II 

118TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 1160 

To provide greater transparency with respect to the financial regulatory 

agencies, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

MARCH 30, 2023 

Mr. TILLIS (for himself, Ms. WARREN, Mr. ROUNDS, Ms. SINEMA, Mr. 

HAGERTY, Mr. BLUMENTHAL, Ms. LUMMIS, Mr. CRUZ, and Mr. VANCE) 

introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the 

Committee on the Judiciary 

A BILL 

To provide greater transparency with respect to the financial 

regulatory agencies, 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 ‘‘Financial Regulators 

5 Transparency Act of 2023’’. 

6 SEC. 2. TRANSPARENCY OF THE FEDERAL RESERVE BANKS. 

7 The Federal Reserve Act is amended— 

8 (1) by redesignating sections 30 and 31 as sec9 tions 31 and 32, respectively; and 


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1 (2) by inserting after section 29 (12 U.S.C. 

2 504) the following: 

3 ‘‘SEC. 30. TRANSPARENCY OF FEDERAL RESERVE BANKS 

4 AND BOARD OF GOVERNORS. 

5 ‘‘(a) APPLICATION OF FOIA AND THE FEDERAL

6 RECORDS ACT OF 1950 TO THE FEDERAL RESERVE

7 BANKS.— 

8 ‘‘(1) FOIA.—Each Federal reserve bank shall 

9 be considered an agency, as defined in subsection (f) 

10 of section 552 of title 5, United States Code (com11 monly known as the ‘Freedom of Information Act’), 

12 for purposes of applying the requirements under 

13 that section. 

14 ‘‘(2) FEDERAL RECORDS ACT OF 1950.—Each 

15 Federal reserve bank shall be considered a Federal 

16 agency for purposes of applying the requirements 

17 under chapter 31 of title 44, United States Code 

18 (commonly known as the ‘Federal Records Act of 

19 1950’). 

20 ‘‘(b) CONGRESSIONAL FOIA REQUESTS FOR INFOR21 MATION FROM FEDERAL RESERVE BANKS.— 

22 ‘‘(1) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection— 

23 ‘‘(A) the term ‘committee confidential 

24 basis’, with respect to information, means not 

25 publicly disclosing the information, in whole or 


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1 in part or by way of summary, unless the chair 

2 and ranking member of the relevant committee 

3 or subcommittee described in subparagraph (C) 

4 agree to publicly disclose the information; 

5 ‘‘(B) the term ‘confidential supervisory in6 formation’ has the meaning given the term in 

7 section 261.2(b) of title 12, Code of Federal 

8 Regulations, or any successor regulation; 

9 ‘‘(C) the term ‘covered Member of Con10 gress’ means— 

11 ‘‘(i) the chair and ranking member of 

12 the Committee on Banking, Housing, and 

13 Urban Affairs of the Senate; 

14 ‘‘(ii) the chair and ranking member of 

15 the Subcommittee on Economic Policy of 

16 the Committee on Banking, Housing, and 

17 Urban Affairs of the Senate; 

18 ‘‘(iii) the chair and ranking member 

19 of the Subcommittee on Financial Institu20 tions and Consumer Protection of the 

21 Committee on Banking, Housing, and 

22 Urban Affairs of the Senate; 

23 ‘‘(iv) the chair and ranking member of 

24 the Committee on Financial Services of the 

25 House of Representatives; 


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1 ‘‘(v) the chair and ranking member of 

2 the Subcommittee on Consumer Protection 

3 and Financial Institutions of the Com4 mittee on Financial Services of the House 

5 of Representatives; and 

6 ‘‘(vi) the chair and ranking member of 

7 the Subcommittee on National Security, 

8 International Development and Monetary 

9 Policy of the Committee on Financial Serv10 ices of the House of Representatives; 

11 ‘‘(D) the term ‘Inspector General’ means 

12 the Inspector General of the Board of Gov13 ernors of the Federal Reserve System and the 

14 Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection; and 

15 ‘‘(E) the term ‘personnel and medical 

16 files’— 

17 ‘‘(i) means personnel and medical files 

18 and similar files that are exempt from dis19 closure under section 552(b)(6) of title 5, 

20 United States Code; and 

21 ‘‘(ii) does not include— 

22 ‘‘(I) financial disclosure forms; or 

23 ‘‘(II) performance, disciplinary, 

24 or adverse action information. 

25 ‘‘(2) AUTHORITY.— 


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1 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subpara2 graph (B), section 552 of title 5, United States 

3 Code, is not authority for a Federal reserve 

4 bank to withhold information from Congress or 

5 any Member of Congress. 

6 ‘‘(B) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing 

7 in subparagraph (A) shall be construed to af8 fect the authority of a Federal reserve bank to 

9 withhold from an individual Member of Con10 gress requesting information under section 552 

11 of title 5, United States Code— 

12 ‘‘(i) information relating to monetary 

13 policy deliberations that is exempt from 

14 disclosure under section 552(b)(5) of title 

15 5, United States Code; and 

16 ‘‘(ii) except as provided in paragraph 

17 (6)— 

18 ‘‘(I) confidential supervisory in19 formation, as defined in section 

20 261.2(b) of title 12, Code of Federal 

21 Regulations, or any successor regula22 tion, that is exempt from disclosure 

23 under section 552(b)(8) of title 5, 

24 United States Code; and 

25 ‘‘(II) personnel and medical files. 


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1 ‘‘(3) PRIORITY OF REQUESTS FROM MEMBERS

2 OF CONGRESS.—Any request for information from a 

3 Federal reserve bank under section 552 of title 5, 

4 United States Code, made by a Member of Con5 gress— 

6 ‘‘(A) shall be prioritized ahead of requests 

7 for information made by persons other than 

8 Members of Congress; and 

9 ‘‘(B) shall be processed without charging 

10 any fee to the Member of Congress. 

11 ‘‘(4) COMMON LAW PRIVILEGES.—Notwith12 standing any other provision of law, a Federal re13 serve bank may not withhold information requested 

14 by a Member of Congress under section 552 of title 

15 5, United States Code, on the basis that the infor16 mation is privileged pursuant to a common law privi17 lege, such as the deliberative process privilege, attor18 ney-client privilege, or attorney work product privi19 lege. 

20 ‘‘(5) MAINTENANCE AND SECURITY OF MATE21 RIALS.—With respect to any materials that are re22 ceived by or in the possession of a Member of Con23 gress or any staff member of a Member of Congress 

24 in response to a request made by a Member of Con25 gress under section 552 of title 5, United States 


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1 Code, from a Federal reserve bank, the chief clerk 

2 of the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban 

3 Affairs of the Senate, with respect to the Senate, 

4 and the chief clerk of the Committee on Financial 

5 Services of the House of Representatives, with re6 spect to the House of Representatives, shall— 

7 ‘‘(A) have responsibility for the mainte8 nance and security of those materials; and 

9 ‘‘(B) ensure that— 

10 ‘‘(i) the materials are stored in a safe 

11 with a combination lock by the chief clerk 

12 of the relevant committee in the offices of 

13 the relevant committee; 

14 ‘‘(ii) the materials do not leave the 

15 relevant committee, except for a Member 

16 of Congress or any staff member of a 

17 Member of Congress to review the mate18 rials in a congressional office or to return 

19 the materials to the Federal reserve bank; 

20 ‘‘(iii) a Member of Congress or any 

21 staff member of a Member of Congress 

22 shall review the materials in a congres23 sional office; and 

24 ‘‘(iv) a Member of Congress or any 

25 staff member of a Member of Congress 


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1 shall keep the materials in their physical 

2 custody when reviewing them and keep the 

3 materials in the safe of the chief clerk of 

4 the relevant committee when not reviewing 

5 the materials. 

