I 

109TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 4975 

To provide greater transparency with respect to lobbying activities, and for 

other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

MARCH 16, 2006 

Mr. DREIER (for himself, Mr. HASTERT, Mr. BOEHNER, Mr. BLUNT, Ms. 

PRYCE of Ohio, Mr. REYNOLDS, Mr. CANTOR, Mr. KINGSTON, Mr. PUTNAM, Mr. EHLERS, Mr. TOM DAVIS of Virginia, and Mr. HASTINGS of 

Washington) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary, and in addition to the Committees on House Administration, Rules, Government Reform, and Standards of Official Conduct, 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 provide greater transparency with respect to lobbying 

activities, 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; TABLE OF CONTENTS. 

4 (a) SHORT TITLE.—This Act may be cited as the 

5 ‘‘Lobbying Accountability and Transparency Act of 

6 2006’’. 


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

2 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents. 

TITLE I—ENHANCING LOBBYING DISCLOSURE 

Sec. 101. Quarterly filing of lobbying disclosure reports. 

Sec. 102. Electronic filing of lobbying registrations and disclosure reports. 

Sec. 103. Public database of lobbying disclosure information. 

Sec. 104. Disclosure by registered lobbyists of past executive branch and congressional employment. 

Sec. 105. Disclosure of lobbyist contributions and gifts. 

Sec. 106. Increased penalty for failure to comply with lobbying disclosure requirements. 

TITLE II—SLOWING THE REVOLVING DOOR 

Sec. 201. Notification of post-employment restrictions. 

Sec. 202. Disclosure by Members of the House of Representatives of employment negotiations. 

Sec. 203. Wrongfully influencing, on a partisan basis, an entity’s employment 

decisions or practices. 

TITLE III—SUSPENSION OF PRIVATELY-FUNDED TRAVEL; 

CURBING LOBBYIST GIFTS 

Sec. 301. Suspension of privately-funded travel. 

Sec. 302. Recommendations on gifts and travel. 

Sec. 303. Prohibiting registered lobbyists on corporate flights. 

Sec. 304. Valuation of tickets to sporting and entertainment events. 

TITLE IV—OVERSIGHT OF LOBBYING AND ENFORCEMENT 

Sec. 401. Audits of lobbying reports by House Inspector General. 

Sec. 402. House Inspector General review and annual reports. 

TITLE V—INSTITUTIONAL REFORMS 

Sec. 501. Earmarking reform. 

Sec. 502. Frequent and comprehensive ethics training. 

Sec. 503. Biennial publication of ethics manual. 

TITLE VI—REFORM OF SECTION 527 ORGANIZATIONS 

Sec. 601. Short title. 

Sec. 602. Treatment of section 527 organizations. 

Sec. 603. Rules for allocation of expenses between Federal and non-Federal activities. 

Sec. 604. Repeal of limit on amount of party expenditures on behalf of candidates in general elections. 

Sec. 605. Construction. 

Sec. 606. Judicial review. 

Sec. 607. Severability. 

TITLE VII—FORFEITURE OF RETIREMENT BENEFITS 


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Sec. 701. Loss of pensions accrued during service as a Member of Congress for 

abusing the public trust. 

1 TITLE I—ENHANCING LOBBYING 

2 DISCLOSURE 

3 SEC. 101. QUARTERLY FILING OF LOBBYING DISCLOSURE 

4 REPORTS. 

5 (a) QUARTERLY FILING REQUIRED.—Section 5 of 

6 the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 (in this title referred 

7 to as the ‘‘Act’’) (2 U.S.C. 1604) is amended— 

8 (1) in subsection (a)— 

9 (A) in the heading, by striking ‘‘SEMI10 ANNUAL’’ and inserting ‘‘QUARTERLY’’; 

11 (B) by striking ‘‘45’’ and inserting ‘‘20’’; 

12 (C) by striking ‘‘the semiannual period’’ 

13 and all that follows through ‘‘July of each 

14 year’’ and insert ‘‘the quarterly period begin15 ning on the first day of January, April, July, 

16 and October of each year’’; and 

17 (D) by striking ‘‘such semiannual period’’ 

18 and insert ‘‘such quarterly period’’; and 

19 (2) in subsection (b)— 

20 (A) in the matter preceding paragraph (1), 

21 by striking ‘‘semiannual report’’ and inserting 

22 ‘‘quarterly report’’; 


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1 (B) in paragraph (2), by striking ‘‘semi2 annual filing period’’ and inserting ‘‘quarterly 

3 period’’; 

4 (C) in paragraph (3), by striking ‘‘semi5 annual period’’ and inserting ‘‘quarterly pe6 riod’’; and 

7 (D) in paragraph (4), by striking ‘‘semi8 annual filing period’’ and inserting ‘‘quarterly 

9 period’’. 

10 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

11 (1) DEFINITION.—Section 3(10) of the Act (2 

12 U.S.C. 1602) is amended by striking ‘‘six month pe13 riod’’ and inserting ‘‘3-month period’’. 

14 (2) REGISTRATION.—Section 4 of the Act (2 

15 U.S.C. 1603) is amended— 

16 (A) in subsection (a)(3)(A), by striking 

17 ‘‘semiannual period’’ and inserting ‘‘quarterly 

18 period’’; and 

19 (B) in subsection (b)(3)(A), by striking 

20 ‘‘semiannual period’’ and inserting ‘‘quarterly 

21 period’’. 

22 (3) ENFORCEMENT.—Section 6(6) of the Act (2 

23 U.S.C. 1605(6)) is amended by striking ‘‘semiannual 

24 period’’ and inserting ‘‘quarterly period’’. 


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1 (4) ESTIMATES.—Section 15 of the Act (2 

2 U.S.C. 1610) is amended— 

3 (A) in subsection (a)(1), by striking ‘‘semi4 annual period’’ and inserting ‘‘quarterly pe5 riod’’; and 

6 (B) in subsection (b)(1), by striking ‘‘semi7 annual period’’ and inserting ‘‘quarterly pe8 riod’’. 

9 (5) DOLLAR AMOUNTS.— 

10 (A) REGISTRATION.—Section 4 of the Act 

11 (2 U.S.C. 1603) is amended— 

12 (i) in subsection (a)(3)(A)(i), by strik13 ing ‘‘$5,000’’ and inserting ‘‘$2,500’’; 

14 (ii) in subsection (a)(3)(A)(ii), by 

15 striking ‘‘$20,000’’ and inserting 

16 ‘‘$10,000’’; 

17 (iii) in subsection (b)(3)(A), by strik18 ing ‘‘$10,000’’ and inserting ‘‘$5,000’’; 

19 and 

20 (iv) in subsection (b)(4), by striking 

21 ‘‘$10,000’’ and inserting ‘‘$5,000’’. 

22 (B) REPORTS.—Section 5 of the Act (2 

23 U.S.C. 1604) is amended— 


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1 (i) in subsection (c)(1), by striking 

2 ‘‘$10,000’’ and ‘‘$20,000’’ and inserting 

3 ‘‘$5,000’’ and ‘‘$10,000’’, respectively; and 

4 (ii) in subsection (c)(2), by striking 

5 ‘‘$10,000’’ both places such term appears 

6 and inserting ‘‘$5,000’’. 

