I

103D CONGRESS

1ST SESSION H. R. 823

To provide for the disclosure of lobbying activities to influence the Federal

Government, and for other purposes.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

FEBRUARY 4, 1993

Mr. BRYANT (for himself, Mr. GEKAS, and Mr. GLICKMAN) introduced the

following bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary

MARCH 16, 1993

Additional sponsors: Mr. OLVER and Mr. MAZZOLI

OCTOBER 28, 1993

Additional sponsors: Mr. STARK, Mr. FRANK of Massachusetts, Mr. PETERSON of Minnesota, Mr. STRICKLAND, Mr. HYDE, Mr. SENSENBRENNER,

Mr. LEVIN, Mr. SMITH of New Jersey, Mr. WALSH, Mr. RAMSTAD, Mr.

MURTHA, Mr. COLEMAN, Mr. ACKERMAN, Ms. DELAURO, Ms. WOOLSEY,

Mr. BARRETT of Wisconsin, Mr. SHAYS, Mr. MACHTLEY, Mr. VENTO,

and Mr. SCHIFF

A BILL

To provide for the disclosure of lobbying activities to

influence the Federal Government, 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 ‘‘Lobbying Disclosure

5 Act of 1993’’.
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1 SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSE.

2 (a) FINDINGS.—The Congress finds that—

3 (1) responsible representative Government re4 quires public awareness of the efforts of paid lobby5 ists to influence the public decisionmaking process in

6 both the legislative and executive branches of the

7 Federal Government;

8 (2) existing lobbying disclosure statutes have

9 been ineffective because of unclear statutory lan10 guage, weak investigative and enforcement provi11 sions, and an absence of clear guidance as to who

12 is required to register and what they are required to

13 disclose; and

14 (3) the effective public disclosure of the identity

15 and extent of the efforts of paid lobbyists to influ16 ence Federal officials in the conduct of Government

17 actions will increase public confidence in the integ18 rity of Government.

19 (b) PURPOSE.—The purposes of this Act are to—

20 (1) provide for the disclosure of the efforts of

21 paid lobbyists to influence Federal legislative or ex22 ecutive branch officials in the conduct of Govern23 ment actions; and

24 (2) afford the fullest opportunity to the people

25 of the United States to exercise their constitutional

26 right to petition their Government for a redress of
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1 grievances, to express their opinions freely to their

2 Government, and to provide information to their

3 Government.

4 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.

5 As used in this Act:

6 (1) The term ‘‘agency’’ has the same meaning

7 as such term is defined under section 551(1) of title

8 5, United States Code.

9 (2) The term ‘‘client’’ means any person who

10 employs or retains another person for financial or

11 other compensation to conduct lobbying activities on

12 its own behalf. An organization whose employees

13 conduct lobbying activities on its behalf is both a cli14 ent and an employer of the lobbyists. In the case of

15 a coalition or association that employs or retains

16 others to conduct lobbying activities on behalf of its

17 membership, the client is the coalition or association

18 and not its individual members.

19 (3) The term ‘‘covered executive branch offi20 cial’’ means—

21 (A) the President;

22 (B) the Vice President;

23 (C) any officer or employee of the Execu24 tive Office of the President other than a clerical

25 or secretarial employee;
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1 (D) any officer or employee serving in an

2 Executive level I, II, III, IV, or V position, as

3 designated in statute or executive order;

4 (E) any officer or employee serving in a

5 Senior Executive Service position, as defined

6 under section 3232(a)(2) of title 5, United

7 States Code;

8 (F) any member of the uniformed services

9 whose pay grade is at or in excess of O–7 under

10 section 201 of title 37, United States Code; and

11 (G) any officer or employee serving in a

12 position of a confidential or policy-determining

13 character under Schedule C of the excepted

14 service pursuant to regulations implementing

15 section 2103 of title 5, United States Code.

16 (4) The term ‘‘covered legislative branch offi17 cial’’ means—

18 (A) a Member of Congress;

19 (B) an elected officer of Congress;

20 (C) any employee of a Member of the

21 House of Representatives, of a committee of the

22 House of Representatives, or on the leadership

23 staff of the House of Representatives, other

24 than a clerical or secretarial employee;
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1 (D) any employee of a Senator, of a Sen2 ate Committee, or on the leadership staff of the

3 Senate, other than a clerical or secretarial em4 ployee; and

5 (E) any employee of a joint committee of

6 the Congress, other than a clerical or secretar7 ial employee.

8 (5) The term ‘‘Director’’ means the Director of

9 the Office of Lobbying Registration and Public Dis10 closure.

11 (6) The term ‘‘employee’’ means any individual

12 who is an officer, employee, partner, director, or pro13 prietor of an organization, but does not include—

14 (A) independent contractors or other

15 agents who are not regular employees; or

16 (B) volunteers who receive no financial or

17 other compensation from the organization for

18 their services.