6 ‘‘(6) CONFIDENTIAL SUPERVISORY INFORMA7 TION AND PERSONNEL AND MEDICAL FILES.— 

8 ‘‘(A) PROHIBITION.—Notwithstanding sub9 clauses (I) and (II) of paragraph (2)(B)(ii) or 

10 any other provision of law, a Federal reserve 

11 bank may not withhold information requested 

12 by a covered Member of Congress under section 

13 552 of title 5, United States Code, on the basis 

14 that the information contains confidential su15 pervisory information or personnel and medical 

16 files. 

17 ‘‘(B) ACCESS TO INFORMATION.— 

18 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—Any covered Mem19 ber of Congress and any staff member of 

20 a covered Member of Congress that re21 ceives information that contains confiden22 tial supervisory information or personnel 

23 and medical files pursuant to a request 

24 made under section 552 of title 5, United 

25 States Code, from a Federal reserve bank 


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1 shall handle that information on a com2 mittee confidential basis according to the 

3 procedures described in clause (ii). 

4 ‘‘(ii) PROCEDURES.— 

5 ‘‘(I) MAINTENANCE AND SECU6 RITY OF MATERIALS.—With respect to 

7 any materials containing confidential 

8 supervisory information or personnel 

9 and medical files that is received by or 

10 in the possession of a covered Member 

11 of Congress or any staff member of a 

12 covered Member of Congress under 

13 clause (i), the chief clerk of the rel14 evant committee shall— 

15 ‘‘(aa) have responsibility for 

16 the maintenance and security of 

17 those materials; and 

18 ‘‘(bb) ensure that— 

19 ‘‘(AA) the materials are 

20 stored in a safe with a com21 bination lock by the chief 

22 clerk of the relevant com23 mittee in the offices of the 

24 relevant committee; 


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1 ‘‘(BB) the materials do 

2 not leave the relevant com3 mittee; 

4 ‘‘(CC) a covered Mem5 ber of Congress or any staff 

6 member of a covered Mem7 ber of Congress shall keep 

8 the materials in their phys9 ical custody when reviewing 

10 them and keep the materials 

11 in the safe of the chief clerk 

12 of the relevant committee 

13 when not reviewing the ma14 terials; 

15 ‘‘(DD) photocopying, 

16 scanning, or other reproduc17 tion of the materials is pro18 hibited; and 

19 ‘‘(EE) notes may be 

20 taken regarding the mate21 rials, but any notes shall be 

22 stored in safe of the chief 

23 clerk of the relevant com24 mittee and such notes shall 

25 not be taken or transmitted 


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1 outside of the offices of the 

2 relevant committee. 

3 ‘‘(II) ACCESS.—Access to mate4 rials containing confidential super5 visory information or personnel and 

6 medical files supplied to a covered 

7 Member of Congress shall be limited 

8 to those staff members of the relevant 

9 committee or subcommittee with a 

10 need-to-know, as determined by the 

11 Staff Director and Minority Staff Di12 rector of the committee. 

13 ‘‘(III) UNAUTHORIZED DISCLO14 SURE.—Any disclosure of materials 

15 containing confidential supervisory in16 formation or personnel and medical 

17 files without the agreement of the 

18 chair and ranking member of the rel19 evant committee or subcommittee of 

20 Congress to publicly disclose the infor21 mation, or other violation of this sub22 paragraph, shall constitute grounds 

23 for referral to the Select Committee 

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1 mittee on Ethics of the House of Rep2 resentatives, as applicable. 

3 ‘‘(7) STANDING.—Any Member of Congress 

4 who makes a request for information from a Federal 

5 reserve bank under section 552 of title 5, United 

6 States Code, has standing to file in the appropriate 

7 district court of the United States an action to en8 join the Federal reserve bank from withholding 

9 records of the Federal reserve bank and to order the 

10 production of any records of the Federal reserve 

11 bank improperly withheld from the Member of Con12 gress in the same manner as any other person under 

13 that section. 

14 ‘‘(c) CONGRESSIONAL FOIA REQUESTS FOR ETHICS15 RELATED INFORMATION FROM THE BOARD OF GOV16 ERNORS AND THE FEDERAL RESERVE BANKS.— 

17 ‘‘(1) ETHICS-RELATED INFORMATION DE18 FINED.— 

19 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subpara20 graph (B), in this subsection, the term ‘ethics21 related information’ means any record docu22 menting or relating to— 

23 ‘‘(i) the activities of the ethics pro24 gram of the Board or a Federal reserve 

25 bank; 


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1 ‘‘(ii) financial disclosure reports and 

2 related records; 

3 ‘‘(iii) ethics agreements and related 

4 records; 

5 ‘‘(iv) outside employment and activity 

6 of officers and employees of the Board or 

7 a Federal reserve bank; 

8 ‘‘(v) referrals of violations of criminal 

9 conflict of interest statutes; 

10 ‘‘(vi) ethics-related disciplinary 

11 records or adverse actions; 

12 ‘‘(vii) ethics-related investigations, in13 quiries, or reviews; 

14 ‘‘(viii) ethics-related materials, includ15 ing ethics determinations issued by, ethics 

16 advice issued by, ethics consultation en17 gaged in, and ethics training records of the 

18 Board or a Federal reserve bank; and 

19 ‘‘(ix) any other ethics-related policies, 

20 procedures, practices, or program records 

21 of the Board or a Federal reserve bank, in22 cluding— 

23 ‘‘(I) any record relating to— 

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1 plementation, interpretation, 

2 counseling, management, develop3 ment, review, or complaints; 

4 ‘‘(bb) employee training and 

5 education related to any ethics6 related policies, procedures, prac7 tices, or program; 

8 ‘‘(cc) ethics waivers, author9 izations, and approvals; 

10 ‘‘(dd) non-Federally funded 

11 travel; 

12 ‘‘(ee) any ethics-related an13 nual questionnaires relating to 

14 the ethics program of the Board 

15 or a Federal reserve bank; and 

16 ‘‘(ff) any other ethics-related 

17 policies, procedures, practices, or 

18 program of the Board or a Fed19 eral reserve bank; and 

20 ‘‘(II) any other record described 

21 in the document entitled, ‘General 

22 Records Schedule 2.8: Employee Eth23 ics Records’ published in September 

24 2016 by the National Archives and 


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1 Records Administration, or any suc2 cessor document. 

3 ‘‘(B) EXCLUSION OF CERTAIN ETHICS-RE4 LATED INFORMATION.—Notwithstanding sub5 paragraph (A), a record of advice and coun6 seling provided by an ethics official to an indi7 vidual officer or employee, except for a record 

8 that has operative legal effect such as a waiver, 

9 an authorization, an approval, or a determina10 tion that alters the ethical obligations of such 

11 officer or employee, shall not be included in the 

12 definition of the term ‘ethics-related informa13 tion’ for the purposes of this Act. 

14 ‘‘(2) DISCLOSURE OF ETHICS-RELATED INFOR15 MATION TO MEMBERS OF CONGRESS.— 

16 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Section 552 of title 5, 

17 United States Code, is not authority for the 

18 Board or a Federal reserve bank to withhold 

19 ethics-related information from a Member of 

20 Congress, including any ethics-related informa21 tion in a personnel file. 

22 ‘‘(B) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—No provi23 sion of law, including title I of the Ethics in 

24 Government Act (5 U.S.C. App.), shall preclude 

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1 tion to a Member of Congress under subpara2 graph (A). 

