I 

118TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 5048 

To protect our democracy by preventing abuses of Presidential power, restoring checks and balances and accountability and transparency in government, and defending elections against foreign interference, and for other 

purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

JULY 27, 2023 

Mr. SCHIFF (for himself, Mr. NADLER, Mr. LARSEN of Washington, Mr. 

EVANS, Ms. DELAURO, Mr. CA ́RDENAS, Mr. RASKIN, Ms. BROWNLEY, 

Ms. SCHAKOWSKY, Mr. HIMES, Mr. BOYLE of Pennsylvania, Mr. 

MORELLE, Mr. TRONE, Mr. SHERMAN, Mr. JOHNSON of Georgia, Mr. 

TAKANO, Ms. NORTON, Ms. WILLIAMS of Georgia, Ms. SEWELL, Ms. 

DELBENE, Ms. BARRAGA ́N, Mr. CASTEN, Mr. ROBERT GARCIA of California, Mr. PHILLIPS, Ms. TOKUDA, Mr. POCAN, Mr. DESAULNIER, Mr. 

SARBANES, Mr. MULLIN, Mr. BERA, Mr. ALLRED, Ms. LOFGREN, Mr. 

KILMER, Mr. IVEY, Ms. CLARKE of New York, Mr. GOMEZ, Mr. 

SWALWELL, Mr. LIEU, Mr. GOLDMAN of New York, Ms. WILSON of Florida, Mr. KIM of New Jersey, Mr. GALLEGO, Mr. CONNOLLY, Mrs. WATSON COLEMAN, Ms. DEAN of Pennsylvania, Mr. BISHOP of Georgia, Ms. 

MCCOLLUM, Mr. HIGGINS of New York, Ms. JACKSON LEE, Ms. 

JAYAPAL, Mr. CORREA, Mr. DAVID SCOTT of Georgia, Mr. KHANNA, Ms. 

STEVENS, Ms. SCANLON, Ms. TITUS, Ms. PELOSI, Mr. COHEN, Mr. BLUMENAUER, Ms. MENG, Mr. QUIGLEY, Ms. PORTER, Ms. BALINT, Ms. 

ESHOO, Mr. HUFFMAN, Mr. CARTER of Louisiana, Mr. MFUME, Mr. 

LYNCH, Mr. AGUILAR, Mr. CARSON, Mr. CROW, Mr. MCGOVERN, Mr. 

TORRES of New York, Ms. BLUNT ROCHESTER, Ms. LEE of California, 

Mr. DELUZIO, Mr. PANETTA, Ms. PINGREE, Ms. STRICKLAND, Ms. 

VELA ́ZQUEZ, Mr. AUCHINCLOSS, Mr. PASCRELL, Ms. GARCIA of Texas, 

Mr. LARSON of Connecticut, Mr. ESPAILLAT, Mr. PALLONE, Mr. DAVIS

of Illinois, Ms. KELLY of Illinois, Ms. WEXTON, Mr. DAVIS of North 

Carolina, Ms. ESCOBAR, Mrs. HAYES, Mrs. BEATTY, Ms. SALINAS, Ms. 

CASTOR of Florida, Mrs. FLETCHER, Mr. NORCROSS, Mrs. NAPOLITANO, 

Ms. SA ́NCHEZ, Mr. BEYER, Mr. SCOTT of Virginia, Ms. BROWN, Mr. 

NEGUSE, Ms. JACOBS, Ms. TLAIB, Mr. LEVIN, Mr. GRIJALVA, and Mr. 

TONKO) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Oversight and Accountability, and in addition to the Committees on the Judiciary, House Administration, the Budget, Transportation 

and Infrastructure, Rules, Foreign Affairs, Ways and Means, and IntelVerDate Sep 11 2014 20:34 Aug 29, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6652 E:\BILLS\H5048.IH H5048

tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
2 

•HR 5048 IH

ligence (Permanent Select), 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 protect our democracy by preventing abuses of Presidential power, restoring checks and balances and accountability and transparency in government, and defending elections against foreign interference, 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 ‘‘Protecting Our Democ5 racy Act’’. 

6 SEC. 2. ORGANIZATION OF ACT INTO DIVISIONS; TABLE OF 

7 CONTENTS. 

8 (a) DIVISIONS.—This Act is organized into divisions 

9 as follows: 

10 (1) Division A—Preventing Abuses of Presi11 dential Power. 

12 (2) Division B—Restoring Checks and Bal13 ances, Accountability, and Transparency. 

14 (3) Division C—Miscellaneous. 

15 (4) Division D—Severability. 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
3 

•HR 5048 IH

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

2 this Act is as follows: 

Sec. 1. Short title. 

Sec. 2. Organization of Act into divisions; table of contents. 

DIVISION A—PREVENTING ABUSES OF PRESIDENTIAL POWER 

TITLE I—ABUSE OF THE PARDON POWER PREVENTION 

Sec. 101. Short title. 

Sec. 102. Congressional oversight relating to certain pardons. 

Sec. 103. Bribery in connection with pardons and commutations. 

Sec. 104. Prohibition on presidential self-pardon. 

TITLE II—ENSURING NO PRESIDENT IS ABOVE THE LAW 

Sec. 201. Short title. 

Sec. 202. Tolling of statute of limitations. 

Sec. 203. Contracts by the President, the Vice President, or a Cabinet member. 

Sec. 204. Forfeiture of benefits for former Presidents convicted of a felony. 

TITLE III—ENFORCEMENT OF THE FOREIGN AND DOMESTIC 

EMOLUMENTS CLAUSES OF THE CONSTITUTION 

Sec. 301. Short title. 

Sec. 302. Definitions. 

Sec. 303. Prohibition on acceptance of foreign and domestic emoluments. 

Sec. 304. Civil actions by Congress concerning foreign emoluments. 

Sec. 305. Disclosures concerning foreign and domestic emoluments. 

Sec. 306. Enforcement authority of the Director of the Office of Government 

Ethics. 

Sec. 307. Jurisdiction of the Office of Special Counsel. 

Sec. 308. Rulemaking for ethics requirements for legal expense funds. 

Sec. 309. Limitations and disclosure of certain donations to, and disbursements 

by, inaugural committees. 

DIVISION B—RESTORING CHECKS AND BALANCES, 

ACCOUNTABILITY, AND TRANSPARENCY 

TITLE IV—ENFORCEMENT OF CONGRESSIONAL SUBPOENAS 

Sec. 401. Short title. 

Sec. 402. Findings. 

Sec. 403. Enforcement of congressional subpoenas. 

Sec. 404. Compliance with congressional subpoenas. 

Sec. 405. Rule of construction. 

Sec. 406. Enforcement of requests for information from certain committees of 

Congress. 

TITLE V—REASSERTING CONGRESSIONAL POWER OF THE PURSE 

Sec. 500. Short title. 

Subtitle A—Strengthening Congressional Control and Review To Prevent 

Impoundment 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
4 

•HR 5048 IH

Sec. 501. Strengthening congressional control. 

Sec. 502. Strengthening congressional review. 

Sec. 503. Updated authorities for and reporting by the Comptroller General. 

Sec. 504. Advance congressional notification and litigation. 

Sec. 505. Penalties for failure to comply with the Impoundment Control Act of 

1974. 

Subtitle B—Strengthening Transparency and Reporting 

PART 1—FUNDS MANAGEMENT AND REPORTING TO THE CONGRESS

Sec. 511. Expired balance reporting in the President’s budget. 

Sec. 512. Cancelled balance reporting in the President’s budget. 

Sec. 513. Lapse in appropriations—reporting in the President’s budget. 

Sec. 514. Transfer and other repurposing authority reporting in the President’s 

budget. 

Sec. 515. Authorizing cancellations in indefinite accounts by appropriation. 

PART 2—EMPOWERING CONGRESSIONAL REVIEW THROUGH NONPARTISAN

CONGRESSIONAL AGENCIES AND TRANSPARENCY INITIATIVES

Sec. 521. Requirement to respond to requests for information from the Comptroller General for budget and appropriations law decisions. 

Sec. 522. Reporting requirements for Antideficiency Act violations. 

Sec. 523. Department of Justice reporting to Congress for Antideficiency Act 

violations. 

Sec. 524. Publication of budget or appropriations law opinions of the Department of Justice Office of Legal Counsel. 

Sec. 525. Treatment of requests for information from Members of Congress. 

Subtitle C—Strengthening Congressional Role in and Oversight of Emergency 

Declarations and Designations 

Sec. 531. Improving checks and balances on the use of the National Emergencies Act. 

Sec. 532. National Emergencies Act declaration spending reporting in the 

President’s budget. 

Sec. 533. Disclosure to Congress of presidential emergency action documents. 

Sec. 534. Congressional designations. 

TITLE VI—SECURITY FROM POLITICAL INTERFERENCE IN 

JUSTICE 

Sec. 601. Short title. 

Sec. 602. Definitions. 

Sec. 603. Communications logs. 

Sec. 604. Rule of construction. 

TITLE VII—PROTECTING WHISTLEBLOWERS 

Subtitle A—Whistleblower Protection Improvement 

Sec. 701. Short title. 

Sec. 702. Additional whistleblower protections. 

Sec. 703. Enhancement of whistleblower protections. 

Sec. 704. Classifying certain furloughs as adverse personnel actions. 

Sec. 705. Codification of protections for disclosures of censorship related to research, analysis, or technical information. 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
5 

•HR 5048 IH

Sec. 706. Title 5 technical and conforming amendments. 

Subtitle B—Whistleblowers of the Intelligence Community 

Sec. 711. Limitation on sharing of intelligence community whistleblower complaints with persons named in such complaints. 

Sec. 712. Disclosures to Congress. 

Sec. 713. Prohibition against disclosure of whistleblower identity as reprisal 

against whistleblower disclosure by employees and contractors 

in intelligence community. 

TITLE VIII—ACCOUNTABILITY FOR ACTING OFFICIALS 

Sec. 801. Short title. 

Sec. 802. Clarification of Federal Vacancies Reform Act of 1998. 

TITLE IX—STRENGTHENING HATCH ACT ENFORCEMENT AND 

PENALTIES 

Subtitle A—Strengthening Hatch Act Enforcement and Penalties 

Sec. 901. Short title. 

