I 

115TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 554 

To suspend the authority of a State to administer funds under Federal 

block grant programs if the State does not enact certain conflict of 

interest protections, and for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JANUARY 13, 2017 

Mr. KILDEE introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committees on 

Education and the Workforce, Financial Services, Homeland Security, the 

Judiciary, Transportation and Infrastructure, and Ways and Means, 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 suspend the authority of a State to administer funds 

under Federal block grant programs if the State does 

not enact certain conflict of interest protections, 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 ‘‘Make State Govern5 ments More Open, Honest, and Transparent Act of 

6 2017’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. NATIONAL STANDARDS RELATING TO STATE CON2 FLICT OF INTEREST PROTECTIONS. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—The head of a Federal agency 

4 that administers a Federal block grant program in a fiscal 

5 year shall take the following actions with respect to a 

6 State that is in noncompliance as described in subsection 

7 (b) on the first day of the fiscal year: 

8 (1) Suspend the authority of the State or any 

9 political subdivision of the State to administer funds 

10 made available to the State or subdivision under the 

11 Federal block grant program in that fiscal year. 

12 (2) Exercise the authority of the State de13 scribed in paragraph (1) in that fiscal year, includ14 ing the selection of the projects to be carried out in 

15 the State or subdivision under the Federal block 

16 grant program. 

17 (b) REQUIREMENT.—A State shall be treated as 

18 being in noncompliance as described in this subsection 

19 with respect to a fiscal year if the Director of the Office 

20 of Government Ethics determines that the State has not 

21 enacted or is not enforcing one or more of the following 

22 laws on the first day of the fiscal year: 

23 (1) A law that requires an individual serving as 

24 a member of the legislature of the State to prepare 

25 and make available to the public an annual report 


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1 disclosing the financial interests of the individual 

2 during the preceding year. 

3 (2) A law that prohibits an individual serving 

4 as a member of the legislature of the State to solicit 

5 or require, either directly or indirectly, an employee 

6 of the individual to make a financial or in-kind con7 tribution to a political party or a political campaign. 

8 (3) A law that makes it unlawful for any per9 son— 

10 (A) who enters into any contract with the 

11 State (including any department or agency of 

12 the State) either for the rendition of personal 

13 services or furnishing any material, supplies, or 

14 equipment to the State or for selling any land 

15 or building to the State, if payment for the per16 formance of such contract or payment for such 

17 material, supplies, equipment, land, or building 

18 is to be made in whole or in part from funds 

19 appropriated by the State, at any time between 

20 the commencement of negotiations for and the 

21 later of (i) the completion of performance 

22 under, or (ii) the termination of negotiations 

23 for, such contract or furnishing of material, 

24 supplies, equipment, land, or buildings, directly 

25 or indirectly to make any contribution of money 


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1 or other things of value, or to promise expressly 

2 or impliedly to make any such contribution to 

3 any political party, committee, or candidate for 

4 State public office or to any person for any po5 litical purpose or use; or 

6 (B) knowingly to solicit any such contribu7 tion from any such person for any such purpose 

8 during any such period. 

9 (c) DEFINITIONS.—In this section, the following defi10 nitions apply: 

11 (1) FEDERAL BLOCK GRANT PROGRAM.—The 

12 term ‘‘Federal block grant program’’ means each of 

13 the following: 

14 (A) The Innovative Education Program 

15 Strategies Block Grant program of the Depart16 ment of Education. 

17 (B) The Energy Efficiency and Conserva18 tion Block Grant program of the Department of 

19 Energy. 

20 (C) The following programs of the Depart21 ment of Health and Human Services: 

22 (i) The Child Care and Development 

23 Block Grant program. 

24 (ii) The Community Mental Health 

25 Services Block Grant program. 


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1 (iii) The Community Services Block 

2 Grant program. 

3 (iv) The Low Income Home Energy 

4 Assistance Block Grant program. 

5 (v) The Maternal and Child Health 

6 Services Block Grant program. 

7 (vi) The Preventive Health and 

8 Health Services Block Grant program. 

9 (vii) The Social Services Block Grant 

10 program. 

11 (viii) The Substance Abuse Prevention 

12 and Treatment Block Grant program. 

13 (ix) The Temporary Assistance to 

14 Needy Families program. 

15 (x) The Title V Abstinence Education 

16 Block Grant program. 

17 (D) The Homeland Security Grant Pro18 grams (State Homeland Security Programs, 

19 Urban Area Security Initiative Grant, and Op20 eration Stonegarden) of the Department of 

21 Homeland Security. 

22 (E) The following programs of the Depart23 ment of Housing and Urban Development: 

24 (i) The Community Development 

25 Block Grant program. 


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1 (ii) The Indian Community Develop2 ment Block Grant program. 

3 (iii) The Emergency Solutions Grant 

4 Program. 

5 (iv) The HOME Investment Partner6 ships Program. 

7 (v) The Indian Housing Block Grant 

8 program. 

9 (vi) The Native Hawaiian Housing 

10 Block Grant program. 

11 (F) The Edward Byrne Memorial Justice 

12 Assistance Grant program of the Department of 

13 Justice. 

14 (G) The Workforce Investment Act (Youth, 

15 Adult, and Dislocated Workers) program of the 

16 Department of Labor. 

17 (H) The following programs of the Depart18 ment of Transportation: 

19 (i) The Federal Aviation Administra20 tion Airport Improvement State Block 

21 Grant Program. 

22 (ii) The Surface Transportation Block 

23 Grant Program. 


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1 (2) STATE.—The term ‘‘State’’ means any of 

2 the 50 States, the District of Columbia, or Puerto 

3 Rico. 

Æ 


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