3 ‘‘(3) PRIORITY OF REQUESTS FROM MEMBERS

4 OF CONGRESS.—Any request for ethics-related infor5 mation from the Board or a Federal reserve bank 

6 under section 552 of title 5, United States Code, 

7 made by a Member of Congress— 

8 ‘‘(A) shall be prioritized ahead of requests 

9 for information made by persons other than 

10 Members of Congress; and 

11 ‘‘(B) shall be processed without charging 

12 any fee to the Member of Congress. 

13 ‘‘(4) COMMON LAW PRIVILEGES.—Notwith14 standing any other provision of law, the Board or a 

15 Federal reserve bank may not withhold ethics-re16 lated information requested by a Member of Con17 gress under section 552 of title 5, United States 

18 Code, on the basis that the information is privileged 

19 pursuant to a common law privilege, such as the de20 liberative process privilege, attorney-client privilege, 

21 or attorney work product privilege. 

22 ‘‘(5) MAINTENANCE AND SECURITY OF MATE23 RIALS.—With respect to any materials related to 

24 ethics-related information that are received by or in 

25 the possession of a Member of Congress or any staff 


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1 member of a Member of Congress in response to a 

2 request made by a Member of Congress under sec3 tion 552 of title 5, United States Code, from the 

4 Board or a Federal reserve bank, the chief clerk of 

5 the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Af6 fairs of the Senate, with respect to the Senate, and 

7 the chief clerk of the Committee on Financial Serv8 ices of the House of Representatives, with respect to 

9 the House of Representatives, shall— 

10 ‘‘(A) have responsibility for the mainte11 nance and security of those materials; and 

12 ‘‘(B) ensure that— 

13 ‘‘(i) the materials are stored in a safe 

14 with a combination lock by the chief clerk 

15 of the relevant committee in the offices of 

16 the relevant committee; 

17 ‘‘(ii) the materials do not leave the 

18 relevant committee, except for a Member 

19 of Congress or any staff member of a 

20 Member of Congress to review the mate21 rials in a congressional office or to return 

22 the materials to the Board or the Federal 

23 reserve bank, as applicable; 

24 ‘‘(iii) a Member of Congress or any 

25 staff member of a Member of Congress 


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1 shall review the materials in a congres2 sional office; and 

3 ‘‘(iv) a Member of Congress or any 

4 staff member of a Member of Congress 

5 shall keep the materials in their physical 

6 custody when reviewing them and keep the 

7 materials in the safe of the chief clerk of 

8 the relevant committee when not reviewing 

9 the materials. 

10 ‘‘(6) STANDING.—Any Member of Congress 

11 who makes a request for ethics-related information 

12 from the Board or a Federal reserve bank under sec13 tion 552 of title 5, United States Code, has standing 

14 to file in the appropriate district court of the United 

15 States an action to enjoin the Board or the Federal 

16 reserve bank, as applicable, from withholding records 

17 of the Board or the Federal reserve bank, as appli18 cable, and to order the production of any records of 

19 the Board or the Federal reserve bank, as applica20 ble, improperly withheld from the Member of Con21 gress in the same manner as any other person under 

22 that section.’’. 


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1 SEC. 3. CONGRESSIONAL FOIA REQUESTS FOR ETHICS-RE2 LATED INFORMATION FROM OTHER FINAN3 CIAL REGULATORY AGENCIES. 

4 (a) BUREAU OF CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTEC5 TION.—Subtitle A of title X of the Consumer Financial 

6 Protection Act of 2010 (12 U.S.C. 5491 et seq.) is amend7 ed by inserting after section 1016B (12 U.S.C. 5496b) 

8 the following: 

9 ‘‘SEC. 1016C. CONGRESSIONAL FOIA REQUESTS FOR ETH10 ICS-RELATED INFORMATION FROM THE BU11 REAU. 

12 ‘‘(a) ETHICS-RELATED INFORMATION DEFINED.— 

13 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraph (2), 

14 in this section, the term ‘ethics-related information’ 

15 means any record documenting or relating to— 

16 ‘‘(A) the activities of the ethics program of 

17 the Bureau; 

18 ‘‘(B) financial disclosure reports and re19 lated records; 

20 ‘‘(C) ethics agreements and related 

21 records; 

22 ‘‘(D) outside employment and activity of 

23 officers and employees of the Bureau; 

24 ‘‘(E) referrals of violations of criminal con25 flict of interest statutes; 


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1 ‘‘(F) ethics-related disciplinary records or 

2 adverse actions; 

3 ‘‘(G) ethics-related investigations, inquir4 ies, or reviews; 

5 ‘‘(H) ethics-related materials, including 

6 ethics determinations issued by, ethics advice 

7 issued by, ethics consultation engaged in, and 

8 ethics training records of the Bureau; and 

9 ‘‘(I) any other ethics-related policies, pro10 cedures, practices, or program records of the 

11 Bureau, including— 

12 ‘‘(i) any record relating to— 

13 ‘‘(I) ethics policies, procedures, 

14 practices, or program implementation, 

15 interpretation, counseling, manage16 ment, development, review, or com17 plaints; 

18 ‘‘(II) employee training and edu19 cation related to any ethics-related 

20 policies, procedures, practices, or pro21 gram; 

22 ‘‘(III) ethics waivers, authoriza23 tions, and approvals; 

24 ‘‘(IV) non-Federally funded trav25 el; 


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1 ‘‘(V) any ethics-related annual 

2 questionnaires relating to the ethics 

3 program of the Bureau; and 

4 ‘‘(VI) any other ethics-related 

5 policies, procedures, practices, or pro6 gram of the Bureau; and 

7 ‘‘(ii) any other record described in the 

8 document entitled, ‘General Records 

9 Schedule 2.8: Employee Ethics Records’ 

10 published in September 2016 by the Na11 tional Archives and Records Administra12 tion, or any successor document. 

13 ‘‘(2) EXCLUSION OF CERTAIN ETHICS-RELATED

14 INFORMATION.—Notwithstanding paragraph (1), a 

15 record of advice and counseling provided by an eth16 ics official to an individual officer or employee, ex17 cept for a record that has operative legal effect such 

18 as a waiver, an authorization, an approval, or a de19 termination that alters the ethical obligations of 

20 such officer or employee, shall not be included in the 

21 definition of the term ‘ethics-related information’ for 

22 the purposes of this Act. 

23 ‘‘(b) DISCLOSURE OF ETHICS-RELATED INFORMA24 TION TO MEMBERS OF CONGRESS.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Section 552 of title 5, 

2 United States Code, is not authority for the Bureau 

3 to withhold ethics-related information from a Mem4 ber of Congress, including any ethics-related infor5 mation in a personnel file. 

6 ‘‘(2) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—No provision 

7 of law, including title I of the Ethics in Government 

8 Act (5 U.S.C. App.), shall preclude or limit the dis9 closure of ethics-related information to a Member of 

10 Congress under paragraph (1). 

11 ‘‘(c) PRIORITY OF REQUESTS FROM MEMBERS OF

12 CONGRESS.—Any request for ethics-related information 

13 from the Bureau under section 552 of title 5, United 

14 States Code, made by a Member of Congress— 

15 ‘‘(1) shall be prioritized ahead of requests for 

16 information made by persons other than Members of 

17 Congress; and 

18 ‘‘(2) shall be processed without charging any 

19 fee to the Member of Congress. 