Sec. 902. Strengthening Hatch Act enforcement and penalties against political 

appointees. 

Sec. 903. Including Executive Office of the President under limitation on nepotism in the civil service. 

Sec. 904. Disclosure of Hatch Act investigations for certain political employees. 

Sec. 905. Clarification on candidates visiting Federal property. 

Sec. 906. Applying Hatch Act to President and Vice President while on Federal 

property. 

Sec. 907. Granting the Office of Special Counsel rulemaking authority. 

Sec. 908. Greater accountability for political appointees. 

Sec. 909. Investigating former political employees. 

Sec. 910. GAO review of reimbursable political events. 

Subtitle B—Strengthening Ethics Enforcement and Penalties for Federal 

Executive Employees 

Sec. 911. Definitions. 

Sec. 912. Ethics pledge. 

Sec. 913. Waivers. 

Sec. 914. Administration. 

Sec. 915. Enforcement. 

Sec. 916. General provisions. 

TITLE X—PRESIDENTIAL AND VICE PRESIDENTIAL TAX 

TRANSPARENCY 

Sec. 1001. Presidential and Vice Presidential tax transparency. 

DIVISION C—MISCELLANEOUS 

TITLE XI—REPORTING FOREIGN INTERFERENCE IN ELECTIONS 

Sec. 1101. Federal campaign reporting of foreign contacts. 

Sec. 1102. Federal campaign foreign contact reporting compliance system. 

Sec. 1103. Criminal penalties. 

Sec. 1104. Report to congressional intelligence committees. 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
6 

•HR 5048 IH

Sec. 1105. Rule of construction. 

TITLE XII—ELIMINATING FOREIGN INTERFERENCE IN 

ELECTIONS 

Sec. 1201. Clarification of application of foreign money ban. 

Sec. 1202. Requiring acknowledgment of foreign money ban by political committees. 

Sec. 1203. Prohibition on contributions and donations by foreign nationals in 

connection with ballot initiatives and referenda. 

TITLE XIII—HONEST ADS 

Sec. 1301. Short title. 

Sec. 1302. Purpose. 

Sec. 1303. Sense of Congress. 

Sec. 1304. Expansion of definition of public communication. 

Sec. 1305. Expansion of definition of electioneering communication. 

Sec. 1306. Application of disclaimer statements to online communications. 

Sec. 1307. Political record requirements for online platforms. 

Sec. 1308. Preventing contributions, expenditures, independent expenditures, 

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

Sec. 1309. Requiring online platforms to display notices identifying sponsors of 

political advertisements and to ensure notices continue to be 

present when advertisements are shared. 

TITLE XIV—PREVENTING A PATRONAGE SYSTEM 

Sec. 1401. Short title. 

Sec. 1402. Limitations on excepting positions from competitive service and 

transferring positions. 

TITLE XV—USE OF FEDERAL PROPERTY; VISITOR RECORDS 

Sec. 1501. Prohibition on use of Federal property for political conventions. 

Sec. 1502. Improving access to influential visitor access records. 

DIVISION D—SEVERABILITY 

TITLE XVI—SEVERABILITY 

Sec. 1601. Severability. 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
7 

•HR 5048 IH

1 DIVISION A—PREVENTING 

2 ABUSES OF PRESIDENTIAL 

3 POWER 

4 TITLE I—ABUSE OF THE PARDON 

5 POWER PREVENTION 

6 SEC. 101. SHORT TITLE. 

7 This title may be cited as the ‘‘Abuse of the Pardon 

8 Power Prevention Act’’. 

9 SEC. 102. CONGRESSIONAL OVERSIGHT RELATING TO CER10 TAIN PARDONS. 

11 (a) SUBMISSION OF INFORMATION.—Not later than 

12 30 days after the date on which the President grants an 

13 individual a pardon for a covered offense, the Attorney 

14 General shall submit to the chair and ranking member of 

15 each appropriate congressional committee— 

16 (1) all materials obtained or produced by the 

17 prosecution team, including the Attorney General 

18 and any United States Attorney, and all materials 

19 obtained or prepared by any investigative agency of 

20 the Federal Government, relating to the offense for 

21 which the individual was pardoned; and 

22 (2) all materials obtained or produced by the 

23 Department of Justice in relation to the pardon. 

24 (b) TREATMENT OF INFORMATION.—Rule 6(e) of the 

25 Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure may not be conVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:58 Aug 18, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5048.IH H5048

tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
8 

•HR 5048 IH

1 strued to prohibit the disclosure of information required 

2 by subsection (a) of this section. 

3 (c) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

4 (1) APPROPRIATE CONGRESSIONAL COM5 MITTEE.—The term ‘‘appropriate congressional com6 mittee’’ means— 

7 (A) the Committee on the Judiciary of the 

8 Senate and the Committee on the Judiciary of 

9 the House of Representatives; and 

10 (B) if an investigation relates to intel11 ligence or counterintelligence matters, the Se12 lect Committee on Intelligence of the Senate 

13 and the Permanent Select Committee on Intel14 ligence of the House of Representatives. 

15 (2) COVERED OFFENSE.—The term ‘‘covered 

16 offense’’ means— 

17 (A) an offense against the United States 

18 that arises from an investigation in which a tar19 get or subject is— 

20 (i) the President; 

21 (ii) a relative of the President; 

22 (iii) any individual who is serving or 

23 previously served as a political appointee 

24 (as defined in section 1216(f)(6) of title 5, 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
9 

•HR 5048 IH

1 United States Code, as added by title IX 

2 of this Act) under the President; 

3 (iv) any individual who was an em4 ployee of an authorized committee (as de5 fined in section 301(6) of the Federal 

6 Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 

7 30101(6))) of the President for any elec8 tion to the office of President; or 

9 (v) in the case of an offense motivated 

10 by a direct and significant personal or pe11 cuniary interest of any individual described 

12 in clause (i), (ii), (iii), or (iv), any person 

13 or entity; 

14 (B) an offense under section 102 of the 

15 Revised Statutes of the United States (2 U.S.C. 

16 192); or 

17 (C) an offense under section 1001, 1505, 

18 1512, or 1621 of title 18, United States Code, 

19 if the offense occurred in relation to a congres20 sional proceeding or investigation. 

21 (3) PARDON.—The term ‘‘pardon’’ includes a 

22 commutation of sentence. 

23 (4) RELATIVE.—The term ‘‘relative’’, with re24 spect to the President, means— 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
10 

•HR 5048 IH

1 (A) a family member (as defined in section 

2 1635.3(a) of title 29, Code of Federal Regula3 tions, or any successor regulation) of the Presi4 dent who is a first-degree relative, second-de5 gree relative, or third-degree relative (as those 

6 terms are defined in such section 1635.3(a) or 

7 any successor regulation) of the President; or 

8 (B) a spouse of a family member described 

9 in subparagraph (A). 

10 SEC. 103. BRIBERY IN CONNECTION WITH PARDONS AND 

11 COMMUTATIONS. 

12 Section 201 of title 18, United States Code, is 

13 amended— 

14 (1) in subsection (a)— 

15 (A) in paragraph (1), by inserting ‘‘, in16 cluding the President and the Vice President of 

17 the United States,’’ after ‘‘or an officer or em18 ployee or person’’; and 

19 (B) in paragraph (3), by inserting before 

20 the period at the end the following: ‘‘, including 

21 any pardon, commutation, or reprieve, or an 

22 offer of any such pardon, commutation, or re23 prieve’’; and 

24 (2) in subsection (b)(3), by inserting ‘‘(includ25 ing, for purposes of this paragraph, any pardon, 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
11 

•HR 5048 IH

1 commutation, or reprieve, or an offer of any such 

2 pardon, commutation, or reprieve)’’ after ‘‘corruptly 

3 gives, offers, or promises anything of value’’. 

4 SEC. 104. PROHIBITION ON PRESIDENTIAL SELF-PARDON. 

5 The President’s grant of a pardon to himself or her6 self is void and of no effect, and shall not deprive the 

7 courts of jurisdiction, or operate to confer on the Presi8 dent any legal immunity from investigation or prosecution. 

9 TITLE II—ENSURING NO 

10 PRESIDENT IS ABOVE THE LAW 

11 SEC. 201. SHORT TITLE. 

12 This title may be cited as the ‘‘No President Is Above 

13 the Law Act’’. 

14 SEC. 202. TOLLING OF STATUTE OF LIMITATIONS. 

15 (a) OFFENSES COMMITTED BY THE PRESIDENT OR

16 VICE PRESIDENT DURING OR PRIOR TO TENURE IN OF17 FICE.—Section 3282 of title 18, United States Code, is 

18 amended by adding at the end the following: 

19 ‘‘(c) OFFENSES COMMITTED BY THE PRESIDENT OR

20 VICE PRESIDENT DURING OR PRIOR TO TENURE IN OF21 FICE.—In the case of any person serving as President or 

22 Vice President of the United States, the duration of that 

23 person’s tenure in office shall not be considered for pur24 poses of any statute of limitations applicable to any Fed25 eral criminal offense committed by that person (including 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
12 

•HR 5048 IH

1 any offenses committed during any period of time pre2 ceding such tenure in office).’’. 

3 (b) APPLICABILITY.—The amendment made by sub4 section (a) shall apply to any offense committed before the 

5 date of enactment of this section, if the statute of limita6 tions applicable to that offense had not run as of such 

7 date. 

8 (c) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this sec9 tion may be construed to preclude the indictment or pros10 ecution of a President or Vice President, during that 

11 President or Vice President’s tenure in office, for viola12 tions of the criminal laws of the United States. 

13 SEC. 203. CONTRACTS BY THE PRESIDENT, THE VICE 

14 PRESIDENT, OR A CABINET MEMBER. 

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

16 States Code, is amended— 

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

18 President, the Vice President, a Cabinet 

19 member, or a’’ after ‘‘Contracts by’’; and 

20 (2) in the first undesignated paragraph, by in21 serting ‘‘the President, the Vice President, in a posi22 tion at level I of the Executive Schedule under sec23 tion 5312 of title 5,’’ after ‘‘Whoever, being’’. 

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

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


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
13 

•HR 5048 IH

1 is amended by striking the item relating to section 431 

2 and inserting the following: 

‘‘431. Contracts by the President, the Vice President, a Cabinet member, or a 

Member of Congress.’’. 

