I 

116TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 9029 

To improve the anti-corruption and public integrity laws, and for other 

purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

DECEMBER 18, 2020 

Ms. JAYAPAL (for herself, Ms. NORTON, Mr. SARBANES, Ms. OMAR, and Ms. 

SCHAKOWSKY) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 

Committee on the Judiciary, and in addition to the Committees on Oversight and Reform, House Administration, Ways and Means, Financial 

Services, Intelligence (Permanent Select), Rules, Foreign Affairs, Armed 

Services, and the Budget, 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 improve the anti-corruption and public integrity laws, 

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 ‘‘Anti-Corruption and 

5 Public Integrity Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

7 The table of contents for this Act is as follows: 


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Sec. 1. Short title. 

Sec. 2. Table of contents. 

Sec. 3. Applicability. 

TITLE I—PUBLIC INTEGRITY, ETHICS, CONFLICTS OF INTEREST, 

AND REVOLVING DOOR 

Subtitle A—Conflicts of Interest 

Sec. 101. Definitions. 

Sec. 102. Lobbyist ban. 

Sec. 103. Executive branch conflicts of interest law expansions. 

Sec. 104. Legislative branch conflicts of interest law expansions. 

Sec. 105. Conflicts of interest rules for all senior government officials and nonconflicted Federal employee investment accounts. 

Sec. 106. Post-employment restrictions. 

Sec. 107. Golden parachutes ban. 

Sec. 108. General public integrity rules. 

Sec. 109. Legal expense funds. 

Sec. 110. Penalties. 

Subtitle B—Presidential Conflicts of Interest 

Sec. 111. Short title. 

Sec. 112. Divestiture of personal financial interests of the President and Vice 

President that pose a potential conflict of interest. 

Sec. 113. Recusal of appointees. 

Sec. 114. Contracts by the President or Vice President. 

Sec. 115. Presidential transition ethics programs. 

Sec. 116. Criminality of the President or other senior government officials. 

Sec. 117. Presidential obstruction of justice. 

Sec. 118. Sense of Congress regarding violations. 

Sec. 119. Rule of construction. 

Sec. 120. Severability. 

Subtitle C—Strengthening Criminal Anti-Corruption Laws 

Sec. 121. Bribery of public officials and witnesses. 

Sec. 122. Prohibition on undisclosed self-dealing by public officials. 

Subtitle D—Requiring Financial Disclosures Before Taking Office 

Sec. 131. Prohibition on taking office until financial disclosures are filed. 

Subtitle E—Strengthening Inauguration Fund Rules 

Sec. 141. Strengthening Inauguration Fund rules. 

Subtitle F—Political Intelligence Transparency 

Sec. 151. Disclosure of political intelligence activities under lobbying disclosure 

act. 

Sec. 152. Effective date. 

TITLE II—LOBBYING REFORM 

Sec. 201. Enforcement by the Office of Public Integrity. 

Sec. 202. Definitions. 

Sec. 203. Registration of lobbyists. 


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Sec. 204. Reports by lobbyists. 

Sec. 205. Prohibition on foreign lobbying. 

Sec. 206. Prohibition on contingent fee lobbying. 

Sec. 207. Prohibition on provision of gifts or travel by registered lobbyists. 

Sec. 208. Application of General Schedule to Congress. 

Sec. 209. Reestablishment of Office of Technology Assessment. 

Sec. 210. Progressive tax on lobbying expenditures. 

Sec. 211. Disclosure of registration status. 

TITLE III—RULEMAKING REFORM 

Sec. 301. Disclosure of conflicts of interest. 

Sec. 302. Increasing disclosures relating to studies and research. 

Sec. 303. Disclosure of inter-governmental rule changes. 

Sec. 304. Justification of withdrawn rules. 

Sec. 305. Negotiated rulemaking. 

Sec. 306. Streamlining OIRA review. 

Sec. 307. Limiting temporary court injunctions and postponing of final rules 

pending judicial review. 

Sec. 308. Penalizing individuals that submit false information to agencies. 

Sec. 309. Establishment of the Office of the Public Advocate. 

Sec. 310. Actions by private persons. 

Sec. 311. Scope of review. 

Sec. 312. Expanding rulemaking notifications. 

Sec. 313. Public petitions. 

Sec. 314. Amendment to Congressional Review Act. 

Sec. 315. Cost-benefit analysis. 

Sec. 316. Sense of Congress. 

TITLE IV—JUDICIAL ETHICS 

Sec. 401. Clarification of gift ban. 

Sec. 402. Restrict privately funded educational events and speeches. 

Sec. 403. Code of Conduct. 

Sec. 404. Improving disclosure. 

Sec. 405. Appointment of administrative law judges. 

Sec. 406. Improve reporting on judicial diversity. 

Sec. 407. Pleading standards. 

Sec. 408. Electronic court records reform. 

Sec. 409. Forced arbitration injustice repeal. 

Sec. 410. Restrictions on protective orders and sealing of cases and settlements. 

Sec. 411. Secret settlements ban. 

Sec. 412. Oversight process for disqualification of justice, judge, or magistrate 

judge. 

Sec. 413. Complaints against retired judges and judicial discipline. 

Sec. 414. Action by judicial council in response to misconduct by judges. 

Sec. 415. Supreme Court Complaints Review Committee. 

Sec. 416. Expedited impeachment of Federal judges. 

Sec. 417. Judicial workplace climate surveys. 

Sec. 418. Pilot program to provide access to counsel in Federal court. 

TITLE V—ENFORCEMENT 

Subtitle A—Office of Public Integrity 

Sec. 511. Establishment of Office of Public Integrity. 

Sec. 512. Designated agency ethics officials. 


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Subtitle B—Inspectors General 

Sec. 531. General supervision and removal of Inspectors General. 

Subtitle C—Office of Congressional Ethics 

Sec. 551. Definitions. 

Sec. 552. The Office of Congressional Ethics. 

Sec. 553. Establishment of the Board of the Office of Congressional Ethics. 

Sec. 554. Duties and Powers of the Office and the Board. 

Sec. 555. Review process of submissions. 

Sec. 556. Personnel matters. 

Sec. 557. Authorization of appropriations. 

Sec. 558. Conforming amendments and rules of construction. 

Subtitle D—Applicability 

Sec. 571. Applicability. 

TITLE VI—TRANSPARENCY AND GOVERNMENT RECORDS 

Subtitle A—Transparency for Federal Personnel and Candidates for Federal 

Office 

Sec. 601. Categories relating to the amount or value of certain income. 

Sec. 602. Disclosure of personal income tax returns by Presidents, Vice Presidents, Members of Congress, and certain candidates. 

Sec. 603. Transparency relating to candidates for Federal office and Members 

of Congress. 

Subtitle B—Think Tank, Nonprofit, and Advocate Transparency 

Sec. 611. Amendments to the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995. 

Sec. 612. Amendments to the Internal Revenue Code of 1986. 

Subtitle C—Strengthening FOIA Enforcement 

Sec. 621. Strengthening FOIA enforcement. 

Sec. 622. Exemptions from disclosure. 

Sec. 623. Public interest balancing test. 

Sec. 624. Affirmative disclosure of agency records on website. 

Sec. 625. Applicability. 

Subtitle D—Federal Contractor Transparency 

Sec. 631. Expanding applicability of the Freedom of Information Act to Federal contractors. 

Sec. 632. Public disclosure by large contractors. 

Subtitle E—Congressional Transparency 

Sec. 641. Increased transparency of committee work. 

Sec. 642. Increased transparency of recorded votes. 

Sec. 643. Increased transparency of appropriations bills. 

TITLE VII—CAMPAIGN FINANCE REFORMS 

Subtitle A—Requirements Relating to Preventing Conflicts of Interest 


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PART I—REQUIREMENTS RELATING TO REGISTERED LOBBYISTS AND

GOVERNMENT CONTRACTORS

Sec. 701. Requirements relating to registered lobbyists. 

Sec. 702. Disclosure of political spending by government contractors. 

Sec. 703. Repeal of restriction of use of funds by internal revenue service to 

bring transparency to political activity of certain nonprofit organizations. 

Sec. 704. Repeal of revenue procedure that eliminated requirement to report information regarding contributors to certain tax-exempt organizations. 

PART II—REQUIREMENTS RELATING TO CORPORATIONS

Sec. 711. Banning corporations from fundraising. 

Sec. 712. Banning contributions to members of Congress from corporations 

under the jurisdiction of their committees. 

Sec. 713. Corporate PAC ban. 

Sec. 714. Disclosure of campaign-related disbursements. 

PART III—REQUIREMENTS RELATING TO FOREIGN NATIONALS

Sec. 721. Banning foreign-owned and partially foreign-owned corporations from 

spending on United States elections. 

PART IV—ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS

SUBPART A—CAMPAIGN FINANCE

Sec. 731. Clarification on treatment of information used to influence an election 

for Federal office as a contribution; clarification regarding purpose of influencing an election for Federal office. 

Sec. 732. Prohibition on Super PAC–Candidate coordination. 

Sec. 733. Disclosure of major donors, bundlers, and finance events in presidential campaigns. 

Sec. 734. Lowering contribution limits; repeal of special contribution limits for 

contributions to national parties for certain purposes. 

Sec. 735. Restrictions on testing the waters. 

Sec. 736. Personal use ban for leadership PACS. 

Sec. 737. Prohibition on joint fundraising committees. 

SUBPART B—PROHIBITION ON THE APPOINTMENT OF BIG DONOR

AMBASSADORS AND CHIEFS OF MISSION

Sec. 738. Prohibition on the appointment of big donor ambassadors and chiefs 

of mission. 

Subtitle B—Strengthening Oversight of Online Political Advertising 

Sec. 741. Expansion of definition of public communication. 

Sec. 742. Expansion of definition of electioneering communication. 

Sec. 743. Application of disclaimer statements to online communications. 

Sec. 744. Political record requirements for online platforms. 

Sec. 745. Preventing contributions, expenditures, independent expenditures, 

and disbursements for electioneering communications by foreign nationals in the form of online advertising. 

Subtitle C—Public Financing 


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PART I—SMALL DOLLAR FINANCING OF SENATE ELECTION CAMPAIGNS

Sec. 751. Eligibility requirements and benefits of fair elections financing of senate election campaigns. 

Sec. 752. Exception to limitation on coordinated expenditures by political party 

committees with participating candidates. 

Sec. 753. Assessments against fines and penalties. 

PART II—PRESIDENTIAL ELECTIONS

SUBPART A—PRIMARY ELECTIONS

Sec. 761. Increase in and modifications to matching payments. 

Sec. 762. Eligibility requirements for matching payments. 

Sec. 763. Repeal of expenditure limitations. 

Sec. 764. Period of availability of matching payments. 

Sec. 765. Examination and audits of matchable contributions. 

Sec. 766. Modification to limitation on contributions for Presidential primary 

candidates. 

Sec. 767. Use of Freedom From Influence Fund as source of payments. 

SUBPART B—GENERAL ELECTIONS

Sec. 771. Modification of eligibility requirements for public financing. 

Sec. 772. Repeal of expenditure limitations and use of qualified campaign contributions. 

Sec. 773. Matching payments and other modifications to payment amounts. 

Sec. 774. Increase in limit on coordinated party expenditures. 

Sec. 775. Establishment of uniform date for release of payments. 

Sec. 776. Amounts in Presidential Election Campaign Fund. 

Sec. 777. Use of general election payments for general election legal and accounting compliance. 

Sec. 778. Use of Freedom From Influence Fund as source of payments. 

SUBPART C—PRESIDENTIAL NOMINATING CONVENTIONS

Sec. 779. Payments for Presidential nominating conventions. 

SUBPART D—EFFECTIVE DATE

Sec. 779A. Effective date. 

Subtitle D—Enhancing FEC Enforcement 

Sec. 781. Membership of Federal Election Commission. 

Sec. 782. Assignment of powers to Chair of Federal Election Commission. 

Sec. 783. Revision to enforcement process. 

Sec. 784. Permitting appearance at hearings on requests for advisory opinions 

by persons opposing the requests. 

Sec. 785. Permanent extension of administrative penalty authority. 

Sec. 786. Requiring forms to permit use of accent marks. 

Sec. 787. Restrictions on ex parte communications. 

Sec. 788. Clarifying authority of FEC attorneys to represent FEC in Supreme 

Court. 

Sec. 789. Effective date; transition. 

Subtitle E—Miscellaneous 


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Sec. 791. Comptroller general report and briefing on campaign donations by 

nominees before the Senate. 

Sec. 792. Effective date. 

Sec. 793. Severability. 

1 SEC. 3. APPLICABILITY. 

2 Except as provided otherwise in this Act, this Act and 

3 the amendments made by this Act shall apply on and after 

4 the date that is 1 year after the date of enactment of this 

5 Act. 

6 TITLE I—PUBLIC INTEGRITY, 

7 ETHICS, CONFLICTS OF IN8 TEREST, AND REVOLVING 

9 DOOR 

10 Subtitle A—Conflicts of Interest 

11 SEC. 101. DEFINITIONS. 

12 In this subtitle: 

13 (1) AGENT OF A FOREIGN PRINCIPAL.—The 

14 term ‘‘agent of a foreign principal’’ has the meaning 

15 given the term in section 1 of the Foreign Agents 

16 Registration Act of 1938 (22 U.S.C. 611). 

17 (2) BANK HOLDING COMPANY.—The term 

18 ‘‘bank holding company’’ has the meaning given the 

19 term in section 2 of the Bank Holding Company Act 

20 of 1956 (12 U.S.C. 1841). 

21 (3) CORPORATE LOBBYIST.—The term ‘‘cor22 porate lobbyist’’ has the meaning given the term in 


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1 section 3 of the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995, as 

2 amended by section 202 of this Act. 

3 (4) COVERED ENTITY.—The term ‘‘covered en4 tity’’ means any entity that is— 

5 (A)(i) a for-profit company; or 

6 (ii) a bank holding company, a savings and 

7 loan holding company, or any other financial in8 stitution; and 

9 (B)(i) operating under Federal settlement, 

10 including a Federal consent decree; or 

11 (ii) the subject of an enforcement action in 

12 a court of the United States or by an agency. 

13 (5) EXECUTIVE AGENCY.—The term ‘‘Executive 

14 agency’’— 

15 (A) has the meaning given the term in sec16 tion 105 of title 5, United States Code; and 

17 (B) includes— 

18 (i) the Executive Office of the Presi19 dent and all components thereof, including 

20 the White House Office; and 

21 (ii) the Office of the Vice President. 

22 (6) GROSS RECEIPTS.—The term ‘‘gross re23 ceipts’’ has the meaning given the term in section 

24 993(f) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986. 


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1 (7) LOBBYIST.—The term ‘‘lobbyist’’ has the 

2 meaning given the term in section 3 of the Lobbying 

3 Disclosure Act of 1995, as amended by section 202 

4 of this Act. 

5 (8) QUALIFIED SMALL BUSINESS.—The term 

6 ‘‘qualified small business’’ means a corporation, 

7 company, firm, partnership, or other business enter8 prise, that has gross receipts for the previous tax9 able year of less than $5,000,000. 

10 (9) SAVINGS AND LOAN HOLDING COMPANY.— 

11 The term ‘‘savings and loan holding company’’ has 

12 the meaning given the term in section 10(a) of the 

13 Home Owners’ Loan Act (12 U.S.C. 1467a(a)). 

14 (10) SENIOR EXECUTIVE.—The term ‘‘senior 

15 executive’’ includes— 

16 (A) a chief executive officer; 

17 (B) a chief financial officer; 

18 (C) a chief operating officer; 

19 (D) a chief compliance officer; 

20 (E) any senior government relationship of21 ficial; and 

22 (F) any other senior executive, as deter23 mined by the Director of the Office of Public 

24 Integrity. 


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1 (11) SENIOR GOVERNMENT OFFICIAL.—The 

2 term ‘‘senior government official’’ means— 

3 (A) any individual described in section 

4 101(f) of the Ethics in Government Act of 1978 

5 (5 U.S.C. App.), including— 

6 (i) any individual appointed to a posi7 tion on any level of the Executive Schedule 

8 under subchapter II of chapter 53 of title 

9 5, United States Code, including positions 

10 identified in sections 5312 through 5316 of 

11 title 5, United States Code; 

12 (ii) a noncareer officer or employee 

13 serving in the Executive Office of Presi14 dent, including the White House Office, 

15 and in the Office of the Vice President; 

16 and 

17 (iii) an individual employed in a posi18 tion in the executive branch of the Govern19 ment who is excepted from the competitive 

20 service by reason of being of a confidential 

21 or policy-determining character under 

22 schedule C of subpart C of part 213 of 

23 title 5, Code of Federal Regulations (or 

24 any successor regulations), except that the 

25 Director of the Office of Public Integrity 


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1 may, by regulation, exclude from the appli2 cation of this paragraph any individual, or 

3 group of individuals, who are in such posi4 tions, but only in cases in which the Direc5 tor determines such exclusion would not 

6 affect adversely the integrity of the Gov7 ernment or the confidence of the public in 

8 the integrity of the Government; 

9 (B) an individual employed in a position in 

10 the Senior Executive Service; 

11 (C) an individual employed in a position at 

12 the GS–15 level or higher; and 

13 (D) an individual employed in a position 

14 not under the General Schedule for which the 

15 rate of basic pay is equal to or greater than the 

16 minimum rate of basic pay payable for GS–15 

17 of the General Schedule. 

18 SEC. 102. LOBBYIST BAN. 

19 (a) LOBBYISTS.— 

20 (1) EXECUTIVE BRANCH.— 

21 (A) LOBBYISTS.—No former registered 

22 lobbyist or agent of a foreign principal who has 

23 engaged in a lobbying contact, as defined in 

24 section 3 of the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 

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1 istration may be hired as an officer or employee 

2 of an Executive agency during the 2-year period 

3 beginning on the date on which the registered 

4 lobbyist terminates his or her registration in ac5 cordance with section 4(d) of the Lobbying Dis6 closure Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1603(d)) or the 

7 agent terminates his or her status, as applica8 ble. 

9 (B) CORPORATE LOBBYISTS.—No former 

10 registered corporate lobbyist may be hired as an 

11 officer or employee of an Executive agency dur12 ing the 6-year period beginning on the date on 

13 which the registered corporate lobbyist termi14 nates its registration in accordance with section 

15 4(d) of the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 (2 

16 U.S.C. 1603(d)) or the agent terminates its sta17 tus, as applicable. 

18 (C) WAIVER RULES AND ELIGIBILITY.— 

19 (i) POSITIONS REQUIRING SENATE

20 CONFIRMATION.—The President may waive 

21 the ban described in subparagraph (A) for 

22 any appointment to a position in an Exec23 utive agency that requires the advice and 

24 consent of the Senate based on a compel25 ling national need. 


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1 (ii) OTHER POSITIONS.—The Presi2 dent or the Director of the Office of Public 

3 Integrity may waive the ban described in 

4 subparagraph (A) and the prior employer 

5 recusal provision described in section 

6 208(e) of title 18, United States Code, as 

7 added by section 103 of this Act for any 

8 appointment to a position in an Executive 

9 agency that does not require the advice 

10 and consent of the Senate. 

11 (iii) REQUIREMENTS.—A waiver made 

12 under this subparagraph shall— 

13 (I) be made publicly available 

14 and searchable by the Director of the 

15 Office of Public Integrity within 30 

16 days of issuance; 

17 (II) include a justification sent to 

18 Congress within 30 days of issuance 

19 for why the registered lobbyist or 

20 agent of a foreign principal, as appli21 cable, brings unique and relevant ex22 pertise such that it is not practical to 

23 find an alternative candidate with the 

24 same skill set; and 


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1 (III) with respect to a nomina2 tion to a position described in clause 

3 (i)— 

4 (aa)(AA) include a certifi5 cation by the President that a 

6 search was conducted in good 

7 faith to find an alternative can8 didate with comparable qualifica9 tions who was not a lobbyist; or 

10 (BB) specifically identify the 

11 next-best candidate who was not 

12 a registered lobbyist or agent of 

13 a foreign principal, as applicable; 

14 and 

15 (bb) include a justification 

16 for why the next-best candidate 

17 was not nominated for the posi18 tion. 

19 (2) LEGISLATIVE BRANCH.— 

20 (A) LOBBYISTS.—No former registered 

21 lobbyist or agent of a foreign principal may be 

22 hired as an officer or employee of a Member of 

23 Congress or a committee of either House of 

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1 nates its registration in accordance with section 

2 4(d) of the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 (2 

3 U.S.C. 1603(d)) or the agent terminates its sta4 tus, as applicable. 

5 (B) CORPORATE LOBBYISTS.—No former 

6 registered lobbyist or agent of a foreign prin7 cipal may be hired as an officer or employee of 

8 a Member of Congress or a committee of either 

9 House of Congress during the 6-year period be10 ginning on the date on which the registered cor11 porate lobbyist terminates its registration in ac12 cordance with section 4(d) of the Lobbying Dis13 closure Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1603(d)) or the 

14 agent terminates its status, as applicable. 

15 (C) WAIVER RULES AND ELIGIBILITY.— 

16 (i) IN GENERAL.—Any Member of 

17 Congress may waive the ban described in 

18 subparagraph (A) for an officer or em19 ployee of that Member of Congress or of a 

20 committee of either House of Congress on 

21 which the Member serves as a chair or 

22 ranking member based on a compelling na23 tional need. 

24 (ii) REQUIREMENTS.—A waiver made 

25 under this subparagraph shall— 


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1 (I) within 30 days of issuance be 

2 submitted to the Select Committee on 

3 Ethics of the Senate or the Committee 

4 on Ethics of the House of Representa5 tives, as applicable, and to the Office 

6 of Congressional Ethics; 

7 (II) be made publicly available 

8 and searchable by the Office of Con9 gressional Ethics within 30 days of 

10 issuance; 

11 (III) include a justification made 

12 publicly available for why the reg13 istered lobbyist or agent of a foreign 

14 principal, as applicable, brings unique 

15 and relevant expertise such that it is 

16 not practical to find an alternative 

17 candidate with the same skill set; and 

18 (IV) be made only after the Con19 gressional Ethics Board submits to 

20 the Member of Congress and to the 

21 Select Committee on Ethics of the 

22 Senate or the Committee on Ethics of 

23 the House of Representatives, as ap24 plicable, a public recommendation or 

25 opinion regarding such a waiver. 


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1 (b) OTHER HIRING RESTRICTIONS.— 

2 (1) CONTRACTORS.— 

3 (A) IN GENERAL.—No former employee of 

4 a for-profit entity that was awarded a Federal 

5 contract or Federal license by an Executive 

6 agency may be an officer or employee of the 

7 Executive agency that awarded the contract or 

8 Federal license during the 4-year period begin9 ning on the date on which the employee termi10 nates its employment with the entity. 

11 (B) WAIVER.—The ban described in sub12 paragraph (A) may be waived in accordance 

13 with subsection (a)(1)(C). 

14 (2) SENIOR EXECUTIVES OF LAW-BREAKING

15 COMPANIES.—No former senior executive of a cov16 ered entity may be an officer or employee of an Ex17 ecutive agency during the 6-year period beginning on 

18 the later of— 

19 (A) the date of the settlement; and 

20 (B) the date on which the enforcement ac21 tion has concluded. 

22 SEC. 103. EXECUTIVE BRANCH CONFLICTS OF INTEREST 

23 LAW EXPANSIONS. 

24 Section 208 of title 18, United States Code, is 

25 amended by adding at the end the following: 


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1 ‘‘(e) SECURITIES OWNERSHIP AND TRADING RE2 STRICTIONS.— 

3 ‘‘(1) DEFINITION.—In this subsection and sub4 section (f), the term ‘Executive agency’— 

5 ‘‘(A) has the meaning given the term in 

6 section 105 of title 5, United States Code; and 

7 ‘‘(B) includes the Executive Office of the 

8 President and all components thereof, including 

9 the White House Office and the Office of the 

10 Vice President. 

11 ‘‘(2) PROHIBITION.— 

12 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—No officer or em13 ployee of an Executive agency may own an in14 terest in or trade (except a trade that is a di15 vestment required or approved by the Director 

16 of the Office of Public Integrity or the des17 ignated agency ethics official of the Executive 

18 agency that employs the individual for compli19 ance with this section) any individual stock, 

20 bond, commodity, future, or other form of secu21 rity, including an interest in a hedge fund, a 

22 derivative, option, or other complex investment 

23 vehicle if the Director of the Office of Public 

24 Integrity (or the designated agency ethics offi25 cial of the Executive agency that employs the 


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1 individual) determines that the financial inter2 ests of the officer or employee may be directly 

3 influenced by an action of the Executive agency. 

4 ‘‘(B) EXCEPTION.—Subparagraph (A) 

5 shall not apply to— 

6 ‘‘(i) a widely held investment fund de7 scribed in section 102(f)(8) of the Ethics 

8 in Government Act of 1978 (5 App. U.S.C. 

9 102(f)(8)), if such investment meets the 

10 requirements described in section 

11 105(b)(2) of the Anti-Corruption and Pub12 lic Integrity Act; 

13 ‘‘(ii) shares of Settlement Common 

14 Stock issued under section 7(g)(1)(A) of 

15 the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act 

16 (43 U.S.C. 1606(g)(1)(A)); or 

17 ‘‘(iii) shares of Settlement Common 

18 Stock, as defined in section 3 of the Alaska 

19 Native Claims Settlement Act (43 U.S.C. 

20 1602). 

21 ‘‘(C) PENALTY.—Whoever violates sub22 paragraph (A) shall be subject to the penalties 

23 set forth in section 216 of this title. 

24 ‘‘(D) WAIVER.—The Director of the Office 

25 of Public Integrity may waive subparagraph (A) 


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1 for an officer or employee of an Executive agen2 cy on a case-by-case basis if the Director— 

3 ‘‘(i) determines that there is no possi4 bility for, or the appearance of, a conflict 

5 of interest; or 

6 ‘‘(ii) approves a plan for necessary 

7 recusals that ensures that no conflict of in8 terest exists under this section. 

9 ‘‘(f) RECUSAL REQUIREMENTS.— 

10 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para11 graphs (2) and (3), each officer and employee of any 

12 Executive agency shall not participate personally 

13 and substantially as a Government officer or em14 ployee, through decision, approval, disapproval, rec15 ommendation, the rendering of advice, investigation, 

16 or otherwise, in any particular matter, including an 

17 adjudication, procurement, or rulemaking, that the 

18 officer or employee knows has or is likely to have a 

19 direct and predictable effect on the financial interest 

20 of— 

21 ‘‘(A) any person for whom the officer or 

22 employee had, during the previous 4-year pe23 riod, served as an officer, director, trustee, gen24 eral partner, agent, attorney, consultant, con25 tractor, employee, or direct competitor; or 


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1 ‘‘(B) any organization other than a polit2 ical organization described in section 527(e) of 

3 the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 in which the 

4 employee is an active participant. 

5 ‘‘(2) EXCLUSIONS.—This subsection shall not 

6 apply to— 

7 ‘‘(A) the President; 

8 ‘‘(B) the Vice President; 

9 ‘‘(C) any individual appointed to a position 

10 in an Executive agency by and with the advice 

11 and consent of the Senate; 

12 ‘‘(D) an officer or employee who served as 

13 an officer, director, trustee, general partner, 

14 agent, attorney, consultant, contractor, or em15 ployee of a tribal organization (as defined in 

16 section 4 of the Indian Self-Determination and 

17 Education Assistance Act (25 U.S.C. 5304)) or 

18 an intertribal consortium of federally recognized 

19 Indian tribes with respect to a matter that is 

20 likely to have a direct and predictable effect on 

21 the financial interest of the tribal organization 

22 or intertribal consortium; or 

23 ‘‘(E) any individual who receives a waiver 

24 under paragraph (3). 

25 ‘‘(3) WAIVER.— 


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1 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Director of Pub2 lic Integrity may waive the requirements of this 

3 subsection for any officer or employee (except 

4 individuals described in subparagraph (C)(iii)). 

5 ‘‘(B) LIMITATION.—Officers and employ6 ees may apply to the Director of Public Integ7 rity for a waiver under this paragraph only if 

8 the individual agrees to comply with the Con9 flicts of Interest Rules for Senior Government 

10 Officials in section 105(a) and section 106 of 

11 the Anti-Corruption and Public Integrity Act. 

12 ‘‘(C) WAIVER REQUIREMENTS.—A waiver 

13 made under this paragraph— 

14 ‘‘(i) shall be made publicly available 

15 and searchable within 30 days of issuance; 

16 ‘‘(ii) shall include a justification sent 

17 to Congress within 30 days of issuance ex18 plaining why the waiver is in the national 

19 interest; and 

20 ‘‘(iii) may not be granted if the indi21 vidual received a waiver under section 

22 102(a)(1)(C) of the Anti-Corruption and 

23 Public Integrity Act. 


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1 ‘‘(D) AUTHORITY OF DIRECTOR.—The Di2 rector of Public Integrity may deny a waiver 

3 under this paragraph for any reason. 

4 ‘‘(4) PENALTY.—An officer or employee who 

5 violates this subsection shall be subject to the pen6 alties set forth in section 216 of this title.’’. 

7 SEC. 104. LEGISLATIVE BRANCH CONFLICTS OF INTEREST 

8 LAW EXPANSIONS. 

9 (a) DIVESTMENT.—Except as provided in subsection 

10 (e), no senior government official in the legislative branch 

11 (including Members of Congress) may own an interest in 

12 or trade (except as a divestment) any stock, bond, com13 modity, future, and other form of security, including an 

14 interest in a hedge fund, a derivative, option, or other 

15 complex investment vehicle. 

16 (b) COMMITTEE STAFF RULE.—No officer or em17 ployee of a committee of either House of Congress may 

18 maintain, own, or trade any substantial holdings (includ19 ing individual stocks and securities) which may be directly 

20 affected by the actions of the committee for which the in21 dividual works, unless the Select Committee on Ethics of 

22 the Senate or the Committee on Ethics of the House of 

23 Representatives, as applicable, approves of such holdings 

24 in writing after consultation with the supervisor of the of25 ficer or employee and the Office of Congressional Ethics. 


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1 (c) GENERAL CONFLICTS OF INTEREST RULE FOR

2 CONGRESSIONAL STAFF AND MEMBERS.—No Member, 

3 officer, or employee of a committee or Member of either 

4 House of Congress may knowingly use his or her official 

5 position to introduce or aid the progress or passage of leg6 islation, a principal purpose of which is to further only 

7 his or her pecuniary interest, only the pecuniary interest 

8 of his or her immediate family, or only the pecuniary inter9 est of a limited class of persons or enterprises, when he 

10 or she, or his or her immediate family, or enterprises con11 trolled by them, are members of the affected class. 

12 (d) GENERAL STOCK AND SECURITIES RULE.—An 

13 officer or employee of a committee or Member of either 

14 House of Congress, who is not a senior government em15 ployee covered by subsection (a), shall be in violation of 

16 subsection (c) if— 

17 (1) the officer or employee owns an interest in 

18 or trades (except as a divestment) individual stocks 

19 or securities; and 

20 (2) the value of such stocks or securities may 

21 be influenced by actions taken by the individual in 

22 his or her official position, as determined by the Se23 lect Committee on Ethics of the Senate or the Com24 mittee on Ethics of the House of Representatives, as 


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1 applicable, in consultation with the Office of Con2 gressional Ethics. 

3 (e) EXCEPTION.—Nothing in this section shall be 

4 construed to prevent an employee or officials of a Member 

5 of Congress or a Member of Congress from owning— 

6 (1) a widely held investment fund described in 

7 section 102(f)(8) of the Ethics in Government Act of 

8 1978 (5 App. U.S.C. 102(f)(8)), if the investment 

9 meets the requirements described in section 

10 105(b)(2); 

11 (2) shares of Settlement Common Stock issued 

12 under section 7(g)(1)(A) of the Alaska Native 

13 Claims Settlement Act (43 U.S.C. 1606(g)(1)(A)); 

14 or 

15 (3) shares of Settlement Common Stock, as de16 fined in section 3 of the Alaska Native Claims Set17 tlement Act (43 U.S.C. 1602). 

18 SEC. 105. CONFLICTS OF INTEREST RULES FOR ALL SEN19 IOR GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS AND NONCON20 FLICTED FEDERAL EMPLOYEE INVESTMENT 

21 ACCOUNTS. 

22 (a) REQUIRED DIVESTMENTS OF CONFLICTED AS23 SETS.— 

24 (1) STOCKS AND SECURITIES.—No senior gov25 ernment official may own an interest in or trade (exVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:09 Feb 17, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00025 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H9029.IH H9029

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1 cept a divestment required or approved by the super2 vising ethics office) any stock, bond, commodity, fu3 ture, and other form of security, including an inter4 est in a hedge fund, a derivative, option, or other 

5 complex investment vehicle, except nonconflicted as6 sets allowed under subsection (b). 

7 (2) COMMERCIAL REAL ESTATE.—No senior 

8 government official may maintain ownership in com9 mercial real estate, unless ownership of such com10 mercial real estate is necessary for a qualified small 

11 business described in paragraph (4)(C). 

12 (3) TRUSTS.— 

13 (A) IN GENERAL.—No senior government 

14 official may maintain a financial interest in any 

15 trust, including a family trust, if the super16 vising ethics office determines that the trust in17 cludes any— 

18 (i) asset that might present a conflict 

19 of interest; or 

20 (ii) stock, bond, commodity, future, 

21 and other form of security, including an in22 terest in a hedge fund, a derivative, option, 

23 or other complex investment vehicle, except 

24 nonconflicted assets allowed under sub25 section (b). 


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1 (B) EXCEPTION.—Subparagraph (A) shall 

2 not apply to a trust described in section 

3 102(f)(2) of the Ethics in Government Act of 

4 1978 (5 U.S.C. App.). 

5 (4) BUSINESSES AND COMPANIES.— 

6 (A) PRIVATELY OWNED OR CLOSELY HELD

7 CORPORATION.—No senior government official 

8 may maintain ownership in a privately owned or 

9 closely held corporation, company, firm, part10 nership, or other business enterprise. 

11 (B) BOARD MEMBERS.—No senior govern12 ment official may serve on the board of direc13 tors of any for-profit entity, including any cor14 poration, company, firm, partnership, or other 

15 business enterprise. 

16 (C) EXCEPTION.—Subparagraphs (A) and 

17 (B) shall not apply to a qualified small busi18 ness. 

19 (b) NONCONFLICTED ASSETS.— 

20 (1) IN GENERAL.—A senior government official 

21 may maintain assets that do not present a conflict 

22 of interest, including— 

23 (A) a widely held investment fund— 


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1 (i) described in section 102(f)(8) of 

2 the Ethics in Government Act of 1978 (5 

3 U.S.C. App.); and 

4 (ii) that meets the requirements de5 scribed in paragraph (2); 

6 (B) noncommercial real estate, including 

7 real estate used solely as a personal residence; 

8 (C) cash, certificates of deposit, or other 

9 forms of savings accounts; 

10 (D) a federally managed asset, including— 

11 (i) financial interests in or income de12 rived from— 

13 (I) any retirement system under 

14 title 5, United States Code (including 

15 the Thrift Savings Plan under sub16 chapter III of chapter 84 of such 

17 title); or 

18 (II) any other retirement system 

19 maintained by the United States for 

20 officers or employees of the United 

21 States, including the President, or for 

22 members of the uniformed services; 

23 (ii) benefits received under the Social 

24 Security Act (42 U.S.C. 301 et seq.); and 


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1 (iii) an asset in the Federal Employee 

2 Investment Account described in para3 graph (3); 

4 (E) bonds, bills, and notes issued by gov5 ernmental sources, such as the Federal Govern6 ment, State, or other municipality; 

7 (F) shares of Settlement Common Stock 

8 issued under section 7(g)(1)(A) of the Alaska 

9 Native Claims Settlement Act (43 U.S.C. 

10 1606(g)(1)(A)); and 

11 (G) shares of Settlement Common Stock, 

12 as defined in section 3 of the Alaska Native 

13 Claims Settlement Act (43 U.S.C. 1602). 

14 (2) WIDELY HELD INVESTMENT FUND RE15 QUIREMENTS.—A senior government official may not 

16 maintain a widely held investment fund described in 

17 section 102(f)(8) of the Ethics in Government Act of 

18 1978 (5 U.S.C. App.), unless— 

19 (A) the widely held investment fund does 

20 not present a conflict of interest; and 

21 (B) any instructions to a manager of the 

22 widely held investment fund are shared with the 

23 applicable supervising ethics office. 


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1 (3) FEDERAL EMPLOYEE INVESTMENT AC2 COUNT.—Section 8472 of title 5, United States 

3 Code, is amended— 

4 (A) in subsection (f)— 

5 (i) in paragraph (2), by striking 

6 ‘‘and’’ at the end; 

7 (ii) in paragraph (3), by striking the 

8 period at the end and inserting a semi9 colon; and 

10 (iii) by adding at the end the fol11 lowing: 

12 ‘‘(4) not later than 3 years after the date of en13 actment of this paragraph, establish Federal Em14 ployee Investment Accounts in the Treasury of the 

15 United States accounts for senior government offi16 cials to maintain investments in the stock and secu17 rities markets in which a senior government official 

18 may— 

19 ‘‘(A) sell an asset or security, including 

20 those assets or securities that present a conflict 

21 of interest under section 105(a) of the Anti22 Corruption and Public Integrity Act, and invest 

23 the resulting funds into the Federal Employee 

24 Investment Accounts; and 


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1 ‘‘(B) withdraw funds from their Federal 

2 Employee Investment Account at any time; 

3 ‘‘(5) act in the interest of the plan participants 

4 and beneficiaries of Federal Employee Investment 

5 Accounts when making decisions for the purpose of 

6 providing benefits to those participants and bene7 ficiaries; 

8 ‘‘(6) establish a new and parallel system for 

9 recordkeeping with respect to Federal Employee In10 vestment Accounts; and 

11 ‘‘(7) establish a Federal Employee Investment 

12 Fund to fully cover administrative costs associated 

13 with managing Federal Employee Investment Ac14 counts, which— 

15 ‘‘(A) shall be separate from the Thrift Sav16 ings Fund established under section 8437, ex17 cept with respect to administrative costs for 

18 common resources; and 

19 ‘‘(B) may be used for compensation to pay 

20 new employees, additional resources for infor21 mation technology, additional call center capac22 ity, and any other new capacity to handle the 

23 administration of Federal Employee Investment 

24 Accounts.’’; 

25 (B) in subsection (g)(1)— 


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1 (i) in subparagraph (C), by striking 

2 ‘‘and’’ at the end; 

3 (ii) by striking the period at the end 

4 and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

5 (iii) by adding at the end the fol6 lowing: 

7 ‘‘(E) promulgate regulations for the ad8 ministration of Federal Employee Investment 

9 Accounts.’’; and 

10 (C) by adding at the end the following: 

11 ‘‘(k) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

12 is authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be nec13 essary to establish and maintain Federal Employee Invest14 ment Accounts established under subsection (f), including 

15 for the purpose of reducing any fees paid by participants 

16 in the Federal Employee Investment Accounts.’’. 

17 SEC. 106. POST-EMPLOYMENT RESTRICTIONS. 

18 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 207 of title 18, United 

19 States Code, is amended— 

20 (1) in subsection (a)— 

21 (A) in paragraph (1), in the matter pre22 ceding subparagraph (A), by inserting after 

23 ‘‘with the intent to influence,’’ the following: 

24 ‘‘or with the intent to gain information for use 

25 in analyzing securities or commodities markets, 


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1 or in informing investment decisions in securi2 ties or commodities markets,’’; and 

3 (B) in paragraph (2), in the matter pre4 ceding subparagraph (A), by inserting after 

5 ‘‘with the intent to influence,’’ the following: 

6 ‘‘or with the intent to gain information for use 

7 in analyzing securities or commodities markets, 

8 or in informing investment decisions in securi9 ties or commodities markets,’’; 

10 (2) by striking subsections (c), (d), and (e) and 

11 inserting the following: 

12 ‘‘(c) LOBBYING AND POLITICAL INTELLIGENCE RE13 STRICTIONS.— 

14 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In addition to the restric15 tions set forth in subsections (a) and (b), any Presi16 dent, Vice President, Member of Congress, or officer 

17 or employee compensated at a rate of pay specified 

18 in or fixed according to subchapter II of chapter 53 

19 of title 5, after the termination of his or her service 

20 or employment with the United States who— 

21 ‘‘(A) works as a registered lobbyist or po22 litical intelligence consultant; or 

23 ‘‘(B) knowingly makes, with the intent to 

24 influence, or with the intent to gain information 

25 for use in analyzing securities or commodities 


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1 markets, or in informing investment decisions 

2 in securities or commodities markets, any com3 munication to or appearance before any officer 

4 or employee of any department, Executive agen5 cy, Member, officer, or employee of either 

6 House of Congress or any employee of any 

7 other legislative office of the Congress, on be8 half of any other person (except the United 

9 States or the District of Columbia) for com10 pensation, in connection with any matter on 

11 which such person seeks official action by any 

12 Member, officer, or employee of either House of 

13 Congress, or any employee or officer of any de14 partment or agency Executive agency, 

15 shall be subject to the penalties set forth in section 

16 216 of this title. 

17 ‘‘(2) OTHER OFFICIALS.— 

18 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Any officer or em19 ployee in the executive or legislative branch of 

20 the United States who, during the time period 

21 described in subparagraph (B) makes, with the 

22 intent to influence, or with the intent to gain 

23 information for use in analyzing securities or 

24 commodities markets, or in informing invest25 ment decisions in securities or commodities 


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1 markets, any communication to or appearance 

2 before their former office, Executive agency, or 

3 House of Congress, for compensation, shall be 

4 subject to the penalties set forth in section 216 

5 of this title. 

6 ‘‘(B) TIME PERIOD.—The time period de7 scribed in this subparagraph is as follows: 

8 ‘‘(i) With respect to an officer or em9 ployee of the legislative branch, 2 years 

10 after the termination of service or employ11 ment as an officer or employee. 

12 ‘‘(ii) With respect to an officer or em13 ployee of the executive branch, the later 

14 of— 

15 ‘‘(I) the date on which a Presi16 dent other than the President serving 

17 at the time of the termination of serv18 ice or employment of the officer or 

19 employee takes office; and 

20 ‘‘(II) the date on which the 2- 

21 year period beginning on the date of 

22 the termination of service or employ23 ment as an officer or employee ex24 pires. 


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1 ‘‘(iii) With respect to an officer or em2 ployee of the executive branch of the 

3 United States who becomes a corporate 

4 lobbyist, the later of— 

5 ‘‘(I) the date on which a Presi6 dent other than the President serving 

7 at the time of the termination of serv8 ice or employment of the officer or 

9 employee takes office; and 

10 ‘‘(II) the date on which the 6- 

11 year period beginning on the date of 

12 the termination of service or employ13 ment as an officer or employee ex14 pires. 

15 ‘‘(iv) With respect to an officer or em16 ployee of the legislative branch of the 

17 United States who becomes a corporate 

18 lobbyist, the date on which the 6-year pe19 riod beginning on the date of the termi20 nation of service or employment as an offi21 cer or employee expires.’’; 

22 (3) by redesignating subsections (f) through (l) 

23 as subsections (d) through (j), respectively; 

24 (4) in subsection (g), as so redesignated— 


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1 (A) by redesignating paragraphs (1), (2), 

2 and (3) as paragraphs (2), (3), and (4), respec3 tively; 

4 (B) by inserting before paragraph (2), as 

5 so redesignated, the following: 

6 ‘‘(1) the terms ‘corporate lobbyist’, ‘lobbyist’, 

7 and ‘political intelligence consultant’ have the mean8 ings given such terms in section 3 of the Lobbying 

9 Disclosure Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1602);’’; and 

10 (C) in paragraph (2), as so redesignated, 

11 by inserting after ‘‘with the intent to influ12 ence,’’ the following: ‘‘or with the intent to gain 

13 information for use in analyzing securities or 

14 commodities markets, or in informing invest15 ment decisions in securities or commodities 

16 markets,’’; 

17 (5) in subsection (h), as so redesignated, by 

18 adding at the end the following: 

19 ‘‘(8) REPRESENTATIVE OF A MEDIA ORGANIZA20 TION.—The restrictions contained in this section re21 lating to a communication made with the intent to 

22 gain information for use in analyzing securities or 

23 commodities markets, or in informing investment de24 cisions in securities or commodities markets shall 

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1 tive of a media organization (as such term is defined 

2 in section 3 of the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 

3 (2 U.S.C. 1602)), if the purpose of the communica4 tion is gathering and disseminating news and infor5 mation to the public.’’; and 

6 (6) by adding at the end the following: 

7 ‘‘(k) OTHER POST-EMPLOYMENT RESTRICTIONS.— 

8 ‘‘(1) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection: 

9 ‘‘(A) GIANT BANK OR COMPANY.—The 

10 term ‘giant bank or company’ includes— 

11 ‘‘(i) any for-profit company or finan12 cial institution with greater than an aver13 age of $150,000,000,000 in market cap14 italization or revenue for the previous 3- 

15 year period; 

16 ‘‘(ii) any Federal contractor that re17 ceived greater than $5,000,000,000 in an18 nual revenue from the Federal Government 

19 during the previous 3-year period; and 

20 ‘‘(iii) any for-profit company or finan21 cial institution that exerts monopolistic or 

22 monopsonistic control over a significant 

23 share of the market in its particular indus24 try (as defined by the Director of the OfVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:09 Feb 17, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00038 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H9029.IH H9029

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1 fice of Public Integrity, in consultation 

2 with the Attorney General, by regulation). 

3 ‘‘(B) LOBBYING CONTACT.—The term ‘lob4 bying contact’ has the meaning given the term 

5 in section 3 of the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 

6 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1602). 

7 ‘‘(C) REGISTERED LOBBYIST.—The term 

8 ‘registered lobbyist’ means a lobbyist registered 

9 under the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 (2 

10 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.). 

11 ‘‘(D) SENIOR GOVERNMENT OFFICIAL.— 

12 The term ‘senior government official’ means— 

13 ‘‘(i) any individual described in sec14 tion 101(f) of the Ethics in Government 

15 Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App.), including— 

16 ‘‘(I) any individual appointed to 

17 a position on any level of the Execu18 tive Schedule under subchapter II of 

19 chapter 53 of title 5, United States 

20 Code, including positions identified in 

21 sections 5312 through 5316 of title 5, 

22 United States Code; 

23 ‘‘(II) a noncareer officer or em24 ployee serving in the Executive Office 

25 of President, including the White 


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1 House Office, and in the Office of the 

2 Vice President; and 

3 ‘‘(III) an individual employed in 

4 a position in the executive branch of 

5 the Government who is excepted from 

6 the competitive service by reason of 

7 being of a confidential or policy-deter8 mining character under schedule C of 

9 subpart C of part 213 of title 5, Code 

10 of Federal Regulations (or any suc11 cessor regulations), except that the 

12 Director of the Office of Public Integ13 rity may, by regulation, exclude from 

14 the application of this paragraph any 

15 individual, or group of individuals, 

16 who are in such positions, but only in 

17 cases in which the Director deter18 mines such exclusion would not affect 

19 adversely the integrity of the Govern20 ment or the confidence of the public 

21 in the integrity of the Government; 

22 ‘‘(ii) an individual employed in a posi23 tion in the Senior Executive Service; 

24 ‘‘(iii) an individual employed in a po25 sition at the GS–15 level or higher; and 


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1 ‘‘(iv) an individual employed in a posi2 tion not under the General Schedule for 

3 which the rate of basic pay is equal to or 

4 greater than the minimum rate of basic 

5 pay payable for GS–15 of the General 

6 Schedule. 

7 ‘‘(2) SENIOR GOVERNMENT OFFICIAL HIRING

8 RESTRICTION.—No for-profit corporation, company, 

9 firm, partnership, or other business enterprise may 

10 hire or directly or indirectly compensate (including 

11 as consultants and lawyers) any former senior gov12 ernment official, for 1 year after the official leaves 

13 government service, from an Executive agency, de14 partment, or congressional office with which the cor15 poration, company, firm, partnership, or other busi16 ness enterprise made a lobbying contact in the past 

17 2 years. 

18 ‘‘(3) SPECIAL RULES FOR POST EMPLOYMENT

19 WITH GIANT BANKS, COMPANIES, AND CONTRAC20 TORS.— 

21 ‘‘(A) PROCUREMENT OFFICERS.—No com22 pany that is awarded a contract or license by 

23 the Federal Government may hire or com24 pensate any former officer or employee in the 

25 executive branch of the United States who 


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1 oversaw any of the company’s contracts or li2 censes (including any procurement officer, any 

3 Federal employee or official who participated in 

4 the contract or license selection, any Federal 

5 employee or official who determined or ap6 proved the technical requirements of the con7 tract or license, and any senior government offi8 cial in the executive branch of the United 

9 States employed at the Executive agency that 

10 granted the contract or license) during the 4- 

11 year period beginning on the date on which the 

12 officer terminated employment with the United 

13 States. 

14 ‘‘(B) GIANT BANKS AND COMPANIES.—No 

15 giant bank or company may hire or directly or 

16 indirectly compensate (including as consultants 

17 and lawyers) any senior government official 

18 during the 4-year period beginning on the date 

19 on which the official terminated employment 

20 with the United States. 

21 ‘‘(C) EARNED INCOME DISCLOSURES.— 

22 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 

23 year after the date of enactment of this 

24 clause, each senior government official who 

25 terminates service on or after the date that 


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1 is 1 year after the date of enactment of 

2 this clause shall submit to the Director of 

3 the Office of Public Integrity an annual 

4 disclosure that includes all sources of 

5 earned income for the 4-year period begin6 ning on the date on which the government 

7 official terminated employment with the 

8 United States. 

9 ‘‘(ii) PUBLICLY AVAILABLE.—The Di10 rector of the Office of Public Integrity 

11 shall make a disclosure made under clause 

12 (i) publicly available for any official who 

13 had a report made in accordance with title 

14 I of the Ethics in Government Act of 1978 

15 (5 U.S.C. App.) made publicly available. 

16 ‘‘(iii) AUTOMATIC DISCLOSURE.— 

17 ‘‘(I) IN GENERAL.—Each senior 

18 government official subject to the dis19 closure requirement in clause (i) may 

20 consent to allow the Director of the 

21 Office of Public Integrity to obtain 

22 from the Commissioner of Internal 

23 Revenue the information necessary to 

24 meet the requirements of subclause 

25 (i), but no other information, such 


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1 that additional action is not required 

2 of the senior government official after 

3 such individual files a tax return. 

4 ‘‘(II) SAFE HARBOR.—Any indi5 vidual who consents under subclause 

6 (I) shall not be subject to clause (v). 

7 ‘‘(iv) MEMORANDUM OF UNDER8 STANDING.—Not later than 1 year after 

9 the date of enactment of this subclause, 

10 the Director of the Office of Public Integ11 rity and the Commissioner of Internal Rev12 enue shall enter into a cooperative agree13 ment or memorandum of understanding to 

14 establish secure means to allow for the 

15 necessary information exchange in sub16 clause (III) for senior government officials 

17 who wish to avail themselves of the auto18 matic disclosure under subclause (III). 

19 ‘‘(v) PENALTIES FOR FORMER SENIOR

20 GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS.— 

21 ‘‘(I) CIVIL ACTION.—The Attor22 ney General or the Director of the Of23 fice of Public Integrity may bring a 

24 civil action in any appropriate United 

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1 vidual who knowingly and willfully fal2 sifies or who knowingly and willfully 

3 fails to disclose any information that 

4 such individual is required to disclose 

5 pursuant to this clause. The court in 

6 which such action is brought may as7 sess against such individual a civil 

8 penalty in any amount, not to exceed 

9 $50,000. 

10 ‘‘(II) CRIMINAL PENALTIES.— 

11 ‘‘(aa) PROHIBITION.—It 

12 shall be unlawful for any person 

13 to knowingly and willfully falsify 

14 any information that such person 

15 is required to disclose under this 

16 clause. It shall be unlawful for 

17 any person to fail to disclose any 

18 information that such person is 

19 required to disclose under this 

20 clause. 

21 ‘‘(bb) PENALTIES.—Any 

22 person who violates the first sen23 tence of subitem (AA) shall be 

24 fined under title 18, United 

25 States Code, imprisoned for not 


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1 more than 1 year, or both. Any 

2 person who violates the second 

3 sentence of subitem (AA) shall be 

4 fined under title 18, United 

5 States Code. 

6 ‘‘(4) PENALTIES FOR GIANT BANKS AND COM7 PANIES.— 

8 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Director of Office 

9 of Public Integrity may impose a civil penalty 

10 or a sanction on any entity or giant bank or 

11 company upon making a determination, after 

12 reasonable notice and opportunity for a hearing, 

13 that the entity or giant bank or company has 

14 violated paragraph (2) or (3)(B). 

15 ‘‘(B) AMOUNT OF CIVIL PENALTIES.—A 

16 civil penalty imposed for a violation under sub17 paragraph (A) shall— 

18 ‘‘(i) in the case of an initial violation, 

19 be not less than 1 percent of the net profit 

20 of the entity or giant bank or company for 

21 the previous year; 

22 ‘‘(ii) in the case of a second violation, 

23 be not less than 2 percent of the net profit 

24 of the entity or giant bank or company for 

25 the previous year; and 


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1 ‘‘(iii) in the case of a third or subse2 quent violation, be not less than 5 percent 

3 of the net profit of the entity or giant bank 

4 or company for the previous year. 

5 ‘‘(C) OTHER PENALTIES AND SANCTIONS

6 COMPANIES.—In addition to a civil penalty im7 posed under this clause, after reasonable notice 

8 and an opportunity for a hearing, if the Direc9 tor of the Office of Public Integrity determines 

10 that a company has violated paragraph (2) or 

11 (3)(B), the Director may impose a sanction on 

12 an entity or a giant bank or company, includ13 ing— 

14 ‘‘(i) prohibiting the entity or giant 

15 bank or company from employing any 

16 former employee or officer of the Federal 

17 Government for a period of time not to ex18 ceed 8 years; 

19 ‘‘(ii) prohibiting the company from 

20 doing business with the Federal Govern21 ment, receiving a contract or license from 

22 the Federal Government, or otherwise par23 ticipating in Federal Government pro24 grams, for a period of time not to exceed 

25 8 years. 


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1 ‘‘(D) CIVIL PENALTIES FOR EXECUTIVE

2 OFFICERS OF COMPANIES.— 

3 ‘‘(i) DEFINITION.—In this subclause, 

4 the term ‘compensation’ includes, based on 

5 information required to be reported to any 

6 Federal agency during the period in which 

7 a violation of paragraph (2) or (3)(B) oc8 curred— 

9 ‘‘(I) the proceeds of any sale of 

10 stock; and 

11 ‘‘(II) any incentive-based com12 pensation (including stock options 

13 awarded as compensation). 

14 ‘‘(ii) CIVIL PENALTY.—In addition to 

15 the penalties described in subparagraphs 

16 (B) and (C), after reasonable notice and 

17 an opportunity for a hearing, that an exec18 utive officer of an entity or giant bank or 

19 company has knowingly, or with gross neg20 ligence, violated paragraph (2) or (3)(B), 

21 or contributed to the violation of a para22 graph (2) or (3)(B), the Director may as23 sess a civil penalty against the executive 

24 officer not to exceed the amount of the ofVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:09 Feb 17, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00048 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H9029.IH H9029

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1 ficer’s compensation for each year during 

2 which the violations occurred. 

3 ‘‘(E) MITIGATING FACTORS.—In deter4 mining the amount of any penalties assessed 

5 under this paragraph, the Director of the Office 

6 of Public Integrity or the court shall take into 

7 account the appropriateness of the penalty with 

8 respect to— 

9 ‘‘(i) the size of financial resources and 

10 good faith of the entity, giant bank or 

11 company, or senior executive; 

12 ‘‘(ii) the gravity of the violation or 

13 failure to pay; 

14 ‘‘(iii) the history of previous viola15 tions; and 

16 ‘‘(iv) such other matters as justice 

17 may require. 

18 ‘‘(F) AUTHORITY TO MODIFY OR REMIT

19 PENALTY.—The Director of the Office of Public 

20 Integrity may compromise, modify, or remit any 

21 penalty under this paragraph, which may be as22 sessed or had already been assessed. The 

23 amount of such penalty, when finally deter24 mined, shall be exclusive of any sums owed by 

25 the person to the United States in connection 


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1 with the costs of the proceeding, and may be 

2 deducted from any sums owing by the United 

3 States to the person charged. 

4 ‘‘(G) NOTICE AND HEARING.—No civil 

5 penalty may be assessed under this paragraph 

6 with respect to a violation of paragraph (2) or 

7 (3)(B) unless— 

8 ‘‘(i) the Director of the Office of Pub9 lic Integrity gives notice and an oppor10 tunity for a hearing to the person accused 

11 of the violation; or 

12 ‘‘(ii) the appropriate court has or13 dered such assessment and entered judg14 ment in favor of the Director of the Office 

15 of Public Integrity.’’. 

16 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

17 subsection (a) relating to political intelligence contacts (as 

18 defined in section 3 of the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 

19 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1602), as amended by this Act) shall apply 

20 with respect to any political intelligence contact that is 

21 made on or after the date that is 1 year after the date 

22 of the enactment of this Act. 

23 (c) TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

24 Section 207 of title 18, United States Code, is amended— 


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1 (1) in subsection (d), as redesignated by sub2 section (a) of this section, is amended by striking 

3 ‘‘(d), or (e)’’; 

4 (2) in subsection (f)(2), as redesignated by sub5 section (a) of this section, in the second sentence, by 

6 striking ‘‘(c)(2)(A)(i) or (iii)’’ and inserting ‘‘(c)’’; 

7 (3) in subsection (g)(1), as redesignated by sub8 section (a) of this section— 

9 (A) in subparagraph (A), by striking ‘‘(a), 

10 (c), and (d)’’ and inserting ‘‘(a) and (c)’’; and 

11 (B) in subparagraph (B), by striking ‘‘(f)’’ 

12 and inserting ‘‘(d)’’; and 

13 (4) in subsection (h), as redesignated by sub14 section (a) of this section— 

15 (A) by striking ‘‘subsections (c), (d), and 

16 (e)’’ each place the term appears and inserting 

17 ‘‘subsection (c)’’; 

18 (B) in paragraph (5), by striking ‘‘(a), (c), 

19 and (d)’’ and inserting ‘‘(a) and (c)’’; and 

20 (C) in paragraph (7)(B), by striking ‘‘sub21 sections (c), (d), or (e)’’ and inserting ‘‘sub22 section (c)’’. 

23 (d) RESTRICTIONS ON FEDERAL EXAMINERS OF FI24 NANCIAL INSTITUTIONS.—Section 10(k) of the Federal 

25 Deposit Insurance Act (12 U.S.C. 1820(k)) is amended— 


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1 (1) in the subsection header, by striking ‘‘ONE2 YEAR’’ and inserting ‘‘FOUR-YEAR’’; and 

3 (2) in paragraph (1)— 

4 (A) in subparagraph (B), by striking ‘‘sen5 ior’’; and 

6 (B) in subparagraph (C), by striking ‘‘1 

7 year’’ and inserting ‘‘4 years’’. 

8 SEC. 107. GOLDEN PARACHUTES BAN. 

9 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 209 of title 18, United 

10 States Code, is amended— 

11 (1) in subsection (a)— 

12 (A) by striking ‘‘any salary’’ and inserting 

13 ‘‘any bonus or salary’’; and 

14 (B) by striking ‘‘his services’’ and inserting 

15 ‘‘services rendered or to be rendered’’; and 

16 (2) in subsection (b)— 

17 (A) by inserting ‘‘(1)’’ after ‘‘(b)’’; and 

18 (B) by adding at the end the following: 

19 ‘‘(2)(A) In this paragraph, the term ‘compensation’ 

20 includes a retention award or bonus, severance pay, and 

21 any other payment— 

22 ‘‘(i) linked to future service in the Federal Gov23 ernment in any way; or 

24 ‘‘(ii) from a current or former employer unless 

25 the recipient demonstrates that the payment would 


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1 have been received if the recipient had not entered 

2 government service. 

3 ‘‘(B) For purposes of paragraph (1), a pension, re4 tirement, group life, health or accident insurance, profit5 sharing, stock bonus, or other employee welfare or benefit 

6 plan that makes payment of compensation contingent on 

7 accepting a position in the Federal Government shall not 

8 be considered bona fide.’’. 

9 (b) PERMISSIBLE PAYMENTS.—Section 1.409A– 

10 3(j)(4)(iii) of title 26, Code of Federal Regulations, shall 

11 have no force or effect. 

12 SEC. 108. GENERAL PUBLIC INTEGRITY RULES. 

13 (a) OUTSIDE EMPLOYMENT BAN.—The limitations 

14 described in section 502 of the Ethics in Government Act 

15 of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App.) shall apply to full-time senior 

16 government officials. 

17 (b) VOLUNTEER SERVICE RULE.—All Federal laws 

18 or regulations relating to conflicts of interest or other eth19 ics issues (as defined in section 409 of the Ethics in Gov20 ernment Act of 1978, as added by section 511 of this Act) 

21 shall apply to any individual who is employed by the Fed22 eral Government and voluntarily refuses compensation for 

23 such employment consistent with applicable law. 

24 (c) SPECIAL GOVERNMENT EMPLOYEE RULE.—All 

25 Federal ethics rules shall apply to an individual designated 


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1 as a Special Government Employee to the same extent 

2 that they apply to regular Government employees begin3 ning on the date that is 61 days after the date on which 

4 the Special Government Employee commences employ5 ment during a 365-day period. 

6 (d) INDEBTEDNESS RULE.— 

7 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para8 graph (2), no senior government official (except a 

9 Member of Congress, the President, and the Vice 

10 President) may— 

11 (A) in the course of official duty, meet or 

12 communicate with, or work on any particular 

13 matter that affects, any person to whom the 

14 senior government official owes more than 

15 $100,000; or 

16 (B) receive a loan of more than $100,000 

17 from any person the senior government official 

18 has met or communicated with, or plans to 

19 meet or communicate with, during the course of 

20 their official duty. 

21 (2) EXCEPTION.—Paragraph (1) shall not 

22 apply to— 

23 (A) commercial debt such as residential 

24 mortgages, car loans, credit card debt, student 

25 loans, or any debts owed to domestic financial 


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1 institutions on terms generally available to the 

2 public; or 

3 (B) meetings with domestic financial insti4 tutions. 

5 SEC. 109. LEGAL EXPENSE FUNDS. 

6 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section— 

7 (1) the term ‘‘legal expense fund’’ means a 

8 fund— 

9 (A) to be used to defray legal expenses in10 curred in investigative, civil, criminal, or other 

11 legal proceedings relating to or arising by virtue 

12 of service by an officer or employee as an offi13 cer or employee; 

14 (B) that may not be used for personal 

15 legal matters, including tax planning, personal 

16 injury litigation, protection of property rights, 

17 divorces, or estate probate; 

18 (C) that may only be used to defray legal 

19 expenses for a single officer or single employee; 

20 (D) that may be established or controlled 

21 by the officer or employee, or by a third party, 

22 in accordance with the requirements of section; 

23 and 

24 (E) that may accept contributions, in ac25 cordance with this section; 


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1 (2) the term ‘‘lobbying activity’’ has the mean2 ing given that term in section 3 of the Lobbying 

3 Disclosure Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1602); 

4 (3) the term ‘‘officer or employee’’ means— 

5 (A) an officer, as defined in section 2104 

6 of title 5, United States Code; 

7 (B) an employee, as defined in section 

8 2105 of title 5, United States Code; 

9 (C) a Member of Congress, as defined in 

10 section 2106 of title 5, United States Code; 

11 (D) the Vice President; and 

12 (E) the President; 

13 (4) the term ‘‘relative’’ has the meaning given 

14 that term in section 3110 of title 5, United States 

15 Code; and 

16 (5) the term ‘‘supervising ethics office’’ has the 

17 meaning given that term in section 109 of the Eth18 ics in Government Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App.). 

19 (b) AUTHORIZATION FOR LEGAL EXPENSE

20 FUNDS.—Subject to the limitations and regulations pro21 mulgated under this section, an officer or employee may 

22 establish, maintain, and use a legal expense fund. 

23 (c) LIMITS ON CONTRIBUTIONS.—The Director of the 

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1 pense funds for officers or employees, which shall, at a 

2 minimum, prohibit an officer or employee from accepting 

3 contributions for a legal expense fund— 

4 (1) from a single contributor (other than a rel5 ative of the officer or employee) in a total amount 

6 of more than $5,000 during any calendar year; 

7 (2) from a registered lobbyist; 

8 (3) from an agent of a foreign principal; 

9 (4) from any person seeking official action from 

10 or doing business with the Executive agency, office, 

11 or entity employing the officer or employee; 

12 (5) from any person conducting activities regu13 lated by the Executive agency, office, or entity em14 ploying the officer or employee; 

15 (6) from any person whose interests may be 

16 substantially affected by the performance or non17 performance of the official duties of the officer or 

18 employee; or 

19 (7) for an officer or employee of an Executive 

20 agency, from any person that has engaged in lob21 bying activities, or on whose behalf lobbying activi22 ties have been engaged with, with respect to the Ex23 ecutive agency during the 2-year period ending on 

24 the date of the contribution. 

25 (d) WRITTEN NOTICE.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—An officer or employee who 

2 wishes to establish, or directly or indirectly receives 

3 money from, a legal expense fund shall submit to the 

4 supervising ethics office with respect to the officer or 

5 employee a written notice that includes— 

6 (A) the name and contact information for 

7 any proposed trustee of the legal expense fund; 

8 (B) a copy of any proposed trust document 

9 for the legal expense fund; 

10 (C) the nature of the legal proceeding (or 

11 proceedings) which necessitate the establish12 ment of the legal expense fund; 

13 (D) an acknowledgment that the officer or 

14 employee will be bound by the regulations and 

15 limitation under this section; and 

16 (E) an acknowledgment that the officer or 

17 employee bears ultimate responsibility for prop18 er administration of the legal expense fund. 

19 (2) APPROVAL.—An officer or employee may 

20 not solicit or accept contributions to a legal expense 

21 fund until after the supervising ethics office has re22 ceived and approved the written notice submitted 

23 under paragraph (1). 

24 (e) REPORTING.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—An officer or employee who 

2 establishes, or directly or indirectly receives money 

3 from, a legal expense fund shall submit to the super4 vising ethics office with respect to the officer or em5 ployee a quarterly report that discloses, with respect 

6 to the quarter covered by the report— 

7 (A) the source and amount of each con8 tribution to the legal expense fund; and 

9 (B) the amount, recipient, and purpose of 

10 each expenditure from the legal expense fund. 

11 (2) PUBLIC AVAILABILITY.—Each supervising 

12 ethics office shall make publicly available online each 

13 report submitted under paragraph (1) in a search14 able, sortable, and downloadable form. 

15 (f) RECUSAL.—An officer or employee in the execu16 tive branch, other than the President and the Vice Presi17 dent, who receives a contribution to a legal expense fund 

18 of the officer or employee may not participate in any mat19 ter that has or would have a direct and substantial impact 

20 on the person making the contribution during the 2-year 

21 period beginning on the date on which the contribution 

22 is received. 

23 SEC. 110. PENALTIES. 

24 (a) CIVIL FINES.—The Attorney General or the Di25 rector of the Office of Public Integrity may bring a civil 


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1 action in the appropriate United States district court 

2 against any person who engages in conduct constituting 

3 a violation of this subtitle and, upon proof of such conduct 

4 by a preponderance of the evidence, such person shall be 

5 subject to a civil penalty of not more than $50,000 for 

6 each violation or the amount of compensation which the 

7 person received or offered for the prohibited conduct, 

8 whichever amount is greater. The imposition of a civil pen9 alty under this subsection does not preclude any other 

10 criminal or civil statutory, common law, or administrative 

11 remedy, which is available by law to the United States or 

12 any other person. 

13 (b) ORDER PROHIBITING CONDUCT.—If the Attorney 

14 General or the Director of the Office of Public Integrity 

15 has reason to believe that a person is engaging in conduct 

16 constituting an offense under this subtitle, the Attorney 

17 General or the Director of the Office of Public Integrity, 

18 as applicable, may petition an appropriate United States 

19 district court for an order prohibiting that person from 

20 engaging in such conduct. The court may issue an order 

21 prohibiting that person from engaging in such conduct if 

22 the court finds that the conduct constitutes such an of23 fense. The filing of a petition under this section does not 

24 preclude any other remedy which is available by law to 

25 the United States or any other person. 


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1 Subtitle B—Presidential Conflicts 

2 of Interest 

3 SEC. 111. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This subtitle may be cited as the ‘‘Presidential Con5 flicts of Interest Act of 2018’’. 

6 SEC. 112. DIVESTITURE OF PERSONAL FINANCIAL INTER7 ESTS OF THE PRESIDENT AND VICE PRESI8 DENT THAT POSE A POTENTIAL CONFLICT OF 

9 INTEREST. 

10 (a) DEFINITIONS.— 

11 (1) IN GENERAL.—In this section— 

12 (A) the term ‘‘conflict-free holding’’ means 

13 a financial interest described in section 

14 102(f)(8) of the Ethics in Government Act of 

15 1978 (5 U.S.C. App.); 

16 (B) the term ‘‘financial interest posing a 

17 potential conflict of interest’’ means a financial 

18 interest of the President, the Vice President, 

19 the spouse of the President or Vice President, 

20 or a minor child of the President or Vice Presi21 dent, as applicable, that— 

22 (i) would constitute a financial inter23 est described in subsection (a) of section 

24 208 of title 18, United States Code— 

25 (I) if— 


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1 (aa) for purposes of such 

2 section 208, the terms ‘‘officer’’ 

3 and ‘‘employee’’ included the 

4 President and the Vice President; 

5 and 

6 (bb) the President or Vice 

7 President, as applicable, partici8 pated as described in subsection 

9 (a) of such section 208 in rela10 tion to such financial interest; 

11 and 

12 (II) if determined without regard 

13 to any exception under subsection (b) 

14 of such section 208; or 

15 (ii) may constitute a present, emolu16 ment, office, or title, of any kind whatever, 

17 from any king, prince, or foreign state (in18 cluding from an entity owned or controlled 

19 by a foreign government), within the 

20 meaning of article I, section 9 of the Con21 stitution of the United States; 

22 (C) the term ‘‘qualified blind trust’’ has 

23 the meaning given that term in section 

24 102(f)(3) of the Ethics in Government Act of 


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1 1978 (5 U.S.C. App.), unless otherwise speci2 fied in this subtitle; and 

3 (D) the term ‘‘tax return’’— 

4 (i) means any Federal income tax re5 turn and any amendment or supplement 

6 thereto, including supporting schedules, at7 tachments, or lists which are supplemental 

8 to, or part of, the return for the taxable 

9 year; and 

10 (ii) includes any information return 

11 that reports information that does or may 

12 affect the liability for tax for the taxable 

13 year. 

14 (2) APPLICABILITY OF ETHICS IN GOVERNMENT

15 ACT OF 1978.—For purposes of the definition of 

16 ‘‘qualified blind trust’’ in this section, the term ‘‘su17 pervising ethics officer’’ in section 102(f)(3) of the 

18 Ethics in Government Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App.) 

19 means the Director of the Office of Public Integrity. 

20 (b) INITIAL FINANCIAL DISCLOSURE.— 

21 (1) SUBMISSION OF DISCLOSURE.— 

22 (A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 30 days 

23 after assuming the office of President or Vice 

24 President, respectively, the President and Vice 

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1 rector of the Office of Public Integrity a disclo2 sure of financial interests. 

3 (B) APPLICATION TO SITTING PRESIDENT

4 AND VICE PRESIDENT.—For any individual who 

5 is serving as the President or Vice President on 

6 the date of enactment of this Act, the disclosure 

7 of financial interests shall be submitted to Con8 gress and the Director of the Office of Public 

9 Integrity not later than 30 days after the date 

10 of enactment of this Act. 

11 (2) CONTENTS.— 

12 (A) PRESIDENT.—The disclosure of finan13 cial interests submitted under paragraph (1) by 

14 the President shall— 

15 (i) describe in detail each financial in16 terest of the President, the spouse of the 

17 President, or a minor child of the Presi18 dent; 

19 (ii) at a minimum, include the infor20 mation relating to each such financial in21 terest that is required for reports under 

22 section 102 of the Ethics in Government 

23 Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App.); and 

24 (iii) include the tax returns filed by or 

25 on behalf of the President for— 


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1 (I) the 8 most recent taxable 

2 years; and 

3 (II) each taxable year for which 

4 an audit of the return by the Internal 

5 Revenue Service is pending on the 

6 date the report is filed. 

7 (B) VICE PRESIDENT.—The disclosure of 

8 financial interests submitted under paragraph 

9 (1) by the Vice President shall— 

10 (i) describe in detail each financial in11 terest of the Vice President, the spouse of 

12 the Vice President, or a minor child of the 

13 Vice President; 

14 (ii) at a minimum, include the infor15 mation relating to each such financial in16 terest that is required for reports under 

17 section 102 of the Ethics in Government 

18 Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App.); and 

19 (iii) include the tax returns filed by or 

20 on behalf of the Vice President for— 

21 (I) the 8 most recent taxable 

22 years; and 

23 (II) each taxable year for which 

24 an audit of the return by the Internal 


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1 Revenue Service is pending on the 

2 date the report is filed. 

3 (c) DIVESTITURE OF FINANCIAL INTERESTS POSING

4 A POTENTIAL CONFLICT OF INTEREST.— 

5 (1) IN GENERAL.—The President, the Vice 

6 President, the spouse of the President or Vice Presi7 dent, and any minor child of the President or Vice 

8 President shall divest of any financial interest posing 

9 a potential conflict of interest by transferring such 

10 interest to a qualified blind trust. 

11 (2) TRUSTEE DUTIES.—Within 180 days after 

12 the date a financial interest is transferred to a quali13 fied blind trust under paragraph (1), the trustee of 

14 the qualified blind trust shall— 

15 (A) sell the financial interest; and 

16 (B) use the proceeds of the sale of the fi17 nancial interest to purchase conflict-free hold18 ings. 

19 (d) REVIEW BY OFFICE OF PUBLIC INTEGRITY.— 

20 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Director of the Office of 

21 Public Integrity shall submit to Congress, the Presi22 dent, and the Vice President an annual report re23 garding the financial interests of the President, the 

24 Vice President, the spouse of the President or Vice 


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1 President, and any minor child of the President or 

2 Vice President. 

3 (2) CONTENTS.—Each report submitted under 

4 paragraph (1) shall— 

5 (A) indicate whether any financial interest 

6 of the President, the Vice President, the spouse 

7 of the President or Vice President, or a minor 

8 child of the President or Vice President is a fi9 nancial interest posing a potential conflict of in10 terest; 

11 (B) evaluate whether any previously held 

12 financial interest of the President, the Vice 

13 President, the spouse of the President or Vice 

14 President, or a minor child of the President or 

15 Vice President that was a financial interest pos16 ing a potential conflict of interest was divested 

17 in accordance with subsection (c); and 

18 (C) redact such information as the Direc19 tor of the Office of Public Integrity determines 

20 necessary for preventing identity theft, such as 

21 social security numbers or taxpayer identifica22 tion numbers. 

23 (e) ENFORCEMENT.— 

24 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Attorney General, the 

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1 grieved by any violation of subsection (c) may seek 

2 declaratory or injunctive relief in a court of com3 petent jurisdiction if— 

4 (A) the Director of the Office of Public In5 tegrity is unable to issue a report indicating 

6 whether the President or the Vice President is 

7 in substantial compliance with subsection (c); or 

8 (B) there is probable cause to believe that 

9 the President or the Vice President has not 

10 complied with subsection (c). 

11 (2) FAIR MARKET VALUE.—In granting injunc12 tive relief to the plaintiff, the court shall take meas13 ures reasonably necessary to ensure that any divest14 ment procedure seeks to obtain a fair market value 

15 for any asset that is liquidated. 

16 SEC. 113. RECUSAL OF APPOINTEES. 

17 Section 208 of title 18, United States Code, as 

18 amended by section 103 of this Act, is amended by adding 

19 at the end the following: 

20 ‘‘(g)(1) Any officer or employee appointed by the 

21 President shall recuse himself or herself from any par22 ticular matter involving specific parties in which a party 

23 to that matter is— 


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1 ‘‘(A) the President who appointed the officer or 

2 employee, which shall include any entity in which the 

3 President has a substantial interest; or 

4 ‘‘(B) the spouse of the President who appointed 

5 the officer or employee, which shall include any enti6 ty in which the spouse of the President has a sub7 stantial interest. 

8 ‘‘(2)(A) Subject to subparagraph (B), if an officer or 

9 employee is recused under paragraph (1), a career ap10 pointee in the agency of the officer or employee shall per11 form the functions and duties of the officer or employee 

12 with respect to the matter. 

13 ‘‘(B)(i) In this subparagraph, the term ‘Commission’ 

14 means a board, commission, or other agency for which the 

15 authority of the agency is vested in more than 1 member. 

16 ‘‘(ii) If the recusal of a member of a Commission 

17 from a matter under paragraph (1) would result in there 

18 not being a statutorily required quorum of members of the 

19 Commission available to participate in the matter, not20 withstanding such statute or any other provision of law, 

21 the members of the Commission not recused under para22 graph (1) may— 

23 ‘‘(I) consider the matter without regard to the 

24 quorum requirement under such statute; 


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1 ‘‘(II) delegate the authorities and responsibil2 ities of the Commission with respect to the matter 

3 to a subcommittee of the Commission; or 

4 ‘‘(III) designate an officer or employee of the 

5 Commission who was not appointed by the President 

6 who appointed the member of the Commission 

7 recused from the matter to exercise the authorities 

8 and duties of the recused member with respect to 

9 the matter. 

10 ‘‘(3) Any officer or employee who negligently violates 

11 paragraph (1) shall be subject to the penalties set forth 

12 in section 216. 

13 ‘‘(4) For purposes of this section, the term ‘particular 

14 matter’ shall have the meaning given the term in section 

15 207(g).’’. 

16 SEC. 114. CONTRACTS BY THE PRESIDENT OR VICE PRESI17 DENT. 

18 (a) AMENDMENT.—Section 431 of title 18, United 

19 States Code, is amended— 

20 (1) in the section heading, by inserting ‘‘the 

21 President, Vice President, or a’’ after 

22 ‘‘Contracts by’’; and 

23 (2) in the first undesignated paragraph, by in24 serting ‘‘the President or Vice President,’’ after 

25 ‘‘Whoever, being’’. 


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1 (b) TABLE OF SECTIONS AMENDMENT.—The table of 

2 sections for chapter 23 of title 18, United States Code, 

3 is amended by striking the item relating to section 431 

4 and inserting the following: 

‘‘431. Contracts by the President, Vice President, or a Member of Congress.’’. 