19 (7) The term ‘‘foreign entity’’ means—

20 (A) a government of a foreign country or

21 a foreign political party (as such terms are de22 fined in section 1 (e) and (f) of the Foreign

23 Agents Registration Act of 1938, as amended

24 (22 U.S.C. 611 (e) and (f)));
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1 (B) a person outside the United States,

2 other than a United States citizen or an organi3 zation that is organized under the laws of the

4 United States or any State and has its principal

5 place of business in the United States; or

6 (C) a partnership, association, corporation,

7 organization, or other combination of persons

8 that is organized under the laws of or has its

9 principal place of business in a foreign country.

10 (8) The term ‘‘lobbying activities’’ means lobby11 ing contacts and efforts in support of such contacts,

12 including preparation and planning activities, re13 search and other background work that is intended

14 for use in contacts, and coordination with the lobby15 ing activities of others. Lobbying activities include

16 grass roots lobbying communications (as defined in

17 regulations implementing section 4911(c)(3) of the

18 Internal Revenue Code of 1986) to the extent that

19 such activities are made in direct support of lobby20 ing contacts.

21 (9)(A) The term ‘‘lobbying contact’’ means any

22 oral or written communication with a covered legisla23 tive or executive branch official made on behalf of a

24 client with regard to—
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1 (i) the formulation, modification, or adop2 tion of Federal legislation (including legislative

3 proposals);

4 (ii) the formulation, modification, or adop5 tion of a Federal rule, regulation, Executive

6 order, or any other program, policy or position

7 of the United States Government; or

8 (iii) the administration or execution of a

9 Federal program or policy (including the nego10 tiation, award, or administration of a Federal

11 contract, grant, loan, permit, or license) except

12 that it does not include communications that

13 are made to officials serving in the Senior Exec14 utive Service or the uniformed services in the

15 agency responsible for taking such action.

16 (B) The term shall not include communications

17 that are—

18 (i) made by public officials acting in their

19 official capacity;

20 (ii) made by representatives of a media or21 ganization who are primarily engaged in gather22 ing and disseminating news and information to

23 the public;

24 (iii) made in a speech, article or other pub25 lication, or through the media;
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1 (iv) made on behalf of a foreign principal

2 and disclosed under the Foreign Agents Reg3 istration Act of 1938, as amended (22 U.S.C.

4 611 et seq.);

5 (v) requests for appointments, requests for

6 the status of a Federal action, or other similar

7 ministerial contacts, if there is no attempt to

8 influence covered legislative or executive branch

9 officials;

10 (vi) made in the course of participation in

11 an advisory committee subject to the Federal

12 Advisory Committee Act;

13 (vii) testimony given before a committee,

14 subcommittee, or office of Congress, or submit15 ted for inclusion in the public record of a hear16 ing conducted by such committee, subcommit17 tee, or office;

18 (viii) information provided in writing in re19 sponse to a specific written request from a Fed20 eral agency or a congressional committee, sub21 committee, or office;

22 (ix) required by subpoena, civil investiga23 tive demand, or otherwise compelled by statute,

24 regulation, or other action of Congress or a

25 Federal agency;
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1 (x) made in response to a notice in the

2 Federal Register, Commerce Business Daily, or

3 other similar publication soliciting communica4 tions from the public and directed to the agency

5 official specifically designated in the notice to

6 receive such communications;

7 (xi) not possible to report without disclos8 ing information, the unauthorized disclosure of

9 which is prohibited by law;

10 (xii) made to agency officials with regard

11 to judicial proceedings, criminal or civil law en12 forcement inquiries, investigations or proceed13 ings, or filings required by statute or regula14 tion;

15 (xiii) made in compliance with written

16 agency procedures regarding an adjudication

17 conducted by the agency under section 554 of

18 title 5, United States Code, or substantially

19 similar provisions;

20 (xiv) written comments filed in a public

21 docket and other communications that are

22 made on the record in a public proceeding; and

23 (xv) made on behalf of an individual with

24 regard to such individual’s benefits, employ25 ment, other personal matters involving only
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1 that individual, or disclosures by that individual

2 pursuant to applicable whistleblower statutes.

3 (10) The term ‘‘lobbyist’’ means any individual

4 who is employed or retained by another for financial

5 or other compensation to perform services that in6 clude lobbying contacts, other than an individual

7 whose lobbying activities are only incidental to, and

8 are not a significant part of, the services provided by

9 such individual to the client.

10 (11) The term ‘‘organization’’ means any cor11 poration (excluding a Government corporation), com12 pany, foundation, association, labor organization,

13 firm, partnership, society, joint stock company, or

14 group of organizations. Such term shall not include

15 any Federal, State, or local unit of government

16 (other than a State college or university as described

17 under section 511(a)(2)(B) of the Internal Revenue

18 Code of 1986), organization of State or local elected

19 or appointed officials, any Indian tribe, any national

20 or State political party and any organizational unit

21 thereof, or any Federal, State, or local unit of any

22 foreign government.

23 (12) The term ‘‘public official’’ means any

24 elected or appointed official who is a regular em25 ployee of a Federal, State, or local unit of govern-
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1 ment (other than a State college or university as de2 scribed under section 511(a)(2)(B) of the Internal

3 Revenue Code of 1986), an organization of State or

4 local elected or appointed officials, an Indian tribe,

5 a national or State political party or any organiza6 tional unit thereof, or a Federal, State, or local unit

7 of any foreign government.