3 SEC. 204. FORFEITURE OF BENEFITS FOR FORMER PRESI4 DENTS CONVICTED OF A FELONY. 

5 The first section of the Act entitled ‘‘An Act to pro6 vide retirement, clerical assistants, and free mailing privi7 leges to former Presidents of the United States, and for 

8 other purposes’’, approved August 25, 1958 (commonly 

9 known as the ‘‘Former Presidents Act of 1958’’; 3 U.S.C. 

10 102 note), is amended— 

11 (1) in subsection (a), by striking ‘‘Each former 

12 President’’ and inserting ‘‘Subject to subsection (h), 

13 each former President’’; 

14 (2) in subsection (f), by striking paragraph (2) 

15 and inserting: 

16 ‘‘(2) who has not been impeached by the House 

17 of Representatives and convicted by the Senate pur18 suant to the impeachment; and’’; and 

19 (3) by adding at the end the following new sub20 section: 

21 ‘‘(h)(1) If a former President is finally convicted of 

22 a felony for which every act or omission that is needed 

23 to satisfy the elements of the felony is committed during 

24 or after the period such former President holds the office 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
14 

•HR 5048 IH

1 of President, or was finally convicted of such a felony 

2 while holding such office— 

3 ‘‘(A) no monetary allowance under subsection 

4 (a) may be provided to such former President; 

5 ‘‘(B) no funds may be obligated or expended 

6 under subsection (g) with respect to such former 

7 President except to the extent necessary to maintain 

8 the security of such former President, as determined 

9 by the Director of the Secret Service; and 

10 ‘‘(C) such former President shall repay any 

11 amounts received under subsection (a) during the 

12 period beginning on the date on which such former 

13 President is initially convicted of the felony and end14 ing on the date such former President is finally con15 victed of the felony. 

16 ‘‘(2) The term ‘finally convicted’ means a convic17 tion— 

18 ‘‘(A) which has not been appealed and is no 

19 longer appealable because the time for taking an ap20 peal has expired; or 

21 ‘‘(B) which has been appealed and the appeals 

22 process for which is completed.’’. 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
15 

•HR 5048 IH

1 TITLE III—ENFORCEMENT OF 

2 THE FOREIGN AND DOMESTIC 

3 EMOLUMENTS CLAUSES OF 

4 THE CONSTITUTION 

5 SEC. 301. SHORT TITLE. 

6 This title may be cited as the ‘‘Foreign and Domestic 

7 Emoluments Enforcement Act’’. 

8 SEC. 302. DEFINITIONS. 

9 In this title: 

10 (1) The term ‘‘emolument’’ means any profit, 

11 gain, or advantage that is received directly or indi12 rectly from any government of a foreign country, the 

13 Federal Government, or any State or local govern14 ment, or from any instrumentality thereof, including 

15 payments arising from commercial transactions at 

16 fair market value. 

17 (2) The term ‘‘person holding any office of 

18 profit or trust under the United States’’ includes the 

19 President of the United States and the Vice Presi20 dent of the United States. 

21 (3) The term ‘‘government of a foreign coun22 try’’ has the meaning given such term in section 1(e) 

23 of the Foreign Agents Registration Act of 1938, as 

24 amended (22 U.S.C. 611(e)). 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
16 

•HR 5048 IH

1 SEC. 303. PROHIBITION ON ACCEPTANCE OF FOREIGN AND 

2 DOMESTIC EMOLUMENTS. 

3 (a) FOREIGN.—Except as otherwise provided in sec4 tion 7342 of title 5, United States Code, it shall be unlaw5 ful for any person holding an office of profit or trust under 

6 the United States to accept from a government of a for7 eign country, without first obtaining the consent of Con8 gress, any present or emolument, or any office or title. 

9 The prohibition under this subsection applies without re10 gard to whether the present, emolument, office, or title 

11 is— 

12 (1) provided directly or indirectly by that gov13 ernment of a foreign country; or 

14 (2) provided to that person or to any private 

15 business interest of that person. 

16 (b) DOMESTIC.—It shall be unlawful for the Presi17 dent to accept from the United States, or any of them, 

18 any emolument other than the compensation for his or her 

19 services as President provided for by Federal law. The 

20 prohibition under this subsection applies without regard 

21 to whether the emolument is provided directly or indi22 rectly, and without regard to whether the emolument is 

23 provided to the President or to any private business inter24 est of the President. 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
17 

•HR 5048 IH

1 SEC. 304. CIVIL ACTIONS BY CONGRESS CONCERNING FOR2 EIGN EMOLUMENTS. 

3 (a) CAUSE OF ACTION.—The House of Representa4 tives or the Senate may bring a civil action against any 

5 person for a violation of subsection (a) of section 303. 

6 (b) SPECIAL RULES.—In any civil action described 

7 in subsection (a), the following rules shall apply: 

8 (1) The action shall be filed before the United 

9 States District Court for the District of Columbia. 

10 (2) The action shall be heard by a three-judge 

11 court convened pursuant to section 2284 of title 28, 

12 United States Code. It shall be the duty of such 

13 court to advance on the docket and to expedite to 

14 the greatest possible extent the disposition of any 

15 such action. Such action shall be reviewable only by 

16 appeal directly to the Supreme Court of the United 

17 States. Such appeal shall be taken by the filing of 

18 a notice of appeal within 10 days, and the filing of 

19 a jurisdictional statement within 30 days, of the 

20 entry of the final decision. 

21 (3) It shall be the duty of the Supreme Court 

22 of the United States to advance on the docket and 

23 to expedite to the greatest possible extent the dis24 position of any such action and appeal. 

25 (c) REMEDY.—If the court determines that a viola26 tion of subsection (a) of section 303 has occurred, the 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
18 

•HR 5048 IH

1 court shall issue an order enjoining the course of conduct 

2 found to constitute the violation, and such of the following 

3 as are appropriate: 

4 (1) The disgorgement of the value of any for5 eign present or emolument. 

6 (2) The surrender of the physical present or 

7 emolument to the Department of State, which shall, 

8 if practicable, dispose of the present or emolument 

9 and deposit the proceeds into the United States 

10 Treasury. 

11 (3) The renunciation of any office or title ac12 cepted in violation of such subsection. 

13 (4) A prohibition on the use or holding of such 

14 an office or title. 

15 (5) Such other relief as the court determines 

16 appropriate. 

17 (d) USE OF GOVERNMENT FUNDS PROHIBITED.—No 

18 appropriated funds, funds provided from any accounts in 

19 the United States Treasury, funds derived from the collec20 tion of fees, or any other Government funds shall be used 

21 to pay any disgorgement imposed by the court pursuant 

22 to this section. 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
19 

•HR 5048 IH

1 SEC. 305. DISCLOSURES CONCERNING FOREIGN AND DO2 MESTIC EMOLUMENTS. 

3 (a) DISCLOSURES.—Section 13104(a) of title 5, 

4 United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the 

5 following: 

6 ‘‘(9) FOREIGN EMOLUMENTS.—Any present, 

7 emolument, office, or title received from a govern8 ment of a foreign country, including the source, 

9 date, type, and amount or value of each present or 

10 emolument accepted on or before the date of filing 

11 during the preceding calendar year. 

12 ‘‘(10) BUSINESS INTERESTS RECEIVING FOR13 EIGN EMOLUMENTS.—Each business interest that is 

14 reasonably expected to result in the receipt of any 

15 present or emolument from a government of a for16 eign country during the current calendar year. 

17 ‘‘(11) EMOLUMENTS FROM UNITED STATES.— 

18 In addition, the President shall report— 

19 ‘‘(A) any emolument received from the 

20 United States, or any of them, other than the 

21 compensation for his or her services as Presi22 dent provided for by Federal law; and 

23 ‘‘(B) any business interest that is reason24 ably expected to result in the receipt of any 

25 emolument from the United States, or any of 

26 them.’’. 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
20 

•HR 5048 IH

1 (b) REPORTING REQUIREMENTS RELATED TO

2 SPOUSES AND DEPENDENT CHILDREN.—Section 

3 13104(e)(1) of title 5, United States Code, is amended— 

4 (1) in the matter preceding subparagraph (A), 

5 by inserting ‘‘and paragraphs (9) through (11)’’after 

6 ‘‘(5)’’; and 

7 (2) by inserting after subparagraph (F) the fol8 lowing: 

9 ‘‘(G) FOREIGN EMOLUMENTS.—In the case 

10 of items described in paragraphs (9) and (10) 

11 of subsection (a), all information required to be 

12 reported under these paragraphs. 

13 ‘‘(H) EMOLUMENTS FROM UNITED

14 STATES.—In the case of— 

15 ‘‘(i) items described in paragraph 

16 (11)(A) of subsection (a), any such items 

17 received by spouse or dependent child of 

18 the President other than items related to 

19 the President’s services as President pro20 vided for by Federal law; and 

21 ‘‘(ii) in the case of items described in 

22 paragraph (11)(B) of subsection (a), all in23 formation required to be reported under 

24 that paragraph.’’. 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
21 

•HR 5048 IH

1 (c) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in the 

2 amendments made by this section shall be construed to 

3 affect the prohibition against the acceptance of presents 

4 and emoluments under section 303. 

5 SEC. 306. ENFORCEMENT AUTHORITY OF THE DIRECTOR 

6 OF THE OFFICE OF GOVERNMENT ETHICS. 

7 (a) GENERAL AUTHORITY.—Section 13122(a) of title 

8 5, United States Code, is amended— 

9 (1) by striking ‘‘The Director’’ and inserting 

10 the following: 

11 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Director’’; and 

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

13 ‘‘(2) OVERALL DIRECTION.—The Director 

14 shall— 

15 ‘‘(A) provide overall direction of executive 

16 branch policies related to compliance with the 

17 Foreign and Domestic Emoluments Enforce18 ment Act, and the amendments made by that 

19 Act; and 

20 ‘‘(B) shall have the authority to— 

21 ‘‘(i) issue administrative fines to indi22 viduals for violations; 

23 ‘‘(ii) order individuals to take correc24 tive action, including disgorgement, divestiVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:58 Aug 18, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00021 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5048.IH H5048

tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
22 

•HR 5048 IH

1 ture, and recusal, as the Director deems 

2 necessary; and 

3 ‘‘(iii) bring civil actions to enforce 

4 such fines and orders.’’. 