5 SEC. 115. PRESIDENTIAL TRANSITION ETHICS PROGRAMS. 

6 The Presidential Transition Act of 1963 (3 U.S.C. 

7 102 note) is amended— 

8 (1) in section 3(f) by adding at the end the fol9 lowing: 

10 ‘‘(3) The President-elect shall submit to the Com11 mittee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs 

12 of the Senate and the Committee on Oversight and Re13 form of the House of Representatives a list of— 

14 ‘‘(A) any individual for whom an application for 

15 a security clearance was submitted, not later than 

16 10 days after the date on which the application was 

17 submitted; and 

18 ‘‘(B) any individual provided a security clear19 ance, not later than 10 days after the date on which 

20 the security clearance was provided.’’; 

21 (2) in section 4— 

22 (A) in subsection (a)— 

23 (i) in paragraph (3), by striking 

24 ‘‘and’’ at the end; 


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1 (ii) by redesignating paragraph (4) as 

2 paragraph (5); and 

3 (iii) by inserting after paragraph (3) 

4 the following: 

5 ‘‘(4) the term ‘nonpublic information’— 

6 ‘‘(A) means information from the Federal 

7 Government that a transition member obtains 

8 as part of the employment of the member that 

9 such member knows or reasonably should know 

10 has not been made available to the general pub11 lic; and 

12 ‘‘(B) includes information that a member 

13 of the transition team knows or reasonably 

14 should know— 

15 ‘‘(i) is exempt from disclosure under 

16 section 552 of title 5, United States Code, 

17 or otherwise protected from disclosure by 

18 law; and 

19 ‘‘(ii) is not authorized by the appro20 priate government agency or official to be 

21 released to the public; and’’; and 

22 (B) in subsection (g)— 

23 (i) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘No24 vember’’ and inserting ‘‘October’’; and 


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1 (ii) by adding at the end the fol2 lowing: 

3 ‘‘(3) ETHICS PLAN.— 

4 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Each memorandum of 

5 understanding under paragraph (1) shall in6 clude an agreement that the eligible candidate 

7 will implement and enforce an ethics plan to 

8 guide the conduct of the transition beginning on 

9 the date on which the eligible candidate be10 comes the President-elect. 

11 ‘‘(B) CONTENTS.—The ethics plan shall 

12 include, at a minimum— 

13 ‘‘(i) a description of the ethics re14 quirements that will apply to all members 

15 of the transition team, including any spe16 cific requirement for transition team mem17 bers who will have access to nonpublic or 

18 classified information; 

19 ‘‘(ii) a description of how the transi20 tion team will— 

21 ‘‘(I) address the role on the tran22 sition team of— 

23 ‘‘(aa) lobbyists registered 

24 under the Lobbying Disclosure 

25 Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1601 et 


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1 seq.) and individuals who were 

2 former lobbyists registered under 

3 that Act; 

4 ‘‘(bb) persons registered 

5 under the Foreign Agents Reg6 istration Act (22 U.S.C. 611 et 

7 seq.), foreign nationals, and other 

8 foreign agents; and 

9 ‘‘(cc) transition team mem10 bers with sources of income or 

11 clients that are not disclosed to 

12 the public; 

13 ‘‘(II) prohibit a transition team 

14 member with conflicts of interest, in15 cluding conflicts, as described in sec16 tion 2635.402(a) and section 

17 2635.502(a) of title 5, Code of Fed18 eral Regulations, related to current or 

19 former employment, affiliations, cli20 ents, or investments, from working on 

21 particular matters involving specific 

22 parties that affect the interests of 

23 such member; and 

24 ‘‘(III) address how the covered 

25 eligible candidate will address their 


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1 own conflicts of interest during a 

2 Presidential term if the covered eligi3 ble candidate becomes the President4 elect; 

5 ‘‘(iii) a Code of Ethical Conduct, to 

6 which each member of the transition team 

7 will sign and be subject to, that reflects 

8 the content of the ethics plans under this 

9 paragraph and at a minimum requires 

10 transition team members to— 

11 ‘‘(I) seek authorization from 

12 transition team leaders or their des13 ignees before seeking, on behalf of the 

14 transition, access to any nonpublic in15 formation; 

16 ‘‘(II) keep confidential any non17 public information provided in the 

18 course of the duties of the member 

19 with the transition and exclusively use 

20 such information for the purposes of 

21 the transition; and 

22 ‘‘(III) not use any nonpublic in23 formation provided in the course of 

24 transition duties, in any manner, for 

25 personal or private gain for the memVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:09 Feb 17, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00075 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H9029.IH H9029

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1 ber or any other party at any time 

2 during or after the transition; and 

3 ‘‘(iv) a description of how the transi4 tion team will enforce the Code of Ethical 

5 Conduct, including the names of the mem6 bers of the transition team responsible for 

7 enforcement, oversight, and compliance. 

8 ‘‘(C) PUBLICLY AVAILABLE.—The transi9 tion team shall make the ethics plan described 

10 in this paragraph publicly available on the 

11 internet website of the General Services Admin12 istration the earlier of— 

13 ‘‘(i) the day on which the memo14 randum of understanding is completed; or 

15 ‘‘(ii) October 1.’’; and 

16 (3) in section 6(b)— 

17 (A) in paragraph (1)— 

18 (i) in subparagraph (A), by striking 

19 ‘‘and’’ at the end; 

20 (ii) in subparagraph (B), by striking 

21 the period at the end and inserting a semi22 colon; and 

23 (iii) by adding at the end the fol24 lowing: 


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1 ‘‘(C) a list of all positions each transition 

2 team member has held outside the Federal Gov3 ernment for the previous 12-month period, in4 cluding paid, unpaid, and uncompensated posi5 tions; 

6 ‘‘(D) sources of compensation of each tran7 sition team member exceeding $5,000 a year for 

8 the previous 12-month period; 

9 ‘‘(E) a description of the role of the mem10 ber on the transition team, including a list of 

11 any policy issues that the member expects to 

12 work on, and a list of agencies the member ex13 pects to interact with, while serving on the 

14 transition team; 

15 ‘‘(F) a list of any issues from which each 

16 transition team member will be recused while 

17 serving as a member of the transition team pur18 suant to the transition team ethics plan out19 lined in section 4(g)(3); and 

20 ‘‘(G) an affirmation that the transition 

21 team member does not have a financial conflict 

22 of interest that precludes the member from 

23 working on the matters described in subpara24 graph (E).’’; 


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1 (B) in paragraph (2), by inserting ‘‘not 

2 later than 2 business days’’ after ‘‘public’’; and 

3 (C) by adding at the end the following: 

4 ‘‘(3) The head of a Federal department or 

5 agency, or their designee, shall not permit access to 

6 the agency or employees of the agency that would 

7 not be provided to a member of the public for any 

8 transition team member who does not make the dis9 closures listed under paragraph (1).’’. 

10 SEC. 116. CRIMINALITY OF THE PRESIDENT OR OTHER SEN11 IOR GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS. 

12 Section 2 of title 18, United States Code, is amended 

13 by inserting ‘‘, including the President, the Vice President, 

14 a Member of Congress, an Associate Justice of the Su15 preme Court of the United States, the Chief Justice of 

16 the United States, and any other officer of the United 

17 States,’’ after ‘‘Whoever’’ each place it appears. 

18 SEC. 117. PRESIDENTIAL OBSTRUCTION OF JUSTICE. 

19 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 73 of title 18, United 

20 States Code, is amended by adding at the end the fol21 lowing: 

22 ‘‘§ 1522. Applicability to all officers, including the 

23 President and Vice President 

24 ‘‘This chapter shall apply to all officers of the United 

25 States, including the President, the Vice President, a 


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1 Member of Congress, an Associate Justice of the Supreme 

2 Court of the United States, and the Chief Justice of the 

3 United States.’’. 

4 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The table of sec5 tions for chapter 73 of title 18, United States Code, is 

6 amended by adding at the end the following: 

‘‘1522. Applicability to all officers, including the President and Vice President.’’. 

7 SEC. 118. SENSE OF CONGRESS REGARDING VIOLATIONS. 

8 It is the sense of Congress that a violation of section 

9 112 of this Act or the Ethics in Government Act of 1978 

10 (5 U.S.C. App.) by the President or the Vice President 

11 would constitute a high crime or misdemeanor under arti12 cle II, section 4 of the Constitution of the United States. 

13 SEC. 119. RULE OF CONSTRUCTION. 

14 Nothing in this subtitle or an amendment made by 

15 this subtitle shall be construed to violate the Constitution 

16 of the United States. 

17 SEC. 120. SEVERABILITY. 

18 If any provision of this subtitle or any amendment 

19 made by this subtitle, or any application of such provision 

20 or amendment to any person or circumstance, is held to 

21 be unconstitutional, the remainder of the provisions of this 

22 subtitle and the amendments made by this subtitle, and 

23 the application of the provision or amendment to any other 

24 person or circumstance, shall not be affected. 


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1 Subtitle C—Strengthening 

2 Criminal Anti-Corruption Laws 

3 SEC. 121. BRIBERY OF PUBLIC OFFICIALS AND WITNESSES. 

4 (a) DEFINITION.—Section 201(a) of title 18, United 

5 States Code, is amended— 

6 (1) in paragraph (2), by striking ‘‘and’’ at the 

7 end; 

8 (2) by striking paragraph (3) and inserting the 

9 following: 

10 ‘‘(3) the term ‘official act’— 

11 ‘‘(A) means any decision or action on, or 

12 personal and substantial participation through 

13 acts, including approval, disapproval, rec14 ommendation, rendering of advice on, or inves15 tigation of any question, matter, cause, suit, 

16 proceeding or controversy, that may at any time 

17 be pending, or which may by law be brought be18 fore any public official, in such official’s capac19 ity, or in such official’s place of trust or profit; 

20 and 

21 ‘‘(B) includes— 

22 ‘‘(i) advancing or advocating for an 

23 application to obtain a contract with the 

24 Government; 


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1 ‘‘(ii) aiding or impeding the progress 

2 or passage of legislation; 

3 ‘‘(iii) providing access to any public 

4 official by arranging a meeting, event, tele5 phone call, or other communication with 

6 the intent that such access influence the 

7 public official in an official act; and 

8 ‘‘(iv) a single act, more than 1 act, or 

9 a course of conduct’’; 

10 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

11 ‘‘(4) the term ‘rule or regulation’ means a Fed12 eral regulation or a rule of the House of Representa13 tives or the Senate, including rules and regulations 

14 governing the acceptance of gifts and campaign con15 tributions.’’. 

16 (b) CLARIFICATION.—Section 201(c) of title 18, 

17 United States Code, is amended by striking paragraph (1) 

18 and inserting the following: 

19 ‘‘(1) otherwise than as provided by law for the 

20 proper discharge of official duty, or by rule or regu21 lation— 

22 ‘‘(A) directly or indirectly gives, offers, or 

23 promises any thing or things of value to any 

24 public official, former public official, or person 

25 selected to be a public official, for or because of 


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1 any official act performed or to be performed by 

2 such public official, former public official, or 

3 person selected to be a public official; 

4 ‘‘(B) directly or indirectly knowingly gives, 

5 offers, or promises any thing or things of value 

6 with an aggregate value of not less than $1,000 

7 to any public official, former public official, or 

8 person selected to be a public official for or be9 cause of the official’s or person’s official posi10 tion; 

11 ‘‘(C) being a public official, former public 

12 official, or person selected to be a public offi13 cial, directly or indirectly, knowingly demands, 

14 seeks, receives, accepts, or agrees to receive or 

15 accept any thing or things of value with an ag16 gregate value of not less than $1,000 for or be17 cause of the official’s or person’s official posi18 tion; or 

19 ‘‘(D) being a public official, former public 

20 official, or person selected to be a public offi21 cial, directly or indirectly demands, seeks, re22 ceives, accepts, or agrees to receive or accept 

23 any thing or things of value for or because of 

24 any official act performed or to be performed by 

25 such official or person;’’. 


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1 SEC. 122. PROHIBITION ON UNDISCLOSED SELF-DEALING 

2 BY PUBLIC OFFICIALS. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 1346 of title 18, United 

4 States Code, is amended— 

5 (1) by striking ‘‘, the’’ and all that follows 

6 through the end and inserting and inserting ‘‘: 

7 ‘‘(1) MATERIAL INFORMATION.—The term ‘ma8 terial information’ means information— 

9 ‘‘(A) regarding a financial interest of a 

10 person described in clauses (i) through (iv) of 

11 paragraph (5)(A); and 

12 ‘‘(B) regarding the association, connection, 

13 or dealings by a public official with an indi14 vidual, business, or organization described in 

15 clauses (iii) through (vi) of paragraph (5)(A). 

16 ‘‘(2) OFFICIAL ACT.—The term ‘official act’ has 

17 the meaning given the term in section 201(a). 

18 ‘‘(3) PUBLIC OFFICIAL.—The term ‘public offi19 cial’ means an officer, employee, or elected or ap20 pointed representative, or person acting for or on be21 half of the United States, a State, or a subdivision 

22 of a State, or any department, agency, or branch of 

23 government thereof, in any official function, under 

24 or by authority of any such department, agency, or 

25 branch of government. 


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1 ‘‘(4) STATE.—The term ‘State’ includes a State 

2 of the United States, the District of Columbia, and 

3 any commonwealth, territory, or possession of the 

4 United States. 

5 ‘‘(5) UNDISCLOSED SELF-DEALING.—The term 

6 ‘undisclosed self-dealing’ means— 

7 ‘‘(A) an official act by a public official for 

8 the purpose, in whole or in material part, of 

9 furthering or benefitting a financial interest, of 

10 which the public official has knowledge, of— 

11 ‘‘(i) the public official; 

12 ‘‘(ii) the spouse or minor child of a 

13 public official; 

14 ‘‘(iii) a general business partner of the 

15 public official; 

16 ‘‘(iv) a business or organization in 

17 which the public official is serving as an 

18 employee, officer, director, trustee, or gen19 eral partner; 

20 ‘‘(v) an individual, business, or orga21 nization with whom the public official is 

22 negotiating for, or has any arrangement 

23 concerning, prospective employment or fi24 nancial compensation; or 


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1 ‘‘(vi) an individual, business, or orga2 nization from whom the public official has 

3 received any thing or things of value, oth4 erwise than as provided by law for the 

5 proper discharge of official duty, or by rule 

6 or regulation; 

7 ‘‘(B) the knowing falsification, conceal8 ment, or covering up of material information by 

9 a public official that is required to be disclosed 

10 by any Federal, State, or local statute, rule, 

11 regulation, or charter applicable to the public 

12 official; or 

13 ‘‘(C) the knowing failure of a public official 

14 to disclose material information in a manner 

15 that is required by any Federal, State, or local 

16 statute, rule, regulation, or charter applicable to 

17 the public official. 

18 ‘‘(6) SCHEME OR ARTIFICE TO DEFRAUD.—The 

19 term ‘scheme or artifice to defraud’ includes— 

20 ‘‘(A) a scheme or artifice to deprive an21 other of the intangible right of honest services; 

22 and 

23 ‘‘(B) a scheme or artifice by a public offi24 cial to engage in undisclosed self-dealing.’’. 


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1 (b) APPLICABILITY.—The amendments made by this 

2 section shall apply to any act on or after the date of the 

3 enactment of this Act. 

4 Subtitle D—Requiring Financial 

5 Disclosures Before Taking Office 

6 SEC. 131. PROHIBITION ON TAKING OFFICE UNTIL FINAN7 CIAL DISCLOSURES ARE FILED. 

8 Section 104 of the Ethics in Government Act of 1978 

9 (5 U.S.C. App.) is amended by adding at the end the fol10 lowing: 

11 ‘‘(e) A Member of Congress may not assume office 

12 for the term after the date on which the Member of Con13 gress is elected unless the Member of Congress files or 

14 reports all the information that the Member of Congress 

15 is required to report under section 102.’’. 

16 Subtitle E—Strengthening 

17 Inauguration Fund Rules 

18 SEC. 141. STRENGTHENING INAUGURATION FUND RULES. 

19 (a) REQUIREMENTS FOR INAUGURAL COMMIT20 TEES.—Title III of the Federal Election Campaign Act 

21 of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30101 et seq.) is amended by adding 

22 at the end the following new section: 

23 ‘‘SEC. 325. INAUGURAL COMMITTEES. 

24 ‘‘(a) PROHIBITED DONATIONS.— 

25 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—It shall be unlawful— 


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1 ‘‘(A) for an Inaugural Committee— 

2 ‘‘(i) to solicit, accept, or receive a do3 nation from a person that— 

4 ‘‘(I) is not an individual; 

5 ‘‘(II) is a registered lobbyist; or 

6 ‘‘(III) is a Federal contractor; or 

7 ‘‘(ii) to solicit, accept, or receive a do8 nation from a foreign national; 

9 ‘‘(B) for a person— 

10 ‘‘(i) to make a donation to an Inau11 gural Committee in the name of another 

12 person, or to knowingly authorize his or 

13 her name to be used to effect such a dona14 tion; 

15 ‘‘(ii) to knowingly accept a donation 

16 to an Inaugural Committee made by a per17 son in the name of another person; or 

18 ‘‘(iii) to convert a donation to an In19 augural Committee to personal use as de20 scribed in paragraph (2); 

21 ‘‘(C) for a foreign national to, directly or 

22 indirectly, make a donation, or make an express 

23 or implied promise to make a donation, to an 

24 Inaugural Committee; 


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1 ‘‘(D) for a registered lobbyist to, directly 

2 or indirectly, make a donation, or make an ex3 press or implied promise to make a donation, to 

4 an Inaugural Committee; and 

5 ‘‘(E) for a Federal contractor to, directly 

6 or indirectly, make a donation, or make an ex7 press or implied promise to make a donation, to 

8 an Inaugural Committee. 

9 ‘‘(2) CONVERSION OF DONATION TO PERSONAL

10 USE.—For purposes of paragraph (1)(B)(iii), a do11 nation shall be considered to be converted to per12 sonal use if any part of the donated amount is used 

13 to fulfill a commitment, obligation, or expense of a 

14 person that would exist irrespective of the respon15 sibilities of the Inaugural Committee under chapter 

16 5 of title 36, United States Code. 

17 ‘‘(3) NO EFFECT ON DISBURSEMENT OF UN18 USED FUNDS TO NONPROFIT ORGANIZATIONS.— 

19 Nothing in this subsection may be construed to pro20 hibit an Inaugural Committee from disbursing un21 used funds to an organization which is described in 

22 section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 

23 1986 and is exempt from taxation under section 

24 501(a) of such Code. 

25 ‘‘(b) LIMITATION ON DONATIONS.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—It shall be unlawful for an 

2 individual to make donations to an Inaugural Com3 mittee which, in the aggregate, exceed $10,000. 

4 ‘‘(2) INDEXING.—At the beginning of each 

5 Presidential election year (beginning with 2024), the 

6 amount described in paragraph (1) shall be in7 creased by the cumulative percent difference deter8 mined in section 315(c)(1)(A) since the previous 

9 Presidential election year. If any amount after such 

10 increase is not a multiple of $1,000, such amount 

11 shall be rounded to the nearest multiple of $1,000. 

12 ‘‘(c) DISCLOSURE OF CERTAIN DONATIONS AND DIS13 BURSEMENTS.— 

14 ‘‘(1) DONATIONS OVER $1,000.— 

15 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—An Inaugural Com16 mittee shall file with the Commission a report 

17 disclosing any donation by an individual to the 

18 committee in an amount of $1,000 or more not 

19 later than 24 hours after the receipt of such do20 nation. 

21 ‘‘(B) CONTENTS OF REPORT.—A report 

22 filed under subparagraph (A) shall contain— 

23 ‘‘(i) the amount of the donation; 

24 ‘‘(ii) the date the donation is received; 

25 and 


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1 ‘‘(iii) the name and address of the in2 dividual making the donation. 

3 ‘‘(2) FINAL REPORT.—Not later than the date 

4 that is 90 days after the date of the Presidential in5 augural ceremony, the Inaugural Committee shall 

6 file with the Commission a report containing the fol7 lowing information: 

8 ‘‘(A) For each donation of money or any9 thing of value made to the committee in an ag10 gregate amount equal to or greater than 

11 $200— 

12 ‘‘(i) the amount of the donation; 

13 ‘‘(ii) the date the donation is received; 

14 and 

15 ‘‘(iii) the name and address of the in16 dividual making the donation. 

17 ‘‘(B) The total amount of all disburse18 ments, and all disbursements in the following 

19 categories: 

20 ‘‘(i) Disbursements made to meet 

21 committee operating expenses. 

22 ‘‘(ii) Repayment of all loans. 

23 ‘‘(iii) Donation refunds and other off24 sets to donations. 

25 ‘‘(iv) Any other disbursements. 


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1 ‘‘(C) The name and address of each per2 son— 

3 ‘‘(i) to whom a disbursement in an ag4 gregate amount or value in excess of $200 

5 is made by the committee to meet a com6 mittee operating expense, together with 

7 date, amount, and purpose of such oper8 ating expense; 

9 ‘‘(ii) who receives a loan repayment 

10 from the committee, together with the date 

11 and amount of such loan repayment; 

12 ‘‘(iii) who receives a donation refund 

13 or other offset to donations from the com14 mittee, together with the date and amount 

15 of such disbursement; and 

16 ‘‘(iv) to whom any other disbursement 

17 in an aggregate amount or value in excess 

18 of $200 is made by the committee, to19 gether with the date and amount of such 

20 disbursement. 

21 ‘‘(d) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this section: 

22 ‘‘(1)(A) The term ‘donation’ includes— 

23 ‘‘(i) any gift, subscription, loan, advance, 

24 or deposit of money or anything of value made 

25 by any person to the committee; or 


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1 ‘‘(ii) the payment by any person of com2 pensation for the personal services of another 

3 person which are rendered to the committee 

4 without charge for any purpose. 

5 ‘‘(B) The term ‘donation’ does not include the 

6 value of services provided without compensation by 

7 any individual who volunteers on behalf of the com8 mittee. 

9 ‘‘(2) The term ‘foreign national’ has the mean10 ing given that term by section 319(b). 

11 ‘‘(3) The term ‘Inaugural Committee’ has the 

12 meaning given that term by section 501 of title 36, 

13 United States Code. 

14 ‘‘(4) The term ‘registered lobbyist’ means a lob15 byist, as defined in section 3 of the Lobbying Disclo16 sure Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1602), that is registered 

17 or required to register under section 4(a) of that Act 

18 (2 U.S.C. 1603(a))’’. 

19 (b) CONFIRMING AMENDMENT RELATED TO RE20 PORTING REQUIREMENTS.—Section 304 of the Federal 

21 Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30104) is 

22 amended— 

23 (1) by striking subsection (h); and 

24 (2) by redesignating subsection (i) as subsection 

25 (h). 


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1 (c) CONFORMING AMENDMENT RELATED TO STATUS

2 OF COMMITTEE.—Section 510 of title 36, United States 

3 Code, is amended to read as follows: 

4 ‘‘SEC. 510. DISCLOSURE OF AND PROHIBITION ON CERTAIN 

5 DONATIONS. 

6 ‘‘A committee shall not be considered to be the Inau7 gural Committee for purposes of this chapter unless the 

8 committee agrees to, and meets, the requirements of sec9 tion 325 of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971.’’. 

10 (d) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

11 this subtitle shall apply with respect to Inaugural Commit12 tees established under chapter 5 of title 36, United States 

13 Code, for inaugurations held in 2021 and any succeeding 

14 year. 

15 Subtitle F—Political Intelligence 

16 Transparency 

17 SEC. 151. DISCLOSURE OF POLITICAL INTELLIGENCE AC18 TIVITIES UNDER LOBBYING DISCLOSURE 

19 ACT. 

20 (a) DEFINITIONS.—Section 3 of the Lobbying Disclo21 sure Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1602) is amended— 

22 (1) in paragraph (2)— 

23 (A) by inserting after ‘‘lobbying activities’’ 

24 each place that term appears the following: ‘‘or 

25 political intelligence activities’’; and 


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1 (B) by inserting after ‘‘lobbyists’’ the fol2 lowing: ‘‘or political intelligence consultants’’; 

3 (2) by redesignating paragraph (16) as para4 graph (25); 

5 (3) by redesignating paragraph (15) as para6 graph (22); 

7 (4) by redesignating paragraphs (4) through 

8 (14) as paragraphs (7) through (17), respectively; 

9 (5) by redesignating paragraph (3) as para10 graph (5); 

11 (6) by inserting after paragraph (2) the fol12 lowing: 

13 ‘‘(3) COMMODITY.—The term ‘commodity’ has 

14 the meaning given such term in section 1a(9) of the 

15 Commodity Exchange Act (7 U.S.C. 1a(9)).’’; 

16 (7) by inserting after paragraph (17), as so re17 designated, the following: 

18 ‘‘(18) POLITICAL INTELLIGENCE ACTIVITIES.— 

19 The term ‘political intelligence activities’ means po20 litical intelligence contacts and efforts in support of 

21 such contacts, including preparation and planning 

22 activities, research, and other background work that 

23 is intended, at the time it is performed, for use in 

24 contacts, and coordination with such contacts and 

25 efforts of others. 


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1 ‘‘(19) POLITICAL INTELLIGENCE CONSULT2 ANT.—The term ‘political intelligence consultant’ 

3 means any individual who is employed or retained by 

4 a client for financial or other compensation for serv5 ices that include one or more political intelligence 

6 contacts, including an individual who provides bro7 kerage and research services under section 28(e) of 

8 the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (15 U.S.C. 

9 78bb(e)). 

10 ‘‘(20) POLITICAL INTELLIGENCE CONTACT.— 

11 ‘‘(A) DEFINITION.—The term ‘political in12 telligence contact’ means any oral or written 

13 communication (including an electronic commu14 nication)— 

15 ‘‘(i) to a covered executive branch offi16 cial or a covered legislative branch official; 

17 ‘‘(ii) the information derived from 

18 which is for use in— 

19 ‘‘(I) analyzing the markets for 

20 securities, commodities for future de21 livery, swaps, or security-based swaps; 

22 or 

23 ‘‘(II) informing investment deci24 sions in any such market; and 


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1 ‘‘(iii) which is made on behalf of a cli2 ent with regard to— 

3 ‘‘(I) the formulation, modifica4 tion, or adoption of Federal legislation 

5 (including legislative proposals); 

6 ‘‘(II) the formulation, modifica7 tion, or adoption of a Federal rule, 

8 regulation, Executive order, or any 

9 other program, policy, or position of 

10 the United States Government; 

11 ‘‘(III) the administration or exe12 cution of a Federal program or policy 

13 (including the negotiation, award, or 

14 administration of a Federal contract, 

15 grant, loan, permit, or license); or 

16 ‘‘(IV) the nomination or con17 firmation of a person for a position 

18 subject to confirmation by the Senate. 

19 ‘‘(B) EXCEPTION.—The term ‘political in20 telligence contact’ does not include a commu21 nication that is— 

22 ‘‘(i) made by a representative of a 

23 media organization if the purpose of the 

24 communication is gathering and dissemi25 nating news and information to the public; 


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1 ‘‘(ii) made in a speech, article, publi2 cation or other material that is distributed 

3 and made available to the public, or 

4 through radio, television, cable television, 

5 or other medium of mass communication; 

6 ‘‘(iii) made on behalf of a government 

7 of a foreign country or a foreign political 

8 party and disclosed under the Foreign 

9 Agents Registration Act of 1938, as 

10 amended (22 U.S.C. 611 et seq.); 

11 ‘‘(iv) a request for a meeting, a re12 quest for the status of an action, or any 

13 other similar administrative request, if the 

14 request does not include an attempt to in15 fluence a covered executive branch official 

16 or a covered legislative branch official; 

17 ‘‘(v) made in the course of participa18 tion in an advisory committee subject to 

19 the Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 

20 U.S.C. App.); 

21 ‘‘(vi) testimony given before a com22 mittee, subcommittee, or task force of ei23 ther House of Congress or the Congress, 

24 or submitted for inclusion in the public 


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1 record of a hearing conducted by such 

2 committee, subcommittee, or task force; 

3 ‘‘(vii) information provided in writing 

4 in response to an oral or written request 

5 by a covered executive branch official or a 

6 covered legislative branch official for spe7 cific information; 

8 ‘‘(viii) required by subpoena, civil in9 vestigative demand, or otherwise compelled 

10 by statute, regulation, or other action of 

11 the Congress or an agency, including any 

12 communication compelled by a Federal 

13 contract, grant, loan, permit, or license; 

14 ‘‘(ix) made in response to a notice in 

15 the Federal Register, Commerce Business 

16 Daily, or other similar publication solic17 iting communications from the public and 

18 directed to the agency official specifically 

19 designated in the notice to receive such 

20 communications; 

21 ‘‘(x) not possible to report without 

22 disclosing information, the unauthorized 

23 disclosure of which is prohibited by law; 

24 ‘‘(xi) made to an official in an agency 

25 with regard to— 


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1 ‘‘(I) a judicial proceeding or a 

2 criminal or civil law enforcement in3 quiry, investigation, or proceeding; or 

4 ‘‘(II) a filing or proceeding that 

5 the Government is specifically re6 quired by statute or regulation to 

7 maintain or conduct on a confidential 

8 basis, if that agency is charged with 

9 responsibility for such proceeding, in10 quiry, investigation, or filing; 

11 ‘‘(xii) made in compliance with writ12 ten agency procedures regarding an adju13 dication conducted by the agency under 

14 section 554 of title 5, United States Code, 

15 or substantially similar provisions; 

16 ‘‘(xiii) a written comment filed in the 

17 course of a public proceeding or any other 

18 communication that is made on the record 

19 in a public proceeding; 

20 ‘‘(xiv) a petition for agency action 

21 made in writing and required to be a mat22 ter of public record pursuant to established 

23 agency procedures; 

24 ‘‘(xv) made on behalf of an individual 

25 with regard to that individual’s benefits, 


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1 employment, or other personal matters in2 volving only that individual, except that 

3 this clause does not apply to any commu4 nication with a covered legislative branch 

5 official (other than the individual’s elected 

6 Members of Congress or employees who 

7 work under such Members’ direct super8 vision), with respect to the formulation, 

9 modification, or adoption of private legisla10 tion for the relief of that individual; 

11 ‘‘(xvi) a disclosure by an individual 

12 that is protected under paragraphs (8) and 

13 (9) of section 2302 of title 5, United 

14 States Code (or another comparable Fed15 eral statute), under the Inspector General 

16 Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App.), or under an17 other provision of law; 

18 ‘‘(xvii) made by— 

19 ‘‘(I) a church, its integrated aux20 iliary, or a convention or association 

21 of churches that is exempt from filing 

22 a Federal income tax return under 

23 paragraph (2)(A)(i) of section 

24 6033(a) of the Internal Revenue Code 

25 of 1986; or 


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1 ‘‘(II) a religious order that is ex2 empt from filing a Federal income tax 

3 return under paragraph (2)(A)(iii) of 

4 such section 6033(a); or 

5 ‘‘(xviii)(I) between— 

6 ‘‘(aa) officials of a self-regulatory 

7 organization (as defined in section 

8 3(a)(26) of the Securities Exchange 

9 Act of 1934 (15 U.S.C. 78c(a)(26))) 

10 that is registered with or established 

11 by the Securities and Exchange Com12 mission as required by that Act or a 

13 similar organization that is designated 

14 by or registered with the Commodities 

15 Future Trading Commission as pro16 vided under the Commodity Exchange 

17 Act (7 U.S.C. 1 et seq.); and 

18 ‘‘(bb) the Securities and Ex19 change Commission or the Commod20 ities Future Trading Commission, re21 spectively; and 

22 ‘‘(II) relating to the regulatory re23 sponsibilities of such organization under 

24 that Act. 


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1 ‘‘(21) POLITICAL INTELLIGENCE FIRM.—The 

2 term ‘political intelligence firm’ means a person or 

3 entity that has one or more employees who are polit4 ical intelligence consultants to a client other than 

5 that person or entity.’’; 

6 (8) by inserting after paragraph (22), as so re7 designated, the following: 

8 ‘‘(23) SECURITY.—The term ‘security’ has the 

9 meaning given such term in section 3(a)(10) of the 

10 Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (15 U.S.C. 

11 78c(a)(10)). 

12 ‘‘(24) SECURITY-BASED SWAP.—The term ‘se13 curity-based swap’ has the meaning given such term 

14 in section 3(a)(68) of the Securities Exchange Act 

15 of 1934 (15 U.S.C. 78c(a)(68)).’’; and 

16 (9) by adding at the end the following: 

17 ‘‘(26) SWAP.—The term ‘swap’ has the mean18 ing given such term in section 1a(47) of the Com19 modity Exchange Act (7 U.S.C. 1a(47)).’’. 

20 (b) REGISTRATION REQUIREMENT.—Section 4 of the 

21 Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1603) is 

22 amended— 

23 (1) in the section heading, by inserting ‘‘AND

24 POLITICAL INTELLIGENCE CONSULTANTS’’ after 

25 ‘‘LOBBYISTS’’; 


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1 (2) in subsection (a)— 

2 (A) by amending paragraph (1) to read as 

3 follows: 

4 ‘‘(1) GENERAL RULE.—A lobbyist or a political 

5 intelligence consultant (or, as provided under para6 graph (2), the organization employing such lobbyist 

7 or consultant), shall register with the Director of the 

8 Office of Public Integrity— 

9 ‘‘(A) no later than 30 days after— 

10 ‘‘(i) is first employed or retained to 

11 engage in lobbying activities on behalf of a 

12 client or first engages in lobbying activi13 ties, whichever is earlier; or 

14 ‘‘(ii) the political intelligence consult15 ant first makes a political intelligence con16 tact or is employed or retained to make a 

17 political intelligence contact, whichever is 

18 earlier; or 

19 ‘‘(B) on the first business day after such 

20 30th day if the 30th day is not a business 

21 day.’’; 

22 (B) in paragraph (2), by inserting after 

23 ‘‘lobbyists’’ each place that term appears the 

24 following: ‘‘or political intelligence consultants’’; 

25 and 


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1 (C) in paragraph (3)(A)— 

2 (i) in clause (i)— 

3 (I) by inserting after ‘‘lobbying 

4 activities’’ the following: ‘‘and political 

5 intelligence activities’’; and 

6 (II) by inserting after ‘‘lobbying 

7 firm’’ the following: ‘‘or political intel8 ligence firm’’; and 

9 (ii) in clause (ii)— 

10 (I) by inserting after ‘‘lobbying 

11 activities’’ the first place it appears 

12 the following: ‘‘and political intel13 ligence activities’’; and 

14 (II) by inserting after ‘‘lobbying 

15 activities’’ the second place it appears 

16 the following: ‘‘or political intelligence 

17 activities’’; 

18 (3) in subsection (b)— 

19 (A) in paragraph (3), by inserting after 

20 ‘‘lobbying activities’’ each place that term ap21 pears the following: ‘‘or political intelligence ac22 tivities’’; 

23 (B) in paragraph (5), by inserting after 

24 ‘‘lobbying activities’’ each place that term apVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:09 Feb 17, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00104 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H9029.IH H9029

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1 pears the following: ‘‘or political intelligence ac2 tivities’’; 

3 (C) in the matter following paragraph (6), 

4 by inserting ‘‘or political intelligence activities’’ 

5 after ‘‘such lobbying activities’’; 

6 (D) in paragraph (7), by inserting ‘‘or po7 litical intelligence consultant’’ after ‘‘lobbyist’’; 

8 (E) in the matter following paragraph (7), 

9 by adding ‘‘Any threshold dollar amount or per10 centage described in this subsection relates to 

11 the sum of the income, contributions, or percent 

12 equitable ownership related to lobbying activi13 ties and the income, contributions, or percent 

14 equitable ownership related to political intel15 ligence activities.’’ at the end; and 

16 (4) in subsection (d), by inserting after ‘‘lob17 bying activities’’ each place that term appears the 

18 following: ‘‘or political intelligence activities’’. 

19 (c) REPORTS BY REGISTERED POLITICAL INTEL20 LIGENCE CONSULTANTS.—Section 5 of the Lobbying Dis21 closure Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1604) is amended— 

22 (1) in the section heading, by inserting ‘‘AND

23 POLITICAL INTELLIGENCE CONSULTANTS’’ after 

24 ‘‘LOBBYISTS’’; 


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1 (2) in subsection (a), by inserting after ‘‘lob2 bying activities’’ the following: ‘‘and political intel3 ligence activities’’; 

4 (3) in subsection (b)— 

5 (A) in paragraph (2)— 

6 (i) in the matter preceding subpara7 graph (A), by inserting after ‘‘lobbying ac8 tivities’’ the following: ‘‘or political intel9 ligence activities’’; 

10 (ii) in subparagraph (A)— 

11 (I) by inserting after ‘‘lobbyist’’ 

12 the following: ‘‘or political intelligence 

13 consultant’’; and 

14 (II) by inserting after ‘‘lobbying 

15 activities’’ the following: ‘‘or political 

16 intelligence activities’’; 

17 (iii) in subparagraph (B), by inserting 

18 after ‘‘lobbyists’’ the following: ‘‘or political 

19 intelligence consultants’’; and 

20 (iv) in subparagraph (C), by inserting 

21 after ‘‘lobbyists’’ the following: ‘‘or political 

22 intelligence consultants’’; 

23 (B) in paragraph (3)— 


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1 (i) by inserting after ‘‘lobbying firm’’ 

2 the following: ‘‘or political intelligence 

3 firm’’; and 

4 (ii) by inserting after ‘‘lobbying activi5 ties’’ each place that term appears the fol6 lowing: ‘‘or political intelligence activities’’; 

7 (C) in paragraph (4), by inserting after 

8 ‘‘lobbying activities’’ each place that term ap9 pears the following: ‘‘or political intelligence ac10 tivities’’; and 

11 (D) in paragraph (6), by inserting ‘‘or po12 litical intelligence consultant’’ after ‘‘lobbyist’’; 

13 and 

14 (4) in subsection (d)(1), in the matter pre15 ceding subparagraph (A), by inserting ‘‘or a political 

16 intelligence consultant’’ after ‘‘a lobbyist’’. 

17 (d) DISCLOSURE AND ENFORCEMENT.—Section 6(a) 

18 of the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 

19 1605(a)) is amended— 

20 (1) in paragraph (3)(A), by inserting after ‘‘lob21 bying firms,’’ the following: ‘‘political intelligence 

22 consultants, political intelligence firms,’’; 

23 (2) in paragraph (7), by striking ‘‘or lobbying 

24 firm’’ and inserting ‘‘lobbying firm, political intel25 ligence consultant, or political intelligence firm’’; and 


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1 (3) in paragraph (8), by striking ‘‘or lobbying 

2 firm’’ and inserting ‘‘lobbying firm, political intel3 ligence consultant, or political intelligence firm’’. 

4 (e) RULES OF CONSTRUCTION.—Section 8(b) of the 

5 Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1607(b)) is 

6 amended by striking ‘‘or lobbying contacts’’ and inserting 

7 ‘‘lobbying contacts, political intelligence activities, or polit8 ical intelligence contacts’’. 

9 (f) IDENTIFICATION OF CLIENTS AND COVERED OF10 FICIALS.—Section 14 of the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 

11 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1609) is amended— 

12 (1) in subsection (a)— 

13 (A) in the heading, by inserting ‘‘OR PO14 LITICAL INTELLIGENCE’’ after ‘‘LOBBYING’’; 

15 (B) by inserting ‘‘or political intelligence 

16 contact’’ after ‘‘lobbying contact’’ each place 

17 that term appears; and 

18 (C) in paragraph (2), by inserting ‘‘or po19 litical intelligence activity, as the case may be’’ 

20 after ‘‘lobbying activity’’; 

21 (2) in subsection (b)— 

22 (A) in the heading, by inserting ‘‘OR PO23 LITICAL INTELLIGENCE’’ after ‘‘LOBBYING’’; 


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1 (B) by inserting ‘‘or political intelligence 

2 contact’’ after ‘‘lobbying contact’’ each place 

3 that term appears; and 

4 (C) in paragraph (2), by inserting ‘‘or po5 litical intelligence activity, as the case may be’’ 

6 after ‘‘lobbying activity’’; and 

7 (3) in subsection (c), by inserting ‘‘or political 

8 intelligence contact’’ after ‘‘lobbying contact’’. 

9 (g) GIFTS.—Section 25 of the Lobbying Disclosure 

10 Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1613) is amended— 

11 (1) in the section heading, by inserting ‘‘AND

12 POLITICAL INTELLIGENCE CONSULTANTS’’ after 

13 ‘‘LOBBYISTS’’; and 

14 (2) in subsection (b)— 

15 (A) by inserting ‘‘or political intelligence 

16 consultant’’ after ‘‘any lobbyist’’; 

17 (B) by inserting ‘‘or political intelligence 

18 consultants’’ after ‘‘1 or more lobbyists’’; and 

19 (C) by inserting ‘‘or political intelligence 

20 consultant’’ after ‘‘listed as a lobbyist’’. 

21 (h) ANNUAL AUDITS AND REPORTS BY COMP22 TROLLER GENERAL.—Section 26 of the Lobbying Disclo23 sure Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1614) is amended— 

24 (1) in subsection (a)— 


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1 (A) by inserting ‘‘political intelligence 

2 firms, political intelligence consultants,’’ after 

3 ‘‘lobbying firms’’; and 

4 (B) by striking ‘‘lobbying registrations’’ 

5 and inserting ‘‘registrations’’; 

6 (2) in subsection (b)(1)(A), by inserting ‘‘polit7 ical intelligence firms, political intelligence consult8 ants,’’ after ‘‘lobbying firms’’; and 

9 (3) in subsection (c), by inserting ‘‘or political 

10 intelligence consultant’’ after ‘‘a lobbyist’’. 

11 SEC. 152. EFFECTIVE DATE. 

12 The amendments made by this subtitle shall apply 

13 with respect to any political intelligence contact (as de14 fined in section 3 of the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 

15 (2 U.S.C. 1602), as amended by this subtitle) that is made 

16 on or after the date that is 1 year after the date of the 

17 enactment of this Act. 

18 TITLE II—LOBBYING REFORM 

19 SEC. 201. ENFORCEMENT BY THE OFFICE OF PUBLIC IN20 TEGRITY. 

21 The Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1601 

22 et seq.) is amended— 

23 (1) in section 4(d) (2 U.S.C. 1603(d)), in the 

24 flush text following paragraph (2), by striking ‘‘Sec25 retary of the Senate and the Clerk of the House of 


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1 Representatives’’ and inserting ‘‘Director of the Of2 fice of Public Integrity’’; 

3 (2) in section 5 (2 U.S.C. 1604)— 

4 (A) in subsection (a), by striking ‘‘Sec5 retary of the Senate and the Clerk of the House 

6 of Representatives’’ and inserting ‘‘Director of 

7 the Office of Public Integrity’’; 

8 (B) in subsection (d)(1), in the matter pre9 ceding subparagraph (A), by striking ‘‘Sec10 retary of the Senate and the Clerk of the House 

11 of Representatives’’ and inserting ‘‘Director of 

12 the Office of Public Integrity’’; and 

13 (C) in subsection (e)— 

14 (i) by striking ‘‘Secretary of the Sen15 ate or the Clerk of the House of Rep16 resentatives’’ and inserting ‘‘Director of 

17 the Office of Public Integrity’’; and 

18 (ii) by striking ‘‘Secretary of the Sen19 ate and the Clerk of the House of Rep20 resentatives’’ and inserting ‘‘Director of 

21 the Office of Public Integrity’’; 

22 (3) in section 6(a) (2 U.S.C. 1605(a)), in the 

23 matter preceding paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘Sec24 retary of the Senate and the Clerk of the House of 


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1 Representatives’’ and inserting ‘‘Director of the Of2 fice of Public Integrity’’; 

3 (4) in section 7(a)(1) (2 U.S.C. 1606(a)(1)), by 

4 striking ‘‘Secretary of the Senate or the Clerk of the 

5 House of Representatives’’ and inserting ‘‘Director 

6 of the Office of Public Integrity’’; and 

7 (5) in section 8(c) (2 U.S.C. 1607(c)), by strik8 ing ‘‘Secretary of the Senate or the Clerk of the 

9 House of Representatives’’ and inserting ‘‘Director 

10 of the Office of Public Integrity’’. 

11 SEC. 202. DEFINITIONS. 

12 Section 3 of the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 (2 

13 U.S.C. 1602) is amended— 

14 (1) by inserting after paragraph (3), as added 

15 by section 151(a) of this Act, the following: 

16 ‘‘(4) CORPORATE LOBBYIST.—The term ‘cor17 porate lobbyist’ means a lobbyist that, for financial 

18 or other compensation for services that include lob19 bying activities, is employed or retained by a client 

20 that is— 

21 ‘‘(A) a covered for-profit entity; or 

22 ‘‘(B) an entity described in section 

23 501(c)(6) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 

24 of which 1 or more members are covered for25 profit entities.’’; 


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1 (2) by inserting after paragraph (5), as so re2 designated by section 151(a) of this Act, the fol3 lowing: 

4 ‘‘(6) COVERED FOR-PROFIT ENTITY.—The term 

5 ‘covered for-profit entity’— 

6 ‘‘(A) means— 

7 ‘‘(i) a corporation, limited liability 

8 company, or other entity that is created by 

9 the filing of a public document with a sec10 retary of state of a State or similar office; 

11 ‘‘(ii) a general partnership; or 

12 ‘‘(iii) any similar entity formed under 

13 the laws of a foreign jurisdiction; and 

14 ‘‘(B) does not include— 

15 ‘‘(i) an entity described in paragraph 

16 (3), (4), or (5) of section 501(c) of the In17 ternal Revenue Code of 1986; 

18 ‘‘(ii) a political organization, as de19 fined in section 527 of such Code, that is 

20 exempt from taxation under that section.’’; 

21 (3) in paragraph (11), as so redesignated by 

22 section 151(a) of this Act, by inserting ‘‘provision of 

23 strategic advice, and’’ after ‘‘planning activities,’’; 

24 (4) in paragraph (10)(B), as so redesignated by 

25 section 151(a) of this Act— 


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1 (A) by striking clause (v); and 

2 (B) by redesignating clauses (vi) through 

3 (xix) as clauses (v) through (xviii), respectively; 

4 and 

5 (5) by striking paragraph (13), as so redesig6 nated by section 151(a) of this Act, and inserting 

7 the following: 

8 ‘‘(13) LOBBYIST.—The term ‘lobbyist’— 

9 ‘‘(A) means an individual who is employed 

10 or retained by a client for financial or other 

11 compensation— 

12 ‘‘(i) for services that include making 1 

13 or more lobbying contacts; or 

14 ‘‘(ii) to engage in lobbying activities 

15 that do not include making lobbying con16 tacts; and 

17 ‘‘(B) includes a corporate lobbyist.’’. 

18 SEC. 203. REGISTRATION OF LOBBYISTS. 

19 Section 4 of the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 (2 

20 U.S.C. 1603) is amended— 

21 (1) in subsection (a)(3)— 

22 (A) in subparagraph (A)— 

23 (i) by redesignating clauses (i) and 

24 (ii) as subclauses (I) and (II), respectively, 

25 and adjusting the margins accordingly; 


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1 (ii) in the matter preceding subclause 

2 (I), as so redesignated, by striking ‘‘entity 

3 whose—’’ and inserting the following: ‘‘en4 tity— 

5 ‘‘(i) of which the—’’; 

6 (iii) in clause (i), as so designated— 

7 (I) in subclause (I), as so redes8 ignated, by inserting ‘‘, as estimated 

9 under section 5’’ after ‘‘$2,500’’; and 

10 (II) in subclause (II), as so re11 designated, by inserting ‘‘as estimated 

12 under section 5; or’’ after ‘‘$10,000,’’; 

13 (iv) by inserting after clause (i)(II), 

14 as so designated, the following: 

15 ‘‘(ii) that engages in lobbying activi16 ties for less than 8 hours,’’; and 

17 (v) in the flush text following clause 

18 (ii)— 

19 (I) by striking ‘‘(as estimated 

20 under section 5)’’; and 

21 (II) by striking ‘‘with respect to 

22 such client’’ and inserting ‘‘, in the 

23 case of a person or entity described in 

24 subclause (I) or (II) of clause (i), with 

25 respect to such client, or, in the case 


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1 of a person or entity described in 

2 clause (ii), with respect to any client 

3 of the person or entity.’’; and 

4 (B) in subparagraph (B), by striking ‘‘sub5 paragraph (A)’’ and inserting ‘‘subparagraph 

6 (A)(i)’’; 

7 (2) in subsection (b)— 

8 (A) by striking paragraph (4); 

9 (B) by redesignating paragraphs (5) and 

10 (6) as paragraphs (4) and (5), respectively; 

11 (C) in paragraph (4), as so redesignated— 

12 (i) in subparagraph (A)— 

13 (I) by striking ‘‘the general 

14 issues areas’’ and inserting ‘‘each spe15 cific issue area’’; and 

16 (II) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end; 

17 (ii) by redesignating subparagraph 

18 (B) as subparagraph (C); 

19 (iii) by inserting after subparagraph 

20 (A) the following: 

21 ‘‘(B) each specific action or inaction that, 

22 as of the date of the registration, has already 

23 been requested, or that will be requested;’’; and 

24 (iv) in subparagraph (C), as so redes25 ignated— 


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1 (I) by striking ‘‘to the extent 

2 practicable, specific issues that have’’ 

3 and inserting ‘‘each specific issue, in4 cluding any Federal legislation, rule, 

5 or regulation, or Executive order, that 

6 has’’; and 

7 (II) by striking ‘‘are’’ and insert8 ing ‘‘is’’; 

9 (D) in paragraph (5), as so redesignated, 

10 by striking the period and inserting a semi11 colon; and 

12 (E) by inserting after paragraph (5), as so 

13 redesignated, the following: 

14 ‘‘(6) the name of each covered legislative 

15 branch official or covered executive branch official 

16 who, as of the date of the registration, has already 

17 been contacted, or is likely to be contacted, in any 

18 lobbying activity on behalf of the client; and 

19 ‘‘(7) with respect to any person or entity that, 

20 as of the date of the registration, or has been re21 tained, by the registrant to engage in any lobbying 

22 activity on behalf of the client of the registrant— 

23 ‘‘(A) the name, address, business telephone 

24 number, and principal place of business of the 

25 person or entity; 


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1 ‘‘(B) a description of any lobbying contact 

2 that, as of the date of the registration, has been 

3 made in, or is likely to be made, on behalf of 

4 the client of the registrant by the person or en5 tity; 

6 ‘‘(C) with respect to the lobbying activity 

7 on behalf of the client of the registrant, the 

8 amount that the registrant, as of the date of 

9 the registration, has paid, or is likely to pay, to 

10 the person or entity as compensation for the 

11 lobbying activity; and 

12 ‘‘(D) the name of each employee of the 

13 person or entity who, as of the date of the reg14 istration, has supervised, or who is likely to su15 pervise, any lobbying activity on behalf of the 

16 client of the registrant.’’; and 

17 (3) by striking subsection (c) and inserting the 

18 following: 

19 ‘‘(c) MULTIPLE CLIENTS.—In the case of a reg20 istrant that engages in lobbying activities or political intel21 ligence activities on behalf of more than 1 client, the reg22 istrant shall file a separate registration for each client.’’. 


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1 SEC. 204. REPORTS BY LOBBYISTS. 

2 (a) QUARTERLY REPORTS.—Section 5(b) of the Lob3 bying Disclosure Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1604(b)) is 

4 amended— 

5 (1) by striking paragraph (2) and inserting the 

6 following: 

7 ‘‘(2) a statement of— 

8 ‘‘(A) each specific issue with respect to 

9 which the registrant, or any employee of the 

10 registrant, engaged in lobbying activities or po11 litical intelligence activities, including, to the 

12 maximum extent practicable, a statement of 

13 each bill number and reference to any specific 

14 Federal rule or regulation, Executive order, or 

15 any other program, policy, or position of the 

16 United States Government; 

17 ‘‘(B) each lobbying activity or political in18 telligence activity that the registrant has en19 gaged in on behalf of the client, including— 

20 ‘‘(i) each document prepared by the 

21 registrant that was submitted to any cov22 ered legislative branch official or covered 

23 executive branch official; 

24 ‘‘(ii) each meeting conducted that con25 stituted a lobbying contact or a political in26 telligence contact, including the subject of 


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1 the meeting, the date of the meeting, and 

2 the name and position of each individual 

3 who was a party to the meeting; 

4 ‘‘(iii) each phone call made that con5 stituted a lobbying contact or a political in6 telligence contact, including the subject of 

7 the phone call, the date of the phone call, 

8 and the name and position of each indi9 vidual who was a party to the phone call; 

10 and 

11 ‘‘(iv) each email sent that constituted 

12 a lobbying contact or a political intelligence 

13 contact, including the subject of the email, 

14 the date of the email, and the name and 

15 position of each individual who was a party 

16 to the email; 

17 ‘‘(C) the name of each employee of the reg18 istrant who did not participate in the lobbying 

19 contact or a political intelligence contact but en20 gaged in lobbying activities or political intel21 ligence activitites, respectively, in support of the 

22 lobbying contact or political intelligence contact, 

23 respectively, and a description of any such lob24 bying activity or a political intelligence activity; 

25 and 


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1 ‘‘(D) with respect to any person or entity 

2 retained by the registrant to engage in lobbying 

3 activities or political intelligence activities on 

4 behalf of the client of the registrant— 

5 ‘‘(i) the name, address, business tele6 phone number, and principal place of busi7 ness of the person or entity; 

8 ‘‘(ii) a description of any lobbying ac9 tivity or political intelligence activity by the 

10 person or entity on behalf of the client of 

11 the registrant; 

12 ‘‘(iii) the amount the registrant paid 

13 to the person or entity for any lobbying ac14 tivity or political intelligence activity by the 

15 person or entity on the behalf of the client 

16 of the registrant; 

17 ‘‘(iv) the name of each employee of 

18 the person or entity who supervised any 

19 lobbying activity or political intelligence ac20 tivity by the person or entity on behalf of 

21 the client of the registrant; and 

22 ‘‘(v) the official action or inaction re23 quested in the course of the lobbying activ24 ity;’’. 


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1 (2) in paragraph (4), by striking ‘‘and’’ at the 

2 end; 

3 (3) in paragraph (5), by striking the period and 

4 inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

5 (4) by adding at the end the following: 

6 ‘‘(6) a copy of any document transmitted to a 

7 covered legislative branch official or a covered execu8 tive branch official in the course of any lobbying ac9 tivity by the registrant on behalf of the client.’’. 

10 (b) ESTIMATES BASED ON TAX REPORTING SYS11 TEM.—Section 15 of the Lobbying Disclosure Act (2 

12 U.S.C. 1610) is repealed. 

13 SEC. 205. PROHIBITION ON FOREIGN LOBBYING. 

14 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Lobbying Disclosure Act of 

15 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.) is amended— 

16 (1) by redesignating section 26 (2 U.S.C. 1614) 

17 as section 28; and 

18 (2) by inserting after section 25 (2 U.S.C. 

19 1613) the following: 

20 ‘‘SEC. 26. PROHIBITION ON FOREIGN LOBBYING. 

21 ‘‘(a) DEFINITION.—In this section— 

22 ‘‘(1) the term ‘covered lobbyist’ means— 

23 ‘‘(A) a lobbyist that is registered or is re24 quired to register under section 4(a)(1); 


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1 ‘‘(B) an organization that employs 1 or 

2 more lobbyists and is registered, or is required 

3 to register, under section 4(a)(2); and 

4 ‘‘(C) an employee listed or required to be 

5 listed as a lobbyist by a registrant under section 

6 4(b)(6) or 5(b)(2)(C); and 

7 ‘‘(2) the terms ‘information-service employee’, 

8 ‘public-relations counsel’, and ‘publicity agent’ have 

9 the meanings given those terms in section 1 of the 

10 Foreign Agents Registration Act of 1938 (22 U.S.C. 

11 611). 

12 ‘‘(b) PROHIBITION.—Except as provided in sub13 section (c), a covered lobbyist may not accept financial or 

14 other compensation for services that include lobbying ac15 tivities on behalf of a foreign entity. 

16 ‘‘(c) EXEMPTIONS.—The prohibition under sub17 section (b) shall not apply the following covered lobbyists: 

18 ‘‘(1) DIPLOMATIC OR CONSULAR OFFICERS.—A 

19 duly accredited diplomatic or consular officer of a 

20 foreign government who is so recognized by the De21 partment of State, while the officer is engaged exclu22 sively in activities that are recognized by the Depart23 ment of State as being within the scope of the func24 tions of the officer. 


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1 ‘‘(2) OFFICIALS OF FOREIGN GOVERNMENTS.— 

2 An official of a foreign government, if that govern3 ment is recognized by the United States, who is not 

4 a public-relations counsel, a publicity agent, or an 

5 information-service employee, or a citizen of the 

6 United States, whose name and status and the char7 acter of whose duties as an official are of public 

8 record in the Department of State, while said official 

9 is engaged exclusively in activities that are recog10 nized by the Department of State as being within 

11 the scope of the functions of the official. 

12 ‘‘(3) STAFF MEMBERS OF DIPLOMATIC OR CON13 SULAR OFFICERS.—A member of the staff of, or any 

14 person employed by, a duly accredited diplomatic or 

15 consular officer of a foreign government who is so 

16 recognized by the Department of State, other than 

17 a public-relations counsel, a publicity agent, or an 

18 information-service employee, whose name and sta19 tus and the character of whose duties as such mem20 ber or employee are of public record in the Depart21 ment of State, while the member or employee is en22 gaged exclusively in the performance of activities 

23 that are recognized by the Department of State as 

24 being within the scope of the functions of the mem25 ber or employee. 


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1 ‘‘(4) PERSONS ENGAGING OR AGREEING TO EN2 GAGE IN THE SOLICITING OR COLLECTING OF FUNDS

3 FOR HUMANITARIAN RELIEF.—A person engaging or 

4 agreeing to engage only in the soliciting or collecting 

5 of funds and contributions within the United States 

6 to be used only for medical aid and assistance, or for 

7 food and clothing to relieve human suffering, if the 

8 solicitation or collection of funds and contributions 

9 is in accordance with, and subject to, the provisions 

10 of the Neutrality Act of 1939 (22 U.S.C. 441 et 

11 seq.), and such rules and regulations as may be pre12 scribed thereunder. 

13 ‘‘(5) CERTAIN PERSONS QUALIFIED TO PRAC14 TICE LAW.— 

15 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—A person qualified to 

16 practice law, insofar as the person engages, or 

17 agrees to engage in, the legal representation of 

18 a disclosed foreign entity before any court of 

19 law or any agency of the Government of the 

20 United States. 

21 ‘‘(B) LEGAL REPRESENTATION.—For the 

22 purpose of this paragraph, legal representation 

23 does not include any attempt to influence or 

24 persuade agency personnel or officials other 

25 than in the course of— 


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1 ‘‘(i) a judicial proceeding; 

2 ‘‘(ii) a criminal or civil law enforce3 ment inquiry, investigation, or proceeding; 

4 or 

5 ‘‘(iii) an agency proceeding required 

6 by statute or regulation to be conducted on 

7 the record. 

8 ‘‘(d) PENALTIES.—Any person who knowingly vio9 lates this section shall be fined not more than $200,000, 

10 imprisoned for not more than 5 years, or both, and any 

11 compensation received for engaging in the unlawful activ12 ity shall be subject to disgorgement.’’. 

13 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 7 of the 

14 Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1606) is 

15 amended— 

16 (1) in subsection (a), in the matter preceding 

17 paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘Whoever’’ and inserting 

18 ‘‘Except as otherwise provided in this Act, whoever’’; 

19 and 

20 (2) in subsection (b), by striking ‘‘Whoever’’ 

21 and inserting ‘‘Except as otherwise provided in this 

22 Act, whoever’’. 


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1 SEC. 206. PROHIBITION ON CONTINGENT FEE LOBBYING. 

2 The Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1601 

3 et seq.) is amended by inserting after section 26, as added 

4 by section 205, the following: 

5 ‘‘SEC. 27. PROHIBITION ON CONTINGENT FEE ARRANGE6 MENTS. 

7 ‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section, the term ‘cov8 ered lobbyist’ means— 

9 ‘‘(1) a lobbyist that is registered or is required 

10 to register under section 4(a)(1); 

11 ‘‘(2) an organization that employs 1 or more 

12 lobbyists and is registered, or is required to register, 

13 under section 4(a)(2); and 

14 ‘‘(3) an employee listed or required to be listed 

15 as a lobbyist by a registrant under section 4(b)(6) 

16 or 5(b)(2)(C). 

17 ‘‘(b) PROHIBITION.—A covered lobbyist may not be 

18 employed under, or receive compensation in connection 

19 with, an arrangement in which compensation paid to the 

20 covered lobbyist is contingent on the result of lobbying ac21 tivities engaged in by the covered lobbyist. 

22 ‘‘(c) PENALTIES.—Any person who knowingly vio23 lates this section shall be fined not more than $200,000, 

24 imprisoned for not more than 5 years, or both, and any 

25 compensation received for engaging in the unlawful activ26 ity shall be subject to disgorgement.’’. 


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1 SEC. 207. PROHIBITION ON PROVISION OF GIFTS OR TRAV2 EL BY REGISTERED LOBBYISTS. 

3 Section 25 of the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 

4 (2 U.S.C. 1613) is amended— 

5 (1) in the section heading, by striking ‘‘TO

6 MEMBERS OF CONGRESS AND TO CONGRES7 SIONAL EMPLOYEES’’; 

8 (2) by striking subsection (a) and inserting the 

9 following: 

10 ‘‘(a) PROHIBITION.—Except as provided in sub11 section (c), a person described in subsection (b) may not 

12 make a gift or provide travel to a covered legislative 

13 branch official or a covered executive branch official.’’; and 

14 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

15 ‘‘(c) EXCEPTIONS.—A person described in subsection 

16 (b) may make a gift or provide travel to a covered legisla17 tive branch official or a covered executive branch official 

18 if— 

19 ‘‘(1) the gift or travel complies with any appli20 cable rule of the Senate, House of Representatives, 

21 or executive branch applicable to the recipient of the 

22 gift or travel; and 

23 ‘‘(2) the gift or travel— 

24 ‘‘(A) is based on the personal or family re25 lationship of the person with the covered legis26 lative branch official or a covered executive 


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1 branch official and is given with the knowledge 

2 and acquiescence of the covered legislative 

3 branch official or a covered executive branch of4 ficial, unless the covered legislative branch offi5 cial or a covered executive branch official has 

6 reason to believe that the gift or travel was 

7 given because of the official position of the cov8 ered legislative branch official or a covered ex9 ecutive branch official; 

10 ‘‘(B) is a discount or similar benefit; 

11 ‘‘(C) results from the business or employ12 ment activities of the spouse of the covered leg13 islative branch official or a covered executive 

14 branch official; 

15 ‘‘(D) is a gift or travel customarily pro16 vided by a prospective employer in connection 

17 with bona fide employment discussions; 

18 ‘‘(E) in the case of a covered executive 

19 branch official, is of a kind authorized by a 

20 supplemental agency regulation that is— 

21 ‘‘(i) issued by the agency that employs 

22 the covered executive branch official; and 

23 ‘‘(ii) approved by the Director of the 

24 Office of Public Integrity; or 


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1 ‘‘(F) may be accepted by the covered legis2 lative branch official or covered executive 

3 branch official under specific Federal statutory 

4 authority.’’. 

5 SEC. 208. APPLICATION OF GENERAL SCHEDULE TO CON6 GRESS. 

7 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 5331 of title 5, United 

8 States Code, is amended— 

9 (1) in subsection (a), by striking ‘‘this sub10 chapter, ‘agency’, ‘employee’, ‘position’,’’ and insert11 ing the following: ‘‘this subchapter— 

12 ‘‘(1) ‘agency’— 

13 ‘‘(A) has the meaning given that term in 

14 section 5102 of this title; and 

15 ‘‘(B) includes— 

16 ‘‘(i) the Government Accountability 

17 Office; and 

18 ‘‘(ii) any agency, office, or other enti19 ty for which the pay of the employees of 

20 the agency, office, or other entity is dis21 bursed by the Secretary of the Senate or 

22 the Chief Administrative Officer of the 

23 House of Representatives; 

24 ‘‘(2) ‘employee’— 


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1 ‘‘(A) means an individual employed in or 

2 under an agency; and 

3 ‘‘(B) does not include a Member of Con4 gress; and 

5 ‘‘(3) ‘position’,’’; and 

6 (2) in subsection (b), by inserting ‘‘and employ7 ees in positions in an agency described in subsection 

8 (a)(1)(B)’’ after ‘‘chapter 51 applies’’. 

9 (b) TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

10 (1) Section 5 of the Federal Pay Comparability 

11 Act of 1970 (2 U.S.C. 4531) is repealed. 

12 (2) Section 311 of the Legislative Branch Ap13 propriations Act, 1988 (2 U.S.C. 4532) is repealed. 

14 (3) Sections 471 and 475 of the Legislative Re15 organization Act of 1970 (2 U.S.C. 4533, 4534) are 

16 repealed. 

17 (4) Section 4 of the Federal Pay Comparability 

18 Act of 1970 (2 U.S.C. 4571) is repealed. 

19 (5) Section 107 of the Legislative Branch Ap20 propriation Act, 1977 (2 U.S.C. 4572) is repealed. 

21 (6) Section 315 of the Legislative Branch Ap22 propriations Act, 1991 (2 U.S.C. 4573) is repealed. 

23 (7) Section 105 of the Legislative Branch Ap24 propriation Act, 1968 (2 U.S.C. 4575) is amended— 

25 (A) by striking subsection (a); 


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1 (B) by striking subsection (c); 

2 (C) by striking subsection (e); and 

3 (D) by striking subsection (f). 

4 (8) Section 114 of the Legislative Branch Ap5 propriation Act, 1978 (2 U.S.C. 4576) is amended 

6 by striking ‘‘maximum rate specified’’ and all that 

7 follows and inserting ‘‘rate payable for a position at 

8 level 15, step 10 of the General Schedule.’’. 

9 (9) Section 102(c)(2)(B) of the Legislative 

10 Branch Appropriations Act, 2002 (2 U.S.C. 

11 4579(c)(2)(B)) is amended by striking ‘‘exceeding’’ 

and all that follows and inserting ‘‘exceeding 1 12 ⁄12th

13 of the maximum annual rate of pay that is payable 

14 for positions on the General Schedule under section 

15 5304(g)(1) of title 5, United States Code.’’. 

16 SEC. 209. REESTABLISHMENT OF OFFICE OF TECHNOLOGY 

17 ASSESSMENT. 

18 (a) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—Section 

19 12(a) of the Technology Assessment Act of 1972 (2 

20 U.S.C. 481(a)) is amended by striking ‘‘there is hereby’’ 

21 and all that follows through the period at the end and 

22 inserting ‘‘for each fiscal year there is authorized to be 

23 appropriated to the Office such sums as may be nec24 essary.’’. 


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1 (b) INITIAL APPOINTMENTS.—Not later than 60 days 

2 after the date on which appropriations are made available 

3 to reestablish the Office of Technology Assessment, the 

4 President pro tempore of the Senate and the Speaker of 

5 the House of Representatives shall appoint the members 

6 of the Technology Assessment Board in accordance with 

7 section 4(a) of the Technology Assessment Act of 1972 

8 (2 U.S.C. 473(a)). 

9 (c) INITIAL RECOMMENDATIONS.— 

10 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 270 days 

11 after the date on which all members of the Tech12 nology Assessment Board are appointed under sub13 section (b), and after reviewing recommendations re14 lating to the reestablishment of the Office of Tech15 nology Assessment and meeting with relevant stake16 holders, the Technology Assessment Board shall sub17 mit to Congress recommendations concerning how 

18 Congress should enhance technology assessment sup19 port for the legislative branch, including whether 

20 Congress should enact new or revised authorities 

21 that address resources, function, structure, or other 

22 matters the Technology Assessment Board deter23 mines appropriate. 

24 (2) REVIEW.—Not later than 90 days after the 

25 date on which Congress receives the recommendaVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:09 Feb 17, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00133 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H9029.IH H9029

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1 tions under paragraph (1), each committee of the 

2 Senate or the House of Representatives with juris3 diction of any issue relating to technology assess4 ment support for the legislative branch shall hold a 

5 hearing with respect to the recommendations. 

6 (d) ADJUSTMENTS TO OTHER LAWS.— 

7 (1) ANNUAL REPORTS.—Section 3003(a)(1) of 

8 the Federal Reports Elimination and Sunset Act of 

9 1995 (31 U.S.C. 1113 note) shall not apply to any 

10 report submitted under section 11 of the Technology 

11 Assessment Act of 1972 (Public Law 92–48, 86 

12 Stat. 802). 

13 (2) INFORMATION FOR THE CONGRESSIONAL

14 BUDGET OFFICE.—Section 201(e) of the Congres15 sional Budget Act of 1974 (2 U.S.C. 601(e)) is 

16 amended— 

17 (A) by inserting ‘‘the Office of Technology 

18 Assessment,’’ after ‘‘Government Accountability 

19 Office,’’; and 

20 (B) by inserting ‘‘the Technology Assess21 ment Board,’’ after ‘‘Comptroller General,’’. 

22 (3) INCLUSION AS AN INSTRUMENTALITY OF

23 CONGRESS.—Section 510(4) of the Americans with 

24 Disabilities Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12209(4)) is 


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1 amended by striking ‘‘following:,’’ and inserting ‘‘fol2 lowing: the Office of Technology Assessment,’’. 

3 (e) TECHNICAL AMENDMENTS.—Section 7(e)(1) of 

4 the Technology Assessment Act of 1972 (2 U.S.C. 

5 476(e)(1)) is amended by striking ‘‘section 5702 and in 

6 5704 of title 5’’ and inserting ‘‘sections 5702 and 5704 

7 of title 5, United States Code’’. 

8 SEC. 210. PROGRESSIVE TAX ON LOBBYING EXPENDITURES. 

9 (a) TAX PROVISIONS RELATING TO LOBBYING EX10 PENDITURES.— 

11 (1) EXCISE TAX ON EXPENDITURES FOR LOB12 BYING ACTIVITIES.— 

13 (A) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 33 of the In14 ternal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by in15 serting after subchapter C the following new 

16 subchapter: 

17 ‘‘Subchapter D—Lobbying Activities 

‘‘Sec. 4286. Imposition of tax. 

18 ‘‘SEC. 4286. IMPOSITION OF TAX. 

19 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—There is hereby imposed on 

20 quarterly lobbying expenditures in excess of $125,000 a 

21 tax determined in accordance with the following table: 

‘‘If quarterly lobbying 

expenditures are: 

The tax is: 

Over $125,000 but not over 

$250,000.

35% of the quarterly lobbying expenditures in excess of $125,000. 

Over $250,000 but not over 

$1,250,000.

$43,750, plus 60% of the excess over 

$250,000. 


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‘‘If quarterly lobbying 

expenditures are: 

The tax is: 

Over $1,250,000 ............................ $643,750, plus 75% of the excess 

over $1,250,000. 

1 ‘‘(b) EXCEPTION.— 

2 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para3 graph (2), the tax imposed by this section shall not 

4 apply to any organization described in section 501(c) 

5 and exempt from tax under section 501(a). 

6 ‘‘(2) APPLICATION TO CERTAIN BUSINESS OR7 GANIZATIONS.—Paragraph (1) shall not apply to any 

8 organization which— 

9 ‘‘(A) is described in section 501(c)(6) and 

10 exempt from tax under section 501(a), and 

11 ‘‘(B) has as a member of such organization 

12 an organization that is not described in section 

13 501(c) and exempt from tax under section 

14 501(a). 

15 ‘‘(c) PAYMENT OF TAX.—The tax imposed by this 

16 section shall be paid by the person paying for the quarterly 

17 lobbying expenditures. 

18 ‘‘(d) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this section, the 

19 term ‘quarterly lobbying expenditures’ means, with respect 

20 to any calendar quarter, the expenditures paid or incurred 

21 for lobbying activities (as defined under section 3 of the 

22 Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995) during such calendar 

23 quarter. 


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1 ‘‘(e) SPECIAL RULE.—For purposes of this section, 

2 all persons treated as a single employer under subsection 

3 (a) or (b) of section 52 shall be treated as a single per4 son.’’. 

5 (B) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The 

6 table of subchapters for chapter 33 of such 

7 Code is amended by inserting after the item re8 lated to subchapter C the following new item: 

‘‘SUBCHAPTER D—LOBBYING ACTIVITIES’’. 

9 (C) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments 

10 made by this paragraph shall apply to amounts 

11 paid or incurred in calendar quarters beginning 

12 more than 60 days after the date of the enact13 ment of this Act. 

14 (2) MODIFICATION OF DEFINITION OF INFLU15 ENCING LEGISLATION FOR PURPOSES OF RESTRIC16 TIONS ON CERTAIN CHARITABLE ORGANIZATIONS.— 

17 (A) IN GENERAL.—Section 4911(e)(2) of 

18 the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amend19 ed— 

20 (i) by striking ‘‘includes action with 

21 respect to Acts, bills’’ and inserting ‘‘in22 cludes— 

23 ‘‘(i) the formulation, modification, or 

24 adoption of Acts, bills’’; and 


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1 (ii) by adding at the end the following 

2 new subparagraphs: 

3 ‘‘(ii) the formulation, modification, or 

4 adoption of a Federal rule, regulation, Ex5 ecutive order, or any other program, policy, 

6 or position of the United States Govern7 ment, 

8 ‘‘(iii) the administration or execution 

9 of a Federal program or policy (including 

10 the negotiation, award, or administration 

11 of a Federal contract, grant, loan, permit, 

12 or license), and 

13 ‘‘(iv) the nomination or confirmation 

14 of a person for a position subject to con15 firmation by the Senate.’’. 

16 (B) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—Section 

17 4911(e) of such Code is amended by striking 

18 paragraph (3) and redesignating paragraph (4) 

19 as paragraph (3). 

20 (C) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments 

21 made by this paragraph shall take effect 180 

22 days after the date of the enactment of this 

23 Act. 

24 (b) LOBBYING DEFENSE TRUST FUND.— 

25 (1) ESTABLISHMENT OF FUND.— 


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1 (A) IN GENERAL.—Subchapter A of chap2 ter 98 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is 

3 amended by adding at the end the following 

4 new section: 

5 ‘‘SEC. 9512. LOBBYING DEFENSE TRUST FUND. 

6 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—There is established in the 

7 Treasury of the United States a trust fund to be known 

8 as the ‘Lobbying Defense Trust Fund’, consisting of any 

9 amount appropriated or credited to the Trust Fund as 

10 provided in this section or section 9602(b). 

11 ‘‘(b) TRANSFERS TO TRUST FUND.—There is hereby 

12 appropriated to the Lobbying Defense Trust Fund 

13 amounts equivalent to— 

14 ‘‘(1) the taxes received in the Treasury under 

15 section 4286, and 

16 ‘‘(2) the civil penalties collected under the Anti17 Corruption and Public Integrity Act and the amend18 ments made by that Act. 

19 ‘‘(c) AVAILABILITY.—Amounts transferred to the 

20 Lobbying Defense Trust Fund shall— 

21 ‘‘(1) remain available until expended; and 

22 ‘‘(2) be used, without further appropriation, by 

23 the Director of the Office of Public Integrity in ac24 cordance with subsection (d). 

25 ‘‘(d) USE OF FUNDS.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) TRANSFERS TO AGENCIES.— 

2 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—For each calendar 

3 quarter beginning more than 60 days after the 

4 date of the enactment of this section, not later 

5 than 30 days after the end of the quarter, the 

6 Director of the Office of Public Integrity (in 

7 this subsection referred to as the ‘Director’) 

8 shall identify specific rules or other agency ac9 tions that were the subject of significant lob10 bying activity directed toward an executive 

11 agency during the quarter. 

12 ‘‘(B) TRANSFER.—Not later than the end 

13 of each calendar quarter beginning more than 

14 60 days after the date of the enactment of this 

15 section, the Director shall transfer from the 

16 Lobbying Defense Trust Fund to each executive 

17 agency that was the subject of significant lob18 bying activity during the previous quarter an 

19 amount equal to the amount obtained by multi20 plying— 

21 ‘‘(i) the amount of taxes received in 

22 the Treasury under section 4286 that are 

23 attributable to lobbying expenditures dur24 ing the previous quarter; by 


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1 ‘‘(ii) the percentage of such taxes that 

2 were based on lobbying expenditures dur3 ing the previous quarter related to rule4 making within the jurisdiction of the exec5 utive agency. 

6 ‘‘(C) USE OF TRANSFERRED FUNDS.—An 

7 executive agency may use amounts transferred 

8 under subparagraph (B) for salaries and ex9 penses relating to researching, reviewing, or fi10 nalizing rules or other agency actions in accord11 ance with section 553 or 554 of title 5, United 

12 States Code. 

13 ‘‘(D) AVAILABILITY.—Amounts transferred 

14 under subparagraph (B) shall remain available 

15 until expended. 

16 ‘‘(2) OFFICE OF THE PUBLIC ADVOCATE.— 

17 ‘‘(A) BUDGET SUBMISSION.—For each fis18 cal year beginning more than 60 days after the 

19 date of enactment of this section, the National 

20 Public Advocate shall submit to the Director a 

21 request— 

22 ‘‘(i) indicating the amount the Na23 tional Public Advocate is requesting be 

24 transferred to the Office of the Public Ad25 vocate; and 


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1 ‘‘(ii) describing the activities of the 

2 Office of the Public Advocate that would 

3 be carried out using the amounts. 

4 ‘‘(B) TRANSFER.—After consideration of 

5 the request submitted under subparagraph (A) 

6 with respect to a fiscal year, the Director shall 

7 transfer to the Office of the Public Advocate 

8 from the Lobbying Defense Trust Fund the 

9 amount determined appropriate by the Director. 

10 ‘‘(C) USE OF FUNDS.—Amounts trans11 ferred under subparagraph (B) may be used for 

12 any authorized activity of the Office of the Pub13 lic Advocate, including salaries and expenses. 

14 ‘‘(D) AVAILABILITY.—Amounts transferred 

15 under subparagraph (B) shall remain available 

16 until expended. 

17 ‘‘(3) CONGRESSIONAL SUPPORT AGENCIES.— 

18 ‘‘(A) TRANSFER.—Not later than the end 

19 of each calendar quarter beginning more than 

20 60 days after the date of the enactment of this 

21 section, the Director shall transfer from the 

22 Lobbying Defense Trust Fund to the Congres23 sional Research Service, the Congressional 

24 Budget Office, the Government Accountability 

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1 ment an amount equal to 25 percent of the dif2 ference between— 

3 ‘‘(i) the amount of taxes received in 

4 the Treasury under section 4286 that are 

5 attributable to lobbying expenditures dur6 ing the previous quarter; and 

7 ‘‘(ii) the amount of such taxes that 

8 were based on lobbying expenditures dur9 ing the previous quarter related to rule10 making within the jurisdiction of an execu11 tive agency. 

12 ‘‘(B) USE OF FUNDS.—Amounts trans13 ferred under subparagraph (A) may be used for 

14 any authorized activity of the agency receiving 

15 the amounts, including salaries and expenses. 