7 SEC. 102. ELECTRONIC FILING OF LOBBYING REGISTRA8 TIONS AND DISCLOSURE REPORTS. 

9 (a) REGISTRATIONS.—Section 4 of the Act (2 U.S.C. 

10 1603) in amended— 

11 (1) by redesignating subsection (d) as sub12 section (e); and 

13 (2) by inserting after subsection (c) the fol14 lowing: 

15 ‘‘(d) ELECTRONIC FILING REQUIRED.—A registra16 tion required to be filed under this section on or after the 

17 date of enactment of the Lobbying Accountability and 

18 Transparency Act of 2006 shall be filed in electronic form, 

19 in addition to any other form that may be required by 

20 the Secretary of the Senate or the Clerk of the House of 

21 Representatives. The due date for a registration filed in 

22 electronic form shall be no later than the due date for a 

23 registration filed in any other form.’’. 

24 (b) REPORTS.—Section 5 of the Act (2 U.S.C. 1604) 

25 is amended by adding at the end the following: 


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1 ‘‘(d) ELECTRONIC FILING REQUIRED.— 

2 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A report required to be 

3 filed under this section shall be filed in electronic 

4 form, in addition to any other form that may be re5 quired by the Secretary of the Senate or the Clerk 

6 of the House of Representatives. The due date for 

7 a report filed in electronic form shall be no later 

8 than the due date for a report filed in any other 

9 form, except as provided in paragraph (2). 

10 ‘‘(2) EXTENSION OF TIME TO FILE IN ELEC11 TRONIC FORM.—The Secretary of the Senate or the 

12 Clerk of the House of Representatives may establish 

13 a later due date for the filing of a report in elec14 tronic form by a registrant, if and only if— 

15 ‘‘(A) on or before the original due date, the 

16 registrant— 

17 ‘‘(i) timely files the report in every 

18 form required, other than electronic form; 

19 and 

20 ‘‘(ii) makes a request for such a later 

21 due date to the Secretary or the Clerk, as 

22 the case may be; and 

23 ‘‘(B) the request is supported by good 

24 cause shown.’’. 


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1 SEC. 103. PUBLIC DATABASE OF LOBBYING DISCLOSURE IN2 FORMATION. 

3 (a) DATABASE REQUIRED.—Section 6 of the Act (2 

4 U.S.C. 1605) is amended— 

5 (1) in paragraph (7), by striking ‘‘and’’ at the 

6 end; 

7 (2) in paragraph (8), by striking the period and 

8 inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

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

10 ‘‘(9) maintain, and make available to the public 

11 over the Internet, without a fee or other access 

12 charge, in a searchable, sortable, and downloadable 

13 manner, an electronic database that— 

14 ‘‘(A) includes the information contained in 

15 registrations and reports filed under this Act; 

16 and 

17 ‘‘(B) is searchable and sortable, at a min18 imum, by each of the categories of information 

19 described in section 4(b) or 5(b).’’. 

20 (b) AVAILABILITY OF REPORTS.—Section 6(4) of the 

21 Act is amended by inserting before the semicolon the fol22 lowing: ‘‘and, in the case of a registration filed in elec23 tronic form pursuant to section 4(d) or a report filed in 

24 electronic form pursuant to section 5(d), shall make such 

25 registration or report (as the case may be) available for 

26 public inspection over the Internet not more than 48 hours 


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1 after the registration or report (as the case may be) is 

2 approved as received by the Secretary of the Senate or 

3 the Clerk of the House of Representatives (as the case 

4 may be)’’. 

5 (c) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There 

6 are authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be 

7 necessary to carry out paragraph (9) of section 6 of the 

8 Act, as added by subsection (a) of this section. 

9 SEC. 104. DISCLOSURE BY REGISTERED LOBBYISTS OF 

10 PAST EXECUTIVE BRANCH AND CONGRES11 SIONAL EMPLOYMENT. 

12 Section 4(b)(6) of the Act (2 U.S.C. 1603) is amend13 ed by striking ‘‘2 years’’ and inserting ‘‘7 years’’. 

14 SEC. 105. DISCLOSURE OF LOBBYIST CONTRIBUTIONS AND 

15 GIFTS. 

16 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 5(b) of the Act (2 U.S.C. 

17 1604(b)) is amended— 

18 (1) in paragraph (4), by striking ‘‘and’’ after 

19 the semicolon; 

20 (2) in paragraph (5), by striking the period and 

21 inserting a semicolon; and 

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

23 ‘‘(6) for each registrant (and for any political 

24 committee, as defined in 301(4) of the Federal Elec25 tion Campaign Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 431(4)), affiliVerDate Aug 31 2005 21:55 Mar 20, 2006 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4975.IH H4975

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1 ated with such registrant), and for each employee 

2 listed as a lobbyist by a registrant under paragraph 

3 (2)(C), the name of each Federal candidate or of4 ficeholder, and of each leadership PAC, political 

5 party committee, or other political committee to 

6 whom a contribution was made which is required to 

7 be reported to the Federal Election Commission by 

8 the recipient, and the date and amount of such con9 tribution; and 

10 ‘‘(7) the date, recipient, and amount of any gift 

11 that under the Rules of the House of Representa12 tives counts towards the cumulative annual limit de13 scribed in such rules and is given by a registrant or 

14 employee listed as a lobbyist to a covered legislative 

15 branch official.’’. 

16 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 3 of the 

17 Act (2 U.S.C. 1602) is amended by adding at the end the 

18 following new paragraphs: 

19 ‘‘(17) GIFT.—The term ‘gift’ means a gratuity, 

20 favor, discount, entertainment, hospitality, loan, for21 bearance, or other item having monetary value. The 

22 term includes gifts of services, training, and meals 

23 whether provided in kind, by purchase of a ticket, 

24 payment in advance, or reimbursement after the ex25 pense has been incurred. 


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1 ‘‘(18) LEADERSHIP PAC.—The term ‘leader2 ship PAC’ means, with respect to an individual hold3 ing Federal office, an unauthorized political com4 mittee (as defined in the Federal Election Campaign 

5 Act of 1971) which is associated with such indi6 vidual.’’. 

7 SEC. 106. INCREASED PENALTY FOR FAILURE TO COMPLY 

8 WITH LOBBYING DISCLOSURE REQUIRE9 MENTS. 

10 Section 7 of the Act (2 U.S.C. 1606) is amended by 

11 striking ‘‘$50,000’’ and inserting ‘‘$100,000’’. 

12 TITLE II—SLOWING THE 

13 REVOLVING DOOR 

14 SEC. 201. NOTIFICATION OF POST-EMPLOYMENT RESTRIC15 TIONS. 

16 Section 207(e) of title 18, United States Code, is 

17 amended by adding at the end the following new para18 graph: 

19 ‘‘(8) NOTIFICATION OF POST-EMPLOYMENT RE20 STRICTIONS.—After a Member of the House of Rep21 resentatives or an elected officer of the House of 

22 Representatives leaves office, or after the termi23 nation of employment with the House of Representa24 tives of an employee of the House of Representatives 

25 covered under paragraph (2), (3), or (4), the Clerk 


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1 of the House of Representatives, after consultation 

2 with the Committee on Standards of Official Con3 duct, shall inform the Member, officer, or employee 

4 of the beginning and ending date of the prohibitions 

5 that apply to the Member, officer, or employee under 

6 this subsection, and also inform each office of the 

7 House of Representatives with respect to which such 

8 prohibitions apply of those dates.’’. 