5 (b) SPECIFIC AUTHORITIES.—Section 13122(b) of 

6 title 5, United States Code, is amended— 

7 (1) in paragraph (14), by striking ‘‘and’’ at the 

8 end; 

9 (2) in paragraph (15), by striking the period at 

10 the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

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

12 ‘‘(16) developing and promulgating rules and 

13 regulations to ensure compliance with the Foreign 

14 and Domestic Emoluments Enforcement Act, and 

15 the amendments made by that Act, including estab16 lishing— 

17 ‘‘(A) requirements for reporting and disclo18 sure; 

19 ‘‘(B) a schedule of administrative fines 

20 that may be imposed by the Director for viola21 tions; and 

22 ‘‘(C) a process for referral of matters to 

23 the Office of Special Counsel for investigation 

24 in compliance with section 1216(d).’’. 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
23 

•HR 5048 IH

1 SEC. 307. JURISDICTION OF THE OFFICE OF SPECIAL 

2 COUNSEL. 

3 Section 1216 of title 5, United States Code, is 

4 amended— 

5 (1) in subsection (a)— 

6 (A) in paragraph (4), by striking ‘‘and’’ at 

7 the end; 

8 (B) in paragraph (5) by striking the period 

9 and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

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

11 ‘‘(6) any violation of section 303 of the Foreign 

12 and Domestic Emoluments Enforcement Act or of 

13 the amendments made by section 305 of such Act.’’; 

14 and 

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

16 ‘‘(d) If the Director of the Office of Government Eth17 ics refers a matter for investigation pursuant to section 

18 13122, or if the Special Counsel receives a credible com19 plaint of a violation referred to in subsection (a)(6), the 

20 Special Counsel shall complete an investigation not later 

21 than 120 days thereafter. If the Special Counsel inves22 tigates any violation pursuant to subsection (a)(6), the 

23 Special Counsel shall report not later than 7 days after 

24 the completion of such investigation to the Director of the 

25 Office of Government Ethics and to Congress on the re26 sults of such investigation.’’. 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
24 

•HR 5048 IH

1 SEC. 308. RULEMAKING FOR ETHICS REQUIREMENTS FOR 

2 LEGAL EXPENSE FUNDS. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year after the 

4 date of enactment of this Act, the Director of the Office 

5 of Government Ethics shall finalize a rule establishing eth6 ics requirements for the establishment or operation of a 

7 legal expense fund for the benefit of the President, the 

8 Vice President, or any political appointee, consistent with 

9 the requirements of subsection (b). 

10 (b) LIMITATIONS ON ACCEPTANCE OF CERTAIN PAY11 MENTS.— 

12 (1) IN GENERAL.—A legal expense fund de13 scribed in subsection (a) may not accept any con14 tribution or other payment made by— 

15 (A) an individual who is a registered lob16 byist under the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 

17 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.); or 

18 (B) an agent of a foreign principal. 

19 (2) APPROPRIATE REMEDIAL ACTION.—In the 

20 case of a contribution described in paragraph (1)— 

21 (A) the legal expense fund shall take ap22 propriate remedial action; and 

23 (B) the Director of the Office of Govern24 ment Ethics may assess a fine against the indi25 vidual or agent of a foreign principal, as de26 fined in section 1 of the Foreign Agents RegVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:58 Aug 18, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00024 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5048.IH H5048

tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
25 

•HR 5048 IH

1 istration Act of 1938, as amended (22 U.S.C. 

2 611). 

3 SEC. 309. LIMITATIONS AND DISCLOSURE OF CERTAIN DO4 NATIONS TO, AND DISBURSEMENTS BY, INAU5 GURAL COMMITTEES. 

6 (a) REQUIREMENTS FOR INAUGURAL COMMIT7 TEES.—Title III of the Federal Election Campaign Act 

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

9 at the end the following new section: 

10 ‘‘SEC. 325. INAUGURAL COMMITTEES. 

11 ‘‘(a) PROHIBITED DONATIONS.— 

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

13 ‘‘(A) an Inaugural Committee— 

14 ‘‘(i) to solicit, accept, or receive a do15 nation from a person that is not an indi16 vidual; or 

17 ‘‘(ii) to solicit, accept, or receive a do18 nation from a foreign national; 

19 ‘‘(B) a person— 

20 ‘‘(i) to make a donation to an Inau21 gural Committee in the name of another 

22 person, or to knowingly authorize his or 

23 her name to be used to effect such a dona24 tion; 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
26 

•HR 5048 IH

1 ‘‘(ii) to knowingly accept a donation 

2 to an Inaugural Committee made by a per3 son in the name of another person; or 

4 ‘‘(iii) to convert a donation to an In5 augural Committee to personal use as de6 scribed in paragraph (2); or 

7 ‘‘(C) a foreign national to, directly or indi8 rectly, make a donation, or make an express or 

9 implied promise to make a donation, to an In10 augural Committee. 

11 ‘‘(2) CONVERSION OF DONATION TO PERSONAL

12 USE.—For purposes of paragraph (1)(B)(iii), a do13 nation shall be considered to be converted to per14 sonal use if any part of the donated amount is 

15 used— 

16 ‘‘(A) to fulfill a commitment, obligation, or 

17 expense of a person that would exist irrespec18 tive of the responsibilities of the Inaugural 

19 Committee; or 

20 ‘‘(B) to benefit the personal business ven21 ture of the President or Vice President of the 

22 United States, the Inaugural Committee, or an 

23 immediate family member of such individuals. 

24 ‘‘(3) NO EFFECT ON DISBURSEMENT OF UN25 USED FUNDS TO NONPROFIT ORGANIZATIONS.— 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
27 

•HR 5048 IH

1 Nothing in this subsection may be construed to pro2 hibit an Inaugural Committee from disbursing un3 used funds to an organization which is described in 

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

5 1986 and is exempt from taxation under section 

6 501(a) of such Code. 

7 ‘‘(b) LIMITATION ON DONATIONS.— 

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

9 individual to make donations to an Inaugural Com10 mittee which, in the aggregate, exceed $50,000. 

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

12 Presidential election year (beginning with 2028), the 

13 amount described in paragraph (1) shall be in14 creased by the cumulative percent difference deter15 mined in section 315(c)(1)(A) since the previous 

16 Presidential election year. If any amount after such 

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

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

19 ‘‘(c) DISCLOSURE OF CERTAIN DONATIONS AND DIS20 BURSEMENTS.— 

21 ‘‘(1) DONATIONS OVER $1,000.— 

22 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—An Inaugural Com23 mittee shall file with the Commission a report 

24 disclosing any donation by an individual to the 

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


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
28 

•HR 5048 IH

1 later than 24 hours after the receipt of such do2 nation. 

3 ‘‘(B) CONTENTS OF REPORT.—A report 

4 filed under subparagraph (A) shall contain— 

5 ‘‘(i) the amount of the donation; 

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

7 and 

8 ‘‘(iii) the name and address of the in9 dividual making the donation. 

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

11 that is 90 days after the date of the Presidential in12 augural ceremony, the Inaugural Committee shall 

13 file with the Commission a report containing the fol14 lowing information: 

15 ‘‘(A) For each donation of money or any16 thing of value made to the committee in an ag17 gregate amount equal to or greater than 

18 $200— 

19 ‘‘(i) the amount of the donation; 

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

21 and 

22 ‘‘(iii) the name and address of the in23 dividual making the donation. 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
29 

•HR 5048 IH

1 ‘‘(B) The total amount of all disburse2 ments, and all disbursements in the following 

3 categories: 

4 ‘‘(i) Disbursements made to meet 

5 committee operating expenses. 

6 ‘‘(ii) Repayment of all loans. 

7 ‘‘(iii) Donation refunds and other off8 sets to donations. 

9 ‘‘(iv) Any other disbursements. 

10 ‘‘(C) The name and address of each per11 son— 

12 ‘‘(i) to whom a disbursement in an ag13 gregate amount or value in excess of $200 

14 is made by the committee to meet a com15 mittee operating expense, together with 

16 date, amount, and purpose of such oper17 ating expense; 

18 ‘‘(ii) who receives a loan repayment 

19 from the committee, together with the date 

20 and amount of such loan repayment; 

21 ‘‘(iii) who receives a donation refund 

22 or other offset to donations from the com23 mittee, together with the date and amount 

24 of such disbursement; and 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
30 

•HR 5048 IH

1 ‘‘(iv) to whom any other disbursement 

2 in an aggregate amount or value in excess 

3 of $200 is made by the committee, to4 gether with the date and amount of such 

5 disbursement. 

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

7 ‘‘(1) DONATION.— 

8 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘donation’ 

9 includes— 

10 ‘‘(i) any gift, subscription, loan, ad11 vance, or deposit of money or anything of 

12 value made by any person to the com13 mittee; or 

14 ‘‘(ii) the payment by any person of 

15 compensation for the personal services of 

16 another person which are rendered to the 

17 committee without charge for any purpose. 

18 ‘‘(B) EXCEPTION.—The term ‘donation’ 

19 does not include the value of services provided 

20 without compensation by any individual who 

21 volunteers on behalf of the committee. 

22 ‘‘(2) FOREIGN NATIONAL.—The term ‘foreign 

23 national’ has the meaning given that term by section 

24 319(b). 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
31 

•HR 5048 IH

1 ‘‘(3) IMMEDIATE FAMILY MEMBER.—The term 

2 ‘immediate family member’ means a parent, parent3 in-law, spouse, adult child, or sibling. 

4 ‘‘(4) INAUGURAL COMMITTEE.—The term ‘In5 augural Committee’ has the meaning given that 

6 term by section 501 of title 36, United States Code. 

7 ‘‘(e) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this sec8 tion may be construed to limit the authority of a Federal 

9 agency to enforce a Federal law with respect to an Inau10 gural Committee.’’. 

11 (b) CONFIRMING AMENDMENTS RELATED TO RE12 PORTING REQUIREMENTS.— 

13 (1) Section 304 of the Federal Election Cam14 paign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30104) is amended— 

15 (A) by striking subsection (h); and 

16 (B) by redesignating subsection (i) as sub17 section (h). 