20 ‘‘(d) COMMON LAW PRIVILEGES.—Notwithstanding 

21 any other provision of law, the Bureau may not withhold 

22 ethics-related information requested by a Member of Con23 gress under section 552 of title 5, United States Code, 

24 on the basis that the information is privileged pursuant 

25 to a common law privilege, such as the deliberative process 


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1 privilege, attorney-client privilege, or attorney work prod2 uct privilege. 

3 ‘‘(e) MAINTENANCE AND SECURITY OF MATE4 RIALS.—With respect to any materials related to ethics5 related information that are received by or in the posses6 sion of a Member of Congress or any staff member of a 

7 Member of Congress in response to a request made by a 

8 Member of Congress under section 552 of title 5, United 

9 States Code, from the Bureau, the chief clerk of the Com10 mittee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs of the 

11 Senate, with respect to the Senate, and the chief clerk of 

12 the Committee on Financial Services of the House of Rep13 resentatives, with respect to the House of Representatives, 

14 shall— 

15 ‘‘(1) have responsibility for the maintenance 

16 and security of those materials; and 

17 ‘‘(2) ensure that— 

18 ‘‘(A) the materials are stored in a safe 

19 with a combination lock by the chief clerk of 

20 the relevant committee in the offices of the rel21 evant committee; 

22 ‘‘(B) the materials do not leave the rel23 evant committee, except for a Member of Con24 gress or any staff member of a Member of ConVerDate Sep 11 2014 20:30 Apr 13, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00023 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1160.IS S1160

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1 gress to review the materials in a congressional 

2 office or to return the materials to the Bureau; 

3 ‘‘(C) a Member of Congress or any staff 

4 member of a Member of Congress shall review 

5 the materials in a congressional office; and 

6 ‘‘(D) a Member of Congress or any staff 

7 member of a Member of Congress shall keep 

8 the materials in their physical custody when re9 viewing them and keep the materials in the safe 

10 of the chief clerk of the relevant committee 

11 when not reviewing the materials. 

12 ‘‘(f) STANDING.—Any Member of Congress who 

13 makes a request for ethics-related information from the 

14 Bureau under section 552 of title 5, United States Code, 

15 has standing to file in the appropriate district court of 

16 the United States an action to enjoin the Bureau from 

17 withholding records of the Bureau and to order the pro18 duction of any records of the Bureau improperly withheld 

19 from the Member of Congress in the same manner as any 

20 other person under that section.’’. 

21 (b) FEDERAL DEPOSIT INSURANCE CORPORATION.— 

22 The Federal Deposit Insurance Act (12 U.S.C. 1811 et 

23 seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following: 


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1 ‘‘SEC. 52. CONGRESSIONAL FOIA REQUESTS FOR ETHICS2 RELATED INFORMATION FROM THE COR3 PORATION. 

4 ‘‘(a) ETHICS-RELATED INFORMATION DEFINED.— 

5 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraph (2), 

6 in this section, the term ‘ethics-related information’ 

7 means any record documenting or relating to— 

8 ‘‘(A) the activities of the ethics program of 

9 the Corporation; 

10 ‘‘(B) financial disclosure reports and re11 lated records; 

12 ‘‘(C) ethics agreements and related 

13 records; 

14 ‘‘(D) outside employment and activity of 

15 officers and employees of the Corporation; 

16 ‘‘(E) referrals of violations of criminal con17 flict of interest statutes; 

18 ‘‘(F) ethics-related disciplinary records or 

19 adverse actions; 

20 ‘‘(G) ethics-related investigations, inquir21 ies, or reviews; 

22 ‘‘(H) ethics-related materials, including 

23 ethics determinations issued by, ethics advice 

24 issued by, ethics consultation engaged in, and 

25 ethics training records of the Corporation; and 


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1 ‘‘(I) any other ethics-related policies, pro2 cedures, practices, or program records of the 

3 Corporation, including— 

4 ‘‘(i) any record relating to— 

5 ‘‘(I) ethics policies, procedures, 

6 practices, or program implementation, 

7 interpretation, counseling, manage8 ment, development, review, or com9 plaints; 

10 ‘‘(II) employee training and edu11 cation related to any ethics-related 

12 policies, procedures, practices, or pro13 gram; 

14 ‘‘(III) ethics waivers, authoriza15 tions, and approvals; 

16 ‘‘(IV) non-Federally funded trav17 el; 

18 ‘‘(V) any ethics-related annual 

19 questionnaires relating to the ethics 

20 program of the Corporation; and 

21 ‘‘(VI) any other ethics-related 

22 policies, procedures, practices, or pro23 gram of the Corporation; and 

24 ‘‘(ii) any other record described in the 

25 document entitled, ‘General Records 


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27 

•S 1160 IS

1 Schedule 2.8: Employee Ethics Records’ 

2 published in September 2016 by the Na3 tional Archives and Records Administra4 tion, or any successor document. 

5 ‘‘(2) EXCLUSION OF CERTAIN ETHICS-RELATED

6 INFORMATION.—Notwithstanding paragraph (1), a 

7 record of advice and counseling provided by an eth8 ics official to an individual officer or employee, ex9 cept for a record that has operative legal effect such 

10 as a waiver, an authorization, an approval, or a de11 termination that alters the ethical obligations of 

12 such officer or employee, shall not be included in the 

13 definition of the term ‘ethics-related information’ for 

14 the purposes of this Act. 

15 ‘‘(b) DISCLOSURE OF ETHICS-RELATED INFORMA16 TION TO MEMBERS OF CONGRESS.— 

17 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Section 552 of title 5, 

18 United States Code, is not authority for the Cor19 poration to withhold ethics-related information from 

20 a Member of Congress, including any ethics-related 

21 information in a personnel file. 

22 ‘‘(2) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—No provision 

23 of law, including title I of the Ethics in Government 

24 Act (5 U.S.C. App.), shall preclude or limit the disVerDate Sep 11 2014 20:30 Apr 13, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00027 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1160.IS S1160

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28 

•S 1160 IS

1 closure of ethics-related information to a Member of 

2 Congress under paragraph (1). 

3 ‘‘(c) PRIORITY OF REQUESTS FROM MEMBERS OF

4 CONGRESS.—Any request for ethics-related information 

5 from the Corporation under section 552 of title 5, United 

6 States Code, made by a Member of Congress— 

7 ‘‘(1) shall be prioritized ahead of requests for 

8 information made by persons other than Members of 

9 Congress; and 

10 ‘‘(2) shall be processed without charging any 

11 fee to the Member of Congress. 

12 ‘‘(d) COMMON LAW PRIVILEGES.—Notwithstanding 

13 any other provision of law, the Corporation may not with14 hold ethics-related information requested by a Member of 

15 Congress under section 552 of title 5, United States Code, 

16 on the basis that the information is privileged pursuant 

17 to a common law privilege, such as the deliberative process 

18 privilege, attorney-client privilege, or attorney work prod19 uct privilege. 

