution or 
corporation unless the indictment is found or the information is 
instituted within 10 years next after such offense shall have been 
committed.''.

SEC. 6. INVESTIGATION OF FULLY CULPABLE INDIVIDUALS.

    Section 3553(e) of title 18, United States Code, is amended--
            (1) by striking ``Upon'' and inserting the following:
            ``(1) In general.--Upon''; and
            (2) by adding at the end the following:
            ``(2) Providing assistance.--Any person other than an 
        individual seeking a sentence below a level established by 
        statute as a minimum sentence under this subsection shall 
        provide assistance to the Government in identifying and fully 
        investigating employees or former employees involved in the 
        offense.''.
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