18 (2) Section 309(a)(4)(C)(iv)(I) is amended by 

19 striking ‘‘or (i)’’ and inserting ‘‘or (h)’’. 

20 (3) Section 313(c)(4) is amended by striking 

21 ‘‘section 304(i)(8)(B)’’ and inserting ‘‘section 

22 304(h)(8)(B)’’. 

23 (c) CONFORMING AMENDMENT RELATED TO STATUS

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

25 Code, is amended to read as follows: 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
32 

•HR 5048 IH

1 ‘‘§ 510. Disclosure of and prohibition on certain dona2 tions 

3 ‘‘A committee shall not be considered to be the Inau4 gural Committee for purposes of this chapter unless the 

5 committee agrees to, and meets, the requirements of sec6 tion 325 of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971.’’. 

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

8 this section shall apply with respect to Inaugural Commit9 tees established under chapter 5 of title 36, United States 

10 Code, for inaugurations held in 2025 and any succeeding 

11 year. 

12 DIVISION B—RESTORING 

13 CHECKS AND BALANCES, AC14 COUNTABILITY, AND TRANS15 PARENCY 

16 TITLE IV—ENFORCEMENT OF 

17 CONGRESSIONAL SUBPOENAS 

18 SEC. 401. SHORT TITLE. 

19 This title may be cited as the ‘‘Congressional Sub20 poena Compliance and Enforcement Act’’. 

21 SEC. 402. FINDINGS. 

22 The Congress finds as follows: 

23 (1) As the Supreme Court of the United States 

24 has repeatedly affirmed, including in its July 9, 

25 2020, holding in Trump v. Mazars, Congress’s 

26 ‘‘power of inquiry—with process to enforce it—is an 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
33 

•HR 5048 IH

1 essential and appropriate auxiliary to the legislative 

2 function’’. Congress’s power to obtain information, 

3 including through the issuance of subpoenas and the 

4 enforcement of such subpoenas, is ‘‘broad and indis5 pensable’’. 

6 (2) Congress ‘‘suffers a concrete and particular7 ized injury when denied the opportunity to obtain in8 formation necessary’’ to the exercise of its constitu9 tional functions, as the United States Court of Ap10 peals for the District of Columbia Circuit correctly 

11 recognized in its August 7, 2020, en banc decision 

12 in Committee on the Judiciary of the U.S. House of 

13 Representatives v. McGahn. 

14 (3) Accordingly, the Constitution secures to 

15 each House of Congress an inherent right to enforce 

16 its subpoenas in court. Explicit statutory authoriza17 tion is not required to secure such a right of action, 

18 and the contrary holding by a divided panel of the 

19 United States Court of Appeals for the District of 

20 Columbia Circuit in McGahn, entered on August 31, 

21 2020, was in error. 

22 SEC. 403. ENFORCEMENT OF CONGRESSIONAL SUBPOENAS. 

23 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 85 of title 28, United 

24 States Code, is amended by inserting after section 1365 

25 the following: 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
34 

•HR 5048 IH

1 ‘‘§ 1365a. Congressional actions against subpoena re2 cipients 

3 ‘‘(a) CAUSE OF ACTION.—The Senate, the House of 

4 Representatives, or a committee or subcommittee thereof, 

5 may bring a civil action against the recipient of a sub6 poena issued by a congressional committee or sub7 committee to enforce compliance with the subpoena. 

8 ‘‘(b) SPECIAL RULES.—In any civil action described 

9 in subsection (a), the following rules shall apply: 

10 ‘‘(1) The action may be filed in a United States 

11 district court of competent jurisdiction. 

12 ‘‘(2) Notwithstanding section 1657(a), it shall 

13 be the duty of every court of the United States to 

14 expedite to the greatest possible extent the disposi15 tion of any such action and appeal. Upon a showing 

16 by the plaintiff of undue delay, other irreparable 

17 harm, or good cause, a court to which an appeal of 

18 the action may be taken shall issue any necessary 

19 and appropriate writs and orders to ensure compli20 ance with this paragraph. 

21 ‘‘(3) If a three-judge court is expressly re22 quested by the plaintiff in the initial pleading, the 

23 action shall be heard by a three-judge court con24 vened pursuant to section 2284, and shall be review25 able only by appeal directly to the Supreme Court of 

26 the United States. Such appeal shall be taken by the 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
35 

•HR 5048 IH

1 filing of a notice of appeal within 10 days, and the 

2 filing of a jurisdictional statement within 30 days, of 

3 the entry of the final decision. 

4 ‘‘(4) The initial pleading shall be accompanied 

5 by certification that the party bringing the action 

6 has in good faith conferred or attempted to confer 

7 with the recipient of the subpoena to secure compli8 ance with the subpoena without court action. 

9 ‘‘(c) PENALTIES.— 

10 ‘‘(1) CASES INVOLVING GOVERNMENT AGEN11 CIES.— 

12 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The court may impose 

13 monetary penalties directly against each head of 

14 a Government agency and the head of each 

15 component thereof held to have knowingly failed 

16 to comply with any part of a congressional sub17 poena, unless— 

18 ‘‘(i) the President instructed the offi19 cial not to comply; and 

20 ‘‘(ii) the President, or the head of the 

21 agency or component thereof, submits to 

22 the court a letter confirming such instruc23 tion and the basis for such instruction. 

24 ‘‘(B) PROHIBITION ON USE OF GOVERN25 MENT FUNDS.—No appropriated funds, funds 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
36 

•HR 5048 IH

1 provided from any accounts in the Treasury, 

2 funds derived from the collection of fees, or 

3 other Government funds shall be used to pay 

4 any monetary penalty imposed by the court 

5 pursuant to this paragraph. 

6 ‘‘(2) LEGAL FEES.—In addition to any other 

7 penalties or sanctions, the court shall require that 

8 any defendant, other than a Government agency, 

9 held to have willfully failed to comply with any part 

10 of a congressional subpoena, pay a penalty in an 

11 amount equal to that party’s legal fees, including at12 torney’s fees, litigation expenses, and other costs. If 

13 such defendant is an officer or employee of a Gov14 ernment agency, such legal fees may be paid from 

15 funds appropriated to pay the salary of the defend16 ant. 

17 ‘‘(d) WAIVER.—Any ground for noncompliance as18 serted by the recipient of a congressional subpoena shall 

19 be deemed to have been waived as to any particular infor20 mation withheld from production if the court finds that 

21 the recipient failed in a timely manner to comply with the 

22 applicable requirements of section 105(b) of the Revised 

23 Statutes of the United States with respect to such infor24 mation. 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
37 

•HR 5048 IH

1 ‘‘(e) RULES OF PROCEDURE.—The Supreme Court of 

2 the United States and the Judicial Conference of the 

3 United States shall prescribe rules of procedure to ensure 

4 the expeditious treatment of actions described in sub5 section (a). Such rules shall be prescribed and submitted 

6 to the Congress pursuant to sections 2072, 2073, and 

7 2074. This shall include procedures for expeditiously con8 sidering any assertion of constitutional or Federal statu9 tory privilege made in connection with testimony by any 

10 recipient of a subpoena from a congressional committee 

11 or subcommittee. The Supreme Court shall transmit such 

12 rules to Congress within 6 months after the effective date 

13 of this section and then pursuant to section 2074 there14 after. 

15 ‘‘(f) DEFINITION.—For purposes of this section, the 

16 term ‘Government agency’ means any office or entity de17 scribed in sections 105 and 106 of title 3, an executive 

18 department listed in section 101 of title 5, an independent 

19 establishment, commission, board, bureau, division, or of20 fice in the executive branch, or any other agency or instru21 mentality of the Federal Government, including wholly or 

22 partly owned Government corporations.’’. 

23 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 

24 for chapter 85 of title 28, United States Code, is amended 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
38 

•HR 5048 IH

1 by inserting after the item relating to section 1365 the 

2 following: 

‘‘1365a. Congressional actions against subpoena recipients.’’. 

3 SEC. 404. COMPLIANCE WITH CONGRESSIONAL SUB4 POENAS. 

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 7 of title II of the Re6 vised Statutes of the United States (2 U.S.C. 191 et seq.) 

7 is amended by adding at the end the following: 

8 ‘‘SEC. 105. RESPONSE TO CONGRESSIONAL SUBPOENAS. 

9 ‘‘(a) SUBPOENA BY CONGRESSIONAL COMMITTEE.— 

10 Any recipient of any subpoena from a congressional com11 mittee or subcommittee shall appear and testify, produce, 

12 or otherwise disclose information in a manner consistent 

13 with the subpoena and this section. 

14 ‘‘(b) FAILURE TO PRODUCE INFORMATION.— 

15 ‘‘(1) GROUNDS FOR WITHHOLDING INFORMA16 TION.—Unless required by the Constitution or by 

17 Federal statute, no claim of privilege or protection 

18 from disclosure shall be a ground for withholding in19 formation responsive to the subpoena or required by 

20 this section. 

21 ‘‘(2) IDENTIFICATION OF INFORMATION WITH22 HELD.—In the case of information that is withheld, 

23 in whole or in part, by the subpoena recipient, the 

24 subpoena recipient shall, without delay provide a log 

25 containing the following: 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
39 

•HR 5048 IH

1 ‘‘(A) An express assertion and description 

2 of the ground asserted for withholding the in3 formation. 

4 ‘‘(B) The type of information. 

5 ‘‘(C) The general subject matter. 

6 ‘‘(D) The date, author, and addressee. 

7 ‘‘(E) The relationship of the author and 

8 addressee to each other. 

9 ‘‘(F) The custodian of the information. 

10 ‘‘(G) Any other descriptive information 

11 that may be produced or disclosed regarding 

12 the information that will enable the congres13 sional committee or subcommittee issuing the 

14 subpoena to assess the ground asserted for 

15 withholding the information. 

16 ‘‘(c) DEFINITION.—For purposes of this section the 

17 term ‘information’ includes any books, papers, documents, 

18 data, or other objects requested in a subpoena issued by 

19 a congressional committee or subcommittee.’’. 