20 ‘‘(e) MAINTENANCE AND SECURITY OF MATE21 RIALS.—With respect to any materials related to ethics22 related information that are received by or in the posses23 sion of a Member of Congress or any staff member of a 

24 Member of Congress in response to a request made by a 

25 Member of Congress under section 552 of title 5, United 


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29 

•S 1160 IS

1 States Code, from the Corporation, the chief clerk of the 

2 Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs of 

3 the Senate, with respect to the Senate, and the chief clerk 

4 of the Committee on Financial Services of the House of 

5 Representatives, with respect to the House of Representa6 tives, shall— 

7 ‘‘(1) have responsibility for the maintenance 

8 and security of those materials; and 

9 ‘‘(2) ensure that— 

10 ‘‘(A) the materials are stored in a safe 

11 with a combination lock by the chief clerk of 

12 the relevant committee in the offices of the rel13 evant committee; 

14 ‘‘(B) the materials do not leave the rel15 evant committee, except for a Member of Con16 gress or any staff member of a Member of Con17 gress to review the materials in a congressional 

18 office or to return the materials to the Corpora19 tion; 

20 ‘‘(C) a Member of Congress or any staff 

21 member of a Member of Congress shall review 

22 the materials in a congressional office; and 

23 ‘‘(D) a Member of Congress or any staff 

24 member of a Member of Congress shall keep 

25 the materials in their physical custody when reVerDate Sep 11 2014 20:30 Apr 13, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00029 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1160.IS S1160

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30 

•S 1160 IS

1 viewing them and keep the materials in the safe 

2 of the chief clerk of the relevant committee 

3 when not reviewing the materials. 

4 ‘‘(f) STANDING.—Any Member of Congress who 

5 makes a request for ethics-related information from the 

6 Corporation under section 552 of title 5, United States 

7 Code, has standing to file in the appropriate district court 

8 of the United States an action to enjoin the Corporation 

9 from withholding records of the Corporation and to order 

10 the production of any records of the Corporation improp11 erly withheld from the Member of Congress in the same 

12 manner as any other person under that section.’’. 

13 (c) SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION.—The 

14 Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (12 U.S.C. 78a et seq.) 

15 is amended by inserting after section 4E (12 U.S.C. 78d– 

16 5) the following: 

17 ‘‘SEC. 4F. CONGRESSIONAL FOIA REQUESTS FOR ETHICS18 RELATED INFORMATION FROM THE COMMIS19 SION. 

20 ‘‘(a) ETHICS-RELATED INFORMATION DEFINED.— 

21 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraph (2), 

22 in this section, the term ‘ethics-related information’ 

23 means any record documenting or relating to— 

24 ‘‘(A) the activities of the ethics program of 

25 the Commission; 


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31 

•S 1160 IS

1 ‘‘(B) financial disclosure reports and re2 lated records; 

3 ‘‘(C) ethics agreements and related 

4 records; 

5 ‘‘(D) outside employment and activity of 

6 officers and employees of the Commission; 

7 ‘‘(E) referrals of violations of criminal con8 flict of interest statutes; 

9 ‘‘(F) ethics-related disciplinary records or 

10 adverse actions; 

11 ‘‘(G) ethics-related investigations, inquir12 ies, or reviews; 

13 ‘‘(H) ethics-related materials, including 

14 ethics determinations issued by, ethics advice 

15 issued by, ethics consultation engaged in, and 

16 ethics training records of the Commission; and 

17 ‘‘(I) any other ethics-related policies, pro18 cedures, practices, or program records of the 

19 Commission, including— 

20 ‘‘(i) any record relating to— 

21 ‘‘(I) ethics policies, procedures, 

22 practices, or program implementation, 

23 interpretation, counseling, manage24 ment, development, review, or com25 plaints; 


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32 

•S 1160 IS

1 ‘‘(II) employee training and edu2 cation related to any ethics-related 

3 policies, procedures, practices, or pro4 gram; 

5 ‘‘(III) ethics waivers, authoriza6 tions, and approvals; 

7 ‘‘(IV) non-Federally funded trav8 el; 

9 ‘‘(V) any ethics-related annual 

10 questionnaires relating to the ethics 

11 program of the Commission; and 

12 ‘‘(VI) any other ethics-related 

13 policies, procedures, practices, or pro14 gram of the Commission; and 

15 ‘‘(ii) any other record described in the 

16 document entitled, ‘General Records 

17 Schedule 2.8: Employee Ethics Records’ 

18 published in September 2016 by the Na19 tional Archives and Records Administra20 tion, or any successor document. 

21 ‘‘(2) EXCLUSION OF CERTAIN ETHICS-RELATED

22 INFORMATION.—Notwithstanding paragraph (1), a 

23 record of advice and counseling provided by an eth24 ics official to an individual officer or employee, ex25 cept for a record that has operative legal effect such 


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33 

•S 1160 IS

1 as a waiver, an authorization, an approval, or a de2 termination that alters the ethical obligations of 

3 such officer or employee, shall not be included in the 

4 definition of the term ‘ethics-related information’ for 

5 the purposes of this Act. 

6 ‘‘(b) DISCLOSURE OF ETHICS-RELATED INFORMA7 TION TO MEMBERS OF CONGRESS.— 

8 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Section 552 of title 5, 

9 United States Code, is not authority for the Com10 mission to withhold ethics-related information from 

11 a Member of Congress, including any ethics-related 

12 information in a personnel file. 

13 ‘‘(2) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—No provision 

14 of law, including title I of the Ethics in Government 

15 Act (5 U.S.C. App.), shall preclude or limit the dis16 closure of ethics-related information to a Member of 

17 Congress under paragraph (1). 

18 ‘‘(c) PRIORITY OF REQUESTS FROM MEMBERS OF

19 CONGRESS.—Any request for ethics-related information 

20 from the Commission under section 552 of title 5, United 

21 States Code, made by a Member of Congress— 

22 ‘‘(1) shall be prioritized ahead of requests for 

23 information made by persons other than Members of 

24 Congress; and 


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•S 1160 IS

1 ‘‘(2) shall be processed without charging any 

2 fee to the Member of Congress. 

3 ‘‘(d) COMMON LAW PRIVILEGES.—Notwithstanding 

4 any other provision of law, the Commission may not with5 hold ethics-related information requested by a Member of 

6 Congress under section 552 of title 5, United States Code, 

7 on the basis that the information is privileged pursuant 

8 to a common law privilege, such as the deliberative process 

9 privilege, attorney-client privilege, or attorney work prod10 uct privilege. 

11 ‘‘(e) MAINTENANCE AND SECURITY OF MATE12 RIALS.—With respect to any materials related to ethics13 related information that are received by or in the posses14 sion of a Member of Congress or any staff member of a 

15 Member of Congress in response to a request made by a 

16 Member of Congress under section 552 of title 5, United 

17 States Code, from the Commission, the chief clerk of the 

18 Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs of 

19 the Senate, with respect to the Senate, and the chief clerk 

20 of the Committee on Financial Services of the House of 

21 Representatives, with respect to the House of Representa22 tives, shall— 

23 ‘‘(1) have responsibility for the maintenance 

24 and security of those materials; and 

25 ‘‘(2) ensure that— 


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35 

•S 1160 IS

1 ‘‘(A) the materials are stored in a safe 

2 with a combination lock by the chief clerk of 

3 the relevant committee in the offices of the rel4 evant committee; 

5 ‘‘(B) the materials do not leave the rel6 evant committee, except for a Member of Con7 gress or any staff member of a Member of Con8 gress to review the materials in a congressional 

9 office or to return the materials to the Commis10 sion; 

11 ‘‘(C) a Member of Congress or any staff 

12 member of a Member of Congress shall review 

13 the materials in a congressional office; and 

14 ‘‘(D) a Member of Congress or any staff 

15 member of a Member of Congress shall keep 

16 the materials in their physical custody when re17 viewing them and keep the materials in the safe 

18 of the chief clerk of the relevant committee 

19 when not reviewing the materials. 