9 SEC. 202. DISCLOSURE BY MEMBERS OF THE HOUSE OF 

10 REPRESENTATIVES OF EMPLOYMENT NEGO11 TIATIONS. 

12 The Code of Official Conduct set forth in rule XXIII 

13 of the Rules of the House of Representatives is amended 

14 by redesignating clause 14 as clause 15 and by inserting 

15 after clause 13 the following new clause: 

16 ‘‘14. (a) A Member, Delegate, or Resident Commis17 sioner shall file with the Committee on Standards of Offi18 cial Conduct a statement that he or she is negotiating 

19 compensation for prospective employment or has any ar20 rangement concerning prospective employment if a conflict 

21 of interest or the appearance of a conflict of interest may 

22 exist. Such statement shall be made within 5 days (other 

23 than Saturdays, Sundays, or public holidays) after com24 mencing the negotiation for compensation or entering into 

25 the arrangement. 


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1 ‘‘(b) A Member, Delegate, or Resident Commissioner 

2 should refrain from voting on any legislative measure 

3 pending before the House or any committee thereof if the 

4 negotiation described in subparagraph (a) may create a 

5 conflict of interest.’’. 

6 SEC. 203. WRONGFULLY INFLUENCING, ON A PARTISAN 

7 BASIS, AN ENTITY’S EMPLOYMENT DECISIONS 

8 OR PRACTICES. 

9 The Code of Official Conduct set forth in rule XXIII 

10 of the Rules of the House of Representatives (as amended 

11 by section 202) is further amended by redesignating 

12 clause 15 as clause 16 and by inserting after clause 14 

13 the following new clause: 

14 ‘‘15. A Member, Delegate, Resident Commissioner, 

15 officer, or employee of the House may not, with the intent 

16 to influence on the basis of political party affiliation an 

17 employment decision or employment practice of any pri18 vate or public entity (except for the Congress)— 

19 ‘‘(a) take or withhold, or offer or threaten to 

20 take or withhold, an official act; or 

21 ‘‘(b) influence, or offer or threaten to influence, 

22 the official act of another.’’. 


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1 TITLE III—SUSPENSION OF PRI2 VATELY-FUNDED TRAVEL; 

3 CURBING LOBBYIST GIFTS 

4 SEC. 301. SUSPENSION OF PRIVATELY-FUNDED TRAVEL. 

5 Notwithstanding clause 5 of rule XXV of the Rules 

6 of the House of Representatives, no Member, Delegate, 

7 Resident Commissioner, officer, or employee of the House 

8 may accept a gift of travel (including any transportation, 

9 lodging, and meals during such travel) from any private 

10 source. 

11 SEC. 302. RECOMMENDATIONS FROM THE COMMITTEE ON 

12 STANDARDS OF OFFICIAL CONDUCT ON 

13 GIFTS AND TRAVEL. 

14 Not later than December 15, 2006, the Committee 

15 on Standards of Official Conduct shall report its rec16 ommendations on changes to rule XXV of the Rules of 

17 the House of Representatives to the Committee on Rules. 

18 In developing such recommendations, the Committee on 

19 Standards of Official Conduct shall consider the following: 

20 (1) The ability of the current provisions of rule 

21 XXV to protect the House, its Members, officers, 

22 and employees, from the appearance of impropriety. 

23 (2) With respect to the allowance for privately24 funded travel contained in clause 5(b) of rule 

25 XXV— 


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1 (A) the degree to which privately-funded 

2 travel meets the representational needs of the 

3 House, its Members, officers, and employees; 

4 (B) whether certain entities should or 

5 should not be permitted to fund the travel of 

6 the Members, officers, and employees of the 

7 House, what sources of funding may be permis8 sible, and what other individuals may partici9 pate in that travel; and 

10 (C) the adequacy of the current system of 

11 approval and disclosure of such travel. 

12 (3) With respect to the exceptions to the limita13 tion on the acceptance of gifts contained in clause 

14 5(a)— 

15 (A) the degree to which those exceptions 

16 meet the representational and personal needs of 

17 the House, its Members, officers, and employ18 ees; 

19 (B) the clarity of the limitation and its ex20 ceptions; and 

21 (C) the suitability of the current dollar 

22 limitations contained in clause 5(a)(1)(B) of 

23 such rule, including whether such limitations 

24 should be lowered. 


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1 SEC. 303. PROHIBITING REGISTERED LOBBYISTS ON COR2 PORATE FLIGHTS. 

3 The Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 is amended by 

4 inserting after section 5 the following new section: 

5 ‘‘SEC. 5A. PROHIBITING REGISTERED LOBBYISTS ON COR6 PORATE FLIGHTS. 

7 ‘‘If a Representative in, or Delegate or Resident 

8 Commissioner to, the Congress or an officer or employee 

9 of the House of Representatives is a passenger or crew 

10 member on a flight of an aircraft not licensed by the Fed11 eral Aviation Administration to operate for compensation 

12 or hire that is owned or operated by a person who is the 

13 client of a lobbyist or a lobbying firm, then such lobbyist 

14 may not be a passenger or crew member on that flight.’’. 

15 SEC. 304. VALUATION OF TICKETS TO SPORTING AND EN16 TERTAINMENT EVENTS. 

17 Clause 5(a)(2)(A) of rule XXV of the Rules of the 

18 House of Representatives is amended by— 

19 (1) inserting ‘‘(i)’’ after ‘‘(A)’’; and 

20 (2) adding at the end the following: 

21 ‘‘(ii) A gift of a ticket to a sporting or entertainment 

22 event shall be valued at the face value of the ticket, pro23 vided that in the case of a ticket without a face value, 

24 the ticket shall be valued at the highest cost of a ticket 

25 with a face value for the event.’’. 


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1 TITLE IV—OVERSIGHT OF 

2 LOBBYING AND ENFORCEMENT 

3 SEC. 401. AUDITS OF LOBBYING REPORTS BY HOUSE IN4 SPECTOR GENERAL. 

5 (a) ACCESS TO LOBBYING REPORTS.—The Office of 

6 Inspector General of the House of Representatives shall 

7 have access to all lobbyists’ disclosure information received 

8 by the Clerk of the House of Representatives under the 

9 Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 and shall conduct ran10 dom audits of lobbyists’ disclosure information as nec11 essary to ensure compliance with that Act. 

12 (b) REFERRAL AUTHORITY.—The Office of the In13 spector General of the House of Representatives may refer 

14 potential violations by lobbyists of the Lobbying Disclo15 sure Act of 1995 to the Department of Justice for discipli16 nary action. 

17 SEC. 402. HOUSE INSPECTOR GENERAL REVIEW AND AN18 NUAL REPORTS. 

19 (a) ONGOING REVIEW REQUIRED.—The Inspector 

20 General of the House of Representatives shall review on 

21 an ongoing basis the activities carried out by the Clerk 

22 of the House of Representatives under section 6 of the 

23 Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1605). The 

24 review shall emphasize— 


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1 (1) the effectiveness of those activities in secur2 ing the compliance by lobbyists with the require3 ments of that Act; and 

4 (2) whether the Clerk has the resources and au5 thorities needed for effective oversight and enforce6 ment of that Act. 