20 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of contents 

21 for chapter 7 of title II of the Revised Statutes of the 

22 United States is amended by adding at the end the fol23 lowing: 

‘‘105. Response to congressional subpoenas.’’. 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
40 

•HR 5048 IH

1 SEC. 405. RULE OF CONSTRUCTION. 

2 Nothing in this title may be interpreted to limit or 

3 constrain Congress’ inherent authority or foreclose any 

4 other means for enforcing compliance with congressional 

5 subpoenas, nor may anything in this title be interpreted 

6 to establish or recognize any ground for noncompliance 

7 with a congressional subpoena. 

8 SEC. 406. ENFORCEMENT OF REQUESTS FOR INFORMATION 

9 FROM CERTAIN COMMITTEES OF CONGRESS. 

10 Section 2954 of title 5, United States Code, is 

11 amended— 

12 (1) by striking ‘‘An Executive’’ and inserting 

13 ‘‘(a) SUBMITTING INFORMATION.—An Executive’’; 

14 and 

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

16 ‘‘(b) FAILURE TO COMPLY.—For purposes of rem17 edying any failure to comply with a request under sub18 section (a), section 1365a of title 28 and section 105 of 

19 the Revised Statutes of the United States shall apply to 

20 such a request in the same manner as such sections 1365a 

21 and 105 apply to a subpoena.’’. 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
41 

•HR 5048 IH

1 TITLE V—REASSERTING CON2 GRESSIONAL POWER OF THE 

3 PURSE 

4 SEC. 500. SHORT TITLE. 

5 This title may be cited as the ‘‘Congressional Power 

6 of the Purse Act’’. 

7 Subtitle A—Strengthening Con8 gressional Control and Review 

9 To Prevent Impoundment 

10 SEC. 501. STRENGTHENING CONGRESSIONAL CONTROL. 

11 (a) IN GENERAL.—Part B of the Impoundment Con12 trol Act of 1974 (2 U.S.C. 682 et seq.) is amended by 

13 adding at the end the following: 

14 ‘‘PRUDENT OBLIGATION OF BUDGET AUTHORITY AND

15 SPECIFIC REQUIREMENTS FOR EXPIRING BUDGET

16 AUTHORITY

17 ‘‘SEC. 1018. (a) SPECIAL MESSAGE REQUIRE18 MENT.—With respect to budget authority proposed to be 

19 rescinded or that is set to be reserved or proposed to be 

20 deferred in a special message transmitted under section 

21 1012 or 1013, such budget authority— 

22 ‘‘(1) shall be made available for obligation in 

23 sufficient time to be prudently obligated as required 

24 under section 1012(b) or 1013; and 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
42 

•HR 5048 IH

1 ‘‘(2) may not be deferred or otherwise withheld 

2 from obligation during the 90-day period before the 

3 expiration of the period of availability of such budget 

4 authority, including, if applicable, the 90-day period 

5 before the expiration of an initial period of avail6 ability for which such budget authority was pro7 vided. 

8 ‘‘(b) ADMINISTRATIVE REQUIREMENT.—With respect 

9 to an apportionment of an appropriation (as that term is 

10 defined in section 1511 of title 31, United States Code) 

11 made pursuant to section 1512 of such title, an appropria12 tion shall be apportioned— 

13 ‘‘(1) to make available all amounts for obliga14 tion in sufficient time to be prudently obligated; and 

15 ‘‘(2) to make available all amounts for obliga16 tion, without precondition (including footnotes) that 

17 shall be met prior to obligation, not later than 90 

18 days before the expiration of the period of avail19 ability of such appropriation, including, if applicable, 

20 90 days before the expiration of an initial period of 

21 availability for which such appropriation was pro22 vided.’’. 

23 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of contents 

24 of the Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control 

25 Act of 1974 set forth in section 1(b) of such Act is amendVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:58 Aug 18, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00042 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5048.IH H5048

tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
43 

•HR 5048 IH

1 ed by inserting after the item relating to section 1017 the 

2 following: 

‘‘1018. Prudent obligation of budget authority and specific requirements for expiring budget authority.’’. 

3 SEC. 502. STRENGTHENING CONGRESSIONAL REVIEW. 

4 (a) IN GENERAL.—Part B of the Impoundment Con5 trol Act of 1974 (2 U.S.C. 682 et seq.), as amended by 

6 section 501(a), is further amended by adding at the end 

7 the following: 

8 ‘‘REPORTING ON APPORTIONMENT OF APPROPRIATIONS

9 BY DEPARTMENTS AND AGENCIES

10 ‘‘SEC. 1019. Each department or agency shall— 

11 ‘‘(1) notify the Committee on the Budget and 

12 the Committee on Appropriations of the House of 

13 Representatives, the Committee on the Budget and 

14 the Committee on Appropriations of the Senate, and 

15 any other appropriate congressional committees if— 

16 ‘‘(A) an apportionment is not made in the 

17 required time period provided in section 

18 1513(b) of title 31, United States Code; 

19 ‘‘(B) an approved apportionment received 

20 by the department or agency conditions the 

21 availability of an appropriation on further ac22 tion; or 

23 ‘‘(C) an approved apportionment received 

24 by the department or agency may hinder the 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
44 

•HR 5048 IH

1 prudent obligation of such appropriation or the 

2 execution of a program, project, or activity by 

3 such department or agency; and 

4 ‘‘(2) include in each notification under para5 graph (1) information identifying the bureau, ac6 count name, appropriation name, and Treasury Ap7 propriation Fund Symbol or fund account.’’. 

8 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of contents 

9 of the Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control 

10 Act of 1974 set forth in section 1(b) of such Act, as 

11 amended by section 501(b), is further amended by insert12 ing after the item relating to section 1018 the following: 

‘‘1019. Reporting on apportionment of appropriations by departments and agencies.’’. 

13 SEC. 503. UPDATED AUTHORITIES FOR AND REPORTING BY 

14 THE COMPTROLLER GENERAL. 

15 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 1015 of the Impoundment 

16 Control Act of 1974 (2 U.S.C. 686) is amended— 

17 (1) in subsection (a), in the matter following 

18 paragraph (2), by striking the last sentence; and 

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

20 ‘‘(c) REVIEW.— 

21 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Comptroller General 

22 shall— 

23 ‘‘(A) review compliance with this part; and 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
45 

•HR 5048 IH

1 ‘‘(B) submit to the Committee on the 

2 Budget, the Committee on Appropriations, and 

3 the Committee on Homeland Security and Gov4 ernmental Affairs of the Senate, the Committee 

5 on the Budget, the Committee on Appropria6 tions, and the Committee on Oversight and Re7 form of the House of Representatives, and any 

8 other appropriate congressional committee of 

9 the Senate or the House of Representatives a 

10 report, and any relevant information related to 

11 the report, on any noncompliance with this 

12 part. 

13 ‘‘(2) INFORMATION, DOCUMENTATION, AND

14 VIEWS.—The President or the head of the relevant 

15 department or agency of the United States shall pro16 vide information, documentation, and views to the 

17 Comptroller General, as is determined by the Comp18 troller General to be necessary to determine such 

19 compliance, not later than 20 days after the date on 

20 which the request from the Comptroller General is 

21 received, or if the Comptroller General determines 

22 that a shorter or longer period is appropriate based 

23 on the specific circumstances, within such shorter or 

24 longer period. 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
46 

•HR 5048 IH

1 ‘‘(3) ACCESS.—To carry out the responsibilities 

2 of this part, the Comptroller General shall have ac3 cess to interview the officers, employees, contractors, 

4 and other agents and representatives of a depart5 ment, agency, or office of the United States at any 

6 reasonable time as the Comptroller General may re7 quest.’’. 

8 (b) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Section 1001 of the 

9 Impoundment Control Act of 1974 (2 U.S.C. 681) is 

10 amended— 

11 (1) in paragraph (3), by striking the ‘‘or’’ at 

12 the end of the paragraph; 

13 (2) in paragraph (4), by striking the period at 

14 the end and inserting ‘‘; or’’; and 

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

16 ‘‘(5) affecting or limiting in any way the au17 thorities provided to the Comptroller General under 

18 chapter 7 of title 31, United States Code.’’. 

19 SEC. 504. ADVANCE CONGRESSIONAL NOTIFICATION AND 

20 LITIGATION. 

21 Section 1016 of the Impoundment Control Act of 

22 1974 (2 U.S.C. 687) is amended to read as follows: 

23 ‘‘SUITS BY COMPTROLLER GENERAL

24 ‘‘SEC. 1016. (a) IN GENERAL.—If, under this title, 

25 budget authority is required to be made available for obli26 gation and such budget authority is not made available 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
47 

•HR 5048 IH

1 for obligation or information, documentation, views, or ac2 cess are required to be produced and such information, 

3 documentation, views, or access are not produced, the 

4 Comptroller General is expressly empowered, through at5 torneys selected by the Comptroller General, to bring a 

6 civil action in the United States District Court for the Dis7 trict of Columbia to require such budget authority to be 

8 made available for obligation or such information, docu9 mentation, views, or access to be produced. 

10 ‘‘(b) COURT AUTHORITY.—In a civil action under 

11 subsection (a), the court is expressly empowered to enter, 

12 against any department, agency, officer, or employee of 

13 the United States, any decree, judgment, or order which 

14 may be necessary or appropriate to make such budget au15 thority available for obligation or compel production of 

16 such information, documentation, views, or access. 

17 ‘‘(c) NOTICE.—No civil action shall be brought by the 

18 Comptroller General to require budget authority be made 

19 available under this section until the expiration of 15 cal20 endar days following the date on which an explanatory 

21 statement by the Comptroller General of the cir22 cumstances giving rise to the action contemplated is filed 

23 with the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the 

24 President of the Senate, except that expiration of such pe25 riod shall not be required if the Comptroller General finds 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
48 

•HR 5048 IH

1 (and incorporates the finding in the explanatory statement 

2 filed) that such delay would be contrary to the public in3 terest.’’. 

4 SEC. 505. PENALTIES FOR FAILURE TO COMPLY WITH THE 

5 IMPOUNDMENT CONTROL ACT OF 1974. 

6 (a) IN GENERAL.—Part B of the Impoundment Con7 trol Act of 1974 (2 U.S.C. 682 et seq.), as amended by 

8 section 502(a), is further amended by adding at the end 

9 the following: 

10 ‘‘PENALTIES FOR FAILURE TO COMPLY

11 ‘‘SEC. 1020. (a) ADMINISTRATIVE DISCIPLINE.—An 

12 officer or employee of the Executive Branch of the United 

13 States Government violating this part shall be subject to 

14 appropriate administrative discipline, including, when cir15 cumstances warrant, suspension from duty without pay or 

16 removal from office. 