20 ‘‘(f) STANDING.—Any Member of Congress who 

21 makes a request for ethics-related information from the 

22 Commission under section 552 of title 5, United States 

23 Code, has standing to file in the appropriate district court 

24 of the United States an action to enjoin the Commission 

25 from withholding records of the Commission and to order 


pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB
36 

•S 1160 IS

1 the production of any records of the Commission improp2 erly withheld from the Member of Congress in the same 

3 manner as any other person under that section.’’. 

4 (d) NATIONAL CREDIT UNION ADMINISTRATION.— 

5 Title I of the Federal Credit Union Act (12 U.S.C. 1752 

6 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following: 

7 ‘‘SEC. 132. CONGRESSIONAL FOIA REQUESTS FOR ETHICS8 RELATED INFORMATION FROM THE ADMINIS9 TRATION. 

10 ‘‘(a) ETHICS-RELATED INFORMATION DEFINED.— 

11 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraph (2), 

12 in this section, the term ‘ethics-related information’ 

13 means any record documenting or relating to— 

14 ‘‘(A) the activities of the ethics program of 

15 the Administration; 

16 ‘‘(B) financial disclosure reports and re17 lated records; 

18 ‘‘(C) ethics agreements and related 

19 records; 

20 ‘‘(D) outside employment and activity of 

21 officers and employees of the Administration; 

22 ‘‘(E) referrals of violations of criminal con23 flict of interest statutes; 

24 ‘‘(F) ethics-related disciplinary records or 

25 adverse actions; 


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37 

•S 1160 IS

1 ‘‘(G) ethics-related investigations, inquir2 ies, or reviews; 

3 ‘‘(H) ethics-related materials, including 

4 ethics determinations issued by, ethics advice 

5 issued by, ethics consultation engaged in, and 

6 ethics training records of the Administration; 

7 and 

8 ‘‘(I) any other ethics-related policies, pro9 cedures, practices, or program records of the 

10 Administration, including— 

11 ‘‘(i) any record relating to— 

12 ‘‘(I) ethics policies, procedures, 

13 practices, or program implementation, 

14 interpretation, counseling, manage15 ment, development, review, or com16 plaints; 

17 ‘‘(II) employee training and edu18 cation related to any ethics-related 

19 policies, procedures, practices, or pro20 gram; 

21 ‘‘(III) ethics waivers, authoriza22 tions, and approvals; 

23 ‘‘(IV) non-Federally funded trav24 el; 


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38 

•S 1160 IS

1 ‘‘(V) any ethics-related annual 

2 questionnaires relating to the ethics 

3 program of the Administration; and 

4 ‘‘(VI) any other ethics-related 

5 policies, procedures, practices, or pro6 gram of the Administration; and 

7 ‘‘(ii) any other record described in the 

8 document entitled, ‘General Records 

9 Schedule 2.8: Employee Ethics Records’ 

10 published in September 2016 by the Na11 tional Archives and Records Administra12 tion, or any successor document. 

13 ‘‘(2) EXCLUSION OF CERTAIN ETHICS-RELATED

14 INFORMATION.—Notwithstanding paragraph (1), a 

15 record of advice and counseling provided by an eth16 ics official to an individual officer or employee, ex17 cept for a record that has operative legal effect such 

18 as a waiver, an authorization, an approval, or a de19 termination that alters the ethical obligations of 

20 such officer or employee, shall not be included in the 

21 definition of the term ‘ethics-related information’ for 

22 the purposes of this Act. 

23 ‘‘(b) DISCLOSURE OF ETHICS-RELATED INFORMA24 TION TO MEMBERS OF CONGRESS.— 


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39 

•S 1160 IS

1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Section 552 of title 5, 

2 United States Code, is not authority for the Admin3 istration to withhold ethics-related information from 

4 a Member of Congress, including any ethics-related 

5 information in a personnel file. 

6 ‘‘(2) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—No provision 

7 of law, including title I of the Ethics in Government 

8 Act (5 U.S.C. App.), shall preclude or limit the dis9 closure of ethics-related information to a Member of 

10 Congress under paragraph (1). 

11 ‘‘(c) PRIORITY OF REQUESTS FROM MEMBERS OF

12 CONGRESS.—Any request for ethics-related information 

13 from the Administration under section 552 of title 5, 

14 United States Code, made by a Member of Congress— 

15 ‘‘(1) shall be prioritized ahead of requests for 

16 information made by persons other than Members of 

17 Congress; and 

18 ‘‘(2) shall be processed without charging any 

19 fee to the Member of Congress. 

20 ‘‘(d) COMMON LAW PRIVILEGES.—Notwithstanding 

21 any other provision of law, the Administration may not 

22 withhold ethics-related information requested by a Mem23 ber of Congress under section 552 of title 5, United States 

24 Code, on the basis that the information is privileged pur25 suant to a common law privilege, such as the deliberative 


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40 

•S 1160 IS

1 process privilege, attorney-client privilege, or attorney 

2 work product privilege. 

3 ‘‘(e) MAINTENANCE AND SECURITY OF MATE4 RIALS.—With respect to any materials related to ethics5 related information that are received by or in the posses6 sion of a Member of Congress or any staff member of a 

7 Member of Congress in response to a request made by a 

8 Member of Congress under section 552 of title 5, United 

9 States Code, from the Administration, the chief clerk of 

10 the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs 

11 of the Senate, with respect to the Senate, and the chief 

12 clerk of the Committee on Financial Services of the House 

13 of Representatives, with respect to the House of Rep14 resentatives, shall— 

15 ‘‘(1) have responsibility for the maintenance 

16 and security of those materials; and 

17 ‘‘(2) ensure that— 

18 ‘‘(A) the materials are stored in a safe 

19 with a combination lock by the chief clerk of 

20 the relevant committee in the offices of the rel21 evant committee; 

22 ‘‘(B) the materials do not leave the rel23 evant committee, except for a Member of Con24 gress or any staff member of a Member of Con25 gress to review the materials in a congressional 


pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB
41 

•S 1160 IS

1 office or to return the materials to the Adminis2 tration; 

3 ‘‘(C) a Member of Congress or any staff 

4 member of a Member of Congress shall review 

5 the materials in a congressional office; and 

6 ‘‘(D) a Member of Congress or any staff 

7 member of a Member of Congress shall keep 

8 the materials in their physical custody when re9 viewing them and keep the materials in the safe 

10 of the chief clerk of the relevant committee 

11 when not reviewing the materials. 

12 ‘‘(f) STANDING.—Any Member of Congress who 

13 makes a request for ethics-related information from the 

14 Administration under section 552 of title 5, United States 

15 Code, has standing to file in the appropriate district court 

16 of the United States an action to enjoin the Administra17 tion from withholding records of the Administration and 

18 to order the production of any records of the Administra19 tion improperly withheld from the Member of Congress in 

20 the same manner as any other person under that section.’’. 