8 SEC. 4. REGISTRATION OF LOBBYISTS.

9 (a) REGISTRATION.—(1) No later than 30 days after

10 a lobbyist first makes a lobbying contact or agrees to make

11 lobbying contacts, such lobbyist (or, as provided under

12 subsection (c)(2), the organization employing such lobby13 ist), shall register with the Office of Lobbying Registration

14 and Public Disclosure.

15 (2) Notwithstanding paragraph (1), any person

16 whose total income or total expenses in connection with

17 lobbying activities on behalf of a particular client do not

18 exceed, or are not expected to exceed, $1,000 in a semi19 annual period is not required to register for such client.

20 (b) CONTENTS OF REGISTRATION.—Each registra21 tion under this section shall be in such form as the Direc22 tor shall prescribe by regulation and shall contain—

23 (1) the name, address, business telephone num24 ber and principal place of business of the registrant,
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1 and a general description of its business or activi2 ties;

3 (2) the name, address, and principal place of

4 business of the registrant’s client, and a general de5 scription of its business or activities (if different

6 from paragraph (1));

7 (3) the name of any organization, other than

8 the client, that—

9 (A) contributes more than $5,000 toward

10 the lobbying activities in a semiannual period;

11 (B) significantly participates in the super12 vision or control of the lobbying activities; and

13 (C) has a direct financial interest in the

14 outcome of the lobbying activities;

15 (4) the name, principal place of business, and

16 approximate percentage of equitable ownership in

17 the client (if any) or any foreign entity that—

18 (A) holds at least 20 percent equitable

19 ownership in the client;

20 (B) directly or indirectly, in whole or in

21 major part, supervises, controls, directs, fi22 nances, or subsidizes the activities of the client;

23 or
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1 (C) is an affiliate of the client that has a

2 direct interest in the outcome of the lobbying

3 activity;

4 (5) a statement of the general issue areas in

5 which the registrant expects to engage in lobbying

6 activities on behalf of the client and, to the extent

7 practicable, a list of specific issues that have already

8 been addressed or are likely to be addressed; and

9 (6) the name of each employee of the registrant

10 whom the registrant expects to act as a lobbyist on

11 behalf of the client and, if any such employee has

12 served as a covered legislative or executive branch

13 official in the 2 years prior to the date of the reg14 istration (or a report amending the registration), the

15 position in which such employee served.

16 (c) GUIDELINES FOR REGISTRATION.—(1) In the

17 case of a registrant representing more than one client, a

18 separate registration shall be filed for each client rep19 resented.

20 (2) Any organization that has one or more employees

21 who are lobbyists shall file a single registration for each

22 client on behalf of its employees who engage in lobbying

23 activities on behalf of such client.
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1 SEC. 5. REPORTS BY REGISTERED LOBBYISTS.

2 (a) SEMIANNUAL REPORT.—No later than 30 days

3 after the end of the semiannual period beginning on the

4 first day of each January and the first day of July of each

5 year in which it is registered, each registrant shall file a

6 report with the Office of Lobbying Registration and Public

7 Disclosure on its lobbying activities during such semi8 annual period.

9 (b) CONTENTS OF REPORT.—Each semiannual re10 port filed under this section shall be in such form as the

11 Director shall prescribe by regulation and shall contain—

12 (1) the name of the registrant, the name of the

13 client, and any changes or updates to the informa14 tion provided in the initial registration;

15 (2) for each general issue area in which the reg16 istrant engaged in lobbying activities on behalf of

17 the client during the semiannual filing period—

18 (A) a list of the specific issues upon which

19 the registrant engaged in significant lobbying

20 activities, including a list of bill numbers and

21 references to specific regulatory actions, pro22 grams, projects, contracts, grants and loans, to

23 the maximum extent practicable;

24 (B) a statement of the Houses and com25 mittees of Congress and the Federal agencies

26 contacted by lobbyists employed by the reg-
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1 istrant on behalf of the client during the semi2 annual filing period;

3 (C) a list of the employees of the registrant

4 who acted as lobbyists on behalf of the client;

5 and

6 (D) a description of the interest in the

7 issue, if any, of any foreign entity identified

8 under section 4(b)(4);

9 (3) in the case of a registrant lobbying on be10 half of a client other than the registrant, a good

11 faith estimate of the total amount of all income from

12 the client (including any payments to the registrant

13 by any other person to lobby on behalf of the client)

14 during the semiannual period, other than income for

15 matters that are unrelated to lobbying activities; and

16 (4) in the case of a registrant lobbying on its

17 own behalf, a good faith estimate of the total ex18 penses that the organization and its employees in19 curred in connection with lobbying activities during

20 the semiannual filing period.

21 (c) ESTIMATES OF INCOME OR EXPENSES.—For the

22 purpose of this section, estimates of income or expenses

23 shall be made as follows:

24 (1) Income or expenses of $200,000 or less

25 shall be estimated by the following categories:
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1 (A) At least $1,000 but not more than

2 $10,000.