16 ‘‘(C) AVAILABILITY.—Amounts transferred 

17 under subparagraph (A) shall remain available 

18 until expended. 

19 ‘‘(4) REGULATIONS.—Not later than 180 days 

20 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Director 

21 shall promulgate regulations defining the term ‘sig22 nificant lobbying activity’ for purposes of this sub23 section.’’. 

24 (2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sec25 tions for subchapter A of chapter 98 of such Code 


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1 is amended by adding at the end the following new 

2 item: 

‘‘Sec. 9512. Lobbying Defense Trust Fund.’’. 

3 (3) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made 

4 by this subsection shall take effect on the date of en5 actment of this Act. 

6 SEC. 211. DISCLOSURE OF REGISTRATION STATUS. 

7 Section 14 of the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 

8 (2 U.S.C. 1609) is amended— 

9 (1) by striking subsections (a) and (b) and in10 serting the following: 

11 ‘‘(a) LOBBYING CONTACTS.—Any person or entity 

12 that makes a lobbying contact with a covered legislative 

13 branch official or a covered executive branch official shall, 

14 at the time of the lobbying contact, state whether the per15 son or entity is registered under this Act and identify the 

16 client on whose behalf the lobbying contact is made.’’; and 

17 (2) by redesignating subsection (c) as sub18 section (b). 

19 TITLE III—RULEMAKING 

20 REFORM 

21 SEC. 301. DISCLOSURE OF CONFLICTS OF INTEREST. 

22 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 553 of title 5, United 

23 States Code, is amended— 


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1 (1) in subsection (c), in the first sentence, by 

2 inserting ‘‘, subject to subsections (f) and (h),’’ after 

3 ‘‘the agency shall’’; and 

4 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

5 ‘‘(f) With respect to any submission by an interested 

6 person under subsection (c) or any other submission by 

7 an interested person relating to a proposed rule that incor8 porates or includes a scientific or technical study, or any 

9 other result of scientific research not published in a pub10 licly available peer-reviewed publication, the interested 

11 person, in making that submission, shall disclose— 

12 ‘‘(1) the source of the funding for that study or 

13 research, as applicable; 

14 ‘‘(2) any entity that sponsored the study or re15 search; 

16 ‘‘(3) the extent to which the findings of the 

17 study or research were reviewed by a party that may 

18 be affected by the rulemaking to which the submis19 sion relates; 

20 ‘‘(4) the identity of any party identified under 

21 paragraph (3); and 

22 ‘‘(5) the nature of any financial relationship, in23 cluding a consulting agreement, the support of any 

24 expert witness, and the funding of research, between 

25 any person that conducted the study or research and 


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1 any interested person with respect to the rule mak2 ing to which the submission relates.’’. 

3 (b) APPLICATION.—Section 553(f) of title 5, United 

4 States Code, as added by subsection (a), shall apply with 

5 respect to submissions made by interested persons on and 

6 after the date of enactment of this Act. 

7 SEC. 302. INCREASING DISCLOSURES RELATING TO STUD8 IES AND RESEARCH. 

9 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 553 of title 5, United 

10 States Code, as amended by section 301 of this Act, is 

11 amended by adding at the end the following: 

12 ‘‘(g) With respect to a study or research that is sub13 mitted by an interested person to an agency under sub14 section (c), the agency shall ensure that the study or re15 search is available to the public, unless disclosure is pro16 hibited under section 552 of this title. 

17 ‘‘(h)(1) If a study or research submitted by an inter18 ested person to an agency under subsection (c) presents 

19 a conflict described in paragraph (2), the agency shall not 

20 consider the study or research in a rulemaking under this 

21 section and shall exclude the study or research from con22 sideration, unless the interested person has certified, 

23 under standards developed by the National Academy of 

24 Sciences with respect to that certification, that the study 

25 or research has undergone independent peer review. 


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1 ‘‘(2) A conflict described in this paragraph means a 

2 study or research for which— 

3 ‘‘(A) not less than 20 percent of the funding for 

4 the study or research is from an entity that is regu5 lated by the agency; or 

6 ‘‘(B) an entity that is regulated by the agency 

7 exercises editorial control over the study or research. 

8 ‘‘(i) With respect to a rulemaking under this section, 

9 an agency shall include in the notice of proposed rule mak10 ing required under subsection (b) and in the final rule 

11 published under subsection (d) a description of how the 

12 agency considered scientific evidence, including any study 

13 or research.’’. 

14 (b) APPLICATION.—Subsections (g), (h), and (i) of 

15 section 553 of title 5, United States Code, as added by 

16 subsection (a), shall apply with respect to submissions 

17 made by interested persons on and after the date of enact18 ment of this Act. 

19 SEC. 303. DISCLOSURE OF INTER-GOVERNMENTAL RULE 

20 CHANGES. 

21 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section— 

22 (1) the term ‘‘Administrator’’ means the Ad23 ministrator of the Office; 

24 (2) the terms ‘‘agency’’, ‘‘regulatory action’’, 

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1 ings given those terms in section 3 of the Executive 

2 Order; 

3 (3) the term ‘‘Executive Order’’ means Execu4 tive Order 12866 (5 U.S.C. 601 note; relating to 

5 regulatory planning and review); and 

6 (4) the term ‘‘Office’’ means the Office of In7 formation and Regulatory Affairs. 

8 (b) REQUIREMENT.—With respect to any regulatory 

9 action that an agency provides to the Office under section 

10 6(a)(3) of the Executive Order, and that the Adminis11 trator determines is a significant regulatory action under 

12 that section, the agency shall— 

13 (1) not later than the date on which the agency 

14 publishes the general notice of proposed rulemaking 

15 required under section 553(b) of title 5, United 

16 States Code, with respect to the action, place in the 

17 rule making docket— 

18 (A) the substance of any changes between 

19 the text of the draft regulatory action that the 

20 agency provided to the Office under section 

21 6(a)(3)(B)(i) of the Executive Order and the 

22 text published in that general notice with re23 spect to the action; and 


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1 (B) a statement regarding whether any 

2 change described in subparagraph (A) was 

3 made at the request of— 

4 (i) the Office; 

5 (ii) another agency; or 

6 (iii) a Member of Congress; and 

7 (2) not later than the date on which the agency 

8 publishes the regulatory action in the Federal Reg9 ister, place in the rulemaking docket— 

10 (A) the substance of any changes between 

11 the text of the regulatory action that the agency 

12 provided to the Office under section 

13 6(a)(3)(B)(i) of the Executive Order and the 

14 text of the regulatory action that the agency 

15 published in the Federal Register; and 

16 (B) a statement regarding whether any 

17 change described in subparagraph (A) was 

18 made at the request of— 

19 (i) the Office; 

20 (ii) another agency; or 

21 (iii) a Member of Congress. 

22 (c) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this sec23 tion shall be construed— 

24 (1) as an endorsement by Congress of— 


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1 (A) the institution of centralized regulatory 

2 review; or 

3 (B) the procedural steps or requirements 

4 of an Executive order affecting administrative 

5 procedure; or 

6 (2) as a requirement that the President— 

7 (A) conduct centralized regulatory review; 

8 or 

9 (B) adopt, administer, or implement an 

10 Executive order affecting administrative proce11 dure. 

12 SEC. 304. JUSTIFICATION OF WITHDRAWN RULES. 

13 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section— 

14 (1) the term ‘‘Administrator’’ means the Ad15 ministrator of the Office; 

16 (2) the terms ‘‘agency’’ and ‘‘regulatory action’’ 

17 have the meanings given those terms in section 3 of 

18 the Executive Order; 

19 (3) the term ‘‘Executive Order’’ means Execu20 tive Order 12866 (5 U.S.C. 601 note; relating to 

21 regulatory planning and review); and 

22 (4) the term ‘‘Office’’ means the Office of In23 formation and Regulatory Affairs. 

24 (b) REQUIREMENT.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—If an agency withdraws a 

2 regulatory action after providing the action to the 

3 Office under section 6(a)(3) of the Executive Order 

4 (or, if the agency does not provide the regulatory ac5 tion to the Office under that section, after pub6 lishing the general notice of proposed rulemaking 

7 with respect to the action under section 553(b) of 

8 title 5, United States Code), the agency shall publish 

9 in the Federal Register and on the website of the 

10 agency a statement regarding the decision by the 

11 agency to withdraw the action. 

12 (2) CONTENTS.—A statement required under 

13 paragraph (1) with respect to a decision by an agen14 cy to withdraw a regulatory action shall include, at 

15 a minimum— 

16 (A) a detailed explanation of the reasons 

17 why the agency withdrew the action; and 

18 (B) an explanation regarding whether the 

19 decision by the agency to withdraw the action 

20 was based, in whole or in part, on a request by, 

21 or input from— 

22 (i) the Office; 

23 (ii) another agency; 

24 (iii) a Member of Congress; 


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1 (iv) a State, local, or Tribal govern2 ment; or 

3 (v) an organization, a corporation, a 

4 member of the public, or another inter5 ested party. 

6 SEC. 305. NEGOTIATED RULEMAKING. 

7 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subchapter III of chapter 5 of 

8 title 5, United States Code, is amended— 

9 (1) in section 561, in the first sentence, by in10 serting ‘‘between agencies and Federal, State, local, 

11 or Tribal governments. This subchapter shall apply 

12 only to information negotiations between Federal, 

13 State, local, or Tribal governments’’ after ‘‘informal 

14 rulemaking process’’; 

15 (2) in section 563— 

16 (A) in subsection (a)— 

17 (i) in paragraph (2), by inserting 

18 ‘‘Federal, State, local, or Tribal govern19 ment’’ after ‘‘identifiable’’; and 

20 (ii) in paragraph (3), by striking 

21 ‘‘persons who’’ and inserting ‘‘representa22 tives of Federal, State, local, and Tribal 

23 governments that’’; 

24 (B) in subsection (b)— 

25 (i) in paragraph (1)— 


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1 (I) in subparagraph (A)— 

2 (aa) by striking ‘‘persons 

3 who’’ and inserting ‘‘Federal, 

4 State, local, or Tribal govern5 ments that’’; and 

6 (bb) by striking ‘‘, including 

7 residents of rural areas’’; and 

8 (II) in subparagraph (B)— 

9 (aa) by striking ‘‘with such 

10 persons’’ and inserting ‘‘with rep11 resentatives of those govern12 ments’’; and 

13 (bb) by striking ‘‘to such 

14 persons’’ and inserting ‘‘to those 

15 governments’’; and 

16 (ii) in paragraph (2), in the second 

17 sentence— 

18 (I) by striking ‘‘persons who’’ 

19 and inserting ‘‘representatives of Fed20 eral, State, local, or Tribal govern21 ments that’’; and 

22 (II) by striking ‘‘, including resi23 dents of rural areas’’; 

24 (3) in section 564— 


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1 (A) in the section heading, by striking ‘‘; 

2 applications for membership on com3 mittees’’; 

4 (B) in subsection (a)— 

5 (i) in paragraph (4), by striking ‘‘the 

6 persons’’ and inserting ‘‘the representa7 tives of Federal, State, local, and Tribal 

8 governments’’; 

9 (ii) in paragraph (6), by adding ‘‘and’’ 

10 at the end; 

11 (iii) in paragraph (7), by striking ‘‘; 

12 and’’ and inserting a period; and 

13 (iv) by striking paragraph (8); 

14 (C) by striking subsection (b); 

15 (D) by redesignating subsection (c) as sub16 section (b); and 

17 (E) in subsection (b), as so redesignated— 

18 (i) in the subsection heading, by strik19 ing ‘‘AND APPLICATIONS’’; and 

20 (ii) by striking ‘‘and applications’’; 

21 (4) in section 565(a)— 

22 (A) in paragraph (1), in the first sentence, 

23 by striking ‘‘and applications’’; and 

24 (B) in paragraph (2)— 

25 (i) by striking ‘‘and applications’’; and 


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1 (ii) by striking ‘‘publications,’’ and all 

2 that follows through the period at the end 

3 and inserting ‘‘publications.’’; and 

4 (5) in section 569(a), in the first sentence— 

5 (A) by striking ‘‘and encourage agency use 

6 of’’; and 

7 (B) by inserting ‘‘between Federal, State, 

8 local, and Tribal governments’’ after ‘‘nego9 tiated rulemaking’’. 

10 (b) TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

11 (1) BALANCED BUDGET ACT OF 1997.—Section 

12 4554(b)(1) of the Balanced Budget Act of 1997 (42 

13 U.S.C. 1395u note) is amended by striking ‘‘, using 

14 a negotiated rulemaking process under subchapter 

15 III of chapter 5 of title 5, United States Code’’. 

16 (2) ELEMENTARY AND SECONDARY EDUCATION

17 ACT OF 1965.—The Elementary and Secondary Edu18 cation Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6301 et seq.) is 

19 amended— 

20 (A) in section 1601 (20 U.S.C. 6571)— 

21 (i) in subsection (a), by striking ‘‘sub22 sections (b) through (d)’’ and insert ‘‘sub23 section (b)’’; 

24 (ii) by striking subsections (b) and 

25 (c); and 


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1 (iii) by redesignating subsections (d) 

2 and (e) as subsections (b) and (c), respec3 tively; 

4 (B) by repealing section 1602 (20 U.S.C. 

5 6572); and 

6 (C) in section 8204(c)(1) (20 U.S.C. 

7 7824(c)(1)), by striking ‘‘using a negotiated 

8 rulemaking process to develop regulations for 

9 implementation no later than the 2017–2018 

10 academic year, shall define’’ and inserting 

11 ‘‘shall, for implementation no later than the 

12 2017–2018 academic year, define’’. 

13 (3) HEALTH INSURANCE PORTABILITY AND AC14 COUNTABILITY ACT OF 1996.—Section 216(b) of the 

15 Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act 

16 of 1996 (42 U.S.C. 1320a–7b note) is amended— 

17 (A) in the subsection heading, by striking 

18 ‘‘NEGOTIATED’’; 

19 (B) by striking ‘‘(1) ESTABLISHMENT.—’’ 

20 and all that follows through ‘‘chapter 5 of title 

21 5, United States Code, standards’’ and insert22 ing the following: 

23 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary of Health 

24 and Human Services (in this subsection referred to 

25 as the ‘Secretary’) shall establish standards’’; 


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1 (C) by striking paragraphs (2) through 

2 (9); 

3 (D) by redesignating subparagraph (B) of 

4 paragraph (1) as paragraph (2) and adjusting 

5 the margins accordingly; and 

6 (E) in paragraph (2), as so redesignated, 

7 by striking ‘‘subparagraph (A)’’ and inserting 

8 ‘‘paragraph (1)’’. 

9 (4) HIGHER EDUCATION ACT OF 1965.—The 

10 Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001 et 

11 seq.) is amended— 

12 (A) in section 207 (20 U.S.C. 1022f)— 

13 (i) by striking subsection (c); and 

14 (ii) by redesignating subsection (d) as 

15 subsection (c); 

16 (B) in section 422(g)(1) (20 U.S.C. 

17 1072(g)(1))— 

18 (i) in subparagraph (B), by adding 

19 ‘‘and’’ at the end; 

20 (ii) in subparagraph (C), by striking 

21 ‘‘; and’’ and inserting a period; and 

22 (iii) by striking subparagraph (D); 

23 (C) in section 487A(b)(3)(B) (20 U.S.C. 

24 1094a(b)(3)(B)), by striking ‘‘in the negotiated 

25 rulemaking process’’; 


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1 (D) in section 491(l)(4)(A) (20 U.S.C. 

2 1098(l)(4)(A)), by striking ‘‘, not later than two 

3 years after the completion of the negotiated 

4 rulemaking process required under section 492 

5 resulting from the amendments to this Act 

6 made by the Higher Education Opportunity 

7 Act,’’; and 

8 (E) in section 492 (20 U.S.C. 1098a)— 

9 (i) in the section heading, by striking 

10 ‘‘NEGOTIATED’’; and 

11 (ii) by amending subsection (b) to 

12 read as follows: 

13 ‘‘(b) ISSUANCE OF REGULATIONS.—After obtaining 

14 the advice and recommendations described in subsection 

15 (a)(1), the Secretary shall issue final regulations within 

16 the 360-day period described in section 437(e) of the Gen17 eral Education Provisions Act (20 U.S.C. 1232(e)).’’. 

18 (5) HOUSING ACT OF 1949.—Section 515(r)(3) 

19 of the Housing Act of 1949 (42 U.S.C. 1485(r)(3)) 

20 is amended by striking ‘‘in accordance with’’ and all 

21 that follows through the period at the end and in22 serting ‘‘under the rulemaking authority contained 

23 in section 557 of title 5, United States Code.’’. 

24 (6) MAGNUSON-STEVENS FISHERY CONSERVA25 TION AND MANAGEMENT ACT.—Section 305(g) of 


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1 the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and 

2 Management Act (16 U.S.C. 1855(g)) is amended— 

3 (A) by striking paragraphs (2) and (3); 

4 (B) in paragraph (1)— 

5 (i) by striking ‘‘(A)’’; and 

6 (ii) by redesignating subparagraph 

7 (B) as paragraph (2) and adjusting the 

8 margins accordingly; and 

9 (C) in paragraph (2), as so redesignated, 

10 by striking the second sentence. 

11 (7) MANDATORY PRICE REPORTING ACT OF

12 2010.—Section 2(b) of the Mandatory Price Report13 ing Act of 2010 (Public Law 111–239; 124 Stat. 

14 2501) is amended— 

15 (A) by striking ‘‘WHOLESALE PORK CUTS’’ 

16 and all that follows through ‘‘Chapter 3’’ and 

17 inserting ‘‘WHOLESALE PORK CUTS.—Chapter 

18 3’’; and 

19 (B) by striking paragraphs (2), (3), and 

20 (4) (7 U.S.C. 1635k note). 

21 (8) PATIENT PROTECTION AND AFFORDABLE

22 CARE ACT.—Section 5602 of the Patient Protection 

23 and Affordable Care Act (42 U.S.C. 254b note) is 

24 amended— 


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1 (A) in the section heading, by striking 

2 ‘‘NEGOTIATED’’; 

3 (B) by striking subsections (b) through 

4 (h); 

5 (C) in subsection (a)— 

6 (i) by redesignating paragraph (2) as 

7 subsection (b) and adjusting the margins 

8 accordingly; 

9 (ii) by striking ‘‘ESTABLISHMENT’’ 

10 and all that follows through ‘‘The Sec11 retary of Health and Human Services (in 

12 this section referred to as the ‘Secretary’) 

13 shall establish, through a negotiated rule14 making process under subchapter 3 of 

15 chapter 5 of title 5, United States Code,’’ 

16 and inserting ‘‘ESTABLISHMENT.—The 

17 Secretary of Health and Human Services 

18 (in this section referred to as the ‘Sec19 retary’) shall establish’’; 

20 (iii) by redesignating subparagraphs 

21 (A) and (B) as paragraphs (1) and (2), re22 spectively, and adjusting the margins ac23 cordingly; and 

24 (iv) in paragraph (1), as so redesig25 nated, by adding ‘‘and’’ at the end; and 


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1 (D) in subsection (b), as so redesignated, 

2 by striking ‘‘paragraph (1)’’ and inserting ‘‘sub3 section (a)’’. 

4 (9) PRICE-ANDERSON AMENDMENTS ACT OF

5 1988.—Section 19 of the Price-Anderson Amend6 ments Act of 1988 (42 U.S.C. 2210 note) is amend7 ed— 

8 (A) by striking subsection (b); and 

9 (B) in subsection (a)— 

10 (i) by striking ‘‘RULEMAKING’’ and all 

11 that follows through ‘‘The Nuclear’’ and 

12 inserting ‘‘RULEMAKING PROCEEDING.— 

13 The Nuclear’’; and 

14 (ii) by redesignating paragraph (2) as 

15 subsection (b) and adjusting the margins 

16 accordingly. 

17 (10) SOCIAL SECURITY ACT.—Title XVIII of 

18 the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 1395 et seq.) is 

19 amended— 

20 (A) in section 1834(l)(1) (42 U.S.C. 

21 1395m(l)(1)), by striking ‘‘through a negotiated 

22 rulemaking process described in title 5, United 

23 States Code, and’’; and 

24 (B) in section 1856(a) (42 U.S.C. 1395w– 

25 26(a))— 


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1 (i) by striking paragraphs (2) through 

2 (9); 

3 (ii) in paragraph (1)— 

4 (I) by striking ‘‘ESTABLISH5 MENT’’ and all that follows through 

6 ‘‘The Secretary’’ and inserting ‘‘ES7 TABLISHMENT.—The Secretary’’; 

8 (II) by striking ‘‘and using a ne9 gotiated rulemaking process under 

10 subchapter III of chapter 5 of title 5, 

11 United States Code’’; and 

12 (III) by redesignating subpara13 graphs (B) and (C) as paragraphs (2) 

14 and (3), respectively, and adjusting 

15 the margins accordingly; and 

16 (iii) in paragraph (2), as so redesig17 nated— 

18 (I) by striking ‘‘subparagraph 

19 (A)’’ and inserting ‘‘paragraph (1)’’; 

20 and 

21 (II) by redesignating clauses (i), 

22 (ii), and (iii) as subparagraphs (A), 

23 (B), and (C), respectively, and adjust24 ing the margins accordingly. 


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1 (11) TITLE 5.—The table of sections for sub2 chapter III of chapter 5 of title 5, United States 

3 Code, is amended by striking the item relating to 

4 section 564 and inserting the following: 

‘‘564. Publication of notice.’’. 

5 (12) TITLE 49.—Section 31136(g)(1) of title 

6 49, United States Code, is amended— 

7 (A) by striking ‘‘shall—’’ and all that fol8 lows through ‘‘issue’’ and inserting ‘‘shall 

9 issue’’; 

10 (B) by striking ‘‘; or’’ and inserting a pe11 riod; and 

12 (C) by striking subparagraph (B). 

13 (13) TOXIC SUBSTANCES CONTROL ACT.—Sec14 tion 8(a) of the Toxic Substances Control Act (15 

15 U.S.C. 2607(a)) is amended— 

16 (A) by striking paragraph (6); and 

17 (B) by redesignating paragraph (7) as 

18 paragraph (6). 

19 (14) UNITED STATES HOUSING ACT OF 1937.— 

20 Section 9 of the United States Housing Act of 1937 

21 (42 U.S.C. 1437g) is amended by repealing sub22 section (f). 

23 SEC. 306. STREAMLINING OIRA REVIEW. 

24 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section— 


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1 (1) the term ‘‘Administrator’’ means the Ad2 ministrator of the Office; 

3 (2) the terms ‘‘agency’’, ‘‘regulatory action’’, 

4 and ‘‘significant regulatory action’’ have the mean5 ings given those terms in section 3 of the Executive 

6 Order; 

7 (3) the term ‘‘Executive Order’’ means Execu8 tive Order 12866 (5 U.S.C. 601 note; relating to 

9 regulatory planning and review); and 

10 (4) the term ‘‘Office’’ means the Office of In11 formation and Regulatory Affairs. 

12 (b) PROHIBITIONS.— 

13 (1) NON-EXECUTIVE BRANCH OFFICIALS.— 

14 With respect to a regulatory action of an agency, the 

15 Office may not engage in communications or meet16 ings with an individual that is not employed by the 

17 executive branch of the Federal Government if the 

18 regulatory action is or may be subject to review by 

19 the Office under section 6(b) of the Executive Order. 

20 (2) INFORMAL REVIEW.—With respect to a reg21 ulatory action of an agency that may be subject to 

22 review by the Office under section 6(b) of the Execu23 tive Order, the Office may not engage in commu24 nications or meetings with the agency before the 

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1 tion to the Office under section 6(a)(3) of the Exec2 utive Order. 

3 (c) TIME PERIOD FOR OIRA REVIEW.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para5 graph (2), the Office shall complete a review of a 

6 significant regulatory action under section 6(b) of 

7 the Executive Order not less than 45 days after the 

8 date on which the Office receives the significant reg9 ulatory action under section 6(a)(3) of the Executive 

10 Order. 

11 (2) EXTENSION.—The Office may extend the 

12 45-day period described in paragraph (1) by a single 

13 30-day period if the Office provides the agency with, 

14 and makes publicly available, a written justification 

15 for the extension. 

16 (3) PUBLICATION OF REGULATORY ACTION.—If 

17 the Office waives review of a significant regulatory 

18 action of an agency under section 6(b)(2) of the Ex19 ecutive Order without a request for further consider20 ation or does not notify the agency in writing of the 

21 results of the review under section 6(b) of the Exec22 utive Order within the time frame described in para23 graph (1) or (2), the agency may publish the signifi24 cant regulatory action in the Federal Register. 


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1 (d) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this sec2 tion shall be construed— 

3 (1) as an endorsement by Congress of— 

4 (A) the institution of centralized regulatory 

5 review; or 

6 (B) the procedural steps or requirements 

7 of an Executive order affecting administrative 

8 procedure; or 

9 (2) as a requirement that the President— 

10 (A) conduct centralized regulatory review; 

11 or 

12 (B) adopt, administer, or implement an 

13 Executive order affecting administrative proce14 dure. 

15 SEC. 307. LIMITING TEMPORARY COURT INJUNCTIONS AND 

16 POSTPONING OF FINAL RULES PENDING JU17 DICIAL REVIEW. 

18 Section 705 of title 5, United States Code, is amend19 ed— 

20 (1) by striking the first sentence; and 

21 (2) by adding at the end the following: ‘‘Not22 withstanding the preceding sentence, with respect to 

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1 essary to prevent irreparable injury, only the review2 ing court to which a case may be taken on appeal 

3 from or on application for certiorari or other writ to 

4 a reviewing court or to the United States District 

5 Court for the District of Columbia may issue all nec6 essary and appropriate process to postpone the effec7 tive date of the agency action or to preserve status 

8 or rights pending conclusion of the review pro9 ceedings.’’. 

10 SEC. 308. PENALIZING INDIVIDUALS THAT SUBMIT FALSE 

11 INFORMATION TO AGENCIES. 

12 Section 553 of title 5, United States Code, as amend13 ed by section 302 of this Act, is amended by adding at 

14 the end the following: 

15 ‘‘(j)(1) In this subsection, the term ‘covered person’ 

16 means— 

17 ‘‘(A) any person who is or is required to be reg18 istered as a corporate lobbyist, as defined in section 

19 3 of the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 

20 1602); 

21 ‘‘(B) any for-profit corporation; 

22 ‘‘(C) any entity described in section 501(c)(6) 

23 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 of which 1 or 

24 more members are for-profit corporations; and 


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1 ‘‘(D) any person working on behalf of a for2 profit corporation, including any person com3 pensated by or otherwise financially supported by a 

4 corporation, for the purpose of submitting a state5 ment or entry with respect to a rulemaking under 

6 this section. 

7 ‘‘(2) Any covered person that uses any false writing 

8 or document knowing the same to contain any materially 

9 false, fictitious, or fraudulent statement or entry with re10 spect to a rulemaking under this section shall be fined not 

11 more than $250,000, imprisoned not more than 5 years, 

12 or both.’’. 

13 SEC. 309. ESTABLISHMENT OF THE OFFICE OF THE PUBLIC 

14 ADVOCATE. 

15 Section 401 of the Ethics in Government Act of 1978 

16 (5 U.S.C. App.) is amended by adding at the end the fol17 lowing: 

18 ‘‘(d)(1)(A) There is established in the Office of Public 

19 Integrity an office to be known as the ‘Office of the Public 

20 Advocate’. 

21 ‘‘(B) The Office of the Public Advocate shall be under 

22 the supervision of an official to be known as the ‘National 

23 Public Advocate’, who shall— 

24 ‘‘(i) be appointed by the President, by and with 

25 the advice and consent of the Senate; 


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1 ‘‘(ii) report to the Director of the Office of Pub2 lic Integrity; 

3 ‘‘(iii) not be an employee of the Federal Gov4 ernment; 

5 ‘‘(iv) be entitled to compensation at the same 

6 rate as the highest rate of basic pay established for 

7 the Senior Executive Service under section 5382 of 

8 title 5, United States Code; 

9 ‘‘(v) have a background in customer service, 

10 consumer protection, and administrative law; 

11 ‘‘(vi) have experience representing the public in 

12 cases involving rules (as defined in section 551 of 

13 title 5, United States Code); 

14 ‘‘(vii) not have worked as an officer or employee 

15 in any Federal agency during the 2-year period pre16 ceding appointment under this subparagraph; and 

17 ‘‘(viii) agree not to accept an offer of employ18 ment with a Federal agency for not less than 5 

19 years after ceasing to serve as the National Public 

20 Advocate. 

21 ‘‘(2) The duties of the Office of the Public Advocate 

22 shall include— 

23 ‘‘(A) assisting individuals in resolving conflicts 

24 with agencies; 


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1 ‘‘(B) assisting agencies in soliciting public par2 ticipation in the rulemaking process; 

3 ‘‘(C) assisting individuals in participating in the 

4 rulemaking process; and 

5 ‘‘(D) identifying areas in which the public has 

6 problems in dealing with agencies and proposing 

7 changes to mitigate those problems. 

8 ‘‘(3) Not later than 180 days after the date on which 

9 the National Public Advocate is appointed under this sub10 section or 180 days after the date of enactment of this 

11 subsection, whichever is later, the National Public Advo12 cate shall propose regulations to carry out this sub13 section.’’. 

14 SEC. 310. ACTIONS BY PRIVATE PERSONS. 

15 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section, the terms ‘‘agen16 cy’’ and ‘‘rule’’ have the meanings given those terms in 

17 section 551 of title 5, United States Code. 

18 (b) ACTIONS.— 

19 (1) IN GENERAL.—A person may bring a civil 

20 action for the person and for the United States Gov21 ernment, in the name of the Government, against 

22 any person, including the United States Government 

23 and any other governmental instrumentality or agen24 cy to the extent permitted by the Eleventh Amend25 ment to the Constitution of the United States, for— 


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1 (A) a violation of a final rule issued by an 

2 agency; or 

3 (B) the failure of the head of an agency to 

4 comply with any requirement under this Act. 

5 (2) NOTICE.—A copy of the complaint and 

6 written disclosure of substantially all material evi7 dence and information the person possesses shall be 

8 served on the Government pursuant to rule 4(d)(4) 

9 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. The Gov10 ernment may elect to intervene and proceed with the 

11 action within 60 days after it receives both the com12 plaint and the material evidence and information. 

13 (3) PARTY CONDUCTING THE ACTION.—Before 

14 the expiration of the 60-day period under paragraph 

15 (2), the Government shall— 

16 (A) proceed with the action, in which case 

17 the action shall be conducted by the Govern18 ment; or 

19 (B) notify the court that it declines to pro20 ceed with the action, in which case the person 

21 bringing the action shall have the right to con22 duct the action. 

23 (4) AWARD TO PLAINTIFF.— 

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1 tion brought by a person under this subsection, 

2 the person shall receive at least 15 percent but 

3 not more than 25 percent of the proceeds of the 

4 action or settlement of the claim, depending 

5 upon the extent to which the person substan6 tially contributed to the prosecution of the ac7 tion. Any payment to a person under this sub8 paragraph shall be made from the proceeds. 

9 The person shall also receive an amount for 

10 reasonable expenses that the court finds to have 

11 been necessarily incurred, plus reasonable attor12 ney’s fees and costs. The expenses, fees, and 

13 costs shall be awarded against the defendant. 

14 (B) GOVERNMENT DOES NOT PROCEED

15 WITH ACTION.—If the Government does not 

16 proceed with an action under this subsection, 

17 the person bringing the action or settling the 

18 claim shall receive an amount which the court 

19 decides is reasonable for collecting the civil pen20 alty and damages. The amount shall be not less 

21 than 25 percent and not more than 30 percent 

22 of the proceeds of the action or settlement and 

23 shall be paid out of the proceeds. The person 

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1 essarily incurred, plus reasonable attorney’s 

2 fees and costs. The expenses, fees, and costs 

3 shall be awarded against the defendant. 

4 SEC. 311. SCOPE OF REVIEW. 

5 Section 706 of title 5, United States Code, is amend6 ed— 

7 (1) in the first sentence of the matter preceding 

8 paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘To the extent nec9 essary’’ and inserting ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—To the 

10 extent necessary’’; 

11 (2) in subsection (a), as so designated, by in12 serting after the first sentence the following: ‘‘If a 

13 statute that an agency administers is silent or am14 biguous, and an agency has followed the procedures 

15 in section 553 or 554 of this title, as applicable, a 

16 reviewing court shall defer to the agency’s reason17 able or permissible interpretation of that statute.’’; 

18 (3) by striking ‘‘In making the foregoing deter19 minations’’ and inserting the following: 

20 ‘‘(b) REVIEW OF RECORD.—In making the deter21 minations under subsection (a)’’; 

22 (4) in subsection (b), as so designated, by in23 serting ‘‘except any part of the record that the agen24 cy excluded from consideration pursuant to section 

25 553(h)(1) of this title,’’ after ‘‘party,’’; and 


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1 (5) by adding at the end the following: 

2 ‘‘(c) UNREASONABLE DELAY.—For purposes of sub3 section (a)(1), unreasonable delay shall include— 

4 ‘‘(1) when an agency has not issued a notice of 

5 proposed rulemaking within 1 year of the date of en6 actment of the legislation mandating the rule7 making, where no deadline for the rulemaking was 

8 specified in the enacted law; 

9 ‘‘(2) when an agency has not issued a final 

10 version of a proposed rule within 1 year of date on 

11 which the proposed rule was published in the Fed12 eral Register; and 

13 ‘‘(3) when an agency has not implemented a 

14 final rule within 1 year of the implementation date 

15 published in the Federal Register or, if no imple16 mentation date was provided, within 1 year of the 

17 date on which the final rule was published in the 

18 Federal Register.’’. 

19 SEC. 312. EXPANDING RULE MAKING NOTIFICATIONS. 

20 Section 553 of title 5, United States Code, as amend21 ed by section 308 of this Act, is amended by adding at 

22 the end the following: 

23 ‘‘(k)(1) Not later than 2 business days after the date 

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1 making or a final rule under this section, the agency shall 

2 notify interested parties of the publication. 

3 ‘‘(2) The Director of the Government Publishing Of4 fice shall establish a process under which an agency shall 

5 notify interested parties under paragraph (1) through e6 mail or postal mail.’’. 

7 SEC. 313. PUBLIC PETITIONS. 

8 Section 553(e) of title 5, United States Code, is 

9 amended— 

10 (1) by inserting ‘‘(1)’’ before ‘‘Each agency’’; 

11 and 

12 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

13 ‘‘(2) If, during a 60-day period, an agency receives 

14 more than 100,000 signatures on a single petition under 

15 paragraph (1), the agency shall, not later than 30 days 

16 after the date on which the agency receives the petition, 

17 provide a written response that includes— 

18 ‘‘(A) an explanation of whether the agency has 

19 engaged or is engaging in the requested issuance, 

20 amendment, or repeal of a rule; and 

21 ‘‘(B) if the agency has not engaged in the re22 quested issuance, amendment, or repeal of a rule, a 

23 written explanation for not engaging in the re24 quested issuance, amendment, or repeal.’’. 


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1 SEC. 314. AMENDMENT TO CONGRESSIONAL REVIEW ACT. 

2 Section 801(b) of title 5, United States Code, is 

3 amended— 

4 (1) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘(1)’’; and 

5 (2) by striking paragraph (2). 

6 SEC. 315. COST-BENEFIT ANALYSIS. 

7 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section, the terms ‘‘agen8 cy’’ and ‘‘regulation’’ have the meanings given those terms 

9 in section 3 of Executive Order 12866 (5 U.S.C. 601 note; 

10 relating to regulatory planning and review). 

11 (b) REQUIREMENT.—If an agency is performing a 

12 cost-benefit analysis in the course of issuing a regulation, 

13 the agency shall— 

14 (1) take into account the benefits of the regula15 tion to the public, including the nonquantifiable ben16 efits of the regulation; and 

17 (2) adopt a regulation that prioritizes benefits 

18 to the public, including nonquantifiable benefits. 

19 SEC. 316. SENSE OF CONGRESS. 

20 It is the sense of Congress that— 

21 (1) the Federal Employees Pay Comparability 

22 Act of 1990 (as enacted by section 529 of Public 

23 Law 101–509), which was designed to ensure that 

24 the disparity in pay between Federal employees on 

25 the General Schedule and non-Federal employees is 

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1 mented as envisioned, resulting in significant pay 

2 disparities between Federal Government and non3 Federal employees, including private-sector employ4 ees; 

5 (2) Federal employees have experienced pay 

6 challenges in recent years owing to pay freezes, re7 duced pay increases, and unpaid furlough days, 

8 which have adversely impacted the ability of the 

9 Federal Government to recruit and retain skilled 

10 employees; and 

11 (3) the President and Congress should allow the 

12 statutory pay laws to be implemented as intended, 

13 providing an annual across-the-board pay adjust14 ment and a locality pay adjustment that varies by 

15 specific pay locality area. 

16 TITLE IV—JUDICIAL ETHICS 

17 SEC. 401. CLARIFICATION OF GIFT BAN. 

18 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 7353 of title 5, United 

19 States Code, is amended— 

20 (1) in subsection (a), in the matter preceding 

21 paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘anything of value’’ and 

22 inserting ‘‘a gift’’; and 

23 (2) in subsection (d)— 

24 (A) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘and’’ at 

25 the end; 


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1 (B) in paragraph (2), by striking the pe2 riod at the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

3 (C) by adding at the end the following: 

4 ‘‘(3) the term ‘gift’ means anything of value, in5 cluding transportation, travel, lodgings and meals, 

6 whether provided in-kind, by purchase of a ticket, 

7 payment in advance, or reimbursement after the ex8 pense has been incurred.’’. 

9 (b) REGULATIONS.—The Judicial Conference of the 

10 United States shall promulgate regulations to carry out 

11 the amendment made by subsection (a) with respect to 

12 the judicial branch. 

13 SEC. 402. RESTRICT PRIVATELY FUNDED EDUCATIONAL 

14 EVENTS AND SPEECHES. 

15 (a) JUDICIAL EDUCATION FUND.— 

16 (1) ESTABLISHMENT.—Chapter 42 of title 28, 

17 United States Code, is amended by adding at the 

18 end the following: 

19 ‘‘§ 630. Judicial Education Fund 

20 ‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section— 

21 ‘‘(1) the term ‘Board’ means the Board of the 

22 Federal Judicial Center established in section 621; 

23 ‘‘(2) the term ‘Fund’ means the Judicial Edu24 cation Fund established under subsection (b); 


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1 ‘‘(3) the term ‘institution of higher education’ 

2 has the meaning given that term under section 

3 101(a) of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 

4 U.S.C. 1001(a)); 

5 ‘‘(4) the term ‘national bar association’ means 

6 a national organization that is open to general mem7 bership to all members of the bar; 

8 ‘‘(5) the term ‘private judicial seminar’— 

9 ‘‘(A) means a seminar, symposia, panel 

10 discussion, course, or a similar event that pro11 vides continuing legal education to judges; and 

12 ‘‘(B) does not include— 

13 ‘‘(i) seminars that last 1 day or less 

14 and are conducted by, and on the campus 

15 of, an institute of higher education; 

16 ‘‘(ii) seminars that last 1 day or less 

17 and are conducted by a national bar asso18 ciation or State or local bar association for 

19 the benefit of the bar association member20 ship; or 

21 ‘‘(iii) seminars of any length con22 ducted by, and on the campus of an insti23 tute of higher education or by a national 

24 bar association or State or local bar asso25 ciation, where a judge is a presenter and 


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1 at which judges constitute less than 25 

2 percent of the participants; and 

3 ‘‘(6) the term ‘State or local bar association’ 

4 means a State or local organization that is open to 

5 general membership to all members of the bar in the 

6 specified geographic region. 

7 ‘‘(b) FUND.—There is established within the United 

8 States Treasury a fund to be known as the ‘Judicial Edu9 cation Fund’. 

10 ‘‘(c) USE OF AMOUNTS.—Amounts in the Fund may 

11 be made available for the payment of necessary expenses, 

12 including reasonable expenditures for transportation, food, 

13 lodging, private judicial seminar fees and materials, in14 curred by a judge or justice in attending a private judicial 

15 seminar approved by the Board. Necessary expenses shall 

16 not include expenditures for recreational activities or en17 tertainment other than that provided to all attendees as 

18 an integral part of the private judicial seminar. Any pay19 ment from the Fund shall be approved by the Board. 

20 ‘‘(d) REQUIRED INFORMATION.—The Board may ap21 prove a private judicial seminar after submission of infor22 mation by the sponsor of that private judicial seminar that 

23 includes— 


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1 ‘‘(1) the content of the private judicial seminar 

2 (including a list of presenters, topics, and course 

3 materials); and 

4 ‘‘(2) the litigation activities of the sponsor (in5 cluding any amicus briefs submitted by the sponsor) 

6 and the presenters at the private judicial seminar 

7 (including the litigation activities of the employer of 

8 each presenter) on the topic related to those ad9 dressed at the private judicial seminar. 

10 ‘‘(e) PUBLIC AVAILABILITY.—If the Board approves 

11 a private judicial seminar, the Board shall make the infor12 mation submitted under subsection (d) relating to the pri13 vate judicial seminar available to judges and the public 

14 by posting the information online. 

15 ‘‘(f) GUIDELINES.—The Judicial Conference shall 

16 promulgate guidelines to ensure that the Board only ap17 proves private judicial seminars that are conducted in a 

18 manner so as to maintain the public’s confidence in an 

19 unbiased and fair-minded judiciary. 

20 ‘‘(g) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

21 are authorized to be appropriated for deposit in the Fund 

22 $3,000,000 for each of fiscal years 2019, 2020, and 2021, 

23 to remain available until expended.’’. 

24 (2) TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMEND25 MENT.—The table of sections for chapter 42 of title 


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1 28, United States Code, is amended by adding at 

2 the end the following: 

‘‘630. Judicial Education Fund’’. 

3 (b) PRIVATE JUDICIAL SEMINAR GIFTS PROHIB4 ITED.— 

5 (1) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection— 

6 (A) the term ‘‘gift’’ has the meaning given 

7 that term under section 7353 of title 5, United 

8 States Code, as amended by section 401; 

9 (B) the term ‘‘institution of higher edu10 cation’’ has the meaning given that term under 

11 section 101(a) of the Higher Education Act of 

12 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1001(a)); and 

13 (C) the terms ‘‘national bar association’’, 

14 ‘‘private judicial seminar’’, and ‘‘State or local 

15 bar association’’ have the meanings given those 

16 terms under section 630 of title 28, United 

17 States Code, as added by subsection (a). 

18 (2) REGULATIONS.—Not later than 180 days 

19 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Judicial 

20 Conference of the United States shall promulgate 

21 regulations to apply section 7353(a) of title 5, 

22 United States Code, to prohibit the solicitation or 

23 acceptance of a gift in connection with a private ju24 dicial seminar. 


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1 (3) EXCEPTION.—The prohibition under the 

2 regulations promulgated under paragraph (2) shall 

3 not apply if— 

4 (A) the judge participates in a private judi5 cial seminar as a speaker, panel participant, or 

6 otherwise presents information; 

7 (B) Federal judges are not the primary au8 dience at the private judicial seminar; and 

9 (C) the gift accepted is— 

10 (i) reimbursement from the private ju11 dicial seminar sponsor of reasonable trans12 portation, food, or lodging expenses on any 

13 day on which the judge speaks, partici14 pates, or presents information, as applica15 ble; 

16 (ii) attendance at the private judicial 

17 seminar on any day on which the judge 

18 speaks, participates, or presents informa19 tion, as applicable; or 

20 (iii) anything excluded from the defi21 nition of a gift under regulations of the 

22 Judicial Conference of the United States 

23 under sections 7351 and 7353 of title 5, 

24 United States Code, as in effect on the 

25 date of enactment of this Act. 


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1 SEC. 403. CODE OF CONDUCT. 

2 (a) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con3 gress that in order for justices and judges, both of the 

4 supreme and inferior courts, to hold their offices during 

5 ‘‘good behaviour’’ under section 1 of article III of the Con6 stitution of the United States, the judges and justices 

7 shall, among other requirements, adhere to the Code of 

8 Conduct for United States Judges adopted by the Judicial 

9 Conference of the United States described in this section. 

10 (b) APPLICABILITY.—The Code of Conduct for 

11 United States Judges adopted by the Judicial Conference 

12 of the United States shall apply to the justices of the Su13 preme Court of the United States to the same extent as 

14 such Code applies to circuit and district judges. 

15 (c) ENFORCEMENT.—The Judicial Conference shall 

16 establish procedures, modeled after the procedures set 

17 forth in chapter 16 of title 28, United States Code, under 

18 which— 

19 (1) complaints alleging that a justice of the Su20 preme Court of the United States has violated the 

21 Code of Conduct referred to in subsection (a) may 

22 be filed with or identified by the Conference; 

23 (2) such material, nonfrivolous complaints and 

24 any accompanying material are immediately referred 

25 to the Supreme Court Review Committee established 

26 in section 415; and 


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1 (3) further action, where appropriate, is taken 

2 by the Conference, with respect to such complaints. 

3 (d) SUBMISSION TO CONGRESS; EFFECTIVE DATE.— 

4 (1) SUBMISSION TO CONGRESS.—Not later than 

5 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the 

6 Judicial Conference shall submit to Congress the 

7 procedures established under subsection (b). 

8 (2) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The procedures estab9 lished under subsection (b) shall take effect 1 year 

10 after the date of enactment of this Act. 

11 SEC. 404. IMPROVING DISCLOSURE. 

12 (a) FINANCIAL REPORTS.—Section 103(h) of the 

13 Ethics in Government Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App.) is 

14 amended by adding at the end the following: 

15 ‘‘(3) Not later than 90 days after a report is filed 

16 under this title by an individual described in section 

17 109(10), the Judicial Conference shall make publicly avail18 able online, at no cost, each report required under this 

19 title that is filed with the Judicial Conference in a format 

20 that is searchable, sortable, machine-readable, download21 able, and accessible in multiple languages and to individ22 uals with disabilities.’’. 

23 (b) RECUSAL DECISIONS.—Section 455 of title 28, 

24 United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the 

25 following: 


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1 ‘‘(g) RECUSAL LISTS.— 

2 ‘‘(1) Each justice, judge, and magistrate judge 

3 of the United States shall maintain and submit to 

4 the Judicial Conference a list of each association or 

5 interest that would require the justice, judge, or 

6 magistrate to be recused under subsection (b)(4). 

7 ‘‘(2) The Judicial Conference shall maintain 

8 and make publicly available online, at no cost, each 

9 list required under this subsection that is filed with 

10 the Judicial Conference in a format that is search11 able, sortable, machine-readable, downloadable, and 

12 accessible format, and accessible in multiple lan13 guages and to individuals with disabilities. 

14 ‘‘(3) The Judicial Conference may issue public 

15 or private guidance to justices, judges, and mag16 istrate judges of the United States regarding the 

17 contents of the lists under this subsection to ensure 

18 such lists comply with the disqualification require19 ments of (b)(4).’’. 

20 (c) SPEECHES.— 

21 (1) IN GENERAL.—Each justice, judge, and 

22 magistrate judge of the United States shall maintain 

23 and submit to the Judicial Conference of the United 

24 States a copy of each speech or other significant oral 


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1 communication made by the justice, judge, or mag2 istrate. 

3 (2) AVAILABILITY.—The Judicial Conference of 

4 the United States shall maintain and make each 

5 speech or other significant oral communication sub6 mitted under paragraph (1) available to the public 

7 in printed form, upon request, and online, at no 

8 cost, in a format that is searchable, sortable, ma9 chine-readable, downloadable, and accessible in mul10 tiple languages and to individuals with disabilities. 

11 (3) REGULATIONS.—Not later than 180 days 

12 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Judicial 

13 Conference of the United States shall promulgate 

14 regulations regarding the types of oral communica15 tions that are required to be maintained, submitted, 

16 and made publicly available under this subsection. 

17 (d) LIVESTREAMING JUDICIAL PROCEEDINGS.— 

18 (1) DEFINITION.—In this section, the term 

19 ‘‘appellate court of the United States’’ means any 

20 United States circuit court of appeals and the Su21 preme Court of the United States. 

22 (2) STREAMING OF COURT PROCEEDINGS.—In 

23 accordance with procedures established by the Judi24 cial Conference of the United States, the audio of 

25 each open session conducted by an appellate court of 


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1 the United States shall be made available online con2 temporaneously with the session, unless the appel3 late court of the United States, by a majority vote, 

4 determines that making audio of the session avail5 able online would violate the constitutional rights or 

6 threaten the safety of any party to the proceeding. 

7 (e) PUBLICIZING CASE ASSIGNMENT INFORMA8 TION.— 

9 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days 

10 after the date of enactment of this Act, the Judicial 

11 Conference of the United States shall promulgate 

12 regulations requiring each court of the United States 

13 to make case assignment data available to the public 

14 online, at no cost, in a searchable, sortable, machine15 readable, downloadable, and accessible in multiple 

16 languages and to individuals with disabilities. 

17 (2) CONTENTS.—The case assignment data 

18 made available under paragraph (1) shall include, at 

19 a minimum, and to the extent available, the case 

20 title, docket number, case origin, filing date, and 

21 name of each authoring judge, concurring judge, and 

22 dissenting judge for each opinion issued in the case. 

23 (f) MAKING WEBSITES USER-FRIENDLY.—Not later 

24 than 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act, 

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1 gate regulations requiring an evaluation of, and improve2 ments to, the website of each district court of the United 

3 States to ensure the website is easy to understand, includ4 ing that it is clear how to file a complaint relating to a 

5 judge or an employee of the district court. 

6 (g) ACCESSIBILITY.—The Judicial Conference shall 

7 make efforts to ensure that the any disclosures required 

8 under this section are made available to the public in plain 

9 language, in a variety of languages, and accessible to indi10 viduals with disabilities. 

11 SEC. 405. APPOINTMENT OF ADMINISTRATIVE LAW 

12 JUDGES. 

13 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 3105 of title 5, United 

14 States Code is amended by inserting after the first sen15 tence the following: ‘‘Administrative law judge positions 

16 shall be positions in the competitive service.’’. 

17 (b) CONVERSION OF POSITIONS.—With respect to 

18 any individual serving on the date of enactment of this 

19 Act in an excepted service position as an administrative 

20 law judge appointed under section 3105 of title 5, United 

21 States Code, as in effect on the day before the date of 

22 enactment of this Act, the head of the agency employing 

23 the administrative law judge shall convert the appointment 

24 to a permanent appointment in the competitive service in 

25 the agency. 


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1 (c) APPLICABILITY.—This section and the amend2 ments made by this section shall apply on and after the 

3 date of enactment of this Act. 

4 SEC. 406. IMPROVE REPORTING ON JUDICIAL DIVERSITY. 

5 Section 331 of title 28, United States Code, is 

6 amended in the eighth undesignated paragraph by adding 

7 at the end the following: ‘‘The report submitted by the 

8 Chief Justice under this paragraph shall include a report 

9 on the diversity of the Federal judiciary, including diver10 sity of justices and judges of the United States based on 

11 gender, race, ethnicity, religion, disability status, sexual 

12 orientation, gender identity, national origin, and profes13 sional experience (including any law firms where the 

14 judges previously practiced law) before being appointed a 

15 justice or judge of the United States.’’. 

16 SEC. 407. PLEADING STANDARDS. 

17 (a) IN GENERAL.—Rule 12 of the Federal Rules of 

18 Civil Procedure is amended by adding at the end the fol19 lowing: 

20 ‘‘(j) PLEADING STANDARDS. A court shall not dismiss 

21 a complaint under Rule 12(b)(6), (c) or (e): 

22 ‘‘(1) unless it appears beyond doubt that the 

23 plaintiff can prove no set of facts in support of the 

24 claim which would entitle the plaintiff to relief; or 


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1 ‘‘(2) on the basis of a determination by the 

2 court that the factual contents of the complaint do 

3 not show the plaintiff’s claim to be plausible or are 

4 insufficient to warrant a reasonable inference that 

5 the defendant is liable for the misconduct alleged.’’. 

6 (b) APPLICABILITY.—Rule 12(j) of the Federal Rules 

7 of Civil Procedure, as added by subsection (a) shall apply 

8 with respect to the dismissal of complaints except as other9 wise expressly provided by an Act of Congress enacted 

10 after the date of the enactment of this Act or by amend11 ments made after such date of enactment to the Federal 

12 Rules of Civil Procedure pursuant to the procedures pre13 scribed by the Judicial Conference of the United States 

14 under chapter 131 of title 28, United States Code. 

15 SEC. 408. ELECTRONIC COURT RECORDS REFORM. 

16 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

17 (1) ADMINISTRATOR.—The term ‘‘Adminis18 trator’’ means the Administrator of General Serv19 ices. 

20 (2) DIRECTOR.—The term ‘‘Director’’ means 

21 the Director of the Administrative Office of the 

22 United States Courts. 

23 (3) MACHINE-READABLE.—The term ‘‘machine24 readable’’ means a format in which information or 

25 data can be easily processed by a computer without 


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1 human intervention while ensuring no semantic 

2 meaning is lost. 

3 (b) CONSOLIDATION OF THE CASE MANAGEMENT/ 

4 ELECTRONIC CASE FILES SYSTEM.— 

5 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 2 years after 

6 the date of the enactment of this Act, the Director, 

7 in coordination with the Administrator, shall— 

8 (A) consolidate the Case Management/ 

9 Electronic Case Files system; and 

10 (B) develop 1 system for all filings with 

11 courts of the United States, which shall be ad12 ministered by the Administrative Office of the 

13 United States Courts. 

14 (2) USE OF TECHNOLOGY.—In developing the 

15 system under paragraph (1), the Director shall use 

16 modern technology— 

17 (A) to improve security, data accessibility, 

18 affordability, and performance; and 

19 (B) to minimize the burden on pro se liti20 gants. 

21 (3) AVAILABILITY TO STATES.— 

22 (A) IN GENERAL.—A State may choose to 

23 participate in the system developed under this 

24 subsection. 


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1 (B) FEE.—The Director shall charge a fee 

2 to a State that chooses to participate in the sys3 tem developed under this subsection at a level 

4 sufficient to recover the cost of providing the 

5 services associated with the administration and 

6 maintenance of the system to the State. 

7 (c) PUBLIC ACCESS TO COURT ELECTRONIC

8 RECORDS SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS.— 

9 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 2 years after 

10 the date of the enactment of this Act, the Director, 

11 in coordination with the Administrator, shall update 

12 the Public Access to Court Electronic Records sys13 tem, which shall be subject to the following require14 ments: 

15 (A) A document filed with a court shall be 

16 made publicly accessible upon filing, except as 

17 ordered by a court or by rule of the Judicial 

18 Conference of the United States. 

19 (B) All documents on the system shall be 

20 available to the public and to parties before the 

21 court free of charge. 

22 (C) Any information that is prohibited 

23 from public disclosure by law or court order 

24 shall be redacted. 


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1 (D) All documents shall be text-searchable 

2 and machine-readable. 

3 (E) To the extent practicable, external 

4 websites shall be able to link to documents on 

5 the system. 

6 (F) The system shall include any available 

7 digital audio and visual files of court record8 ings. 

9 (G) The system shall provide search func10 tions for public use. 

11 (2) MINIMIZING THE BURDEN ON PRO SE LITI12 GANTS.—In developing the system to comply with 

13 the requirements under paragraph (1), the Director 

14 shall, to the extent practicable, not impose a dis15 proportionate impact on pro se litigants. 

16 (3) USE OF TECHNOLOGY.—In developing the 

17 system under paragraph (1), the Director shall use 

18 modern technology— 

19 (A) to improve security, data accessibility 

20 (including accessibility to individuals with dis21 abilities), affordability, and performance; and 

22 (B) to minimize the burden on pro se liti23 gants. 

24 (4) AUTHORITY TO EXEMPT CERTAIN DOCU25 MENTS.—The Director may identify categories of— 


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1 (A) documents that are not made publicly 

2 accessible under paragraph (1)(A); and 

3 (B) court proceedings, the recordings of 

4 which are not made available under paragraph 

5 (1)(F). 

6 (5) FILING FEES.—The Judiciary Appropria7 tions Act, 1992 (title III of Public Law 102–140; 

8 105 Stat. 807) is amended by striking section 303 

9 (28 U.S.C. 1913 note) and inserting the following: 

10 ‘‘SEC. 303. (a)(1) To cover the costs of maintaining 

11 the Public Access to Court Electronic Records system in 

12 accordance with section 408(c) of the Anti-Corruption and 

13 Public Integrity Act, the Judicial Conference— 

14 ‘‘(A) shall collect an annual fee from the De15 partment of Justice equal to the Public Access to 

16 Court Electronic Records access fees paid by the De17 partment of Justice in 2018, as adjusted for infla18 tion; and 

19 ‘‘(B) may, only to the extent necessary, pre20 scribe reasonable filing fees, pursuant to sections 

21 1913, 1914, 1926, 1930, and 1932 of title 28, 

22 United States Code, for collection by the courts 

23 under those sections. 

24 ‘‘(2) The filing fees shall be commensurate with the 

25 burden imposed on the court by the party. The filing fees 


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1 shall impose a lesser fee on filers who are filing on behalf 

2 of individuals. Pro se litigants and litigants who certify 

3 their financial hardship shall not be subject to the filing 

4 fees. The Director of the Administrative Office of the 

5 United States Courts, under the direction of the Judicial 

6 Conference of the United States, shall prescribe a schedule 

7 of reasonable filing fees to cover the costs described in 

8 this subsection that the Director shall maintain and make 

9 available to the public. 

10 ‘‘(b) The Judicial Conference and the Director shall 

11 transmit each schedule of fees prescribed under subsection 

12 (a) to Congress at least 30 days before the schedule be13 comes effective. All fees collected under subsection (a) 

14 shall be deposited as offsetting collections to the Judiciary 

15 Information Technology Fund pursuant to section 

16 612(c)(1)(A) of title 28, United States Code, to reimburse 

17 expenses incurred in providing services in accordance with 

18 section 408(c) of the Anti-Corruption and Public Integrity 

19 Act.’’. 

20 (6) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this 

21 section, or the amendments made by this section, 

22 shall be construed to— 

23 (A) affect the filing fees or other filing 

24 procedures for prisoners; or 


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1 (B) abrogate, limit, or modify the require2 ments described in section 1915 of title 28, 

3 United States Code. 

4 SEC. 409. FORCED ARBITRATION INJUSTICE REPEAL. 

5 (a) PURPOSES.—The purposes of this section are 

6 to— 

7 (1) prohibit predispute arbitration agreements 

8 that force arbitration of future employment, con9 sumer, antitrust, or civil rights disputes; and 

10 (2) prohibit agreements and practices that 

11 interfere with the right of individuals, workers, and 

12 small businesses to participate in a joint, class, or 

13 collective action related to an employment, con14 sumer, antitrust, or civil rights dispute. 

15 (b) ARBITRATION OF EMPLOYMENT, CONSUMER, 

16 ANTITRUST, AND CIVIL RIGHTS DISPUTES.— 

17 (1) IN GENERAL.—Title 9 of the United States 

18 Code is amended by adding at the end the following: 

19 ‘‘CHAPTER 4—ARBITRATION OF EMPLOY20 MENT, CONSUMER, ANTITRUST, AND 

21 CIVIL RIGHTS DISPUTES 

‘‘Sec. 

‘‘401. Definitions. 

‘‘402. No validity or enforceability. 

22 ‘‘§ 401. Definitions 

23 ‘‘In this chapter— 


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1 ‘‘(1) the term ‘antitrust dispute’ means a dis2 pute— 

3 ‘‘(A) arising from an alleged violation of 

4 the antitrust laws (as defined in subsection (a) 

5 of the first section of the Clayton Act) or State 

6 antitrust laws; and 

7 ‘‘(B) in which the plaintiffs seek certifi8 cation as a class under rule 23 of the Federal 

9 Rules of Civil Procedure or a comparable rule 

10 or provision of State law; 

11 ‘‘(2) the term ‘civil rights dispute’ means a dis12 pute— 

13 ‘‘(A) arising from an alleged violation of— 

14 ‘‘(i) the Constitution of the United 

15 States or the constitution of a State; 

16 ‘‘(ii) any Federal, State, or local law 

17 that prohibits discrimination on the basis 

18 of race, sex, age, gender identity, sexual 

19 orientation, disability, religion, national or20 igin, or any legally protected status in edu21 cation, employment, credit, housing, public 

22 accommodations and facilities, voting, vet23 erans or servicemembers, health care, or a 

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1 cluding any law referred to or described in 

2 section 62(e) of the Internal Revenue Code 

3 of 1986, including parts of such law not 

4 explicitly referenced in such section but 

5 that relate to protecting individuals on any 

6 such basis; and 

7 ‘‘(B) in which at least one party alleging a 

8 violation described in subparagraph (A) is one 

9 or more individuals (or their authorized rep10 resentative), including one or more individuals 

11 seeking certification as a class under rule 23 of 

12 the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure or a com13 parable rule or provision of State law; 

14 ‘‘(3) the term ‘consumer dispute’ means a dis15 pute between— 

16 ‘‘(A) one or more individuals who seek or 

17 acquire real or personal property, services (in18 cluding services related to digital technology), 

19 securities or other investments, money, or credit 

20 for personal, family, or household purposes in21 cluding an individual or individuals who seek 

22 certification as a class under rule 23 of the 

23 Federal Rules of Civil Procedure or a com24 parable rule or provision of State law; and 


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1 ‘‘(B)(i) the seller or provider of such prop2 erty, services, securities or other investments, 

3 money, or credit; or 

4 ‘‘(ii) a third party involved in the selling, 

5 providing of, payment for, receipt or use of in6 formation about, or other relationship to any 

7 such property, services, securities or other in8 vestments, money, or credit; 

9 ‘‘(4) the term ‘employment dispute’ means a 

10 dispute between one or more individuals (or their 

11 authorized representative) and a person arising out 

12 of or related to the work relationship or prospective 

13 work relationship between them, including a dispute 

14 regarding the terms of or payment for, advertising 

15 of, recruiting for, referring of, arranging for, or dis16 cipline or discharge in connection with, such work, 

17 regardless of whether the individual is or would be 

18 classified as an employee or an independent con19 tractor with respect to such work, and including a 

20 dispute arising under any law referred to or de21 scribed in section 62(e) of the Internal Revenue 

22 Code of 1986, including parts of such law not explic23 itly referenced in such section but that relate to pro24 tecting individuals on any such basis, and including 

25 a dispute in which an individual or individuals seek 


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1 certification as a class under rule 23 of the Federal 

2 Rules of Civil Procedure or as a collective action 

3 under section 16(b) of the Fair Labor Standards 

4 Act, or a comparable rule or provision of State law; 

5 ‘‘(5) the term ‘predispute arbitration agree6 ment’ means an agreement to arbitrate a dispute 

7 that has not yet arisen at the time of the making 

8 of the agreement; and 

9 ‘‘(6) the term ‘predispute joint-action waiver’ 

10 means an agreement, whether or not part of a 

11 predispute arbitration agreement, that would pro12 hibit, or waive the right of, one of the parties to the 

13 agreement to participate in a joint, class, or collec14 tive action in a judicial, arbitral, administrative, or 

15 other forum, concerning a dispute that has not yet 

16 arisen at the time of the making of the agreement. 

17 ‘‘§ 402. No validity or enforceability 

18 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other pro19 vision of this title, no predispute arbitration agreement or 

20 predispute joint-action waiver shall be valid or enforceable 

21 with respect to an employment dispute, consumer dispute, 

22 antitrust dispute, or civil rights dispute. 

23 ‘‘(b) APPLICABILITY.— 

24 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—An issue as to whether this 

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1 termined under Federal law. The applicability of this 

2 chapter to an agreement to arbitrate and the validity 

3 and enforceability of an agreement to which this 

4 chapter applies shall be determined by a court, rath5 er than an arbitrator, irrespective of whether the 

6 party resisting arbitration challenges the arbitration 

7 agreement specifically or in conjunction with other 

8 terms of the contract containing such agreement, 

9 and irrespective of whether the agreement purports 

10 to delegate such determinations to an arbitrator. 

11 ‘‘(2) COLLECTIVE BARGAINING AGREEMENTS.— 

12 Nothing in this chapter shall apply to any arbitra13 tion provision in a contract between an employer and 

14 a labor organization or between labor organizations, 

15 except that no such arbitration provision shall have 

16 the effect of waiving the right of a worker to seek 

17 judicial enforcement of a right arising under a provi18 sion of the Constitution of the United States, a 

19 State constitution, or a Federal or State statute, or 

20 public policy arising therefrom.’’. 

21 (c) TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

22 (1) IN GENERAL.—Title 9 of the United States 

23 Code is amended— 

24 (A) in section 1 by striking ‘‘of seamen,’’ 

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1 merce’’ and inserting in its place ‘‘of individ2 uals, regardless of whether such individuals are 

3 designated as employees or independent con4 tractors for other purposes’’; 

5 (B) in section 2 by inserting ‘‘or as other6 wise provided in chapter 4’’ before the period at 

7 the end; 

8 (C) in section 208— 

9 (i) in the section heading by striking 

10 ‘‘CHAPTER 1; RESIDUAL APPLICA11 TION’’ and inserting ‘‘APPLICATION’’; 

12 and 

13 (ii) by adding at the end the fol14 lowing: ‘‘This chapter applies to the extent 

15 that this chapter is not in conflict with 

16 chapter 4.’’; and 

17 (D) in section 307— 

18 (i) in the section heading by striking 

19 ‘‘CHAPTER 1; RESIDUAL APPLICA20 TION’’ and inserting ‘‘APPLICATION’’; 

21 and 

22 (ii) by adding at the end the fol23 lowing: ‘‘This chapter applies to the extent 

24 that this chapter is not in conflict with 

25 chapter 4.’’. 


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1 (2) TABLE OF SECTIONS.— 

2 (A) CHAPTER 2.—The table of sections of 

3 chapter 2 of title 9, United States Code, is 

4 amended by striking the item relating to section 

5 208 and inserting the following: 

‘‘208. Application.’’. 

6 (B) CHAPTER 3.—The table of sections of 

7 chapter 3 of title 9, United States Code, is 

8 amended by striking the item relating to section 

9 307 and inserting the following: 

‘‘307. Application.’’. 

10 (3) TABLE OF CHAPTERS.—The table of chap11 ters of title 9, United States Code, is amended by 

12 adding at the end the following: 

‘‘4. Arbitration of Employment, Consumer, Antitrust, and Civil Rights 

Disputes ........................................................................ 401’’. 

13 (d) EFFECTIVE DATE.—This Act, and the amend14 ments made by this Act, shall take effect on the date of 

15 enactment of this Act and shall apply with respect to any 

16 dispute or claim that arises or accrues on or after such 

17 date. 

18 (e) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this Act, 

19 or the amendments made by this Act, shall be construed 

20 to prohibit the use of arbitration on a voluntary basis after 

21 the dispute arises. 


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1 SEC. 410. RESTRICTIONS ON PROTECTIVE ORDERS AND 

2 SEALING OF CASES AND SETTLEMENTS. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 111 of title 28, United 

4 States Code, is amended by adding at the end the fol5 lowing: 

6 ‘‘§ 1660. Restrictions on protective orders and sealing 

7 of cases and settlements 

8 ‘‘(a) RESTRICTIONS ON ORDERS RELATING TO THE

9 DISCLOSURE OF INFORMATION.— 

10 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In any civil action in which 

11 the pleadings state facts that are relevant to the 

12 protection of public health or safety, a court shall 

13 not enter, by stipulation or otherwise, an order oth14 erwise authorized under rule 26(c) of the Federal 

15 Rules of Civil Procedure restricting the disclosure of 

16 information obtained through discovery, an order 

17 otherwise authorized approving a settlement agree18 ment that would restrict the disclosure of informa19 tion obtained through discovery, or an order other20 wise authorized restricting access to court records 

21 unless in connection with the order the court finds— 

22 ‘‘(A) that the order would not restrict the 

23 disclosure of information which is relevant to 

24 the protection of public health or safety; or 

25 ‘‘(B) that— 


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1 ‘‘(i) the public interest in the disclo2 sure of past, present, or potential public 

3 health or safety hazards is outweighed by 

4 a specific and substantial interest in main5 taining the confidentiality of the informa6 tion or records in question; and 

7 ‘‘(ii) the requested order is no broader 

8 than necessary to protect the confiden9 tiality interest asserted. 

10 ‘‘(2) LIMIT ON EFFECT.—No order entered in 

11 accordance with paragraph (1), other than an order 

12 approving a settlement agreement, may continue in 

13 effect after the entry of final judgment unless at the 

14 time of, or after, the entry of the order the court 

15 makes a separate finding of fact that the require16 ments of paragraph (1) continue to be met. 

17 ‘‘(3) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in 

18 paragraph (1) shall be construed to require the dis19 closure of the identity of individuals who disclose 

20 evidence of a violation of any law, rule, or regulation 

21 or other fraud, waste, abuse, or misconduct or other 

22 persons protected from disclosure under Federal law. 

23 ‘‘(b) RESTRICTIONS ON ENFORCEMENT RELATING

24 TO FEDERAL AND STATE AGENCIES.—In any civil action 

25 in which the pleadings state facts that are relevant to the 


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1 protection of public health or safety, a court shall not en2 force any provision of an agreement between or among 

3 parties to the civil action, or enforce an order entered in 

4 accordance with subsection (a)(1), to the extent that the 

5 provision or order prohibits or otherwise restricts a party 

6 from disclosing any information relevant to the civil action 

7 to any Federal or State agency with authority to enforce 

8 laws regulating an activity relating to the information. 

9 ‘‘(c) LIMITS ON SCOPE.— 

10 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraph (2), a 

11 court shall not enforce any provision of a settlement 

12 agreement between or among parties to any civil ac13 tion in which the pleadings state facts that are rel14 evant to the protection of public health or safety 

15 that prohibits one or more parties from— 

16 ‘‘(A) disclosing the fact that the settlement 

17 was reached or the terms of the settlement (ex18 cluding any money paid) that involve matters 

19 relevant to the protection of public health or 

20 safety; or 

21 ‘‘(B) discussing matters relevant to the 

22 protection of public health or safety involved in 

23 the civil action. 

24 ‘‘(2) EXCEPTION.—Paragraph (1) applies un25 less the court finds that— 


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1 ‘‘(A) the public interest in the disclosure of 

2 past, present, or potential public health or safe3 ty hazards is outweighed by a specific and sub4 stantial interest in maintaining the confiden5 tiality of the information in question; and 

6 ‘‘(B) the requested order is no broader 

7 than necessary to protect the confidentiality in8 terest asserted. 

9 ‘‘(d) REBUTTABLE PRESUMPTION RELATING TO

10 PERSONALLY IDENTIFIABLE INFORMATION.—For pur11 poses of implementing subsections (a)(1)(B)(i) and 

12 (c)(2)(A), when weighing the interest in maintaining con13 fidentiality under this section, there shall be a rebuttable 

14 presumption that the interest in protecting personally 

15 identifiable information of an individual outweighs the 

16 public interest in disclosure. 

17 ‘‘(e) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this sec18 tion shall be construed to permit, require, or authorize the 

19 disclosure of classified information (as defined under sec20 tion 1 of the Classified Information Procedures Act (18 

21 U.S.C. App.)).’’. 

22 (b) TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMENDMENT.— 

23 The table of sections for chapter 111 of title 28, United 

24 States Code, is amended by adding after the item relating 

25 to section 1659 the following: 

‘‘1660. Restrictions on protective orders and sealing of cases and settlements.’’. 


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1 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

2 this section shall— 

3 (1) take effect 30 days after the date of enact4 ment of this Act; and 

5 (2) apply only to orders entered in civil actions 

6 or agreements entered into on or after such date. 

7 SEC. 411. SECRET SETTLEMENTS BAN. 

8 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section— 

9 (1) the terms ‘‘antitrust dispute’’, ‘‘civil rights 

10 dispute’’, ‘‘consumer dispute’’, and ‘‘employment dis11 pute’’ have the meanings given those terms in sec12 tion 401 of title 9, United States Code, as added by 

13 section 409 of this Act; 

14 (2) the term ‘‘covered agreement’’— 

15 (A) means a contract or settlement agree16 ment between a covered person and any other 

17 person relating to an antitrust dispute, civil 

18 rights dispute, consumer dispute, discrimination 

19 dispute, or employment dispute; and 

20 (B) does not include a collective bargaining 

21 agreement between a covered person and the 

22 collective bargaining representative of the em23 ployees of the covered person; 

24 (3) the term ‘‘covered person’’ means— 

25 (A) an individual that is an employer; or 


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1 (B) a corporation, limited liability com2 pany, or other entity that is created by the fil3 ing of a public document with a secretary of 

4 state of a State or similar office, without regard 

5 to whether the entity is a for-profit or nonprofit 

6 entity or is an employer; and 

7 (4) the term ‘‘secret settlement provision’’ 

8 means a provision in a covered agreement that has 

9 the purpose or effect of concealing the details of a 

10 claim relating to the antitrust dispute, civil rights 

11 dispute, consumer dispute, or employment dispute to 

12 which the covered agreement relates. 

13 (b) BAN ON SECRET SETTLEMENTS.—A secret set14 tlement provision— 

15 (1) shall be deemed against public policy; and 

16 (2) shall have no force or effect. 

17 (c) NOTICE.—A covered agreement shall include a 

18 bold, prominently placed notice stating that any secret set19 tlement provision in the covered agreement has no force 

20 or effect and is unenforceable against any person. 

21 (d) COSTS.—In any civil action, if a covered person 

22 seeks to enforce a secret settlement provision, the court 

23 may award costs, including reasonable attorney’s fees, to 

24 the person against whom the covered person seeks to en25 force the secret settlement provision. 


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1 (e) PROHIBITION ON RETALIATION.—A covered per2 son shall not take or threaten to take any personnel action 

3 against a current or former employee of the covered per4 son based on whole or in part on a failure or refusal by 

5 the employee to sign or enter into a covered agreement 

6 that contains a secret settlement provision. 

7 SEC. 412. OVERSIGHT PROCESS FOR DISQUALIFICATION OF 

8 JUSTICE, JUDGE, OR MAGISTRATE JUDGE. 

9 Section 455 of title 28, United States Code, as 

10 amended by section 404 of this Act, is amended by adding 

11 at the end the following: 

12 ‘‘(h)(1) Any litigant appearing before a justice, judge, 

13 or magistrate judge of the United States may file a peti14 tion that the justice, judge, or magistrate judge of the 

15 United States, as applicable, shall be disqualified based 

16 on the criteria described in subsection (b). 

17 ‘‘(2)(A) Any judge or magistrate judge of the United 

18 States subject to a petition under paragraph (1) may pro19 vide a public, written response to the petition that provides 

20 a written explanation relating to any disqualification deci21 sion. 

22 ‘‘(B) Any justice of the Supreme Court of the United 

23 States subject to a petition under paragraph (1) shall pro24 vide a public, written response to the petition that provides 


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1 a written explanation relating to any disqualification deci2 sion. 

3 ‘‘(3) If a litigant makes a petition under paragraph 

4 (1) relating to a justice of the Supreme Court of the 

5 United States, the Judicial Conference of the United 

6 States shall issue a nonbinding, public advisory opinion 

7 with its recommendation, which shall be shared with the 

8 Supreme Court Review Committee established in section 

9 415 of the Anti-Corruption and Public Integrity Act. 

10 ‘‘(4) If the Judicial Conference of the United States 

11 recommends that a justice of the Supreme Court of the 

12 United States be disqualified under this section, the jus13 tice shall publicly explain a final disqualification decision 

14 in writing, which shall be shared with the Supreme Court 

15 Review Committee established in section 415 of the Anti16 Corruption and Public Integrity Act. 

17 ‘‘(5)(A) For any judge or magistrate judge of the 

18 United States, the Judicial Conference of the United 

19 States shall— 

20 ‘‘(B) establish a written process to determine whether 

21 a judge meets 1 or more of the criteria in subsection (b); 

22 and 

23 ‘‘(C) use any administrative procedures which may be 

24 necessary to aid in the execution of the written process 

25 described in subparagraph (B), which may include any 


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1 procedures or software that may be necessary to determine 

2 whether a judge meets 1 or more of the criteria in sub3 section (b). 

4 ‘‘(D) The process described in subparagraph (B) 

5 shall be made publicly available and, at a minimum— 

6 ‘‘(i) include how an individual may make a peti7 tion under paragraph (1) for a judge to be disquali8 fied; 

9 ‘‘(ii) ensure that a judge or group of judges 

10 other than the judge who is the subject of the in11 quiry determines whether the judge shall be disquali12 fied; 

13 ‘‘(iii) allow the judge or group of judges making 

14 the disqualification determination to receive the ex15 pert advice of ethics personnel and officials, includ16 ing individuals with expertise in ethics at the Judi17 cial Conference or at the Office of Public Integrity; 

18 ‘‘(iv) require that the judge be disqualified 

19 should another judge or group of judges determine 

20 that the judge must be disqualified in accordance 

21 with this subsection; and 

22 ‘‘(v) require that all recusal decisions be made 

23 publicly available and be accompanied by a written 

24 explanation for the recusal decision.’’. 


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1 SEC. 413. COMPLAINTS AGAINST RETIRED JUDGES AND JU2 DICIAL DISCIPLINE. 

3 (a) COMPLAINTS.—Section 351(d) of title 28, United 

4 States Code, is amended— 

5 (1) by striking paragraph (1) and inserting the 

6 following: 

7 ‘‘(1) the term ‘judge’— 

8 ‘‘(A) means a circuit judge, district judge, 

9 bankruptcy judge, or magistrate judge; and 

10 ‘‘(B) includes a retired judge described in 

11 subparagraph (A);’’; and 

12 (2) in paragraph (2), by striking the period at 

13 the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

14 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

15 ‘‘(4) the term ‘retired judge’ means any judge 

16 of the United States who has retired from regular 

17 active service under section 371(b) or 372(a).’’. 

18 (b) REVIEW OF COMPLAINT BY CHIEF JUDGE.—Sec19 tion 352 of title 28, United States Code, is amended by 

20 adding at the end the following: 

21 ‘‘(e) DEFINITION.—In this section, the term ‘inter22 vening events’ does not include the retirement of the judge 

23 whose conduct is complained of or the nomination or con24 firmation of the judge to the Supreme Court of the United 

25 States.’’. 


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1 SEC. 414. ACTION BY JUDICIAL COUNCIL IN RESPONSE TO 

2 MISCONDUCT BY JUDGES. 

3 Section 354 of title 28, United States Code, is 

4 amended— 

5 (1) in subsection (a)(2), by adding at the end 

6 the following: 

7 ‘‘(D) RETIRED JUDGES.—If the conduct of 

8 a retired judge is the subject of the complaint, 

9 action by the judicial council under paragraph 

10 (1)(C) may include— 

11 ‘‘(i) censuring or reprimanding the 

12 judge by means of public announcement; 

13 and 

14 ‘‘(ii) reducing or rescinding the non15 vested pension benefits of the retired 

16 judge. 