21 (e) OFFICE OF THE COMPTROLLER OF THE CUR22 RENCY.—The Revised Statutes of the United States is 

23 amended by inserting after section 333 (12 U.S.C. 14) 

24 the following: 


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42 

•S 1160 IS

1 ‘‘SEC. 334. CONGRESSIONAL FOIA REQUESTS FOR ETHICS2 RELATED INFORMATION FROM THE OFFICE 

3 OF THE COMPTROLLER OF THE CURRENCY. 

4 ‘‘(a) ETHICS-RELATED INFORMATION DEFINED.— 

5 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraph (2), 

6 in this section, the term ‘ethics-related information’ 

7 means any record documenting or relating to— 

8 ‘‘(A) the activities of the ethics program of 

9 the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency 

10 (in this section referred to as the ‘Office’); 

11 ‘‘(B) financial disclosure reports and re12 lated records; 

13 ‘‘(C) ethics agreements and related 

14 records; 

15 ‘‘(D) outside employment and activity of 

16 officers and employees of the Office; 

17 ‘‘(E) referrals of violations of criminal con18 flict of interest statutes; 

19 ‘‘(F) ethics-related disciplinary records or 

20 adverse actions; 

21 ‘‘(G) ethics-related investigations, inquir22 ies, or reviews; 

23 ‘‘(H) ethics-related materials, including 

24 ethics determinations issued by, ethics advice 

25 issued by, ethics consultation engaged in, and 

26 ethics training records of the Office; and 


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43 

•S 1160 IS

1 ‘‘(I) any other ethics-related policies, pro2 cedures, practices, or program records of the 

3 Office, including— 

4 ‘‘(i) any record relating to— 

5 ‘‘(I) ethics policies, procedures, 

6 practices, or program implementation, 

7 interpretation, counseling, manage8 ment, development, review, or com9 plaints; 

10 ‘‘(II) employee training and edu11 cation related to any ethics-related 

12 policies, procedures, practices, or pro13 gram; 

14 ‘‘(III) ethics waivers, authoriza15 tions, and approvals; 

16 ‘‘(IV) non-Federally funded trav17 el; 

18 ‘‘(V) any ethics-related annual 

19 questionnaires relating to the ethics 

20 program of the Office; and 

21 ‘‘(VI) any other ethics-related 

22 policies, procedures, practices, or pro23 gram of the Office; and 

24 ‘‘(ii) any other record described in the 

25 document entitled, ‘General Records 


pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB
44 

•S 1160 IS

1 Schedule 2.8: Employee Ethics Records’ 

2 published in September 2016 by the Na3 tional Archives and Records Administra4 tion, or any successor document. 

5 ‘‘(2) EXCLUSION OF CERTAIN ETHICS-RELATED

6 INFORMATION.—Notwithstanding paragraph (1), a 

7 record of advice and counseling provided by an eth8 ics official to an individual officer or employee, ex9 cept for a record that has operative legal effect such 

10 as a waiver, an authorization, an approval, or a de11 termination that alters the ethical obligations of 

12 such officer or employee, shall not be included in the 

13 definition of the term ‘ethics-related information’ for 

14 the purposes of this Act. 

15 ‘‘(b) DISCLOSURE OF ETHICS-RELATED INFORMA16 TION TO MEMBERS OF CONGRESS.— 

17 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Section 552 of title 5, 

18 United States Code, is not authority for the Office 

19 to withhold ethics-related information from a Mem20 ber of Congress, including any ethics-related infor21 mation in a personnel file. 

22 ‘‘(2) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—No provision 

23 of law, including title I of the Ethics in Government 

24 Act (5 U.S.C. App.), shall preclude or limit the disVerDate Sep 11 2014 20:30 Apr 13, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00044 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1160.IS S1160

pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB
45 

•S 1160 IS

1 closure of ethics-related information to a Member of 

2 Congress under paragraph (1). 

3 ‘‘(c) PRIORITY OF REQUESTS FROM MEMBERS OF

4 CONGRESS.—Any request for ethics-related information 

5 from the Office under section 552 of title 5, United States 

6 Code, made by a Member of Congress— 

7 ‘‘(1) shall be prioritized ahead of requests for 

8 information made by persons other than Members of 

9 Congress; and 

10 ‘‘(2) shall be processed without charging any 

11 fee to the Member of Congress. 

12 ‘‘(d) COMMON LAW PRIVILEGES.—Notwithstanding 

13 any other provision of law, the Office may not withhold 

14 ethics-related information requested by a Member of Con15 gress under section 552 of title 5, United States Code, 

16 on the basis that the information is privileged pursuant 

17 to a common law privilege, such as the deliberative process 

18 privilege, attorney-client privilege, or attorney work prod19 uct privilege. 

20 ‘‘(e) MAINTENANCE AND SECURITY OF MATE21 RIALS.—With respect to any materials related to ethics22 related information that are received by or in the posses23 sion of a Member of Congress or any staff member of a 

24 Member of Congress in response to a request made by a 

25 Member of Congress under section 552 of title 5, United 


pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB
46 

•S 1160 IS

1 States Code, from the Office, the chief clerk of the Com2 mittee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs of the 

3 Senate, with respect to the Senate, and the chief clerk of 

4 the Committee on Financial Services of the House of Rep5 resentatives, with respect to the House of Representatives, 

6 shall— 

7 ‘‘(1) have responsibility for the maintenance 

8 and security of those materials; and 

9 ‘‘(2) ensure that— 

10 ‘‘(A) the materials are stored in a safe 

11 with a combination lock by the chief clerk of 

12 the relevant committee in the offices of the rel13 evant committee; 

14 ‘‘(B) the materials do not leave the rel15 evant committee, except for a Member of Con16 gress or any staff member of a Member of Con17 gress to review the materials in a congressional 

18 office or to return the materials to the Office; 

19 ‘‘(C) a Member of Congress or any staff 

20 member of a Member of Congress shall review 

21 the materials in a congressional office; and 

22 ‘‘(D) a Member of Congress or any staff 

23 member of a Member of Congress shall keep 

24 the materials in their physical custody when re25 viewing them and keep the materials in the safe 


pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with $$_JOB
47 

•S 1160 IS

1 of the chief clerk of the relevant committee 

2 when not reviewing the materials. 

3 ‘‘(f) STANDING.—Any Member of Congress who 

4 makes a request for ethics-related information from the 

5 Office under section 552 of title 5, United States Code, 

6 has standing to file in the appropriate district court of 

7 the United States an action to enjoin the Office from with8 holding records of the Office and to order the production 

9 of any records of the Office improperly withheld from the 

10 Member of Congress in the same manner as any other per11 son under that section.’’. 

12 (f) FEDERAL HOUSING FINANCE AGENCY.—Part 1 

13 of subtitle A of the Federal Housing Enterprises Financial 

14 Safety and Soundness Act of 1992 (12 U.S.C. 4511 et 

15 seq.) is amended by adding at the end the following: 

16 ‘‘SEC. 1319H. CONGRESSIONAL FOIA REQUESTS FOR ETH17 ICS-RELATED INFORMATION FROM THE 

18 AGENCY. 

19 ‘‘(a) ETHICS-RELATED INFORMATION DEFINED.— 

20 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Subject to paragraph (2), 

21 in this section, the term ‘ethics-related information’ 

22 means any record documenting or relating to— 

23 ‘‘(A) the activities of the ethics program of 

24 the Agency; 


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48 

•S 1160 IS

1 ‘‘(B) financial disclosure reports and re2 lated records; 

3 ‘‘(C) ethics agreements and related 

4 records; 

5 ‘‘(D) outside employment and activity of 

6 officers and employees of the Agency; 

7 ‘‘(E) referrals of violations of criminal con8 flict of interest statutes; 

9 ‘‘(F) ethics-related disciplinary records or 

10 adverse actions; 

11 ‘‘(G) ethics-related investigations, inquir12 ies, or reviews; 

13 ‘‘(H) ethics-related materials, including 

14 ethics determinations issued by, ethics advice 

15 issued by, ethics consultation engaged in, and 

16 ethics training records of the Agency; and 

17 ‘‘(I) any other ethics-related policies, pro18 cedures, practices, or program records of the 

19 Agency, including— 

20 ‘‘(i) any record relating to— 

21 ‘‘(I) ethics policies, procedures, 

22 practices, or program implementation, 

23 interpretation, counseling, manage24 ment, development, review, or com25 plaints; 


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49 

•S 1160 IS

1 ‘‘(II) employee training and edu2 cation related to any ethics-related 

3 policies, procedures, practices, or pro4 gram; 

5 ‘‘(III) ethics waivers, authoriza6 tions, and approvals; 

7 ‘‘(IV) non-Federally funded trav8 el; 

9 ‘‘(V) any ethics-related annual 

10 questionnaires relating to the ethics 

11 program of the Agency; and 

12 ‘‘(VI) any other ethics-related 

13 policies, procedures, practices, or pro14 gram of the Agency; and 

15 ‘‘(ii) any other record described in the 

16 document entitled, ‘General Records 

17 Schedule 2.8: Employee Ethics Records’ 

18 published in September 2016 by the Na19 tional Archives and Records Administra20 tion, or any successor document. 