7 (b) ANNUAL REPORTS.—Not later than December 31 

8 of each year, the Inspector General of the House of Rep9 resentatives shall submit to the House of Representatives 

10 a report on the review required by subsection (a). The re11 port shall include the Inspector General’s assessment of 

12 the matters required to be emphasized by that subsection 

13 and any recommendations of the Inspector General to— 

14 (1) improve the compliance by lobbyists with 

15 the requirements of the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 

16 1995; and 

17 (2) provide the Clerk of the House of Rep18 resentatives with the resources and authorities need19 ed for effective oversight and enforcement of that 

20 Act. 

21 TITLE V—INSTITUTIONAL 

22 REFORMS 

23 SEC. 501. EARMARKING REFORM. 

24 (a) In the House of Representatives, it shall not be 

25 in order to consider— 


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1 (1) a general appropriation bill reported by the 

2 Committee on Appropriations unless the report in3 cludes a list of earmarks in the bill or in the report 

4 (and the name of any Member who submitted a re5 quest to the Committee on Appropriations for an 

6 earmark included in such list); or 

7 (2) a conference report to accompany a general 

8 appropriation bill unless the joint explanatory state9 ment prepared by the managers on the part of the 

10 House and the managers on the part of the Senate 

11 includes a list of earmarks in the conference report 

12 or joint statement (and the name of any Member 

13 who submitted a request to the Committee on Ap14 propriations for an earmark included in such list) 

15 that were— 

16 (A) not committed to the conference com17 mittee by either House; 

18 (B) not in the report specified in para19 graph (1); and 

20 (C) not in a report of a committee of the 

21 Senate on a companion measure. 

22 (b) In the House of Representatives, it shall not be 

23 in order to consider a rule or order that waives the appli24 cation of subsection (a)(2). 


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1 (c)(1) A point of order raised under subsection (a) 

2 may be based only on the failure of a report of the Com3 mittee on Appropriations or joint statement, as the case 

4 may be, to include the list required by subsection (a). 

5 (2) As disposition of a point of order under this sec6 tion, the Chair shall put the question of consideration with 

7 respect to the proposition that is the subject of the point 

8 of order. 

9 (3) The question of consideration under this sub10 section shall be debatable for 10 minutes by the Member 

11 initiating the point of order and for 10 minutes by an op12 ponent, but shall otherwise be decided without intervening 

13 motion except one that the House adjourn. 

14 (d)(1) For purposes of this section, the term ‘‘ear15 mark’’ means a provision in a bill, joint resolution, or con16 ference report, or language in an accompanying committee 

17 report or joint statement of managers, providing a specific 

18 amount of discretionary budget authority to a non-Federal 

19 entity, if such entity is identified by name. 

20 (2) For purposes of paragraph (1), government-spon21 sored enterprises, Federal facilities, and Federal lands 

22 shall be considered Federal entities. 

23 (3) For purposes of subsection (a), to the extent that 

24 the non-Federal entity is a unit of State or local govern25 ment, an Indian tribe, or a foreign government, the proviVerDate Aug 31 2005 21:55 Mar 20, 2006 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00020 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4975.IH H4975

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1 sion or language shall not be considered an earmark unless 

2 the provision or language also specifies the specific pur3 pose for which the designated budget authority is to be 

4 expended. 

5 SEC. 502. FREQUENT AND COMPREHENSIVE ETHICS TRAIN6 ING. 

7 (a) ETHICS TRAINING.— 

8 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Committee on Stand9 ards of Official Conduct shall provide ethics training 

10 once per Congress to each employee of the House of 

11 Representatives, including training on the Code of 

12 Official Conduct, related rules of the House of Rep13 resentatives, and applicable provisions of law. 

14 (2) NEW EMPLOYEES.—A new employee of the 

15 House of Representatives shall receive training 

16 under this section not later than 30 days after be17 ginning service to the House. 

18 (3) MEMBERS.—While the House of Represent19 atives recognizes that adding qualifications to service 

20 as a Member may be unconstitutional, it encourages 

21 Members to participate in ethics training. 

22 (b) CERTIFICATION.—Within 30 days of completing 

23 required ethics training, each employee of the House of 

24 Representatives shall file a certification with the Com25 mittee on Standards of Official Conduct that the employee 


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1 has completed such training and is familiar with the con2 tents of any pertinent publications that are so designated 

3 by the committee. 

4 SEC. 503. BIENNIAL PUBLICATION OF ETHICS MANUAL. 

5 Within 120 days after the date of enactment of this 

6 Act and during each Congress thereafter, the Committee 

7 on Standards of Official Conduct shall publish an up-to8 date ethics manual for Members, officers, and employees 

9 of the House of Representatives and make such manual 

10 available to all such individuals. The committee has a duty 

11 to keep all Members, Delegates, the Resident Commis12 sioner, officers, and employees of the House of Represent13 atives apprised of current rulings or advisory opinions 

14 when potentially constituting changes to or interpretations 

15 of existing policies. 

16 TITLE VI—REFORM OF SECTION 

17 527 ORGANIZATIONS 

18 SEC. 601. SHORT TITLE. 

19 This title may be cited as the ‘‘527 Reform Act of 

20 2006’’. 

21 SEC. 602. TREATMENT OF SECTION 527 ORGANIZATIONS. 

22 (a) DEFINITION OF POLITICAL COMMITTEE.—Sec23 tion 301(4) of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 

24 (2 U.S.C. 431(4)) is amended— 


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1 (1) by striking the period at the end of sub2 paragraph (C) and inserting ‘‘; or’’; and 

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

4 ‘‘(D) any applicable 527 organization.’’. 

5 (b) DEFINITION OF APPLICABLE 527 ORGANIZA6 TION.—Section 301 of such Act (2 U.S.C. 431) is amend7 ed by adding at the end the following new paragraph: 

8 ‘‘(27) APPLICABLE 527 ORGANIZATION.— 

9 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—For purposes of para10 graph (4)(D), the term ‘applicable 527 organi11 zation’ means a committee, club, association, or 

12 group of persons that— 

13 ‘‘(i) has given notice to the Secretary 

14 of the Treasury under section 527(i) of the 

15 Internal Revenue Code of 1986 that it is 

16 to be treated as an organization described 

17 in section 527 of such Code; and 

18 ‘‘(ii) is not described in subparagraph 

19 (B). 

20 ‘‘(B) EXCEPTED ORGANIZATIONS.—A com21 mittee, club, association, or other group of per22 sons described in this subparagraph is— 

23 ‘‘(i) an organization described in sec24 tion 527(i)(5) of the Internal Revenue 

25 Code of 1986; 


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1 ‘‘(ii) an organization which is a com2 mittee, club, association or other group of 

3 persons that is organized, operated, and 

4 makes disbursements exclusively for paying 

5 expenses described in the last sentence of 

6 section 527(e)(2) of the Internal Revenue 

7 Code of 1986 or expenses of a newsletter 

8 fund described in section 527(g) of such 

9 Code; 

10 ‘‘(iii) an organization which is a com11 mittee, club, association, or other group 

12 that consists solely of candidates for State 

13 or local office, individuals holding State or 

14 local office, or any combination of either, 

15 but only if the organization refers only to 

16 one or more non-Federal candidates or ap17 plicable State or local issues in all of its 

18 voter drive activities and does not refer to 

19 a Federal candidate or a political party in 

20 any of its voter drive activities; or 

21 ‘‘(iv) an organization described in sub22 paragraph (C). 