17 ‘‘(b) REPORTING VIOLATIONS.— 

18 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—In the event of a violation 

19 of section 1001, 1012, 1013, or 1018 of this part, 

20 or in the case that the Comptroller General issues 

21 a legal decision concluding that a department, agen22 cy, or office of the United States violated this part, 

23 the President or the head of the relevant department 

24 or agency as the case may be, shall report imme25 diately to Congress all relevant facts and a state26 ment of actions taken. A copy of each report shall 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
49 

•HR 5048 IH

1 also be transmitted to the Comptroller General and 

2 the relevant inspector general on the same date the 

3 report is transmitted to the Congress. 

4 ‘‘(2) CONTENTS.—Any such report shall include 

5 a summary of the facts pertaining to the violation, 

6 the title and Treasury Appropriation Fund Symbol 

7 of the appropriation or fund account, the amount in8 volved for each violation, the date on which the vio9 lation occurred, the position of any individuals re10 sponsible for the violation, a statement of the admin11 istrative discipline imposed and any further action 

12 taken with respect to any officer or employee in13 volved in the violation, a statement of any additional 

14 action taken to prevent recurrence of the same type 

15 of violation, and any written response by any officer 

16 or employee identified by position as involved in the 

17 violation. In the case that the Comptroller General 

18 issues a legal decision concluding that a department, 

19 agency, or office of the United States violated this 

20 part and the relevant department, agency, or office 

21 does not agree that a violation has occurred, the re22 port provided to Congress, the Comptroller General, 

23 and relevant inspector general will explain the posi24 tion of the department, agency, or office. 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
50 

•HR 5048 IH

1 ‘‘(3) OPPORTUNITY TO RESPOND.—If any such 

2 report identifies the position of any officer or em3 ployee as involved in the violation, such officer or 

4 employee shall be provided a reasonable opportunity 

5 to respond in writing, and any such response shall 

6 be appended to the report.’’. 

7 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of contents 

8 of the Congressional Budget and Impoundment Control 

9 Act of 1974 set forth in section 1(b) of such Act, as 

10 amended by section 502(b), is further amended by insert11 ing after the item relating to section 1019 the following: 

‘‘1020. Penalties for failure to comply.’’. 

12 Subtitle B—Strengthening 

13 Transparency and Reporting 

14 PART 1—FUNDS MANAGEMENT AND REPORTING 

15 TO THE CONGRESS 

16 SEC. 511. EXPIRED BALANCE REPORTING IN THE PRESI17 DENT’S BUDGET. 

18 Section 1105(a) of title 31, United States Code, is 

19 amended by adding at the end the following: 

20 ‘‘(40) for the budget for each of fiscal years 

21 2025 through 2029, a report— 

22 ‘‘(A) identifying unobligated expired bal23 ances as of the beginning of the current fiscal 

24 year and the beginning of each of the preceding 

25 2 fiscal years by agency and the applicable 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
51 

•HR 5048 IH

1 Treasury Appropriation Fund Symbol or fund 

2 account; and 

3 ‘‘(B) providing explanation of unobligated 

4 expired balances in any Treasury Appropriation 

5 Fund Symbol or fund account that exceed the 

6 lesser of 5 percent of total appropriations made 

7 available for that account or $100,000,000.’’. 

8 SEC. 512. CANCELLED BALANCE REPORTING IN THE PRESI9 DENT’S BUDGET. 

10 Section 1105(a) of title 31, United States Code, as 

11 amended by section 511, is further amended by adding 

12 at the end the following: 

13 ‘‘(41) for the budget for each of fiscal years 

14 2025 through 2029, a report— 

15 ‘‘(A) identifying cancelled balances (pursu16 ant to section 1552(a)) for the preceding 3 fis17 cal years by agency and Treasury Appropriation 

18 Fund Symbol or fund account; 

19 ‘‘(B) providing explanation of cancelled 

20 balances in any Treasury Appropriation Fund 

21 Symbol or fund account that exceed the lesser 

22 of 5 percent of total appropriations made avail23 able for that account or $100,000,000; and 

24 ‘‘(C) including a tabulation, by Treasury 

25 Appropriation Fund Symbol or fund account 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
52 

•HR 5048 IH

1 and appropriation, of all balances of appropria2 tions available for an indefinite period in an ap3 propriation account available for an indefinite 

4 period that do not meet the criteria for closure 

5 under section 1555, but for which either— 

6 ‘‘(i) the head of the agency concerned 

7 or the President has determined that the 

8 purposes for which the appropriation was 

9 made have been carried out; or 

10 ‘‘(ii) no disbursement has been made 

11 against the appropriation— 

12 ‘‘(I) in the prior year and the 

13 preceding fiscal year; or 

14 ‘‘(II) in the prior year and which 

15 the budget estimates zero disburse16 ments in the current year.’’. 

17 SEC. 513. LAPSE IN APPROPRIATIONS—REPORTING IN THE 

18 PRESIDENT’S BUDGET. 

19 Section 1105(a) of title 31, United States Code, as 

20 amended by section 512, is further amended by adding 

21 at the end the following: 

22 ‘‘(42) a report— 

23 ‘‘(A) identifying any obligation or expendi24 ture made by a department or agency affected 

25 in whole or in part by any lapse in appropriaVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:58 Aug 18, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00052 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5048.IH H5048

tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
53 

•HR 5048 IH

1 tions of 5 consecutive days or more during the 

2 preceding fiscal year for which amounts were 

3 not available; and 

4 ‘‘(B) with respect to any such obligation or 

5 expenditure, providing— 

6 ‘‘(i) the amount so obligated or ex7 pended; 

8 ‘‘(ii) the account affected; 

9 ‘‘(iii) an explanation of the exception 

10 under subchapter III of chapter 13 or sub11 chapter II of chapter 15 of this title, or 

12 another legal authority, that permitted the 

13 department or agency, as the case may be, 

14 to incur such obligation or expenditure; 

15 and 

16 ‘‘(iv) an explanation of any change in 

17 the application of any exception under sub18 chapter III of chapter 13 or subchapter II 

19 of chapter 15 of this title for a program, 

20 project, or activity from any explanations 

21 previously reported on pursuant to this 

22 paragraph.’’. 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
54 

•HR 5048 IH

1 SEC. 514. TRANSFER AND OTHER REPURPOSING AUTHOR2 ITY REPORTING IN THE PRESIDENT’S BUDG3 ET. 

4 Section 1105(a) of title 31, United States Code, as 

5 amended by section 513, is further amended by adding 

6 at the end the following: 

7 ‘‘(43) for the budget for fiscal year 2025, a re8 port— 

9 ‘‘(A) identifying any transfer authority or 

10 other authority to repurpose appropriations pro11 vided in a law other than an appropriation act; 

12 and 

13 ‘‘(B) with respect to any such authority, 

14 providing the citation to the statute, the list of 

15 departments or agencies covered, an expla16 nation of when such authority may be used, and 

17 an explanation on any use of such authority in 

18 the preceding 3 fiscal years.’’. 

19 SEC. 515. AUTHORIZING CANCELLATIONS IN INDEFINITE 

20 ACCOUNTS BY APPROPRIATION. 

21 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subchapter IV of chapter 15 of 

22 title 31, United States Code, is amended by inserting after 

23 section 1555 the following: 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
55 

•HR 5048 IH

1 ‘‘§ 1555a. Cancellation of appropriations available for 

2 indefinite periods within an account 

3 ‘‘Any remaining balance (whether obligated or unobli4 gated) from an appropriation available for an indefinite 

5 period in an appropriation account available for an indefi6 nite period that does not meet the requirements for closure 

7 under section 1555 shall be canceled, and thereafter shall 

8 not be available for obligation or expenditure for any pur9 pose, if— 

10 ‘‘(1) the head of the agency concerned or the 

11 President determines that the purposes for which 

12 the appropriation was made have been carried out; 

13 and 

14 ‘‘(2) no disbursement has been made against 

15 the appropriation for two consecutive fiscal years.’’. 

16 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 

17 for subchapter IV of chapter 15 of title 31, United States 

18 Code, is amended by inserting after the item relating to 

19 section 1555 the following: 

‘‘1555a. Cancellation of appropriations available for indefinite periods within an 

account.’’. 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
56 

•HR 5048 IH

1 PART 2—EMPOWERING CONGRESSIONAL REVIEW 

2 THROUGH NONPARTISAN CONGRESSIONAL 

3 AGENCIES AND TRANSPARENCY INITIATIVES 

4 SEC. 521. REQUIREMENT TO RESPOND TO REQUESTS FOR 

5 INFORMATION FROM THE COMPTROLLER 

6 GENERAL FOR BUDGET AND APPROPRIA7 TIONS LAW DECISIONS. 

8 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subchapter II of chapter 7 of title 

9 31, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end 

10 the following: 

11 ‘‘§ 722. Requirement to respond to requests for infor12 mation from the Comptroller General for 

13 budget and appropriations law decisions 

14 ‘‘(a) If an agency receives a written request for infor15 mation, documentation, or views from the Comptroller 

16 General relating to a decision or opinion on budget or ap17 propriations law, the agency shall provide the requested 

18 information, documentation, or views not later than 20 

19 days after receiving the written request, unless such writ20 ten request specifically provides otherwise. 

21 ‘‘(b) If an agency fails to provide the requested infor22 mation, documentation, or views within the time required 

23 by subsection (a)— 

24 ‘‘(1) the Comptroller General shall notify, in 

25 writing, the Committee on Homeland Security and 

26 Governmental Affairs of the Senate, the Committee 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
57 

•HR 5048 IH

1 on Oversight and Accountability of the House of 

2 Representatives, and any other appropriate congres3 sional committee of such failure; 

4 ‘‘(2) the Comptroller General is hereby ex5 pressly empowered, through attorneys selected by 

6 the Comptroller General, to bring a civil action in 

7 the United States District Court for the District of 

8 Columbia to require such information, documenta9 tion, or views to be produced; and 

10 ‘‘(3) the court in a civil action brought under 

11 paragraph (2) is expressly empowered to enter 

12 against any department, agency, officer, or employee 

13 of the United States any decree, judgment, or order 

14 which may be necessary or appropriate to require 

15 such production. 