3 (B) More than $10,000 but not more than

4 $20,000.

5 (C) More than $20,000 but not more than

6 $50,000.

7 (D) More than $50,000 but not more than

8 $100,000.

9 (E) More than $100,000 but not more

10 than $200,000.

11 (2) Income or expenses in excess of $200,000

12 shall be estimated and rounded to the nearest

13 $100,000.

14 (3) Any registrant whose total income or total

15 expenses are less than $1,000 in a semiannual pe16 riod (as estimated under subsection (b) (3) or (4),

17 or paragraph (4) of this subsection, as applicable) is

18 deemed to be inactive during such period and may

19 comply with the reporting requirements of this sec20 tion by so notifying the Director, in such form as

21 the Director may prescribe.

22 (4) In the case of registrants that are required

23 to report or identify lobbying income or expenses

24 under sections 6033 and 6104 of the Internal Reve25 nue Code of 1986, regulations developed under sec-
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1 tion 6 shall provide that the amounts required to be

2 disclosed under such sections, or a good faith esti3 mate of such amounts, may be reported (by category

4 of dollar value) to meet the requirements of sub5 section (b) (3) or (4) of this section.

6 (5) In estimating total income or expenses

7 under this section, a registrant is not required to in8 clude—

9 (A) the value of contributed services for

10 which no payment is made; or

11 (B) the expenses for services provided by

12 an independent contractor or agent of the reg13 istrant who is separately registered under this

14 Act.

15 ( d) CONTACTS WITH CONGRESSIONAL COMMIT16 TEES.—For purposes of subsection (b)(2), any contact

17 with a member of a congressional committee, an employee

18 of a congressional committee, or an employee of a member

19 of a congressional committee regarding a matter within

20 the jurisdiction of such committee is a contact with the

21 committee.

22 (e) EXTENSION FOR FILING.—The Director may

23 grant an extension of time of not more than 30 days for

24 the filing of any report under this section, on the request

25 of the registrant, for good cause shown.
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1 SEC. 6. ADMINISTRATIVE DUTIES OF THE OFFICE OF LOB2 BYING REGISTRATION AND PUBLIC DISCLO3 SURE.

4 (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—(1) There is established with5 in the Department of Justice an Office of Lobbying Reg6 istration and Public Disclosure, which shall be headed by

7 a Director. The Director shall be appointed by the Presi8 dent, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate.

9 The Director shall be an individual who, by demonstrated

10 ability, background, training, and experience, is especially

11 qualified to carry out the functions of the position.

12 (2) Section 5316 of title 5, United States Code, is

13 amended by adding at the end thereof the following:

14 ‘‘Director of the Office of Lobbying Registra15 tion and Public Disclosure, Department of Justice.’’.

16 (b) DUTIES.—The Director of the Office of Lobbying

17 Registration and Public Disclosure shall—

18 (1) after notice and an opportunity for public

19 comment, and consultation with the Secretary of the

20 Senate, the Clerk of the House of Representatives,

21 and the Administrative Conference of the United

22 States, prescribe such rules, forms, penalty sched23 ules, and procedural regulations as are necessary for

24 the implementation of this Act;

25 (2) provide guidance and assistance on the reg26 istration and reporting requirements of this Act, in-
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1 cluding, to the extent practicable, the issuance of

2 published decisions and advisory opinions;

3 (3) review and make such supplemental ver4 ifications or inquiries as are necessary to ensure the

5 completeness, accuracy, and timeliness of registra6 tions and reports;

7 (4) develop filing, coding, and cross-indexing

8 systems to carry out the purposes of this Act, in9 cluding computerized systems designed to minimize

10 the burden of filing and maximize public access to

11 materials filed under this Act;

12 (5) ensure that the computer systems developed

13 pursuant to paragraph (4)—

14 (A) allow the materials filed under this Act

15 to be accessed by client name, lobbyist name,

16 and registrant name; and

17 (B) are compatible with computer systems

18 developed and maintained by the Federal Elec19 tion Commission, and that information filed in

20 the two systems can be readily cross-referenced;

21 (6) make copies of each registration and report

22 filed under this Act available to the public in elec23 tronic and hard copy formats as soon as practicable

24 after the date on which such registration or report

25 is received;
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1 (7) preserve the originals or accurate reproduc2 tion of registrations until such time as they are ter3 minated, and of reports for a period of no less than

4 2 years from the date on which the report is

5 received;

6 (8) maintain a computer record of the informa7 tion contained in registrations and reports for no

8 less than 5 years after the date on which such reg9 istrations and reports are received;

10 (9) compile and summarize, with respect to

11 each semiannual period, the information contained

12 in registrations and reports filed during such period

13 in a manner which clearly presents the extent and

14 nature of expenditures on lobbying activities during

15 such period;

16 (10) make information compiled and summa17 rized under paragraph (9) available to the public in