23 ‘‘(C) APPLICABLE ORGANIZATION.—For 

24 purposes of subparagraph (B)(iv), an organiza25 tion described in this subparagraph is a comVerDate Aug 31 2005 21:55 Mar 20, 2006 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00024 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4975.IH H4975

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1 mittee, club, association, or other group of per2 sons whose election or nomination activities re3 late exclusively to— 

4 ‘‘(i) elections where no candidate for 

5 Federal office appears on the ballot; or 

6 ‘‘(ii) one or more of the following pur7 poses: 

8 ‘‘(I) Influencing the selection, 

9 nomination, election, or appointment 

10 of one or more candidates to non-Fed11 eral offices. 

12 ‘‘(II) Influencing one or more ap13 plicable State or local issues. 

14 ‘‘(III) Influencing the selection, 

15 appointment, nomination, or con16 firmation of one or more individuals 

17 to non-elected offices. 

18 ‘‘(D) EXCLUSIVITY TEST.—A committee, 

19 club, association, or other group of persons 

20 shall not be treated as meeting the exclusivity 

21 requirement of subparagraph (C) if it makes 

22 disbursements aggregating more than $1,000 

23 for any of the following: 

24 ‘‘(i) A public communication that pro25 motes, supports, attacks, or opposes a 


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1 clearly identified candidate for Federal of2 fice during the 1-year period ending on the 

3 date of the general election for the office 

4 sought by the clearly identified candidate 

5 (or, if a runoff election is held with respect 

6 to such general election, on the date of the 

7 runoff election). 

8 ‘‘(ii) Any voter drive activity during a 

9 calendar year, except that no disburse10 ments for any voter drive activity shall be 

11 taken into account under this subpara12 graph if the committee, club, association, 

13 or other group of persons during such cal14 endar year— 

15 ‘‘(I) makes disbursements for 

16 voter drive activities with respect to 

17 elections in only 1 State and complies 

18 with all applicable election laws of 

19 that State, including laws related to 

20 registration and reporting require21 ments and contribution limitations; 

22 ‘‘(II) refers to one or more non23 Federal candidates or applicable State 

24 or local issues in all of its voter drive 

25 activities and does not refer to any 


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1 Federal candidate or any political 

2 party in any of its voter drive activi3 ties; 

4 ‘‘(III) does not have a candidate 

5 for Federal office, an individual who 

6 holds any Federal office, a national 

7 political party, or an agent of any of 

8 the foregoing, control or materially 

9 participate in the direction of the or10 ganization, solicit contributions to the 

11 organization (other than funds which 

12 are described under clauses (i) and 

13 (ii) of section 323(e)(1)(B)), or direct 

14 disbursements, in whole or in part, by 

15 the organization; and 

16 ‘‘(IV) makes no contributions to 

17 Federal candidates. 

18 ‘‘(E) CERTAIN REFERENCES TO FEDERAL

19 CANDIDATES NOT TAKEN INTO ACCOUNT.—For 

20 purposes of subparagraphs (B)(iii) and 

21 (D)(ii)(II), a voter drive activity shall not be 

22 treated as referring to a clearly identified Fed23 eral candidate if the only reference to the can24 didate in the activity is— 


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1 ‘‘(i) a reference in connection with an 

2 election for a non-Federal office in which 

3 such Federal candidate is also a candidate 

4 for such non-Federal office; or 

5 ‘‘(ii) a reference to the fact that the 

6 candidate has endorsed a non-Federal can7 didate or has taken a position on an appli8 cable State or local issue, including a ref9 erence that constitutes the endorsement or 

10 position itself. 

11 ‘‘(F) CERTAIN REFERENCES TO POLITICAL

12 PARTIES NOT TAKEN INTO ACCOUNT.—For pur13 poses of subparagraphs (B)(iii) and (D)(ii)(II), 

14 a voter drive activity shall not be treated as re15 ferring to a political party if the only reference 

16 to the party in the activity is— 

17 ‘‘(i) a reference for the purpose of 

18 identifying a non-Federal candidate; 

19 ‘‘(ii) a reference for the purpose of 

20 identifying the entity making the public 

21 communication or carrying out the voter 

22 drive activity; or 

23 ‘‘(iii) a reference in a manner or con24 text that does not reflect support for or op25 position to a Federal candidate or canVerDate Aug 31 2005 21:55 Mar 20, 2006 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00028 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4975.IH H4975

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1 didates and does reflect support for or op2 position to a State or local candidate or 

3 candidates or an applicable State or local 

4 issue. 

5 ‘‘(G) APPLICABLE STATE OR LOCAL

6 ISSUE.—For purposes of this paragraph, the 

7 term ‘applicable State or local issue’ means any 

8 State or local ballot initiative, State or local ref9 erendum, State or local constitutional amend10 ment, State or local bond issue, or other State 

11 or local ballot issue.’’. 

12 (c) DEFINITION OF VOTER DRIVE ACTIVITY.—Sec13 tion 301 of such Act (2 U.S.C. 431), as amended by sub14 section (b), is further amended by adding at the end the 

15 following new paragraph: 

16 ‘‘(28) VOTER DRIVE ACTIVITY.—The term 

17 ‘voter drive activity’ means any of the following ac18 tivities conducted in connection with an election in 

19 which a candidate for Federal office appears on the 

20 ballot (regardless of whether a candidate for State 

21 or local office also appears on the ballot): 

22 ‘‘(A) Voter registration activity. 

23 ‘‘(B) Voter identification. 

24 ‘‘(C) Get-out-the-vote activity. 

25 ‘‘(D) Generic campaign activity. 


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1 ‘‘(E) Any public communication related to 

2 activities described in subparagraphs (A) 

3 through (D). 

4 Such term shall not include any activity described in 

5 subparagraph (A) or (B) of section 316(b)(2).’’. 

6 (d) REGULATIONS.—The Federal Election Commis7 sion shall promulgate regulations to implement this sec8 tion not later than 60 days after the date of enactment 

9 of this Act. 

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

11 this section shall take effect on the date which is 60 days 

12 after the date of enactment of this Act. 

13 SEC. 603. RULES FOR ALLOCATION OF EXPENSES BETWEEN 

14 FEDERAL AND NON-FEDERAL ACTIVITIES. 

15 (a) IN GENERAL.—Title III of the Federal Election 

16 Campaign Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 431 et seq.) is amended 

17 by adding at the end the following: 

18 ‘‘SEC. 325. ALLOCATION AND FUNDING RULES FOR CER19 TAIN EXPENSES RELATING TO FEDERAL AND 

20 NON-FEDERAL ACTIVITIES. 

21 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—In the case of any disbursements 

22 by any political committee that is a separate segregated 

23 fund or nonconnected committee for which allocation rules 

24 are provided under subsection (b)— 


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1 ‘‘(1) the disbursements shall be allocated be2 tween Federal and non-Federal accounts in accord3 ance with this section and regulations prescribed by 

4 the Commission; and 

5 ‘‘(2) in the case of disbursements allocated to 

6 non-Federal accounts, may be paid only from a 

7 qualified non-Federal account. 