17 ‘‘(E) REMEDIAL ACTIONS FOR CERTAIN

18 CONDUCT.— 

19 ‘‘(i) DEFINITION.—In this subpara20 graph, the term ‘covered judge’ does not 

21 include a retired judge. 

22 ‘‘(ii) CONDUCT.—If the conduct of a 

23 covered judge is the subject of the com24 plaint, action by the judicial council under 

25 paragraph (1)(C) may include mandating 

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1 fessional counseling, treatment, education, 

2 or mentoring to address the misconduct at 

3 issue.’’; and 

4 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

5 ‘‘(c) REPORT.— 

6 ‘‘(1) SUBMISSION TO JUDICIAL CONFERENCE

7 OF THE UNITED STATES.—Each chief judge of the 

8 circuit shall submit to the Judicial Conference of the 

9 United States an annual report on, with respect to 

10 the previous year— 

11 ‘‘(A) the number of complaints filed under 

12 section 351 against judges in the circuit; and 

13 ‘‘(B) the outcome of the complaints de14 scribed in subparagraph (A). 

15 ‘‘(2) SUBMISSION TO CONGRESS.—The Judicial 

16 Conference of the United States shall submit to the 

17 Committee on the Judiciary of the Senate and the 

18 Committee on the Judiciary of the House of Rep19 resentatives each report submitted under paragraph 

20 (1). 

21 ‘‘(3) PUBLIC AVAILABILITY.—No later than 30 

22 days after submitting to Congress each report under 

23 paragraph (1), the Judicial Conference of the United 

24 States shall make the report available to the pub25 lic.’’. 


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1 SEC. 415. SUPREME COURT COMPLAINTS REVIEW COM2 MITTEE. 

3 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

4 (1) REVIEW COMMITTEE.—The term ‘‘Review 

5 Committee’’ means the Supreme Court Complaints 

6 Review Committee. 

7 (2) CLOSE FAMILY MEMBER.—The term ‘‘close 

8 family member’’ includes— 

9 (A) a parent of the reporting individual; 

10 (B) a spouse of the reporting individual; 

11 and 

12 (C) an adult child of the reporting indi13 vidual. 

14 (b) ESTABLISHMENT.—For the purpose of assisting 

15 the House of Representatives in carrying out its respon16 sibilities under section 2 of article I and section 4 of article 

17 II of the Constitution of the United States, there is estab18 lished in the legislative branch to be known as the Su19 preme Court Complaints Review Committee under the 

20 general supervision of the Committee on the Judiciary of 

21 the House of Representatives. 

22 (c) MEMBERS.— 

23 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Review Committee shall 

24 consist of 5 members, of whom— 

25 (A) 2 shall be appointed by the Speaker of 

26 the House of Representatives; 


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1 (B) 2 shall be appointed by the minority 

2 leader of the House of Representatives; and 

3 (C) 1 shall be appointed by agreement of 

4 the Speaker of the House of Representatives 

5 and the minority leader of the House of Rep6 resentatives. 

7 (2) QUALIFICATIONS OF REVIEW COMMITTEE

8 MEMBERS.— 

9 (A) EXPERTISE.—Each member of the Re10 view Committee shall be an individual of excep11 tional public standing who is specifically quali12 fied to serve on the Review Committee by virtue 

13 of the individual’s education, training, or expe14 rience in 1 or more of the the following fields: 

15 (i) Constitutional law. 

16 (ii) Impeachment. 

17 (iii) Judicial ethics. 

18 (iv) Professional ethics. 

19 (v) Legal history. 

20 (vi) Judicial service. 

21 (B) SELECTION BASIS.—Selection and ap22 pointment of each member of the Review Com23 mittee shall be without regard to political affili24 ation and solely on the basis of fitness to perVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:09 Feb 17, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00218 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H9029.IH H9029

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1 form the duties of a member of the Review 

2 Committee. 

3 (C) CITIZENSHIP.—Each member of the 

4 Review Committee shall be a United States cit5 izen. 

6 (D) DISQUALIFICATIONS.—No individual 

7 shall be eligible for appointment to, or service 

8 on, the Review Committee who— 

9 (i) has ever been registered, or re10 quired to be registered, as a lobbyist under 

11 the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 (2 

12 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.); 

13 (ii) engages in, or is otherwise em14 ployed in, lobbying of the Congress; 

15 (iii) is registered or is required to be 

16 registered as an agent of a foreign prin17 cipal under the Foreign Agents Registra18 tion Act of 1938 (22 U.S.C. 611 et seq.); 

19 (iv) is a currently serving judge, jus20 tice, or employee of the Federal courts; 

21 (v) is an officer or employee of the 

22 Federal Government; 

23 (vi) is a close family member of any 

24 judge or justice of the Federal courts; 


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1 (vii) during the 4 years preceding the 

2 date of appointment, engaged in any sig3 nificant political activity (including being a 

4 candidate for public office, fundraising for 

5 a candidate for public office or a political 

6 party, or serving as an officer or employee 

7 of a political campaign or party); 

8 (viii) during the 2 years preceding the 

9 date of appointment, served as a fiduciary 

10 or personal attorney for an judge, justice, 

11 or employee of the Federal courts, includ12 ing any judge or justice; or 

13 (ix) any currently serving Senator or 

14 Representative in, or Delegate or Resident 

15 Commissioner to, the Congress. 

16 (3) TERM AND REMOVAL.— 

17 (A) LENGTH OF TERM.—The term of a 

18 member of the Review Committee shall be for 

19 2 Congresses. 

20 (B) TERM LIMITS.—A member of the Re21 view Committee may not serve during 4 con22 secutive Congresses. 

23 (C) REMOVAL.—A member of the Review 

24 Committee may be removed upon unanimous 

25 agreement among the Speaker and the minority 


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1 leader of the House of Representatives or by an 

affirmative vote of 2 2 ⁄3 of the members of the 

3 Committee on the Judiciary of the House of 

4 Representatives. 

5 (D) VACANCIES.—Any vacancy on the Re6 view Committee shall be filled for the unexpired 

7 portion of the term in the same manner, and by 

8 the same appointing authority, as the original 

9 appointment under paragraph (2). 

10 (d) CHAIRPERSON AND VICE-CHAIRPERSON.— 

11 (1) IN GENERAL.—The members of the Review 

12 Committee shall elect a chairperson and a vice-chair13 person of the Review Committee by a majority vote. 

14 The chairperson and the vice-chairperson shall serve 

15 a 1-year term, and may be reelected for additional 

16 1-year terms. 

17 (2) DUTIES.—The chairperson of the Review 

18 Committee shall preside at the meetings of the Re19 view Committee, and the vice-chairperson shall pre20 side in the absence or disability of the chairperson. 

21 (e) MEETINGS.— 

22 (1) QUORUM.—A majority of the members of 

23 the Review Committee shall constitute a quorum. 

24 (2) MEETINGS.—The Review Committee shall 

25 meet at the call of the chairperson, the chair of the 


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1 Committee on the Judiciary of the House of Rep2 resentatives, or the call of a majority of its mem3 bers, pursuant to the rules of the Review Committee. 

4 (3) VOTING.—Except as otherwise specifically 

5 provided, a majority vote of the Review Committee 

6 under this subtitle shall require an affirmative vote 

7 of 3 or more members. 

8 (f) COMPENSATION.—A member of the Review Com9 mittee shall not be considered to be an officer or employee 

10 of the House or Senate, but shall be compensated at a 

11 rate equal to the daily equivalent of the minimum annual 

12 rate of basic pay prescribed for GS–15 of the General 

13 Schedule under section 5107 of title 5, United States 

14 Code, for each day (including travel time) during which 

15 such member is engaged in the performance of the duties 

16 of the Review Committee. 

17 (g) DUTIES OF REVIEW COMMITTEE.— 

18 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Review Committee shall 

19 review each complaint made against the Chief Jus20 tice of the United States or a Justice of the Su21 preme Court of the United States through the re22 view process described in subsection (m). 

23 (2) HEARINGS.—The Review Committee may 

24 hold such hearings as are necessary and may sit and 

25 act only in executive session at such times and 


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1 places, solicit such testimony, and receive such rel2 evant evidence, as may be necessary to carry out its 

3 duties. 

4 (h) FINANCIAL DISCLOSURE REPORTS.— 

5 (1) IN GENERAL.—Each member of the Review 

6 Committee shall file an annual financial disclosure 

7 report with the Clerk of the House of Representa8 tives on or before May 15 of each calendar year im9 mediately following any year in which the member 

10 served on the Review Committee. Each such report 

11 shall be on a form prepared by the Clerk that is sub12 stantially similar to the form required for individuals 

13 at the executive branch who must complete a con14 fidential financial disclosure report under section 

15 102 of the Ethics in Government Act of 1978 (5 

16 U.S.C. App.). 

17 (2) DISTRIBUTION OF REPORT.—The Clerk of 

18 the House of Representatives shall— 

19 (A) not later than 7 days after the date 

20 each financial disclosure report under para21 graph (1) is filed, send a copy of each such re22 port to Committee on the Judiciary of the 

23 House of Representatives; and 


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1 (B) annually print all such financial disclo2 sure reports as a document of Congress, and 

3 make the document available to the public. 

4 (i) DUTIES AND POWERS OF THE REVIEW COM5 MITTEE.— 

6 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Review Committee is 

7 authorized— 

8 (A) to establish a process for receiving and 

9 reviewing complaints from any person regarding 

10 allegations of misconduct by a Justice of the 

11 Supreme Court of the United States; 

12 (B) to conduct a review of material com13 plaints regarding alleged misconduct by a Jus14 tice of the Supreme Court of the United States; 

15 and 

16 (C) in any case where the Review Com17 mittee determines, on the basis of the review 

18 described in subsection (m), that a Justice may 

19 have engaged in conduct which might violate 

20 the Code of Conduct for United States Judges 

21 adopted by the Judicial Conference of the 

22 United States or constitute 1 or more grounds 

23 for impeachment under article II of the Con24 stitution of the United States, or which, in the 

25 interest of justice, is not amenable to resolution 


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1 by the Review Committee, the Review Com2 mittee shall promptly certify such determina3 tion, together with any complaint and a record 

4 of any associated proceedings to the Committee 

5 on the Judiciary of the House of Representa6 tives. 

7 (2) REFERRALS TO LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFI8 CIALS.— 

9 (A) IN GENERAL.—Upon a majority vote 

10 of the Review Committee, the Review Com11 mittee may refer potential legal violations com12 mitted by a justice to the Department of Jus13 tice or other relevant Federal or State law en14 forcement officials, which referral shall include 

15 all appropriate evidence gathered during any re16 view or preliminary investigation conducted 

17 under this subtitle. 

18 (B) NOTIFICATION.—The Review Com19 mittee shall notify the Committee on the Judici20 ary of the Senate and the Committee on the 

21 Judiciary of the House of Representatives of all 

22 referrals under this subsection. 

23 (3) LIMITATIONS ON REVIEW.—No review may 

24 be undertaken by the Review Committee of any com25 plaint— 


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1 (A) that is directly related to the merits of 

2 a decision or procedural ruling; 

3 (B) that is frivolous, lacking sufficient evi4 dence to raise an inference that misconduct has 

5 occurred, or containing allegations that are in6 capable of being established through investiga7 tion; 

8 (C) concerning any alleged violation of law, 

9 rule, regulation or standard of conduct not in 

10 effect at the time of the alleged violation; or 

11 (D) concerning any alleged violation that 

12 occurred before the date of enactment of this 

13 Act. 

14 (j) PROHIBITION ON PUBLIC DISCLOSURE.— 

15 (1) IN GENERAL.— 

16 (A) PROHIBITION ON PUBLIC DISCLO17 SURE.—No information obtained by a member 

18 or employee of the Review Committee regarding 

19 complaints shall be publicly disclosed to any 

20 person or entity outside the Review Committee, 

21 unless approved by a majority vote of the Re22 view Committee. Any communication to any 

23 person or entity outside the Review Committee 

24 may occur only as authorized by the Review 

25 Committee. 


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1 (B) PROCEDURES AND INVESTIGATION.— 

2 The Review Committee shall establish, in con3 sultation with relevant agencies, procedures 

4 necessary to prevent the unauthorized disclo5 sure of any information received by the Review 

6 Committee. Any breaches of confidentiality 

7 shall be investigated by the Review Committee 

8 and appropriate action shall be taken, which 

9 may include a recommendation to Congress for 

10 removal pursuant to subsection (c)(3)(C). 

11 (2) PROVISION WITH RESPECT TO HOUSE AND

12 SENATE JUDICIARY COMMITTEES.—Paragraph (1) 

13 shall not preclude— 

14 (A) any member or employee of the Review 

15 Committee from presenting a report or findings 

16 of the Committee, or testifying before the Com17 mittee on the Judiciary of the House of Rep18 resentatives, if requested by the Committee on 

19 the Judiciary of the House of Representatives 

20 pursuant to its rules; 

21 (B) any necessary communication with the 

22 Department of Justice or any other law en23 forcement agency; or 

24 (C) any necessary communication with the 

25 Speaker or minority leader of the House of 


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1 Representatives or the majority leader or mi2 nority leader of the Senate. 

3 (3) OPPORTUNITY TO PRESENT.—Before the 

4 Review Committee votes on a recommendation or 

5 statement to be transmitted to the Committee on the 

6 Judiciary of the House of Representatives relating 

7 to a complaint involving a justice, the Review Com8 mittee shall provide the justice whose conduct is the 

9 subject of the complaint the opportunity to present, 

10 orally or in writing (at the discretion of the justice), 

11 a statement to the Review Committee. 

12 (k) PRESENTATION OF REPORTS TO THE HOUSE JU13 DICIARY COMMITTEE.—Whenever the Review Committee 

14 transmits any report to the Committee on the Judiciary 

15 of the House of Representatives relating to a complaint 

16 involving a justice, the Review Committee shall designate 

17 a member or employee of the Review Committee to present 

18 the report to the House Judiciary Committee if requested 

19 by the Committee on the Judiciary of the House of Rep20 resentatives. 

21 (l) MAINTAINING OF FINANCIAL DISCLOSURE RE22 PORTS.—The Review Committee shall receive, and main23 tain, a copy of each report filed under section 101 of the 

24 Ethics in Government Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App.) by a 

25 Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States. 


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1 (m) COMPLAINTS.— 

2 (1) SOURCE OF COMPLAINTS.—Any person, in3 cluding a judge, justice, or employee of the courts of 

4 the United States may file with the Review Com5 mittee a complaint alleging a violation by a justice 

6 of any law (including any regulation), rule, or other 

7 standard of conduct, including the Code of Conduct 

8 for United States Judges adopted by the Judicial 

9 Conference of the United States, applicable to the 

10 conduct of such justice in the performance of the du11 ties, or the discharge of the responsibilities, of the 

12 justice. 

13 (2) FALSE CLAIMS AND STATEMENTS AC14 KNOWLEDGMENT.—Any complaint submission under 

15 paragraph (1) shall include a signed statement ac16 knowledging that the person submitting the allega17 tion or information understands that section 1001 of 

18 title 18, United States Code (popularly known as the 

19 ‘‘False Statements Act’’) applies to the information. 

20 (3) REVIEW PROCESS OF ALLEGED VIOLATIONS

21 BY A JUSTICE.— 

22 (A) REVIEW AUTHORIZATION.— 

23 (i) IN GENERAL.—After receiving a 

24 complaint under paragraph (1), the Review 

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1 ize a review under subparagraph (B) of 

2 any alleged violation by a justice of any 

3 law (including any regulation), rule, or 

4 other standard of conduct, including the 

5 Code of Conduct for United States Judges 

6 adopted by the Judicial Conference of the 

7 United States, applicable to the conduct of 

8 such justice in the performance of the du9 ties, or the discharge of the responsibil10 ities, of the justice. 

11 (ii) REQUIREMENTS.—The authoriza12 tion under clause (i) shall— 

13 (I) be in writing; and 

14 (II) include a brief description of 

15 the specific matter and an explanation 

16 of why allegations in complaint meet 

17 the criteria in subsection (i)(3). 

18 (B) REVIEW PROCESS.— 

19 (i) INITIATION AND NOTIFICATION OF

20 REVIEW.—After the date on which the Re21 view Committee makes an authorization 

22 under subparagraph (A), the Review Com23 mittee shall— 

24 (I) initiate a review of the alleged 

25 violation; and 


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1 (II) provide a written notification 

2 of the commencement of the review, 

3 including a statement of the nature of 

4 the review, to— 

5 (aa) the Committee on the 

6 Judiciary of the Senate and the 

7 Committee on the Judiciary of 

8 the House of Representatives; 

9 and 

10 (bb) the justice who is the 

11 subject of the review. 

12 (ii) OPPORTUNITY TO TERMINATE RE13 VIEW.—At any time, the Review Com14 mittee may, by a majority vote, terminate 

15 a review on any ground, including that the 

16 matter under review is de minimis in na17 ture. If the Review Committee votes to ter18 minate the review, the Committee shall— 

19 (I) notify, in writing, the com20 plainant, the justice who was the sub21 ject of the review, the Committee on 

22 the Judiciary of the Senate, and the 

23 Committee on the Judiciary of the 

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1 sion to terminate the review of the 

2 matter; and 

3 (II) send a report, including any 

4 findings of the Review Committee, to 

5 the Committee on the Judiciary of the 

6 Senate and the Committee on the Ju7 diciary of the House of Representa8 tives. 

9 (C) SCOPE OF REVIEW.—During a review, 

10 the Review Committee shall evaluate the com11 plaint and determine, based on a majority vote, 

12 whether the misconduct alleged in the com13 plaint, if true, may constitute ‘‘Treason, Brib14 ery, and other high Crimes and Misdemeanors’’ 

15 under section 4 of article II of the Constitution 

16 of the United States. 

17 (D) COMPLETION OF REVIEW.—Upon the 

18 completion of any review, the Review Com19 mittee shall— 

20 (i) transmit to the Committee on the 

21 Judiciary of the House of Representatives 

22 a written report that includes— 

23 (I) a statement of the nature of 

24 the review and the justice who is the 

25 subject of the review; 


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1 (II) the Review Committee’s de2 termination under paragraph (3); 

3 (III) a description of the number 

4 of members voting in the affirmative 

5 and in the negative for the Review 

6 Committee’s determination under 

7 paragraph (3)(C); 

8 (IV) any relevant findings of the 

9 Review Committee, including— 

10 (aa) any findings of fact; 

11 (bb) a description of any rel12 evant information that the Re13 view Committee was unable to 

14 obtain or witnesses whom the Re15 view Committee was unable to 

16 interview, and the reasons there17 for; and 

18 (cc) a citation of any rel19 evant law, regulation, or stand20 ard of conduct relating to the al21 leged misconduct; 

22 (V) any supporting documenta23 tion; and 

24 (VI) a written determination of 

25 whether the misconduct alleged in the 


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1 complaint, if true, may constitute 

2 ‘‘Treason, Bribery, and other high 

3 Crimes and Misdemeanors’’ under sec4 tion 4 of article II of the Constitution 

5 of the United States; and 

6 (ii) transmit to the complainant and 

7 the justice who is the subject of the review 

8 the written report of the Review Com9 mittee described in clause (i). 

10 (n) HOUSE JUDICIARY COMMITTEE CONSIDERATION

11 OF REVIEW COMMITTEE REPORT.—If the Review Com12 mittee determines, after a review, that misconduct alleged 

13 in a complaint, if true, may constitute ‘‘Treason, Bribery, 

14 and other high Crimes and Misdemeanors’’ under section 

15 4 of article II of the Constitution of the United States, 

16 not later than 30 legislative days of continuous session in 

17 the House of Representatives after the Committee on the 

18 Judiciary of the House of Representatives receives a re19 port under subsection (m), the Committee on the Judici20 ary of the House of Representatives shall vote on whether 

21 to proceed with an investigation or an impeachment in22 quiry. 

23 (o) REQUEST FROM HOUSE JUDICIARY COM24 MITTEE.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other 

2 provision of this section, upon receipt of a written 

3 request from the Committee on the Judiciary of the 

4 House of Representatives that the Review Com5 mittee cease its review of any matter and refer such 

6 matter to the Committee on the Judiciary of the 

7 House of Representatives because of the ongoing in8 vestigation of the matter by the Committee on the 

9 Judiciary of the House of Representatives, the Re10 view Committee shall refer such matter to the Com11 mittee on the Judiciary of the House of Representa12 tives, cease its review of that matter and so notify 

13 any justice who is the subject of the review. 

14 (2) RESUMPTION OF REVIEW.—If the Com15 mittee on the Judiciary of the House of Representa16 tives notifies the Review Committee in writing that 

17 the Review Committee may continue its review of 

18 the complaint, the Review Committee may begin or 

19 continue, as the case may be, a review of the matter. 

20 (3) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this 

21 subsection shall be construed to prevent the Review 

22 Committee from sending any information regarding 

23 the matter to law enforcement agencies. 

24 (p) PROCEDURES.— 


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1 (1) REVIEW POWERS.—Members or employees 

2 of the Review Committee may, during a review— 

3 (A) administer to or take from any person 

4 an oath, affirmation, or affidavit; 

5 (B) obtain information or assistance from 

6 any Federal, State, or local governmental agen7 cy, or other entity, or unit thereof, including all 

8 information kept in the course of business by 

9 the Judicial Conference of the United States, 

10 the judicial councils of circuits, the Administra11 tive Office of the United States Courts, and the 

12 United States Sentencing Commission; 

13 (C) take the deposition of witnesses; and 

14 (D) submit to the chair of the Committee 

15 on the Judiciary of the House of Representa16 tives a request for the Committee on the Judici17 ary of the House of Representatives to require 

18 by subpoena the attendance of and testimony 

19 by witnesses and the production any book, 

20 check, canceled check, correspondence, commu21 nication, document, email, paper, physical evi22 dence, record, recording, tape, or other material 

23 (including electronic records) relating to any 

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1 thorized to review from any individual or entity, 

2 which— 

3 (i) shall be handled in accordance 

4 with the rules of the Committee on the Ju5 diciary of the House of Representatives; 

6 and 

7 (ii) may allow for the transmission of 

8 information or testimony between the Re9 view Committee and the Committee on the 

10 Judiciary of the House of Representatives, 

11 in accordance with rules of the Committee 

12 on the Judiciary of the House of Rep13 resentatives. 

14 (2) PROHIBITION OF EX PARTE COMMUNICA15 TIONS.—There shall be no ex parte communications 

16 between any member or employee of the Review 

17 Committee and any justice who is the subject of any 

18 review by the Review Committee or between any 

19 member of the Review Committee and any interested 

20 party. 

21 (3) OTHER REVIEW COMMITTEE RULES AND

22 PROCEDURES.—The Review Committee is authorized 

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1 essary to carry out the functions of the Review Com2 mittee in accordance with this section. 

3 (q) PERSONNEL MATTERS.— 

4 (1) APPOINTMENT AND COMPENSATION OF EM5 PLOYEES.—The Review Committee may appoint and 

6 fix the compensation of such professional, non7 partisan staff (including staff with relevant experi8 ence in investigations and law enforcement) of the 

9 Review Committee as it considers necessary to per10 form its duties, who— 

11 (A) shall perform all official duties in a 

12 nonpartisan manner; and 

13 (B) may not engage in any partisan polit14 ical activity directly affecting any congressional 

15 or presidential election, or any nomination of a 

16 Federal judge or justice. 

17 (2) QUALIFICATIONS.—Each employee of the 

18 Review Committee shall be professional and demon19 strably qualified for the position for which the em20 ployee is hired. 

21 (3) TERMINATION OF EMPLOYEES.—The em22 ployment of an employee of the Review Committee 

23 may be terminated at any time by the Review Com24 mittee. 


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1 (4) CODE OF CONDUCT.—The Review Com2 mittee shall establish a code of conduct to govern 

3 the behavior of the members or employees of the Re4 view Committee, which shall include the avoidance of 

5 conflicts of interest. 

6 (r) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 

7 authorized to be appropriated to carry out this section 

8 such sums as may be necessary. 

9 SEC. 416. EXPEDITED IMPEACHMENT OF FEDERAL JUDGES. 

10 Section 355(b) of title 28, United States Code, is 

11 amended by adding at the end the following: 

12 ‘‘(3) EXPEDITED IMPEACHMENT.— 

13 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—After the Judicial 

14 Conference transmits the determination and the 

15 record of proceedings under paragraph (1) or 

16 (2) to the House of Representatives, the deter17 mination and record shall be immediately re18 ferred to the Committee on the Judiciary of the 

19 House of Representatives. 

20 ‘‘(B) VOTE.—Not later than 30 legislative 

21 days of continuous session in the House of Rep22 resentatives after the Committee on the Judici23 ary of the House of Representatives receives the 

24 determination and the record of proceedings 

25 under subparagraph (A), the Committee on the 


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1 Judiciary of the House of Representatives shall 

2 vote on whether to proceed with an investiga3 tion or an impeachment inquiry.’’. 

4 SEC. 417. JUDICIAL WORKPLACE CLIMATE SURVEYS. 

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 21 of title 28, United 

6 States Code, is amended by adding at the end the fol7 lowing: 

8 ‘‘§ 464. Judicial workplace climate surveys 

9 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Judicial Conference of the 

10 United States shall administer climate survey to each em11 ployee of a court of the United States about the work envi12 ronment of the court, which shall— 

13 ‘‘(1) be administered not later than 18 months 

14 after the date of enactment of this section and every 

15 2 years thereafter; 

16 ‘‘(2) be voluntary; 

17 ‘‘(3) survey respondents on the general work 

18 environment, including attitudes in the workplace re19 garding diversity and inclusion and harassment or 

20 discrimination on the basis of race, ethnicity, dis21 ability, sex, sexual orientation, and gender identity; 

22 and 

23 ‘‘(4) be anonymous and confidential, with notice 

24 of the anonymity and confidentiality made to the re25 spondent throughout the survey. 


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1 ‘‘(b) TRANSMISSION OF INFORMATION.—Information 

2 obtained in a survey administered under subsection (a) 

3 shall be— 

4 ‘‘(1) made publicly available; and 

5 ‘‘(2) transmitted to the Committee on the Judi6 ciary of the Senate and the Committee on the Judi7 ciary, the Chief Justice of the United States, and 

8 the Judicial Conference of the United States.’’. 

9 (b) TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMENDMENT.— 

10 The table of sections for chapter 21 of title 28, United 

11 States Code, is amended by adding at the end the fol12 lowing: 

‘‘464. Judicial workplace climate surveys.’’. 

13 SEC. 418. PILOT PROGRAM TO PROVIDE ACCESS TO COUN14 SEL IN FEDERAL COURT. 

15 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

16 (1) DIRECTOR.—The term ‘‘Director’’ means 

17 the Director of the Administrative Office of the 

18 United States Courts. 

19 (2) ELIGIBLE ENTITY.—The term ‘‘eligible enti20 ty’’ means any of the following: 

21 (A) A State or local public defenders of22 fice. 

23 (B) A clinical law program at a nonprofit 

24 law school. 


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1 (C) An organization described in section 

2 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 

3 which is exempt from taxation under section 

4 501(a) of such Code, which organization has ex5 pertise in providing legal assistance to persons 

6 unable to afford counsel. 

7 (D) A State bar association. 

8 (b) AUTHORIZATION.—The Director is authorized to 

9 carry out a pilot program to facilitate the appointment of 

10 counsel under section 1915(e)(1) of title 28, United States 

11 Code. In carrying out the pilot program, the Director is 

12 authorized to make grants to eligible entities, and make 

13 funds available to Federal public defender and community 

14 defender organizations and to courts of the United States. 

15 (c) APPLICATION.—An eligible entity seeking a grant 

16 under this section shall submit to the Director an applica17 tion at such time, in such manner, and containing such 

18 information as the Director may reasonably require. 

19 (d) PRIORITY.— 

20 (1) EXPERTISE.—In considering an application 

21 submitted by an eligible entity under subsection (c), 

22 the Director shall give priority to an application 

23 from an eligible entity with demonstrated cultural 

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1 resenting low-income persons in civil actions, which 

2 may include— 

3 (A) persons earning 200 percent or below 

4 of area median income, up to $100,000; 

5 (B) persons qualifying for means-tested 

6 public benefits; 

7 (C) persons who reside in subsidized hous8 ing; and 

9 (D) persons serving a term of imprison10 ment. 

11 (2) GEOGRAPHIC DIVERSITY.—The Director 

12 shall give priority to areas of varying geographic size 

13 with the greatest showing of unmet need for counsel, 

14 and shall, to the extent practicable, equitably dis15 tribute funds on a geographic basis including non16 urban and rural areas of various geographic size. 

17 (3) NO PREFERENCE FOR FEDERAL ENTI18 TIES.—The Director may not prioritize distributing 

19 funds to Federal entities over making grants to eligi20 ble entities. 

21 (e) USE OF FUNDS.— 

22 (1) GRANT RECIPIENTS.—An eligible entity re23 ceiving a grant under this section shall use such 

24 funds as follows: 


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1 (A) In the case of an entity described in 

2 subsection (a)(2)(A), to provide financial com3 pensation to staff or contracted attorneys who 

4 provide counsel pursuant to requests under sec5 tion 1915(e)(1) of title 28, United States Code. 

6 (B) In the case of an entity described in 

7 subsection (a)(2)(B), to fund a clinical law pro8 gram that provides counsel pursuant to re9 quests under section 1915(e)(1) of title 28, 

10 United States Code. 

11 (C) In the case of an entity described in 

12 subparagraph (C) or (D) of subsection (a)(2), 

13 to provide financial compensation to attorneys 

14 who provide counsel pursuant to requests under 

15 section 1915(e)(1) of title 28, United States 

16 Code. 

17 (2) FEDERAL DEFENDERS AND COURTS.— 

18 (A) FEDERAL DEFENDERS.—A Federal 

19 public defender organization and community de20 fender organization shall use funds under this 

21 section to provide financial compensation to 

22 staff or contracted attorneys who provide coun23 sel pursuant to requests under section 

24 1915(e)(1) of title 28, United States Code. 


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1 (B) COURTS OF THE UNITED STATES.—A 

2 court of the United States shall use funds 

3 under this section to provide financial com4 pensation to attorneys who provide counsel pur5 suant to requests under section 1915(e)(1) of 

6 title 28, United States Code. 

7 (f) FULL REPRESENTATION.—To the extent prac8 ticable, and in accordance with applicable ethics rules, an 

9 eligible entity receiving a grant under this section shall 

10 ensure the provision of full representation of each person 

11 with respect to whom the entity provides, or facilitates the 

12 provision, of counsel pursuant to a request under section 

13 1915(e)(1) of title 28, United States Code. 

14 (g) REPORT.—Not later than 2 years after the date 

15 of the enactment of this Act, and every 2 years thereafter, 

16 the Director shall submit to Congress and make publicly 

17 available a report on the pilot program under this section, 

18 which report shall include the following: 

19 (1) With respect to persons for whom counsel 

20 was provided pursuant to a request under section 

21 1915(e)(1) of title 28, United States Code, the types 

22 of cases, length of time spent on cases by attorneys 

23 and outcomes of the matters for which such counsel 

24 was provided. 


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1 (2) Benefits related to increased access to coun2 sel and any remaining barriers to access to counsel 

3 pursuant to requests under such section 1915(e)(1). 

4 (3) Any changes in the frequency of requests 

5 made by courts under such section 1915(e)(1). 

6 (4) Other changes to the functioning of the 

7 Federal courts related to the pilot program, includ8 ing increases in efficiency of adjudication of cases 

9 and changes in the number of cases resolved in favor 

10 of the party for whom counsel was provided pursu11 ant to a request under such section 1915(e)(1). 

12 (5) Suggested changes to the pilot program to 

13 ensure greater access to justice for low-income liti14 gants. 

15 (h) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There is 

16 authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be nec17 essary for each of fiscal years 2021 through 2030, of 

18 which the Director may reserve not more than 5 percent 

19 for administrative costs. 


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1 TITLE V—ENFORCEMENT 

2 Subtitle A—Office of Public 

3 Integrity 

4 SEC. 511. ESTABLISHMENT OF OFFICE OF PUBLIC INTEG5 RITY. 

6 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Ethics in Government Act of 

7 1978 (5 U.S.C. App.) is amended— 

8 (1) in title I, by striking ‘‘Government Ethics’’ 

9 each place it appears and inserting ‘‘Public Integ10 rity’’; 

11 (2) in the heading for title IV, by striking 

12 ‘‘GOVERNMENT ETHICS’’ and inserting 

13 ‘‘PUBLIC INTEGRITY’’; 

14 (3) in section 401— 

15 (A) by striking ‘‘Government Ethics’’ each 

16 place it appears and inserting ‘‘Public Integ17 rity’’; 

18 (B) in subsection (a)— 

19 (i) by inserting ‘‘(1)’’ before ‘‘There is 

20 established’’; and 

21 (ii) by adding at the end the fol22 lowing: 

23 ‘‘(2) The purposes of the Office of Public Integrity 

24 are— 


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1 ‘‘(A) to consolidate and strengthen Federal eth2 ics enforcement and anti-corruption public integrity 

3 efforts; 

4 ‘‘(B) to conduct anti-corruption, ethics, and 

5 public integrity oversight of officers and employees 

6 of the Federal Government through investigations, 

7 corrective action, and other actions and penalties; 

8 ‘‘(C) to promote public integrity and prevent 

9 corruption within the Federal Government through 

10 education, advisory, guidance, and rulemaking; 

11 ‘‘(D) to facilitate accountability through affirm12 ative public disclosures, lobbying registration, and 

13 the promotion of transparency across the Federal 

14 Government; and 

15 ‘‘(E) to protect the public’s interest in democ16 racy and Federal policymaking.’’; and 

17 (C) by adding after subsection (d), as 

18 added by section 309 of this Act, the following: 

19 ‘‘(e)(1) There is established within the Office of Pub20 lic Integrity a division to be known as the ‘Government 

21 Ethics Division’. 

22 ‘‘(2) The Government Ethics Division shall carry out 

23 all functions of the Office of Government Ethics under this 

24 Act as of the day before the date of enactment of this 

25 subsection, including— 


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1 ‘‘(A) providing advice to designated agency eth2 ics officials, including legal advisories, education 

3 advisories, and program management advisories on 

4 substantive ethics issues; 

5 ‘‘(B) providing training and education opportu6 nities to designated agency ethics officials on an on7 going basis; and 

8 ‘‘(C) providing confidential advice, which, sub9 ject to paragraph (3), shall not lead to enforcement 

10 action, for any agency employee seeking confidential 

11 ethics advice. 

12 ‘‘(3)(A) The Government Ethics Division may refer 

13 a matter for enforcement based on information obtained 

14 in providing advice to an employee under paragraph 

15 (2)(C) if the employee— 

16 ‘‘(i) knowingly makes a material misrepresenta17 tion, including making a significant omission in pro18 viding information, to the Government Ethics Divi19 sion; 

20 ‘‘(ii) has already taken the action in violation of 

21 the laws or regulations relating to conflicts of inter22 est or other ethics issues; 

23 ‘‘(iii) reveals significant criminal activity, par24 ticularly criminal activity outside the jurisdiction of 

25 the Office of Public Integrity; 


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1 ‘‘(iv) engaged in a prohibited personnel practice 

2 described in paragraph (8) or subparagraph (A)(i), 

3 (B), (C), or (D) of paragraph (9) of section 2302(b) 

4 of title 5, United States Code; or 

5 ‘‘(v) engaged in other actions, as established by 

6 the Director by regulation. 

7 ‘‘(B) An employee who seeks advice under paragraph 

8 (2)(C) may be subject to administrative remedies, such as 

9 reprimand, divestiture, forced recusal, or other corrective 

10 actions to remedy the violation. 

11 ‘‘(C) Notwithstanding any other provision in this 

12 paragraph, the Director may promulgate regulations (in13 cluding regulations under subparagraph (A)(v)) to ensure 

14 that— 

15 ‘‘(i) an employee who engages in conduct in 

16 good faith reliance upon an advisory opinion issued 

17 to the employee by the Government Ethics Division 

18 or a designated agency ethics official generally shall 

19 not be subject to civil, criminal, or disciplinary ac20 tion by the Office of Public Integrity; 

21 ‘‘(ii) an advisory opinion issued to an employee 

22 by the Government Ethics Division or a designated 

23 agency ethics official shall not prevent the employee 

24 from being subject to other civil or disciplinary ac25 tion if the conduct of the employee violates another 


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1 law, rule, regulation, or lawful management policy or 

2 directive; and 

3 ‘‘(iii) if an employee has actual knowledge or 

4 reason to believe that an advisory opinion issued to 

5 the employee by the Government Ethics Division or 

6 a designated agency ethics official is based on fraud7 ulent, misleading, or otherwise incorrect information, 

8 the reliance of the employee on the opinion not be 

9 deemed to be in good faith.’’; 

10 (4) in section 403, by striking ‘‘Government 

11 Ethics’’ each place it appears and inserting ‘‘Public 

12 Integrity’’; and 

13 (5) in section 503(2), by striking ‘‘Government 

14 Ethics’’ and inserting ‘‘Public Integrity’’. 

15 (b) OFFICERS.— 

16 (1) DIRECTOR.—Section 401(b) of the Ethics 

17 in Government Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App.) is 

18 amended— 

19 (A) by inserting ‘‘(1)’’ before ‘‘There shall 

20 be’’; 

21 (B) by inserting ‘‘without regard to polit22 ical affiliation and solely on the basis of integ23 rity and demonstrated ability to fulfill the re24 sponsibilities of the role of Director’’ after ‘‘who 

25 shall be appointed’’; 


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1 (C) by striking ‘‘Effective with respect’’ 

2 and inserting the following: 

3 ‘‘(3) Effective with respect’’; 

4 (D) by inserting after paragraph (1), as so 

5 designated, the following: 

6 ‘‘(2) Each individual appointed by the President to 

7 the position of Director— 

8 ‘‘(A) shall not have any conflict of interest with 

9 respect to any aspect of performing the duties and 

10 responsibilities of the Director; 

11 ‘‘(B) shall have a demonstrated record in public 

12 integrity and ethics enforcement; 

13 ‘‘(C) shall not have ever been registered, or re14 quired to be registered, as a lobbyist under the Lob15 bying Disclosure Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1601 et 

16 seq.); 

17 ‘‘(D) during the 4-year period ending on the 

18 date on which the President nominates the indi19 vidual to the position of Director, shall not have en20 gaged in any significant political activity (including 

21 being a candidate for public office, fundraising for a 

22 candidate for public office or a political party, or 

23 serving as an officer or employee of a political cam24 paign or party); 


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1 ‘‘(E) shall not have ever been an agent of a for2 eign principal registered under the Foreign Agents 

3 Registration Act of 1938 (22 U.S.C. 611 et seq.); 

4 and 

5 ‘‘(F) during the 4-year period ending on the 

6 date on which the President nominates the indi7 vidual to the position of Director, shall not served as 

8 a fiduciary or personal attorney for an officer or em9 ployee of the Federal Government, including anyone 

10 elected to public office.’’; and 

11 (E) by adding at the end the following: 

12 ‘‘(4) The Director may only be removed from office 

13 by the President for inefficiency, neglect of duty, or mal14 feasance in office. 

15 ‘‘(5) Not later than 30 days before the date on which 

16 the President removes the Director from office or trans17 fers the Director to another position or location for ineffi18 ciency, neglect of duty, or malfeasance in office, the Presi19 dent shall submit to the Senate and the House of Rep20 resentatives written notice of the reasons for the removal 

21 or transfer. 

22 ‘‘(6) During the period of any absence or unavail23 ability of the Director, including a vacancy in the office 

24 of the Director, all powers and duties of the Director shall 

25 be vested in the Deputy Director. 


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1 ‘‘(7) The Director may continue to serve beyond the 

2 expiration of the term of the Director until a successor 

3 is appointed, by and with the advice and consent of the 

4 Senate.’’. 

5 (2) ASSISTANT DIRECTORS.—Section 401(c)(1) 

6 of the Ethics in Government Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. 

7 App.) is amended by inserting ‘‘and Assistant Direc8 tors (which may include an Assistant Director for 

9 Investigations, an Assistant Director for Govern10 ment Transparency, and an Assistant Director for 

11 the Government Ethics Division)’’ after ‘‘including 

12 attorneys’’. 

13 (3) DEPUTY DIRECTOR.—Section 401 of the 

14 Ethics in Government Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App.) 

15 is amended by adding after subsection (e), as added 

16 by subsection (a) of this section, the following: 

17 ‘‘(f)(1) There shall be in the Office of Public Integrity 

18 a Deputy Director, who shall— 

19 ‘‘(A) be appointed by the President in accord20 ance with paragraph (2), by and with the advice and 

21 consent of the Senate; and 

22 ‘‘(B) serve as acting Director in the event of 

23 the absence or unavailability of the Director, includ24 ing a vacancy in the office of the Director. 


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1 ‘‘(2) Each individual appointed by the President to 

2 the position of Deputy Director— 

3 ‘‘(A) shall not have any conflict of interest with 

4 respect to any aspect of performing the duties and 

5 responsibilities of the Deputy Director; 

6 ‘‘(B) shall have a demonstrated record in public 

7 integrity and ethics enforcement; 

8 ‘‘(C) shall not have ever been registered, or re9 quired to be registered, as a lobbyist under the Lob10 bying Disclosure Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1601 et 

11 seq.); 

12 ‘‘(D) during the 4-year period ending on the 

13 date on which the President nominates the indi14 vidual to the position of Deputy Director, shall not 

15 have engaged in any significant political activity (in16 cluding being a candidate for public office, fund17 raising for a candidate for public office or a political 

18 party, or serving as an officer or employee of a polit19 ical campaign or party); 

20 ‘‘(E) shall not have ever been an agent of a for21 eign principal registered under the Foreign Agents 

22 Registration Act of 1938 (22 U.S.C. 611 et seq.); 

23 and 

24 ‘‘(F) during the 4-year period ending on the 

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1 vidual to the position of Deputy Director, shall not 

2 served as a fiduciary or personal attorney for an of3 ficer or employee of the Federal Government, includ4 ing anyone elected to public office.’’. 

5 (c) AUTHORITY AND FUNCTIONS.—Section 402 of 

6 the Ethics in Government Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App) 

7 is amended— 

8 (1) in subsection (a)— 

9 (A) by striking ‘‘shall provide’’ and insert10 ing the following: ‘‘shall— 

11 ‘‘(1) provide’’; 

12 (B) by striking the period at the end and 

13 inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

14 (C) by adding at the end the following: 

15 ‘‘(2) investigate potential violations by officers and 

16 employees in all branches of the Federal Government or 

17 by any other person of the laws or regulations relating 

18 to conflicts of interest or other ethics issues, to the extent 

19 allowable by law and the Constitution.’’; 

20 (2) in subsection (b)— 

21 (A) in paragraph (1)— 

22 (i) by striking ‘‘the President or’’; 

23 (ii) by striking ‘‘ethics’’ and inserting 

24 ‘‘other ethics issues’’; and 


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1 (iii) by striking ‘‘title II of this Act’’ 

2 and inserting ‘‘title I’’; 

3 (B) in paragraph (2)— 

4 (i) by striking ‘‘the President or’’; and 

5 (ii) by inserting ‘‘and other ethics 

6 issues’’ before the semicolon; 

7 (C) in paragraph (3), by striking ‘‘title II 

8 of this Act’’ and inserting ‘‘title I’’; 

9 (D) in paragraph (4)— 

10 (i) by striking ‘‘conflict of interest 

11 laws or regulations’’ and inserting ‘‘laws or 

12 regulations relating to conflicts of interest 

13 or other ethics issues’’; and 

14 (ii) by striking ‘‘ethical problems’’ and 

15 inserting ‘‘other ethics issues’’; 

16 (E) in paragraph (6)— 

17 (i) by striking ‘‘the President or’’; and 

18 (ii) by striking ‘‘ethical problems’’ and 

19 inserting ‘‘other ethics issues’’; 

20 (F) in paragraph (7), by striking ‘‘conflict 

21 of interest problems’’ and inserting ‘‘conflicts of 

22 interest or other ethics issues’’; 

23 (G) by striking paragraph (9) and insert24 ing the following: 


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1 ‘‘(9)(A) investigating potential violations by of2 ficers and employees in the Federal Government (in3 cluding officers and employees in positions in the 

4 Executive Office of the President (including the 

5 White House Office)) of the laws or regulations re6 lating to conflicts of interest or other ethics issues; 

7 ‘‘(B) ordering (or with respect to the President, 

8 recommending) corrective action on the part of 

9 agencies, officers, and employees, as determined ap10 propriate by the Director; 

11 ‘‘(C) as the Director determines appropriate, 

12 referring an alleged violation of the laws or regula13 tions relating to conflicts of interest or other ethics 

14 issues to the Attorney General or the head of the ap15 propriate agency for civil or criminal enforcement; 

16 and 

17 ‘‘(D) order appropriate disciplinary action with 

18 respect to an officer or employee in the executive 

19 branch, in accordance with subsection (f)(2);’’; 

20 (H) by striking paragraph (11) and insert21 ing the following: 

22 ‘‘(11)(A) evaluating the effectiveness of the 

23 laws and regulations relating to conflicts of interest 

24 and other ethics issues and recommending to Con25 gress appropriate amendments to prevent corruption 


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1 and to improve Government ethics, accountability, 

2 public integrity, and transparency; and 

3 ‘‘(B) preparing an annual report to Congress, 

4 which shall include— 

5 ‘‘(i) any recommended amendments de6 scribed in subparagraph (A); 

7 ‘‘(ii) a description of any significant ac8 tions taken by the Director in carrying out the 

9 duties of the Director, including specific steps 

10 taken to ensure that Federal officers and em11 ployees are complying with the laws and regula12 tions relating to conflicts of interest or other 

13 ethics issues; 

14 ‘‘(iii) information concerning significant 

15 violations of the laws or regulations relating to 

16 conflicts of interest or other ethics issues; and 

17 ‘‘(iv) corrective action concerning violations 

18 described in clause (iii) and progress made in 

19 implementing such corrective action;’’; 

20 (I) in paragraph (12), by striking ‘‘conflict 

21 of interest and ethical problems’’ and inserting 

22 ‘‘conflicts of interest and other ethics issues’’; 

23 (J) by striking paragraph (13) and insert24 ing the following: 


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1 ‘‘(13) referring any potential violation of the 

2 laws and regulations relating to conflicts of interest 

3 and other ethics issues determined appropriate by 

4 the Director for criminal enforcement to the Attor5 ney General, accompanied by any evidence in the 

6 possession of the Director and recommendations, if 

7 any, of the Director regarding the appropriate 

8 charges or penalties;’’; 

9 (K) in paragraph (14), by striking ‘‘and’’ 

10 at the end; 

11 (L) in paragraph (15), by striking ‘‘title II 

12 of this Act.’’ and inserting ‘‘title I;’’; and 

13 (M) by adding at the end the following: 

14 ‘‘(16)(A) assuming responsibilities for disclo15 sures of executive branch financial holdings, lob16 bying, and influencing activities; 

17 ‘‘(B) conducting periodic and routine audits of 

18 disclosures described in subparagraph (A) to ensure 

19 the accuracy of the documents; and 

20 ‘‘(C) conducting targeted audits of disclosures 

21 described in subparagraph (A) when the Director 

22 has reason to believe such disclosures contain inac23 curacies or misinformation; 

24 ‘‘(17) receiving, and within a reasonable time25 frame responding to, complaints from members of 


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1 the public of alleged violations of the laws or regula2 tions relating to conflicts of interest or other ethics 

3 issues; 

4 ‘‘(18) reporting publicly anonymized informa5 tion regarding the resolution of complaints received 

6 under paragraph (17); 

7 ‘‘(19) making available online on a central 

8 website that allows records to be available in a 

9 searchable, sortable, and downloadable format all 

10 ethics records that are required to be made publicly 

11 available under any provision of law, or that the Di12 rector determines may and should be made publicly 

13 available, including ethics records described sub14 section (j)(1); 

15 ‘‘(20) after providing notice and an opportunity 

16 for a hearing, imposing appropriate civil monetary 

17 penalties against individuals and entities who violate 

18 the laws or regulations relating to conflicts of inter19 est or other ethics issues; 

20 ‘‘(21) making appropriate enforcement referrals 

21 to the Securities and Exchange Commission, the Of22 fice of the Special Counsel, and other relevant Fed23 eral or State law enforcement agencies in instances 

24 of violations of Federal or State law, where appro25 priate; 


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1 ‘‘(22) except as otherwise required by law or re2 served to the President, making and overseeing any 

3 waiver of the laws or regulations relating to conflicts 

4 of interest or other ethics issues; 

5 ‘‘(23) testifying before each House of Congress 

6 at least annually; 

7 ‘‘(24) approving any significant determination 

8 by a designated agency ethics official, including any 

9 ethics agreement, financial disclosure, recusal agree10 ment, or divestment determination, for any indi11 vidual serving in a position— 

12 ‘‘(A) on any level of the Executive Sched13 ule under subchapter II of chapter 53 of title 

14 5, United States Code; 

15 ‘‘(B) in the executive branch pursuant to 

16 an appointment by the President, by and with 

17 the advice and consent of the Senate; or 

18 ‘‘(C) in the Executive Office of the Presi19 dent; 

20 ‘‘(25) overseeing the day to day activities of 

21 each Inspector General in the executive branch, ex22 cept to the extent provided otherwise by law; and 

23 ‘‘(26) administering the provisions of this title 

24 as they pertain to the heads of agencies.’’; 

25 (3) in subsection (e)— 


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1 (A) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘and’’ at 

2 the end; 

3 (B) in paragraph (2), by striking the pe4 riod at the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

5 (C) by adding at the end the following: 

6 ‘‘(3) each executive agency shall furnish to the 

7 Director all information and records in the posses8 sion of the executive agency that the Director deter9 mines to be necessary for the performance of the du10 ties of the Director.’’; 

11 (4) in subsection (f)— 

12 (A) in paragraph (1)(A)— 

13 (i) in clause (i), by inserting ‘‘(or, 

14 with respect to the President, rec15 ommend)’’ after ‘‘order’’ the first place it 

16 appears; and 

17 (ii) in clause (ii), by inserting ‘‘(or, 

18 with respect to the President, rec19 ommend)’’ after ‘‘order’’; 

20 (B) in paragraph (2)— 

21 (i) in subparagraph (A)— 

22 (I) in clause (ii)(II), by inserting 

23 ‘‘and Congress’’ after the ‘‘the Presi24 dent’’; and 

25 (II) in clause (iv)— 


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1 (aa) in subclause (I), by 

2 striking ‘‘may recommend’’ and 

3 all that follows through ‘‘brought 

4 against the officer or employee’’ 

5 and inserting ‘‘may recommend 

6 that the agency head take a spe7 cific disciplinary action (including 

8 reprimand, suspension, demotion, 

9 or dismissal) or that the agency 

10 head take such disciplinary ac11 tion as the agency head deter12 mines appropriate with respect to 

13 the officer or employee’’; and 

14 (bb) by striking subclause 

15 (II) and inserting the following: 

16 ‘‘(II) if the Director recommends 

17 a specific disciplinary action under 

18 subclause (I) and the head of the 

19 agency (not including the President) 

20 has not taken appropriate disciplinary 

21 action within 90 days after the Direc22 tor recommends such action, may, 

23 after notifying the President and Con24 gress in writing, order appropriate 

25 disciplinary action with respect to the 


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1 officer or employee, in accordance 

2 with subparagraph (B), including rep3 rimand, suspension, demotion, or dis4 missal of the officer or employee.’’; 

5 (ii) in subparagraph (B)— 

6 (I) by striking clause (iii) and in7 serting the following: 

8 ‘‘(iii) Subject to clause (iv) of this subparagraph, be9 fore the Director orders any action under subparagraph 

10 (A)(iii) or orders any disciplinary action under subpara11 graph (A)(iv), the Director shall afford the officer or em12 ployee involved an opportunity for a hearing, if requested 

13 by such officer or employee, which shall be conducted on 

14 the record.’’; 

15 (II) by redesignating clause (iv) 

16 as clause (vi); 

17 (III) by inserting after clause 

18 (iii) the following: 

19 ‘‘(iv) The Director shall make publicly available any 

20 recommendation of a specific disciplinary action made by 

21 the Director under subparagraph (A)(iv)(I). 

22 ‘‘(v) The authority of the Director under subpara23 graph (A)(iv)(II) to order disciplinary action may not be 

24 delegated.’’; and 


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1 (IV) in clause (vi), as so redesig2 nated— 

3 (aa) by striking ‘‘title 2’’ 

4 and inserting ‘‘title I’’; and 

5 (bb) by striking ‘‘section 

6 206’’ and inserting ‘‘section 

7 104’’; and 

8 (iii) by adding at the end the fol9 lowing: 

10 ‘‘(C)(i)(I) A political appointee (as defined in section 

11 714(h) of title 38, United States Code) with respect to 

12 whom the Director orders a disciplinary action under sub13 paragraph (A)(iv) may appeal the order to the President. 

14 ‘‘(II) A determination by the President in an appeal 

15 under subclause (I) shall be— 

16 ‘‘(aa) made in writing; 

17 ‘‘(bb) submitted to Congress; and 

18 ‘‘(cc) made publicly available by the President. 

19 ‘‘(III) A determination by the President in an appeal 

20 under subclause (I) shall not be subject to judicial review. 

21 ‘‘(ii) An officer or employee who is not a political ap22 pointee with respect to whom the Director orders a dis23 ciplinary action under subparagraph (A)(iv) may— 


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1 ‘‘(I) appeal a final order or decision of the Di2 rector to the Merit Systems Protection Board under 

3 section 7701 of title 5, United States Code; and 

4 ‘‘(II) seek judicial review of a final order or de5 cision of the Merit Systems Protection Board in the 

6 Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit in accord7 ance with section 7703 of title 5, United States 

8 Code.’’; 

9 (C) in paragraph (3), in the matter pre10 ceding subparagraph (A), by striking ‘‘para11 graph (2)(A)(iii)’’ and inserting ‘‘clause (iii) or 

12 (iv) of paragraph (2)(A)’’; 

13 (D) by striking paragraph (5); and 

14 (E) by redesignating paragraph (6) as 

15 paragraph (5); and 

16 (5) by adding at the end the following: 

17 ‘‘(g) As part of an investigation of potential violations 

18 of the laws or regulations relating to conflicts of interest 

19 or other ethics issues, the Director may require by sub20 poena the attendance of and testimony by witnesses and 

21 the production any book, check, canceled check, cor22 respondence, communication, document, email, papers, 

23 physical evidence, record, recording, tape, or other mate24 rial (including electronic records) relating to any matter 


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1 or question the Director is authorized to investigate from 

2 any individual or entity. 

3 ‘‘(h)(1) If the Attorney General declines to prosecute 

4 a criminal matter referred by the Director, the Attorney 

5 General shall submit to the Director and make publicly 

6 available written notice regarding the declination. 

7 ‘‘(2) The Attorney General may redact information 

8 from the publicly available written notice under paragraph 

9 (1) if the Attorney General determines that disclosure of 

10 the information would constitute a clearly unwarranted in11 vasion of personal privacy. 

12 ‘‘(i)(1) In addition to the authority otherwise pro13 vided by this Act, the Director, any Assistant Director for 

14 Investigations under the Director who is appointed by the 

15 Director, and any special agent supervised by the Director 

16 or Assistant Director may be authorized by the Attorney 

17 General to seek warrants for search of a premises or sei18 zure of evidence issued under the authority of the United 

19 States upon probable cause to believe that a violation has 

20 been committed. 

21 ‘‘(2) The Attorney General shall promulgate, and re22 vise as appropriate, guidelines which shall govern the exer23 cise of the law enforcement powers established under para24 graph (1). 


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1 ‘‘(3)(A) The power authorized for the Office of Public 

2 Integrity under paragraph (1) may be rescinded or sus3 pended upon— 

4 ‘‘(i) a determination by the Attorney General 

5 that the exercise of authorized power by the Office 

6 of Public Integrity has not complied with the guide7 lines promulgated by the Attorney General under 

8 paragraph (2); or 

9 ‘‘(ii) a determination by the Attorney General 

10 that available assistance from other law enforcement 

11 agencies is sufficient to meet the need for such pow12 ers. 

13 ‘‘(B) The powers authorized to be exercised by any 

14 individual under paragraph (1) may be rescinded or sus15 pended with respect to that individual upon a determina16 tion by the Attorney General that such individual has not 

17 complied with guidelines promulgated by the Attorney 

18 General under paragraph (2). 

19 ‘‘(4) No provision of this subsection shall limit the 

20 exercise of law enforcement powers established under any 

21 other statutory authority, including United States Mar22 shals Service special deputation. 

23 ‘‘(j)(1) In carrying out subsection (b)(19), except for 

24 classified records and any specific record described in this 

25 paragraph the Director determines should not be made 


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1 publicly available, the website described in subsection 

2 (b)(19) shall include— 

3 ‘‘(A) public financial disclosure reports of nomi4 nees and appointees to positions on any level of the 

5 Executive Schedule under subchapter II of chapter 

6 53 of title 5, United States Code; 

7 ‘‘(B) other public financial disclosure reports 

8 reviewed by the Office of Public Integrity; 

9 ‘‘(C) ethics agreements of individuals nomi10 nated or appointed to a position by the President; 

11 ‘‘(D) certifications of compliance with ethics 

12 agreements by individuals appointed to a position by 

13 the President; 

14 ‘‘(E) ethics agreements of individuals appointed 

15 pursuant to subparagraph (A), (B), or (C) of section 

16 105(a)(2) or subparagraph (A), (B), or (C) of sec17 tion 106(a)(1) of title 3, United States Code; 

18 ‘‘(F) certifications of compliance with ethics 

19 agreements by individuals appointed pursuant to 

20 subparagraph (A), (B), or (C) of section 105(a)(2) 

21 or subparagraph (A), (B), or (C) of section 

22 106(a)(1) of title 3, United States Code; 

23 ‘‘(G) all ethics waivers, including waivers for 

24 senior government officials as defined in section 101 


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1 of the Anti-Corruption and Public Integrity Act, 

2 issued pursuant to— 

3 ‘‘(i) section 207 or 208 of title 18, United 

4 States Code; 

5 ‘‘(ii) section 2635.502(d) of title 5, Code of 

6 Federal Regulations, or any successor thereto; 

7 ‘‘(iii) section 2635.503(c) of title 5, Code 

8 of Federal Regulations, or any successor there9 to; 

10 ‘‘(iv) any Executive order; and 

11 ‘‘(v) any other authority to waive other 

12 ethics requirements or extend any ethics-related 

13 deadlines; 

14 ‘‘(H) certificates of divestiture; 

15 ‘‘(I) records of approval by agencies of the ac16 ceptance of gifts by individuals appointed to a posi17 tion by the President from outside sources for which 

18 employees must obtain agency approval; 

19 ‘‘(J) records relating to the initial ethics brief20 ings of individuals appointed to a position by the 

21 President required by section 2638.305 of title 5, 

22 Code of Federal Regulations, or any successor there23 to; 

24 ‘‘(K) records of ethics training completed by in25 dividuals appointed to a position by the President; 


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1 ‘‘(L) reports of the review by the Office of Pub2 lic Integrity of agency ethics programs; 

3 ‘‘(M) report filed by executive agencies with the 

4 General Services Administration regarding the use 

5 of Government aircraft by senior officials, which 

6 shall be posted at least every 90 days and shall con7 tain a complete explanation of the decision to use a 

8 Government aircraft, the cost of the use of a Gov9 ernment aircraft, and the selection of the type of 

10 aircraft used; 

11 ‘‘(N) any reports submitted to Congress by the 

12 Office of Public Integrity; and 

13 ‘‘(O) any other ethics records that the Director 

14 makes available to the public. 

15 ‘‘(2) The Director shall ensure that— 

16 ‘‘(A) all ethics agreements approved by the Di17 rector specify conflicts of interest for each indi18 vidual, including all matters from which the indi19 vidual shall be recused; and 

20 ‘‘(B) the information relating to ethics agree21 ments made available under subsection (b)(19) is 

22 updated to reflect any additional matters from which 

23 the individual shall be recused.’’. 


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1 (d) REPORTS TO CONGRESS.—Section 408 of the 

2 Ethics in Government Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App.) is 

3 amended— 

4 (1) by inserting ‘‘(a)’’ before ‘‘The Director 

5 shall,’’; and 

6 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

7 ‘‘(b) Notwithstanding any other provision of law or 

8 any rule, regulation, or policy directive, upon request by 

9 a committee or subcommittee of Congress, the Director, 

10 or any employee of the Office of Public Integrity des11 ignated by the Director, may transmit to the committee 

12 or subcommittee, by report, testimony, or otherwise, infor13 mation and views on functions, responsibilities, or other 

14 matters relating to the Office of Public Integrity, without 

15 review, clearance, or approval by any other administrative 

16 authority. 

17 ‘‘(c)(1) For each fiscal year, the Director may trans18 mit a budget estimate and request to Congress. 

19 ‘‘(2) The President shall include in each budget sub20 mitted under section 1105 of title 31, United States 

21 Code— 

22 ‘‘(A) a separate statement of the budget esti23 mate and request prepared with the Director; 

24 ‘‘(B) the amount requested by the President for 

25 the Office of Public Integrity; and 


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1 ‘‘(C) any comments of the Director with respect 

2 to the proposal by the President if the Director con3 cludes that the budget submitted by the President 

4 would substantially inhibit the Director from per5 forming the duties of the office.’’. 

6 (e) DEFINITIONS.—Title IV of the Ethics in Govern7 ment Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App.) is amended by adding 

8 at the end the following: 

9 ‘‘SEC. 409. DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this 

10 title— 

11 ‘‘(1) the term ‘agency’ includes the Executive 

12 Office of the President; 

13 ‘‘(2) the term ‘head of an agency’ includes the 

14 President or a designee of the President, for pur15 poses of applying this title to the White House and 

16 the Executive Office of the President; and 

17 ‘‘(3) the term ‘laws or regulations relating to 

18 conflicts of interest or other ethics issues’ includes 

19 this Act, sections 203 through 209 of title 18, 

20 United States Code, the Stop Trading on Congres21 sional Knowledge Act of 2012 (Public Law 112–105; 

22 5 U.S.C. App., note to section 101 of Public Law 

23 95–521), any Executive order substantially con24 cerning Government ethics, any written ethics agree25 ment or pledge signed by a Presidential appointee, 


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1 and any other relevant ethics statutes or regula2 tions.’’. 

3 (f) PROVISION OF FINANCIAL DISCLOSURES TO THE

4 OFFICE OF PUBLIC INTEGRITY.—Section 103(j) of the 

5 Ethics in Government Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App.) is 

6 amended— 

7 (1) in paragraph (1), by inserting ‘‘and the Di8 rector of the Office of Public Integrity’’ after ‘‘Offi9 cial Conduct of the House of Representatives’’; and 

10 (2) in paragraph (2), by inserting ‘‘and the Di11 rector of the Office of Public Integrity’’ after ‘‘Eth12 ics of the Senate’’. 

13 (g) TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

14 (1) Section 5314 of title 5, United States Code, 

15 is amended by striking the item relating to the Di16 rector of the Office of Government Ethics and in17 serting the following: 

18 ‘‘Director of the Office of Public Integrity.’’. 

19 (2) Section 7302(a) of title 5, United States 

20 Code, is amended by striking ‘‘Government Ethics’’ 

21 and inserting ‘‘Public Integrity’’. 

22 (3) Section 7353(d)(1)(D) of title 5, United 

23 States Code, is amended by striking ‘‘Government 

24 Ethics’’ and inserting ‘‘Public Integrity’’. 


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1 (4) Section 11(b)(1)(E) of the Inspector Gen2 eral Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App.) is amended by 

3 striking ‘‘Government Ethics’’ and inserting ‘‘Public 

4 Integrity’’. 

5 (5) Section 12(f) of the Federal Deposit Insur6 ance Act (12 U.S.C. 1822(f)) is amended by striking 

7 ‘‘Government Ethics’’ each place it appears and in8 serting ‘‘Public Integrity’’. 

9 (6) Section 152(g) of the Financial Stability 

10 Act of 2010 (12 U.S.C. 5342(g)) is amended by 

11 striking ‘‘Government Ethics’’ and inserting ‘‘Public 

12 Integrity’’. 

13 (7) Section 9(o)(12) of the Small Business Act 

14 (15 U.S.C. 638(o)(12)) is amended by striking 

15 ‘‘Government Ethics’’ and inserting ‘‘Public Integ16 rity’’. 

17 (8) Section 207 of title 18, United States Code, 

18 is amended by striking ‘‘Government Ethics’’ each 

19 place it appears and inserting ‘‘Public Integrity’’. 

20 (9) Section 208 of title 18, United States Code, 

21 is amended by striking ‘‘Government Ethics’’ each 

22 place it appears and inserting ‘‘Public Integrity’’. 

23 (10) Section 1043(b) of the Internal Revenue 

24 Code of 1986 is amended by striking ‘‘Government 


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1 Ethics’’ each place it appears and inserting ‘‘Public 

2 Integrity’’. 

3 (11) Section 594(j)(5) of title 28, United States 

4 Code, is amended by striking ‘‘Government Ethics’’ 

5 and inserting ‘‘Public Integrity’’. 

6 (12) Section 1353 of title 31, United States 

7 Code, is amended by striking ‘‘Government Ethics’’ 

8 each place it appears and inserting ‘‘Public Integ9 rity’’. 

10 (13) Section 2303(c) of title 41, United States 

11 Code, is amended by striking ‘‘Government Ethics’’ 

12 and inserting ‘‘Public Integrity’’. 

13 (14) Section 3(d)(3) of the Department of the 

14 Interior Volunteer Recruitment Act of 2005 (43 

15 U.S.C. 1475b(d)(3)) is amended by striking ‘‘Gov16 ernment Ethics’’ and inserting ‘‘Public Integrity’’. 

17 (15) Section 40122(d) of title 49, United States 

18 Code, is amended by striking ‘‘Government Ethics’’ 

19 and inserting ‘‘Public Integrity’’. 

20 (16) Section 102A of the National Security Act 

21 of 1947 (50 U.S.C. 3024) is amended by striking 

22 ‘‘Government Ethics’’ each place it appears and in23 serting ‘‘Public Integrity’’. 

24 (17) Section 12(g) of the Central Intelligence 

25 Agency Act of 1949 (50 U.S.C. 3512(g)) is amended 


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1 in the matter preceding paragraph (1) by striking 

2 ‘‘Government Ethics’’ and inserting ‘‘Public Integ3 rity’’. 

4 SEC. 512. DESIGNATED AGENCY ETHICS OFFICIALS. 

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 109(3) of the Ethics in 

6 Government Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App.) is amended to 

7 read as follows: 

8 ‘‘(3) ‘designated agency ethics official’ means 

9 an officer or employee of an agency— 

10 ‘‘(A) who is appointed and supervised by 

11 the head of the agency, after consultation with 

12 the Director of the Office of Public Integrity 

13 and the Inspector General of the agency; 

14 ‘‘(B) who may only be removed by the 

15 head of the agency, after consultation with the 

16 Director of the Office of Public Integrity and 

17 the Inspector General of the agency; 

18 ‘‘(C) has a permanent duty station in the 

19 same physical building as the head of the agen20 cy employing the officer or employee, unless the 

21 head of the agency is the President; 

22 ‘‘(D) is designated to administer the provi23 sions of this title within the agency, except as 

24 they pertain to the head of the agency; 


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1 ‘‘(E) may not have other significant duties 

2 or responsibilities that might distract from the 

3 duty of the officer or employee to administer 

4 the provisions of this title within the agency; 

5 and 

6 ‘‘(F) who shall not, at any time or in any 

7 manner, be prevented, inhibited, or prohibited 

8 by the head of the agency from administering 

9 the provisions of this title within the agency.’’. 

10 (b) REVIEW BY DIRECTOR.—Section 111 of the Eth11 ics in Government Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App.) is amend12 ed— 

13 (1) by inserting ‘‘(a)’’ before ‘‘The provisions’’; 

14 (2) by inserting ‘‘(subject to subsection (b))’’ 

15 after ‘‘designated agency ethics official’’; and 

16 (3) by adding at the end the following: 

17 ‘‘(b)(1) A designated agency ethics official shall sub18 mit to the Director of the Office of Public Integrity— 

19 ‘‘(A) each significant determination (including 

20 any ethics agreement, financial disclosure, recusal 

21 agreement, or divestment determination) by the des22 ignated agency ethics official relating to the applica23 tion or implementation of the laws or regulations re24 lating to conflicts of interest or other ethics issues 


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1 (including this title) for any individual serving in a 

2 position— 

3 ‘‘(i) on any level of the Executive Schedule 

4 under subchapter II of chapter 53 of title 5, 

5 United States Code; 

6 ‘‘(ii) in the executive branch pursuant to 

7 an appointment by the President, by and with 

8 the advice and consent of the Senate; or 

9 ‘‘(iii) in the Executive Office of the Presi10 dent; 

11 ‘‘(B) any determination by the designated agen12 cy ethics official relating to the application or imple13 mentation of the laws or regulations relating to con14 flicts of interest or other ethics issues (including this 

15 title) that the Director requests from the designated 

16 agency ethics official. 

17 ‘‘(2) The Director of the Office of Public Integrity— 

18 ‘‘(A) may review any determination received 

19 under paragraph (1); 

20 ‘‘(B) shall notify and advise the designated 

21 agency ethics official if the Director determines that 

22 the determination received under paragraph (1) does 

23 not comport with the laws or regulations relating to 

24 conflicts of interest or other ethics issues; 


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1 ‘‘(C) not later than 30 days after the notifica2 tion and advice under subparagraph (B), may re3 verse or modify the determination if the Director de4 termines that the determination does not comport 

5 with the laws or regulations relating to conflicts of 

6 interest or other ethics issues; and 

7 ‘‘(D) shall periodically audit a sample of deter8 minations received under paragraph (1).’’. 

9 (c) AUTHORITY TO RECOMMEND DISCIPLINE.—Sec10 tion 111 of the Ethics in Government Act of 1978 (5 

11 U.S.C. App.), as amended by subsection (b), is amended 

12 by adding at the end the following: 

13 ‘‘(c)(1) If a designated agency ethics official has cred14 ible evidence or reason to believe that an officer or em15 ployee of the agency is violating, or has violated, any rule, 

16 regulation, or Executive order relating to conflicts of inter17 est or standards of conduct, the designated agency ethics 

18 official may— 

19 ‘‘(A) refer potential violations to the Inspector 

20 General or the Director of the Office of Public In21 tegrity; and 

22 ‘‘(B) recommend that the head of the agency 

23 take a specific disciplinary action (including dis24 missal). 


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1 ‘‘(2) A designated agency ethics official shall make 

2 publicly available any recommendation of a specific dis3 ciplinary action made by the designated agency ethics offi4 cial under paragraph (1).’’. 

5 (d) CURRENT DAEOS.—An individual serving as a 

6 designated agency ethics official on the day before the date 

7 of enactment of this Act may continue to serve as the des8 ignated agency ethics official for the agency employing the 

9 individual if— 

10 (1) determined appropriate by the head of the 

11 agency employing the designated agency ethics offi12 cial; and 

13 (2) after the date of enactment of this Act, the 

14 individual— 

15 (A) reports directly to the head of the 

16 agency employing the designated agency ethics 

17 official; and 

18 (B) may only be removed by the head of 

19 the agency, after consultation with the Director 

20 of the Office of Public Integrity and the Inspec21 tor General of the agency. 


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1 Subtitle B—Inspectors General 

2 SEC. 531. GENERAL SUPERVISION AND REMOVAL OF IN3 SPECTORS GENERAL. 

4 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Inspector General Act of 

5 1978 (5 U.S.C. App.) is amended— 

6 (1) in section 3— 

7 (A) in subsection (a), by striking the sec8 ond sentence and inserting the following: ‘‘Each 

9 Inspector General shall report to and be under 

10 the general supervision of the Director of the 

11 Office of Public Integrity, and shall not report 

12 to, or be subject to supervision by, any other of13 ficer of the establishment involved.’’; and 

14 (B) in subsection (b)— 

15 (i) in the first sentence— 

16 (I) by inserting ‘‘(1)’’ before ‘‘An 

17 Inspector General’’; and 

18 (II) by inserting ‘‘for inefficiency, 

19 neglect of duty, or malfeasance in of20 fice’’ before the period at the end; 

21 (ii) by striking the second sentence 

22 and inserting the following: ‘‘The Director 

23 of the Office of Public Integrity may make 

24 a formal recommendation to the President 

25 for the removal of an Inspector General 


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1 under this subsection. If an Inspector Gen2 eral is removed from office, is transferred 

3 to another position or location within an 

4 establishment, or is placed on paid or un5 paid leave, the President shall commu6 nicate in writing the reasons for any such 

7 removal, leave placement, or transfer to 

8 both Houses of Congress and to the Direc9 tor of the Office of Public Integrity not 

10 later than 30 days before the removal, 

11 leave placement, or transfer.’’; and 

12 (iii) by adding at the end the fol13 lowing: 

14 ‘‘(2)(A) In the event of a vacancy in the position of 

15 Inspector General of an establishment of more than 210 

16 days, the Director of the Office of Public Integrity may 

17 direct an officer or employee of the establishment to per18 form the functions and duties of the position of Inspector 

19 General temporarily in an acting capacity for a period of 

20 not more than 365 days. 

21 ‘‘(B) If an Inspector General of an establishment is 

22 not appointed during the 365-day period described in sub23 paragraph (A), the Director of the Office of Public Integ24 rity may direct the same or another officer or employee 

25 of the establishment to perform the functions and duties 


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1 of the position of Inspector General temporarily in an act2 ing capacity for a period of not more than 365 days. 

3 ‘‘(C) If an Inspector General of an establishment is 

4 not appointed during the 365-day period described in sub5 paragraph (B), the Director of the Office of Public Integ6 rity may direct the same or another officer or employee 

7 of the establishment to perform the functions and duties 

8 of the position of Inspector General temporarily in an act9 ing capacity for a period of not more than 365 days.’’; 

10 (2) in section 8A(a), by inserting ‘‘and the Di11 rector of the Office of Public Integrity’’ before the 

12 period at the end; 

13 (3) in section 8B, by amending subsection (a) 

14 to read as follows: 

15 ‘‘(a) The Director of the Office of Public Integrity— 

16 ‘‘(1) may delegate the authority specified in the 

17 second sentence of section 3(a) to the Chairman or 

18 another member of the Nuclear Regulatory Commis19 sion; and 

20 ‘‘(2) may not delegate the authority specified in 

21 the second sentence of section 3(a) to any other offi22 cer or employee of the Nuclear Regulatory Commis23 sion.’’; 

24 (4) in section 8C, by amending subsection (a) 

25 to read as follows: 


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1 ‘‘(a) DELEGATION.—The Director of the Office of 

2 Public Integrity— 

3 ‘‘(1) may delegate the authority specified in the 

4 second sentence of section 3(a) to the Chairperson 

5 or Vice Chairperson of the Federal Deposit Insur6 ance Corporation; and 

7 ‘‘(2) may not delegate the authority specified in 

8 the second sentence of section 3(a) to any other offi9 cer or employee of the Federal Deposit Insurance 

10 Corporation.’’; 

11 (5) in section 8G— 

12 (A) in subsection (a)— 

13 (i) in paragraph (5), by striking 

14 ‘‘and’’ at the end; 

15 (ii) in paragraph (6), by striking the 

16 period at the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; 

17 and 

18 (iii) by adding at the end the fol19 lowing: 

20 ‘‘(7) the term ‘Director’ means the Director of 

21 the Office of Public Integrity.’’; 

22 (B) in subsection (c), in the first sentence, 

23 by inserting ‘‘, after consulting with the Direc24 tor,’’ after ‘‘head of the designated Federal en25 tity’’; 


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1 (C) in subsection (d)(1), by striking the 

2 first sentence and inserting the following: 

3 ‘‘Each Inspector General shall report to and be 

4 under the general supervision of the Director, 

5 and shall not report to, or be subject to super6 vision by, any other officer or employee of the 

7 designated Federal entity.’’; and 

8 (D) in subsection (e)— 

9 (i) in paragraph (1), by inserting 

10 ‘‘and after consulting with the Director’’ 

11 before the period at the end; and 

12 (ii) in paragraph (2), by inserting ‘‘An 

13 Inspector General may be removed from 

14 office by the head of the designated Fed15 eral entity for inefficiency, neglect of duty, 

16 or malfeasance in office after the head of 

17 the designated entity consults with the Di18 rector, or by the President for inefficiency, 

19 neglect of duty, or malfeasance in office.’’ 

20 before ‘‘If an Inspector’’; and 

21 (6) in section 8M(b)(1)— 

22 (A) in subparagraph (A), by striking 

23 ‘‘and’’ at the end; 


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1 (B) in subparagraph (B)(iii)(II), by strik2 ing the period at the end and inserting a semi3 colon; and 

4 (C) by adding at the end the following: 

5 ‘‘(C) ensure that, if any portion of a report 

6 described in subparagraph (A) contains infor7 mation that is classified, sensitive, or otherwise 

8 prohibited from disclosure by law, a redacted 

9 version of the report be posted on the website 

10 of the Office of Inspector General that does not 

11 contain the classified, sensitive, or prohibited 

12 information; 

13 ‘‘(D) ensure that, if an entire report de14 scribed in subparagraph (A) is classified, sen15 sitive, or otherwise prohibited from disclosure 

16 by law, the Inspector General posts the title of 

17 the report, the date of publication of the report, 

18 a general description of the subject matter of 

19 the report, and a justification for the report not 

20 to be posted on the website of the Office of In21 spector General; and 

22 ‘‘(E) include on the website of the Office 

23 of Inspector General a listing of each report de24 scribed in subparagraph (D) that is not posted 

25 on the website.’’. 


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1 (b) INSPECTOR GENERAL OF THE CENTRAL INTEL2 LIGENCE AGENCY.—Section 17(b) of the Central Intel3 ligence Agency Act of 1949 (50 U.S.C. 3517(b)) is amend4 ed— 

5 (1) in paragraph (2), by inserting ‘‘of the Office 

6 of Public Integrity, who may delegate that authority 

7 to the Director of the Agency’’ before the period at 

8 the end; and 

9 (2) in paragraph (6)— 

10 (A) in the first sentence, by inserting ‘‘for 

11 inefficiency, neglect of duty, or malfeasance in 

12 office’’ before the period at the end; and 

13 (B) by inserting after the first sentence 

14 the following: ‘‘The Director of the Office of 

15 Public Integrity may make a formal rec16 ommendation to the President for the removal 

17 of the Inspector General under this para18 graph.’’. 

19 (c) INSPECTOR GENERAL OF THE INTELLIGENCE

20 COMMUNITY.—Section 103H(c) of the National Security 

21 Act of 1947 (50 U.S.C. 3033(c)) is amended— 

22 (1) in paragraph (3), by striking ‘‘National In23 telligence’’ and inserting ‘‘the Office of Public Integ24 rity, who may delegate that authority to the Director 

25 of National Intelligence’’; and 


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1 (2) in paragraph (4)— 

2 (A) in the first sentence, by inserting ‘‘for 

3 inefficiency, neglect of duty, or malfeasance in 

4 office’’ before the period at the end; and 

5 (B) by inserting after the first sentence 

6 the following: ‘‘The Director of the Office of 

7 Public Integrity may make a formal rec8 ommendation to the President for the removal 

9 of the Inspector General under this para10 graph.’’. 