18 electronic and hard copy formats as soon as prac19 ticable after the close of each semiannual filing pe20 riod;

21 (11) provide, by computer telecommunication

22 and other means, to the Secretary of the Senate and

23 the Clerk of the House of Representatives copies of

24 all registrations and reports received under this Act

25 and all compilations, cross-indexes and summaries of
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1 such registrations and reports, as soon as prac2 ticable (but not later than 2 working days) after

3 such material is received or created; and

4 (12) transmit to the President and the Con5 gress an annual report describing the activities of

6 the Office and the implementation of this Act, in7 cluding—

8 (A) a financial statement for the preceding

9 year;

10 (B) a summary of the registrations and re11 ports filed with the Office in the preceding year;

12 (C) a summary of the registrations and re13 ports filed on behalf of foreign entities in the

14 preceding year; and

15 (D) recommendations for such legislative

16 or other action as the Director considers appro17 priate.

18 SEC. 7. INFORMAL RESOLUTION OF ALLEGED NONCOMPLI19 ANCE.

20 (a) ALLEGATION OF NONCOMPLIANCE.—Whenever

21 the Office of Lobbying Registration and Public Disclosure

22 has reason to believe that a person may be in noncompli23 ance with the requirements of this Act, the Director shall

24 notify the person in writing of the nature of the alleged

25 noncompliance and provide an opportunity for the person
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1 to respond in writing to the allegation within 30 days or

2 such longer period as the Director may determine appro3 priate in the circumstances.

4 (b) INFORMAL RESOLUTION.—If the person responds

5 within 30 days or other time limit set by the Director,

6 the Director shall—

7 (1) take no further action, if the person pro8 vides adequate information or explanation to deter9 mine that it is unlikely that a noncompliance exists;

10 (2) treat the noncompliance as a minor non11 compliance and, if appropriate, assess a penalty

12 under section 8, if the person agrees that there was

13 a noncompliance and corrects such noncompliance;

14 or

15 (3) make a determination under section 8, if

16 the information or explanation provided indicates

17 that a noncompliance may exist.

18 (c) FORMAL REQUEST FOR INFORMATION.—If the

19 person fails to respond in writing within 30 days or other

20 time limit set by the Director, or the response is not ade21 quate to determine whether a noncompliance exists, the

22 Director may make a formal request for specific additional

23 information (subject to applicable privileges) that is rea24 sonably necessary for the Director to determine whether

25 the alleged noncompliance in fact exists. Each such re-
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1 quest shall be structured in a way to minimize the burden

2 imposed, consistent with the need to determine whether

3 the person is in compliance, and shall—

4 (1) state the nature of the conduct constituting

5 the alleged noncompliance which is the basis for the

6 inquiry and the provision of law applicable thereto;

7 (2) describe the class or classes of documentary

8 material to be produced thereunder with such defi9 niteness and certainty as to permit such material to

10 be readily identified; and

11 (3) prescribe a return date or dates which pro12 vide a reasonable period of time within which the

13 material so requested may be assembled and made

14 available for inspection and copying or reproduction.

15 (d) NONDISCLOSURE OF INFORMATION.—Informa16 tion provided to the Director under this section shall not

17 be made available to the public without the consent of the

18 person providing the information, except that—

19 (1) any new or amended report or registration

20 filed in connection with an inquiry under this section

21 shall be made available to the public in the same

22 manner as any other registration or report filed

23 under section 4 or 5; and

24 (2) written decisions issued by the Director

25 under sections 8 and 9 may be published after ap-
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1 propriate redaction to ensure that confidential infor2 mation is not disclosed.

3 SEC. 8. DETERMINATIONS OF NONCOMPLIANCE.

4 (a) NOTIFICATION AND HEARING.—If the informa5 tion provided to the Director under section 7 indicates

6 that a noncompliance may exist, the Director shall—

7 (1) notify the person in writing of this finding

8 and, if appropriate, a proposed penalty assessment

9 and provide such person with an opportunity to re10 spond in writing within 30 days;

11 (2)(A) in the case of a minor noncompliance,

12 afford the person a 30-day period in which to re13 quest an oral hearing before an independent presid14 ing official; and

15 (B) grant such a request made during such pe16 riod for good cause shown; and

17 (3) in the case of a significant noncompliance,

18 afford the person an opportunity for a hearing on

19 the record under the provisions of section 556 of

20 title 5, United States Code, if requested by such per21 son within 30 days.

22 (b) DETERMINATION.—Upon the receipt of a written

23 response, the completion of a hearing, or the expiration

24 of 30 days, the Director shall review the information re25 ceived under this section and section 7 and make a final
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1 determination whether there was a noncompliance and a

2 final determination of the penalty, if any. If no written

3 response or request for a hearing was received under this

4 section within the 30-day period provided, the determina5 tion and penalty assessment shall constitute a final and

6 nonappealable order.