8 ‘‘(b) COSTS TO BE ALLOCATED AND ALLOCATION

9 RULES.— 

10 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Disbursements by any sep11 arate segregated fund or nonconnected committee, 

12 other than an organization described in section 

13 323(b)(1), for any of the following categories of ac14 tivity shall be allocated as follows: 

15 ‘‘(A) 100 percent of the expenses for public 

16 communications or voter drive activities that 

17 refer to one or more clearly identified Federal 

18 candidates, but do not refer to any clearly iden19 tified non-Federal candidates, shall be paid with 

20 funds from a Federal account, without regard 

21 to whether the communication refers to a polit22 ical party. 

23 ‘‘(B) At least 50 percent, or a greater per24 centage if the Commission so determines by 

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1 nications and voter drive activities that refer to 

2 one or more clearly identified candidates for 

3 Federal office and one or more clearly identified 

4 non-Federal candidates shall be paid with funds 

5 from a Federal account, without regard to 

6 whether the communication refers to a political 

7 party. 

8 ‘‘(C) At least 50 percent, or a greater per9 centage if the Commission so determines by 

10 regulation, of the expenses for public commu11 nications or voter drive activities that refer to 

12 a political party, but do not refer to any clearly 

13 identified Federal or non-Federal candidate, 

14 shall be paid with funds from a Federal ac15 count, except that this paragraph shall not 

16 apply to communications or activities that re17 late exclusively to elections where no candidate 

18 for Federal office appears on the ballot. 

19 ‘‘(D) At least 50 percent, or a greater per20 centage if the Commission so determines by 

21 regulation, of the expenses for public commu22 nications or voter drive activities that refer to 

23 a political party and refer to one or more clear24 ly identified non-Federal candidates, but do not 

25 refer to any clearly identified Federal canVerDate Aug 31 2005 21:55 Mar 20, 2006 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00032 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4975.IH H4975

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1 didates, shall be paid with funds from a Federal 

2 account, except that this paragraph shall not 

3 apply to communications or activities that re4 late exclusively to elections where no candidate 

5 for Federal office appears on the ballot. 

6 ‘‘(E) Unless otherwise determined by the 

7 Commission in its regulations, at least 50 per8 cent of any administrative expenses, including 

9 rent, utilities, office supplies, and salaries not 

10 attributable to a clearly identified candidate, 

11 shall be paid with funds from a Federal ac12 count, except that for a separate segregated 

13 fund such expenses may be paid instead by its 

14 connected organization. 

15 ‘‘(F) At least 50 percent, or a greater per16 centage if the Commission so determines by 

17 regulation, of the direct costs of a fundraising 

18 program or event, including disbursements for 

19 solicitation of funds and for planning and ad20 ministration of actual fundraising events, where 

21 Federal and non-Federal funds are collected 

22 through such program or event shall be paid 

23 with funds from a Federal account, except that 

24 for a separate segregated fund such costs may 

25 be paid instead by its connected organization. 


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1 This paragraph shall not apply to any fund2 raising solicitations or any other activity that 

3 constitutes a public communication. 

4 ‘‘(2) CERTAIN REFERENCES TO FEDERAL CAN5 DIDATES NOT TAKEN INTO ACCOUNT.—For purposes 

6 of paragraph (1), a public communication or voter 

7 drive activity shall not be treated as referring to a 

8 clearly identified Federal candidate if the only ref9 erence to the candidate in the communication or ac10 tivity is— 

11 ‘‘(A) a reference in connection with an 

12 election for a non-Federal office in which such 

13 Federal candidate is also a candidate for such 

14 non-Federal office; or 

15 ‘‘(B) a reference to the fact that the can16 didate has endorsed a non-Federal candidate or 

17 has taken a position on an applicable State or 

18 local issue (as defined in section 301(27)(G)), 

19 including a reference that constitutes the en20 dorsement or position itself. 

21 ‘‘(3) CERTAIN REFERENCES TO POLITICAL PAR22 TIES NOT TAKEN INTO ACCOUNT.—For purposes of 

23 paragraph (1), a public communication or voter 

24 drive activity shall not be treated as referring to a 


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•HR 4975 IH 

1 political party if the only reference to the party in 

2 the communication or activity is— 

3 ‘‘(A) a reference for the purpose of identi4 fying a non-Federal candidate; 

5 ‘‘(B) a reference for the purpose of identi6 fying the entity making the public communica7 tion or carrying out the voter drive activity; or 

8 ‘‘(C) a reference in a manner or context 

9 that does not reflect support for or opposition 

10 to a Federal candidate or candidates and does 

11 reflect support for or opposition to a State or 

12 local candidate or candidates or an applicable 

13 State or local issue. 

14 ‘‘(c) QUALIFIED NON-FEDERAL ACCOUNT.— 

15 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—For purposes of this sec16 tion, the term ‘qualified non-Federal account’ means 

17 an account which consists solely of amounts— 

18 ‘‘(A) that, subject to the limitations of 

19 paragraphs (2) and (3), are raised by the sepa20 rate segregated fund or nonconnected com21 mittee only from individuals, and 

22 ‘‘(B) with respect to which all require23 ments of Federal, State, or local law (including 

24 any law relating to contribution limits) are met. 


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1 ‘‘(2) LIMITATION ON INDIVIDUAL DONA2 TIONS.— 

3 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—A separate segregated 

4 fund or nonconnected committee may not ac5 cept more than $25,000 in funds for its quali6 fied non-Federal account from any one indi7 vidual in any calendar year. 

8 ‘‘(B) AFFILIATION.—For purposes of this 

9 paragraph, all qualified non-Federal accounts of 

10 separate segregated funds or nonconnected 

11 committees which are directly or indirectly es12 tablished, financed, maintained, or controlled by 

13 the same person or persons shall be treated as 

14 one account. 

15 ‘‘(3) FUNDRAISING LIMITATION.— 

16 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—No donation to a 

17 qualified non-Federal account may be solicited, 

18 received, directed, transferred, or spent by or in 

19 the name of any person described in subsection 

20 (a) or (e) of section 323. 

21 ‘‘(B) FUNDS NOT TREATED AS SUBJECT

22 TO ACT.—Except as provided in subsection 

23 (a)(2) and this subsection, any funds raised for 

24 a qualified non-Federal account in accordance 

25 with the requirements of this section shall not 


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•HR 4975 IH 

1 be considered funds subject to the limitations, 

2 prohibitions, and reporting requirements of this 

3 Act for any purpose (including for purposes of 

4 subsection (a) or (e) of section 323 or sub5 section (d)(1) of this section). 

6 ‘‘(d) DEFINITIONS.— 

7 ‘‘(1) FEDERAL ACCOUNT.—The term ‘Federal 

8 account’ means an account which consists solely of 

9 contributions subject to the limitations, prohibitions, 

10 and reporting requirements of this Act. Nothing in 

11 this section or in section 323(b)(2)(B)(iii) shall be 

12 construed to infer that a limit other than the limit 

13 under section 315(a)(1)(C) applies to contributions 

14 to the account. 

15 ‘‘(2) NONCONNECTED COMMITTEE.—The term 

16 ‘nonconnected committee’ shall not include a polit17 ical committee of a political party. 

18 ‘‘(3) VOTER DRIVE ACTIVITY.—The term ‘voter 

19 drive activity’ has the meaning given such term in 

20 section 301(28).’’. 