11 (d) INSPECTOR GENERAL OF SIGAR.—Section 

12 1229(e)(1) of the National Defense Authorization Act for 

13 Fiscal Year 2008 (Public Law 110–181; 122 Stat. 379) 

14 is amended by striking ‘‘the Secretary of State and the 

15 Secretary of Defense’’ and inserting ‘‘the Director of the 

16 Office of Public Integrity, who may delegate that authority 

17 to the Secretary of State and the Secretary of Defense’’. 

18 (e) INSPECTOR GENERAL OF SIGTARP.—Section 

19 121(b) of the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 

20 2008 (12 U.S.C. 5231(b)) is amended by adding at the 

21 end the following: 

22 ‘‘(7) The Special Inspector General shall report to 

23 and be under the general supervision of the Director of 

24 the Office of Public Integrity, who may delegate that au25 thority to the Secretary.’’. 


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1 (f) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS TO FEDERAL VA2 CANCIES REFORM ACT.—Subchapter III of chapter 33 of 

3 title 5, United States Code, is amended— 

4 (1) in section 3345— 

5 (A) in subsection (a), in the matter pre6 ceding paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘If’’ and in7 serting ‘‘Subject to subsection (d), if’’ and 

8 (B) by adding at the end the following: 

9 ‘‘(d) After the date that is 210 days after the date 

10 on which a vacancy in the office of the Inspector General 

11 of an agency described in subsection (a) begins, the Presi12 dent may not exercise the authority under this section with 

13 respect to that vacancy in the office of the Inspector Gen14 eral.’’; 

15 (2) in section 3346— 

16 (A) in subsection (a), in the matter pre17 ceding paragraph (1), by inserting ‘‘and subject 

18 to subsection (d),’’ after ‘‘sickness,’’; and 

19 (B) by adding at the end the following: 

20 ‘‘(d) A person serving as acting officer in the office 

21 of the Inspector General of an agency under section 3345 

22 may not serve in the office after the date that is 210 days 

23 after the date on which the vacancy in the office begins, 

24 without regard to whether a nomination to the office has 

25 been submitted to, is pending in, has been rejected by, 


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1 has been withdrawn by the President from, or has been 

2 returned to the President by the Senate.’’; 

3 (3) in section 3349(b), in the matter preceding 

4 paragraph (1), by inserting ‘‘, or, in the case of an 

5 Inspector General, that an officer is serving after 

6 the end of the 210-day period under section 

7 3346(d),’’ after ‘‘3349a,’’; and 

8 (4) in section 3349a(b), in the matter preceding 

9 paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘With’’ and inserting 

10 ‘‘Except in the case of an Inspector General, with’’. 

11 Subtitle C—Office of Congressional 

12 Ethics 

13 SEC. 551. DEFINITIONS. 

14 In this subtitle— 

15 (1) the term ‘‘applicable ethics committee’’ 

16 means the Select Committee on Ethics of the Senate 

17 (for Senators and employees of the Senate) or the 

18 Committee on Ethics of the House of Representa19 tives (for Members of the House of Representatives 

20 and employees of the House of Representatives); 

21 (2) the term ‘‘Board’’ means the Congressional 

22 Ethics Board established under section 553(a); 

23 (3) the term ‘‘employee of Congress’’ means an 

24 employee of the House of Representatives or an em25 ployee of the Senate; 


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1 (4) the term ‘‘employee of the House of Rep2 resentatives’’ has the meaning given the term in sec3 tion 101 of the Congressional Accountability Act of 

4 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1301) and includes an elected or ap5 pointed officer of the House of Representatives; 

6 (5) the term ‘‘employee of the Senate’’ has the 

7 meaning given the term in section 101 of the Con8 gressional Accountability Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 

9 1301) and includes an elected or appointed officer of 

10 the Senate; and 

11 (6) the term ‘‘Member’’ means any Senator or 

12 Representative in, or Delegate or Resident Commis13 sioner to, the Congress. 

14 SEC. 552. THE OFFICE OF CONGRESSIONAL ETHICS. 

15 For the purpose of assisting the House of Represent16 atives and the Senate in carrying out the responsibilities 

17 under article I, section 5, clause 2 of the Constitution of 

18 the United States (commonly referred to as the ‘‘Dis19 cipline Clause’’), there is established an independent office 

20 in the legislative branch to be known as the ‘‘Office of 

21 Congressional Ethics’’ (referred to in this subtitle as the 

22 ‘‘Office’’), which shall be governed by the Congressional 

23 Ethics Board established under section 553(a). 


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1 SEC. 553. ESTABLISHMENT OF THE BOARD OF THE OFFICE 

2 OF CONGRESSIONAL ETHICS. 

3 (a) BOARD.— 

4 (1) ESTABLISHMENT OF BOARD.—The Office 

5 shall be governed by a Congressional Ethics Board 

6 consisting of 9 members, of whom— 

7 (A) 2 shall be appointed by the President 

8 pro tempore of the Senate; 

9 (B) 2 shall be appointed by the minority 

10 leader of the Senate; 

11 (C) 2 shall be appointed by the Speaker of 

12 the House of Representatives; 

13 (D) 2 shall be appointed by the minority 

14 leader of the House of Representatives; and 

15 (E) 1 shall be appointed by agreement of 

16 the President pro tempore of the Senate, the 

17 minority leader of the Senate, the Speaker of 

18 the House of Representatives, and the minority 

19 leader of the House of Representatives, or by 

20 agreement of not less than 3 of those individ21 uals. 

22 (2) QUALIFICATIONS OF BOARD MEMBERS.— 

23 (A) EXPERTISE.—Each member of the 

24 Board shall be an individual of exceptional pub25 lic standing who is specifically qualified to serve 

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1 cation, training, or experience in 1 or more of 

2 the legislative, judicial, regulatory, professional 

3 ethics, legal, or academic fields. 

4 (B) SELECTION BASIS.—Selection and ap5 pointment of each member of the Board shall 

6 be without regard to political affiliation and 

7 solely on the basis of fitness to perform the du8 ties of a member of the Board. 

9 (C) CITIZENSHIP.—Each member of the 

10 Board shall be a United States citizen. 

11 (D) DISQUALIFICATIONS.—No individual 

12 shall be eligible for appointment to, or service 

13 on, the Board who— 

14 (i) has ever been registered, or re15 quired to be registered, as a lobbyist under 

16 the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 (2 

17 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.); 

18 (ii) engages in, or is otherwise em19 ployed in, lobbying of the Congress; 

20 (iii) is registered or is required to be 

21 registered as an agent of a foreign prin22 cipal under the Foreign Agents Registra23 tion Act of 1938 (22 U.S.C. 611 et seq.); 

24 (iv) is, or has been in the 4 years pre25 ceding the date of appointment, a Member, 


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1 employee of the Senate, or employee of the 

2 House of Representatives; 

3 (v) is an officer or employee of the 

4 Federal Government; 

5 (vi) during the 4 years preceding the 

6 date of appointment, engaged in any sig7 nificant political activity (including being a 

8 candidate for public office, fundraising for 

9 a candidate for public office or a political 

10 party, or serving as an officer or employee 

11 of a political campaign or party); or 

12 (vii) during the 4 years preceding the 

13 date of appointment, served as a fiduciary 

14 or personal attorney for an officer or em15 ployee of the Federal Government, includ16 ing any Member. 

17 (3) TERM AND REMOVAL.— 

18 (A) LENGTH OF TERM.—The term of a 

19 member of the Board shall be for 2 Congresses. 

20 (B) TERM LIMITS.—A member of the 

21 Board may not serve during 4 consecutive Con22 gresses. 

23 (C) REMOVAL.—A member of the Board 

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1 pore and the minority leader of the Senate and 

2 the Speaker and the minority leader of the 

3 House of Representatives. 

4 (D) VACANCIES.—Any vacancy on the 

5 Board shall be filled for the unexpired portion 

6 of the term in the same manner, and by the 

7 same appointing authority, as the original ap8 pointment under paragraph (1). 

9 (b) CHAIRPERSON AND VICE-CHAIRPERSON.— 

10 (1) IN GENERAL.—The members of the Board 

11 shall elect a chairperson and a vice-chairperson of 

12 the Board by a majority vote. The chairperson and 

13 the vice-chairperson shall serve a 1-year term, and 

14 may be reelected for additional 1-year terms. 

15 (2) DUTIES.—The chairperson of the Board 

16 shall preside at the meetings of the Board, and the 

17 vice-chairperson shall preside in the absence or dis18 ability of the chairperson. 

19 (c) MEETINGS.— 

20 (1) QUORUM.—A majority of the members of 

21 the Board shall constitute a quorum, except that a 

22 lesser number of members may hold hearings. 

23 (2) MEETINGS.—The Board shall meet at the 

24 call of the chairperson or the call of a majority of 

25 its members, pursuant to the rules of the Board. 


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1 (3) VOTING.—Except as otherwise specifically 

2 provided, a majority vote of the Board under this 

3 subtitle shall require an affirmative vote of 5 or 

4 more members. 

5 (d) COMPENSATION.—A member of the Board shall 

6 not be considered to be an officer or employee of the 

7 House or Senate, but shall be compensated at a rate equal 

8 to the daily equivalent of the minimum annual rate of 

9 basic pay prescribed for GS–15 of the General Schedule 

10 under section 5107 of title 5, United States Code, for each 

11 day (including travel time) during which such member is 

12 engaged in the performance of the duties of the Board. 

13 (e) DUTIES OF BOARD.— 

14 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Board shall— 

15 (A) be the governing body of the Office, 

16 and oversee the Office in the implementation of 

17 all duties required under this subtitle; and 

18 (B) review allegations of violations made 

19 against a Member or employee of Congress 

20 through the review process described in section 

21 555(b). 

22 (2) HEARINGS.—The Board may hold such 

23 hearings as are necessary and may sit and act only 

24 in executive session at such times and places, solicit 


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1 such testimony, and receive such relevant evidence, 

2 as may be necessary to carry out its duties. 

3 (f) FINANCIAL DISCLOSURE REPORTS.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—Each member of the Board 

5 shall file an annual financial disclosure report with 

6 the Secretary of the Senate and the Clerk of the 

7 House of Representatives on or before May 15 of 

8 each calendar year immediately following any year in 

9 which the member served on the Board. Each such 

10 report shall be on a form prepared jointly by the 

11 Clerk and the Secretary that is substantially similar 

12 to the form required for individuals at the executive 

13 branch who must complete a confidential financial 

14 disclosure report under section 102 of the Ethics in 

15 Government Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App.). 

16 (2) DISTRIBUTION OF REPORT.—The Secretary 

17 of the Senate and the Clerk of the House of Rep18 resentatives, working jointly, shall— 

19 (A) not later than 7 days after the date 

20 each financial disclosure report under para21 graph (1) is filed, send a copy of each such re22 port to the applicable ethics committees; and 

23 (B) annually print all such financial disclo24 sure reports as a document of Congress, and 

25 make the document available to the public. 


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1 SEC. 554. DUTIES AND POWERS OF THE OFFICE AND THE 

2 BOARD. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Office is authorized— 

4 (1) in accordance with section 555— 

5 (A) to investigate any alleged violation, by 

6 a Member or employee of Congress, of any eth7 ics law (including regulations), rule, or other 

8 standard of conduct applicable to the conduct of 

9 such Member or employee under applicable 

10 House or Senate rules in the performance of 

11 the duties, or the discharge of the responsibil12 ities, of the Member or employee; and 

13 (B) in any case where the Board deter14 mines, after the investigation described in sub15 paragraph (A), that there is a reasonable basis 

16 to believe an alleged violation of any ethics law, 

17 rule, or other standard of conduct described in 

18 such subparagraph, to present the alleged ethics 

19 violation and any material evidence to the appli20 cable ethics committee; 

21 (2) to refer to appropriate Federal or State au22 thorities, including the Office of Public Integrity and 

23 the Department of Justice as appropriate, any evi24 dence of a violation by a Member or employee of 

25 Congress of any law (including laws applicable to the 

26 performance of the duties, or the discharge of the 


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1 responsibilities, of the Member or employee), which 

2 may have been disclosed in an investigation by the 

3 Office, in accordance with subsection (b); 

4 (3) to provide advice and informal guidance to 

5 Members and employees of Congress regarding any 

6 ethics law (including regulations), rule, or other 

7 standard of conduct applicable to such individuals in 

8 their official capacities, and develop and carry out 

9 periodic educational briefings for Members and em10 ployees of Congress on those laws, rules, and other 

11 standards; 

12 (4)(A) to give consideration to the request of 

13 any Member or employee of Congress for a formal 

14 advisory opinion or other formal ruling, subject to 

15 the approval of the applicable ethics committee, with 

16 respect to the general propriety of any current or 

17 proposed conduct of such Member or employee; 

18 (B) to provide a formal advisory opinion or 

19 other formal ruling, in accordance with subpara20 graph (A), in situations that the Board determines 

21 appropriate; and 

22 (C) subject to the requirement for approval by 

23 the applicable ethics committee in accordance with 

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1 lish such opinion for the guidance of other Members 

2 and employees of Congress; 

3 (5) if the Office determines, during the course 

4 of any investigation under this subtitle, that a lob5 byist or lobbying firm may be in noncompliance with 

6 the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1601 

7 et seq.)— 

8 (A) to notify the United States Attorney 

9 for the District of Columbia and the Director of 

10 the Office of Public Integrity of the potential 

11 violation; and 

12 (B) to notify the lobbyist or lobbying firm 

13 of such determination, in writing; 

14 (6) to provide informal guidance to lobbyists or 

15 lobbying firms engaged in lobbying activity or lob16 bying contacts under the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 

17 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.) to covered legislative 

18 branch officials (as defined in section 3 of such Act 

19 (2 U.S.C. 1602)) of their responsibilities under such 

20 Act; 

21 (7) to aid in the enforcement of ethics require22 ments for Members or employees of Congress under 

23 this subtitle or any other provision of law; and 

24 (8) to administer the process for Members and 

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1 ers from any ethics law (including regulations), rule, 

2 or other standard that applies to Members and em3 ployees of Congress, subject to approval of the appli4 cable ethics committee. 

5 (b) REFERRALS TO LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFI6 CIALS.— 

7 (1) IN GENERAL.—Upon a majority vote of the 

8 Board, the Office may refer potential legal violations 

9 committed by a Member or employee of Congress to 

10 the Department of Justice or other relevant Federal 

11 or State law enforcement officials, which referral 

12 shall include all appropriate evidence gathered dur13 ing any review conducted under this subtitle. 

14 (2) NO APPROVAL REQUIRED.—A referral 

15 under paragraph (1) does not require the approval 

16 of either of the applicable ethics committees. 

17 (3) NOTIFICATION.—The Board shall notify the 

18 Select Committee on Ethics of the Senate or the 

19 Committee on Ethics of the House of Representa20 tives, and the Director of the Office of Public Integ21 rity of all referrals under this subsection. 

22 (c) ADVISORY OPINIONS.— 

23 (1) IN GENERAL.—Upon a majority vote of the 

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1 tions of rules and other standards of conduct appli2 cable to Members and employees of Congress, which 

3 shall be submitted to each applicable ethics com4 mittee for approval. 

5 (2) REQUIREMENTS FOR ETHICS COMMITTEE

6 REVIEW.—Each applicable ethics committee may re7 vise, overturn, dismiss, or issue any recommended 

8 formal advisory opinions or interpretations under 

9 paragraph (1) that is applicable to the Members and 

10 employees of that House of Congress. A rec11 ommended formal advisory opinion or interpretation 

12 under paragraph (1) is only binding if issued by one 

13 of the applicable ethics committees. 

14 (3) REQUIREMENTS.—Any applicable ethics 

15 committee decision described in paragraph (2) shall 

16 be recorded and made publicly available, and shall 

17 be accompanied by a written explanation for that ac18 tion. Dissenting members of the applicable ethics 

19 committee are allowed to issue their own report de20 tailing reasons for disagreeing with the decision. 

21 (d) LIMITATIONS ON REVIEW.—No review shall be 

22 undertaken by the Board of any alleged violation of law, 

23 rule, regulation or standard of conduct not in effect at 

24 the time of the alleged violation, nor shall any review be 


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1 undertaken by the Board of any alleged violation that oc2 curred before the date of enactment of this Act. 

3 (e) PROHIBITION ON PUBLIC DISCLOSURE.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.— 

5 (A) REQUIRED AFFIRMATION BY MEMBERS

6 AND STAFF.—When an individual becomes a 

7 member of the Board or employee of the Office, 

8 that individual shall execute the following oath 

9 or affirmation in writing: ‘‘I do solemnly swear 

10 (or affirm) that I will not disclose to any person 

11 or entity outside of the Office any information 

12 received in the course of my service with the 

13 Office, except as authorized by the Board by 

14 majority vote as necessary to conduct official 

15 business or pursuant to its rules.’’. Copies of 

16 the executed oath shall be provided to the Clerk 

17 of the House of Representatives and the Sec18 retary of the Senate as part of the records of 

19 the House and Senate. 

20 (B) PROHIBITION ON PUBLIC DISCLO21 SURE.—No testimony received, or any other in22 formation obtained, by a member of the Board 

23 or employee of the Office shall be publicly dis24 closed to any person or entity outside the Of25 fice, unless approved by a majority vote of the 


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1 Board. Any communication to any person or en2 tity outside the Office may occur only as au3 thorized by the Board. 

4 (C) PROCEDURES AND INVESTIGATION.— 

5 The Office shall establish procedures necessary 

6 to prevent the unauthorized disclosure of any 

7 information received by the Office. Any 

8 breaches of confidentiality shall be investigated 

9 by the Board and appropriate action shall be 

10 taken. 

11 (2) PROVISION WITH RESPECT TO OFFICE OF

12 PUBLIC INTEGRITY OR ETHICS COMMITTEES.—Para13 graph (1) shall not preclude— 

14 (A) any member of the Board or any em15 ployee of the Office from presenting a report or 

16 findings of the Board, or testifying before the 

17 Select Committee on Ethics of the Senate or 

18 the Committee on Ethics of the House of Rep19 resentatives, if requested by either committee 

20 pursuant to the rules of the committee; 

21 (B) any necessary communication with the 

22 Office of Public Integrity; 

23 (C) any necessary communication with the 

24 Department of Justice or any other law en25 forcement agency; 


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1 (D) any necessary communication with any 

2 members, or employees, of the applicable ethics 

3 committee; or 

4 (E) any necessary communication with the 

5 President pro tempore of the Senate, majority 

6 leader of the Senate, minority leader of the 

7 Senate, Speaker of the House of Representa8 tives, or minority leader of the House of Rep9 resentatives. 

10 (3) OPPORTUNITY TO PRESENT.—Before the 

11 Board votes on a recommendation or statement to 

12 be transmitted to the appropriate congressional com13 mittee relating to official conduct of any Member or 

14 employee of Congress, the Board shall provide that 

15 individual the opportunity to present, orally or in 

16 writing (at the discretion of the Board), a statement 

17 to the Board. 

18 (f) PRESENTATION OF REPORTS TO SELECT COM19 MITTEE ON ETHICS OF THE SENATE OR THE COMMITTEE

20 ON ETHICS OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES.— 

21 Whenever the Board transmits any report to the applica22 ble ethics committee relating to the official conduct of any 

23 Member or employee of Congress, it shall designate a 

24 member of the Board or employee to present the report 

25 to such committee if requested by such committee. 


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1 (g) MAINTAINING OF FINANCIAL DISCLOSURE RE2 PORTS.—The Office shall receive, and maintain, a copy 

3 of each report filed under section 101 of the Ethics in 

4 Government Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App.) by a Member 

5 or employee of Congress. 

6 (h) MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING WITH THE

7 OFFICE OF PUBLIC INTEGRITY.—The Office shall enter 

8 into a memorandum of understanding with the Director 

9 of the Office of Public Integrity in order— 

10 (1) to share any information necessary for the 

11 execution of each office’s respective duties and re12 sponsibilities, including the copies of reports de13 scribed in subsection (g); 

14 (2) to ensure consistent interpretation and en15 forcement of the Nation’s ethics laws for executive 

16 and legislative branch employees and officials; and 

17 (3) to reduce and mitigate jurisdictional confu18 sion. 

19 (i) INVESTIGATIVE AUTHORITY.—In the course of an 

20 investigation described in subsection (a)(1)(A), the Board 

21 may require by subpoena the attendance of and testimony 

22 by witnesses and the production of any book, check, can23 celed check, correspondence, communication, document, 

24 email, papers, physical evidence, record, recording, tape, 

25 or other material (including electronic records) relating to 


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1 any matter or question the Office is authorized to inves2 tigate from any individual or entity. 

3 SEC. 555. REVIEW PROCESS OF SUBMISSIONS. 

4 (a) SOURCE OF SUBMISSIONS.— 

5 (1) CITIZEN SUBMISSIONS.— 

6 (A) CITIZEN SUBMISSIONS.—Any citizen of 

7 the United States, including a Member or em8 ployee of Congress, may submit to the Office an 

9 allegation of a violation or any material infor10 mation regarding an alleged violation, by a 

11 Member or employee of Congress of any law 

12 (including any regulation), rule, or other stand13 ard of conduct applicable to the conduct of such 

14 Member or employee in the performance of the 

15 duties, or the discharge of the responsibilities, 

16 of the Member or employee, subject to subpara17 graph (B) and paragraph (4). 

18 (B) BAN ON FILING SUBMISSIONS PRIOR

19 TO ELECTION.—The Board may not accept cit20 izen submissions regarding the conduct of a 

21 Member filed in the— 

22 (i) 30 days prior to a primary election 

23 for which the Member in question is a can24 didate; and 


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1 (ii) 60 days prior to a general election 

2 for which the Member in question is a can3 didate. 

4 (2) BOARD MEMBER OR OFFICE OF CONGRES5 SIONAL ETHICS SUBMISSIONS.—A member of the 

6 Board or an employee of the Office may submit an 

7 allegation of a violation by a Member or employee of 

8 Congress of any law (including any regulation), rule, 

9 or other standard of conduct applicable to the con10 duct of such Member or employee in the perform11 ance of the duties, or the discharge of the respon12 sibilities, of the Member or employee. 

13 (3) FALSE CLAIMS ACKNOWLEDGMENT AND

14 STATEMENT.—Any submission under paragraph (1) 

15 shall include a signed statement acknowledging that 

16 the individual submitting the allegation or material 

17 information understands that section 1001 of title 

18 18, United States Code (popularly known as the 

19 ‘‘False Statements Act’’), applies to the allegation or 

20 information the individual is submitting. 

21 (4) PAST FRIVOLOUS CHARGES.—The Board 

22 shall not accept any submission under paragraph 

23 (1)(A) from an individual who has previously vio24 lated section 1001 of title 18, United States Code, 

25 with respect to this subtitle. 


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1 (5) NOTIFICATION.—Upon receipt of a submis2 sion filed under paragraph (1) or (2) that meets the 

3 requirements of this subsection and that the Office 

4 determines contains a material allegation of a viola5 tion, or material information, described in paragraph 

6 (1)(A), the Office shall refer the submission to the 

7 Board for consideration under the review process de8 scribed in subsection (b). 

9 (b) REVIEW PROCESS OF ALLEGED VIOLATIONS BY

10 MEMBERS OR EMPLOYEES OF CONGRESS.— 

11 (1) REQUEST.—After receiving a submission 

12 under subsection (a)(5), 2 or more members of the 

13 Board may submit a joint written statement to all 

14 members of the Board authorizing the Office to un15 dertake a preliminary review of any alleged violation 

16 by a Member or employee of Congress of any law 

17 (including any regulation), rule, or other standard of 

18 conduct applicable to the conduct of such Member or 

19 employee in the performance of the duties, or the 

20 discharge of the responsibilities, of the Member or 

21 employee, along with a brief description of the spe22 cific matter. 

23 (2) PRELIMINARY REVIEW.— 

24 (A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 7 busi25 ness days after receipt of an authorization 


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1 statement from 2 or more members of the 

2 Board under paragraph (1), the Board shall— 

3 (i) instruct the Office to initiate a 

4 preliminary review of the alleged violation; 

5 and 

6 (ii) provide a written notification of 

7 the commencement of the preliminary re8 view, including a statement of the nature 

9 of the review, to— 

10 (I) the applicable ethics com11 mittee; 

12 (II) any individual who is the 

13 subject of the preliminary review; and 

14 (III) the Director of the Office of 

15 Public Integrity. 

16 (B) OPPORTUNITY TO TERMINATE PRE17 LIMINARY REVIEW.—At any time, the Board 

18 may, by a majority vote, terminate a prelimi19 nary review on any ground, including that the 

20 matter under review is de minimis in nature. If 

21 the Board votes to terminate the preliminary 

22 review— 

23 (i) the review process under this sec24 tion is completed and no further actions 

25 shall be taken; and 


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1 (ii) the Board— 

2 (I) shall notify, in writing, the in3 dividual who was the subject of the 

4 preliminary review, the Director of the 

5 Office of Public Integrity, and the ap6 plicable ethics committee, of its deci7 sion to terminate the review of the 

8 matter; and 

9 (II) may, in any case where the 

10 Board votes to terminate the prelimi11 nary review, send a report, including 

12 any findings of the Board, to the ap13 plicable ethics committee and to the 

14 Director of the Office of Public Integ15 rity. 

16 (3) SECOND-PHASE REVIEW PROCESS.— 

17 (A) VOTE FOR SECOND-PHASE REVIEW.— 

18 (i) IN GENERAL.—After the prelimi19 nary review conducted under paragraph 

20 (2) is completed, the Board shall vote on 

21 whether to authorize a second-phase review 

22 of the matter under consideration. If there 

23 is an affirmative vote of 4 or more mem24 bers of the Board to authorize the second25 phase review, the Board shall authorize the 


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1 second-phase review process in accordance 

2 with subparagraph (B). 

3 (ii) TERMINATION OF MATTER.—If a 

4 vote to authorize a second-phase review 

5 under clause (i) does not succeed, the re6 view process under this section shall be 

7 completed and no further actions shall be 

8 taken. 

9 (iii) NOTIFICATION TO PARTIES.—The 

10 Board— 

11 (I) shall notify, in writing, the in12 dividual who was the subject of the 

13 preliminary review, the Director of the 

14 Office of Public Integrity, and the ap15 plicable ethics committee, of its deci16 sion to authorize a second-phase re17 view of the matter or to terminate the 

18 review process; and 

19 (II) may, in any case where the 

20 Board decides to terminate the review 

21 process of the violation under clause 

22 (ii), send a report, including any find23 ings of the Board, to the applicable 

24 ethics committee and to the Director 

25 of the Office of Public Integrity. 


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1 (B) SECOND-PHASE REVIEW.—In any case 

2 where a second-phase review is required, the 

3 Board shall authorize the Office to commence, 

4 and complete, a second-phase review. 

5 (C) COMPLETION OF SECOND-PHASE RE6 VIEW.—Upon the completion of any second7 phase review, the Board shall— 

8 (i) evaluate the review and determine, 

9 based on a majority vote, whether— 

10 (I) the applicable ethics com11 mittee should dismiss the matter that 

12 was the subject of such review, which 

13 may be made on any ground, includ14 ing that the matter under review is de 

15 minimis in nature; 

16 (II) the matter requires further 

17 review by the applicable ethics com18 mittee; or 

19 (III) the applicable ethics com20 mittee should take action relating to 

21 the matter, including any rec22 ommendation for the disciplinary ac23 tion or sanctions that the committee 

24 should take; 


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1 (ii) transmit to the applicable ethics 

2 committee a written report that includes— 

3 (I) a statement of the nature of 

4 the review and the Member or em5 ployee of Congress who is the subject 

6 of the review, including any alleged 

7 violations uncovered in either the pre8 liminary or second-phase review; 

9 (II) any recommendations of the 

10 Board based on votes conducted under 

11 clause (i), or a statement that the 

12 matter is unresolved because of a tie 

13 vote of the Board or a failure to meet 

14 the majority vote threshold established 

15 under section 553(c)(3); 

16 (III) a description of the number 

17 of members voting in the affirmative 

18 and in the negative for any action de19 scribed in clause (i); 

20 (IV) any findings of the Board, 

21 including— 

22 (aa) any findings of fact; 

23 (bb) a description of any rel24 evant information that the Board 

25 was unable to obtain or witnesses 


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1 whom the Board was unable to 

2 interview, and the reasons there3 for; and 

4 (cc) a citation of any rel5 evant law, regulation, or stand6 ard of conduct relating to the 

7 violation; and 

8 (V) any supporting documenta9 tion; 

10 (iii) transmit to the individual who is 

11 the subject of the second-phase review the 

12 written report of the Board described in 

13 clause (ii); 

14 (iv) transmit to the Director of the 

15 Office of Public Integrity the written re16 port of the Board described in clause (ii), 

17 and may include any recommendations for 

18 action by the Director that the Board may 

19 recommend; and 

20 (v) make public, on a website main21 tained by the Office, the written report of 

22 the Board described in clause (ii), unless a 

23 majority of the members of the Board vote 

24 to withhold the report from the public 

25 where public disclosure could compromise 


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1 the ability of the applicable ethics com2 mittee or a law enforcement agency to act 

3 on an alleged ethics violation. 

4 (D) AUTHORITY FOR REPRIMAND.—Upon 

5 the completion of any second-phase review, the 

6 Board— 

7 (i) may, upon a majority vote, rep8 rimand, in writing, the alleged violator for 

9 potential violations of the law; 

10 (ii) in any case where a reprimand 

11 under clause (i) is issued, shall provide a 

12 copy of the reprimand to— 

13 (I) the presiding officer of the 

14 House of Congress in which the al15 leged violator serves (if such indi16 vidual is a Member of Congress); or 

17 (II) the alleged violator’s em18 ployer, if the individual is an employee 

19 of Congress; and 

20 (iii) may make the reprimand avail21 able to the public. 

22 (c) REQUESTS FROM APPLICABLE ETHICS COMMIT23 TEES.— 

24 (1) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other 

25 provision of this subtitle, upon receipt of a written 


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1 request from an applicable ethics committee that the 

2 Board cease its review of any matter and refer such 

3 matter to the committee because the committee has 

4 voted to open an investigation of such matter by the 

5 committee or by an investigatory subcommittee of 

6 the committee, the Board shall refer such matter to 

7 the committee, cease its preliminary or second-phase 

8 review, as applicable, of that matter and so notify 

9 any individual who is the subject of the review. In 

10 any such case, the Board shall send a written report 

11 to the committee containing a statement that, upon 

12 the request of that committee, the matter is referred 

13 to it for its consideration. Nothing in this paragraph 

14 shall be construed to prevent the Board from send15 ing any information regarding the matter to the Di16 rector of the Office of Public Integrity or to other 

17 law enforcement agencies. 

18 (2) RESUMPTION OF REVIEW.—If the applicable 

19 ethics committee notifies the Board in writing that 

20 it is unable to resolve any matter described in para21 graph (1), the Board may begin or continue, as the 

22 case may be, a second-phase review of the matter in 

23 accordance with subsection (b)(3). 

24 (d) PROCEDURES.— 


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1 (1) REVIEW POWERS.—Members of the Board 

2 or employees of the Office may, during either an ini3 tial review or second-phase review— 

4 (A) administer oaths; 

5 (B) require, by subpoena or otherwise, the 

6 attendance and testimony of such witnesses and 

7 the production of such books, records, cor8 respondence, accounts, memoranda, papers, 

9 documents, tapes, and materials as the Board 

10 or the Office considers advisable; 

11 (C) take the deposition of witnesses; and 

12 (D) conduct general audits of filings under 

13 the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 

14 1601 et seq.). 

15 (2) WITNESSES.— 

16 (A) WITNESSES.—Any witness interviewed 

17 as part of a review under this section shall sign 

18 a statement acknowledging that the witness un19 derstands that section 1001 of title 18, United 

20 States Code (popularly known as the ‘‘False 

21 Statements Act’’) applies to the testimony of 

22 the witness and to any documents the witness 

23 provides. 

24 (B) PAYMENT.—Witnesses appearing be25 fore the Office may be paid in the same manner 


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1 as prescribed by clause 5 of rule XI of the 

2 Rules of the House of Representatives, as in ef3 fect on the day before the date of enactment of 

4 this Act. 

5 (3) PROHIBITION OF EX PARTE COMMUNICA6 TIONS.—There shall be no ex parte communications 

7 between any member of the Board or employee of 

8 the Office and any individual who is the subject of 

9 any review by the Board or between any member of 

10 the Board and any interested party, and no Member 

11 or employee of the Congress may communicate with 

12 any member of the Board or employee of the Office 

13 regarding any matter under review by the Board ex14 cept as authorized by the Board. 

15 (4) CONTEMPT OF CONGRESS.—If a person dis16 obeys or refuses to comply with a subpoena, or if a 

17 witness refuses to testify to a matter, the Board 

18 may recommend to the applicable ethics committee 

19 that such person be held in contempt of Congress. 

20 SEC. 556. PERSONNEL MATTERS. 

21 (a) COMPENSATION OF EMPLOYEES.— 

22 (1) APPOINTMENT.—Upon a majority vote of 

23 the Board, the Board may appoint and fix the com24 pensation of such professional, nonpartisan staff (in25 cluding staff with relevant experience in investigaVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:09 Feb 17, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00321 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H9029.IH H9029

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1 tions and law enforcement) of the Office as the 

2 Board considers necessary to perform its duties. 

3 (2) QUALIFICATIONS.—Each employee of the 

4 Office shall be professional and demonstrably quali5 fied for the position for which the employee is hired. 

6 (3) STAFFING REQUIREMENTS.— 

7 (A) IN GENERAL.—The employees of the 

8 Office shall be assembled and retained as a pro9 fessional, nonpartisan staff, and the Office as a 

10 whole, and each individual employee, shall per11 form all official duties in a nonpartisan manner. 

12 (B) NO PARTISAN POLITICAL ACTIVITY.— 

13 No employee of the Office shall engage in any 

14 partisan political activity directly affecting any 

15 congressional or presidential election. 

16 (C) LIMITATION OR PUBLIC SPEAKING OR

17 PUBLICATION.—No employee of the Office may 

18 accept public speaking engagements or write for 

19 publication on any subject that is in any way 

20 related to the employee’s employment or duties 

21 with the Office without specific prior approval 

22 from the chairperson and vice-chairperson of 

23 the Board. 


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1 (b) TERMINATION OF EMPLOYEES.—The employ2 ment of an employee of the Office may be terminated dur3 ing a Congress solely by a majority vote of the Board. 

4 (c) REIMBURSEMENTS.—Members of the Board, and 

5 employees of the Office, may be reimbursed for travel, sub6 sistence, and other necessary expenses incurred by mem7 bers or employees in the performance of their duties in 

8 the same manner as is permissible for such expenses of 

9 other employees of the House or Senate. 

10 (d) AGREEMENTS FOR MEMBERS AND EMPLOYEES; 

11 RETENTION OF DOCUMENTS BY THE CLERK.— 

12 (1) IN GENERAL.—Before any individual who is 

13 appointed to serve on the Board or before any indi14 vidual is hired to be an employee of the Office may 

15 do so, the individual shall execute a signed document 

16 containing the following statement: ‘‘I agree not to 

17 be a candidate for the office of Senator or Rep18 resentative in, or Delegate or Resident Commis19 sioner to, the Congress for purposes of the Federal 

20 Election Campaign Act of 1971 until at least 4 

21 years after I am no longer a member of the Congres22 sional Ethics Board or employee of the Office of 

23 Congressional Ethics.’’. 

24 (2) RETENTION OF DOCUMENTS.—Copies of the 

25 signed and executed document shall be retained by 


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1 the Clerk of the House of Representatives and the 

2 Secretary of the Senate as part of the records of the 

3 House and the Senate. The Clerk and the Secretary, 

4 working jointly, shall make the signatures a matter 

5 of public record, causing the names of each indi6 vidual who has signed the document to be published 

7 in a portion of the Congressional Record designed 

8 for that purpose, and make cumulative lists of such 

9 names available on the websites of the Clerk and the 

10 Secretary. 

11 (e) CODE OF CONDUCT.—The Board— 

12 (1) shall establish a code of conduct to govern 

13 the behavior of the members of the Board and the 

14 employee of the Office, which shall include the avoid15 ance of conflicts of interest; and 

16 (2) may issue other rules as the Board deter17 mines necessary to carry out the functions of the 

18 Board and the Office. 

19 SEC. 557. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

20 There is authorized to be appropriated to carry out 

21 this subtitle such sums as may be necessary. 

22 SEC. 558. CONFORMING AMENDMENTS AND RULES OF CON23 STRUCTION. 

24 (a) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS TO THE ETHICS IN

25 GOVERNMENT ACT OF 1978.—Section 109(18) of the 


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1 Ethics in Government Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App.) is 

2 amended— 

3 (1) by redesignating subparagraphs (A) through 

4 (D), as amended, as subparagraphs (B) through 

5 (E), respectively; 

6 (2) by inserting before subparagraph (B), as re7 designated by paragraph (1) of this subsection, the 

8 following: 

9 ‘‘(A) the Office of Congressional Ethics es10 tablished under section 552 of the Anti-Corrup11 tion and Public Integrity Act, for Senators, 

12 Members of the House of Representatives, offi13 cers and employees of the Senate, and officers 

14 and employees of the House of Representatives 

15 required to file financial disclosure reports with 

16 the Secretary of the Senate pursuant to section 

17 103(h) of this title;’’; 

18 (3) in subparagraph (B) (as so redesignated), 

19 by striking ‘‘Senators, officers and employees of the 

20 Senate, and other officers or employees of the legis21 lative branch’’ and inserting ‘‘officers or employees 

22 of the legislative branch not described in subpara23 graph (A)’’; and 

24 (4) in subparagraph (C) (as so redesignated), 

25 by striking ‘‘Members, officers and employees of the 


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1 House of Representatives and other officers or em2 ployees of the legislative branch’’ and inserting ‘‘offi3 cers or employees of the legislative branch not de4 scribed in subparagraph (A)’’. 

5 (b) TERMINATION OF THE OFFICE OF CONGRES6 SIONAL ETHICS OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES.— 

7 Beginning on the date on which all members of the Board 

8 are appointed, the Office of Congressional Ethics of the 

9 House of Representatives shall be eliminated and section 

10 1 of H. Res. 895 (110th Congress, March 11, 2008) shall 

11 cease to have any force or effect. 

12 (c) RULEMAKING AUTHORITY.—The provisions of 

13 this subtitle are enacted— 

14 (1) as an exercise of the rulemaking power of 

15 the Senate and of the House of Representatives, and 

16 as such they shall be considered as part of the rules 

17 of the Senate and the House, respectively, and shall 

18 supersede other rules only to the extent that they 

19 are inconsistent therewith; and 

20 (2) with full recognition of the constitutional 

21 right of the Senate and the House of Representa22 tives to change such rules at any time, in the same 

23 manner, and to the same extent as in the case of 

24 any other rule of the Senate or House of Represent25 atives. 


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1 Subtitle D—Applicability 

2 SEC. 571. APPLICABILITY. 

3 This title and the amendments made by this title 

4 shall apply on and after the date of enactment of this Act. 

5 TITLE VI—TRANSPARENCY AND 

6 GOVERNMENT RECORDS 

7 Subtitle A—Transparency for Fed8 eral Personnel and Candidates 

9 for Federal Office 

10 SEC. 601. CATEGORIES RELATING TO THE AMOUNT OR 

11 VALUE OF CERTAIN INCOME. 

12 Section 102 of the Ethics in Government Act of 1978 

13 (5 U.S.C. App.) is amended— 

14 (1) in subsection (a)— 

15 (A) in paragraph (1)(B)— 

16 (i) in the matter preceding clause (i), 

17 by striking ‘‘which of the following cat18 egories the amount or value of such item 

19 of income is within’’ and inserting ‘‘the 

20 amount or value of such item of income in 

21 accordance with the following’’; 

22 (ii) by redesignating clauses (i) 

23 through (iv) as subclauses (I) through 

24 (IV), respectively, and adjusting the mar25 gin accordingly; 


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1 (iii) by inserting before subclause (I), 

2 as so redesignated, the following: 

3 ‘‘(i) For items of income with an 

4 amount or value of not more than 

5 $25,000, which of the following categories 

6 the amount or value of such item of in7 come is within:’’; 

8 (iv) in clause (i)(III), as so des9 ignated, by adding ‘‘or’’ at the end; 

10 (v) in clause (i)(IV), as so designated, 

11 by striking ‘‘$15,000,’’ and inserting 

12 ‘‘$25,000.’’; and 

13 (vi) by striking clauses (v) through 

14 (ix) and inserting the following: 

15 ‘‘(ii) For items of income with an 

16 amount or value of greater than $25,000, 

17 the amount or value of the item of income, 

18 rounded as follows: 

19 ‘‘(I) For items of income with an 

20 amount or value of greater than 

21 $25,000 but not more than $100,000, 

22 the amount or value rounded to the 

23 nearest $10,000. 

24 ‘‘(II) For items of income with 

25 an amount or value of greater than 


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1 $100,000 but not more than 

2 $1,000,000, the amount or value 

3 rounded to the nearest $100,000. 

4 ‘‘(III) For items of income with 

5 an amount or value of greater than 

6 $1,000,000, the amount or value 

7 rounded to the nearest $1,000,000.’’; 

8 (B) in paragraph (3), by striking ‘‘cat9 egory of value’’ and inserting ‘‘value, in accord10 ance with subsection (d)(2),’’; and 

11 (C) in paragraph (4), in the matter pre12 ceding subparagraph (A), by striking ‘‘category 

13 of value’’ and inserting ‘‘value, in accordance 

14 with subsection (d)(2),’’; and 

15 (2) in subsection (d)— 

16 (A) in paragraph (1), in the matter pre17 ceding subparagraph (A), by striking ‘‘(3), (4), 

18 (5), and (8)’’ and inserting ‘‘(5) and (8)’’; 

19 (B) by redesignating paragraph (2) as 

20 paragraph (3); and 

21 (C) by inserting after paragraph (1) the 

22 following: 

23 ‘‘(2) The amount or value of the items covered in 

24 paragraphs (3) and (4) of subsection (a) shall be reported 

25 as follows: 


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1 ‘‘(A) For items with an amount or value of not 

2 more than $25,000, which of the following categories 

3 the amount or value of such item is within: 

4 ‘‘(i) Not more than $15,000. 

5 ‘‘(ii) Greater than $15,000 but not more 

6 than $25,000. 

7 ‘‘(B) For items with an amount or value of 

8 greater than $25,000, the amount or value of the 

9 item, rounded as follows: 

10 ‘‘(i) For items with an amount or value of 

11 greater than $25,000 but not more than 

12 $100,000, the amount or value rounded to the 

13 nearest $10,000. 

14 ‘‘(ii) For items with an amount or value of 

15 greater than $100,000 but not more than 

16 $1,000,000, the amount or value rounded to the 

17 nearest $100,000. 

18 ‘‘(iii) For items with an amount or value 

19 of greater than $1,000,000, the amount or 

20 value rounded to the nearest $1,000,000.’’. 


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1 SEC. 602. DISCLOSURE OF PERSONAL INCOME TAX RE2 TURNS BY PRESIDENTS, VICE PRESIDENTS, 

3 MEMBERS OF CONGRESS, AND CERTAIN CAN4 DIDATES. 

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—Title I of the Ethics in Govern6 ment Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App.) is amended— 

7 (1) by inserting after section 102 the following: 

8 ‘‘SEC. 102A. DISCLOSURE OF PERSONAL INCOME TAX RE9 TURNS BY PRESIDENTS, VICE PRESIDENTS, 

10 MEMBERS OF CONGRESS, AND CERTAIN CAN11 DIDATES. 

12 ‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section— 

13 ‘‘(1) the term ‘covered candidate’ means an in14 dividual— 

15 ‘‘(A) required to file a report under section 

16 101(c); and 

17 ‘‘(B) who is nominated by a major party 

18 as a candidate for the office of President, Vice 

19 President, or Member of Congress; 

20 ‘‘(2) the term ‘covered individual’ means— 

21 ‘‘(A) a President, Vice President, or Mem22 ber of Congress required to file a report under 

23 subsection (a) or (d) of section 101; and 

24 ‘‘(B) an individual who occupies the office 

25 of the President, Vice President, or a Member 


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1 of Congress required to file a report under sec2 tion 101(e); 

3 ‘‘(3) the term ‘income tax return’ means, with 

4 respect to any covered candidate or covered indi5 vidual, any return (within the meaning of section 

6 6103(b) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986) re7 lated to Federal income taxes, but does not in8 clude— 

9 ‘‘(A) information returns issued to persons 

10 other than such covered candidate or covered 

11 individual; and 

12 ‘‘(B) declarations of estimated tax; and 

13 ‘‘(4) the term ‘major party’ has the meaning 

14 given the term in section 9002 of the Internal Rev15 enue Code of 1986. 

16 ‘‘(b) DISCLOSURE.— 

17 ‘‘(1) COVERED INDIVIDUALS.— 

18 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—In addition to the in19 formation described in subsections (a) and (b) 

20 of section 102, a covered individual shall in21 clude in each report required to be filed under 

22 this title a copy of the income tax returns of the 

23 covered individual for— 

24 ‘‘(i) with respect to the President or 

25 Vice President, the 8 most recent taxable 


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1 years and every year the individual was in 

2 Federal elected office for which a return 

3 have been filed with the Internal Revenue 

4 Service as of the date on which the report 

5 is filed; and 

6 ‘‘(ii) with respect to a Member of 

7 Congress, the 2 most recent taxable years 

8 and every year the individual was in Fed9 eral elected office for which a return has 

10 been filed with the Internal Revenue Serv11 ice as of the date on which the report is 

12 filed. 

13 ‘‘(B) FAILURE TO DISCLOSE.—If an in14 come tax return is not disclosed under subpara15 graph (A), the Director of the Office of Public 

16 Integrity shall submit to the Secretary of the 

17 Treasury a request that the Secretary of the 

18 Treasury provide the Director of the Office of 

19 Public Integrity with a copy of the income tax 

20 return. 

21 ‘‘(C) PUBLICLY AVAILABLE.—Each income 

22 tax return submitted under this paragraph shall 

23 be filed with the Director of the Office of Public 

24 Integrity and made publicly available in the 


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1 same manner as the information described in 

2 subsections (a) and (b) of section 102. 

3 ‘‘(D) REDACTION OF CERTAIN INFORMA4 TION.—Before making any income tax return 

5 submitted under this paragraph available to the 

6 public, the Director of the Office of Public In7 tegrity shall redact such information as the Di8 rector of the Office of Public Integrity, in con9 sultation with the Secretary of the Treasury de10 termines appropriate. 

11 ‘‘(2) CANDIDATES.— 

12 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 15 

13 days after the date on which a covered can14 didate is nominated, the covered candidate shall 

15 amend the report filed by the covered candidate 

16 under section 101(c) with the Federal Election 

17 Commission to include a copy of the income tax 

18 returns of the covered candidate for— 

19 ‘‘(i) with respect to a candidate for 

20 nomination or election to the office of 

21 President or Vice President, the 8 most re22 cent taxable years and every year the indi23 vidual was in Federal elected office for 

24 which a return has been filed with the In25 ternal Revenue Service; and 


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1 ‘‘(ii) with respect to a candidate for 

2 nomination or election to the office of 

3 Member of Congress, the 2 most recent 

4 taxable years and every year the individual 

5 was in Federal elected office for which a 

6 return has been filed with the Internal 

7 Revenue Service. 

8 ‘‘(B) FAILURE TO DISCLOSE.—If an in9 come tax return is not disclosed under subpara10 graph (A) the Federal Election Commission 

11 shall submit to the Secretary of the Treasury a 

12 request that the Secretary of the Treasury pro13 vide the Federal Election Commission with the 

14 income tax return. 

15 ‘‘(C) PUBLICLY AVAILABLE.—Each income 

16 tax return submitted under this paragraph shall 

17 be filed with the Federal Election Commission 

18 and made publicly available in the same manner 

19 as the information described in section 102(b). 

20 ‘‘(D) REDACTION OF CERTAIN INFORMA21 TION.—Before making any income tax return 

22 submitted under this paragraph available to the 

23 public, the Federal Election Commission shall 

24 redact such information as the Federal Election 

25 Commission, in consultation with the Secretary 


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1 of the Treasury and the Director of the Office 

2 of Public Integrity, determines appropriate. 

3 ‘‘(3) SPECIAL RULE FOR SITTING PRESI4 DENTS.—Not later than 30 days after the date of 

5 enactment of this section, the President shall submit 

6 to the Director of the Office of Public Integrity a 

7 copy of the income tax returns described in para8 graph (1)(A)(i).’’; and 

9 (2) in section 104— 

10 (A) in subsection (a)— 

11 (i) in paragraph (1), in the first sen12 tence, by inserting ‘‘, 102B, or 102C, or 

13 any individual who knowingly and willfully 

14 falsifies or who knowingly and willfully 

15 fails to file an income tax return that such 

16 individual is required to disclose pursuant 

17 to section 102A, 102B, or 102C’’ before 

18 the period; and 

19 (ii) in paragraph (2)(A)— 

20 (I) in clause (i), by inserting 

21 ‘‘102B, or 102C, or falsify any income 

22 tax return that such person is re23 quired to disclose under section 102A, 

24 102B, or 102C’’ before the semicolon; 

25 and 


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1 (II) in clause (ii), by inserting 

2 ‘‘102B, or 102C, or fail to file any in3 come tax return that such person is 

4 required to disclosed under section 

5 102A, 102B, or 102C’’ before the pe6 riod; 

7 (B) in subsection (b), in the first sentence 

8 by inserting ‘‘or willfully failed to file or has 

9 willfully falsified an income tax return required 

10 to be disclosed under section 102A, 102B, or 

11 102C’’ before the period; 

12 (C) in subsection (c), by inserting ‘‘or fail13 ing to file or falsifying an income tax return re14 quired to be disclosed under section 102A, 

15 102B, or 102C’’ before the period; and 

16 (D) in subsection (d)(1)— 

17 (i) in the matter preceding subpara18 graph (A), by inserting ‘‘or files an income 

19 tax return required to be disclosed under 

20 section 102A, 102B, or 102C’’ after 

21 ‘‘title’’; and 

22 (ii) in subparagraph (A), by inserting 

23 ‘‘or such income tax return, as applicable,’’ 

24 after ‘‘report’’. 

25 (b) AUTHORITY TO DISCLOSE INFORMATION.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 6103(l) of the Inter2 nal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by adding at 

3 the end the following new paragraph: 

4 ‘‘(23) DISCLOSURE OF RETURN INFORMATION

5 OF PRESIDENTS, VICE PRESIDENTS, MEMBERS OF

6 CONGRESS, AND CERTAIN CANDIDATES.— 

7 ‘‘(A) DISCLOSURE OF RETURNS OF PRESI8 DENTS, VICE PRESIDENTS, AND MEMBERS OF

9 CONGRESS.— 

10 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary 

11 shall, upon written request from the Direc12 tor of the Office of Public Integrity pursu13 ant to section 102A(b)(1)(B) of the Ethics 

14 in Government Act of 1978, provide to of15 ficers and employees of the Office of Public 

16 Integrity a copy of any income tax return 

17 of any President, Vice President, or Mem18 ber of Congress that is required to be filed 

19 under section 102A(b)(1) of such Act. 

20 ‘‘(ii) DISCLOSURE TO PUBLIC.—The 

21 Director of the Office of Public Integrity 

22 may disclose to the public any income tax 

23 return of any President, Vice President, 

24 and Member of Congress that is required 

25 to be filed with the Director of the Office 


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1 of Public Integrity pursuant to section 

2 102A(b)(1) of the Ethics in Government 

3 Act of 1978. 

4 ‘‘(B) DISCLOSURE OF RETURNS OF CER5 TAIN CANDIDATES FOR PRESIDENT, VICE

6 PRESIDENT, AND MEMBERS OF CONGRESS.— 

7 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary 

8 shall, upon written request from the Chair9 man of the Federal Election Commission 

10 pursuant to section 102A(b)(2)(B) of the 

11 Ethics in Government Act of 1978, provide 

12 to officers and employees of the Federal 

13 Election Commission copies of the applica14 ble returns of any covered candidate (as 

15 defined in section 102A(a) of such Act). 

16 ‘‘(ii) DISCLOSURE TO PUBLIC.—The 

17 Federal Election Commission may disclose 

18 to the public any applicable return of any 

19 covered candidate (as defined in section 

20 102A(a) of such Act) that is required to be 

21 filed with the Commission pursuant to sec22 tion 102A(b)(2) of the Ethics in Govern23 ment Act. 


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1 ‘‘(iii) APPLICABLE RETURNS.—For 

2 purposes of this paragraph, the term ‘ap3 plicable returns’ means— 

4 ‘‘(I) with respect to any covered 

5 candidate for the office of President 

6 or Vice President, income tax returns 

7 for the 8 most recent taxable years 

8 and every year the individual was in 

9 Federal elected office for which a re10 turn has been filed as of the date of 

11 the nomination; and 

12 ‘‘(II) with respect to any covered 

13 candidate for the office of Member of 

14 Congress, income tax returns for the 

15 2 most recent taxable years and every 

16 year the individual was in Federal 

17 elected office for which a return has 

18 been filed as of the date of the nomi19 nation.’’. 

20 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—Section 

21 6103(p)(4) of such Code, in the matter preceding 

22 subparagraph (A) and in subparagraph (F)(ii), is 

23 amended by striking ‘‘or (22)’’ and inserting ‘‘(22), 

24 or (23)’’ each place it appears. 


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1 SEC. 603. TRANSPARENCY RELATING TO CANDIDATES FOR 

2 FEDERAL OFFICE AND MEMBERS OF CON3 GRESS. 

4 (a) IN GENERAL.—Title I of the Ethics in Govern5 ment Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App.) is amended by inserting 

6 after section 102A, as added by section 602 of this Act, 

7 the following: 

8 ‘‘SEC. 102B. DISCLOSURE RELATING TO COVERED ENTITIES 

9 ASSOCIATED WITH MEMBERS OF CONGRESS 

10 AND COVERED CANDIDATES. 

11 ‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section— 

12 ‘‘(1) the term ‘close family member’, with re13 spect to a reporting individual, includes— 

14 ‘‘(A) a parent of the reporting individual; 

15 ‘‘(B) a spouse of the reporting individual; 

16 and 

17 ‘‘(C) an adult child of the reporting indi18 vidual; 

19 ‘‘(2) the term ‘covered candidate’ has the mean20 ing given the term in section 102A(a); 

21 ‘‘(3) the term ‘covered entity’ means a corpora22 tion, company, firm, partnership, or other business 

23 enterprise; 

24 ‘‘(4) the term ‘gross receipts’ has the meaning 

25 given the term in section 993(f) of the Internal Rev26 enue Code of 1986; 


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1 ‘‘(5) the term ‘income tax return’ has the 

2 meaning given the term in section 102A(a); 

3 ‘‘(6) the term ‘Member of Congress’ means— 

4 ‘‘(A) a Member of Congress required to file 

5 a report under subsection (a) or (d) of section 

6 101; and 

7 ‘‘(B) an individual who occupies the office 

8 of Member of Congress and is required to file 

9 a report under section 101(e); and 

10 ‘‘(7) the term ‘reporting individual’ means— 

11 ‘‘(A) a covered candidate; or 

12 ‘‘(B) a Member of Congress. 

13 ‘‘(b) DISCLOSURE.— 

14 ‘‘(1) MEMBERS OF CONGRESS.— 

15 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—On and after the date 

16 that is 180 days after the date on which the Di17 rector of the Office of Public Integrity, in con18 sultation with the Federal Election Commission, 

19 promulgates regulations under paragraph (3), 

20 in addition to the information described in sub21 sections (a) and (b) of section 102, a Member 

22 of Congress shall include in each report re23 quired to be filed under this title, with respect 

24 to the 2 most recent taxable years and every 

25 year the Member of Congress was in Federal 


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1 elected office for which an income tax return 

2 has been filed with the Internal Revenue Serv3 ice as of the date on which the report is filed— 

4 ‘‘(i) a statement of the name of any 

5 covered entity— 

6 ‘‘(I) in which the Member of 

7 Congress has a significant direct or 

8 indirect ownership interest; and 

9 ‘‘(II) that has gross receipts that 

10 meet or exceed the threshold value es11 tablished by regulations promulgated 

12 pursuant to paragraph (3); 

13 ‘‘(ii) a copy of any income tax return 

14 filed by a covered entity described in clause 

15 (i) for any taxable year ending with or 

16 within such years; and 

17 ‘‘(iii) in the case of a covered entity 

18 described in clause (i) that is a privately 

19 owned or closely held covered entity, a 

20 statement of— 

21 ‘‘(I) each— 

22 ‘‘(aa) asset of the covered 

23 entity; and 

24 ‘‘(bb) liability of the covered 

25 entity; 


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1 ‘‘(II) all— 

2 ‘‘(aa) income from sources 

3 within the United States, as de4 scribed in section 861 of the In5 ternal Revenue Code of 1986; 

6 and 

7 ‘‘(bb) income from sources 

8 without the United States, as de9 scribed in section 862 of the In10 ternal Revenue Code of 1986; 

11 ‘‘(III) the name of each co-owner 

12 or co-member of the covered entity; 

13 and 

14 ‘‘(IV) for any co-owner or co15 member described in subclause (III) 

16 that is not a natural person, the name 

17 of each natural person that controls, 

18 directly or indirectly, the co-owner or 

19 co-member. 

20 ‘‘(B) CLOSE FAMILY MEMBERS.—In addi21 tion to the information described in subpara22 graph (A), the Director of the Office of Public 

23 Integrity may, on a case-by-case basis and in 

24 accordance with the regulations promulgated 

25 under paragraph (3), require that a Member of 


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1 Congress include in each report required to be 

2 filed under this title by the Member of Congress 

3 the information described in subparagraph (A) 

4 with respect to any covered entity— 

5 ‘‘(i) in which a close family member of 

6 the Member of Congress has a significant 

7 direct or indirect ownership interest; and 

8 ‘‘(ii) that has gross receipts that meet 

9 or exceed the threshold value established 

10 by regulations promulgated pursuant to 

11 paragraph (3). 

12 ‘‘(C) FAILURE TO DISCLOSE.—If an in13 come tax return is not disclosed under subpara14 graph (A)(ii), the Director of the Office of Pub15 lic Integrity shall submit to the Secretary of the 

16 Treasury a request that the Secretary of the 

17 Treasury provide the Director of the Office of 

18 Public Integrity with a copy of the income tax 

19 return. 

20 ‘‘(D) PUBLICLY AVAILABLE.—All informa21 tion, including any income tax return, described 

22 in this subsection required to be included in a 

23 report under this title shall be filed with the Di24 rector of the Office of Public Integrity and 

25 made publicly available in the same manner as 


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1 the information described in subsections (a) and 

2 (b) of section 102. 

3 ‘‘(E) REDACTION OF CERTAIN INFORMA4 TION.— 

5 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Before making 

6 any information, including any income tax 

7 return, described in this paragraph re8 quired to be included in a report under 

9 this title available to the public, the Direc10 tor of the Office of Public Integrity shall 

11 redact— 

12 ‘‘(I) if the information contained 

13 in the report contains a trade secret 

14 the disclosure of which is likely to 

15 cause substantial harm to the com16 petitive position of the covered entity 

17 to which the information contained in 

18 the report pertains, the information 

19 relating to the trade secret; and 

20 ‘‘(II) such information as the Di21 rector of the Office of Public Integ22 rity, in consultation with the Sec23 retary of the Treasury, determines ap24 propriate. 


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1 ‘‘(ii) REQUEST FOR REDACTION.—A 

2 Member of Congress submitting a report 

3 under this title that contains information, 

4 including any income tax return, described 

5 in this paragraph that contains a trade se6 cret described in clause (i)(I) may request 

7 that the Director of the Office of Public 

8 Integrity redact the information relating to 

9 the trade secret. 

10 ‘‘(2) CANDIDATES.— 

11 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—On and after the date 

12 that is 180 days after the date on which the Di13 rector of the Office of Public Integrity, in con14 sultation with the Federal Election Commission, 

15 promulgates regulations under paragraph (3), 

16 not later than 15 days after the date on which 

17 a covered candidate is nominated, the covered 

18 candidate shall amend the report filed by the 

19 covered candidate under section 101(c) with the 

20 Federal Election Commission to include, with 

21 respect to the years described in subparagraph 

22 (B)— 

23 ‘‘(i) a statement of the name of any 

24 covered entity— 


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1 ‘‘(I) in which the covered can2 didate has a significant direct or indi3 rect ownership interest; and 

4 ‘‘(II) that has gross receipts that 

5 meet or exceed the threshold value es6 tablished by regulations promulgated 

7 pursuant to paragraph (3); 

8 ‘‘(ii) a copy of any income tax return 

9 filed by a covered entity described in clause 

10 (i) for any taxable year ending with or 

11 within such years; and 

12 ‘‘(iii) in the case of a covered entity 

13 described in clause (i) that is a privately 

14 owned or closely held covered entity, a 

15 statement of— 

16 ‘‘(I) each— 

17 ‘‘(aa) asset of the covered 

18 entity; and 

19 ‘‘(bb) liability of the covered 

20 entity; 

21 ‘‘(II) all— 

22 ‘‘(aa) income from sources 

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1 ternal Revenue Code of 1986; 

2 and 

3 ‘‘(bb) income from sources 

4 without the United States, as de5 scribed in section 862 of the In6 ternal Revenue Code of 1986; 

7 ‘‘(III) the name of each co-owner 

8 or co-member of the covered entity; 

9 and 

10 ‘‘(IV) for any co-owner or co11 member described in subclause (III) 

12 that is not a natural person, the name 

13 of each natural person that controls, 

14 directly or indirectly, the co-owner or 

15 co-member. 

16 ‘‘(B) APPLICABLE YEARS.—The years de17 scribed in this subparagraph are as follows: 

18 ‘‘(i) In the case of a report filed under 

19 section 101(c) by a covered candidate for 

20 the office of President or Vice President, 

21 the 8 years preceding the date on which 

22 the report is filed. 

23 ‘‘(ii) In the case of a report filed 

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1 gress, the 2 years preceding the date on 

2 which the report is filed. 

3 ‘‘(C) CLOSE FAMILY MEMBERS.—In addi4 tion to the information described in subpara5 graph (A), the Federal Election Commission 

6 may, on a case-by-case basis and in accordance 

7 with the regulations promulgated under para8 graph (3), require that a covered candidate in9 clude in each report required to be filed under 

10 section 101(c) by the covered candidate the in11 formation described in subparagraph (A) with 

12 respect to any covered entity— 

13 ‘‘(i) in which a close family member of 

14 the covered candidate has a significant di15 rect or indirect ownership interest; and 

16 ‘‘(ii) that has gross receipts that meet 

17 or exceed the threshold value established 

18 by regulations promulgated pursuant to 

19 paragraph (3). 

20 ‘‘(D) FAILURE TO DISCLOSE.—If an in21 come tax return is not disclosed under subpara22 graph (A)(ii), the Chairman of the Federal 

23 Election Commission shall submit to the Sec24 retary of the Treasury a request that the Sec25 retary of the Treasury provide the Federal 


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1 Election Commission with a copy of the income 

2 tax return. 

3 ‘‘(E) PUBLICLY AVAILABLE.—All informa4 tion, including any income tax return, described 

5 in this subsection required to be included in a 

6 report under section 101(c) shall be filed with 

7 the Federal Election Commission and made 

8 publicly available in the same manner as the in9 formation described in subsections (a) and (b) 

10 of section 102. 

11 ‘‘(F) REDACTION OF CERTAIN INFORMA12 TION.— 

13 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Before making 

14 any information, including any income tax 

15 return, described in this paragraph re16 quired to be included in a report under 

17 section 101(c) available to the public, the 

18 Federal Election Commission shall re19 dact— 

20 ‘‘(I) if the information contained 

21 in the report contains a trade secret 

22 the disclosure of which is likely to 

23 cause substantial harm to the com24 petitive position of the covered entity 

25 to which the information contained in 


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1 the report pertains, the information 

2 relating to the trade secret; and 

3 ‘‘(II) such information as the 

4 Federal Election Commission, in con5 sultation with the Secretary of the 

6 Treasury, determines appropriate. 

7 ‘‘(ii) REQUEST FOR REDACTION.—A 

8 covered candidate submitting a report 

9 under section 101(c) that contains infor10 mation, including any income tax return, 

11 described in this paragraph that contains a 

12 trade secret described in clause (i)(I) may 

13 request that the Federal Election Commis14 sion redact the information relating to the 

15 trade secret. 

16 ‘‘(3) REGULATIONS.—Not later than 120 days 

17 after the date of enactment of this section, the Di18 rector of the Office of Public Integrity shall, in con19 sultation with the Federal Elections Commission, 

20 promulgate regulations to— 

21 ‘‘(A) establish each threshold value for 

22 purposes of— 

23 ‘‘(i) subparagraphs (A)(i)(II) and 

24 (B)(ii) of paragraph (1); and 


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1 ‘‘(ii) subparagraphs (A)(i)(II) and 

2 (C)(ii) of paragraph (2); 

3 ‘‘(B) define the term ‘significant direct or 

4 indirect interest’; 

5 ‘‘(C) ensure that information described in 

6 this subsection that is required to be contained 

7 in a report filed under this title does not— 

8 ‘‘(i) disclose any trade secret that is 

9 likely to cause substantial harm to the 

10 competitive position of the covered entity 

11 to which it pertains; or 

12 ‘‘(ii) violate the privacy of any indi13 vidual who is not the reporting individual 

14 who files the report; and 

15 ‘‘(D) prescribe appropriate circumstances 

16 in which to require a Member of Congress or 

17 covered candidate to provide information under 

18 paragraph (1)(B) or (2)(C). 

19 ‘‘SEC. 102C. DISCLOSURE RELATING TO COVERED ORGANI20 ZATIONS ASSOCIATED WITH COVERED CAN21 DIDATES. 

22 ‘‘(a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section— 

23 ‘‘(1) the term ‘covered candidate’ has the mean24 ing given the term in section 102A(a); 


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1 ‘‘(2) the term ‘covered organization’ means an 

2 organization required to— 

3 ‘‘(A) file an income tax return under sec4 tion 6033 of the Internal Revenue Code of 

5 1986; and 

6 ‘‘(B) include information under subsection 

7 (e) thereof; 

8 ‘‘(3) the term ‘income tax return’ has the 

9 meaning given the term in section 102A(a); and 

10 ‘‘(4) the term ‘key employee’ means— 

11 ‘‘(A) an individual who is 1 of the 5 indi12 viduals receiving the highest amount of com13 pensation paid by a covered organization; or 

14 ‘‘(B) an individual receiving compensation 

15 paid by a covered organization in an amount 

16 that exceeds $100,000. 

17 ‘‘(b) DISCLOSURE.— 

18 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 15 days 

19 after the date on which a covered candidate is nomi20 nated, the covered candidate shall amend the report 

21 filed by the covered candidate under section 101(c) 

22 with the Federal Election Commission to include— 

23 ‘‘(A) a statement identifying each covered 

24 organization of which the covered candidate has 

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1 ber, or key employee during the 2 years pre2 ceding the date on which the report is filed; and 

3 ‘‘(B) for each covered organization identi4 fied under subparagraph (A), a copy of each in5 come tax return required to be filed by the cov6 ered organization under section 6033 of the In7 ternal Revenue Code of 1986 for each taxable 

8 year ending with or within any taxable years 

9 described in subparagraph (A) in which the cov10 ered candidate was an officer, director, trustee, 

11 board member, or key employee of the covered 

12 organization. 

13 ‘‘(2) FAILURE TO DISCLOSE.—If an income tax 

14 return is not disclosed under paragraph (1)(B), the 

15 Federal Election Commission shall submit to the 

16 Secretary of the Treasury a request that the Sec17 retary of the Treasury provide the Federal Election 

18 Commission with the income tax return. 

19 ‘‘(3) PUBLICLY AVAILABLE.— 

20 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—All information, in21 cluding any income tax return, described in this 

22 subsection required to be included in a report 

23 under section 101(c) shall be filed with the 

24 Federal Election Commission and made publicly 


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1 available in the same manner as the informa2 tion described in section 102(b). 

3 ‘‘(B) INCOME TAX RETURNS.—The Direc4 tor of the Office of Public Integrity shall make 

5 a copy of each income tax return described in 

6 paragraph (1)(B) included in a report filed 

7 under section 101(c) publicly available on the 

8 website described in section 402(b)(19) until— 

9 ‘‘(i) the date on which the reporting 

10 individual ceases to be a covered candidate; 

11 or 

12 ‘‘(ii) if the reporting individual is 

13 elected to the office for which the reporting 

14 individual was a covered candidate, the 

15 date on which the reporting individual 

16 ceases to serve in the office for which the 

17 reporting individual was a covered can18 didate. 

19 ‘‘(4) REDACTION.—Before making any informa20 tion, including any income tax return, described in 

21 this subsection required to be included in a report 

22 under section 101(c) available to the public, the 

23 Federal Election Commission shall redact such infor24 mation as the Federal Election Commission, in con25 sultation with the Secretary of the Treasury and the 


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1 Director of the Office of Public Integrity, determines 

2 appropriate.’’. 

3 (b) AUTHORITY TO DISCLOSE INFORMATION.—Para4 graph (23) of section 6103(l) of the Internal Revenue 

5 Code of 1986, as added by section 602, is amended by 

6 adding at the end the following new subparagraphs: 

7 ‘‘(C) DISCLOSURE OF RETURNS OF COV8 ERED ENTITIES ASSOCIATED WITH MEMBERS

9 OF CONGRESS AND COVERED CANDIDATES.— 

10 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.— 

11 ‘‘(I) COVERED ENTITIES ASSOCI12 ATED WITH MEMBERS OF CON13 GRESS.—The Secretary shall, upon 

14 written request from the Director of 

15 the Office of Public Integrity pursu16 ant to section 102B(b)(1)(C) of the 

17 Ethics in Government Act of 1978 

18 provide to officers and employees of 

19 the Office of Public Integrity a copy 

20 of any income tax return of a covered 

21 entity (as defined in section 102B(a) 

22 of such Act) that relates to a year de23 scribed in section 102B(b)(1)(A) of 

24 such Act and is required to be filed 

25 under section 102B(b) of such Act. 


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1 ‘‘(II) COVERED ENTITIES ASSOCI2 ATED WITH COVERED CANDIDATES.— 

3 The Secretary shall, upon written re4 quest from the Chairman of the Fed5 eral Election Commission pursuant to 

6 section 102B(b)(2)(D) of the Ethics 

7 in Government Act of 1978 provide to 

8 officers and employees of the Federal 

9 Election Commission a copy of any in10 come tax return of a covered entity 

11 (as defined in section 102B(a) of such 

12 Act) that relates to a year described 

13 in section 102B(b)(2)(B) of such Act 

14 and is required to be filed under sec15 tion 102B(b) of such Act. 

16 ‘‘(ii) DISCLOSURE TO PUBLIC.—The 

17 Director of the Office of Public Integrity 

18 and the Chairman of the Federal Election 

19 Commission may disclose to the public the 

20 income tax return of any covered entity (as 

21 so defined) that is required to be filed pur22 suant to section 102B(b) of the Ethics in 

23 Government Act of 1978. 


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1 ‘‘(D) DISCLOSURE OF RETURNS OF COV2 ERED ORGANIZATIONS ASSOCIATED WITH COV3 ERED CANDIDATES.— 

4 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The Secretary 

5 shall, upon written request from the Chair6 man of the Federal Election Commission 

7 pursuant to section 102C(b)(2) of the Eth8 ics in Government Act of 1978, provide to 

9 officers and employees of the Federal Elec10 tion Commission copies of any income tax 

11 return required to be filed under section 

12 6033 by an organization described in 

13 clause (iii) for any year taxable year end14 ing with or within the period described in 

15 section 102C(b)(1)(B) of such Act. 

16 ‘‘(ii) DISCLOSURE TO PUBLIC.—The 

17 Federal Election Commission may disclose 

18 to the public income tax returns of any or19 ganization described in clause (iii) that is 

20 required to be filed with the Commission 

21 pursuant to section 102C(b) of the Ethics 

22 in Government Act of 1978. 

23 ‘‘(iii) ORGANIZATION DESCRIBED.— 

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1 tion (as defined in section 102C(a) of the 

2 Ethics in Government Act of 1978) of 

3 which a person who has been nominated as 

4 a covered candidate (as defined in section 

5 102A(a) of such Act) has been an officer, 

6 director, trustee, board member, or key 

7 employee (as defined in section 102C(a) of 

8 such Act) during the period described in 

9 section 102C(b)(1)(A) of such Act.’’. 

10 (c) PROVISION OF FINANCIAL DISCLOSURES TO THE

11 FEDERAL ELECTION COMMISSION.—Section 103(j) of the 

12 Ethics in Government Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App.) is 

13 amended— 

14 (1) in paragraph (1), by adding at the end the 

15 following: ‘‘In the case of a report filed under this 

16 title with the Clerk of the House of Representatives 

17 by a covered candidate, as defined in section 

18 102A(a), a copy of the report shall also be sent by 

19 the Clerk to the Federal Election Commission within 

20 the 7-day period beginning on the day the report is 

21 filed.’’; and 

22 (2) in paragraph (2), by adding at the end the 

23 following: ‘‘In the case of a report filed under this 

24 title with the Secretary of the Senate by a covered 

25 candidate, as defined in section 102A(a), a copy of 


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1 the report shall also be sent by the Secretary to the 

2 Federal Election Commission within the 7-day pe3 riod beginning on the day the report is filed.’’. 

4 Subtitle B—Think Tank, Nonprofit, 

5 and Advocate Transparency 

6 SEC. 611. AMENDMENTS TO THE LOBBYING DISCLOSURE 

7 ACT OF 1995. 

8 (a) ENFORCEMENT REPORT.—Section 6(b) of the 

9 Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1605(b)) is 

10 amended— 

11 (1) by striking paragraph (1) and inserting the 

12 following: 

13 ‘‘(1) REPORTS.— 

14 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subpara15 graph (B), after the end of each semiannual pe16 riod beginning on January 1 and July 1, the 

17 Attorney General, in consultation with the Di18 rector of the Office of Public Integrity, shall 

19 submit to each congressional committee referred 

20 to in paragraph (2) a report that includes, for 

21 that semiannual period a statement of— 

22 ‘‘(i) the aggregate number of enforce23 ment actions taken by the Department of 

24 Justice under this Act; and 


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1 ‘‘(ii) by case, any sentence or fine im2 posed in each such enforcement action. 

3 ‘‘(B) INFORMATION NOT ALREADY A MAT4 TER OF PUBLIC RECORD.—A report submitted 

5 under subparagraph (A) may not include the 

6 name of any individual, or any personally iden7 tifiable information, that is not already a mat8 ter of public record, as of the date on which the 

9 report is submitted.’’; and 

10 (2) in paragraph (2)— 

11 (A) by striking ‘‘paragraph (1)’’ and in12 serting ‘‘paragraph (1)(A)’’; and 

13 (B) by inserting ‘‘and the Committee on 

14 Oversight and Government Reform’’ after 

15 ‘‘Committee on the Judiciary’’. 

16 (b) REPORTS BY THINK TANK, NONPROFIT, AND AD17 VOCACY GROUPS.—The Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 

18 (2 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.) is amended— 

19 (1) by redesignating sections 6 through 28 (2 

20 U.S.C. 1605 et seq.), as amended by title II of this 

21 Act, as sections 7 through 29, respectively; and 

22 (2) by inserting after section 5 (2 U.S.C. 1604) 

23 the following: 


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1 ‘‘SEC. 6. REPORTS BY THINK TANK, NONPROFIT, AND ADVO2 CACY GROUPS. 

3 ‘‘(a) DEFINITION.—In this section— 

4 ‘‘(1) the term ‘covered organization’ means any 

5 organization— 

6 ‘‘(A) that is described in paragraph (3), 

7 (4), or (6) of section 501(c) of the Internal 

8 Revenue Code of 1986 and exempt from tax 

9 under section 501(a) of such Code; and 

10 ‘‘(B) that— 

11 ‘‘(i) engages in lobbying activities; or 

12 ‘‘(ii) is a client; and 

13 ‘‘(2) the term ‘covered product’ means any com14 munication that is— 

15 ‘‘(A) made to a covered legislative branch 

16 official or covered executive branch official in 

17 the course of any lobbying contact by, or on be18 half of, a covered organization; 

19 ‘‘(B) testimony— 

20 ‘‘(i) given by, or on behalf of, a cov21 ered organization before a committee, sub22 committee, or task force of Congress; or 

23 ‘‘(ii) submitted by, or on behalf of, a 

24 covered organization for inclusion in the 

25 public record of a hearing conducted by 


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1 such committee, subcommittee, or task 

2 force; or 

3 ‘‘(C) made by, or on behalf of, a covered 

4 organization in response to a notice in the Fed5 eral Register, Commerce Business Daily, or 

6 other similar publication soliciting communica7 tions from the public and directed to the agency 

8 official specifically designated in the notice to 

9 receive such communications. 

10 ‘‘(b) REPORTS.—Not later than 1 year after the date 

11 of enactment of this section, and not later than January 

12 30th of each year thereafter, or on the first business day 

13 after January 30th if January 30th is not a business day, 

14 each covered organization shall submit to the Director of 

15 the Office of Public Integrity a report for the preceding 

16 calendar year that includes, with respect to each covered 

17 product made or given by, or on behalf of, the covered 

18 organization during that year— 

19 ‘‘(1) the name of each donor who donated any 

20 amount that was— 

21 ‘‘(A) used to pay the cost of making or giv22 ing the covered product; and 

23 ‘‘(B) donated with the intention of sup24 porting any lobbying activity by the covered or25 ganization; and 


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1 ‘‘(2) a statement of whether, before the date on 

2 which the covered product was made or given, any 

3 existing or potential donor to the covered organiza4 tion previewed, commented on, reviewed, or edited 

5 the covered product. 

6 ‘‘(c) DISCLOSURE.—The information required to be 

7 submitted with respect to a covered product under sub8 section (b)(2) shall be included on or with that covered 

9 product.’’. 

10 (c) TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMENDMENT.— 

11 Section 25(b) of the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995, as 

12 so redesignated, is amended, in the matter preceding para13 graph (1), by striking ‘‘9, 10, 11, and 12’’ and inserting 

14 ‘‘10, 11, 12, and 13’’. 