7 (c) WRITTEN DECISION.—If the Director makes a

8 final determination that there was a noncompliance, the

9 Director shall issue a public written decision—

10 (1) requiring that the noncompliance be in11 cluded in a publicly available list of noncompliances,

12 to be reported to the Congress on a semiannual

13 basis;

14 (2) directing the person to correct the non15 compliance; and

16 (3) assessing a civil monetary penalty in an

17 amount determined as follows:

18 (A) In the case of a minor noncompliance,

19 the amount shall be no more than $10,000, de20 pending on the nature and extent of the non21 compliance.

22 (B) In the case of a significant noncompli23 ance, the amount shall be more than $10,000,

24 but no more than $100,000, depending on the

25 nature and extent of the noncompliance.
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1 (d) CIVIL INJUNCTIVE RELIEF.—If a person fails to

2 comply with a directive to correct a noncompliance under

3 subsection (c), the Director shall refer the case to the At4 torney General to seek civil injunctive relief.

5 (e) PENALTY ASSESSMENTS.—(1) No penalty shall

6 be assessed under this section unless the Director finds

7 that the person subject to the penalty knew or should have

8 known that such person was not in compliance with the

9 requirements of this Act. In determining the amount of

10 a penalty to be assessed, the Director shall take into ac11 count the totality of the circumstances, including the ex12 tent and gravity of the noncompliance and such other mat13 ters as justice may require. The Director shall not assess

14 a penalty in an amount greater than that recommended

15 by an administrative law judge after a hearing on the

16 record under subsection (a)(3) unless the Director deter17 mines that the recommendation of the administrative law

18 judge is arbitrary and capricious or an abuse of discretion.

19 (2) Regulations prescribed by the Director under sec20 tion 6 shall define minor and significant noncompliances.

21 Significant noncompliances shall be defined to include a

22 knowing failure to register and any other knowing non23 compliance that is extensive or repeated.
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1 SEC. 9. OTHER VIOLATIONS.

2 (a) LATE REGISTRATION OR FILING; FAILURE TO

3 PROVIDE INFORMATION.—If a person registers or files

4 more than 30 days after a registration or filing is required

5 under this Act, or fails to provide information requested

6 by the Director under section 7(c), the Director shall—

7 (1) notify the person in writing of the non8 compliance and a proposed penalty assessment and

9 provide such person with an opportunity to respond

10 in writing within 30 days; and

11 (2)(A) afford the person a 30-day period in

12 which to request an oral hearing before an independ13 ent presiding official; and

14 (B) grant such a request made during such pe15 riod for good cause shown.

16 (b) DETERMINATION.—Unless the Director deter17 mines that the late filing or failure to provide information

18 was justified, the Director shall make a final determina19 tion of noncompliance and a final determination of the

20 penalty, if any. If no written response or request for a

21 hearing was received under this section within the 30-day

22 period provided, the determination and penalty assessment

23 shall constitute a final and unappealable order.

24 (c) WRITTEN DECISION.—If the Director makes a

25 final determination that there was a noncompliance, the

26 Director shall issue a public written decision—
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1 (1) in the case of a late filing, assessing a civil

2 monetary penalty of $200 for each week by which

3 the filing was late, with the total penalty not to ex4 ceed $10,000; or

5 (2) in the case of a failure to provide informa6 tion—

7 (A) including the noncompliance in a pub8 licly available list of noncompliances, to be re9 ported to the Congress on a semiannual basis;

10 and

11 (B) assessing a civil monetary penalty in

12 an amount not to exceed $10,000.

13 (d) CIVIL INJUNCTIVE RELIEF.—In addition to the

14 penalties provided in this section, the Director may refer

15 the noncompliance to the Attorney General to seek civil

16 injunctive relief.

17 SEC. 10. JUDICIAL REVIEW.

18 (a) FINAL DECISION.—A written decision issued by

19 the Director under section 8 or 9 shall become final 60

20 days after the date on which the Director provides notice

21 of the decision, unless such decision is appealed under sub22 section (b) of this section.

23 (b) APPEAL.—Any person adversely affected by a

24 written decision issued by the Director under section 8 or

25 9 may appeal such decision, except as provided under sec-
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1 tions 8(b) or 9(b), to the appropriate United States court

2 of appeals. Such review may be obtained by filing a written

3 notice of appeal in such court no later than 60 days after

4 the date on which the Director provides notice of the Di5 rector’s decision and by simultaneously sending a copy of

6 such notice to the Director. The Director shall file in such

7 court the record upon which the decision was issued, as

8 provided under section 2112 of title 28, United States

9 Code. The findings of fact of the Director shall be conclu10 sive, unless found to be unsupported by substantial evi11 dence, as provided under section 706(2)(E) of title 5,

12 United States Code. Any penalty assessed or other action

13 taken in the decision shall be stayed during the pendency

14 of the appeal.

15 (c) RECOVERY OF PENALTY.—Any penalty assessed

16 in a written decision which has become final under this

17 Act may be recovered in a civil action brought by the At18 torney General in an appropriate United States district

19 court. In any such action, no matter that was raised or

20 that could have been raised before the Director or pursu21 ant to judicial review under subsection (b) may be raised

22 as a defense, and the determination of liability and the

23 determination of amounts of penalties and assessments

24 shall not be subject to review.
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1 (d) ATTORNEYS’ FEES.—In any appeal brought

2 under this section, in which the person who is the subject

3 of such action substantially prevails on the merits, the

4 court may assess against the United States attorneys’ fees

5 and other litigation costs reasonably incurred in the ad6 ministrative proceeding and the appeal.