21 (b) REPORTING REQUIREMENTS.—Section 304(e) of 

22 the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 

23 434(e)) is amended— 

24 (1) by redesignating paragraphs (3) and (4) as 

25 paragraphs (4) and (5); and 


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1 (2) by inserting after paragraph (2) the fol2 lowing new paragraph: 

3 ‘‘(3) RECEIPTS AND DISBURSEMENTS FROM

4 QUALIFIED NON-FEDERAL ACCOUNTS.—In addition 

5 to any other reporting requirement applicable under 

6 this Act, a political committee to which section 

7 325(a) applies shall report all receipts and disburse8 ments from a qualified non-Federal account (as de9 fined in section 325(c)).’’. 

10 (c) REGULATIONS.—The Federal Election Commis11 sion shall promulgate regulations to implement the amend12 ments made by this section not later than 180 days after 

13 the date of enactment of this Act. 

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

15 this section shall take effect on the date which is 180 days 

16 after the date of enactment of this Act. 

17 SEC. 604. REPEAL OF LIMIT ON AMOUNT OF PARTY EX18 PENDITURES ON BEHALF OF CANDIDATES IN 

19 GENERAL ELECTIONS. 

20 (a) REPEAL OF LIMIT.—Section 315(d) of the Fed21 eral Election Campaign Act of 1971 (2 U.S.C. 441a(d)) 

22 is amended— 

23 (1) in paragraph (1)— 

24 (A) by striking ‘‘(1) Notwithstanding any 

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1 tions on expenditures or limitations on con2 tributions, the national committee’’ and insert3 ing ‘‘Notwithstanding any other provision of 

4 law with respect to limitations on amounts of 

5 expenditures or contributions, a national com6 mittee’’, 

7 (B) by striking ‘‘the general’’ and inserting 

8 ‘‘any’’, and 

9 (C) by striking ‘‘Federal office, subject to 

10 the limitations contained in paragraphs (2), (3), 

11 and (4) of this subsection’’ and inserting ‘‘Fed12 eral office in any amount’’; and 

13 (2) by striking paragraphs (2), (3), and (4). 

14 (b) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

15 (1) INDEXING.—Section 315(c) of such Act (2 

16 U.S.C. 441a(c)) is amended— 

17 (A) in paragraph (1)(B)(i), by striking 

18 ‘‘(d),’’; and 

19 (B) in paragraph (2)(B)(i), by striking 

20 ‘‘subsections (b) and (d)’’ and inserting ‘‘sub21 section (b)’’. 

22 (2) INCREASE IN LIMITS FOR SENATE CAN23 DIDATES FACING WEALTHY OPPONENTS.—Section 

24 315(i) of such Act (2 U.S.C. 441a(i)(1)) is amend25 ed— 


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1 (A) in paragraph (1)(C)(iii)— 

2 (i) by adding ‘‘and’’ at the end of sub3 clause (I), 

4 (ii) in subclause (II), by striking ‘‘; 

5 and’’ and inserting a period, and 

6 (iii) by striking subclause (III); 

7 (B) in paragraph (2)(A) in the matter pre8 ceding clause (i), by striking ‘‘, and a party 

9 committee shall not make any expenditure,’’; 

10 (C) in paragraph (2)(A)(ii), by striking 

11 ‘‘and party expenditures previously made’’; and 

12 (D) in paragraph (2)(B), by striking ‘‘and 

13 a party shall not make any expenditure’’. 

14 (3) INCREASE IN LIMITS FOR HOUSE CAN15 DIDATES FACING WEALTHY OPPONENTS.—Section 

16 315A(a) of such Act (2 U.S.C. 441a—1(a)) is 

17 amended— 

18 (A) in paragraph (1)— 

19 (i) by adding ‘‘and’’ at the end of sub20 paragraph (A), 

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

22 ‘‘; and’’ and inserting a period, and 

23 (iii) by striking subparagraph (C); 


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1 (B) in paragraph (3)(A) in the matter pre2 ceding clause (i), by striking ‘‘, and a party 

3 committee shall not make any expenditure,’’; 

4 (C) in paragraph (3)(A)(ii), by striking 

5 ‘‘and party expenditures previously made’’; and 

6 (D) in paragraph (3)(B), by striking ‘‘and 

7 a party shall not make any expenditure’’. 

8 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made by 

9 this section shall take effect January 1, 2006. 

10 SEC. 605. CONSTRUCTION. 

11 No provision of this title, or amendment made by this 

12 title, shall be construed— 

13 (1) as approving, ratifying, or endorsing a regu14 lation promulgated by the Federal Election Commis15 sion; 

16 (2) as establishing, modifying, or otherwise af17 fecting the definition of political organization for 

18 purposes of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986; or 

19 (3) as affecting the determination of whether a 

20 group organized under section 501(c) of the Internal 

21 Revenue Code of 1986 is a political committee under 

22 section 301(4) of the Federal Election Campaign 

23 Act of 1971. 


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1 SEC. 606. JUDICIAL REVIEW. 

2 (a) SPECIAL RULES FOR ACTIONS BROUGHT ON

3 CONSTITUTIONAL GROUNDS.—If any action is brought for 

4 declaratory or injunctive relief to challenge the constitu5 tionality of any provision of this title or any amendment 

6 made by this title, the following rules shall apply: 

7 (1) The action shall be filed in the United 

8 States District Court for the District of Columbia 

9 and shall be heard by a 3-judge court convened pur10 suant to section 2284 of title 28, United States 

11 Code. 

12 (2) A copy of the complaint shall be delivered 

13 promptly to the Clerk of the House of Representa14 tives and the Secretary of the Senate. 

15 (3) A final decision in the action shall be re16 viewable only by appeal directly to the Supreme 

17 Court of the United States. Such appeal shall be 

18 taken by the filing of a notice of appeal within 10 

19 days, and the filing of a jurisdictional statement 

20 within 30 days, of the entry of the final decision. 

21 (4) It shall be the duty of the United States 

22 District Court for the District of Columbia and the 

23 Supreme Court of the United States to advance on 

24 the docket and to expedite to the greatest possible 

25 extent the disposition of the action and appeal. 


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1 (b) INTERVENTION BY MEMBERS OF CONGRESS.—In 

2 any action in which the constitutionality of any provision 

3 of this title or any amendment made by this title is raised 

4 (including but not limited to an action described in sub5 section (a)), any Member of the House of Representatives 

6 (including a Delegate or Resident Commissioner to Con7 gress) or Senate shall have the right to intervene either 

8 in support of or opposition to the position of a party to 

9 the case regarding the constitutionality of the provision 

10 or amendment. To avoid duplication of efforts and reduce 

11 the burdens placed on the parties to the action, the court 

12 in any such action may make such orders as it considers 

13 necessary, including orders to require intervenors taking 

14 similar positions to file joint papers or to be represented 

15 by a single attorney at oral argument. 

16 (c) CHALLENGE BY MEMBERS OF CONGRESS.—Any 

17 Member of Congress may bring an action, subject to the 

18 special rules described in subsection (a), for declaratory 

19 or injunctive relief to challenge the constitutionality of any 

20 provision of this title or any amendment made by this title. 

21 (d) APPLICABILITY.— 

22 (1) INITIAL CLAIMS.—With respect to any ac23 tion initially filed on or before December 31, 2008, 

24 the provisions of subsection (a) shall apply with re25 spect to each action described in such subsection. 