15 SEC. 612. AMENDMENTS TO THE INTERNAL REVENUE CODE 

16 OF 1986. 

17 (a) INCLUSION OF LOBBYING INFORMATION ON AN18 NUAL RETURNS OF CHARITABLE ORGANIZATIONS.—Sec19 tion 6033(b)(5) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is 

20 amended— 

21 (1) by striking ‘‘and’’ before ‘‘the names’’; and 

22 (2) by inserting ‘‘and, if it engages in lobbying 

23 activities (as defined in section 3 of the Lobbying 

24 Disclosure Act of 1995) or is a client (as defined in 

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1 tribution was intended to support any lobbying activ2 ity (as so defined) or lobbying contact (as defined in 

3 such section) by or on behalf of it, and, if so, a de4 scription of such lobbying activity or lobbying con5 tact’’ after ‘‘substantial contributors,’’. 

6 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

7 this section shall apply to returns required to be filed for 

8 taxable years ending on or after the date that is 1 year 

9 after the date of the enactment of this Act. 

10 Subtitle C—Strengthening FOIA 

11 Enforcement 

12 SEC. 621. STRENGTHENING FOIA ENFORCEMENT. 

13 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 552 of title 5, United 

14 States Code (commonly known as the ‘‘Freedom of Infor15 mation Act’’) is amended— 

16 (1) in subsection (a)— 

17 (A) in paragraph (4)— 

18 (i) in subparagraph (B), in the first 

19 sentence— 

20 (I) by striking ‘‘and to order’’ 

21 and inserting ‘‘, to order’’; and 

22 (II) by inserting before the pe23 riod at the end the following: ‘‘, to 

24 order an agency to make available for 

25 public inspection, including by posting 


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1 electronically, the records described in 

2 paragraph (2), to make available to 

3 the public on the website of the agen4 cy the records described in subsection 

5 (p), and to award other appropriate 

6 equitable relief’’; and 

7 (ii) in subparagraph (F)(i), in the 

8 first sentence— 

9 (I) by inserting ‘‘, orders an 

10 agency to make available for public in11 spection, including by posting elec12 tronically, the records described in 

13 paragraph (2), or orders an agency to 

14 make available to the public on the 

15 website of the agency the records de16 scribed in subsection (p),’’ after ‘‘im17 properly withheld from the complain18 ant’’; and 

19 (II) by inserting ‘‘or unavail20 ability of records’’ after ‘‘the with21 holding’’ each place that term ap22 pears; and 

23 (B) in paragraph (6), by adding at the end 

24 the following: 


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1 ‘‘(G)(i) Notwithstanding any determination 

2 made under subparagraph (A)(i), or any appeal to 

3 such a determination under subparagraph (A)(ii), 

4 the Office of Government Information Services es5 tablished under subsection (h) shall require an agen6 cy to comply with a request for records made under 

7 paragraph (1), (2), or (3), or any other requirement 

8 of this subsection, if the Office determines that the 

9 agency has not reasonably and impartially complied 

10 with the requirements of this subsection. 

11 ‘‘(ii) If the Office makes a determination under 

12 clause (i) that an agency has not reasonably or im13 partially complied with a request for records made 

14 under paragraph (1), (2), or (3), or any other re15 quirement of this subsection, and requires the agen16 cy to comply with that request or requirement, the 

17 Office shall make available to the public on the 

18 website of the Office that determination and any re19 sponse and regular update by the agency of compli20 ance by the agency. 

21 ‘‘(iii) Nothing in clause (i) or (ii) shall be con22 strued to prevent or restrict the ability of an indi23 vidual to bring a suit to compel the disclosure of 

24 records under this section.’’; 


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1 (2) in subsection (d), by inserting ‘‘any Member 

2 of’’ before ‘‘Congress’’; 

3 (3) in subsection (h)(3)— 

4 (A) by inserting ‘‘(A)’’ before ‘‘The Of5 fice’’; and 

6 (B) by adding at the end the following: 

7 ‘‘(B) The Director of the Office of Public Integ8 rity, or a designee of the Director, may submit a 

9 non-binding recommendation to the Office of Gov10 ernment Information Services regarding the disclo11 sure of information under this section during a me12 diation service provided under subparagraph (A).’’; 

13 and 

14 (4) by adding at the end the following: 

15 ‘‘(n) Each agency shall maintain and make available 

16 through a single website, which may be the website de17 scribed in subsection (m) and shall be managed by the 

18 Office of Public Integrity, an agency record database 

19 that— 

20 ‘‘(1) contains a log of the status of each open 

21 request for records from the agency under this sec22 tion; and 

23 ‘‘(2) makes each request for records under this 

24 section with which the agency complies available in 

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1 able, and downloadable not later than 60 days after 

2 the date on which the request is first received by the 

3 agency.’’. 

4 SEC. 622. EXEMPTIONS FROM DISCLOSURE. 

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 552(b) of title 5, United 

6 States Code, is amended— 

7 (1) in paragraph (3)(B), by inserting ‘‘with an 

8 explanation for the exemption’’ after ‘‘specifically 

9 cites to this paragraph’’; 

10 (2) in paragraph (4), by inserting before the 

11 semicolon at the end the following: ‘‘, only if disclo12 sure of the commercial or financial information is 

13 likely to cause substantial harm to the competitive 

14 position of the person from whom the information 

15 was obtained’’; 

16 (3) in paragraph (5)— 

17 (A) by striking ‘‘provided that the delibera18 tive process privilege shall not apply to records 

19 created 25 years or more before the date on 

20 which the records were requested’’ and insert21 ing ‘‘and excluding— 

22 ‘‘(A) any opinion that is a controlling interpre23 tation of law; 

24 ‘‘(B) any final report or memorandum created 

25 by an entity other than the agency, including other 


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1 Governmental entities, at the request of the agency 

2 and used to make a final policy decision; 

3 ‘‘(C) any guidance document used by the agen4 cy to respond to the public; and 

5 ‘‘(D) any record created not less than 25 years 

6 before the date on which the records were re7 quested’’; 

8 (4) in paragraph (6), by striking ‘‘similar files’’ 

9 and inserting ‘‘personal information, such as per10 sonal contact information or personal financial infor11 mation,’’; 

12 (5) in paragraph (7)— 

13 (A) in subparagraph (E)— 

14 (i) by inserting a comma before ‘‘if 

15 such’’; and 

16 (ii) by inserting ‘‘and the record or in17 formation was created less than 25 years 

18 before the date on which the records were 

19 requested’’ after ‘‘circumvention of the 

20 law’’; and 

21 (B) by adding ‘‘or’’ at the end; 

22 (6) by striking paragraph (8); 

23 (7) by redesignating paragraph (9) as para24 graph (8); and 


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1 (8) in the flush text following paragraph (8), as 

2 so redesignated— 

3 (A) by inserting before ‘‘Any reasonably 

4 segregable portion’’ the following: ‘‘An agency 

5 may not withhold information under this sub6 section unless the agency reasonably foresees 

7 that disclosure would cause specific identifiable 

8 harm to an interest protected by an exemption, 

9 or if disclosure is prohibited by law.’’; and 

10 (B) by inserting before ‘‘If technically fea11 sible,’’ the following: ‘‘For each record withheld 

12 in whole or in part under paragraph (3), the 

13 agency shall identify the statute that exempts 

14 the record from disclosure.’’. 

15 (b) TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

16 (1) ENERGY POLICY AND CONSERVATION

17 ACT.—Section 254(a)(2)(A) of the Energy Policy 

18 and Conservation Act (42 U.S.C. 6274(a)(2)(A)) is 

19 amended by striking ‘‘(b)(9)’’ and inserting 

20 ‘‘(b)(8)’’. 

21 (2) FEDERAL CREDIT UNION ACT.—Section 

22 216(j)(3)(A) of the Federal Credit Union Act (12 

23 U.S.C. 1790d(j)(3)(A)) is amended— 

24 (A) by striking ‘‘; or’’ and all that follows 

25 and inserting a period; and 


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1 (B) by striking ‘‘excising’’ and all that fol2 lows through ‘‘any portion’’ and inserting ‘‘ex3 cising any portion’’. 

4 (3) SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934.—Sec5 tion 24 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (15 

6 U.S.C. 78x) is amended— 

7 (A) in subsection (d), by striking ‘‘(g)’’ 

8 and inserting ‘‘(f)’’; 

9 (B) by striking subsection (e); and 

10 (C) by redesignating subsections (f) and 

11 (g) as subsections (e) and (f), respectively. 

12 SEC. 623. PUBLIC INTEREST BALANCING TEST. 

13 Section 552 of title 5, United States Code (commonly 

14 known as the ‘‘Freedom of Information Act’’), as amended 

15 by this subtitle, is amended— 

16 (1) in subsection (b), in the matter preceding 

17 paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘This section’’ and in18 serting ‘‘Subject to subsection (o), this section’’; and 

19 (2) by adding at the end the following: 

20 ‘‘(o)(1) Notwithstanding the applicability of an ex21 emption from disclosure under subsection (b), an agency 

22 shall make available a record or any segregable portion 

23 of a record if the public interest in disclosure clearly out24 weighs the interest protected by the exemption. 


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1 ‘‘(2) In evaluating the public interest in disclosing a 

2 record or a portion of a record under paragraph (1), an 

3 agency and courts shall consider— 

4 ‘‘(A) the extent to which access to the record 

5 will further public understanding of the operations 

6 or decision making of an agency or Government offi7 cial; 

8 ‘‘(B) the extent to which the age of the record 

9 diminishes the rationale for withholding the record; 

10 ‘‘(C) any reasonable suspicion of governmental 

11 wrongdoing; 

12 ‘‘(D) the importance of the record to the public 

13 in order for the public to make informed decisions 

14 with respect to the electoral and democratic process; 

15 and 

16 ‘‘(E) any other factors that the agency or court 

17 determines necessary.’’. 

18 SEC. 624. AFFIRMATIVE DISCLOSURE OF AGENCY RECORDS 

19 ON WEBSITE. 

20 Section 552 of title 5, United States Code (commonly 

21 known as the ‘‘Freedom of Information Act’’), as amended 

22 by this subtitle, is amended by adding at the end the fol23 lowing: 

24 ‘‘(p)(1) Each agency shall make available to the pub25 lic on the website of the agency— 


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1 ‘‘(A) information relating to each advisory com2 mittee (as defined in section 3 of the Federal Advi3 sory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.)) of the agency, 

4 including— 

5 ‘‘(i) the charter of the advisory committee 

6 and a description of the activities of the advi7 sory committee; 

8 ‘‘(ii) the name and basic biography of each 

9 member of the advisory committee, and any 

10 conflict of interest, ethics waiver, or recusal in11 formation relating to each member; 

12 ‘‘(iii) the meeting agendas, minutes, tran13 scripts, and any recordings of the advisory com14 mittee; 

15 ‘‘(iv) any upcoming events of the advisory 

16 committee; 

17 ‘‘(v) timelines of any ongoing advisory 

18 committee work; and 

19 ‘‘(vi) a full list of nominated members of 

20 the advisory committee and the final selected 

21 membership of the advisory committee; 

22 ‘‘(B) information relating to Federal contracts 

23 of the agency, including— 

24 ‘‘(i) a copy of each contract, task, and de25 livery order; 


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1 ‘‘(ii) information on past performance of 

2 contractors, if available; and 

3 ‘‘(iii) except for information that is exempt 

4 from disclosure under subsection (b)(4), all cor5 respondence and documents related to the pro6 vision of services to the Federal Government by 

7 contractors earning— 

8 ‘‘(I) $10,000,000 during a 1-year pe9 riod under a Federal contract or license; or 

10 ‘‘(II) more than 20 percent of total 

11 revenue of the contractor from Federal 

12 sources; 

13 ‘‘(C) ethics documents maintained by the Office 

14 of Public Integrity, including— 

15 ‘‘(i) final submissions of ethics paperwork 

16 for an individual in a position on any level of 

17 the Executive Schedule under subchapter II of 

18 chapter 53 of this title; 

19 ‘‘(ii) waivers; and 

20 ‘‘(iii) any document granting a recusal on 

21 a specific issue for an individual in a position 

22 on any level of the Executive Schedule under 

23 subchapter II of chapter 53 of this title; 

24 ‘‘(D) basic employee organizational charts and 

25 office contact information, including— 


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1 ‘‘(i) charts that minimally include the 

2 names, job titles, and salaries of all noncareer 

3 appointees and career appointees, as defined in 

4 section 3132 of this title; and 

5 ‘‘(ii) front office contact information for 

6 every office within the agency; 

7 ‘‘(E) each communication sent to Congress or 

8 to a committee of Congress, including— 

9 ‘‘(i) congressional testimony; 

10 ‘‘(ii) each unclassified report submitted to 

11 Congress, as required by statute; and 

12 ‘‘(iii) each response to questions for con13 gressional hearing records, provided that the re14 sponse does not include individual casework or 

15 constituent information; and 

16 ‘‘(F) human resources data of the agency, in 

17 the aggregate, including— 

18 ‘‘(i) the number of involuntary transfers, 

19 hires, and voluntary and involuntary departures 

20 each quarter; and 

21 ‘‘(ii) information on the racial, ethnic, and 

22 gender diversity with respect to hires, depar23 tures, and involuntary transfers. 

24 ‘‘(2) If an agency is unable to maintain a website de25 scribed in paragraph (1) due to resource constraints, the 


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1 agency shall submit the information required to be made 

2 available under paragraph (1) to the Director of the Office 

3 of Public Integrity, who shall make the information avail4 able on a website managed by the Office of Public Integ5 rity, such as the website described in subsection (m).’’. 

6 SEC. 625. APPLICABILITY. 

7 This subtitle and the amendments made by this sub8 title shall apply on and after the date of enactment of this 

9 Act. 

10 Subtitle D—Federal Contractor 

11 Transparency 

12 SEC. 631. EXPANDING APPLICABILITY OF THE FREEDOM OF 

13 INFORMATION ACT TO FEDERAL CONTRAC14 TORS. 

15 (a) DEFINITION OF AGENCY.—In this section, the 

16 term ‘‘agency’’ has the meaning given the term in section 

17 552(f) of title 5, United States Code. 

18 (b) APPLICABILITY OF FOIA.—A record relating to 

19 a Federal contractor, including a record relating to a non20 Federal prison, correctional, or detention facility, pro21 duced during fulfillment of the Federal contract with an 

22 agency with funds provided under the contract shall be— 

23 (1) considered a record for purposes of section 

24 552(f)(2) of title 5, United States Code, whether in 


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1 the possession of the Federal contractor or an agen2 cy; and 

3 (2) subject to section 552 of title 5, United 

4 States Code (commonly known as the ‘‘Freedom of 

5 Information Act’’), to the same extent as if the 

6 record was maintained by an agency. 

7 (c) WITHHOLDING OF INFORMATION.—An agency 

8 may not withhold information that would otherwise be re9 quired to be disclosed under subsection (b) unless— 

10 (1) the agency, based on the independent as11 sessment of the agency, reasonably foresees that dis12 closure of the information would cause specific iden13 tifiable harm to an interest protected by an exemp14 tion from disclosure under section 552(b) of title 5, 

15 United States Code; or 

16 (2) disclosure of the information is prohibited 

17 by law. 

18 (d) REGULATIONS.— 

19 (1) IN GENERAL.—An agency may promulgate 

20 regulations or guidance to ensure compliance with 

21 this section by the agency and Federal contractors. 

22 (2) COMPLIANCE BY FEDERAL CONTRAC23 TORS.— 

24 (A) IN GENERAL.—Compliance with this 

25 section by an applicable entity shall be included 


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1 as a material term in any contract, agreement, 

2 or renewal of a contract or agreement between 

3 the agency and the Federal contractor. 

4 (B) MODIFICATION OF CONTRACT OR

5 AGREEMENT.—Not later than 1 year after the 

6 date of enactment of this Act, an agency shall 

7 secure a modification to include compliance 

8 with this section by a Federal contractor as a 

9 material term in any contract or agreement de10 scribed under subparagraph (A) that will not 

11 otherwise be renegotiated, renewed, or modified 

12 before the date that is 1 year after the date of 

13 enactment of this Act. 

14 (e) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this sec15 tion shall be construed to limit or reduce the scope of 

16 State or local open records laws. 

17 SEC. 632. PUBLIC DISCLOSURE BY LARGE CONTRACTORS. 

18 (a) DEFINITION.—In this section, the term ‘‘covered 

19 contractor’’ means an entity that earns more than— 

20 (1) $10,000,000 during a 1-year period under 

21 a Federal contract or license; or 

22 (2) 20 percent of the total revenue of the entity 

23 from Federal sources. 

24 (b) REQUIREMENT.—Each covered contractor shall, 

25 on an annual basis, submit to the Director of the Office 


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1 of Public Integrity and the Administrator of the Office 

2 of Federal Procurement Policy— 

3 (1) any audited financial statements of the cov4 ered contractor; 

5 (2) a listing of the salaries of employees of the 

6 covered contractor providing services on Federal 

7 contracts that are compensated over $100,000 per 

8 year; 

9 (3) a detailed list of all Federal political spend10 ing by the covered contractor; and 

11 (4) the identity of each beneficial owner of the 

12 covered contractor, including— 

13 (A) name; 

14 (B) current residential or business street 

15 address; and 

16 (C) whether the beneficial owner is a for17 eign person. 

18 (c) PENALTY.—The Director of the Office of Man19 agement and Budget may— 

20 (1) in consultation with the Administrator of 

21 the Office of Federal Procurement Policy and the 

22 Director of the Office of Public Integrity, tempo23 rarily or indefinitely disqualify a covered contractor 

24 from receiving a Federal contract if the Director of 

25 the Office of Management and Budget determines 


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1 that the covered contractor failed to comply with the 

2 requirement under subsection (b); and 

3 (2) reinstate the ability of a covered contractor 

4 described in paragraph (1) to receive a Federal con5 tract. 

6 Subtitle E—Congressional 

7 Transparency 

8 SEC. 641. INCREASED TRANSPARENCY OF COMMITTEE 

9 WORK. 

10 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section— 

11 (1) the term ‘‘Committee’’ means— 

12 (A) a committee of the House of Rep13 resentatives; 

14 (B) a committee of the Senate; and 

15 (C) a subcommittee of a committee de16 scribed in paragraph (1) or (2); 

17 (2) the term ‘‘covered hearing’’ means a public 

18 hearing held by a Committee; and 

19 (3) the term ‘‘covered markup’’ means a public 

20 markup held by a Committee. 

21 (b) SCHEDULE.—At the same time as the schedule 

22 is made available to members of a Committee, but not 

23 later than 7 days before the date of a covered hearing or 

24 covered markup (unless the Chairman and Ranking Mi25 nority Member of the Committee agree to waive the 7- 


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1 day requirement), each Committee shall make available on 

2 the website of the Committee the schedule of covered hear3 ings and covered markups of the Committee. 

4 (c) INFORMATION REQUIRED FOR MARKUPS.—At the 

5 same time as the materials are made available to members 

6 of a Committee, but not later than 24 hours before the 

7 time of a covered markup (unless the Chairman and Rank8 ing Minority Member of the Committee agree to waive the 

9 24-hour requirement), the Committee shall make available 

10 on the website of the Committee any bill or resolution to 

11 be considered at the covered markup and any amendments 

12 to such a bill or resolution filed with the Committee. 

13 (d) ADDITIONAL REQUIRED INFORMATION.—Not 

14 later than 24 hours after holding a covered hearing or a 

15 covered markup, a Committee shall make available on the 

16 website of the Committee— 

17 (1) a description of the topic of the covered 

18 hearing or covered markup; 

19 (2) any legislation related to the covered hear20 ing or covered markup; 

21 (3) the written testimony of any witness; 

22 (4) any documents or materials entered into the 

23 record; 


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1 (5) any written opening statements of the 

2 Chairman or Ranking Minority Member of the Com3 mittee; and 

4 (6) audio and video recordings of the covered 

5 hearing or covered markup. 

6 (e) TRANSCRIPTS.—Not later than 45 days after 

7 holding a covered hearing or covered markup, a Com8 mittee shall make available on the website of the Com9 mittee transcripts of the covered hearing or covered mark10 up. 

11 (f) REPORTED MEASURES.—Not later than 24 hours 

12 after a covered markup during which a Committee orders 

13 a bill or resolution to be reported, the Committee shall 

14 post on the website of the Committee— 

15 (1) each amendment to the bill or resolution 

16 that was agreed to, except for technical and con17 forming changes authorized by the Committee; and 

18 (2) a record of each vote taken on the bill or 

19 resolution or an amendment thereto. 

20 (g) COMPARATIVE PRINT.— 

21 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 45 days after 

22 a Committee reports a bill or joint resolution pro23 posing to repeal or amend a statute or part thereof, 

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1 companying document and make available on the 

2 website of the Committee— 

3 (A) the entire text of each section of a 

4 statute that is proposed to be repealed or 

5 amended; and 

6 (B) a comparative print of each amend7 ment to a section of a statute that the bill or 

8 joint resolution proposes to make, showing by 

9 appropriate typographical devices the omissions 

10 and insertions proposed. 

11 (2) COMMITTEE AMENDMENTS.—If a Com12 mittee reports a bill or joint resolution proposing to 

13 repeal or amend a statute or part thereof with a rec14 ommendation that the bill or joint resolution be 

15 amended, the comparative print required by para16 graph (1) shall reflect the changes in existing law 

17 proposed to be made by the bill or joint resolution 

18 as proposed to be amended. 

19 (3) AVAILABILITY.—Each Committee shall 

20 make reasonable efforts to make a comparative print 

21 required by paragraph (1) available to the members 

22 of the Committee and to the public as early as prac23 ticable, and before a covered markup, if practical. 

24 (h) QUESTIONS FOR THE RECORD.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para2 graph (2), for each covered hearing or covered mark3 up, a Committee shall make available on the website 

4 of the Committee any response to questions for the 

5 record of the covered hearing or covered markup 

6 that the Committee receives from a testifying wit7 ness. 

8 (2) PROTECTION OF CERTAIN INFORMATION.— 

9 Upon agreement by the Chairman and Ranking Mi10 nority Member of a Committee, a response described 

11 in paragraph (1) may be withheld from the website 

12 of the Committee if it includes individual casework 

13 or constituent information or information that the 

14 Chairman and Ranking Minority Member determine 

15 is confidential information. 

16 SEC. 642. INCREASED TRANSPARENCY OF RECORDED 

17 VOTES. 

18 (a) DEFINITION.—In this section, the term ‘‘Member 

19 of Congress’’ means a member of the House of Represent20 atives and a member of the Senate. 

21 (b) ADDITIONAL DUTIES OF THE CLERK OF THE

22 HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES AND THE SECRETARY OF

23 THE SENATE.—The Clerk of the House of Representatives 

24 and the Secretary of the Senate shall make available on 

25 the website of the Office of the Clerk or of the Secretary, 


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1 respectively, a record of the recorded votes of each Mem2 ber of Congress who is a member of their House of Con3 gress, organized by the name of the Member of Congress, 

4 in a structured data format, which shall include the roll, 

5 date, issue, question, result, and title or description of the 

6 vote. 

7 (c) WEB LINK.—Each Member of Congress shall pro8 vide a link on the website of the Member of Congress to 

9 the record of recorded votes of the Member of Congress 

10 made available by the Clerk of the House of Representa11 tives or the Secretary of the Senate, as applicable. 

12 (d) EFFECTIVE DATE.—This section shall apply to 

13 recorded votes by Members of Congress occurring after 

14 the date of enactment of this Act. 

15 SEC. 643. INCREASED TRANSPARENCY OF APPROPRIA16 TIONS BILLS. 

17 (a) INCLUSION.—The Clerk of the House of Rep18 resentatives and the Secretary of the Senate shall ensure 

19 that each report accompanying any appropriations bill re20 ported by the Committees on Appropriations of the House 

21 of Representatives or the Committee on Appropriations of 

22 the Senate, respectively, includes a formatted spreadsheet 

23 showing the amounts made available by the bill, in a tab24 ular, digital format that shows separate entries for each 

25 fiscal year covered by the bill. 


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1 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—Subsection (a) shall apply 

2 with respect to any appropriations bill making funds avail3 able for fiscal year 2019 or any fiscal year thereafter. 

4 TITLE VII—CAMPAIGN FINANCE 

5 REFORMS 

6 Subtitle A—Requirements Relating 

7 to Preventing Conflicts of Interest 

8 PART I—REQUIREMENTS RELATING TO REG9 ISTERED LOBBYISTS AND GOVERNMENT 

10 CONTRACTORS 

11 SEC. 701. REQUIREMENTS RELATING TO REGISTERED LOB12 BYISTS. 

13 (a) IN GENERAL.—Title III of the Federal Election 

14 Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30101 et seq.), as 

15 amended by section 141, is amended by adding at the end 

16 the following new section: 

17 ‘‘SEC. 326. REQUIREMENTS RELATING TO REGISTERED 

18 LOBBYISTS. 

19 ‘‘(a) PROHIBITION OF CONTRIBUTIONS OR FUND20 RAISING BY REGISTERED LOBBYISTS.—It shall be unlaw21 ful for any registered lobbyist to— 

22 ‘‘(1) make a contribution to any candidate for 

23 Federal office or member of Congress; or 

24 ‘‘(2) fundraise for any candidate for Federal of25 fice, member of Congress, authorized committee of a 


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1 candidate, leadership PAC, or political party com2 mittee. 

3 ‘‘(b) PROHIBITION OF SOLICITING FUNDS FROM

4 LOBBYISTS.—It shall be unlawful for any candidate for 

5 Federal office, member of Congress, an agent of such can6 didate or member of Congress, or an entity directly or in7 directly established, financed, maintained, or controlled by 

8 or acting on behalf of 1 or more such candidates or mem9 bers of Congress to directly solicit funds from any reg10 istered lobbyist in connection with any election for Federal 

11 office. 

12 ‘‘(c) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this section: 

13 ‘‘(1) REGISTERED LOBBYIST.—The term ‘reg14 istered lobbyist’ means a lobbyist, as defined in sec15 tion 3 of the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 (2 

16 U.S.C. 1602), that is registered or is required to 

17 register under section 4(a) of that Act (2 U.S.C. 

18 1603(a)). 

19 ‘‘(2) OTHER TERMS.—The terms ‘fundraise’ 

20 and ‘solicit’ have the meaning given those terms in 

21 section 301. 

22 ‘‘(d) CLARIFICATION.—Nothing in this section shall 

23 be construed to prohibit— 

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1 munications which provide information about the 

2 candidate but which do not include the solicitation 

3 of contributions or other fundraising activity in sup4 port of the candidate; 

5 ‘‘(2) any registered lobbyist from making an 

6 independent expenditure or fundraising for an inde7 pendent expenditure; or 

8 ‘‘(3) any candidate for Federal office, member 

9 of Congress, an agent of such candidate or member 

10 of Congress, or an entity directly or indirectly estab11 lished, financed, maintained, or controlled by or act12 ing on behalf of 1 or more such candidates or mem13 bers of Congress from including registered lobbyists 

14 in any mass communication, including a mass com15 munication that solicits a contribution.’’. 

16 (b) DEFINITIONS.—Section 301 of the Federal Elec17 tion Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30101) is amended 

18 by adding at the end the following new paragraphs: 

19 ‘‘(27) FUNDRAISE.—The term ‘fundraise’ 

20 means— 

21 ‘‘(A) hosting or underwriting an event 

22 where funds are raised with the intention to 

23 contribute such funds to any candidate for Fed24 eral office, member of Congress, authorized 


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1 committee of a candidate, leadership PAC, or 

2 political party committee; 

3 ‘‘(B) transmitting or delivering a contribu4 tion to any candidate for Federal office, mem5 ber of Congress, authorized committee of a can6 didate, leadership PAC, or political party com7 mittee from another person; 

8 ‘‘(C) making or sending a communication 

9 soliciting contributions for any candidate for 

10 Federal office, member of Congress, authorized 

11 committee of a candidate, leadership PAC, or 

12 political party committee; or 

13 ‘‘(D) otherwise directly or indirectly solic14 iting, transmitting, or facilitating a contribution 

15 to any candidate for Federal office, member of 

16 Congress, authorized committee of a candidate, 

17 leadership PAC, or political party committee. 

18 ‘‘(28) SOLICIT.—The term ‘solicit’ means to di19 rectly or indirectly ask, request, or recommend, ex20 plicitly or implicitly, that another person make a 

21 contribution, donation, transfer of funds, or other22 wise provide anything of value.’’. 


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1 SEC. 702. DISCLOSURE OF POLITICAL SPENDING BY GOV2 ERNMENT CONTRACTORS. 

3 Section 735 of division D of the Consolidated Appro4 priations Act, 2019 is repealed. 

5 SEC. 703. REPEAL OF RESTRICTION OF USE OF FUNDS BY 

6 INTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE TO BRING 

7 TRANSPARENCY TO POLITICAL ACTIVITY OF 

8 CERTAIN NONPROFIT ORGANIZATIONS. 

9 Section 124 of the Financial Services and General 

10 Government Appropriations Act, 2019 (division D of Pub11 lic Law 116–6) is hereby repealed. 

12 SEC. 704. REPEAL OF REVENUE PROCEDURE THAT ELIMI13 NATED REQUIREMENT TO REPORT INFORMA14 TION REGARDING CONTRIBUTORS TO CER15 TAIN TAX-EXEMPT ORGANIZATIONS. 

16 Revenue Procedure 2018–38 shall have no force and 

17 effect. 

18 PART II—REQUIREMENTS RELATING TO 

19 CORPORATIONS 

20 SEC. 711. BANNING CORPORATIONS FROM FUNDRAISING. 

21 Section 316(a) of the Federal Election Campaign Act 

22 of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30118(a)) is amended by inserting the 

23 following before the period at the end: ‘‘, or for any cor24 poration to fundraise (as defined in section 301) for any 

25 candidate for Federal office or member of Congress’’. 


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1 SEC. 712. BANNING CONTRIBUTIONS TO MEMBERS OF CON2 GRESS FROM CORPORATIONS UNDER THE 

3 JURISDICTION OF THEIR COMMITTEES. 

4 (a) PROHIBITION.— 

5 (1) IN GENERAL.—Title III of the Federal 

6 Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30101 et 

7 seq.), as amended by sections 141 and 701, is 

8 amended by adding at the end the following new sec9 tion: 

10 ‘‘SEC. 327. PROHIBITING CAMPAIGN CONTRIBUTIONS TO 

11 MEMBERS OF CONGRESS BY PERSONS WITH 

12 FINANCIAL INTERESTS IN CATEGORIES OF 

13 BUSINESS UNDER JURISDICTION OF COMMIT14 TEES ON WHICH MEMBERS SERVE. 

15 ‘‘(a) PROHIBITING CONTRIBUTIONS AND SOLICITA16 TION OF CONTRIBUTIONS.— 

17 ‘‘(1) CONTRIBUTIONS.—No person shall make a 

18 contribution to a member of Congress, an authorized 

19 committee of a member of Congress, or a leadership 

20 PAC of a member of Congress unless, at the time 

21 the person makes the contribution, the person cer22 tifies under penalty of perjury that the person is not 

23 affiliated with a corporation (other than a nonprofit 

24 corporation) or a membership organization described 

25 in section 501(c)(6) of the Internal Revenue Code of 

26 1986 and exempt from tax under section 501(a) of 


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1 such Code any member of which is a corporation 

2 which has a financial interest in a category of busi3 ness which is under the jurisdiction of a committee 

4 of Congress on which the member serves. 

5 ‘‘(2) SOLICITATION OF CONTRIBUTIONS.—A 

6 member of Congress may not solicit from a person 

7 any contribution, including a contribution to an au8 thorized committee of the member, a leadership PAC 

9 of the member, a political committee of a political 

10 party, or any other political committee, if the mem11 ber knows or reasonably should know that the per12 son has a financial interest in a category of business 

13 which is under the jurisdiction of a committee of 

14 Congress on which the member serves. 

15 ‘‘(3) SOLICITATION OF DONATIONS TO CERTAIN

16 FOUNDATIONS AND OTHER NONPROFIT ORGANIZA17 TIONS.— 

18 ‘‘(A) SOLICITATIONS PROHIBITED.—A 

19 member of Congress may not solicit from a per20 son any donation to a foundation or other non21 profit organization whose governing board in22 cludes the member or an immediate family 

23 member of the member if the member knows or 

24 reasonably should know that the person has a 

25 financial interest in a category of business 


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1 which is under the jurisdiction of a committee 

2 of Congress on which the Member serves. 

3 ‘‘(B) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this 

4 paragraph— 

5 ‘‘(i) the term ‘immediate family mem6 ber’ means, with respect to a member of 

7 Congress, a parent, child, sibling, spouse, 

8 or parent-in-law; and 

9 ‘‘(ii) the term ‘nonprofit organization’ 

10 means an organization which is described 

11 in section 501(c) of the Internal Revenue 

12 Code of 1986 and exempt from taxation 

13 under section 501(a) of such Code. 

14 ‘‘(4) DETERMINATION OF CATEGORIES OF BUSI15 NESSES UNDER COMMITTEE JURISDICTION.—For 

16 purposes of this subsection, the determination as to 

17 whether a category of business is under the jurisdic18 tion of a committee of Congress shall be based on 

19 the most recent report filed with the Commission by 

20 the Committee on Ethics of the House of Represent21 atives or the Select Committee on Ethics of the Sen22 ate under section 712(b) of the Anti-Corruption and 

23 Public Integrity Act. 

24 ‘‘(b) DESCRIPTION OF PERSONS AFFILIATED WITH

25 A CORPORATION OR TRADE ASSOCIATION.—For purposes 


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1 of subsection (a), a person is affiliated with a corporation 

2 (other than a nonprofit corporation) or membership orga3 nization if the person is any of the following: 

4 ‘‘(1) A separate segregated fund established by 

5 the membership organization under section 316. 

6 ‘‘(2) An individual who is a treasurer, agent, or 

7 other officer of a separate segregated fund estab8 lished by a membership organization under section 

9 316. 

10 ‘‘(3) An individual who is general partner, man11 aging member, or executive officer, or other indi12 vidual with a similar status or function of the cor13 poration or membership organization for purposes of 

14 section 316, or who would be treated as a general 

15 partner, managing member, or executive officer, or 

16 other individual with a similar status of the corpora17 tion or membership organization for purposes of sec18 tion 316 if the corporation or membership organiza19 tion established a separate segregated fund or solic20 ited contributions under such section. 

21 ‘‘(4) An individual who owns or controls 5 per22 cent or more of the voting shares of the corporation, 

23 except that this paragraph does not apply with re24 spect to a corporation whose annual revenues were 

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1 cent fiscal years ending before the date on which the 

2 individual makes the contribution. 

3 ‘‘(c) EXCEPTIONS.—Subsection (a) does not apply 

4 with respect to any of the following: 

5 ‘‘(1) A contribution to a candidate for election 

6 to the office of Representative in, or Delegate or 

7 Resident Commissioner to, the Congress, an author8 ized committee of such a candidate, or a leadership 

9 PAC of such a candidate which is made by an indi10 vidual who is a resident of the congressional district 

11 such candidate represents. 

12 ‘‘(2) A contribution to a candidate for election 

13 to the office of Senator, an authorized committee of 

14 such a candidate, or a leadership PAC of such a 

15 candidate which is made by an individual who is a 

16 resident of the State such candidate represents. 

17 ‘‘(3) A contribution made to a political com18 mittee by an individual whose identification the po19 litical committee is not required to disclose under 

20 section 304(b)(3)(A) because the aggregate amount 

21 or value of the contributions made by the individual 

22 to the committee during the election cycle involved 

23 is not in excess of $200. 


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1 ‘‘(4) A contribution made to a political com2 mittee by a separate segregated fund established by 

3 a labor organization under section 316. 

4 ‘‘(d) OTHER DEFINITIONS.—In this section— 

5 ‘‘(1) the term ‘leadership PAC’ means, with re6 spect to a candidate or a Member of Congress, a po7 litical committee that is directly or indirectly estab8 lished, financed, maintained or controlled by the 

9 candidate or the member but which is not an au10 thorized committee of the candidate or the member 

11 and which is not affiliated with an authorized com12 mittee of the candidate or the member, except that 

13 such term does not include a political committee of 

14 a political party; and 

15 ‘‘(2) the term ‘member of Congress’ means a 

16 Senator or Representative in, or Delegate or Resi17 dent Commissioner to, the Congress.’’. 

18 (2) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made 

19 by this subsection shall apply with respect to con20 tributions and donations made or solicited after the 

21 expiration of the 120-day period which begins on the 

22 date the Committee on Ethics of the House of Rep23 resentatives and the Select Committee on Ethics of 

24 the Senate file the first reports required under sub25 section (b). 


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1 (b) REPORTS BY CONGRESSIONAL ETHICS COMMIT2 TEES ON CATEGORIES OF BUSINESSES UNDER JURISDIC3 TION OF COMMITTEES.— 

4 (1) REPORTS; SUBMISSION TO FEDERAL ELEC5 TION COMMISSION.—During each Congress, the 

6 Committee on Ethics of the House of Representa7 tives and the Select Committee on Ethics of the Sen8 ate shall prepare and submit to the Federal Election 

9 Commission a report listing for each standing com10 mittee of the House or Senate (as the case may be) 

11 the categories of businesses which are under the ju12 risdiction of such committee, in such form and in ac13 cordance with such criteria as the Committee on 

14 Ethics of the House of Representatives and the Se15 lect Committee on Ethics of the Senate may each es16 tablish. 

17 (2) OFFICE OF CONGRESSIONAL ETHICS REC18 OMMENDATIONS.—The Office of Congressional Eth19 ics shall annually make recommendations to the 

20 Committee on Ethics of the House of Representa21 tives and the Select Committee on Ethics of the Sen22 ate regarding updates to each report under para23 graph (1). 

24 (3) REPORT CONTENTS.—The Committee on 

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1 lect Committee on Ethics of the Senate shall prepare 

2 each report under paragraph (1) in consultation 

3 with— 

4 (A) the Parliamentarian of the Senate or 

5 the Parliamentarian of the House, respectively, 

6 to consider the assignment of legislation to each 

7 committee as an indicator in preparation of the 

8 report; and 

9 (B) the Clerk of the Senate or Clerk of the 

10 House, respectively, to consider the lobbying ac11 tivity of businesses in each business category as 

12 an indicator in preparation of the report. 

13 (4) TIMING.—The Committee on Ethics of the 

14 House of Representatives and the Select Committee 

15 on Ethics of the Senate shall each submit the first 

16 report for a Congress under this section not later 

17 than 90 days after the beginning of the Congress. 

18 (5) UPDATES.—The Committee on Ethics of 

19 the House of Representatives and the Select Com20 mittee on Ethics of the Senate shall each prepare 

21 and submit to the Federal Election Commission up22 dates to reports required under this subsection on a 

23 regular and ongoing basis. 

24 SEC. 713. CORPORATE PAC BAN. 

25 (a) LIMITATION.— 


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1 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 316(b)(2)(C) of the 

2 Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 

3 30118(b)(2)(C)) is amended by striking ‘‘a corpora4 tion’’ and inserting ‘‘a nonprofit corporation’’. 

5 (2) DEFINITION.—Section 316(b) of such Act 

6 (52 U.S.C. 30118(b)) is amended by adding at the 

7 end the following new paragraph: 

8 ‘‘(8) For purposes of this section, the term ‘nonprofit 

9 corporation’ means a corporation described in section 

10 501(c) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 and exempt 

11 from taxation under section 501(a) of such Code, other 

12 than a corporation which is ineligible to be exempt from 

13 taxation under section 501(a) of such Code if it establishes 

14 a separate segregated fund under this subsection.’’. 

15 (b) PERMITTING SOLICITATION OF CONTRIBUTIONS

16 ONLY FROM EXECUTIVE AND ADMINISTRATIVE PER17 SONNEL.—Section 316(b) of such Act (52 U.S.C. 

18 30118(b)) is amended— 

19 (1) in paragraph (4)(A)(i), by striking ‘‘its 

20 stockholders and their families and’’; 

21 (2) in paragraph (4)(B)— 

22 (A) by striking ‘‘a corporation’’ the first 

23 place it appears and inserting ‘‘a nonprofit cor24 poration’’; 


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1 (B) by striking ‘‘any stockholder, executive 

2 or administrative personnel,’’ and inserting 

3 ‘‘any executive or administrative personnel’’; 

4 and 

5 (C) by striking ‘‘stockholders, executive or 

6 administrative personnel,’’ and inserting ‘‘exec7 utive or administrative personnel’’; 

8 (3) in paragraph (4)(D)— 

9 (A) by striking ‘‘stockholders and’’; 

10 (B) by striking ‘‘such stockholders or per11 sonnel’’ and inserting ‘‘such personnel’’; and 

12 (C) by striking ‘‘such stockholders and 

13 personnel’’ and inserting ‘‘such personnel’’; and 

14 (4) in paragraph (5), by striking ‘‘stockholders 

15 and’’. 

16 (c) TREATMENT OF GOVERNMENT CONTRACTORS.— 

17 Section 317(b) of such Act (52 U.S.C. 30119(b)) is 

18 amended— 

19 (1) by striking ‘‘any corporation’’ and inserting 

20 ‘‘any nonprofit corporation’’; and 

21 (2) by striking ‘‘a corporation’’ and inserting ‘‘a 

22 nonprofit corporation’’. 

23 (d) EFFECTIVE DATE; TRANSITION FOR EXISTING

24 FUNDS AND COMMITTEES.— 


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1 (1) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made 

2 by this Act shall take effect on the date of the enact3 ment of this Act. 

4 (2) TRANSITION FOR EXISTING FUNDS AND

5 COMMITTEES.—In the case of a separate segregate 

6 fund established and operating under section 

7 316(b)(2)(C) of the Federal Election Campaign Act 

8 of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30118(b)(2)(C)) as of the date 

9 of the enactment of this Act which is not a fund of 

10 a nonprofit corporation as defined in section 

11 316(b)(8) of such Act (as added by subsection 

12 (a)(2)), the fund shall terminate and disburse its en13 tire balance not later than 1 year after the date of 

14 the enactment of this Act. 

15 SEC. 714. DISCLOSURE OF CAMPAIGN-RELATED DISBURSE16 MENTS. 

17 (a) DISCLOSURE REQUIREMENTS FOR CORPORA18 TIONS, LABOR ORGANIZATIONS, AND CERTAIN OTHER

19 ENTITIES.— 

20 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 324 of the Federal 

21 Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30126) 

22 is amended to read as follows: 

23 ‘‘SEC. 324. DISCLOSURE OF CAMPAIGN-RELATED DISBURSE24 MENTS BY COVERED ORGANIZATIONS. 

25 ‘‘(a) DISCLOSURE STATEMENT.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Any covered organization 

2 that makes campaign-related disbursements aggre3 gating more than $10,000 in an election reporting 

4 cycle shall, not later than 24 hours after each disclo5 sure date, file a statement with the Commission 

6 made under penalty of perjury that contains the in7 formation described in paragraph (2)— 

8 ‘‘(A) in the case of the first statement filed 

9 under this subsection, for the period beginning 

10 on the first day of the election reporting cycle 

11 (or, if earlier, the period beginning one year be12 fore the first such disclosure date) and ending 

13 on the first such disclosure date; and 

14 ‘‘(B) in the case of any subsequent state15 ment filed under this subsection, for the period 

16 beginning on the previous disclosure date and 

17 ending on such disclosure date. 

18 ‘‘(2) INFORMATION DESCRIBED.—The informa19 tion described in this paragraph is as follows: 

20 ‘‘(A) The name of the covered organization 

21 and the principal place of business of such or22 ganization and, in the case of a covered organi23 zation that is a corporation (other than a busi24 ness concern that is an issuer of a class of secu25 rities registered under section 12 of the SecuriVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:09 Feb 17, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00404 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H9029.IH H9029

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1 ties Exchange Act of 1934 (15 U.S.C. 78l) or 

2 that is required to file reports under section 

3 15(d) of that Act (15 U.S.C. 78o(d))) or an en4 tity described in subsection (e)(2), a list of the 

5 beneficial owners (as defined in paragraph 

6 (4)(A)) of the entity that— 

7 ‘‘(i) identifies each beneficial owner by 

8 name and current residential or business 

9 street address; and 

10 ‘‘(ii) if any beneficial owner exercises 

11 control over the entity through another 

12 legal entity, such as a corporation, partner13 ship, limited liability company, or trust, 

14 identifies each such other legal entity and 

15 each such beneficial owner who will use 

16 that other entity to exercise control over 

17 the entity. 

18 ‘‘(B) The amount of each campaign-related 

19 disbursement made by such organization during 

20 the period covered by the statement of more 

21 than $1,000, and the name and address of the 

22 person to whom the disbursement was made. 

23 ‘‘(C) In the case of a campaign-related dis24 bursement that is not a covered transfer, the 

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1 ment pertains and if the disbursement is made 

2 for a public communication, the name of any 

3 candidate identified in such communication and 

4 whether such communication is in support of or 

5 in opposition to a candidate. 

6 ‘‘(D) A certification by the chief executive 

7 officer or person who is the head of the covered 

8 organization that the campaign-related dis9 bursement is not made in cooperation, consulta10 tion, or concert with or at the request or sug11 gestion of a candidate, authorized committee, or 

12 agent of a candidate, political party, or agent of 

13 a political party. 

14 ‘‘(E)(i) If the covered organization makes 

15 campaign-related disbursements using exclu16 sively funds in a segregated bank account con17 sisting of funds that were paid directly to such 

18 account by persons other than the covered orga19 nization that controls the account, for each 

20 such payment to the account— 

21 ‘‘(I) the name and address of each 

22 person who made such payment during the 

23 period covered by the statement; 

24 ‘‘(II) the date and amount of such 

25 payment; and 


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1 ‘‘(III) the aggregate amount of all 

2 such payments made by the person during 

3 the period beginning on the first day of the 

4 election reporting cycle (or, if earlier, the 

5 period beginning one year before the dis6 closure date) and ending on the disclosure 

7 date, 

8 but only if such payment was made by a person 

9 who made payments to the account in an aggre10 gate amount of $10,000 or more during the pe11 riod beginning on the first day of the election 

12 reporting cycle (or, if earlier, the period begin13 ning one year before the disclosure date) and 

14 ending on the disclosure date. 

15 ‘‘(ii) In any calendar year after 2020, sec16 tion 315(c)(1)(B) shall apply to the amount de17 scribed in clause (i) in the same manner as 

18 such section applies to the limitations estab19 lished under subsections (a)(1)(A), (a)(1)(B), 

20 (a)(3), and (h) of such section, except that for 

21 purposes of applying such section to the 

22 amounts described in subsection (b), the ‘base 

23 period’ shall be 2020. 

24 ‘‘(F)(i) If the covered organization makes 

25 campaign-related disbursements using funds 


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1 other than funds in a segregated bank account 

2 described in subparagraph (E), for each pay3 ment to the covered organization— 

4 ‘‘(I) the name and address of each 

5 person who made such payment during the 

6 period covered by the statement; 

7 ‘‘(II) the date and amount of such 

8 payment; and 

9 ‘‘(III) the aggregate amount of all 

10 such payments made by the person during 

11 the period beginning on the first day of the 

12 election reporting cycle (or, if earlier, the 

13 period beginning one year before the dis14 closure date) and ending on the disclosure 

15 date, 

16 but only if such payment was made by a person 

17 who made payments to the covered organization 

18 in an aggregate amount of $10,000 or more 

19 during the period beginning on the first day of 

20 the election reporting cycle (or, if earlier, the 

21 period beginning one year before the disclosure 

22 date) and ending on the disclosure date. 

23 ‘‘(ii) In any calendar year after 2020, sec24 tion 315(c)(1)(B) shall apply to the amount de25 scribed in clause (i) in the same manner as 


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1 such section applies to the limitations estab2 lished under subsections (a)(1)(A), (a)(1)(B), 

3 (a)(3), and (h) of such section, except that for 

4 purposes of applying such section to the 

5 amounts described in subsection (b), the ‘base 

6 period’ shall be 2020. 

7 ‘‘(G) Such other information as required in 

8 rules established by the Commission to promote 

9 the purposes of this section. 

10 ‘‘(3) EXCEPTIONS.— 

11 ‘‘(A) AMOUNTS RECEIVED IN ORDINARY

12 COURSE OF BUSINESS.—The requirement to in13 clude in a statement filed under paragraph (1) 

14 the information described in paragraph (2) 

15 shall not apply to amounts received by the cov16 ered organization in commercial transactions in 

17 the ordinary course of any trade or business 

18 conducted by the covered organization or in the 

19 form of investments (other than investments by 

20 the principal shareholder in a limited liability 

21 corporation) in the covered organization. For 

22 purposes of this subparagraph, amounts re23 ceived by a covered organization as remittances 

24 from an employee to the employee’s collective 

25 bargaining representative shall be treated as 


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1 amounts received in commercial transactions in 

2 the ordinary course of the business conducted 

3 by the covered organization. 

4 ‘‘(B) DONOR RESTRICTION ON USE OF

5 FUNDS.—The requirement to include in a state6 ment submitted under paragraph (1) the infor7 mation described in subparagraph (F) of para8 graph (2) shall not apply if— 

9 ‘‘(i) the person described in such sub10 paragraph prohibited, in writing, the use of 

11 the payment made by such person for cam12 paign-related disbursements; and 

13 ‘‘(ii) the covered organization agreed 

14 to follow the prohibition and deposited the 

15 payment in an account which is segregated 

16 from any account used to make campaign17 related disbursements. 

18 ‘‘(C) THREAT OF HARASSMENT OR RE19 PRISAL.—The requirement to include any infor20 mation relating to the name or address of any 

21 person (other than a candidate) in a statement 

22 submitted under paragraph (1) shall not apply 

23 if the inclusion of the information would subject 

24 the person to serious threats, harassment, or 

25 reprisals. 


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1 ‘‘(4) OTHER DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of 

2 this section: 

3 ‘‘(A) BENEFICIAL OWNER DEFINED.— 

4 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Except as pro5 vided in clause (ii), the term ‘beneficial 

6 owner’ means, with respect to any entity, 

7 a natural person who, directly or indi8 rectly— 

9 ‘‘(I) exercises substantial control 

10 over an entity through ownership, vot11 ing rights, agreement, or otherwise; or 

12 ‘‘(II) has a substantial interest in 

13 or receives substantial economic bene14 fits from the assets of an entity. 

15 ‘‘(ii) EXCEPTIONS.—The term ‘bene16 ficial owner’ shall not include— 

17 ‘‘(I) a minor child; 

18 ‘‘(II) a person acting as a nomi19 nee, intermediary, custodian, or agent 

20 on behalf of another person; 

21 ‘‘(III) a person acting solely as 

22 an employee of an entity and whose 

23 control over or economic benefits from 

24 the entity derives solely from the em25 ployment status of the person; 


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1 ‘‘(IV) a person whose only inter2 est in an entity is through a right of 

3 inheritance, unless the person also 

4 meets the requirements of clause (i); 

5 or 

6 ‘‘(V) a creditor of an entity, un7 less the creditor also meets the re8 quirements of clause (i). 

9 ‘‘(iii) ANTI-ABUSE RULE.—The excep10 tions under clause (ii) shall not apply if 

11 used for the purpose of evading, circum12 venting, or abusing the provisions of clause 

13 (i) or paragraph (2)(A). 

14 ‘‘(B) DISCLOSURE DATE.—The term ‘dis15 closure date’ means— 

16 ‘‘(i) the first date during any election 

17 reporting cycle by which a person has 

18 made campaign-related disbursements ag19 gregating more than $10,000; and 

20 ‘‘(ii) any other date during such elec21 tion reporting cycle by which a person has 

22 made campaign-related disbursements ag23 gregating more than $10,000 since the 

24 most recent disclosure date for such elec25 tion reporting cycle. 


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1 ‘‘(C) ELECTION REPORTING CYCLE.—The 

2 term ‘election reporting cycle’ means the 2-year 

3 period beginning on the date of the most recent 

4 general election for Federal office. 

5 ‘‘(D) PAYMENT.—The term ‘payment’ in6 cludes any contribution, donation, transfer, pay7 ment of dues, or other payment. 

8 ‘‘(b) COORDINATION WITH OTHER PROVISIONS.— 

9 ‘‘(1) OTHER REPORTS FILED WITH THE COM10 MISSION.—Information included in a statement filed 

11 under this section may be excluded from statements 

12 and reports filed under section 304. 

13 ‘‘(2) TREATMENT AS SEPARATE SEGREGATED

14 FUND.—A segregated bank account referred to in 

15 subsection (a)(2)(E) may be treated as a separate 

16 segregated fund for purposes of section 527(f)(3) of 

17 the Internal Revenue Code of 1986. 

18 ‘‘(c) FILING.—Statements required to be filed under 

19 subsection (a) shall be subject to the requirements of sec20 tion 304(d) to the same extent and in the same manner 

21 as if such reports had been required under subsection (c) 

22 or (g) of section 304. 

23 ‘‘(d) CAMPAIGN-RELATED DISBURSEMENT DE24 FINED.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In this section, the term 

2 ‘campaign-related disbursement’ means a disburse3 ment by a covered organization for any of the fol4 lowing: 

5 ‘‘(A) An independent expenditure which ex6 pressly advocates the election or defeat of a 

7 clearly identified candidate for election for Fed8 eral office, or is the functional equivalent of ex9 press advocacy because, when taken as a whole, 

10 it can be interpreted by a reasonable person 

11 only as advocating the election or defeat of a 

12 candidate for election for Federal office. 

13 ‘‘(B) Any public communication which re14 fers to a clearly identified candidate for election 

15 for Federal office and which promotes or sup16 ports the election of a candidate for that office, 

17 or attacks or opposes the election of a candidate 

18 for that office, without regard to whether the 

19 communication expressly advocates a vote for or 

20 against a candidate for that office. 

21 ‘‘(C) An electioneering communication, as 

22 defined in section 304(f)(3). 

23 ‘‘(D) A covered transfer. 

24 ‘‘(2) INTENT NOT REQUIRED.—A disbursement 

25 for an item described in subparagraph (A), (B), (C), 


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1 or (D) of paragraph (1) shall be treated as a cam2 paign-related disbursement regardless of the intent 

3 of the person making the disbursement. 

4 ‘‘(e) COVERED ORGANIZATION DEFINED.—In this 

5 section, the term ‘covered organization’ means any of the 

6 following: 

7 ‘‘(1) A corporation (other than an organization 

8 described in section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Rev9 enue Code of 1986). 

10 ‘‘(2) A limited liability corporation that is not 

11 otherwise treated as a corporation for purposes of 

12 this Act (other than an organization described in 

13 section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 

14 1986). 

15 ‘‘(3) An organization described in section 

16 501(c) of such Code and exempt from taxation 

17 under section 501(a) of such Code (other than an 

18 organization described in section 501(c)(3) of such 

19 Code). 

20 ‘‘(4) A labor organization (as defined in section 

21 316(b)). 

22 ‘‘(5) Any political organization under section 

23 527 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, other 

24 than a political committee under this Act (except as 

25 provided in paragraph (6)). 


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1 ‘‘(6) A political committee with an account that 

2 accepts donations or contributions that do not com3 ply with the contribution limits or source prohibi4 tions under this Act, but only with respect to such 

5 accounts. 

6 ‘‘(f) COVERED TRANSFER DEFINED.— 

7 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In this section, the term 

8 ‘covered transfer’ means any transfer or payment of 

9 funds by a covered organization to another person if 

10 the covered organization— 

11 ‘‘(A) designates, requests, or suggests that 

12 the amounts be used for— 

13 ‘‘(i) campaign-related disbursements 

14 (other than covered transfers); or 

15 ‘‘(ii) making a transfer to another 

16 person for the purpose of making or pay17 ing for such campaign-related disburse18 ments; 

19 ‘‘(B) made such transfer or payment in re20 sponse to a solicitation or other request for a 

21 donation or payment for— 

22 ‘‘(i) the making of or paying for cam23 paign-related disbursements (other than 

24 covered transfers); or 


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1 ‘‘(ii) making a transfer to another 

2 person for the purpose of making or pay3 ing for such campaign-related disburse4 ments; 

5 ‘‘(C) engaged in discussions with the re6 cipient of the transfer or payment regarding— 

7 ‘‘(i) the making of or paying for cam8 paign-related disbursements (other than 

9 covered transfers); or 

10 ‘‘(ii) donating or transferring any 

11 amount of such transfer or payment to an12 other person for the purpose of making or 

13 paying for such campaign-related disburse14 ments; 

15 ‘‘(D) made campaign-related disburse16 ments (other than a covered transfer) in an ag17 gregate amount of $50,000 or more during the 

18 2-year period ending on the date of the transfer 

19 or payment, or knew or had reason to know 

20 that the person receiving the transfer or pay21 ment made such disbursements in such an ag22 gregate amount during that 2-year period; or 

23 ‘‘(E) knew or had reason to know that the 

24 person receiving the transfer or payment would 

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1 gregate amount of $50,000 or more during the 

2 2-year period beginning on the date of the 

3 transfer or payment. 

4 ‘‘(2) EXCLUSIONS.—The term ‘covered transfer’ 

5 does not include any of the following: 

6 ‘‘(A) A disbursement made by a covered 

7 organization in a commercial transaction in the 

8 ordinary course of any trade or business con9 ducted by the covered organization or in the 

10 form of investments made by the covered orga11 nization. 

12 ‘‘(B) A disbursement made by a covered 

13 organization if— 

14 ‘‘(i) the covered organization prohib15 ited, in writing, the use of such disburse16 ment for campaign-related disbursements; 

17 and 

18 ‘‘(ii) the recipient of the disbursement 

19 agreed to follow the prohibition and depos20 ited the disbursement in an account which 

21 is segregated from any account used to 

22 make campaign-related disbursements. 

23 ‘‘(3) SPECIAL RULE REGARDING TRANSFERS

24 AMONG AFFILIATES.— 


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1 ‘‘(A) SPECIAL RULE.—A transfer of an 

2 amount by one covered organization to another 

3 covered organization which is treated as a 

4 transfer between affiliates under subparagraph 

5 (C) shall be considered a covered transfer by 

6 the covered organization which transfers the 

7 amount only if the aggregate amount trans8 ferred during the year by such covered organi9 zation to that same covered organization is 

10 equal to or greater than $50,000. 

11 ‘‘(B) DETERMINATION OF AMOUNT OF

12 CERTAIN PAYMENTS AMONG AFFILIATES.—In 

13 determining the amount of a transfer between 

14 affiliates for purposes of subparagraph (A), to 

15 the extent that the transfer consists of funds 

16 attributable to dues, fees, or assessments which 

17 are paid by individuals on a regular, periodic 

18 basis in accordance with a per-individual cal19 culation which is made on a regular basis, the 

20 transfer shall be attributed to the individuals 

21 paying the dues, fees, or assessments and shall 

22 not be attributed to the covered organization. 

23 ‘‘(C) DESCRIPTION OF TRANSFERS BE24 TWEEN AFFILIATES.—A transfer of amounts 

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1 ered organization shall be treated as a transfer 

2 between affiliates if— 

3 ‘‘(i) one of the organizations is an af4 filiate of the other organization; or 

5 ‘‘(ii) each of the organizations is an 

6 affiliate of the same organization, 

7 except that the transfer shall not be treated as 

8 a transfer between affiliates if one of the orga9 nizations is established for the purpose of mak10 ing campaign-related disbursements. 

11 ‘‘(D) DETERMINATION OF AFFILIATE STA12 TUS.—For purposes of subparagraph (C), a 

13 covered organization is an affiliate of another 

14 covered organization if— 

15 ‘‘(i) the governing instrument of the 

16 organization requires it to be bound by de17 cisions of the other organization; 

18 ‘‘(ii) the governing board of the orga19 nization includes persons who are specifi20 cally designated representatives of the 

21 other organization or are members of the 

22 governing board, officers, or paid executive 

23 staff members of the other organization, or 

24 whose service on the governing board is 


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1 contingent upon the approval of the other 

2 organization; or 

3 ‘‘(iii) the organization is chartered by 

4 the other organization. 

5 ‘‘(E) COVERAGE OF TRANSFERS TO AF6 FILIATED SECTION 501(c)(3) ORGANIZA7 TIONS.—This paragraph shall apply with re8 spect to an amount transferred by a covered or9 ganization to an organization described in para10 graph (3) of section 501(c) of the Internal Rev11 enue Code of 1986 and exempt from tax under 

12 section 501(a) of such Code in the same man13 ner as this paragraph applies to an amount 

14 transferred by a covered organization to an15 other covered organization. 

16 ‘‘(g) NO EFFECT ON OTHER REPORTING REQUIRE17 MENTS.—Nothing in this section shall be construed to 

18 waive or otherwise affect any other requirement of this 

19 Act which relates to the reporting of campaign-related dis20 bursements.’’. 

21 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 

22 304(f)(6) of such Act (52 U.S.C. 30104) is amended 

23 by striking ‘‘Any requirement’’ and inserting ‘‘Ex24 cept as provided in section 324(b), any require25 ment’’. 


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1 (b) COORDINATION WITH FINCEN.— 

2 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Director of the Finan3 cial Crimes Enforcement Network of the Depart4 ment of the Treasury shall provide the Federal Elec5 tion Commission with such information as necessary 

6 to assist in administering and enforcing section 324 

7 of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971, as 

8 added by this section. 

9 (2) REPORT.—Not later than 6 months after 

10 the date of the enactment of this Act, the Chairman 

11 of the Federal Election Commission, in consultation 

12 with the Director of the Financial Crimes Enforce13 ment Network of the Department of the Treasury, 

14 shall submit to Congress a report with recommenda15 tions for providing further legislative authority to as16 sist in the administration and enforcement of such 

17 section 324. 

18 PART III—REQUIREMENTS RELATING TO 

19 FOREIGN NATIONALS 

20 SEC. 721. BANNING FOREIGN-OWNED AND PARTIALLY FOR21 EIGN-OWNED CORPORATIONS FROM SPEND22 ING ON UNITED STATES ELECTIONS. 

23 Section 319 of the Federal Election Campaign Act 

24 of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30121) is amended— 

25 (1) in subsection (a)— 


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1 (A) in paragraph (1)— 

2 (i) in subparagraph (A), by inserting 

3 the following before the semicolon: ‘‘(in4 cluding a State or local ballot initiative or 

5 referendum), including any disbursement 

6 to a political committee which accepts do7 nations or contributions that do not com8 ply with the limitations, prohibitions, and 

9 reporting requirements of this Act (or any 

10 disbursement to or on behalf of any ac11 count of a political committee which is es12 tablished for the purpose of accepting such 

13 donations or contributions)’’; 

14 (ii) in subparagraph (B), by striking 

15 ‘‘or’’ at the end; 

16 (iii) in subparagraph (C), by striking 

17 ‘‘expenditure’’ and all that follows through 

18 ‘‘; or’’ and inserting ‘‘expenditure;’’; and 

19 (iv) by adding at the end the following 

20 new subparagraphs: 

21 ‘‘(D) an independent expenditure; 

22 ‘‘(E) a disbursement for an electioneering 

23 communication (within the meaning of section 

24 304(f)(3)); 


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1 ‘‘(F) a disbursement for a paid internet or 

2 paid digital communication that refers to a 

3 clearly identified candidate for election for Fed4 eral office and is disseminated within 60 days 

5 before a general, special or runoff election for 

6 the office sought by the candidate or 30 days 

7 before a primary or preference election, or a 

8 convention or caucus of a political party that 

9 has authority to nominate a candidate for the 

10 office sought by the candidate; 

11 ‘‘(G) a disbursement for a broadcast, cable 

12 or satellite communication, or for a paid inter13 net or paid digital communication, that pro14 motes, supports, attacks or opposes the election 

15 of a clearly identified candidate for Federal, 

16 State, or local office (regardless of whether the 

17 communication contains express advocacy or the 

18 functional equivalent of express advocacy); or 

19 ‘‘(H) a disbursement for a broadcast, 

20 cable, or satellite communication, or for a paid 

21 internet or paid digital communication, that 

22 discusses a national legislative issue of public 

23 importance in a year in which a regularly 

24 scheduled general election for Federal office is 

25 held and is made for the purpose of influencing 


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1 an election held during that year, but only if 

2 the disbursement is made by a foreign principal 

3 who is a government of a foreign country or a 

4 foreign political party or an agent of such a for5 eign principal as defined under section 1 of the 

6 Foreign Agents Registration Act of 1938 (22 

7 U.S.C. 611);’’; 

8 (B) in paragraph (2), by striking the pe9 riod at the end and inserting ‘‘; or’’; and 

10 (C) by adding at the end the following new 

11 paragraph: 

12 ‘‘(3) a foreign national to direct, dictate, con13 trol, or directly or indirectly participate in the deci14 sion-making process of any person (including a cor15 poration, labor organization, political committee, or 

16 political organization) with regard to the Federal or 

17 non-Federal election-related activity of such person, 

18 including any decision concerning the making of con19 tributions, donations, expenditures, or disbursements 

20 in connection with an election for any Federal, 

21 State, or local office or any decision concerning the 

22 administration of a political committee.’’; 

23 (2) in subsection (b)— 

24 (A) in paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘or’’ at 

25 the end; 


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1 (B) in paragraph (2), by striking the pe2 riod at the end and inserting ‘‘; or’’; and 

3 (C) by adding at the end the following new 

4 paragraph: 

5 ‘‘(3) any for-profit corporation, company, lim6 ited liability company, limited partnership, business 

7 trust, business association, or other similar entity, 

8 which is not a foreign national described in para9 graph (1) and— 

10 ‘‘(A) in which a foreign national described 

11 in paragraph (1) or (2) or a foreign business as 

12 defined in subsection (d) directly or indirectly 

13 holds, owns, controls, or otherwise has direct or 

14 indirect beneficial ownership of 1 percent or 

15 more of the total equity, outstanding voting 

16 shares, membership units, or other applicable 

17 ownership interests of the entity; 

18 ‘‘(B) in which two or more foreign nation19 als described in paragraph (1) or (2) or foreign 

20 businesses as so defined, in aggregate, directly, 

21 or indirectly hold, own, control, or otherwise 

22 have direct or indirect beneficial ownership of 

23 five percent or more of the total equity, out24 standing voting shares, membership units, or 


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1 other applicable ownership interests of the enti2 ty; 

3 ‘‘(C) over which one or more foreign na4 tionals described in paragraph (1) or (2) or for5 eign businesses as so defined has the power to 

6 direct, dictate, or control the decision-making 

7 process of the entity with respect to its interests 

8 in the United States; or 

9 ‘‘(D) over which one or more foreign na10 tionals described in paragraph (1) or (2) or for11 eign businesses as so defined has the power to 

12 direct, dictate, or control the decision-making 

13 process of the entity with respect to activities in 

14 connection with a Federal, State, or local elec15 tion, including— 

16 ‘‘(i) the making of a contribution, do17 nation, expenditure, independent expendi18 ture, or disbursement for an electioneering 

19 communication (within the meaning of sec20 tion 304(f)(3)); or 

21 ‘‘(ii) the administration of a political 

22 committee established or maintained by the 

23 entity.’’; and 

24 (3) by adding at the end the following new sub25 sections: 


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1 ‘‘(c) CERTIFICATION OF COMPLIANCE REQUIRED

2 FOR CARRYING OUT ACTIVITY.—Prior to the making in 

3 connection with an election for Federal office of any con4 tribution, donation, expenditure, independent expenditure, 

5 or disbursement for an electioneering communication by 

6 a covered for-profit entity, as defined in section 3 of the 

7 Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1602), during 

8 a year, the chief executive officer of the entity (or, if the 

9 entity does not have a chief executive officer, the highest 

10 ranking official of the entity), shall file a certification with 

11 the Commission, under penalty of perjury, avowing that 

12 the entity is not a foreign national and that a foreign na13 tional did not direct, dictate, control, or directly or indi14 rectly participate in the decision-making process relating 

15 to such activity in violation of subsection (a)(3), unless 

16 the chief executive officer or highest ranking official, if 

17 applicable, has previously filed such a certification within 

18 the previous 30 days. 

19 ‘‘(d) DEFINITION OF FOREIGN BUSINESS.—For pur20 poses of this section, the term ‘foreign business’ means 

21 any for-profit corporation, company, limited liability com22 pany, limited partnership, business trust, business associa23 tion, or other similar entity wherein a foreign national 

24 holds, owns, controls, or otherwise has directly or indi25 rectly acquired beneficial ownership of equity or voting 


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1 shares in an amount that is equal to or greater than 50 

2 percent of the total equity or outstanding voting shares.’’. 

3 PART IV—ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS 

4 Subpart A—Campaign Finance 

5 SEC. 731. CLARIFICATION ON TREATMENT OF INFORMA6 TION USED TO INFLUENCE AN ELECTION FOR 

7 FEDERAL OFFICE AS A CONTRIBUTION; 

8 CLARIFICATION REGARDING PURPOSE OF IN9 FLUENCING AN ELECTION FOR FEDERAL OF10 FICE. 

11 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 301(8) of the Federal 

12 Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30101(8)) is 

13 amended by adding at the end the following new subpara14 graph: 

15 ‘‘(C) For purposes of subparagraph (A)(i) and 

16 section 319(a)(1)(A), material, non-public informa17 tion, including opposition research, intended to be 

18 used for the purpose of influencing an election for 

19 Federal office as described in subparagraph (A)(i), 

20 or in the case of section 319(a)(1)(A), in connection 

21 with a Federal, State, or local election, shall be con22 sidered a thing of value without regard to whether 

23 the information provided has monetary value.’’. 

24 (b) CLARIFICATION REGARDING PURPOSE OF INFLU25 ENCING AN ELECTION.— 


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1 (1) CONTRIBUTIONS.—Section 301(8)(A)(i) of 

2 such Act (52 U.S.C. 30101(8)(A)(i)) is amended by 

3 inserting the following before the semicolon: 

4 ‘‘(whether in whole or in part, or with the predict5 able effect of, influencing an election for Federal of6 fice)’’. 

7 (2) EXPENDITURES.—Section 301(9)(A)(i) of 

8 such Act (52 U.S.C. 30101(9)(A)(i)) is amended by 

9 inserting the following before the semicolon: 

10 ‘‘(whether in whole or in part, or with the predict11 able effect of, influencing an election for Federal of12 fice)’’. 

13 (c) APPLICATION OF PENALTIES.—Section 

14 309(d)(1)(A)(ii) of the such Act (52 U.S.C. 

15 30109(d)(1)(A)(ii)) is amended— 

16 (1) by striking ‘‘$2,000 or more (but less than 

17 $25,000)’’ and inserting ‘‘less than $25,000’’; and 

18 (2) by inserting ‘‘or involving information de19 scribed in section 301(8)(C), and which has a value 

20 that is not ascertainable’’ after ‘‘during a calendar 

21 year’’. 


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1 SEC. 732. PROHIBITION ON SUPER PAC–CANDIDATE CO2 ORDINATION. 

3 (a) CLARIFICATION OF TREATMENT OF COORDI4 NATED EXPENDITURES AS CONTRIBUTIONS TO CAN5 DIDATES.— 

6 (1) TREATMENT AS CONTRIBUTION TO CAN7 DIDATE.—Section 301(8)(A) of the Federal Election 

8 Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30101(8)(A)), as 

9 amended by section 731, is amended— 

10 (A) by striking ‘‘or’’ at the end of clause 

11 (i); 

12 (B) by striking the period at the end of 

13 clause (ii) and inserting ‘‘; or’’; and 

14 (C) by adding at the end the following new 

15 clause: 

16 ‘‘(iii) any payment made by any person 

17 (other than a candidate, an authorized com18 mittee of a candidate, or a political committee 

19 of a political party) for a coordinated expendi20 ture (as such term is defined in section 328) 

21 which is not otherwise treated as a contribution 

22 under clause (i) or clause (ii).’’. 

23 (2) DEFINITIONS.—Title III of such Act (52 

24 U.S.C. 30101 et seq.), as amended by sections 141, 

25 701, and 712, is amended by adding at the end the 

26 following new section: 


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1 ‘‘SEC. 328. PAYMENTS FOR COORDINATED EXPENDITURES. 

2 ‘‘(a) COORDINATED EXPENDITURES.— 

3 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—For purposes of section 

4 301(8)(A)(iii), the term ‘coordinated expenditure’ 

5 means— 

6 ‘‘(A) any expenditure, or any payment for 

7 a covered communication described in sub8 section (d), which is made in cooperation, con9 sultation, or concert with, or at the request or 

10 suggestion of, a candidate, an authorized com11 mittee of a candidate, a political committee of 

12 a political party, or agents of the candidate or 

13 committee, as defined in subsection (b); or 

14 ‘‘(B) any payment for any communication 

15 which republishes, disseminates, or distributes, 

16 in whole or in part, any video or broadcast or 

17 any written, graphic, or other form of campaign 

18 material prepared by the candidate or com19 mittee or by agents of the candidate or com20 mittee (including any excerpt or use of any 

21 video from any such broadcast or written, 

22 graphic, or other form of campaign material). 

23 ‘‘(2) EXCEPTION FOR PAYMENTS FOR CERTAIN

24 COMMUNICATIONS.—A payment for a communication 

25 (including a covered communication described in 


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1 subsection (d)) shall not be treated as a coordinated 

2 expenditure under this subsection if— 

3 ‘‘(A) the communication appears in a news 

4 story, commentary, or editorial distributed 

5 through the facilities of any broadcasting sta6 tion, newspaper, magazine, or other periodical 

7 publication, unless such facilities are owned or 

8 controlled by any political party, political com9 mittee, or candidate; or 

10 ‘‘(B) the communication constitutes a can11 didate debate or forum conducted pursuant to 

12 regulations adopted by the Commission pursu13 ant to section 304(f)(3)(B)(iii), or which solely 

14 promotes such a debate or forum and is made 

15 by or on behalf of the person sponsoring the de16 bate or forum. 

17 ‘‘(b) COORDINATION DESCRIBED.— 

18 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—For purposes of this sec19 tion, a payment is made ‘in cooperation, consulta20 tion, or concert with, or at the request or suggestion 

21 of,’ a candidate, an authorized committee of a can22 didate, a political committee of a political party, or 

23 agents of the candidate or committee, if the pay24 ment, or any communication for which the payment 

25 is made, is not made entirely independently of the 


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1 candidate, committee, or agents. For purposes of the 

2 previous sentence, a payment or communication not 

3 made entirely independently of the candidate or 

4 committee includes any payment or communication 

5 made pursuant to any general or particular under6 standing with, or pursuant to any communication 

7 with, the candidate, committee, or agents about the 

8 payment or communication. 

9 ‘‘(2) NO FINDING OF COORDINATION BASED

10 SOLELY ON SHARING OF INFORMATION REGARDING

11 LEGISLATIVE OR POLICY POSITION.—For purposes 

12 of this section, a payment shall not be considered to 

13 be made by a person in cooperation, consultation, or 

14 concert with, or at the request or suggestion of, a 

15 candidate or committee, solely on the grounds that 

16 the person or the person’s agent engaged in discus17 sions with the candidate or committee, or with any 

18 agent of the candidate or committee, regarding that 

19 person’s position on a legislative or policy matter 

20 (including urging the candidate or committee to 

21 adopt that person’s position), so long as there is no 

22 communication between the person and the can23 didate or committee, or any agent of the candidate 

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1 icy, polling, allocation of resources, fundraising, or 

2 other campaign activities. 

3 ‘‘(3) NO EFFECT ON PARTY COORDINATION

4 STANDARD.—Nothing in this section shall be con5 strued to affect the determination of coordination 

6 between a candidate and a political committee of a 

7 political party for purposes of section 315(d). 

8 ‘‘(4) NO SAFE HARBOR FOR USE OF FIRE9 WALL.—A person shall be determined to have made 

10 a payment in cooperation, consultation, or concert 

11 with, or at the request or suggestion of, a candidate 

12 or committee, in accordance with this section with13 out regard to whether or not the person established 

14 and used a firewall or similar procedures to restrict 

15 the sharing of information between individuals who 

16 are employed by or who are serving as agents for the 

17 person making the payment. 

18 ‘‘(c) PAYMENTS BY COORDINATED SPENDERS FOR

19 COVERED COMMUNICATIONS.— 

20 ‘‘(1) PAYMENTS MADE IN COOPERATION, CON21 SULTATION, OR CONCERT WITH CANDIDATES.—For 

22 purposes of subsection (a)(1)(A), if the person who 

23 makes a payment for a covered communication, as 

24 defined in subsection (d), is a coordinated spender 

25 under paragraph (2) with respect to the candidate 


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1 as described in subsection (d)(1), the payment for 

2 the covered communication is made in cooperation, 

3 consultation, or concert with the candidate. 

4 ‘‘(2) COORDINATED SPENDER DEFINED.—For 

5 purposes of this subsection, the term ‘coordinated 

6 spender’ means, with respect to a candidate or an 

7 authorized committee of a candidate, a person (other 

8 than a political committee of a political party) for 

9 which any of the following applies: 

10 ‘‘(A) During the 4-year period ending on 

11 the date on which the person makes the pay12 ment, the person was directly or indirectly 

13 formed or established by or at the request or 

14 suggestion of, or with the encouragement of, 

15 the candidate (including an individual who later 

16 becomes a candidate) or committee or agents of 

17 the candidate or committee, including with the 

18 approval of the candidate or committee or 

19 agents of the candidate or committee. 

20 ‘‘(B) The candidate or committee or any 

21 agent of the candidate or committee solicits 

22 funds, appears at a fundraising event, or en23 gages in other fundraising activity on the per24 son’s behalf during the election cycle involved, 

25 including by providing the person with names of 


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1 potential donors or other lists to be used by the 

2 person in engaging in fundraising activity, re3 gardless of whether the person pays fair market 

4 value for the names or lists provided. For pur5 poses of this subparagraph, the term ‘election 

6 cycle’ means, with respect to an election for 

7 Federal office, the period beginning on the day 

8 after the date of the most recent general elec9 tion for that office (or, if the general election 

10 resulted in a runoff election, the date of the 

11 runoff election) and ending on the date of the 

12 next general election for that office (or, if the 

13 general election resulted in a runoff election, 

14 the date of the runoff election). 

15 ‘‘(C) The person is established, directed, or 

16 managed by the candidate or committee or by 

17 any person who, during the 4-year period end18 ing on the date on which the person makes the 

19 payment, has been employed or retained as a 

20 political, campaign media, or fundraising ad21 viser or consultant for the candidate or com22 mittee or for any other entity directly or indi23 rectly controlled by the candidate or committee, 

24 or has held a formal position with the candidate 

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1 ployee of the office of the candidate at any time 

2 the candidate held any Federal, State, or local 

3 public office during the 4-year period). 

4 ‘‘(D) The person has retained the profes5 sional services of any person who, during the 2- 

6 year period ending on the date on which the 

7 person makes the payment, has provided or is 

8 providing professional services relating to the 

9 campaign to the candidate or committee, with10 out regard to whether the person providing the 

11 professional services used a firewall. For pur12 poses of this subparagraph, the term ‘profes13 sional services’ includes any services in support 

14 of the candidate’s or committee’s campaign ac15 tivities, including advertising, message, strat16 egy, policy, polling, allocation of resources, 

17 fundraising, and campaign operations, but does 

18 not include accounting or legal services. 