7 SEC. 11. RULES OF CONSTRUCTION.

8 (a) PROHIBITION OF ACTIVITIES.—Nothing in this

9 Act shall be construed to prohibit, or to authorize the Di10 rector or any court to prohibit, lobbying activities or lobby11 ing contacts by any person, regardless of whether such

12 person is in compliance with the requirements of this Act.

13 (b) AUDIT AND INVESTIGATIONS.—Nothing in this

14 Act shall be construed to grant general audit or investiga15 tive authority to the Director, or to authorize the Director

16 to review the files of a registrant, except in accordance

17 with the requirements of section 7 regarding the informal

18 resolution of alleged noncompliances and formal requests

19 for information.

20 SEC. 12. AMENDMENTS TO THE FOREIGN AGENTS REG21 ISTRATION ACT.

22 The Foreign Agents Registration Act of 1938, as

23 amended (22 U.S.C. 611 et seq.), is amended—

24 (1) in section 1—
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1 (A) by amending subsection (b) to read as

2 follows:

3 ‘‘(b) The term ‘foreign principal’ means a government

4 of a foreign country or a foreign political party.’’;

5 (B) by striking out subsection (j);

6 (C) in subsection (o), by striking out ‘‘the

7 dissemination of political propaganda and any

8 other activity which the person engaging therein

9 believes will, or which he intends to, prevail

10 upon, indoctrinate, convert, induce, persuade,

11 or in any other way influence’’ and inserting in

12 lieu thereof ‘‘any activity which the person en13 gaging in believes will, or which he intends to,

14 in any way influence’’;

15 (D) in subsection (p) by striking out the

16 semicolon and inserting in lieu thereof a period;

17 and

18 (E) by striking out subsection (q);

19 (2) in section 3(g) (22 U.S.C. 613(g)), by strik20 ing out ‘‘established agency proceedings, whether

21 formal or informal.’’ and inserting in lieu thereof

22 ‘‘judicial proceedings, criminal or civil law enforce23 ment inquiries, investigations or proceedings, or

24 agency proceedings required by statute or regulation

25 to be conducted on the record.’’;
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1 (3) in section 4(a) (22 U.S.C. 614(a))—

2 (A) by striking out ‘‘political propaganda’’

3 and inserting in lieu thereof ‘‘informational ma4 terials’’; and

5 (B) by striking out ‘‘and a statement, duly

6 signed by or on behalf of such an agent, setting

7 forth full information as to the places, times

8 and extent of such transmittal’’;

9 (4) in section 4(b) (22 U.S.C. 614(b))—

10 (A) by striking out ‘‘political propaganda’’

11 and inserting in lieu thereof ‘‘informational ma12 terials’’; and

13 (B) by striking out ‘‘(i) in the form of

14 prints or’’ and all that follows through the end

15 of the subsection and inserting in lieu thereof

16 ‘‘without placing in such informational mate17 rials a conspicuous statement that the materials

18 are distributed by the agent on behalf of the

19 foreign principal, and that additional informa20 tion is on file with the Department of Justice,

21 Washington, District of Columbia. The Attor22 ney General may by rule define what con23 stitutes a conspicuous statement for the pur24 poses of this subsection.’’;
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1 (5) in section 4(c) (22 U.S.C. 614(c)), by strik2 ing out ‘‘political propaganda’’ and inserting in lieu

3 thereof ‘‘informational materials’’;

4 (6) in section 6 (22 U.S.C. 616)—

5 (A) in subsection (a), by striking out ‘‘and

6 all statements concerning the distribution of po7 litical propaganda’’;

8 (B) in subsection (b), by striking out ‘‘,

9 and one copy of every item of political propa10 ganda’’; and

11 (C) in subsection (c), by striking out ‘‘cop12 ies of political propaganda,’’;

13 (7) in section 8 (22 U.S.C. 618)—

14 (A) in subsection (a)(2), by striking out

15 ‘‘or in any statement under section 4(a) hereof

16 concerning the distribution of political propa17 ganda’’; and

18 (B) by striking out subsection (d); and

19 (8) in section 11 (22 U.S.C. 621), by striking

20 out ‘‘, including the nature, sources, and content of

21 political propaganda disseminated or distributed.’’.