21 ‘‘(2) EXCLUSION OF CERTAIN ETHICS-RELATED

22 INFORMATION.—Notwithstanding paragraph (1), a 

23 record of advice and counseling provided by an eth24 ics official to an individual officer or employee, ex25 cept for a record that has operative legal effect such 


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50 

•S 1160 IS

1 as a waiver, an authorization, an approval, or a de2 termination that alters the ethical obligations of 

3 such officer or employee, shall not be included in the 

4 definition of the term ‘ethics-related information’ for 

5 the purposes of this Act. 

6 ‘‘(b) DISCLOSURE OF ETHICS-RELATED INFORMA7 TION TO MEMBERS OF CONGRESS.— 

8 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Section 552 of title 5, 

9 United States Code, is not authority for the Agency 

10 to withhold ethics-related information from a Mem11 ber of Congress, including any ethics-related infor12 mation in a personnel file. 

13 ‘‘(2) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—No provision 

14 of law, including title I of the Ethics in Government 

15 Act (5 U.S.C. App.), shall preclude or limit the dis16 closure of ethics-related information to a Member of 

17 Congress under paragraph (1). 

18 ‘‘(c) PRIORITY OF REQUESTS FROM MEMBERS OF

19 CONGRESS.—Any request for ethics-related information 

20 from the Agency under section 552 of title 5, United 

21 States Code, made by a Member of Congress— 

22 ‘‘(1) shall be prioritized ahead of requests for 

23 information made by persons other than Members of 

24 Congress; and 


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1 ‘‘(2) shall be processed without charging any 

2 fee to the Member of Congress. 

3 ‘‘(d) COMMON LAW PRIVILEGES.—Notwithstanding 

4 any other provision of law, the Agency may not withhold 

5 ethics-related information requested by a Member of Con6 gress under section 552 of title 5, United States Code, 

7 on the basis that the information is privileged pursuant 

8 to a common law privilege, such as the deliberative process 

9 privilege, attorney-client privilege, or attorney work prod10 uct privilege. 

11 ‘‘(e) MAINTENANCE AND SECURITY OF MATE12 RIALS.—With respect to any materials related to ethics13 related information that are received by or in the posses14 sion of a Member of Congress or any staff member of a 

15 Member of Congress in response to a request made by a 

16 Member of Congress under section 552 of title 5, United 

17 States Code, from the Agency, the chief clerk of the Com18 mittee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs of the 

19 Senate, with respect to the Senate, and the chief clerk of 

20 the Committee on Financial Services of the House of Rep21 resentatives, with respect to the House of Representatives, 

22 shall— 

23 ‘‘(1) have responsibility for the maintenance 

24 and security of those materials; and 

25 ‘‘(2) ensure that— 


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1 ‘‘(A) the materials are stored in a safe 

2 with a combination lock by the chief clerk of 

3 the relevant committee in the offices of the rel4 evant committee; 

5 ‘‘(B) the materials do not leave the rel6 evant committee, except for a Member of Con7 gress or any staff member of a Member of Con8 gress to review the materials in a congressional 

9 office or to return the materials to the Agency; 

10 ‘‘(C) a Member of Congress or any staff 

11 member of a Member of Congress shall review 

12 the materials in a congressional office; and 

13 ‘‘(D) a Member of Congress or any staff 

14 member of a Member of Congress shall keep 

15 the materials in their physical custody when re16 viewing them and keep the materials in the safe 

17 of the chief clerk of the relevant committee 

18 when not reviewing the materials. 

19 ‘‘(f) STANDING.—Any Member of Congress who 

20 makes a request for ethics-related information from the 

21 Agency under section 552 of title 5, United States Code, 

22 has standing to file in the appropriate district court of 

23 the United States an action to enjoin the Agency from 

24 withholding records of the Agency and to order the pro25 duction of any records of the Agency improperly withheld 


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1 from the Member of Congress in the same manner as any 

2 other person under that section.’’. 

3 SEC. 4. PRESIDENTIAL APPOINTMENT OF INSPECTOR GEN4 ERAL OF THE BOARD OF GOVERNORS OF THE 

5 FEDERAL RESERVE SYSTEM AND THE BU6 REAU OF CONSUMER FINANCIAL PROTEC7 TION. 

8 Chapter 4 of part I of title 5, United States Code, 

9 is amended— 

10 (1) in section 401— 

11 (A) in paragraph (1), by inserting ‘‘the 

12 Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve Sys13 tem and the Bureau of Consumer Financial 

14 Protection,’’ after ‘‘National Security Agency,’’; 

15 and 

16 (B) in paragraph (2), by inserting ‘‘the 

17 Chairman of the Board of Governors of the 

18 Federal Reserve System;’’ after ‘‘National Secu19 rity Agency;’’; 

20 (2) in section 415— 

21 (A) in subsection (a)(1)(A), by striking 

22 ‘‘the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve 

23 System and the Bureau of Consumer Financial 

24 Protection,’’; 


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1 (B) in subsection (c), by striking the third 

2 and fourth sentences; and 

3 (C) in subsection (g)— 

4 (i) by striking paragraph (3); and 

5 (ii) by redesignating paragraph (4) as 

6 paragraph (3); 

7 (3) in section 418, by striking ‘‘or 421’’ and in8 serting ‘‘421, or 425’’; and 

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

10 ‘‘§ 425. Special provisions concerning the Board of 

11 Governors of the Federal Reserve System 

12 and the Bureau of Consumer Financial 

13 Protection 

14 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—The Inspector General of the 

15 Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System and 

16 the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection shall have 

17 all of the authorities and responsibilities provided by this 

18 chapter— 

19 ‘‘(1) with respect to the Bureau of Consumer 

20 Financial Protection, as if the Bureau were part of 

21 the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve Sys22 tem; and 

23 ‘‘(2) with respect to a Federal reserve bank 

24 without the permission of the Federal reserve bank. 


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1 ‘‘(b) RELATIONSHIP TO DEPARTMENT OF TREAS2 URY.—The provisions of subsection (a) of section 412 of 

3 this title (other than the provisions of subparagraphs (A), 

4 (B), (C), and (E) of subsection (a)(1) of section 412 of 

5 this title) shall apply to the Inspector General of the 

6 Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System and 

7 the Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection and the 

8 Chairman of the Board of Governors of the Federal Re9 serve System in the same manner as such provisions apply 

10 to the Inspector General of the Department of the Treas11 ury and the Secretary of the Treasury, respectively.’’. 

Æ 


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