19 ‘‘(E) The person is established, directed, or 

20 managed by a member of the immediate family 

21 of the candidate, or the person or any officer or 

22 agent of the person has had more than inci23 dental discussions about the candidate’s cam24 paign with a member of the immediate family 

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1 graph, the term ‘immediate family’ has the 

2 meaning given such term in section 9004(e) of 

3 the Internal Revenue Code of 1986. 

4 ‘‘(d) COVERED COMMUNICATION DEFINED.— 

5 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—For purposes of this sec6 tion, the term ‘covered communication’ means, with 

7 respect to a candidate or an authorized committee of 

8 a candidate, a public communication (as defined in 

9 section 301(22)) which— 

10 ‘‘(A) expressly advocates the election of the 

11 candidate or the defeat of an opponent of the 

12 candidate (or contains the functional equivalent 

13 of express advocacy); 

14 ‘‘(B) promotes or supports the election of 

15 the candidate, or attacks or opposes the election 

16 of an opponent of the candidate (regardless of 

17 whether the communication expressly advocates 

18 the election or defeat of a candidate or contains 

19 the functional equivalent of express advocacy); 

20 or 

21 ‘‘(C) refers to the candidate or an oppo22 nent of the candidate but is not described in 

23 subparagraph (A) or subparagraph (B), but 

24 only if the communication is disseminated dur25 ing the applicable election period. 


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1 ‘‘(2) APPLICABLE ELECTION PERIOD.—In para2 graph (1)(C), the ‘applicable election period’ with re3 spect to a communication means— 

4 ‘‘(A) in the case of a communication which 

5 refers to a candidate in a general, special, or 

6 runoff election, the 120-day period which ends 

7 on the date of the election; or 

8 ‘‘(B) in the case of a communication which 

9 refers to a candidate in a primary or preference 

10 election, or convention or caucus of a political 

11 party that has authority to nominate a can12 didate, the 60-day period which ends on the 

13 date of the election or convention or caucus. 

14 ‘‘(3) SPECIAL RULES FOR COMMUNICATIONS IN15 VOLVING CONGRESSIONAL CANDIDATES.—For pur16 poses of this subsection, a public communication 

17 shall not be considered to be a covered communica18 tion with respect to a candidate for election for an 

19 office other than the office of President or Vice 

20 President unless it is publicly disseminated or dis21 tributed in the jurisdiction of the office the can22 didate is seeking. 

23 ‘‘(e) PENALTY.— 

24 ‘‘(1) DETERMINATION OF AMOUNT.—Any per25 son who knowingly and willfully commits a violation 


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1 of this Act by making a contribution which consists 

2 of a payment for a coordinated expenditure shall be 

3 fined an amount equal to the greater of— 

4 ‘‘(A) in the case of a person who makes a 

5 contribution which consists of a payment for a 

6 coordinated expenditure in an amount exceeding 

7 the applicable contribution limit under this Act, 

8 300 percent of the amount by which the 

9 amount of the payment made by the person ex10 ceeds such applicable contribution limit; or 

11 ‘‘(B) in the case of a person who is prohib12 ited under this Act from making a contribution 

13 in any amount, 300 percent of the amount of 

14 the payment made by the person for the coordi15 nated expenditure. 

16 ‘‘(2) JOINT AND SEVERAL LIABILITY.—Any di17 rector, manager, or officer of a person who is subject 

18 to a penalty under paragraph (1) shall be jointly and 

19 severally liable for any amount of such penalty that 

20 is not paid by the person prior to the expiration of 

21 the 1-year period which begins on the date the Com22 mission imposes the penalty or the 1-year period 

23 which begins on the date of the final judgment fol24 lowing any judicial review of the Commission’s ac25 tion, whichever is later.’’. 


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1 (3) EFFECTIVE DATE.— 

2 (A) REPEAL OF EXISTING REGULATIONS

3 ON COORDINATION.—Effective upon the expira4 tion of the 90-day period which begins on the 

5 date of the enactment of this Act— 

6 (i) the regulations on coordinated 

7 communications adopted by the Federal 

8 Election Commission which are in effect on 

9 the date of the enactment of this Act (as 

10 set forth in 11 CFR Part 109, Subpart C, 

11 under the heading ‘‘Coordination’’) are re12 pealed; and 

13 (ii) the Federal Election Commission 

14 shall promulgate new regulations on co15 ordinated communications which reflect the 

16 amendments made by this Act. 

17 (B) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments 

18 made by this subsection shall apply with respect 

19 to payments made on or after the expiration of 

20 the 120-day period which begins on the date of 

21 the enactment of this Act, without regard to 

22 whether or not the Federal Election Commis23 sion has promulgated regulations in accordance 

24 with paragraph (1)(B) as of the expiration of 

25 such period. 


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1 (b) CLARIFICATION OF BAN ON FUNDRAISING FOR

2 SUPER PACS BY FEDERAL CANDIDATES AND OFFICE3 HOLDERS.—Section 323(e)(1) of the Federal Election 

4 Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30125(e)(1)) is amend5 ed— 

6 (1) by striking ‘‘or’’ at the end of subparagraph 

7 (A); 

8 (2) by striking the period at the end of sub9 paragraph (B) and inserting ‘‘; or’’; and 

10 (3) by adding at the end the following new sub11 paragraph: 

12 ‘‘(C) solicit, receive, direct, or transfer 

13 funds to or on behalf of any political committee 

14 which accepts donations or contributions that 

15 do not comply with the limitations, prohibitions, 

16 and reporting requirements of this Act (or to or 

17 on behalf of any account of a political com18 mittee which is established for the purpose of 

19 accepting such donations or contributions), or 

20 to or on behalf of any political organization 

21 under section 527 of the Internal Revenue Code 

22 of 1986 which accepts such donations or con23 tributions (other than a committee of a State or 

24 local political party or a candidate for election 

25 for State or local office).’’. 


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1 SEC. 733. DISCLOSURE OF MAJOR DONORS, BUNDLERS, 

2 AND FINANCE EVENTS IN PRESIDENTIAL 

3 CAMPAIGNS. 

4 Section 304 of the Federal Election Campaign Act 

5 of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30104), as amended by section 141, 

6 is amended by adding at the end the following new sub7 section: 

8 ‘‘(i) DISCLOSURE OF MAJOR DONORS, BUNDLERS, 

9 AND FINANCE EVENTS IN PRESIDENTIAL CAMPAIGNS.— 

10 Each report under this section by an authorized committee 

11 of a candidate for the Office of President shall include 

12 the following information with respect to the reporting pe13 riod: 

14 ‘‘(1) The names and addresses of all donors, 

15 bundlers, and fundraisers who are given titles, in16 cluding national or regional finance committee mem17 bers. 

18 ‘‘(2) The names and addresses of all members 

19 of fundraiser host committees. 

20 ‘‘(3) The names and addresses of all persons 

21 specifically invited to campaign fundraisers. 

22 ‘‘(4) The dates and locations of all fund23 raisers.’’. 


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1 SEC. 734. LOWERING CONTRIBUTION LIMITS; REPEAL OF 

2 SPECIAL CONTRIBUTION LIMITS FOR CON3 TRIBUTIONS TO NATIONAL PARTIES FOR 

4 CERTAIN PURPOSES. 

5 (a) DECREASE IN INDIVIDUAL LIMITS FOR CERTAIN

6 CONTRIBUTIONS.—Section 315(a)(1) of the Federal Elec7 tion Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30116(a)(1)) is 

8 amended— 

9 (1) in subparagraph (A), by striking ‘‘$2,000’’ 

10 and inserting ‘‘$1,000’’; and 

11 (2) in subparagraph (B), by striking ‘‘$25,000’’ 

12 and inserting ‘‘$10,000’’. 

13 (b) REPEAL OF SPECIAL CONTRIBUTION LIMITS FOR

14 CONTRIBUTIONS TO NATIONAL PARTIES FOR CERTAIN

15 PURPOSES.— 

16 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 315(a) of the Fed17 eral Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 

18 30116(a)) is amended— 

19 (A) in paragraph (1)(B), by striking ‘‘, or, 

20 in the case of contributions made to any of the 

21 accounts described in paragraph (9), exceed 

22 300 percent of the amount otherwise applicable 

23 under this subparagraph with respect to such 

24 calendar year’’; 

25 (B) in paragraph (2)(B), by striking ‘‘, or, 

26 in the case of contributions made to any of the 


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1 accounts described in paragraph (9), exceed 

2 300 percent of the amount otherwise applicable 

3 under this subparagraph with respect to such 

4 calendar year’’; and 

5 (C) by striking paragraph (9). 

6 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 

7 315(d) of such Act (52 U.S.C. 30116(d)) is amend8 ed by striking paragraph (5). 

9 (3) RETURN OF PREVIOUSLY CONTRIBUTED

10 AMOUNTS.—Not later than 90 days after the effec11 tive date under subsection (d), each political com12 mittee established and maintained by a political 

13 party shall distribute all amounts in accounts de14 scribed in section 315(a)(9) of the Federal Election 

15 Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30116(a)(9)) to 

16 individuals who made contributions to such ac17 counts. The amount distributed to any contributor 

18 form any account shall bear the same ratio to the 

19 amount of contributions made by such contributor to 

20 such account as the balance of such account on such 

21 effective date bears to the total amount of contribu22 tions made to such account. 

23 (c) INDEXING OF REVISED CONTRIBUTION LIMITS.— 

24 Section 315(c) of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 

25 1971 (2 U.S.C. 441a(c)) is amended— 


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1 (1) in paragraph (1)(B)— 

2 (A) by redesignating clauses (i) through 

3 (iii) as subclauses (I) through (III), respec4 tively, and indenting appropriately; 

5 (B) in subclause (I), as resdesignated by 

6 subparagraph (A), by striking ‘‘(a)(1)(A), 

7 (a)(1)(B),’’; 

8 (C) in subclause (III), as redesignated by 

9 such subparagraph— 

10 (i) by striking ‘‘clause (i)’’ and insert11 ing ‘‘subclause (I)’’; and 

12 (ii) by striking the period at the end 

13 and inserting ‘‘; and’’; 

14 (D) in the matter preceding subclause (I), 

15 as so redesignated, by striking ‘‘subparagraph 

16 (C), in any calendar year’’ and inserting ‘‘sub17 paragraph (C)— 

18 ‘‘(i) in any calendar year’’; and 

19 (E) by adding at the end the following new 

20 clause: 

21 ‘‘(ii) in any calendar year after 

22 2021— 

23 ‘‘(I) a limitation established by 

24 subsection (a)(1)(A) or (a)(1)(B) shall 


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1 be increased by the percent difference 

2 determined under subparagraph (A); 

3 ‘‘(II) each amount so increased 

4 shall remain in effect for the calendar 

5 year; and 

6 ‘‘(III) if any amount after ad7 justment under subclause (I) is not a 

8 multiple of $100, such amount shall 

9 be rounded to the nearest multiple of 

10 $100.’’; and 

11 (2) in paragraph (2)(B)— 

12 (A) in clause (i), by striking ‘‘and’’; 

13 (B) in clause (ii)— 

14 (i) by striking ‘‘(a)(1)(A), (a)(1)(B), 

15 (a)(3),’’ and inserting ‘‘(a)(3)’’; and 

16 (ii) by striking the period and insert17 ing ‘‘; and’’; and 

18 (C) by adding at the end the following: 

19 ‘‘(iii) for purposes of subsections 

20 (a)(1)(A) and (a)(1)(B), calendar year 

21 2020.’’. 

22 (d) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

23 this section shall apply with respect to contributions made 

24 on or after January 1, 2021. 


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1 SEC. 735. RESTRICTIONS ON TESTING THE WATERS. 

2 Section 315(a) of the Federal Election Campaign Act 

3 of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30116(a)) is amended by adding at 

4 the end the following new paragraph: 

5 ‘‘(10) For purposes of paragraph (7)(B): 

6 ‘‘(A) The term ‘expenditure made in coopera7 tion, consultation, or concert with, or at the request 

8 or suggestion of a candidate, his authorized political 

9 committees, or their agents’ includes an expenditure 

10 made by a person— 

11 ‘‘(i) that during the four years preceding 

12 the expenditure (for the office of President) or 

13 during the two years preceding the expenditure 

14 (for all other expenditures) was directly or indi15 rectly established, maintained, controlled, or 

16 principally funded by a candidate, the can17 didate’s committee, or an immediate family 

18 member of a candidate; 

19 ‘‘(ii) that during the four years preceding 

20 the expenditure (for the office of President) or 

21 during the two years preceding the expenditure 

22 (for all other expenditures) employed or other23 wise retained the services (other than account24 ing or legal services) of a person who, whether 

25 paid or unpaid, at any point during the same 

26 four-year or two-year period, had or exercised 


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1 executive or managerial authority for the can2 didate, or acted as an agent of the candidate; 

3 or 

4 ‘‘(iii) for whom during the four years pre5 ceding the expenditure (for the office of Presi6 dent) or during the two years preceding the ex7 penditure (for all other expenditures) the can8 didate or candidate’s committee solicited funds, 

9 provided non-public fundraising information or 

10 strategy, or appeared as a featured guest at a 

11 fundraising event. 

12 ‘‘(B) The term ‘expenditure’ has the meaning 

13 given that term in section 301 and section 316(b) 

14 and also includes the following, when conducted by 

15 a person described in subparagraph (A) of this para16 graph: 

17 ‘‘(i) A public communication as defined in 

18 section 301(22) that— 

19 ‘‘(I) expressly advocates for the nomi20 nation or election of a clearly identified 

21 candidate for Federal office or against the 

22 nomination or election of a candidate for 

23 such office, or that is the functional equiv24 alent of such express advocacy; 


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1 ‘‘(II) promotes or supports a can2 didate for Federal office, or attacks or op3 poses a candidate for such office (regard4 less of whether the communication ex5 pressly advocates the election or defeat of 

6 a candidate or is the functional equivalent 

7 of express advocacy); or 

8 ‘‘(III) refers to a clearly identified 

9 candidate for Federal office at any time 

10 from 120 days before a primary election or 

11 nominating caucus or convention through 

12 the general election, and is disseminated in 

13 the jurisdiction where the election for the 

14 office the candidate is seeking is held. 

15 ‘‘(ii) A disbursement for partisan voter ac16 tivity (such as partisan voter registration, get17 out-the-vote activity, phone banking, or generic 

18 campaign activity) in the jurisdiction where the 

19 election for the office the candidate is seeking 

20 is held. 

21 ‘‘(iii) A disbursement to pay for research, 

22 design, or production costs, polling expenses, 

23 data analytics, creating or purchasing mailing 

24 or social media lists, or other activities related 

25 to those described in clause (i) or (ii). 


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1 ‘‘(C) The term ‘candidate’ includes any person 

2 who is a candidate for Federal office at the time of 

3 the expenditure, regardless of whether such person 

4 was a candidate at the time of the conduct described 

5 in subparagraph (A).’’. 

6 SEC. 736. PERSONAL USE BAN FOR LEADERSHIP PACS. 

7 Section 313(a) of the Federal Election Campaign Act 

8 of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30114(a)) is amended, in the matter 

9 preceding paragraph (1), by inserting ‘‘or a leadership 

10 PAC (as defined in subsection (c)(4)) of a candidate’’ 

11 after ‘‘by a candidate’’. 

12 SEC. 737. PROHIBITION ON JOINT FUNDRAISING COMMIT13 TEES. 

14 Section 302(e) of the Federal Election Campaign Act 

15 of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30102(e)) is amended— 

16 (1) in paragraph (3)(A)— 

17 (A) by striking clause (ii); 

18 (B) in clause (i), by striking ‘‘; and’’ and 

19 inserting a period; and 

20 (C) by striking ‘‘except that’’ and all that 

21 follows through ‘‘the candidate’’ and inserting 

22 ‘‘except that the candidate’’; and 

23 (2) by adding at the end the following new 

24 paragraph: 


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1 ‘‘(6) A political committee may not engage in 

2 joint fundraising with other political committees or 

3 with unregistered committees or organizations.’’. 

4 Subpart B—Prohibition on the Appointment of Big 

5 Donor Ambassadors and Chiefs of Mission 

6 SEC. 738. PROHIBITION ON THE APPOINTMENT OF BIG 

7 DONOR AMBASSADORS AND CHIEFS OF MIS8 SION. 

9 Section 304(a) of the Foreign Service Act of 1980 

10 (22 U.S.C. 3944(a)) is amended— 

11 (1) in paragraph (3)— 

12 (A) by inserting ‘‘(A)’’ before ‘‘Contribu13 tions’’; 

14 (B) by striking ‘‘should not’’ and inserting 

15 ‘‘shall not’’; and 

16 (C) by adding at the end the following: 

17 ‘‘The President may not appoint as chief of 

18 mission any individual who has made any con19 tribution or bundled contribution in any amount 

20 to the political campaign of the President or an 

21 authorized committee of the President (as those 

22 terms are defined in paragraph (4)(B)(ii)). 

23 ‘‘(B) An individual who would otherwise be prohibited 

24 from appointment as chief of mission under subparagraph 

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1 tributions may be appointed by the President if such indi2 vidual receives a full refund for each such contribution or 

3 bundled contribution prior to the President providing the 

4 report required under paragraph (4).’’; and 

5 (2) in paragraph (4)— 

6 (A) by inserting ‘‘(A)’’ before ‘‘The Presi7 dent’’; and 

8 (B) by adding at the end the following new 

9 subparagraph: 

10 ‘‘(B)(i) The report required under subpara11 graph (A) shall include— 

12 ‘‘(I) an explanation of the nominee’s 

13 knowledge, if applicable, of the principal lan14 guage or dialect of the country in which the in15 dividual is to serve, and knowledge, if applica16 ble, of the history, culture, economic and polit17 ical institutions, and interests of that country 

18 and its people; and 

19 ‘‘(II) a certification of the President that 

20 the nominee, in accordance with this Act— 

21 ‘‘(aa) did not make any contributions 

22 or bundled contributions in any amount to 

23 the political campaign of the President or 

24 an authorized committee of the President 

25 at any time preceding the date that the 


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1 Committee on Foreign Relations of the 

2 Senate receives the nominee’s nomination; 

3 or 

4 ‘‘(bb) has received a full refund for 

5 each such contribution or bundled con6 tribution. 

7 ‘‘(ii) In this subparagraph, the terms ‘contribu8 tion’, ‘bundled contribution’, and ‘authorized com9 mittee’ have the meanings given those terms in title 

10 III of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 

11 (52 U.S.C. 30101 et seq.).’’. 

12 Subtitle B—Strengthening Over13 sight of Online Political Adver14 tising 

15 SEC. 741. EXPANSION OF DEFINITION OF PUBLIC COMMU16 NICATION. 

17 (a) IN GENERAL.—Paragraph (22) of section 301 of 

18 the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 

19 30101(22)) is amended by striking ‘‘or satellite commu20 nication’’ and inserting ‘‘satellite, paid internet, or paid 

21 digital communication’’. 

22 (b) TREATMENT OF CONTRIBUTIONS AND EXPENDI23 TURES.—Section 301 of such Act (52 U.S.C. 30101) is 

24 amended— 

25 (1) in paragraph (8)(B)— 


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1 (A) by striking ‘‘on broadcasting stations, 

2 or in newspapers, magazines, or similar types of 

3 general public political advertising’’ in clause 

4 (v) and inserting ‘‘in any public communica5 tion’’; 

6 (B) by striking ‘‘broadcasting, newspaper, 

7 magazine, billboard, direct mail, or similar type 

8 of general public communication or political ad9 vertising’’ in clause (ix)(1) and inserting ‘‘pub10 lic communication’’; and 

11 (C) by striking ‘‘but not including the use 

12 of broadcasting, newspapers, magazines, bill13 boards, direct mail, or similar types of general 

14 public communication or political advertising’’ 

15 in clause (x) and inserting ‘‘but not including 

16 use in any public communication’’; and 

17 (2) in paragraph (9)(B)— 

18 (A) by amending clause (i) to read as fol19 lows: 

20 ‘‘(i) any news story, commentary, or 

21 editorial distributed through the facilities 

22 of any broadcasting station or any print, 

23 online, or digital newspaper, magazine, 

24 blog, publication, or periodical, unless such 

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1 ties are owned or controlled by any polit2 ical party, political committee, or can3 didate;’’; and 

4 (B) in clause (iv), by striking ‘‘on broad5 casting stations, or in newspapers, magazines, 

6 or similar types of general public political ad7 vertising’’ and inserting ‘‘in any public commu8 nication’’. 

9 (c) DISCLOSURE AND DISCLAIMER STATEMENTS.— 

10 Subsection (a) of section 318 of such Act (52 U.S.C. 

11 30120) is amended— 

12 (1) by striking ‘‘financing any communication 

13 through any broadcasting station, newspaper, maga14 zine, outdoor advertising facility, mailing, or any 

15 other type of general public political advertising’’ 

16 and inserting ‘‘financing any public communication’’; 

17 and 

18 (2) by striking ‘‘solicits any contribution 

19 through any broadcasting station, newspaper, maga20 zine, outdoor advertising facility, mailing, or any 

21 other type of general public political advertising’’ 

22 and inserting ‘‘solicits any contribution through any 

23 public communication’’. 


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1 SEC. 742. EXPANSION OF DEFINITION OF ELECTIONEERING 

2 COMMUNICATION. 

3 (a) APPLICATION TO QUALIFIED INTERNET AND

4 DIGITAL COMMUNICATIONS.— 

5 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subparagraph (A) of section 

6 304(f)(3) of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 

7 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30104(f)(3)(A)) is amended by 

8 striking ‘‘or satellite communication’’ each place it 

9 appears in clauses (i) and (ii) and inserting ‘‘sat10 ellite, or qualified internet or digital communica11 tion’’. 

12 (2) QUALIFIED INTERNET OR DIGITAL COMMU13 NICATION.—Paragraph (3) of section 304(f) of such 

14 Act (52 U.S.C. 30104(f)) is amended by adding at 

15 the end the following new subparagraph: 

16 ‘‘(D) QUALIFIED INTERNET OR DIGITAL

17 COMMUNICATION.—The term ‘qualified internet 

18 or digital communication’ means any commu19 nication which is placed or promoted for a fee 

20 on an online platform (as defined in subsection 

21 (k)(3)).’’. 

22 (b) NONAPPLICATION OF RELEVANT ELECTORATE

23 TO ONLINE COMMUNICATIONS.—Section 

24 304(f)(3)(A)(i)(III) of such Act (52 U.S.C. 

25 30104(f)(3)(A)(i)(III)) is amended by inserting ‘‘any 

26 broadcast, cable, or satellite’’ before ‘‘communication’’. 


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1 (c) NEWS EXEMPTION.—Section 304(f)(3)(B)(i) of 

2 such Act (52 U.S.C. 30104(f)(3)(B)(i)) is amended to 

3 read as follows: 

4 ‘‘(i) a communication appearing in a 

5 news story, commentary, or editorial dis6 tributed through the facilities of any 

7 broadcasting station or any online or dig8 ital newspaper, magazine, blog, publica9 tion, or periodical, unless such broad10 casting, online, or digital facilities are 

11 owned or controlled by any political party, 

12 political committee, or candidate;’’. 

13 SEC. 743. APPLICATION OF DISCLAIMER STATEMENTS TO 

14 ONLINE COMMUNICATIONS. 

15 (a) CLEAR AND CONSPICUOUS MANNER REQUIRE16 MENT.—Subsection (a) of section 318 of the Federal Elec17 tion Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30120(a)) is 

18 amended— 

19 (1) by striking ‘‘shall clearly state’’ each place 

20 it appears in paragraphs (1), (2), and (3) and in21 serting ‘‘shall state in a clear and conspicuous man22 ner’’; and 

23 (2) by adding at the end the following flush 

24 sentence: ‘‘For purposes of this section, a commu25 nication does not make a statement in a clear and 


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1 conspicuous manner if it is difficult to read or hear 

2 or if the placement is easily overlooked.’’. 

3 (b) SPECIAL RULES FOR QUALIFIED INTERNET OR

4 DIGITAL COMMUNICATIONS.— 

5 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 318 of such Act (52 

6 U.S.C. 30120) is amended by adding at the end the 

7 following new subsection: 

8 ‘‘(e) SPECIAL RULES FOR QUALIFIED INTERNET OR

9 DIGITAL COMMUNICATIONS.— 

10 ‘‘(1) SPECIAL RULES WITH RESPECT TO STATE11 MENTS.—In the case of any communication to which 

12 this section applies which is a qualified internet or 

13 digital communication (as defined in section 

14 304(f)(3)(D)) which is disseminated through a me15 dium in which the provision of all of the information 

16 specified in this section is not possible, the commu17 nication shall, in a clear and conspicuous manner— 

18 ‘‘(A) state the name of the person who 

19 paid for the communication; and 

20 ‘‘(B) provide a means for the recipient of 

21 the communication to obtain the remainder of 

22 the information required under this section with 

23 minimal effort and without receiving or viewing 

24 any additional material other than such re25 quired information. 


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1 ‘‘(2) SAFE HARBOR FOR DETERMINING CLEAR

2 AND CONSPICUOUS MANNER.—A statement in a 

3 qualified internet or digital communication (as de4 fined in section 304(f)(3)(D)) shall be considered to 

5 be made in a clear and conspicuous manner as pro6 vided in subsection (a) if the communication meets 

7 the following requirements: 

8 ‘‘(A) TEXT OR GRAPHIC COMMUNICA9 TIONS.—In the case of a text or graphic com10 munication, the statement— 

11 ‘‘(i) appears in letters at least as large 

12 as the majority of the text in the commu13 nication; and 

14 ‘‘(ii) meets the requirements of para15 graphs (2) and (3) of subsection (c). 

16 ‘‘(B) AUDIO COMMUNICATIONS.—In the 

17 case of an audio communication, the statement 

18 is spoken in a clearly audible and intelligible 

19 manner at the beginning or end of the commu20 nication and lasts at least 3 seconds. 

21 ‘‘(C) VIDEO COMMUNICATIONS.—In the 

22 case of a video communication which also in23 cludes audio, the statement— 

24 ‘‘(i) is included at either the beginning 

25 or the end of the communication; and 


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1 ‘‘(ii) is made both in— 

2 ‘‘(I) a written format that meets 

3 the requirements of subparagraph (A) 

4 and appears for at least 4 seconds; 

5 and 

6 ‘‘(II) an audible format that 

7 meets the requirements of subpara8 graph (B). 

9 ‘‘(D) OTHER COMMUNICATIONS.—In the 

10 case of any other type of communication, the 

11 statement is at least as clear and conspicuous 

12 as the statement specified in subparagraph (A), 

13 (B), or (C).’’. 

14 (2) NONAPPLICATION OF CERTAIN EXCEP15 TIONS.—The exceptions provided in section 

16 110.11(f)(1) (i) and (ii) of title 11, Code of Federal 

17 Regulations, or any successor to such rules, shall 

18 have no application to qualified internet or digital 

19 communications (as defined in section 304(f)(3)(D) 

20 of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971, as 

21 added by this Act). 

22 (c) MODIFICATION OF ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS

23 FOR CERTAIN COMMUNICATIONS.—Section 318(d) of such 

24 Act (52 U.S.C. 30120(d)) is amended— 

25 (1) in paragraph (1)(A)— 


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1 (A) by striking ‘‘which is transmitted 

2 through radio’’ and inserting ‘‘which is in an 

3 audio format’’; and 

4 (B) by striking ‘‘BY RADIO’’ in the heading 

5 and inserting ‘‘AUDIO FORMAT’’; 

6 (2) in paragraph (1)(B)— 

7 (A) by striking ‘‘which is transmitted 

8 through television’’ and inserting ‘‘which is in 

9 video format’’; and 

10 (B) by striking ‘‘BY TELEVISION’’ in the 

11 heading and inserting ‘‘VIDEO FORMAT’’; and 

12 (3) in paragraph (2)— 

13 (A) by striking ‘‘transmitted through radio 

14 or television’’ and inserting ‘‘made in audio or 

15 video format’’; and 

16 (B) by striking ‘‘through television’’ in the 

17 second sentence and inserting ‘‘in video for18 mat’’. 

19 SEC. 744. POLITICAL RECORD REQUIREMENTS FOR ONLINE 

20 PLATFORMS. 

21 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 304 of the Federal Elec22 tion Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30104), as amend23 ed by sections 141 and 733, is further amended by adding 

24 at the end the following new subsection: 


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1 ‘‘(j) DISCLOSURE OF CERTAIN ONLINE ADVERTISE2 MENTS.— 

3 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.— 

4 ‘‘(A) REQUIREMENTS FOR ONLINE PLAT5 FORMS.—An online platform shall maintain, 

6 and make available for online public inspection 

7 in machine readable format, a complete record 

8 of any request to purchase on such online plat9 form a qualified political advertisement which is 

10 made by a person whose aggregate requests to 

11 purchase qualified political advertisements on 

12 such online platform during the calendar year 

13 exceeds $500. 

14 ‘‘(B) REQUIREMENTS FOR ADVER15 TISERS.—Any person who requests to purchase 

16 a qualified political advertisement on an online 

17 platform shall provide the online platform with 

18 such information as is necessary for the online 

19 platform to comply with the requirements of 

20 subparagraph (A). 

21 ‘‘(2) CONTENTS OF RECORD.—A record main22 tained under paragraph (1)(A) shall contain— 

23 ‘‘(A) a digital copy of the qualified political 

24 advertisement; 


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1 ‘‘(B) a description of the audience targeted 

2 by the advertisement, the number of views gen3 erated from the advertisement, and the date 

4 and time that the advertisement is first dis5 played and last displayed; and 

6 ‘‘(C) information regarding— 

7 ‘‘(i) the average rate charged for the 

8 advertisement; 

9 ‘‘(ii) the name of the candidate to 

10 which the advertisement refers and the of11 fice to which the candidate is seeking elec12 tion, the election to which the advertise13 ment refers, or the national legislative 

14 issue to which the advertisement refers (as 

15 applicable); 

16 ‘‘(iii) in the case of a request made 

17 by, or on behalf of, a candidate, the name 

18 of the candidate, the authorized committee 

19 of the candidate, and the treasurer of such 

20 committee; and 

21 ‘‘(iv) in the case of any request not 

22 described in clause (iii), the name of the 

23 person purchasing the advertisement, the 

24 name, address, and phone number of a 

25 contact person for such person, and a list 


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1 of the chief executive officers or members 

2 of the executive committee or of the board 

3 of directors of such person. 

4 ‘‘(3) ONLINE PLATFORM.—For purposes of this 

5 subsection, the term ‘online platform’ means any 

6 public-facing website, web application, or digital ap7 plication (including a social network, ad network, or 

8 search engine) which— 

9 ‘‘(A) sells qualified political advertise10 ments; and 

11 ‘‘(B) has 50,000,000 or more unique 

12 monthly United States visitors or users for a 

13 majority of months during the preceding 12 

14 months. 

15 ‘‘(4) QUALIFIED POLITICAL ADVERTISEMENT.— 

16 For purposes of this subsection, the term ‘qualified 

17 political advertisement’ means any advertisement 

18 (including search engine marketing, display adver19 tisements, video advertisements, native advertise20 ments, and sponsorships) that— 

21 ‘‘(A) is made by or on behalf of a can22 didate; or 

23 ‘‘(B) communicates a message relating to 

24 any political matter of national importance, in25 cluding— 


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1 ‘‘(i) a candidate; 

2 ‘‘(ii) any election to Federal office; or 

3 ‘‘(iii) a national legislative issue of 

4 public importance. 

5 ‘‘(5) TIME TO MAINTAIN FILE.—The informa6 tion required under this subsection shall be made 

7 available as soon as possible and shall be retained by 

8 the online platform for a period of not less than 4 

9 years. 

10 ‘‘(6) PENALTIES.—For penalties for failure by 

11 online platforms, and persons requesting to purchase 

12 a qualified political advertisement on online plat13 forms, to comply with the requirements of this sub14 section, see section 309.’’. 

15 (b) RULEMAKING.—Not later than 90 days after the 

16 date of the enactment of this Act, the Federal Election 

17 Commission shall establish rules— 

18 (1) requiring common data formats for the 

19 record required to be maintained under section 

20 304(j) of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 

21 1971 (as added by subsection (a)) so that all online 

22 platforms submit and maintain data online in a com23 mon, machine-readable and publicly accessible for24 mat; and 


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1 (2) establishing search interface requirements 

2 relating to such record, including searches by can3 didate name, issue, purchaser, and date. 

4 (c) REPORTING.—Not later than 2 years after the 

5 date of the enactment of this Act, and biannually there6 after, the Chairman of the Federal Election Commission 

7 shall submit a report to Congress on— 

8 (1) matters relating to compliance with and the 

9 enforcement of the requirements of section 304(j) of 

10 the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971, as 

11 added by subsection (a); 

12 (2) recommendations for any modifications to 

13 such section to assist in carrying out its purposes; 

14 and 

15 (3) identifying ways to bring transparency and 

16 accountability to political advertisements distributed 

17 online for free. 

18 SEC. 745. PREVENTING CONTRIBUTIONS, EXPENDITURES, 

19 INDEPENDENT EXPENDITURES, AND DIS20 BURSEMENTS FOR ELECTIONEERING COM21 MUNICATIONS BY FOREIGN NATIONALS IN 

22 THE FORM OF ONLINE ADVERTISING. 

23 Section 319 of the Federal Election Campaign Act 

24 of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30121), as amended by section 721, 


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1 is amended by adding at the end the following new sub2 section: 

3 ‘‘(e) Each television or radio broadcast station, pro4 vider of cable or satellite television, or online platform (as 

5 defined in section 304(k)(3)) shall exercise due diligence 

6 to ensure that communications described in section 318(a) 

7 and made available by such station, provider, or platform 

8 are not purchased by a foreign national, directly or indi9 rectly.’’. 

10 Subtitle C—Public Financing 

11 PART I—SMALL DOLLAR FINANCING OF SENATE 

12 ELECTION CAMPAIGNS 

13 SEC. 751. ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS AND BENEFITS OF 

14 FAIR ELECTIONS FINANCING OF SENATE 

15 ELECTION CAMPAIGNS. 

16 The Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 

17 U.S.C. 30101 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end 

18 the following: 

19 ‘‘TITLE V—FAIR ELECTIONS FI20 NANCING OF SENATE ELEC21 TION CAMPAIGNS 

22 ‘‘Subtitle A—General Provisions 

23 ‘‘SEC. 501. DEFINITIONS. 

24 ‘‘In this title: 


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1 ‘‘(1) ALLOCATION FROM THE FUND.—The term 

2 ‘allocation from the Fund’ means an allocation of 

3 money from the Freedom From Influence Fund to 

4 a participating candidate pursuant to section 522. 

5 ‘‘(2) COMMISSION.—The term ‘Commission’ 

6 means the Federal Election Commission. 

7 ‘‘(3) ENHANCED MATCHING CONTRIBUTION.— 

8 The term ‘enhanced matching contribution’ means 

9 an enhanced matching payment provided to a par10 ticipating candidate for qualified small dollar con11 tributions, as provided under section 524. 

12 ‘‘(4) ENHANCED SUPPORT QUALIFYING PE13 RIOD.—The term ‘enhanced support qualifying pe14 riod’ means, with respect to a general election, the 

15 period which begins 60 days before the date of the 

16 election and ends 14 days before the date of the 

17 election. 

18 ‘‘(5) FAIR ELECTIONS QUALIFYING PERIOD.— 

19 The term ‘Fair Elections qualifying period’ means, 

20 with respect to any candidate for Senator, the pe21 riod— 

22 ‘‘(A) beginning on the date on which the 

23 candidate files a statement of intent under sec24 tion 511(a)(1); and 


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1 ‘‘(B) ending on the date that is 30 days 

2 before— 

3 ‘‘(i) the date of the primary election; 

4 or 

5 ‘‘(ii) in the case of a State that does 

6 not hold a primary election, the date pre7 scribed by State law as the last day to 

8 qualify for a position on the general elec9 tion ballot. 

10 ‘‘(6) FAIR ELECTIONS START DATE.—The term 

11 ‘Fair Elections start date’ means, with respect to 

12 any candidate, the date that is 180 days before— 

13 ‘‘(A) the date of the primary election; or 

14 ‘‘(B) in the case of a State that does not 

15 hold a primary election, the date prescribed by 

16 State law as the last day to qualify for a posi17 tion on the general election ballot. 

18 ‘‘(7) FUND.—The term ‘Fund’ means the Free19 dom From Influence Fund established by section 

20 502. 

21 ‘‘(8) IMMEDIATE FAMILY.—The term ‘imme22 diate family’ means, with respect to any candidate— 

23 ‘‘(A) the candidate’s spouse; 

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1 ter of the candidate or the candidate’s spouse; 

2 and 

3 ‘‘(C) the spouse of any person described in 

4 subparagraph (B). 

5 ‘‘(9) MATCHING CONTRIBUTION.—The term 

6 ‘matching contribution’ means a matching payment 

7 provided to a participating candidate for qualified 

8 small dollar contributions, as provided under section 

9 523. 

10 ‘‘(10) NONPARTICIPATING CANDIDATE.—The 

11 term ‘nonparticipating candidate’ means a candidate 

12 for Senator who is not a participating candidate. 

13 ‘‘(11) PARTICIPATING CANDIDATE.—The term 

14 ‘participating candidate’ means a candidate for Sen15 ator who is certified under section 514 as being eli16 gible to receive an allocation from the Fund. 

17 ‘‘(12) QUALIFYING CONTRIBUTION.—The term 

18 ‘qualifying contribution’ means, with respect to a 

19 candidate, a contribution that— 

20 ‘‘(A) is in an amount that is— 

21 ‘‘(i) not less than the greater of $5 or 

22 the amount determined by the Commission 

23 under section 531; and 


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1 ‘‘(ii) not more than the greater of 

2 $200 or the amount determined by the 

3 Commission under section 531; 

4 ‘‘(B) is made by an individual— 

5 ‘‘(i) who is a resident of the State in 

6 which such candidate is seeking election; 

7 and 

8 ‘‘(ii) who is not otherwise prohibited 

9 from making a contribution under this Act; 

10 ‘‘(C) is made during the Fair Elections 

11 qualifying period; and 

12 ‘‘(D) meets the requirements of section 

13 512(b). 

14 ‘‘(13) QUALIFIED SMALL DOLLAR CONTRIBU15 TION.—The term ‘qualified small dollar contribution’ 

16 means, with respect to a candidate, any contribution 

17 (or series of contributions)— 

18 ‘‘(A) which is not a qualifying contribution 

19 (or does not include a qualifying contribution); 

20 ‘‘(B) which is made by an individual who 

21 is not prohibited from making a contribution 

22 under this Act; and 

23 ‘‘(C) the aggregate amount of which does 

24 not exceed the greater of— 

25 ‘‘(i) $200 per election; or 


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1 ‘‘(ii) the amount per election deter2 mined by the Commission under section 

3 531. 

4 ‘‘(14) QUALIFYING MULTICANDIDATE POLIT5 ICAL COMMITTEE CONTRIBUTION.— 

6 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘qualifying 

7 multicandidate political committee contribution’ 

8 means any contribution to a candidate that is 

9 made from a qualified account of a multi10 candidate political committee (within the mean11 ing of section 315(a)(2)). 

12 ‘‘(B) QUALIFIED ACCOUNT.—For purposes 

13 of subparagraph (A), the term ‘qualified ac14 count’ means, with respect to a multicandidate 

15 political committee, a separate, segregated ac16 count of the committee that consists solely of 

17 contributions which meet the following require18 ments: 

19 ‘‘(i) All contributions to such account 

20 are made by individuals who are not pro21 hibited from making contributions under 

22 this Act. 

23 ‘‘(ii) The aggregate amount of con24 tributions from each individual to such ac25 count and all other accounts of the politVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:09 Feb 17, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00474 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H9029.IH H9029

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1 ical committee do not exceed the amount 

2 described in paragraph (13)(C). 

3 ‘‘SEC. 502. FREEDOM FROM INFLUENCE FUND. 

4 ‘‘(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—There is established in the 

5 Treasury a fund to be known as the ‘Freedom From Influ6 ence Fund’. 

7 ‘‘(b) AMOUNTS HELD BY FUND.—The Fund shall 

8 consist of the following amounts: 

9 ‘‘(1) ASSESSMENTS AGAINST FINES, SETTLE10 MENTS, AND PENALTIES.—Amounts transferred 

11 under section 3015 of title 18, United States Code, 

12 section 9707 of title 31, United States Code, and 

13 section 6761 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986. 

14 ‘‘(2) DEPOSITS.—Amounts deposited into the 

15 Fund under— 

16 ‘‘(A) section 513(c) (relating to exceptions 

17 to contribution requirements); 

18 ‘‘(B) section 521(c) (relating to remittance 

19 of unused payments from the Fund); and 

20 ‘‘(C) section 532 (relating to violations). 

21 ‘‘(3) INVESTMENT RETURNS.—Interest on, and 

22 the proceeds from, the sale or redemption of any ob23 ligations held by the Fund under subsection (c). 

24 ‘‘(c) INVESTMENT.—The Commission shall invest 

25 portions of the Fund in obligations of the United States 


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1 in the same manner as provided under section 9602(b) 

2 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986. 

3 ‘‘(d) USE OF FUND TO MAKE PAYMENTS TO PAR4 TICIPATING CANDIDATES.— 

5 ‘‘(1) PAYMENTS TO PARTICIPATING CAN6 DIDATES.—Amounts in the Fund shall be available 

7 without further appropriation or fiscal year limita8 tion to make payments to participating candidates 

9 as provided in this title. 

10 ‘‘(2) MANDATORY REDUCTION OF PAYMENTS IN

11 CASE OF INSUFFICIENT AMOUNTS IN FUND.— 

12 ‘‘(A) ADVANCE AUDITS BY COMMISSION.— 

13 Not later than 90 days before the first day of 

14 each election cycle (beginning with the first 

15 election cycle that begins after the date of the 

16 enactment of this title), the Commission shall— 

17 ‘‘(i) audit the Fund to determine 

18 whether the amounts in the Fund will be 

19 sufficient to make payments to partici20 pating candidates in the amounts provided 

21 in this title during such election cycle; and 

22 ‘‘(ii) submit a report to Congress de23 scribing the results of the audit. 

24 ‘‘(B) REDUCTIONS IN AMOUNT OF PAY25 MENTS.— 


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1 ‘‘(i) AUTOMATIC REDUCTION ON PRO

2 RATA BASIS.—If, on the basis of the audit 

3 described in subparagraph (A), the Com4 mission determines that the amount antici5 pated to be available in the Fund with re6 spect to the election cycle involved is not, 

7 or may not be, sufficient to satisfy the full 

8 entitlements of participating candidates to 

9 payments under this title for such election 

10 cycle, the Commission shall reduce each 

11 amount which would otherwise be paid to 

12 a participating candidate under this title 

13 by such pro rata amount as may be nec14 essary to ensure that the aggregate 

15 amount of payments anticipated to be 

16 made with respect to the election cycle will 

17 not exceed the amount anticipated to be 

18 available for such payments in the Fund 

19 with respect to such election cycle. 

20 ‘‘(ii) RESTORATION OF REDUCTIONS

21 IN CASE OF AVAILABILITY OF SUFFICIENT

22 FUNDS DURING ELECTION CYCLE.—If, 

23 after reducing the amounts paid to partici24 pating candidates with respect to an elec25 tion cycle under clause (i), the Commission 


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1 determines that there are sufficient 

2 amounts in the Fund to restore the 

3 amount by which such payments were re4 duced (or any portion thereof), to the ex5 tent that such amounts are available, the 

6 Commission may make a payment on a pro 

7 rata basis to each such participating can8 didate with respect to the election cycle in 

9 the amount by which such candidate’s pay10 ments were reduced under clause (i) (or 

11 any portion thereof, as the case may be). 

12 ‘‘(iii) NO USE OF AMOUNTS FROM

13 OTHER SOURCES.—In any case in which 

14 the Commission determines that there are 

15 insufficient moneys in the Fund to make 

16 payments to participating candidates under 

17 this title, moneys shall not be made avail18 able from any other source for the purpose 

19 of making such payments. 

20 ‘‘(e) USE OF FUND TO MAKE OTHER PAYMENTS.— 

21 In addition to the use described in subsection (d), amounts 

22 in the Fund shall be available without further appropria23 tion or fiscal year limitation— 

24 ‘‘(1) to make payments under chapter 95 of 

25 subtitle H of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 


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1 pursuant to sections 9006(b) and 9008(j) of such 

2 Code, subject to reductions under section 9013(b) of 

3 such Code; and 

4 ‘‘(2) to make payments to candidates under 

5 chapter 96 of subtitle H of the Internal Revenue 

6 Code of 1986, subject to reductions under section 

7 9043(b) of such Code. 

8 ‘‘(f) EFFECTIVE DATE.—This section shall take ef9 fect on the date of the enactment of this title. 

10 ‘‘Subtitle B—Eligibility and 

11 Certification 

12 ‘‘SEC. 511. ELIGIBILITY. 

13 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—A candidate for Senator is eligi14 ble to receive an allocation from the Fund for any election 

15 if the candidate meets the following requirements: 

16 ‘‘(1) The candidate files with the Commission a 

17 statement of intent to seek certification as a partici18 pating candidate under this title during the period 

19 beginning on the Fair Elections start date and end20 ing on the last day of the Fair Elections qualifying 

21 period. 

22 ‘‘(2) The candidate meets the qualifying con23 tribution requirements of section 512. 

24 ‘‘(3) Not later than the last day of the Fair 

25 Elections qualifying period, the candidate files with 


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1 the Commission an affidavit signed by the candidate 

2 and the treasurer of the candidate’s principal cam3 paign committee declaring that the candidate— 

4 ‘‘(A) has complied and, if certified, will 

5 comply with the contribution and expenditure 

6 requirements of section 513; 

7 ‘‘(B) if certified, will not run as a non8 participating candidate during such year in any 

9 election for the office that such candidate is 

10 seeking; and 

11 ‘‘(C) has either qualified or will take steps 

12 to qualify under State law to be on the ballot. 

13 ‘‘(b) GENERAL ELECTION.—Notwithstanding sub14 section (a), a candidate shall not be eligible to receive an 

15 allocation from the Fund for a general election or a gen16 eral runoff election unless the candidate’s party nominated 

17 the candidate to be placed on the ballot for the general 

18 election or the candidate otherwise qualified to be on the 

19 ballot under State law. 

20 ‘‘SEC. 512. QUALIFYING CONTRIBUTION REQUIREMENT. 

21 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—A candidate for Senator meets 

22 the requirement of this section if, during the Fair Elec23 tions qualifying period, the candidate obtains— 

24 ‘‘(1) a number of qualifying contributions equal 

25 to the greater of— 


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1 ‘‘(A) the sum of— 

2 ‘‘(i) 2,000; plus 

3 ‘‘(ii) 500 for each congressional dis4 trict in the State with respect to which the 

5 candidate is seeking election; or 

6 ‘‘(B) the amount determined by the Com7 mission under section 531; and 

8 ‘‘(2) a total dollar amount of qualifying con9 tributions equal to the greater of— 

10 ‘‘(A) 10 percent of the amount of the allo11 cation such candidate would be entitled to re12 ceive for the primary election under section 

13 522(c)(1) (determined without regard to para14 graph (5) thereof) if such candidate were a par15 ticipating candidate; or 

16 ‘‘(B) the amount determined by the Com17 mission under section 531. 

18 ‘‘(b) REQUIREMENTS RELATING TO RECEIPT OF

19 QUALIFYING CONTRIBUTION.—Each qualifying contribu20 tion— 

21 ‘‘(1) may be made by means of a personal 

22 check, money order, debit card, credit card, or elec23 tronic payment account; 

24 ‘‘(2) shall be accompanied by a signed state25 ment containing— 


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1 ‘‘(A) the contributor’s name and the con2 tributor’s address in the State in which the con3 tributor is registered to vote; and 

4 ‘‘(B) an oath declaring that the contrib5 utor— 

6 ‘‘(i) understands that the purpose of 

7 the qualifying contribution is to show sup8 port for the candidate so that the can9 didate may qualify for Fair Elections fi10 nancing; 

11 ‘‘(ii) is making the contribution in his 

12 or her own name and from his or her own 

13 funds; 

14 ‘‘(iii) has made the contribution will15 ingly; and 

16 ‘‘(iv) has not received anything of 

17 value in return for the contribution; and 

18 ‘‘(3) shall be acknowledged by a receipt that is 

19 sent to the contributor with a copy kept by the can20 didate for the Commission and a copy kept by the 

21 candidate for the election authorities in the State 

22 with respect to which the candidate is seeking elec23 tion. 

24 ‘‘(c) VERIFICATION OF QUALIFYING CONTRIBU25 TIONS.—The Commission shall establish procedures for 


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1 the auditing and verification of qualifying contributions to 

2 ensure that such contributions meet the requirements of 

3 this section. 

4 ‘‘SEC. 513. CONTRIBUTION AND EXPENDITURE REQUIRE5 MENTS. 

6 ‘‘(a) GENERAL RULE.—A candidate for Senator 

7 meets the requirements of this section if, during the elec8 tion cycle of the candidate, the candidate— 

9 ‘‘(1) except as provided in subsection (b), ac10 cepts no contributions other than— 

11 ‘‘(A) qualifying contributions; 

12 ‘‘(B) qualified small dollar contributions; 

13 ‘‘(C) qualifying multicandidate political 

14 committee contributions; 

15 ‘‘(D) allocations from the Fund under sec16 tion 522; 

17 ‘‘(E) matching contributions under section 

18 523; 

19 ‘‘(F) enhanced matching contributions 

20 under section 524; and 

21 ‘‘(G) vouchers provided to the candidate 

22 under section 525; 

23 ‘‘(2) makes no expenditures from any amounts 

24 other than from— 

25 ‘‘(A) qualifying contributions; 


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1 ‘‘(B) qualified small dollar contributions; 

2 ‘‘(C) qualifying multicandidate political 

3 committee contributions; 

4 ‘‘(D) allocations from the Fund under sec5 tion 522; 

6 ‘‘(E) matching contributions under section 

7 523; 

8 ‘‘(F) enhanced matching contributions 

9 under section 524; and 

10 ‘‘(G) vouchers provided to the candidate 

11 under section 525; and 

12 ‘‘(3) makes no expenditures from personal 

13 funds or the funds of any immediate family member 

14 (other than funds received through qualified small 

15 dollar contributions and qualifying contributions). 

16 For purposes of this subsection, a payment made by a po17 litical party in coordination with a participating candidate 

18 shall not be treated as a contribution to or as an expendi19 ture made by the participating candidate. 

20 ‘‘(b) CONTRIBUTIONS FOR LEADERSHIP PACS, 

21 ETC.—A political committee of a participating candidate 

22 which is not an authorized committee of such candidate 

23 may accept contributions other than contributions de24 scribed in subsection (a)(1) from any person if— 


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1 ‘‘(1) the aggregate contributions from such per2 son for any calendar year do not exceed $200; and 

3 ‘‘(2) no portion of such contributions is dis4 bursed in connection with the campaign of the par5 ticipating candidate. 

6 ‘‘(c) EXCEPTION.—Notwithstanding subsection (a), a 

7 candidate shall not be treated as having failed to meet 

8 the requirements of this section if any contributions that 

9 are not qualified small dollar contributions, qualifying con10 tributions, qualifying multicandidate political committee 

11 contributions, or contributions that meet the requirements 

12 of subsection (b) and that are accepted before the date 

13 the candidate files a statement of intent under section 

14 511(a)(1) are— 

15 ‘‘(1) returned to the contributor; or 

16 ‘‘(2) submitted to the Commission for deposit in 

17 the Fund. 

18 ‘‘SEC. 514. CERTIFICATION. 

19 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 5 days after a 

20 candidate for Senator files an affidavit under section 

21 511(a)(3), the Commission shall— 

22 ‘‘(1) certify whether or not the candidate is a 

23 participating candidate; and 

24 ‘‘(2) notify the candidate of the Commission’s 

25 determination. 


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1 ‘‘(b) REVOCATION OF CERTIFICATION.— 

2 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Commission may re3 voke a certification under subsection (a) if— 

4 ‘‘(A) a candidate fails to qualify to appear 

5 on the ballot at any time after the date of cer6 tification; or 

7 ‘‘(B) a candidate otherwise fails to comply 

8 with the requirements of this title, including 

9 any regulatory requirements prescribed by the 

10 Commission. 

11 ‘‘(2) REPAYMENT OF BENEFITS.—If certifi12 cation is revoked under paragraph (1), the candidate 

13 shall repay to the Fund an amount equal to the 

14 value of benefits received under this title plus inter15 est (at a rate determined by the Commission) on any 

16 such amount received. 

17 ‘‘Subtitle C—Benefits 

18 ‘‘SEC. 521. BENEFITS FOR PARTICIPATING CANDIDATES. 

19 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—For each election with respect 

20 to which a candidate is certified as a participating can21 didate under section 514, such candidate shall be entitled 

22 to— 

23 ‘‘(1) an allocation from the Fund to make or 

24 obligate to make expenditures with respect to such 

25 election, as provided in section 522; 


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1 ‘‘(2) matching contributions, as provided in sec2 tion 523; 

3 ‘‘(3) enhanced matching contributions, as pro4 vided in section 524; and 

5 ‘‘(4) for the general election, vouchers for 

6 broadcasts of political advertisements, as provided in 

7 section 525. 

8 ‘‘(b) RESTRICTION ON USES OF ALLOCATIONS FROM

9 THE FUND.—Allocations from the Fund received by a par10 ticipating candidate under section 522, matching contribu11 tions under section 523, and enhanced matching contribu12 tions under section 524 may only be used for campaign13 related costs. 

14 ‘‘(c) REMITTING ALLOCATIONS FROM THE FUND.— 

15 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than the date 

16 that is 45 days after an election in which the partici17 pating candidate appeared on the ballot, such par18 ticipating candidate shall remit to the Commission 

19 for deposit in the Fund an amount equal to the less20 er of— 

21 ‘‘(A) the amount of money in the can22 didate’s campaign account; or 

23 ‘‘(B) the sum of the allocations from the 

24 Fund received by the candidate under section 

25 522, the matching contributions received by the 


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1 candidate under section 523, and the enhanced 

2 matching contributions under section 524. 

3 ‘‘(2) EXCEPTION.—In the case of a candidate 

4 who qualifies to be on the ballot for a primary run5 off election, a general election, or a general runoff 

6 election, the amounts described in paragraph (1) 

7 may be retained by the candidate and used in such 

8 subsequent election. 

9 ‘‘SEC. 522. ALLOCATIONS FROM THE FUND. 

10 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Commission shall make allo11 cations from the Fund under section 521(a)(1) to a par12 ticipating candidate— 

13 ‘‘(1) in the case of amounts provided under 

14 subsection (c)(1), not later than 48 hours after the 

15 date on which such candidate is certified as a par16 ticipating candidate under section 514; 

17 ‘‘(2) in the case of a general election, not later 

18 than 48 hours after— 

19 ‘‘(A) the date of the certification of the re20 sults of the primary election or the primary 

21 runoff election; or 

22 ‘‘(B) in any case in which there is no pri23 mary election, the date the candidate qualifies 

24 to be placed on the ballot; and 


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1 ‘‘(3) in the case of a primary runoff election or 

2 a general runoff election, not later than 48 hours 

3 after the certification of the results of the primary 

4 election or the general election, as the case may be. 

5 ‘‘(b) METHOD OF PAYMENT.—The Commission shall 

6 distribute funds available to participating candidates 

7 under this section through the use of an electronic funds 

8 exchange or a debit card. 

9 ‘‘(c) AMOUNTS.— 

10 ‘‘(1) PRIMARY ELECTION ALLOCATION; INITIAL

11 ALLOCATION.—Except as provided in paragraph (5), 

12 the Commission shall make an allocation from the 

13 Fund for a primary election to a participating can14 didate in an amount equal to 67 percent of the base 

15 amount with respect to such participating candidate. 

16 ‘‘(2) PRIMARY RUNOFF ELECTION ALLOCA17 TION.—The Commission shall make an allocation 

18 from the Fund for a primary runoff election to a 

19 participating candidate in an amount equal to 25 

20 percent of the amount the participating candidate 

21 was eligible to receive under this section for the pri22 mary election. 

23 ‘‘(3) GENERAL ELECTION ALLOCATION.—Ex24 cept as provided in paragraph (5), the Commission 

25 shall make an allocation from the Fund for a genVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:09 Feb 17, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00489 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H9029.IH H9029

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1 eral election to a participating candidate in an 

2 amount equal to the base amount with respect to 

3 such candidate. 

4 ‘‘(4) GENERAL RUNOFF ELECTION ALLOCA5 TION.—The Commission shall make an allocation 

6 from the Fund for a general runoff election to a par7 ticipating candidate in an amount equal to 25 per8 cent of the base amount with respect to such can9 didate. 

10 ‘‘(5) UNCONTESTED ELECTIONS.— 

11 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—In the case of a pri12 mary or general election that is an uncontested 

13 election, the Commission shall make an alloca14 tion from the Fund to a participating candidate 

15 for such election in an amount equal to 25 per16 cent of the allocation which such candidate 

17 would be entitled to under this section for such 

18 election if this paragraph did not apply. 

19 ‘‘(B) UNCONTESTED ELECTION DE20 FINED.—For purposes of this subparagraph, an 

21 election is uncontested if not more than 1 can22 didate has campaign funds (including payments 

23 from the Fund) in an amount equal to or great24 er than 10 percent of the allocation a partici25 pating candidate would be entitled to receive 


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1 under this section for such election if this para2 graph did not apply. 

3 ‘‘(d) BASE AMOUNT.— 

4 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as otherwise pro5 vided in this subsection, the base amount for any 

6 candidate is an amount equal to the greater of— 

7 ‘‘(A) the sum of— 

8 ‘‘(i) $750,000; plus 

9 ‘‘(ii) $150,000 for each congressional 

10 district in the State with respect to which 

11 the candidate is seeking election; or 

12 ‘‘(B) the amount determined by the Com13 mission under section 531. 

14 ‘‘(2) INDEXING.—In each even-numbered year 

15 after 2025— 

16 ‘‘(A) each dollar amount under paragraph 

17 (1)(A) shall be increased by the percent dif18 ference between the price index (as defined in 

19 section 315(c)(2)(A)) for the 12 months pre20 ceding the beginning of such calendar year and 

21 the price index for calendar year 2022; 

22 ‘‘(B) each dollar amount so increased shall 

23 remain in effect for the 2-year period beginning 

24 on the first day following the date of the last 

25 general election in the year preceding the year 


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1 in which the amount is increased and ending on 

2 the date of the next general election; and 

3 ‘‘(C) if any amount after adjustment under 

4 subparagraph (A) is not a multiple of $100, 

5 such amount shall be rounded to the nearest 

6 multiple of $100. 

7 ‘‘SEC. 523. MATCHING PAYMENTS FOR QUALIFIED SMALL 

8 DOLLAR CONTRIBUTIONS. 

9 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Commission shall pay to 

10 each participating candidate an amount equal to 600 per11 cent of the amount of qualified small dollar contributions 

12 received by the candidate from individuals who are resi13 dents of the State in which such participating candidate 

14 is seeking election after the date on which such candidate 

15 is certified under section 514. 

16 ‘‘(b) LIMITATION.—The aggregate payments under 

17 subsection (a) with respect to any candidate shall not ex18 ceed the greater of— 

19 ‘‘(1) 400 percent of the allocation such can20 didate is entitled to receive for such election under 

21 section 522 (determined without regard to sub22 section (c)(5) thereof); or 

23 ‘‘(2) the percentage of such allocation deter24 mined by the Commission under section 531. 


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1 ‘‘(c) TIME OF PAYMENT.—The Commission shall 

2 make payments under this section not later than 2 busi3 ness days after the receipt of a report made under sub4 section (d). 

5 ‘‘(d) REPORTS.— 

6 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Each participating can7 didate shall file reports of receipts of qualified small 

8 dollar contributions at such times and in such man9 ner as the Commission may by regulations prescribe. 

10 ‘‘(2) CONTENTS OF REPORTS.—Each report 

11 under this subsection shall disclose— 

12 ‘‘(A) the amount of each qualified small 

13 dollar contribution received by the candidate; 

14 ‘‘(B) the amount of each qualified small 

15 dollar contribution received by the candidate 

16 from a resident of the State in which the can17 didate is seeking election; and 

18 ‘‘(C) the name, address, and occupation of 

19 each individual who made a qualified small dol20 lar contribution to the candidate. 

21 ‘‘(3) FREQUENCY OF REPORTS.—Reports under 

22 this subsection shall be made no more frequently 

23 than— 

24 ‘‘(A) once every month until the date that 

25 is 90 days before the date of the election; 


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1 ‘‘(B) once every week after the period de2 scribed in subparagraph (A) and until the date 

3 that is 21 days before the election; and 

4 ‘‘(C) once every day after the period de5 scribed in subparagraph (B). 

6 ‘‘(4) LIMITATION ON REGULATIONS.—The 

7 Commission may not prescribe any regulations with 

8 respect to reporting under this subsection with re9 spect to any election after the date that is 180 days 

10 before the date of such election. 

11 ‘‘(e) APPEALS.—The Commission shall provide a 

12 written explanation with respect to any denial of any pay13 ment under this section and shall provide the opportunity 

14 for review and reconsideration within 5 business days of 

15 such denial. 

16 ‘‘SEC. 524. ENHANCED MATCHING SUPPORT. 

17 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—In addition to the payments 

18 made under section 523, the Commission shall make an 

19 additional payment to an eligible candidate under this sec20 tion. 

21 ‘‘(b) ELIGIBILITY.—A candidate is eligible to receive 

22 an additional payment under this section if the candidate 

23 meets each of the following requirements: 

24 ‘‘(1) The candidate is on the ballot for the gen25 eral election for the office the candidate seeks. 


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1 ‘‘(2) The candidate is certified as a partici2 pating candidate under this title with respect to the 

3 election. 

4 ‘‘(3) During the enhanced support qualifying 

5 period, the candidate receives qualified small dollar 

6 contributions in a total amount of not less than the 

7 sum of $15,000 for each congressional district in the 

8 State with respect to which the candidate is seeking 

9 election. 

10 ‘‘(4) During the enhanced support qualifying 

11 period, the candidate submits to the Commission a 

12 request for the payment which includes— 

13 ‘‘(A) a statement of the number and 

14 amount of qualified small dollar contributions 

15 received by the candidate during the enhanced 

16 support qualifying period; 

17 ‘‘(B) a statement of the amount of the 

18 payment the candidate anticipates receiving 

19 with respect to the request; and 

20 ‘‘(C) such other information and assur21 ances as the Commission may require. 

22 ‘‘(5) After submitting a request for the addi23 tional payment under paragraph (4), the candidate 

24 does not submit any other application for an addi25 tional payment under this title. 


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1 ‘‘(c) AMOUNT.— 

2 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraph (2), 

3 the amount of the additional payment made to an el4 igible candidate under this subtitle shall be an 

5 amount equal to 50 percent of— 

6 ‘‘(A) the amount of the payment made to 

7 the candidate under section 523 with respect to 

8 the qualified small dollar contributions which 

9 are received by the candidate during the en10 hanced support qualifying period (as included in 

11 the request submitted by the candidate under 

12 (b)(4)(A)); or 

13 ‘‘(B) in the case of a candidate who is not 

14 eligible to receive a payment under section 523 

15 with respect to such qualified small dollar con16 tributions because the candidate has reached 

17 the limit on the aggregate amount of payments 

18 under section 523, the amount of the payment 

19 which would have been made to the candidate 

20 under section 523 with respect to such qualified 

21 small dollar contributions if the candidate had 

22 not reached such limit. 

23 ‘‘(2) LIMIT.—The amount of the additional 

24 payment determined under paragraph (1) with re25 spect to a candidate may not exceed the sum of 


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1 $150,000 for each congressional district in the State 

2 with respect to which the candidate is seeking elec3 tion. 

4 ‘‘(3) NO EFFECT ON AGGREGATE LIMIT.—The 

5 amount of the additional payment made to a can6 didate under this section shall not be included in de7 termining the aggregate amount of payments made 

8 to a participating candidate with respect to an elec9 tion cycle under section 523. 

10 ‘‘SEC. 525. POLITICAL ADVERTISING VOUCHERS. 

11 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Commission shall establish 

12 and administer a voucher program for the purchase of 

13 airtime on broadcasting stations for political advertise14 ments in accordance with the provisions of this section. 

15 ‘‘(b) CANDIDATES.—The Commission shall only dis16 burse vouchers under the program established under sub17 section (a) to participants certified pursuant to section 

18 514 who have agreed in writing to keep and furnish to 

19 the Commission such records, books, and other informa20 tion as it may require. 

21 ‘‘(c) AMOUNTS.—The Commission shall disburse 

22 vouchers to each candidate certified under subsection (b) 

23 in an aggregate amount equal to the greater of— 


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1 ‘‘(1) $100,000 multiplied by the number of con2 gressional districts in the State with respect to 

3 which such candidate is running for office; or 

4 ‘‘(2) the amount determined by the Commission 

5 under section 531. 

6 ‘‘(d) USE.— 

7 ‘‘(1) EXCLUSIVE USE.—Vouchers disbursed by 

8 the Commission under this section may be used only 

9 for the purchase of broadcast airtime for political 

10 advertisements relating to a general election for the 

11 office of Senate by the participating candidate to 

12 which the vouchers were disbursed, except that— 

13 ‘‘(A) a candidate may exchange vouchers 

14 with a political party under paragraph (2); and 

15 ‘‘(B) a political party may use vouchers 

16 only to purchase broadcast airtime for political 

17 advertisements for generic party advertising (as 

18 defined by the Commission in regulations), to 

19 support candidates for State or local office in a 

20 general election, or to support participating 

21 candidates of the party in a general election for 

22 Federal office, but only if it discloses the value 

23 of the voucher used as an expenditure under 

24 section 315(d). 


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1 ‘‘(2) EXCHANGE WITH POLITICAL PARTY COM2 MITTEE.— 

3 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—A participating can4 didate who receives a voucher under this section 

5 may transfer the right to use all or a portion 

6 of the value of the voucher to a committee of 

7 the political party of which the individual is a 

8 candidate (or, in the case of a participating 

9 candidate who is not a member of any political 

10 party, to a committee of the political party of 

11 that candidate’s choice) in exchange for money 

12 in an amount equal to the cash value of the 

13 voucher or portion exchanged. 

14 ‘‘(B) CONTINUATION OF CANDIDATE OBLI15 GATIONS.—The transfer of a voucher, in whole 

16 or in part, to a political party committee under 

17 this paragraph does not release the candidate 

18 from any obligation under the agreement made 

19 under subsection (b) or otherwise modify that 

20 agreement or its application to that candidate. 

21 ‘‘(C) PARTY COMMITTEE OBLIGATIONS.— 

22 Any political party committee to which a vouch23 er or portion thereof is transferred under sub24 paragraph (A)— 


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1 ‘‘(i) shall account fully, in accordance 

2 with such requirements as the Commission 

3 may establish, for the receipt of the vouch4 er; and 

5 ‘‘(ii) may not use the transferred 

6 voucher or portion thereof for any purpose 

7 other than a purpose described in para8 graph (1)(B). 

9 ‘‘(D) VOUCHER AS A CONTRIBUTION

10 UNDER FECA.—If a candidate transfers a 

11 voucher or any portion thereof to a political 

12 party committee under subparagraph (A)— 

13 ‘‘(i) the value of the voucher or por14 tion thereof transferred shall be treated as 

15 a contribution from the candidate to the 

16 committee, and from the committee to the 

17 candidate, for purposes of sections 302 

18 and 304; 

19 ‘‘(ii) the committee may, in exchange, 

20 provide to the candidate only funds subject 

21 to the prohibitions, limitations, and report22 ing requirements of title III of this Act; 

23 and 

24 ‘‘(iii) the amount, if identified as a 

25 ‘voucher exchange’, shall not be considered 


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1 a contribution for the purposes of sections 

2 315 and 513. 

3 ‘‘(e) VALUE; ACCEPTANCE; REDEMPTION.— 

4 ‘‘(1) VOUCHER.—Each voucher disbursed by 

5 the Commission under this section shall have a value 

6 in dollars, redeemable upon presentation to the 

7 Commission, together with such documentation and 

8 other information as the Commission may require, 

9 for the purchase of broadcast airtime for political 

10 advertisements in accordance with this section. 

11 ‘‘(2) ACCEPTANCE.—A broadcasting station 

12 shall accept vouchers in payment for the purchase of 

13 broadcast airtime for political advertisements in ac14 cordance with this section. 

15 ‘‘(3) REDEMPTION.—The Commission shall re16 deem vouchers accepted by broadcasting stations 

17 under paragraph (2) upon presentation, subject to 

18 such documentation, verification, accounting, and 

19 application requirements as the Commission may im20 pose to ensure the accuracy and integrity of the 

21 voucher redemption system. 

22 ‘‘(4) EXPIRATION.— 

23 ‘‘(A) CANDIDATES.—A voucher may only 

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1 night on the day before the date of the Federal 

2 election in connection with which it was issued 

3 and shall be null and void for any other use or 

4 purpose. 

5 ‘‘(B) EXCEPTION FOR POLITICAL PARTY

6 COMMITTEES.—A voucher held by a political 

7 party committee may be used to pay for broad8 cast airtime for political advertisements to be 

9 broadcast before midnight on December 31st of 

10 the odd-numbered year following the year in 

11 which the voucher was issued by the Commis12 sion. 

13 ‘‘(5) VOUCHER AS EXPENDITURE UNDER

14 FECA.—The use of a voucher to purchase broadcast 

15 airtime constitutes an expenditure as defined in sec16 tion 301(9)(A). 

17 ‘‘(f) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

18 ‘‘(1) BROADCASTING STATION.—The term 

19 ‘broadcasting station’ has the meaning given that 

20 term by section 315(f)(1) of the Communications 

21 Act of 1934. 

22 ‘‘(2) POLITICAL PARTY.—The term ‘political 

23 party’ means a major party or a minor party as de24 fined in section 9002 (3) or (4) of the Internal Rev25 enue Code of 1986 (26 U.S.C. 9002 (3) or (4)). 


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1 ‘‘Subtitle D—Administrative 

2 Provisions 

3 ‘‘SEC. 531. DUTIES OF THE FEDERAL ELECTION COMMIS4 SION. 

5 ‘‘(a) DUTIES AND POWERS.— 

6 ‘‘(1) ADMINISTRATION.—The Commission shall 

7 have the power to administer the provisions of this 

8 title and shall prescribe regulations to carry out the 

9 purposes of this title, including regulations— 

10 ‘‘(A) to establish procedures for— 

11 ‘‘(i) verifying the amount of valid 

12 qualifying contributions with respect to a 

13 candidate; 

14 ‘‘(ii) effectively and efficiently moni15 toring and enforcing the limits on the rais16 ing of qualified small dollar contributions; 

17 ‘‘(iii) monitoring the raising of quali18 fying multicandidate political committee 

19 contributions through effectively and effi20 ciently monitoring and enforcing the limits 

21 on individual contributions to qualified ac22 counts of multicandidate political commit23 tees; 

24 ‘‘(iv) effectively and efficiently moni25 toring and enforcing the limits on the use 


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1 of personal funds by participating can2 didates; 

3 ‘‘(v) monitoring the use of allocations 

4 from the Fund and matching contributions 

5 under this title through audits or other 

6 mechanisms; and 

7 ‘‘(vi) the administration of the vouch8 er program under section 525; and 

9 ‘‘(B) regarding the conduct of debates in a 

10 manner consistent with the best practices of 

11 States that provide public financing for elec12 tions. 

13 ‘‘(2) REVIEW OF FAIR ELECTIONS FINANC14 ING.— 

15 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—After each general 

16 election for Federal office, the Commission shall 

17 conduct a comprehensive review of the Fair 

18 Elections financing program under this title, in19 cluding— 

20 ‘‘(i) the maximum dollar amount of 

21 qualified small dollar contributions under 

22 section 501(13); 

23 ‘‘(ii) the maximum and minimum dol24 lar amounts for qualifying contributions 

25 under section 501(12); 


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1 ‘‘(iii) the number and value of quali2 fying contributions a candidate is required 

3 to obtain under section 512 to qualify for 

4 allocations from the Fund; 

5 ‘‘(iv) the amount of allocations from 

6 the Fund that candidates may receive 

7 under section 522; 

8 ‘‘(v) the maximum amount of match9 ing contributions a candidate may receive 

10 under section 523; 

11 ‘‘(vi) the maximum amount of en12 hanced matching contributions a candidate 

13 may receive under section 524; 

14 ‘‘(vii) the amount and usage of vouch15 ers under section 525; 

16 ‘‘(viii) the overall satisfaction of par17 ticipating candidates and the American 

18 public with the program; and 

19 ‘‘(ix) such other matters relating to fi20 nancing of Senate campaigns as the Com21 mission determines are appropriate. 

22 ‘‘(B) CRITERIA FOR REVIEW.—In con23 ducting the review under subparagraph (A), the 

24 Commission shall consider the following: 


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1 ‘‘(i) QUALIFYING CONTRIBUTIONS

2 AND QUALIFIED SMALL DOLLAR CON3 TRIBUTIONS.—The Commission shall con4 sider whether the number and dollar 

5 amount of qualifying contributions re6 quired and maximum dollar amount for 

7 such qualifying contributions and qualified 

8 small dollar contributions strikes a balance 

9 regarding the importance of voter involve10 ment, the need to assure adequate incen11 tives for participating, and fiscal responsi12 bility, taking into consideration the num13 ber of primary and general election partici14 pating candidates, the electoral perform15 ance of those candidates, program cost, 

16 and any other information the Commission 

17 determines is appropriate. 

18 ‘‘(ii) REVIEW OF PROGRAM BENE19 FITS.—The Commission shall consider 

20 whether the totality of the amount of 

21 funds allowed to be raised by participating 

22 candidates (including through qualifying 

23 contributions and small dollar contribu24 tions), allocations from the Fund under 

25 section 522, matching contributions under 


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1 section 523, enhanced matching contribu2 tions under section 524, and vouchers 

3 under section 525 are sufficient for voters 

4 in each State to learn about the candidates 

5 to cast an informed vote, taking into ac6 count the historic amount of spending by 

7 winning candidates, media costs, primary 

8 election dates, and any other information 

9 the Commission determines is appropriate. 

10 ‘‘(C) ADJUSTMENT OF AMOUNTS.— 

11 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Based on the re12 view conducted under subparagraph (A), 

13 the Commission shall provide for the ad14 justments of the following amounts: 

15 ‘‘(I) The maximum dollar 

16 amount of qualified small dollar con17 tributions under section 501(13)(C). 

18 ‘‘(II) The maximum and min19 imum dollar amounts for qualifying 

20 contributions under section 

21 501(12)(A). 

22 ‘‘(III) The number and value of 

23 qualifying contributions a candidate is 

24 required to obtain under section 

25 512(a)(1). 


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1 ‘‘(IV) The base amount for can2 didates under section 522(d). 

3 ‘‘(V) The maximum amount of 

4 matching contributions a candidate 

5 may receive under section 523(b). 

6 ‘‘(VI) The maximum amount of 

7 enhanced matching contributions a 

8 candidate may receive under section 

9 524(c). 

10 ‘‘(VII) The dollar amount for 

11 vouchers under section 525(c). 

12 ‘‘(ii) REGULATIONS.—The Commis13 sion shall promulgate regulations providing 

14 for the adjustments made under clause (i). 

15 ‘‘(D) REPORT.—Not later than March 30 

16 following any general election for Federal office, 

17 the Commission shall submit a report to Con18 gress on the review conducted under subpara19 graph (A). Such report shall contain a detailed 

20 statement of the findings, conclusions, and rec21 ommendations of the Commission based on 

22 such review. 

23 ‘‘(b) REPORTS.—Not later than March 30, 2024, and 

24 every 2 years thereafter, the Commission shall submit to 

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1 port documenting, evaluating, and making recommenda2 tions relating to the administrative implementation and 

3 enforcement of the provisions of this title. 

4 ‘‘(c) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

5 are authorized to be appropriated such sums as are nec6 essary to carry out the purposes of this subtitle. 

7 ‘‘SEC. 532. VIOLATIONS AND PENALTIES. 

8 ‘‘(a) CIVIL PENALTY FOR VIOLATION OF CONTRIBU9 TION AND EXPENDITURE REQUIREMENTS.—If a can10 didate who has been certified as a participating candidate 

11 under section 514 accepts a contribution or makes an ex12 penditure that is prohibited under section 513, the Com13 mission shall assess a civil penalty against the candidate 

14 in an amount that is not more than 3 times the amount 

15 of the contribution or expenditure. Any amounts collected 

16 under this subsection shall be deposited into the Fund. 

17 ‘‘(b) REPAYMENT FOR IMPROPER USE OF FREEDOM

18 FROM INFLUENCE FUND.— 

19 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—If the Commission deter20 mines that any benefit made available to a partici21 pating candidate under this title was not used as 

22 provided for in this title or that a participating can23 didate has violated any of the dates for remission of 

24 funds contained in this title, the Commission shall 


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1 so notify the candidate and the candidate shall pay 

2 to the Fund an amount equal to— 

3 ‘‘(A) the amount of benefits so used or not 

4 remitted, as appropriate; and 

5 ‘‘(B) interest on any such amounts (at a 

6 rate determined by the Commission). 

7 ‘‘(2) OTHER ACTION NOT PRECLUDED.—Any 

8 action by the Commission in accordance with this 

9 subsection shall not preclude enforcement pro10 ceedings by the Commission in accordance with sec11 tion 309(a), including a referral by the Commission 

12 to the Attorney General in the case of an apparent 

13 knowing and willful violation of this title.’’. 

14 SEC. 752. EXCEPTION TO LIMITATION ON COORDINATED 

15 EXPENDITURES BY POLITICAL PARTY COM16 MITTEES WITH PARTICIPATING CANDIDATES. 

17 Section 315(d) of the Federal Election Campaign Act 

18 of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30116(d)) is amended— 

19 (1) in paragraph (3)(A), by striking ‘‘in the 

20 case of’’ and inserting ‘‘except as provided in para21 graph (6), in the case of’’; and 

22 (2) by adding at the end the following new 

23 paragraph: 

24 ‘‘(6)(A) The limitation under paragraph (3)(A) 

25 shall not apply with respect to any expenditure from 


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1 a qualified political party-participating candidate co2 ordinated expenditure fund. 

3 ‘‘(B) In this paragraph, the term ‘qualified po4 litical party-participating candidate coordinated ex5 penditure fund’ means a fund established by the na6 tional committee of a political party, or a State com7 mittee of a political party, including any subordinate 

8 committee of a State committee, for purposes of 

9 making expenditures in connection with the general 

10 election campaign of a candidate for election to the 

11 office of Senator who is a participating candidate (as 

12 defined in section 501), that only accepts qualified 

13 coordinated expenditure contributions. 