22 SEC. 13. AMENDMENTS TO THE BYRD AMENDMENT.

23 Section 1352(b) of title 31, United States Code, is

24 amended—
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1 (1) in paragraph (2), by striking out subpara2 graphs (A), (B), and (C) and inserting in lieu there3 of the following:

4 ‘‘(A) the name of any registrant under the

5 Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1993 who has made

6 lobbying contacts on behalf of the person with

7 respect to that Federal contract, grant, loan, or

8 cooperative agreement; and

9 ‘‘(B) a certification that the person making

10 the declaration has not made, and will not

11 make, any payment prohibited by subsection

12 (a).’’;

13 (2) in paragraph (3), by striking out all that

14 follows ‘‘loan shall contain’’ and inserting in lieu

15 thereof ‘‘the name of any registrant under the Lob16 bying Disclosure Act of 1993 who has made lobbying

17 contacts on behalf of the person in connection with

18 that loan insurance or guarantee.’’; and

19 (3) by striking out paragraph (6) and redesig20 nating paragraph (7) as paragraph (6).

21 SEC. 14. REPEAL OF CERTAIN LOBBYING PROVISIONS.

22 (a) REPEAL OF THE FEDERAL REGULATION OF LOB23 BYING ACT.—The Federal Regulation of Lobbying Act (2

24 U.S.C. 261 et seq.) is repealed.
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1 (b) REPEAL OF PROVISIONS RELATING TO HOUSING

2 LOBBYIST ACTIVITIES.—(1) Section 13 of the Depart3 ment of Housing and Urban Development Act (42 U.S.C.

4 3537b) is repealed.

5 (2) Section 536(d) of the Housing Act of 1949 (42

6 U.S.C. 1490p(d)) is repealed.

7 (c) REPEAL OF REGISTRATION REQUIREMENT RE8 LATING TO PUBLIC UTILITY LOBBYING ACTIVITIES.—

9 Section 12(i) of the Public Utility Holding Company Act

10 of 1935 (15 U.S.C. 79l(i)) is repealed.

11 SEC. 15. CONFORMING AMENDMENTS TO OTHER STATUTES.

12 (a) AMENDMENT TO COMPETITIVENESS POLICY

13 COUNCIL ACT.—Section 5206(e) of the Competitiveness

14 Policy Council Act (15 U.S.C. 4804(e)) is amended by in15 serting ‘‘or a lobbyist for a foreign entity (as the terms

16 ‘lobbyist’ and ‘foreign entity’ are defined in section 3 of

17 the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1993)’’ after ‘‘an agent

18 for a foreign principal’’.

19 (b) AMENDMENT TO TITLE 18, UNITED STATES

20 CODE.—Section 219(a) of title 18, United States Code,

21 is amended by inserting ‘‘or a lobbyist required to register

22 under the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1993 in connection

23 with the representation of a foreign entity, as defined in

24 section 3(7) of that Act’’ after ‘‘an agent of a foreign prin-
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1 cipal required to register under the Foreign Agents Reg2 istration Act of 1938, as amended,’’.

3 (c) AMENDMENT TO FOREIGN SERVICE ACT OF

4 1980.—Section 602(c) of the Foreign Service Act of 1980

5 (22 U.S.C. 4002(c)) is amended by inserting ‘‘or a lobby6 ist for a foreign entity (as defined in section 3(7) of the

7 Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1993)’’ after ‘‘an agent of a

8 foreign principal (as defined by section 1(b) of the Foreign

9 Agents Registration Act of 1938)’’.

10 (d) AMENDMENT TO THE FEDERAL ELECTION CAM11 PAIGN ACT.—Section 319(b) of the Federal Election Cam12 paign Act (2 U.S.C. 441e(b)) is amended—

13 (1) in paragraph (1) by striking out ‘‘or’’ after

14 the semicolon;

15 (2) by redesignating paragraph (2) as para16 graph (3); and

17 (3) by inserting after paragraph (1) the follow18 ing:

19 ‘‘(2) a foreign entity, as such term is defined by

20 section 3(7) of the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1993;

21 or’’.

22 SEC. 16. SEVERABILITY.

23 If any provision of this Act, or the application there24 of, is held invalid, the validity of the remainder of this
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1 Act and the application of such provision to other persons

2 and circumstances shall not be affected thereby.

3 SEC. 17. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.

4 There are authorized to be appropriated such sums

5 as may be necessary to carry out this Act.

6 SEC. 18. EFFECTIVE DATES.

7 (a) IN GENERAL.—Except as otherwise provided in

8 this section, the provisions of this Act shall take effect

9 1 year after the date of the enactment of this Act.

10 (b) ESTABLISHMENT OF OFFICE.—The provisions of

11 sections 6 and 17 shall take effect on the date of the en12 actment of this Act.

13 (c) REPEALS AND AMENDMENTS.—The repeals and

14 amendments made under sections 12, 13, and 14 shall

15 take effect as provided under subsection (a), except that

16 such repeals and amendments—

17 (1) shall not affect any proceeding or suit com18 menced before the effective date under subsection

19 (a), and in all such proceedings or suits, proceedings

20 shall be had, appeals taken, and judgments rendered

21 in the same manner and with the same effect as if

22 this Act had not been enacted; and

23 (2) shall not affect the requirements of Federal

24 agencies to compile, publish, and retain information
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1 filed or received before the effective date of such re2 peals and amendments.

3 (d) REGULATIONS.—Proposed regulations required

4 to implement this Act shall be published for public com5 ment no later than 270 days after the date of the enact6 ment of this Act.

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