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1 (2) SUBSEQUENT ACTIONS.—With respect to 

2 any action initially filed after December 31, 2008, 

3 the provisions of subsection (a) shall not apply to 

4 any action described in such subsection unless the 

5 person filing such action elects such provisions to 

6 apply to the action. 

7 SEC. 607. SEVERABILITY. 

8 If any provision of this title or any amendment made 

9 by this title, or the application of a provision or amend10 ment to any person or circumstance, is held to be uncon11 stitutional, the remainder of this title and the amendments 

12 made by this title, and the application of the provisions 

13 and amendments to any person or circumstance, shall not 

14 be affected by the holding. 

15 TITLE VII—FORFEITURE OF 

16 RETIREMENT BENEFITS 

17 SEC. 701. LOSS OF PENSIONS ACCRUED DURING SERVICE 

18 AS A MEMBER OF CONGRESS FOR ABUSING 

19 THE PUBLIC TRUST. 

20 (a) CIVIL SERVICE RETIREMENT SYSTEM.—Section 

21 8332 of title 5, United States Code, is amended by adding 

22 at the end the following: 

23 ‘‘(o)(1) Notwithstanding any other provision of this 

24 subchapter, the service of an individual finally convicted 

25 of an offense described in paragraph (2) shall not be taken 


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1 into account for purposes of this subchapter, except that 

2 this sentence applies only to service rendered as a Member 

3 (irrespective of when rendered). Any such individual (or 

4 other person determined under section 8342(c), if applica5 ble) shall be entitled to be paid so much of such individ6 ual’s lump-sum credit as is attributable to service to which 

7 the preceding sentence applies. 

8 ‘‘(2)(A) An offense described in this paragraph is any 

9 offense described in subparagraph (B) for which the fol10 lowing apply: 

11 ‘‘(i) Every act or omission of the individual (re12 ferred to in paragraph (1)) that is needed to satisfy 

13 the elements of the offense occurs while the indi14 vidual is a Member. 

15 ‘‘(ii) Every act or omission of the individual 

16 that is needed to satisfy the elements of the offense 

17 directly relates to the performance of the individual’s 

18 official duties as a Member. 

19 ‘‘(iii) The offense is committed after the date of 

20 enactment of this subsection. 

21 ‘‘(B) An offense described in this subparagraph is 

22 only the following, and only to the extent that the offense 

23 is a felony under title 18: 

24 ‘‘(i) An offense under section 201 of title 18 

25 (bribery of public officials and witnesses). 


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1 ‘‘(ii) An offense under section 219 of title 18 

2 (officers and employees acting as agents of foreign 

3 principals). 

4 ‘‘(iii) An offense under section 371 of title 18 

5 (conspiracy to commit offense or to defraud United 

6 States) to the extent of any conspiracy to commit an 

7 act which constitutes an offense under clause (i) or 

8 (ii). 

9 ‘‘(3) An individual convicted of an offense described 

10 in paragraph (2) shall not, after the date of the final con11 viction, be eligible to participate in the retirement system 

12 under this subchapter or chapter 84 while serving as a 

13 Member. 

14 ‘‘(4) The Office of Personnel Management shall pre15 scribe any regulations necessary to carry out this sub16 section. Such regulations shall include— 

17 ‘‘(A) provisions under which interest on any 

18 lump-sum payment under the second sentence of 

19 paragraph (1) shall be limited in a manner similar 

20 to that specified in the last sentence of section 

21 8316(b); and 

22 ‘‘(B) provisions under which the Office may 

23 provide for— 

24 ‘‘(i) the payment, to the spouse or children 

25 of any individual referred to in the first senVerDate Aug 31 2005 21:55 Mar 20, 2006 Jkt 049200 PO 00000 Frm 00046 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H4975.IH H4975

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1 tence of paragraph (1), of any amounts which 

2 (but for this clause) would otherwise have been 

3 nonpayable by reason of such first sentence, but 

4 only to the extent that the application of this 

5 clause is considered necessary given the totality 

6 of the circumstances; and 

7 ‘‘(ii) an appropriate adjustment in the 

8 amount of any lump-sum payment under the 

9 second sentence of paragraph (1) to reflect the 

10 application of clause (i). 

11 ‘‘(5) For purposes of this subsection— 

12 ‘‘(A) the term ‘Member’ has the meaning given 

13 such term by section 2106, notwithstanding section 

14 8331(2); and 

15 ‘‘(B) the term ‘child’ has the meaning given 

16 such term by section 8341.’’. 

17 (b) FEDERAL EMPLOYEES’ RETIREMENT SYSTEM.— 

18 Section 8411 of title 5, United States Code, is amended 

19 by adding at the end the following: 

20 ‘‘(i)(1) Notwithstanding any other provision of this 

21 chapter, the service of an individual finally convicted of 

22 an offense described in paragraph (2) shall not be taken 

23 into account for purposes of this chapter, except that this 

24 sentence applies only to service rendered as a Member (ir25 respective of when rendered). Any such individual (or 


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•HR 4975 IH 

1 other person determined under section 8424(d), if applica2 ble) shall be entitled to be paid so much of such individ3 ual’s lump-sum credit as is attributable to service to which 

4 the preceding sentence applies. 

5 ‘‘(2) An offense described in this paragraph is any 

6 offense described in section 8332(o)(2)(B) for which the 

7 following apply: 

8 ‘‘(A) Every act or omission of the individual 

9 (referred to in paragraph (1)) that is needed to sat10 isfy the elements of the offense occurs while the in11 dividual is a Member. 

12 ‘‘(B) Every act or omission of the individual 

13 that is needed to satisfy the elements of the offense 

14 directly relates to the performance of the individual’s 

15 official duties as a Member. 

16 ‘‘(C) The offense is committed after the date of 

17 enactment of this subsection. 

18 ‘‘(3) An individual finally convicted of an offense de19 scribed in paragraph (2) shall not, after the date of the 

20 conviction, be eligible to participate in the retirement sys21 tem under this chapter while serving as a Member. 

22 ‘‘(4) The Office of Personnel Management shall pre23 scribe any regulations necessary to carry out this sub24 section. Such regulations shall include— 


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49 

•HR 4975 IH 

1 ‘‘(A) provisions under which interest on any 

2 lump-sum payment under the second sentence of 

3 paragraph (1) shall be limited in a manner similar 

4 to that specified in the last sentence of section 

5 8316(b); and 

6 ‘‘(B) provisions under which the Office may 

7 provide for— 

8 ‘‘(i) the payment, to the spouse or children 

9 of any individual referred to in the first sen10 tence of paragraph (1), of any amounts which 

11 (but for this clause) would otherwise have been 

12 nonpayable by reason of such first sentence, but 

13 only to the extent that the application of this 

14 clause is considered necessary given the totality 

15 of the circumstances; and 

16 ‘‘(ii) an appropriate adjustment in the 

17 amount of any lump-sum payment under the 

18 second sentence of paragraph (1) to reflect the 

19 application of clause (i). 

20 ‘‘(5) For purposes of this subsection— 

21 ‘‘(A) the term ‘Member’ has the meaning given 

22 such term by section 2106, notwithstanding section 

23 8401(20); and 


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•HR 4975 IH 

1 ‘‘(B) the term ‘child’ has the meaning given 

2 such term by section 8341.’’. 

Æ 


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