14 ‘‘(C) In this paragraph, the term ‘qualified co15 ordinated expenditure contribution’ means, with re16 spect to the general election campaign of a candidate 

17 for election to the office of Senator who is a partici18 pating candidate (as defined in section 501), any 

19 contribution (or series of contributions)— 

20 ‘‘(i) which is made by an individual who is 

21 not prohibited from making a contribution 

22 under this Act; and 

23 ‘‘(ii) the aggregate amount of which does 

24 not exceed $500 per election.’’. 


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1 SEC. 753. ASSESSMENTS AGAINST FINES AND PENALTIES. 

2 (a) ASSESSMENTS RELATING TO CRIMINAL OF3 FENSES.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 201 of title 18, 

5 United States Code, is amended by adding at the 

6 end the following new section: 

7 ‘‘§ 3015. Special assessments for Freedom From Influ8 ence Fund 

9 ‘‘(a) ASSESSMENTS.— 

10 ‘‘(1) CONVICTIONS OF CRIMES.—In addition to 

11 any assessment imposed under this chapter, the 

12 court shall assess on any organizational defendant or 

13 any defendant who is a corporate officer or person 

14 with equivalent authority in any other organization 

15 who is convicted of a criminal offense under Federal 

16 law an amount equal to 2.75 percent of any fine im17 posed on that defendant in the sentence imposed for 

18 that conviction. 

19 ‘‘(2) SETTLEMENTS.—The court shall assess on 

20 any organizational defendant or defendant who is a 

21 corporate officer or person with equivalent authority 

22 in any other organization who has entered into a 

23 settlement agreement or consent decree with the 

24 United States in satisfaction of any allegation that 

25 the defendant committed a criminal offense under 


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1 Federal law an amount equal to 2.75 percent of the 

2 amount of the settlement. 

3 ‘‘(b) MANNER OF COLLECTION.—An amount as4 sessed under subsection (a) shall be collected in the man5 ner in which fines are collected in criminal cases. 

6 ‘‘(c) TRANSFERS.—In a manner consistent with sec7 tion 3302(b) of title 31, there shall be transferred from 

8 the General Fund of the Treasury to the Freedom From 

9 Influence Fund under section 502 of the Federal Election 

10 Campaign Act of 1971 an amount equal to the amount 

11 of the assessments collected under this section.’’. 

12 (2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sec13 tions of chapter 201 of title 18, United States Code, 

14 is amended by adding at the end the following: 

‘‘3015. Special assessments for Freedom From Influence Fund.’’. 

15 (b) ASSESSMENTS RELATING TO CIVIL PEN16 ALTIES.— 

17 (1) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 97 of title 31, 

18 United States Code, is amended by adding at the 

19 end the following new section: 

20 ‘‘§ 9707. Special assessments for Freedom From Influ21 ence Fund 

22 ‘‘(a) ASSESSMENTS.— 

23 ‘‘(1) CIVIL PENALTIES.—Any entity of the Fed24 eral Government which is authorized under any law, 

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1 sess on each person, other than a natural person 

2 who is not a corporate officer or person with equiva3 lent authority in any other organization, on whom 

4 such a penalty is imposed an amount equal to 2.75 

5 percent of the amount of the penalty. 

6 ‘‘(2) ADMINISTRATIVE PENALTIES.—Any entity 

7 of the Federal Government which is authorized 

8 under any law, rule, or regulation to impose an ad9 ministrative penalty shall assess on each person, 

10 other than a natural person who is not a corporate 

11 officer or person with equivalent authority in any 

12 other organization, on whom such a penalty is im13 posed an amount equal to 2.75 percent of the 

14 amount of the penalty. 

15 ‘‘(3) SETTLEMENTS.—Any entity of the Federal 

16 Government which is authorized under any law, rule, 

17 or regulation to enter into a settlement agreement or 

18 consent decree with any person, other than a natural 

19 person who is not a corporate officer or person with 

20 equivalent authority in any other organization, in 

21 satisfaction of any allegation of an action or omis22 sion by the person which would be subject to a civil 

23 penalty or administrative penalty shall assess on 

24 such person an amount equal to 2.75 percent of the 

25 amount of the settlement. 


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1 ‘‘(b) MANNER OF COLLECTION.—An amount as2 sessed under subsection (a) shall be collected— 

3 ‘‘(1) in the case of an amount assessed under 

4 paragraph (1) of such subsection, in the manner in 

5 which civil penalties are collected by the entity of the 

6 Federal Government involved; 

7 ‘‘(2) in the case of an amount assessed under 

8 paragraph (2) of such subsection, in the manner in 

9 which administrative penalties are collected by the 

10 entity of the Federal Government involved; and 

11 ‘‘(3) in the case of an amount assessed under 

12 paragraph (3) of such subsection, in the manner in 

13 which amounts are collected pursuant to settlement 

14 agreements or consent decrees entered into by the 

15 entity of the Federal Government involved. 

16 ‘‘(c) TRANSFERS.—In a manner consistent with sec17 tion 3302(b) of this title, there shall be transferred from 

18 the General Fund of the Treasury to the Freedom From 

19 Influence Fund under section 502 of the Federal Election 

20 Campaign Act of 1971 an amount equal to the amount 

21 of the assessments collected under this section. 

22 ‘‘(d) EXCEPTION FOR PENALTIES AND SETTLE23 MENTS UNDER AUTHORITY OF THE INTERNAL REVENUE

24 CODE OF 1986.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—No assessment shall be 

2 made under subsection (a) with respect to any civil 

3 or administrative penalty imposed, or any settlement 

4 agreement or consent decree entered into, under the 

5 authority of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986. 

6 ‘‘(2) CROSS REFERENCE.—For application of 

7 special assessments for the Freedom From Influence 

8 Fund with respect to certain penalties under the In9 ternal Revenue Code of 1986, see section 6761 of 

10 the Internal Revenue Code of 1986.’’. 

11 (2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sec12 tions of chapter 97 of title 31, United States Code, 

13 is amended by adding at the end the following: 

‘‘9707. Special assessments for Freedom From Influence Fund.’’. 

14 (c) ASSESSMENTS RELATING TO CERTAIN PEN15 ALTIES UNDER THE INTERNAL REVENUE CODE OF

16 1986.— 

17 (1) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 68 of the Internal 

18 Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by adding at the 

19 end the following new subchapter: 


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1 ‘‘Subchapter D—Special Assessments for 

2 Freedom From Influence Fund 

3 ‘‘SEC. 6761. SPECIAL ASSESSMENTS FOR FREEDOM FROM 

4 INFLUENCE FUND. 

5 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Each person required to pay a 

6 covered penalty shall pay an additional amount equal to 

7 2.75 percent of the amount of such penalty. 

8 ‘‘(b) COVERED PENALTY.—For purposes of this sec9 tion, the term ‘covered penalty’ means any addition to tax, 

10 additional amount, penalty, or other liability provided 

11 under subchapter A or B. 

12 ‘‘(c) EXCEPTION FOR CERTAIN INDIVIDUALS.— 

13 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In the case of a taxpayer 

14 who is an individual, subsection (a) shall not apply 

15 to any covered penalty if such taxpayer is an exempt 

16 taxpayer for the taxable year for which such covered 

17 penalty is assessed. 

18 ‘‘(2) EXEMPT TAXPAYER.—For purposes of this 

19 subsection, a taxpayer is an exempt taxpayer for any 

20 taxable year if the taxable income of such taxpayer 

21 for such taxable year does not exceed the dollar 

22 amount at which begins the highest rate bracket in 

23 effect under section 1 with respect to such taxpayer 

24 for such taxable year. 


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1 ‘‘(d) APPLICATION OF CERTAIN RULES.—Except as 

2 provided in subsection (e), the additional amount deter3 mined under subsection (a) shall be treated for purposes 

4 of this title in the same manner as the covered penalty 

5 to which such additional amount relates. 

6 ‘‘(e) TRANSFER TO FREEDOM FROM INFLUENCE

7 FUND.—The Secretary shall deposit any additional 

8 amount under subsection (a) in the General Fund of the 

9 Treasury and shall transfer from such General Fund to 

10 the Freedom From Influence Fund established under sec11 tion 502 of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 

12 an amount equal to the amounts so deposited (and, not13 withstanding subsection (d), such additional amount shall 

14 not be the basis for any deposit, transfer, credit, appro15 priation, or any other payment, to any other trust fund 

16 or account). Rules similar to the rules of section 9601 

17 shall apply for purposes of this subsection.’’. 

18 (2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sub19 chapters for chapter 68 of such Code is amended by 

20 adding at the end the following new item: 

‘‘SUBCHAPTER D—SPECIAL ASSESSMENTS FOR FREEDOM FROM INFLUENCE

FUND’’. 

21 (d) EFFECTIVE DATES.— 

22 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para23 graph (2), the amendments made by this section 

24 shall apply with respect to convictions, agreements, 


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1 and penalties which occur on or after the date of the 

2 enactment of this Act. 

3 (2) ASSESSMENTS RELATING TO CERTAIN PEN4 ALTIES UNDER THE INTERNAL REVENUE CODE OF

5 1986.—The amendments made by subsection (c) 

6 shall apply to covered penalties assessed after the 

7 date of the enactment of this Act. 

8 PART II—PRESIDENTIAL ELECTIONS 

9 Subpart A—Primary Elections 

10 SEC. 761. INCREASE IN AND MODIFICATIONS TO MATCHING 

11 PAYMENTS. 

12 (a) INCREASE AND MODIFICATION.— 

13 (1) IN GENERAL.—The first sentence of section 

14 9034(a) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is 

15 amended— 

16 (A) by striking ‘‘an amount equal to the 

17 amount of each contribution’’ and inserting ‘‘an 

18 amount equal to 600 percent of the amount of 

19 each matchable contribution (disregarding any 

20 amount of contributions from any person to the 

21 extent that the total of the amounts contributed 

22 by such person for the election exceeds $200)’’; 

23 and 


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1 (B) by striking ‘‘authorized committees’’ 

2 and all that follows through ‘‘$250’’ and insert3 ing ‘‘authorized committees’’. 

4 (2) MATCHABLE CONTRIBUTIONS.—Section 

5 9034 of such Code is amended— 

6 (A) by striking the last sentence of sub7 section (a); and 

8 (B) by adding at the end the following new 

9 subsection: 

10 ‘‘(c) MATCHABLE CONTRIBUTION DEFINED.—For 

11 purposes of this section and section 9033(b)— 

12 ‘‘(1) MATCHABLE CONTRIBUTION.—The term 

13 ‘matchable contribution’ means, with respect to the 

14 nomination for election to the office of President of 

15 the United States, a contribution by an individual to 

16 a candidate or an authorized committee of a can17 didate with respect to which the candidate has cer18 tified in writing that— 

19 ‘‘(A) the individual making such contribu20 tion has not made aggregate contributions (in21 cluding such matchable contribution) to such 

22 candidate and the authorized committees of 

23 such candidate in excess of $1,000 for the elec24 tion; 


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1 ‘‘(B) such candidate and the authorized 

2 committees of such candidate will not accept 

3 contributions from such individual (including 

4 such matchable contribution) aggregating more 

5 than the amount described in subparagraph 

6 (A); and 

7 ‘‘(C) such contribution was a direct con8 tribution. 

9 ‘‘(2) CONTRIBUTION.—For purposes of this 

10 subsection, the term ‘contribution’ means a gift of 

11 money made by a written instrument which identi12 fies the individual making the contribution by full 

13 name and mailing address, but does not include a 

14 subscription, loan, advance, or deposit of money, or 

15 anything of value or anything described in subpara16 graph (B), (C), or (D) of section 9032(4). 

17 ‘‘(3) DIRECT CONTRIBUTION.— 

18 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—For purposes of this 

19 subsection, the term ‘direct contribution’ 

20 means, with respect to a candidate, a contribu21 tion which is made directly by an individual to 

22 the candidate or an authorized committee of the 

23 candidate and is not— 


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1 ‘‘(i) forwarded from the individual 

2 making the contribution to the candidate 

3 or committee by another person; or 

4 ‘‘(ii) received by the candidate or com5 mittee with the knowledge that the con6 tribution was made at the request, sugges7 tion, or recommendation of another person. 

8 ‘‘(B) OTHER DEFINITIONS.—In subpara9 graph (A)— 

10 ‘‘(i) the term ‘person’ does not include 

11 an individual (other than an individual de12 scribed in section 304(i)(7) of the Federal 

13 Election Campaign Act of 1971), a polit14 ical committee of a political party, or any 

15 political committee which is not a separate 

16 segregated fund described in section 

17 316(b) of the Federal Election Campaign 

18 Act of 1971 and which does not make con19 tributions or independent expenditures, 

20 does not engage in lobbying activity under 

21 the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 (2 

22 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.), and is not estab23 lished by, controlled by, or affiliated with 

24 a registered lobbyist under such Act, an 

25 agent of a registered lobbyist under such 


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1 Act, or an organization which retains or 

2 employs a registered lobbyist under such 

3 Act; and 

4 ‘‘(ii) a contribution is not ‘made at 

5 the request, suggestion, or recommendation 

6 of another person’ solely on the grounds 

7 that the contribution is made in response 

8 to information provided to the individual 

9 making the contribution by any person, so 

10 long as the candidate or authorized com11 mittee does not know the identity of the 

12 person who provided the information to 

13 such individual.’’. 

14 (3) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

15 (A) Section 9032(4) of such Code is 

16 amended by striking ‘‘section 9034(a)’’ and in17 serting ‘‘section 9034’’. 

18 (B) Section 9033(b)(3) of such Code is 

19 amended by striking ‘‘matching contributions’’ 

20 and inserting ‘‘matchable contributions’’. 

21 (b) MODIFICATION OF PAYMENT LIMITATION.—Sec22 tion 9034(b) of such Code is amended— 

23 (1) by striking ‘‘The total’’ and inserting the 

24 following: 

25 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The total’’; 


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1 (2) by striking ‘‘shall not exceed’’ and all that 

2 follows and inserting ‘‘shall not exceed 

3 $250,000,000.’’; and 

4 (3) by adding at the end the following new 

5 paragraph: 

6 ‘‘(2) INFLATION ADJUSTMENT.— 

7 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—In the case of any ap8 plicable period beginning after 2029, the dollar 

9 amount in paragraph (1) shall be increased by 

10 an amount equal to— 

11 ‘‘(i) such dollar amount, multiplied by 

12 ‘‘(ii) the cost-of-living adjustment de13 termined under section 1(f)(3) for the cal14 endar year following the year which such 

15 applicable period begins, determined by 

16 substituting ‘calendar year 2028’ for ‘cal17 endar year 1992’ in subparagraph (B) 

18 thereof. 

19 ‘‘(B) APPLICABLE PERIOD.—For purposes 

20 of this paragraph, the term ‘applicable period’ 

21 means the 4-year period beginning with the 

22 first day following the date of the general elec23 tion for the office of President and ending on 

24 the date of the next such general election. 


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1 ‘‘(C) ROUNDING.—If any amount as ad2 justed under subparagraph (A) is not a multiple 

3 of $10,000, such amount shall be rounded to 

4 the nearest multiple of $10,000.’’. 

5 SEC. 762. ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS FOR MATCHING 

6 PAYMENTS. 

7 (a) AMOUNT OF AGGREGATE CONTRIBUTIONS PER

8 STATE; DISREGARDING OF AMOUNTS CONTRIBUTED IN

9 EXCESS OF $200.—Section 9033(b)(3) of the Internal 

10 Revenue Code of 1986 is amended— 

11 (1) by striking ‘‘$5,000’’ and inserting 

12 ‘‘$25,000’’; and 

13 (2) by striking ‘‘20 States’’ and inserting the 

14 following: ‘‘20 States (disregarding any amount of 

15 contributions from any such resident to the extent 

16 that the total of the amounts contributed by such 

17 resident for the election exceeds $200)’’. 

18 (b) CONTRIBUTION LIMIT.— 

19 (1) IN GENERAL.—Paragraph (4) of section 

20 9033(b) of such Code is amended to read as follows: 

21 ‘‘(4) the candidate and the authorized commit22 tees of the candidate will not accept aggregate con23 tributions from any person with respect to the nomi24 nation for election to the office of President of the 

25 United States in excess of $1,000 for the election.’’. 


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1 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

2 (A) Section 9033(b) of such Code is 

3 amended by adding at the end the following 

4 new flush sentence: 

5 ‘‘For purposes of paragraph (4), the term ‘contribution’ 

6 has the meaning given such term in section 301(8) of the 

7 Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971.’’. 

8 (B) Section 9032(4) of such Code, as 

9 amended by section 761(a)(3)(A), is amended 

10 by inserting ‘‘or 9033(b)’’ after ‘‘9034’’. 

11 (c) PARTICIPATION IN SYSTEM FOR PAYMENTS FOR

12 GENERAL ELECTION.—Section 9033(b) of such Code is 

13 amended— 

14 (1) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of paragraph 

15 (3); 

16 (2) by striking the period at the end of para17 graph (4) and inserting ‘‘, and’’; and 

18 (3) by inserting after paragraph (4) the fol19 lowing new paragraph: 

20 ‘‘(5) if the candidate is nominated by a political 

21 party for election to the office of President, the can22 didate will apply for and accept payments with re23 spect to the general election for such office in ac24 cordance with chapter 95.’’. 


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1 (d) PROHIBITION ON JOINT FUNDRAISING COMMIT2 TEES.—Section 9033(b) of such Code, as amended by sub3 section (c), is amended— 

4 (1) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of paragraph 

5 (4); 

6 (2) by striking the period at the end of para7 graph (5) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

8 (3) by inserting after paragraph (5) adding at 

9 the end the following new paragraph: 

10 ‘‘(6) the candidate will not establish a joint 

11 fundraising committee with a political committee 

12 other than another authorized committee of the can13 didate, except that candidate established a joint 

14 fundraising committee with respect to a prior elec15 tion for which the candidate was not eligible to re16 ceive payments under section 9037 and the can17 didate does not terminate the committee, the can18 didate shall not be considered to be in violation of 

19 this paragraph so long as that joint fundraising 

20 committee does not receive any contributions or 

21 make any disbursements during the election cycle for 

22 which the candidate is eligible to receive payments 

23 under such section.’’. 


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1 SEC. 763. REPEAL OF EXPENDITURE LIMITATIONS. 

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subsection (a) of section 9035 of 

3 the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended to read 

4 as follows: 

5 ‘‘(a) PERSONAL EXPENDITURE LIMITATION.—No 

6 candidate shall knowingly make expenditures from his per7 sonal funds, or the personal funds of his immediate family, 

8 in connection with his campaign for nomination for elec9 tion to the office of President in excess of, in the aggre10 gate, $50,000.’’. 

11 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Paragraph (1) of 

12 section 9033(b) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is 

13 amended to read as follows: 

14 ‘‘(1) the candidate will comply with the per15 sonal expenditure limitation under section 9035,’’. 

16 SEC. 764. PERIOD OF AVAILABILITY OF MATCHING PAY17 MENTS. 

18 Section 9032(6) of the Internal Revenue Code of 

19 1986 is amended by striking ‘‘the beginning of the cal20 endar year in which a general election for the office of 

21 President of the United States will be held’’ and inserting 

22 ‘‘the date that is 6 months prior to the date of the earliest 

23 State primary election’’. 


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1 SEC. 765. EXAMINATION AND AUDITS OF MATCHABLE CON2 TRIBUTIONS. 

3 Section 9038(a) of the Internal Revenue Code of 

4 1986 is amended by inserting ‘‘and matchable contribu5 tions accepted by’’ after ‘‘qualified campaign expenses of’’. 

6 SEC. 766. MODIFICATION TO LIMITATION ON CONTRIBU7 TIONS FOR PRESIDENTIAL PRIMARY CAN8 DIDATES. 

9 Section 315(a)(6) of the Federal Election Campaign 

10 Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30116(a)(6)) is amended by strik11 ing ‘‘calendar year’’ and inserting ‘‘four-year election 

12 cycle’’. 

13 SEC. 767. USE OF FREEDOM FROM INFLUENCE FUND AS 

14 SOURCE OF PAYMENTS. 

15 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 96 of subtitle H of the 

16 Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by adding at 

17 the end the following new section: 

18 ‘‘SEC. 9043. USE OF FREEDOM FROM INFLUENCE FUND AS 

19 SOURCE OF PAYMENTS. 

20 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Effective with respect to the 

21 Presidential election held in 2028 and each succeeding 

22 Presidential election, all payments made to candidates 

23 under this chapter shall be made from the Freedom From 

24 Influence Fund established under section 502 of the Fed25 eral Election Campaign Act of 1971 (hereafter in this sec26 tion referred to as the ‘Fund’) and any reference in this 


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1 chapter to the matching payment account shall be consid2 ered to be a reference to the Fund. 

3 ‘‘(b) MANDATORY REDUCTION OF PAYMENTS IN

4 CASE OF INSUFFICIENT AMOUNTS IN FUND.— 

5 ‘‘(1) ADVANCE AUDITS BY COMMISSION.—Not 

6 later than 90 days before the first day of each Presi7 dential election cycle (beginning with the cycle for 

8 the election held in 2028), the Commission shall— 

9 ‘‘(A) audit the Fund to determine whether, 

10 after first making payments to participating 

11 candidates under title V of the Federal Election 

12 Campaign Act of 1971, the amounts remaining 

13 in the Fund will be sufficient to make payments 

14 to candidates under this chapter in the amounts 

15 provided under this chapter during such elec16 tion cycle; and 

17 ‘‘(B) submit a report to Congress describ18 ing the results of the audit. 

19 ‘‘(2) REDUCTIONS IN AMOUNT OF PAYMENTS.— 

20 ‘‘(A) AUTOMATIC REDUCTION ON PRO

21 RATA BASIS.—If, on the basis of the audit de22 scribed in paragraph (1), the Commission deter23 mines that the amount anticipated to be avail24 able in the Fund with respect to the Presi25 dential election cycle involved is not, or may not 


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1 be, sufficient to satisfy the full entitlements of 

2 candidates to payments under this chapter for 

3 such cycle, the Commission shall reduce each 

4 amount which would otherwise be paid to a can5 didate under this chapter by such pro rata 

6 amount as may be necessary to ensure that the 

7 aggregate amount of payments anticipated to 

8 be made with respect to the cycle will not ex9 ceed the amount anticipated to be available for 

10 such payments in the Fund with respect to such 

11 cycle. 

12 ‘‘(B) RESTORATION OF REDUCTIONS IN

13 CASE OF AVAILABILITY OF SUFFICIENT FUNDS

14 DURING ELECTION CYCLE.—If, after reducing 

15 the amounts paid to candidates with respect to 

16 an election cycle under subparagraph (A), the 

17 Commission determines that there are sufficient 

18 amounts in the Fund to restore the amount by 

19 which such payments were reduced (or any por20 tion thereof), to the extent that such amounts 

21 are available, the Commission may make a pay22 ment on a pro rata basis to each such candidate 

23 with respect to the election cycle in the amount 

24 by which such candidate’s payments were reVerDate Sep 11 2014 00:09 Feb 17, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00531 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H9029.IH H9029

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1 duced under subparagraph (A) (or any portion 

2 thereof, as the case may be). 

3 ‘‘(C) NO USE OF AMOUNTS FROM OTHER

4 SOURCES.—In any case in which the Commis5 sion determines that there are insufficient mon6 eys in the Fund to make payments to can7 didates under this chapter, moneys shall not be 

8 made available from any other source for the 

9 purpose of making such payments. 

10 ‘‘(3) NO EFFECT ON AMOUNTS TRANSFERRED

11 FOR PEDIATRIC RESEARCH INITIATIVE.—This sec12 tion does not apply to the transfer of funds under 

13 section 9008(i). 

14 ‘‘(4) PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION CYCLE DE15 FINED.—In this section, the term ‘Presidential elec16 tion cycle’ means, with respect to a Presidential elec17 tion, the period beginning on the day after the date 

18 of the previous Presidential general election and 

19 ending on the date of the Presidential election.’’. 

20 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—Section 9037(a) 

21 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by add22 ing at the end the following: ‘‘No amount shall be trans23 ferred under this subsection with respect to any Presi24 dential election held after 2024, and any amounts remain25 ing in such account after payments for such election are 


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1 made shall be transferred to the Freedom from Influence 

2 Fund under section 502 of the Federal Election Campaign 

3 Act of 1971.’’ 

4 (c) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 

5 for chapter 96 of subtitle H of such Code is amended by 

6 adding at the end the following new item: 

‘‘Sec. 9043. Use of Freedom From Influence Fund as source of payments.’’. 

7 Subpart B—General Elections 

8 SEC. 771. MODIFICATION OF ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS 

9 FOR PUBLIC FINANCING. 

10 Subsection (a) of section 9003 of the Internal Rev11 enue Code of 1986 is amended to read as follows: 

12 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—In order to be eligible to receive 

13 any payments under section 9006, the candidates of a po14 litical party in a Presidential election shall meet the fol15 lowing requirements: 

16 ‘‘(1) PARTICIPATION IN PRIMARY PAYMENT

17 SYSTEM.—The candidate for President received pay18 ments under chapter 96 for the campaign for nomi19 nation for election to be President. 

20 ‘‘(2) AGREEMENTS WITH COMMISSION.—The 

21 candidates, in writing— 

22 ‘‘(A) agree to obtain and furnish to the 

23 Commission such evidence as it may request of 

24 the qualified campaign expenses of such can25 didates, 


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1 ‘‘(B) agree to keep and furnish to the 

2 Commission such records, books, and other in3 formation as it may request, and 

4 ‘‘(C) agree to an audit and examination by 

5 the Commission under section 9007 and to pay 

6 any amounts required to be paid under such 

7 section. 

8 ‘‘(3) PROHIBITION ON JOINT FUNDRAISING

9 COMMITTEES.— 

10 ‘‘(A) PROHIBITION.—The candidates cer11 tifies in writing that the candidates will not es12 tablish a joint fundraising committee with a po13 litical committee other than another authorized 

14 committee of the candidate. 

15 ‘‘(B) STATUS OF EXISTING COMMITTEES

16 FOR PRIOR ELECTIONS.—If a candidate estab17 lished a joint fundraising committee described 

18 in subparagraph (A) with respect to a prior 

19 election for which the candidate was not eligible 

20 to receive payments under section 9006 and the 

21 candidate does not terminate the committee, 

22 the candidate shall not be considered to be in 

23 violation of subparagraph (A) so long as that 

24 joint fundraising committee does not receive 

25 any contributions or make any disbursements 


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1 with respect to the election for which the can2 didate is eligible to receive payments under sec3 tion 9006.’’. 

4 SEC. 772. REPEAL OF EXPENDITURE LIMITATIONS AND USE 

5 OF QUALIFIED CAMPAIGN CONTRIBUTIONS. 

6 (a) USE OF QUALIFIED CAMPAIGN CONTRIBUTIONS

7 WITHOUT EXPENDITURE LIMITS; APPLICATION OF SAME

8 REQUIREMENTS FOR MAJOR, MINOR, AND NEW PAR9 TIES.—Section 9003 of the Internal Revenue Code of 

10 1986 is amended by striking subsections (b) and (c) and 

11 inserting the following: 

12 ‘‘(b) USE OF QUALIFIED CAMPAIGN CONTRIBUTIONS

13 TO DEFRAY EXPENSES.— 

14 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In order to be eligible to 

15 receive any payments under section 9006, the can16 didates of a party in a Presidential election shall 

17 certify to the Commission, under penalty of perjury, 

18 that— 

19 ‘‘(A) such candidates and their authorized 

20 committees have not and will not accept any 

21 contributions to defray qualified campaign ex22 penses other than— 

23 ‘‘(i) qualified campaign contributions, 

24 and 


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1 ‘‘(ii) contributions to the extent nec2 essary to make up any deficiency payments 

3 received out of the fund on account of the 

4 application of section 9006(c), and 

5 ‘‘(B) such candidates and their authorized 

6 committees have not and will not accept any 

7 contribution to defray expenses which would be 

8 qualified campaign expenses but for subpara9 graph (C) of section 9002(11). 

10 ‘‘(2) TIMING OF CERTIFICATION.—The can11 didate shall make the certification required under 

12 this subsection at the same time the candidate 

13 makes the certification required under subsection 

14 (a)(3).’’. 

15 (b) DEFINITION OF QUALIFIED CAMPAIGN CON16 TRIBUTION.—Section 9002 of such Code is amended by 

17 adding at the end the following new paragraph: 

18 ‘‘(13) QUALIFIED CAMPAIGN CONTRIBUTION.— 

19 The term ‘qualified campaign contribution’ means, 

20 with respect to any election for the office of Presi21 dent of the United States, a contribution from an in22 dividual to a candidate or an authorized committee 

23 of a candidate which— 

24 ‘‘(A) does not exceed $1,000 for the elec25 tion; and 


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1 ‘‘(B) with respect to which the candidate 

2 has certified in writing that— 

3 ‘‘(i) the individual making such con4 tribution has not made aggregate contribu5 tions (including such qualified contribu6 tion) to such candidate and the authorized 

7 committees of such candidate in excess of 

8 the amount described in subparagraph (A), 

9 and 

10 ‘‘(ii) such candidate and the author11 ized committees of such candidate will not 

12 accept contributions from such individual 

13 (including such qualified contribution) ag14 gregating more than the amount described 

15 in subparagraph (A) with respect to such 

16 election.’’. 

17 (c) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

18 (1) REPEAL OF EXPENDITURE LIMITS.— 

19 (A) IN GENERAL.—Section 315 of the Fed20 eral Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 

21 30116) is amended by striking subsection (b). 

22 (B) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—Section 

23 315(c) of such Act (52 U.S.C. 30116(c)) is 

24 amended— 


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1 (i) in paragraph (1)(B)(i), by striking 

2 ‘‘, (b)’’; and 

3 (ii) in paragraph (2)(B)(i), by striking 

4 ‘‘subsections (b) and (d)’’ and inserting 

5 ‘‘subsection (d)’’. 

6 (2) REPEAL OF REPAYMENT REQUIREMENT.— 

7 (A) IN GENERAL.—Section 9007(b) of the 

8 Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by 

9 striking paragraph (2) and redesignating para10 graphs (3), (4), and (5) as paragraphs (2), (3), 

11 and (4), respectively. 

12 (B) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Para13 graph (2) of section 9007(b) of such Code, as 

14 redesignated by subparagraph (A), is amend15 ed— 

16 (i) by striking ‘‘a major party’’ and 

17 inserting ‘‘a party’’; 

18 (ii) by inserting ‘‘qualified contribu19 tions and’’ after ‘‘contributions (other 

20 than’’; and 

21 (iii) by striking ‘‘(other than qualified 

22 campaign expenses with respect to which 

23 payment is required under paragraph 

24 (2))’’. 

25 (3) CRIMINAL PENALTIES.— 


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1 (A) REPEAL OF PENALTY FOR EXCESS EX2 PENSES.—Section 9012 of the Internal Revenue 

3 Code of 1986 is amended by striking subsection 

4 (a). 

5 (B) PENALTY FOR ACCEPTANCE OF DIS6 ALLOWED CONTRIBUTIONS; APPLICATION OF

7 SAME PENALTY FOR CANDIDATES OF MAJOR, 

8 MINOR, AND NEW PARTIES.—Subsection (b) of 

9 section 9012 of such Code is amended to read 

10 as follows: 

11 ‘‘(b) CONTRIBUTIONS.— 

12 ‘‘(1) ACCEPTANCE OF DISALLOWED CONTRIBU13 TIONS.—It shall be unlawful for an eligible can14 didate of a party in a Presidential election or any of 

15 his authorized committees knowingly and willfully to 

16 accept— 

17 ‘‘(A) any contribution other than a quali18 fied campaign contribution to defray qualified 

19 campaign expenses, except to the extent nec20 essary to make up any deficiency in payments 

21 received out of the fund on account of the ap22 plication of section 9006(c); or 

23 ‘‘(B) any contribution to defray expenses 

24 which would be qualified campaign expenses but 

25 for subparagraph (C) of section 9002(11). 


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1 ‘‘(2) PENALTY.—Any person who violates para2 graph (1) shall be fined not more than $5,000, or 

3 imprisoned not more than one year, or both. In the 

4 case of a violation by an authorized committee, any 

5 officer or member of such committee who knowingly 

6 and willfully consents to such violation shall be fined 

7 not more than $5,000, or imprisoned not more than 

8 one year, or both.’’. 

9 SEC. 773. MATCHING PAYMENTS AND OTHER MODIFICA10 TIONS TO PAYMENT AMOUNTS. 

11 (a) IN GENERAL.— 

12 (1) AMOUNT OF PAYMENTS; APPLICATION OF

13 SAME AMOUNT FOR CANDIDATES OF MAJOR, MINOR, 

14 AND NEW PARTIES.—Subsection (a) of section 9004 

15 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended to 

16 read as follows: 

17 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Subject to the provisions of this 

18 chapter, the eligible candidates of a party in a Presidential 

19 election shall be entitled to equal payment under section 

20 9006 in an amount equal to 600 percent of the amount 

21 of each matchable contribution received by such candidate 

22 or by the candidate’s authorized committees (disregarding 

23 any amount of contributions from any person to the extent 

24 that the total of the amounts contributed by such person 

25 for the election exceeds $200), except that total amount 


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1 to which a candidate is entitled under this paragraph shall 

2 not exceed $250,000,000.’’. 

3 (2) REPEAL OF SEPARATE LIMITATIONS FOR

4 CANDIDATES OF MINOR AND NEW PARTIES; INFLA5 TION ADJUSTMENT.—Subsection (b) of section 9004 

6 of such Code is amended to read as follows: 

7 ‘‘(b) INFLATION ADJUSTMENT.— 

8 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In the case of any applica9 ble period beginning after 2029, the $250,000,000 

10 dollar amount in subsection (a) shall be increased by 

11 an amount equal to— 

12 ‘‘(A) such dollar amount; multiplied by 

13 ‘‘(B) the cost-of-living adjustment deter14 mined under section 1(f)(3) for the calendar 

15 year following the year which such applicable 

16 period begins, determined by substituting ‘cal17 endar year 2028’ for ‘calendar year 1992’ in 

18 subparagraph (B) thereof. 

19 ‘‘(2) APPLICABLE PERIOD.—For purposes of 

20 this subsection, the term ‘applicable period’ means 

21 the 4-year period beginning with the first day fol22 lowing the date of the general election for the office 

23 of President and ending on the date of the next such 

24 general election. 


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1 ‘‘(3) ROUNDING.—If any amount as adjusted 

2 under paragraph (1) is not a multiple of $10,000, 

3 such amount shall be rounded to the nearest mul4 tiple of $10,000.’’. 

5 (3) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 

6 9005(a) of such Code is amended by adding at the 

7 end the following new sentence: ‘‘The Commission 

8 shall make such additional certifications as may be 

9 necessary to receive payments under section 9004.’’. 

10 (b) MATCHABLE CONTRIBUTION.—Section 9002 of 

11 such Code, as amended by section 772(b), is amended by 

12 adding at the end the following new paragraph: 

13 ‘‘(14) MATCHABLE CONTRIBUTION.—The term 

14 ‘matchable contribution’ means, with respect to the 

15 election to the office of President of the United 

16 States, a contribution by an individual to a can17 didate or an authorized committee of a candidate 

18 with respect to which the candidate has certified in 

19 writing that— 

20 ‘‘(A) the individual making such contribu21 tion has not made aggregate contributions (in22 cluding such matchable contribution) to such 

23 candidate and the authorized committees of 

24 such candidate in excess of $1,000 for the elec25 tion; 


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1 ‘‘(B) such candidate and the authorized 

2 committees of such candidate will not accept 

3 contributions from such individual (including 

4 such matchable contribution) aggregating more 

5 than the amount described in subparagraph (A) 

6 with respect to such election; and 

7 ‘‘(C) such contribution was a direct con8 tribution (as defined in section 9034(c)(3)).’’. 

9 SEC. 774. INCREASE IN LIMIT ON COORDINATED PARTY EX10 PENDITURES. 

11 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 315(d)(2) of the Federal 

12 Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30116(d)(2)) 

13 is amended to read as follows: 

14 ‘‘(2)(A) The national committee of a political party 

15 may not make any expenditure in connection with the gen16 eral election campaign of any candidate for President of 

17 the United States who is affiliated with such party which 

18 exceeds $100,000,000. 

19 ‘‘(B) For purposes of this paragraph— 

20 ‘‘(i) any expenditure made by or on behalf of a 

21 national committee of a political party and in con22 nection with a Presidential election shall be consid23 ered to be made in connection with the general elec24 tion campaign of a candidate for President of the 

25 United States who is affiliated with such party; and 


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1 ‘‘(ii) any communication made by or on behalf 

2 of such party shall be considered to be made in con3 nection with the general election campaign of a can4 didate for President of the United States who is af5 filiated with such party if any portion of the commu6 nication is in connection with such election. 

7 ‘‘(C) Any expenditure under this paragraph shall be 

8 in addition to any expenditure by a national committee 

9 of a political party serving as the principal campaign com10 mittee of a candidate for the office of President of the 

11 United States.’’. 

12 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS RELATING TO TIM13 ING OF COST-OF-LIVING ADJUSTMENT.— 

14 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 315(c)(1) of such 

15 Act (52 U.S.C. 30116(c)(1)) is amended— 

16 (A) in subparagraph (B), by striking ‘‘(d)’’ 

17 and inserting ‘‘(d)(2)’’; and 

18 (B) by adding at the end the following new 

19 subparagraph: 

20 ‘‘(D) In any calendar year after 2028— 

21 ‘‘(i) the dollar amount in subsection (d)(2) shall 

22 be increased by the percent difference determined 

23 under subparagraph (A); 

24 ‘‘(ii) the amount so increased shall remain in 

25 effect for the calendar year; and 


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1 ‘‘(iii) if the amount after adjustment under 

2 clause (i) is not a multiple of $100, such amount 

3 shall be rounded to the nearest multiple of $100.’’. 

4 (2) BASE YEAR.—Section 315(c)(2)(B) of such 

5 Act (52 U.S.C. 30116(c)(2)(B)) is amended— 

6 (A) in clause (i)— 

7 (i) by striking ‘‘(d)’’ and inserting 

8 ‘‘(d)(3)’’; and 

9 (ii) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end; 

10 (B) in clause (ii), by striking the period at 

11 the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

12 (C) by adding at the end the following new 

13 clause: 

14 ‘‘(iii) for purposes of subsection (d)(2), cal15 endar year 2027.’’. 

16 SEC. 775. ESTABLISHMENT OF UNIFORM DATE FOR RE17 LEASE OF PAYMENTS. 

18 (a) DATE FOR PAYMENTS.— 

19 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 9006(b) of the In20 ternal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended to read as 

21 follows: 

22 ‘‘(b) PAYMENTS FROM THE FUND.—If the Secretary 

23 of the Treasury receives a certification from the Commis24 sion under section 9005 for payment to the eligible can25 didates of a political party, the Secretary shall pay to such 


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1 candidates out of the fund the amount certified by the 

2 Commission on the later of— 

3 ‘‘(1) the last Friday occurring before the first 

4 Monday in September; or 

5 ‘‘(2) 24 hours after receiving the certifications 

6 for the eligible candidates of all major political par7 ties. 

8 Amounts paid to any such candidates shall be under the 

9 control of such candidates.’’. 

10 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The first sen11 tence of section 9006(c) of such Code is amended by 

12 striking ‘‘the time of a certification by the Commis13 sion under section 9005 for payment’’ and inserting 

14 ‘‘the time of making a payment under subsection 

15 (b)’’. 

16 (b) TIME FOR CERTIFICATION.—Section 9005(a) of 

17 the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by striking 

18 ‘‘10 days’’ and inserting ‘‘24 hours’’. 

19 SEC. 776. AMOUNTS IN PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION CAM20 PAIGN FUND. 

21 Section 9006(c) of the Internal Revenue Code of 

22 1986 is amended by adding at the end the following new 

23 sentence: ‘‘In making a determination of whether there are 

24 insufficient moneys in the fund for purposes of the pre25 vious sentence, the Secretary shall take into account in 


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1 determining the balance of the fund for a Presidential 

2 election year the Secretary’s best estimate of the amount 

3 of moneys which will be deposited into the fund during 

4 the year, except that the amount of the estimate may not 

5 exceed the average of the annual amounts deposited in the 

6 fund during the previous 3 years.’’. 

7 SEC. 777. USE OF GENERAL ELECTION PAYMENTS FOR GEN8 ERAL ELECTION LEGAL AND ACCOUNTING 

9 COMPLIANCE. 

10 Section 9002(11) of the Internal Revenue Code of 

11 1986 is amended by adding at the end the following new 

12 sentence: ‘‘For purposes of subparagraph (A), an expense 

13 incurred by a candidate or authorized committee for gen14 eral election legal and accounting compliance purposes 

15 shall be considered to be an expense to further the election 

16 of such candidate.’’. 

17 SEC. 778. USE OF FREEDOM FROM INFLUENCE FUND AS 

18 SOURCE OF PAYMENTS. 

19 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 95 of subtitle H of the 

20 Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by adding at 

21 the end the following new section: 

22 ‘‘SEC. 9013. USE OF FREEDOM FROM INFLUENCE FUND AS 

23 SOURCE OF PAYMENTS. 

24 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Effective with respect to the 

25 Presidential election held in 2028 and each succeeding 


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1 Presidential election, the Secretary of the Treasury shall 

2 transfer from the Freedom From Influence Fund estab3 lished under section 502 of the Federal Election Cam4 paign Act of 1971 to the Presidential Election Campaign 

5 Fund such additional amounts as are necessary to make 

6 payments pursuant to sections 9006(b) and 9008(j). 

7 ‘‘(b) MANDATORY REDUCTION OF AMOUNT TRANS8 FERRED IN CASE OF INSUFFICIENT AMOUNTS IN

9 FUND.— 

10 ‘‘(1) ADVANCE AUDITS BY COMMISSION.—Not 

11 later than 90 days before the first day of each Presi12 dential election cycle (beginning with the cycle for 

13 the election held in 2028), the Commission shall— 

14 ‘‘(A) audit the Freedom From Influence 

15 Fund to determine whether, after first making 

16 payments to participating candidates under title 

17 V of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 

18 1971 and then making payments to candidates 

19 under chapter 96, the amounts remaining in 

20 the Freedom From Influence Fund (in addition 

21 to amounts otherwise available in the Presi22 dential Election Campaign Fund under section 

23 9006(a)) will be sufficient to make payments 

24 under this chapter in the amounts provided 


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1 under this chapter during such election cycle; 

2 and 

3 ‘‘(B) submit a report to Congress describ4 ing the results of the audit. 

5 ‘‘(2) REDUCTIONS IN AMOUNT TRANS6 FERRED.— 

7 ‘‘(A) AUTOMATIC REDUCTION.—If, on the 

8 basis of the audit described in paragraph (1), 

9 the Commission determines that the amount 

10 anticipated to be available in the Freedom 

11 From Influence Fund with respect to the Presi12 dential election cycle involved is not, or may not 

13 be, sufficient to satisfy the full entitlements to 

14 payments under this chapter for such cycle, the 

15 Commission shall reduce the amount trans16 ferred under subsection (a) to ensure that the 

17 aggregate amount transferred with respect to 

18 the cycle will not exceed the amount anticipated 

19 to be available for making such payments with 

20 respect to such cycle. 

21 ‘‘(B) RESTORATION OF REDUCTIONS IN

22 CASE OF AVAILABILITY OF SUFFICIENT FUNDS

23 DURING ELECTION CYCLE.—If, after reducing 

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1 mission determines that there are sufficient 

2 amounts in the Fund to restore the amount by 

3 which such amounts were reduced (or any por4 tion thereof), to the extent that such amounts 

5 are available, the Commission may provide for 

6 the transfer with respect to the election cycle of 

7 the amount by which such transfer was reduced 

8 under subparagraph (A) (or any portion there9 of, as the case may be). 

10 ‘‘(C) NO USE OF AMOUNTS FROM OTHER

11 SOURCES.—In any case in which the Commis12 sion determines that there are insufficient mon13 eys in the Freedom From Influence Fund under 

14 this paragraph, moneys shall not be made avail15 able from any other source for the purpose of 

16 transferring funds pursuant to this section. 

17 ‘‘(3) NO EFFECT ON AMOUNTS TRANSFERRED

18 FOR PEDIATRIC RESEARCH INITIATIVE.—This sec19 tion does not apply to the transfer of funds under 

20 section 9008(i). 

21 ‘‘(4) PRESIDENTIAL ELECTION CYCLE DE22 FINED.—In this section, the term ‘Presidential elec23 tion cycle’ means, with respect to a Presidential elec24 tion, the period beginning on the day after the date 


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1 of the previous Presidential general election and 

2 ending on the date of the Presidential election.’’. 

3 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—Section 9006 of 

4 the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended— 

5 (1) in subsection (a), by adding at the end the 

6 following new sentence: ‘‘In addition to any amounts 

7 transferred to the fund under the preceding provi8 sions of this subsection, with respect to the Presi9 dential election held in 2028 and each succeeding 

10 Presidential election, the Secretary of the Treasury 

11 shall make transfers to the fund as described in sec12 tion 9013.’’; and 

13 (2) in subsection (c), as amended by section 

14 776, in the third sentence, by striking ‘‘9037(b)’’ 

15 and inserting ‘‘9008(j)’’. 

16 (c) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 

17 for chapter 95 of subtitle H of such Code is amended by 

18 adding at the end the following new item: 

‘‘Sec. 9013. Use of Freedom From Influence Fund as source of payments.’’. 

19 Subpart C—Presidential Nominating Conventions 

20 SEC. 779. PAYMENTS FOR PRESIDENTIAL NOMINATING 

21 CONVENTIONS. 

22 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 9008 of the Internal Rev23 enue Code of 1986 is amended— 

24 (1) in subsection (i)— 


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1 (A) in paragraph (1) by striking ‘‘the enti2 tlement’’ and inserting ‘‘subject to subsection 

3 (j), the entitlement’’; 

4 (B) in paragraph (2), by striking ‘‘main5 tained for’’ and all that follows through ‘‘under 

6 this section’’; and 

7 (2) by adding at the end the following new sub8 section: 

9 ‘‘(j) REESTABLISHMENT OF PAYMENTS.— 

10 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding subsection 

11 (i)(1), effective with respect to nominating conven12 tions for the Presidential election held in 2028 and 

13 each succeeding Presidential election, a major party 

14 or minor party shall be entitled to a payment under 

15 this section. 

16 ‘‘(2) ESTABLISHMENT OF ACCOUNTS.—The 

17 Secretary shall maintain in the fund, in addition to 

18 any account which the Secretary maintains under 

19 section 9006(a) or subsection (a), a separate account 

20 for the national committee of each major party and 

21 minor party. The Secretary shall deposit in each 

22 such account an amount equal to the amount which 

23 each such committee may receive under subsection 

24 (b). Such deposits shall be drawn from amounts 

25 transferred under section 9013(a) and shall be made 


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1 before any transfer is made to any account for any 

2 eligible candidate under section 9006(a).’’. 

3 (b) REPORTS BY FEDERAL ELECTION COMMIS4 SION.—Section 9009(a) of the Internal Revenue Code of 

5 1986 is amended— 

6 (1) in paragraph (2), by striking ‘‘and’’ at the 

7 end; 

8 (2) in paragraph (3), by striking the period at 

9 the end and inserting a semicolon; and 

10 (3) by adding at the end the following new 

11 paragraphs: 

12 ‘‘(4) the expenses incurred by the national com13 mittee of a major party or minor party with respect 

14 to a presidential nominating convention; 

15 ‘‘(5) the amounts certified by it under section 

16 9008(g) for payment to each such committee; and 

17 ‘‘(6) the amount of payments, if any, required 

18 from such committees under section 9008(h), and 

19 the reasons for such payment.’’. 

20 (c) PENALTIES.—Section 9012 of the Internal Rev21 enue Code of 1986 is amended— 

22 (1) in subsection (a)(1), by inserting the fol23 lowing after the first sentence: ‘‘It shall be unlawful 

24 for the national committee of a major party or 

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1 penses with respect to a presidential nominating 

2 convention in excess of the expenditure limitation 

3 applicable with respect to such committee under sec4 tion 9008(d) or for any host committee knowingly 

5 and willfully to incur such expenses in excess of such 

6 expenditure limitation, unless the incurring of such 

7 expenses is authorized by the Commission under sec8 tion 9008(d)(3).’’; 

9 (2) in subsection (c), by redesignating para10 graph (2) as paragraph (3) and inserting the fol11 lowing after paragraph (1): 

12 ‘‘(3) It shall be unlawful for the national com13 mittee of a major party or minor party which re14 ceives any payment under section 9008(b)(3) to use, 

15 or authorize the use of, such payment for any pur16 pose other than a purpose authorized by section 

17 9008(c).’’; 

18 (3) in subsection (e)(1), by adding at the end 

19 the following new sentence: ‘‘It shall be unlawful for 

20 the national committee of a major party or minor 

21 party knowingly and willfully to give or accept any 

22 kickback or any illegal payments in connection with 

23 any expense incurred by such committee with re24 spect to a presidential nominating convention.’’; and 


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1 (4) in subsection (e)(3), by inserting ‘‘, or in 

2 connection with any expense incurred by the national 

3 committee of a major party or minor party with re4 spect to a presidential nominating convention’’ after 

5 ‘‘or their authorized committees’’. 

6 (d) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—Section 9008 of 

7 the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended— 

8 (1) in subsection (a)— 

9 (A) in the first sentence, by striking ‘‘na10 tional committee of each major party and minor 

11 party’’ and inserting ‘‘amounts transferred 

12 under subsection (i)(2)’’; 

13 (B) in the second sentence, by striking 

14 ‘‘each such account’’ and all that follows 

15 through ‘‘may receive’’ and inserting ‘‘such ac16 count an amount equal to the aggregate 

17 amount that the national committee of each 

18 major party and minor party is entitled to re19 ceive under subsection (b)’’; 

20 (2) in subsection (b)(3), by striking ‘‘subsection 

21 (a)’’ and inserting ‘‘subsection (j)’’; and 

22 (3) in subsection (i)(2), by striking ‘‘all 

23 amounts’’ and all that follows through ‘‘minor 

24 party’’ and inserting ‘‘all amounts in the account es25 tablished under subsection (a)’’. 


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1 (e) CLARIFICATION REGARDING AMOUNTS FOR PEDI2 ATRIC RESEARCH INITIATIVE.—Nothing in the provisions 

3 of, or amendments made by, this section shall affect 

4 amounts transferred to the 10-Year Pediatric Research 

5 Initiative Fund pursuant to section 9008(i)(2) of the In6 ternal Revenue Code of 1986. 

7 Subpart D—Effective Date 

8 SEC. 779A. EFFECTIVE DATE. 

9 (a) IN GENERAL.—Except as otherwise provided, this 

10 part and the amendments made by this part shall apply 

11 with respect to the Presidential election held in 2028 and 

12 each succeeding Presidential election, without regard to 

13 whether or not the Federal Election Commission has pro14 mulgated the final regulations necessary to carry out this 

15 part and the amendments made by this part by the dead16 line set forth in subsection (b). 

17 (b) DEADLINE FOR REGULATIONS.—Not later than 

18 June 30, 2026, the Federal Election Commission shall 

19 promulgate such regulations as may be necessary to carry 

20 out this part and the amendments made by this part. 


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1 Subtitle D—Enhancing FEC 

2 Enforcement 

3 SEC. 781. MEMBERSHIP OF FEDERAL ELECTION COMMIS4 SION. 

5 (a) REDUCTION IN NUMBER OF MEMBERS; REMOVAL

6 OF SECRETARY OF SENATE AND CLERK OF HOUSE AS

7 EX OFFICIO MEMBERS.— 

8 (1) IN GENERAL; QUORUM.—Section 306(a)(1) 

9 of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 

10 U.S.C. 30106(a)(1)) is amended by striking the sec11 ond and third sentences and inserting the following: 

12 ‘‘The Commission is composed of 5 members ap13 pointed by the President by and with the advice and 

14 consent of the Senate, of whom no more than two 

15 may be affiliated with the same political party. A 

16 member shall be treated as affiliated with a political 

17 party if the member was affiliated, including as a 

18 registered voter, employee, consultant, donor, officer, 

19 or attorney, with such political party or any of its 

20 candidates or elected public officials at any time 

21 during the 5-year period ending on the date on 

22 which such individual is nominated to be a member 

23 of the Commission. A majority of the number of 

24 members of the Commission who are serving at the 

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1 bers shall constitute a quorum if there are 4 mem2 bers serving at the time.’’. 

3 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS RELATING TO

4 REDUCTION IN NUMBER OF MEMBERS.—(A) The 

5 second sentence of section 306(c) of such Act (52 

6 U.S.C. 30106(c)) is amended by striking ‘‘affirma7 tive vote of 4 members of the Commission’’ and in8 serting ‘‘affirmative vote of a majority of the mem9 bers of the Commission who are serving at the 

10 time’’. 

11 (B) Such Act is further amended by striking 

12 ‘‘affirmative vote of 4 of its members’’ and inserting 

13 ‘‘affirmative vote of a majority of the members of 

14 the Commission who are serving at the time’’ each 

15 place it appears in the following sections: 

16 (i) Section 309(a)(2) (52 U.S.C. 

17 30109(a)(2)). 

18 (ii) Section 309(a)(4)(A)(i) (52 U.S.C. 

19 30109(a)(4)(A)(i)). 

20 (iii) Section 309(a)(5)(C) (52 U.S.C. 

21 30109(a)(5)(C)). 

22 (iv) Section 309(a)(6)(A) (52 U.S.C. 

23 30109(a)(6)(A)). 

24 (v) Section 311(b) (52 U.S.C. 30111(b)). 


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1 (3) CONFORMING AMENDMENT RELATING TO

2 REMOVAL OF EX OFFICIO MEMBERS.—Section 

3 306(a) of such Act (52 U.S.C. 30106(a)) is amend4 ed by striking ‘‘(other than the Secretary of the Sen5 ate and the Clerk of the House of Representatives)’’ 

6 each place it appears in paragraphs (4) and (5). 

7 (b) TERMS OF SERVICE.—Section 306(a)(2) of such 

8 Act (52 U.S.C. 30106(a)(2)) is amended to read as fol9 lows: 

10 ‘‘(2) TERMS OF SERVICE.— 

11 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Each member of the 

12 Commission shall serve for a single term of 6 

13 years. 

14 ‘‘(B) SPECIAL RULE FOR INITIAL APPOINT15 MENTS.—Of the members first appointed to 

16 serve terms that begin in January 2022, the 

17 President shall designate two to serve for a 3- 

18 year term. 

19 ‘‘(C) NO REAPPOINTMENT PERMITTED.— 

20 An individual who served a term as a member 

21 of the Commission may not serve for an addi22 tional term, except that— 

23 ‘‘(i) an individual who served a 3-year 

24 term under subparagraph (B) may also be 


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1 appointed to serve a 6-year term under 

2 subparagraph (A); and 

3 ‘‘(ii) for purposes of this subpara4 graph, an individual who is appointed to 

5 fill a vacancy under subparagraph (D) 

6 shall not be considered to have served a 

7 term if the portion of the unexpired term 

8 the individual fills is less than 50 percent 

9 of the period of the term. 

10 ‘‘(D) VACANCIES.—Any vacancy occurring 

11 in the membership of the Commission shall be 

12 filled in the same manner as in the case of the 

13 original appointment. Except as provided in 

14 subparagraph (C), an individual appointed to 

15 fill a vacancy occurring other than by the expi16 ration of a term of office shall be appointed 

17 only for the unexpired term of the member he 

18 or she succeeds. 

19 ‘‘(E) LIMITATION ON SERVICE AFTER EX20 PIRATION OF TERM.—A member of the Com21 mission may continue to serve on the Commis22 sion after the expiration of the member’s term 

23 for an additional period, but only until the ear24 lier of— 


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1 ‘‘(i) the date on which the member’s 

2 successor has taken office as a member of 

3 the Commission; or 

4 ‘‘(ii) the expiration of the 1-year pe5 riod that begins on the last day of the 

6 member’s term.’’. 

7 (c) QUALIFICATIONS.—Section 306(a)(3) of such Act 

8 (52 U.S.C. 30106(a)(3)) is amended to read as follows: 

9 ‘‘(3) QUALIFICATIONS.— 

10 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The President may 

11 select an individual for service as a member of 

12 the Commission if the individual has experience 

13 in election law and has a demonstrated record 

14 of integrity, impartiality, and good judgment. 

15 ‘‘(B) ASSISTANCE OF BLUE RIBBON ADVI16 SORY PANEL.— 

17 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Prior to the regu18 larly scheduled expiration of the term of a 

19 member of the Commission and upon the 

20 occurrence of a vacancy in the membership 

21 of the Commission prior to the expiration 

22 of a term, the President shall convene a 

23 Blue Ribbon Advisory Panel, that includes 

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1 pendent of a political party and that con2 sists of an odd number of individuals se3 lected by the President from retired Fed4 eral judges, former law enforcement offi5 cials, or individuals with experience in elec6 tion law, except that the President may not 

7 select any individual to serve on the panel 

8 who holds any public office at the time of 

9 selection. The President shall also make 

10 reasonable efforts to encourage racial, eth11 nic, and gender diversity on the panel. 

12 ‘‘(ii) RECOMMENDATIONS.—With re13 spect to each member of the Commission 

14 whose term is expiring or each vacancy in 

15 the membership of the Commission (as the 

16 case may be), the Blue Ribbon Advisory 

17 Panel shall recommend to the President at 

18 least one but not more than 3 individuals 

19 for nomination for appointment as a mem20 ber of the Commission. 

21 ‘‘(iii) PUBLICATION.—At the time the 

22 President submits to the Senate the nomi23 nations for individuals to be appointed as 

24 members of the Commission, the President 

25 shall publish the Blue Ribbon Advisory 


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1 Panel’s recommendations for such nomina2 tions. 

3 ‘‘(iv) EXEMPTION FROM FEDERAL AD4 VISORY COMMITTEE ACT.—The Federal 

5 Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.) 

6 does not apply to a Blue Ribbon Advisory 

7 Panel convened under this subparagraph. 

8 ‘‘(C) PROHIBITING ENGAGEMENT WITH

9 OTHER BUSINESS OR EMPLOYMENT DURING

10 SERVICE.—A member of the Commission shall 

11 not engage in any other business, vocation, or 

12 employment. Any individual who is engaging in 

13 any other business, vocation, or employment at 

14 the time of his or her appointment to the Com15 mission shall terminate or liquidate such activ16 ity no later than 90 days after such appoint17 ment.’’. 

18 SEC. 782. ASSIGNMENT OF POWERS TO CHAIR OF FEDERAL 

19 ELECTION COMMISSION. 

20 (a) APPOINTMENT OF CHAIR BY PRESIDENT.— 

21 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 306(a)(5) of the 

22 Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 

23 30106(a)(5)) is amended to read as follows: 

24 ‘‘(5) CHAIR.— 


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1 ‘‘(A) INITIAL APPOINTMENT.—Of the 

2 members first appointed to serve terms that 

3 begin in January 2022, one such member (as 

4 designated by the President at the time the 

5 President submits nominations to the Senate) 

6 shall serve as Chair of the Commission. 

7 ‘‘(B) SUBSEQUENT APPOINTMENTS.—Any 

8 individual who is appointed to succeed the 

9 member who serves as Chair of the Commission 

10 for the term beginning in January 2022 (as 

11 well as any individual who is appointed to fill 

12 a vacancy if such member does not serve a full 

13 term as Chair) shall serve as Chair of the Com14 mission. 

15 ‘‘(C) VICE CHAIR.—The Commission shall 

16 select, by majority vote of its members, one of 

17 its members to serve as Vice Chair, who shall 

18 act as Chair in the absence or disability of the 

19 Chair or in the event of a vacancy in the posi20 tion of Chair.’’. 

21 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 

22 309(a)(2) of such Act (52 U.S.C. 30109(a)(2)) is 

23 amended by striking ‘‘through its chairman or vice 

24 chairman’’ and inserting ‘‘through the Chair’’. 

25 (b) POWERS.— 


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1 (1) ASSIGNMENT OF CERTAIN POWERS TO

2 CHAIR.—Section 307(a) of such Act (52 U.S.C. 

3 30107(a)) is amended to read as follows: 

4 ‘‘(a) DISTRIBUTION OF POWERS BETWEEN CHAIR

5 AND COMMISSION.— 

6 ‘‘(1) POWERS ASSIGNED TO CHAIR.— 

7 ‘‘(A) ADMINISTRATIVE POWERS.—The 

8 Chair of the Commission shall be the chief ad9 ministrative officer of the Commission and shall 

10 have the authority to administer the Commis11 sion and its staff, and (in consultation with the 

12 other members of the Commission) shall have 

13 the power— 

14 ‘‘(i) to appoint and remove the staff 

15 director of the Commission; 

16 ‘‘(ii) to request the assistance (includ17 ing personnel and facilities) of other agen18 cies and departments of the United States, 

19 whose heads may make such assistance 

20 available to the Commission with or with21 out reimbursement; and 

22 ‘‘(iii) to prepare and establish the 

23 budget of the Commission and to make 

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1 rector of the Office of Management and 

2 Budget, and Congress. 

3 ‘‘(B) OTHER POWERS.—The Chair of the 

4 Commission shall have the power— 

5 ‘‘(i) to appoint and remove the gen6 eral counsel of the Commission with the 

7 concurrence of at least 2 other members of 

8 the Commission; 

9 ‘‘(ii) to require by special or general 

10 orders, any person to submit, under oath, 

11 such written reports and answers to ques12 tions as the Chair may prescribe; 

13 ‘‘(iii) to administer oaths or affirma14 tions; 

15 ‘‘(iv) to require by subpoena, signed 

16 by the Chair, the attendance and testimony 

17 of witnesses and the production of all doc18 umentary evidence relating to the execu19 tion of its duties; 

20 ‘‘(v) in any proceeding or investiga21 tion, to order testimony to be taken by 

22 deposition before any person who is des23 ignated by the Chair, and shall have the 

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1 duction of evidence in the same manner as 

2 authorized under clause (iv); and 

3 ‘‘(vi) to pay witnesses the same fees 

4 and mileage as are paid in like cir5 cumstances in the courts of the United 

6 States. 

7 ‘‘(2) POWERS ASSIGNED TO COMMISSION.—The 

8 Commission shall have the power— 

9 ‘‘(A) to initiate (through civil actions for 

10 injunctive, declaratory, or other appropriate re11 lief), defend (in the case of any civil action 

12 brought under section 309(a)(8) of this Act) or 

13 appeal (including a proceeding before the Su14 preme Court on certiorari) any civil action in 

15 the name of the Commission to enforce the pro16 visions of this Act and chapter 95 and chapter 

17 96 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, 

18 through its general counsel; 

19 ‘‘(B) to render advisory opinions under 

20 section 308 of this Act; 

21 ‘‘(C) to develop such prescribed forms and 

22 to make, amend, and repeal such rules, pursu23 ant to the provisions of chapter 5 of title 5, 

24 United States Code, as are necessary to carry 

25 out the provisions of this Act and chapter 95 


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1 and chapter 96 of the Internal Revenue Code of 

2 1986; 

3 ‘‘(D) to conduct investigations and hear4 ings expeditiously, to encourage voluntary com5 pliance, and to report apparent violations to the 

6 appropriate law enforcement authorities; and 

7 ‘‘(E) to transmit to the President and Con8 gress not later than June 1 of each year a re9 port which states in detail the activities of the 

10 Commission in carrying out its duties under 

11 this Act, and which includes any recommenda12 tions for any legislative or other action the 

13 Commission considers appropriate. 

14 ‘‘(3) PERMITTING COMMISSION TO EXERCISE

15 OTHER POWERS OF CHAIR.—With respect to any in16 vestigation, action, or proceeding, the Commission, 

17 by an affirmative vote of a majority of the members 

18 who are serving at the time, may exercise any of the 

19 powers of the Chair described in paragraph (1)(B).’’. 

20 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS RELATING TO

21 PERSONNEL AUTHORITY.—Section 306(f) of such 

22 Act (52 U.S.C. 30106(f)) is amended— 

23 (A) by amending the first sentence of 

24 paragraph (1) to read as follows: ‘‘The Com25 mission shall have a staff director who shall be 


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1 appointed by the Chair of the Commission in 

2 consultation with the other members and a gen3 eral counsel who shall be appointed by the 

4 Chair with the concurrence of at least two other 

5 members.’’; 

6 (B) in paragraph (2), by striking ‘‘With 

7 the approval of the Commission’’ and inserting 

8 ‘‘With the approval of the Chair of the Commis9 sion’’; and 

10 (C) by striking paragraph (3). 

11 (3) CONFORMING AMENDMENT RELATING TO

12 BUDGET SUBMISSION.—Section 307(d)(1) of such 

13 Act (52 U.S.C. 30107(d)(1)) is amended by striking 

14 ‘‘the Commission submits any budget’’ and inserting 

15 ‘‘the Chair (or, pursuant to subsection (a)(3), the 

16 Commission) submits any budget’’. 

17 (4) OTHER CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—Sec18 tion 306(c) of such Act (52 U.S.C. 30106(c)) is 

19 amended by striking ‘‘All decisions’’ and inserting 

20 ‘‘Subject to section 307(a), all decisions’’. 

21 (5) TECHNICAL AMENDMENT.—The heading of 

22 section 307 of such Act (52 U.S.C. 30107) is 

23 amended by striking ‘‘THE COMMISSION’’ and insert24 ing ‘‘THE CHAIR AND THE COMMISSION’’. 


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1 SEC. 783. REVISION TO ENFORCEMENT PROCESS. 

2 (a) STANDARD FOR INITIATING INVESTIGATIONS AND

3 DETERMINING WHETHER VIOLATIONS HAVE OC4 CURRED.— 

5 (1) REVISION OF STANDARDS.—Section 309(a) 

6 of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 

7 U.S.C. 30109(a)) is amended by striking paragraphs 

8 (2) and (3) and inserting the following: 

9 ‘‘(2)(A) The general counsel, upon receiving a com10 plaint filed with the Commission under paragraph (1) or 

11 upon the basis of information ascertained by the Commis12 sion in the normal course of carrying out its supervisory 

13 responsibilities, shall make a determination as to whether 

14 or not there is reason to believe that a person has com15 mitted, or is about to commit, a violation of this Act or 

16 chapter 95 or chapter 96 of the Internal Revenue Code 

17 of 1986, and as to whether or not the Commission should 

18 either initiate an investigation of the matter or that the 

19 complaint should be dismissed. The general counsel shall 

20 promptly provide notification to the Commission of such 

21 determination and the reasons therefore, together with 

22 any written response submitted under paragraph (1) by 

23 the person alleged to have committed the violation. Upon 

24 the expiration of the 30-day period which begins on the 

25 date the general counsel provides such notification, the 

26 general counsel’s determination shall take effect, unless 


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1 during such 30-day period the Commission, by vote of a 

2 majority of the members of the Commission who are serv3 ing at the time, overrules the general counsel’s determina4 tion. If the determination by the general counsel that the 

5 Commission should investigate the matter takes effect, or 

6 if the determination by the general counsel that the com7 plaint should be dismissed is overruled as provided under 

8 the previous sentence, the general counsel shall initiate an 

9 investigation of the matter on behalf of the Commission. 

10 ‘‘(B) If the Commission initiates an investigation 

11 pursuant to subparagraph (A), the Commission, through 

12 the Chair, shall notify the subject of the investigation of 

13 the alleged violation. Such notification shall set forth the 

14 factual basis for such alleged violation. The Commission 

15 shall make an investigation of such alleged violation, which 

16 may include a field investigation or audit, in accordance 

17 with the provisions of this section. The general counsel 

18 shall provide notification to the Commission of any intent 

19 to issue a subpoena or conduct any other form of discovery 

20 pursuant to the investigation. Upon the expiration of the 

21 15-day period which begins on the date the general counsel 

22 provides such notification, the general counsel may issue 

23 the subpoena or conduct the discovery, unless during such 

24 15-day period the Commission, by vote of a majority of 

25 the members of the Commission who are serving at the 


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1 time, prohibits the general counsel from issuing the sub2 poena or conducting the discovery. 

3 ‘‘(3)(A) Upon completion of an investigation under 

4 paragraph (2), the general counsel shall promptly submit 

5 to the Commission the general counsel’s recommendation 

6 that the Commission find either that there is probable 

7 cause or that there is not probable cause to believe that 

8 a person has committed, or is about to commit, a violation 

9 of this Act or chapter 95 or chapter 96 of the Internal 

10 Revenue Code of 1986, and shall include with the rec11 ommendation a brief stating the position of the general 

12 counsel on the legal and factual issues of the case. 

13 ‘‘(B) At the time the general counsel submits to the 

14 Commission the recommendation under subparagraph (A), 

15 the general counsel shall simultaneously notify the re16 spondent of such recommendation and the reasons there17 fore, shall provide the respondent with an opportunity to 

18 submit a brief within 30 days stating the position of the 

19 respondent on the legal and factual issues of the case and 

20 replying to the brief of the general counsel. The general 

21 counsel and shall promptly submit such brief to the Com22 mission upon receipt. 

23 ‘‘(C) Not later than 30 days after the general counsel 

24 submits the recommendation to the Commission under 

25 subparagraph (A) (or, if the respondent submits a brief 


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1 under subparagraph (B), not later than 30 days after the 

2 general counsel submits the respondent’s brief to the Com3 mission under such subparagraph), the Commission shall 

4 approve or disapprove the recommendation by vote of a 

5 majority of the members of the Commission who are serv6 ing at the time.’’. 

7 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENT RELATING TO

8 INITIAL RESPONSE TO FILING OF COMPLAINT.—Sec9 tion 309(a)(1) of such Act (52 U.S.C. 30109(a)(1)) 

10 is amended— 

11 (A) in the third sentence, by striking ‘‘the 

12 Commission’’ and inserting ‘‘the general coun13 sel’’; and 

14 (B) by amending the fourth sentence to 

15 read as follows: ‘‘Not later than 15 days after 

16 receiving notice from the general counsel under 

17 the previous sentence, the person may provide 

18 the general counsel with a written response that 

19 no action should be taken against such person 

20 on the basis of the complaint.’’. 

21 (b) REVISION OF STANDARD FOR REVIEW OF DIS22 MISSAL OF COMPLAINTS.— 

23 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 309(a)(8) of such 

24 Act (52 U.S.C. 30109(a)(8)) is amended to read as 

25 follows: 


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1 ‘‘(8)(A)(i) Any party aggrieved by an order of the 

2 Commission dismissing a complaint filed by such party or 

3 finding either no reason to believe a violation has occurred 

4 or no probable cause a violation has occurred may file a 

5 petition with the United States District Court for the Dis6 trict of Columbia. Any petition under this subparagraph 

7 shall be filed within 60 days after the date on which the 

8 party received notice of the dismissal of the complaint. 

9 ‘‘(ii) In any proceeding under this subparagraph, the 

10 court shall determine by de novo review whether the agen11 cy’s dismissal of the complaint is contrary to law. In any 

12 matter in which the penalty for the alleged violation is 

13 greater than $50,000, the court should disregard any 

14 claim or defense by the Commission of prosecutorial dis15 cretion as a basis for dismissing the complaint. 

16 ‘‘(B)(i) Any party who has filed a complaint with the 

17 Commission and who is aggrieved by a failure of the Com18 mission, within 180 days after the filing of the complaint, 

19 to either dismiss the complaint or to find reason to believe 

20 a violation has occurred or is about to occur, may file a 

21 petition with the United States District Court for the Dis22 trict of Columbia. 

23 ‘‘(ii) In any proceeding under this subparagraph, the 

24 court shall treat the failure to act on the complaint as 

25 a dismissal of the complaint, and shall determine by de 


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1 novo review whether the agency’s failure to act on the 

2 complaint is contrary to law. 

3 ‘‘(C) In any proceeding under this paragraph the 

4 court may declare that the dismissal of the complaint or 

5 the failure to act is contrary to law, and may direct the 

6 Commission to conform with such declaration within 30 

7 days, failing which the complainant may bring, in the 

8 name of such complainant, a civil action to remedy the 

9 violation involved in the original complaint.’’. 

10 (2) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made 

11 by paragraph (1) shall apply— 

12 (A) in the case of complaints which are 

13 dismissed by the Federal Election Commission, 

14 with respect to complaints which are dismissed 

15 on or after the date of the enactment of this 

16 Act; and 

17 (B) in the case of complaints upon which 

18 the Federal Election Commission failed to act, 

19 with respect to complaints which were filed on 

20 or after the date of the enactment of this Act. 


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1 SEC. 784. PERMITTING APPEARANCE AT HEARINGS ON RE2 QUESTS FOR ADVISORY OPINIONS BY PER3 SONS OPPOSING THE REQUESTS. 

4 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 308 of such Act (52 

5 U.S.C. 30108) is amended by adding at the end the fol6 lowing new subsection: 

7 ‘‘(e) To the extent that the Commission provides an 

8 opportunity for a person requesting an advisory opinion 

9 under this section (or counsel for such person) to appear 

10 before the Commission to present testimony in support of 

11 the request, and the person (or counsel) accepts such op12 portunity, the Commission shall provide a reasonable op13 portunity for an interested party who submitted written 

14 comments under subsection (d) in response to the request 

15 (or counsel for such interested party) to appear before the 

16 Commission to present testimony in response to the re17 quest.’’. 

18 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by 

19 subsection (a) shall apply with respect to requests for advi20 sory opinions under section 308 of the Federal Election 

21 Campaign Act of 1971 which are made on or after the 

22 date of the enactment of this Act. 

23 SEC. 785. PERMANENT EXTENSION OF ADMINISTRATIVE 

24 PENALTY AUTHORITY. 

25 (a) EXTENSION OF AUTHORITY.—Section 

26 309(a)(4)(C)(v) of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 


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1 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30109(a)(4)(C)(v)), as amended by Pub2 lic Law 115–386, is amended by striking ‘‘, and that end 

3 on or before December 31, 2023’’. 

4 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by 

5 subsection (a) shall take effect on December 31, 2018. 

6 SEC. 786. REQUIRING FORMS TO PERMIT USE OF ACCENT 

7 MARKS. 

8 (a) REQUIREMENT.—Section 311(a)(1) of the Fed9 eral Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 

10 30111(a)(1)) is amended by striking the semicolon at the 

11 end and inserting the following: ‘‘, and shall ensure that 

12 all such forms (including forms in an electronic format) 

13 permit the person using the form to include an accent 

14 mark as part of the person’s identification;’’. 

15 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by 

16 subsection (a) shall take effect upon the expiration of the 

17 90-day period which begins on the date of the enactment 

18 of this Act. 

19 SEC. 787. RESTRICTIONS ON EX PARTE COMMUNICATIONS. 

20 Section 306(e) of the Federal Election Campaign Act 

21 of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30106(e)) is amended— 

22 (1) by striking ‘‘(e) The Commission’’ and in23 serting ‘‘(e)(1) The Commission’’; and 

24 (2) by adding at the end the following new 

25 paragraph: 


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1 ‘‘(2) Members and employees of the Commission shall 

2 be subject to limitations on ex parte communications, as 

3 provided in the regulations promulgated by the Commis4 sion regarding such communications which are in effect 

5 on the date of the enactment of this paragraph.’’. 

6 SEC. 788. CLARIFYING AUTHORITY OF FEC ATTORNEYS TO 

7 REPRESENT FEC IN SUPREME COURT. 

8 (a) CLARIFYING AUTHORITY.—Section 306(f)(4) of 

9 the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 

10 30106(f)(4)) is amended by striking ‘‘any action instituted 

11 under this Act, either (A) by attorneys’’ and inserting 

12 ‘‘any action instituted under this Act, including an action 

13 before the Supreme Court of the United States, either (A) 

14 by the General Counsel of the Commission and other at15 torneys’’. 

16 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by 

17 paragraph (1) shall apply with respect to actions insti18 tuted before, on, or after the date of the enactment of 

19 this Act. 

20 SEC. 789. EFFECTIVE DATE; TRANSITION. 

21 (a) IN GENERAL.—Except as otherwise provided, the 

22 amendments made by this subtitle shall apply beginning 

23 January 1, 2022. 

24 (b) TRANSITION.— 


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1 (1) TERMINATION OF SERVICE OF CURRENT

2 MEMBERS.—Notwithstanding any provision of the 

3 Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971, the term of 

4 any individual serving as a member of the Federal 

5 Election Commission as of December 31, 2021, shall 

6 expire on that date. 

7 (2) NO EFFECT ON EXISTING CASES OR PRO8 CEEDINGS.—Nothing in this subtitle or in any 

9 amendment made by this subtitle shall affect any of 

10 the powers exercised by the Federal Election Com11 mission prior to December 31, 2021, including any 

12 investigation initiated by the Commission prior to 

13 such date or any proceeding (including any enforce14 ment action) pending as of such date. 

15 Subtitle E—Miscellaneous 

16 SEC. 791. COMPTROLLER GENERAL REPORT AND BRIEFING 

17 ON CAMPAIGN DONATIONS BY NOMINEES BE18 FORE THE SENATE. 

19 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than one year after the 

20 date of the enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General 

21 of the United States shall— 

22 (1) submit to the Select Committee on Ethics 

23 of the Senate and the Committee on Ethics of the 

24 House of Representatives a report on contributions 

25 made to members of the Senate by individuals under 


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1 consideration for Senate-confirmed positions, includ2 ing judicial nominees; and 

3 (2) provide a briefing to such committees on 

4 such contributions. 

5 (b) CONTENTS OF REPORT.—The report submitted 

6 under subsection (a)(1) shall include— 

7 (1) a review of the frequency and amount of 

8 such contributions made to members of the Senate 

9 by such individuals, both directly and through polit10 ical committees and other vehicles with substantial 

11 connections to the individual or the member, over 

12 the past 5 legislative sessions, and identify the fre13 quency of incidents in which such an individual 

14 made such a contribution to a member of the Senate 

15 and was then considered or supported by that mem16 ber for a judicial nomination or other Senate-con17 firmed position; and 

18 (2) recommendations for such legislative and 

19 administrative action as the Comptroller General de20 termines appropriate to reduce any undue influence 

21 such contributions might exert upon the constitu22 tional advice and consent processes of the Senate. 

23 (c) DEFINITIONS.—In this section, the terms ‘‘con24 tribution’’ and ‘‘political committee’’ have the meaning 


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1 given those terms in section 301 of the Federal Election 

2 Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30101). 

3 SEC. 792. EFFECTIVE DATE. 

4 Except as otherwise provided in this title, the provi5 sions of, and amendments made by, this title shall take 

6 effect on the date that is one year after the date of enact7 ment of this Act, and shall apply with respect to elections 

8 for Federal office occurring on or after such date, without 

9 regard to whether or not the Federal Election Commission 

10 has promulgated regulations to carry out such amend11 ments. 

12 SEC. 793. SEVERABILITY. 

13 If any provision of this title or amendment made by 

14 this title, or the application of a provision or amendment 

15 to any person or circumstance, is held to be unconstitu16 tional, the remainder of this title and amendments made 

17 by this title, and the application of the provisions and 

18 amendment to any person or circumstance, shall not be 

19 affected by the holding. 

Æ 


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