16 ‘‘(c) Nothing in this section shall be construed as af17 fecting or otherwise limiting the authorities provided to 

18 the Comptroller General in section 716 of this title.’’. 

19 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 

20 for subchapter II of chapter 7 of title 31, United States 

21 Code, is amended by inserting after the item relating to 

22 section 721 the following: 

‘‘722. Requirement to respond to requests for information from the Comptroller 

General for budget and appropriations law decisions.’’. 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
58 

•HR 5048 IH

1 SEC. 522. REPORTING REQUIREMENTS FOR 

2 ANTIDEFICIENCY ACT VIOLATIONS. 

3 (a) VIOLATIONS OF SECTION 1341 OR 1342.—Sec4 tion 1351 of title 31, United States Code, is amended— 

5 (1) by striking ‘‘If’’ and inserting ‘‘(a) If’’; 

6 (2) by inserting ‘‘or if the Comptroller General 

7 determines that an officer or employee of an execu8 tive agency or of the District of Columbia govern9 ment violated section 1341(a) or 1342,’’ before ‘‘the 

10 head of the agency’’; 

11 (3) by striking ‘‘the Comptroller General’’ and 

12 inserting ‘‘the Comptroller General and the Attorney 

13 General’’; and 

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

15 ‘‘(b) Any such report shall include a statement of the 

16 provision violated, a summary of the facts pertaining to 

17 the violation, the title and Treasury Appropriation Fund 

18 Symbol of the appropriation or fund account, the amount 

19 involved for each violation, the date on which the violation 

20 occurred, the position of any officer or employee respon21 sible for the violation, a statement of the administrative 

22 discipline imposed and any further action taken with re23 spect to any officer or employee involved in the violation, 

24 a statement of any additional action taken to prevent re25 currence of the same type of violation, a statement of any 

26 determination that the violation was not knowing and willVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:58 Aug 18, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00058 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5048.IH H5048

tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
59 

•HR 5048 IH

1 ful that has been made by the executive agency or the Dis2 trict of Columbia government, and any written response 

3 by any officer or employee identified by position as in4 volved in the violation. In the case that the Comptroller 

5 General issues a legal decision concluding that section 

6 1341(a) or 1342 was violated and the executive agency 

7 or the District of Columbia government does not agree 

8 that a violation has occurred, the report provided to the 

9 President, the Congress, and the Comptroller General will 

10 explain the position of the executive agency or the District 

11 of Columbia government.’’. 

12 (b) VIOLATIONS OF SECTION 1517.—Section 1517 of 

13 title 31, United States Code, is amended— 

14 (1) in subsection (b)— 

15 (A) by inserting ‘‘or if the Comptroller 

16 General determines that an officer or employee 

17 of an executive agency or of the District of Co18 lumbia government violated subsection (a),’’ be19 fore ‘‘the head of the executive agency’’; and 

20 (B) by striking ‘‘the Comptroller General’’ 

21 and inserting ‘‘the Comptroller General and the 

22 Attorney General’’; and 

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

24 ‘‘(c) Any such report shall include a statement of the 

25 provision violated, a summary of the facts pertaining to 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
60 

•HR 5048 IH

1 the violation, the title and Treasury Appropriation Fund 

2 Symbol of the appropriation or fund account, the amount 

3 involved for each violation, the date on which the violation 

4 occurred, the position of any officer or employee respon5 sible for the violation, a statement of the administrative 

6 discipline imposed and any further action taken with re7 spect to any officer or employee involved in the violation, 

8 a statement of any additional action taken to prevent re9 currence of the same type of violation, a statement of any 

10 determination that the violation was not knowing and will11 ful that has been made by the executive agency or the Dis12 trict of Columbia government, and any written response 

13 by any officer or employee identified by position as in14 volved in the violation. In the case that the Comptroller 

15 General issues a legal decision concluding that subsection 

16 (a) was violated and the executive agency or the District 

17 of Columbia government does not agree that a violation 

18 has occurred, the report provided to the President, the 

19 Congress, and the Comptroller General will explain the po20 sition of the executive agency or the District of Columbia 

21 government.’’. 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
61 

•HR 5048 IH

1 SEC. 523. DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE REPORTING TO CON2 GRESS FOR ANTIDEFICIENCY ACT VIOLA3 TIONS. 

4 (a) VIOLATIONS OF SECTIONS 1341 OR 1342.—Sec5 tion 1350 of title 31, United States Code, is amended— 

6 (1) by striking ‘‘An officer’’ and inserting ‘‘(a) 

7 An officer’’; and 

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

9 ‘‘(b)(1) If an executive agency or the District of Co10 lumbia government reports, under section 1351, a viola11 tion of section 1341(a) or 1342, the Attorney General 

12 shall promptly review such report and investigate to the 

13 extent necessary to determine whether there are reason14 able grounds to believe that the responsible officer or em15 ployee knowingly and willfully violated such section 

16 1341(a) or 1342, as applicable. If the Attorney General 

17 determines that there are such reasonable grounds, the 

18 Attorney General diligently shall investigate a criminal 

19 violation under this section. 

20 ‘‘(2) The Attorney General shall submit to Congress 

21 and the Comptroller General on or before March 31 of 

22 each calendar year an annual report detailing separately 

23 for each executive agency and for the District of Columbia 

24 government— 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
62 

•HR 5048 IH

1 ‘‘(A) the number of reports under section 1351 

2 transmitted to the President during the preceding 

3 calendar year; 

4 ‘‘(B) the number of reports reviewed in accord5 ance with paragraph (1) during the preceding cal6 endar year; 

7 ‘‘(C) without identification of any individual of8 ficer or employee, a description of each investigation 

9 undertaken in accordance with paragraph (1) during 

10 the preceding calendar year and an explanation of 

11 the status of any such investigation; and 

12 ‘‘(D) without identification of any individual of13 ficer or employee, an explanation of any update to 

14 the status of any review or investigation previously 

15 reported pursuant to this paragraph.’’. 

16 (b) VIOLATIONS OF SECTION 1517.—Section 1519 of 

17 title 31, United States Code, is amended— 

18 (1) by striking ‘‘An officer’’ and inserting ‘‘(a) 

19 An officer’’; and 

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

21 ‘‘(b)(1) If an executive agency or the District of Co22 lumbia government reports, under section 1517(b), a vio23 lation of section 1517(a), the Attorney General shall 

24 promptly review such report and investigate to the extent 

25 necessary to determine whether there are reasonable 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
63 

•HR 5048 IH

1 grounds to believe that the responsible officer or employee 

2 knowingly and willfully violated such section 1517(a). If 

3 the Attorney General determines that there are such rea4 sonable grounds, the Attorney General diligently shall in5 vestigate a criminal violation under this section. 

6 ‘‘(2) The Attorney General shall submit to Congress 

7 and the Comptroller General on or before March 31 of 

8 each calendar year an annual report detailing separately 

9 for each executive agency and for the District of Columbia 

10 government— 

11 ‘‘(A) the number of reports under section 

12 1517(b) transmitted to the President during the pre13 ceding calendar year; 

14 ‘‘(B) the number of reports reviewed in accord15 ance with paragraph (1) during the preceding cal16 endar year; 

17 ‘‘(C) without identification of any individual of18 ficer or employee, a description of each investigation 

19 undertaken in accordance with paragraph (1) during 

20 the preceding calendar year and an explanation of 

21 the status of any such investigation; and 

22 ‘‘(D) without identification of any individual of23 ficer or employee, an explanation of any update to 

24 the status of any review or investigation previously 

25 reported pursuant to this subsection.’’. 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
64 

•HR 5048 IH

1 SEC. 524. PUBLICATION OF BUDGET OR APPROPRIATIONS 

2 LAW OPINIONS OF THE DEPARTMENT OF JUS3 TICE OFFICE OF LEGAL COUNSEL. 

4 (a) SCHEDULE OF PUBLICATION FOR FINAL OLC 

5 OPINIONS.—Each final OLC opinion shall be made avail6 able on its public website in a manner that is searchable, 

7 sortable, and downloadable in its entirety as soon as is 

8 practicable, but— 

9 (1) not later than 30 days after the opinion is 

10 issued or updated if such action takes place on or 

11 after the date of enactment of this Act; 

12 (2) not later than 1 year after the date of en13 actment of this Act for an opinion issued on or after 

14 January 20, 1993; 

15 (3) not later than 2 years after the date of en16 actment of this Act for an opinion issued on or after 

17 January 20, 1981, and before or on January 19, 

18 1993; 

19 (4) not later than 3 years after the date of en20 actment of this Act for an opinion issued on or after 

21 January 20, 1969, and before or on January 19, 

22 1981; and 

23 (5) not later than 4 years after the date of en24 actment of this Act for all other opinions. 

25 (b) EXCEPTIONS AND LIMITATION ON PUBLIC

26 AVAILABILITY OF FINAL OLC OPINIONS.— 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
65 

•HR 5048 IH

1 (1) IN GENERAL.—A final OLC opinion or part 

2 thereof may be withheld only to the extent— 

3 (A) information contained in the opinion 

4 was— 

5 (i) specifically authorized to be kept 

6 secret, under criteria established by an Ex7 ecutive order, in the interest of national 

8 defense or foreign policy; 

9 (ii) properly classified, including all 

10 procedural and marking requirements, pur11 suant to such Executive order; 

12 (iii) the Attorney General determines 

13 that the national defense or foreign policy 

14 interests protected outweigh the public’s 

15 interest in access to the information; and 

16 (iv) put through declassification re17 view within the past two years; 

18 (B) information contained in the opinion 

19 relates to the appointment of a specific indi20 vidual not confirmed to Federal office; 

21 (C) information contained in the opinion is 

22 specifically exempted from disclosure by statute 

23 (other than sections 552 and 552b of title 5, 

24 United States Code), if such statute— 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
66 

•HR 5048 IH

1 (i) requires that the material be with2 held in such a manner as to leave no dis3 cretion on the issue; or 

4 (ii) establishes particular criteria for 

5 withholding or refers to particular types of 

6 material to be withheld; 

7 (D) information in the opinion includes 

8 trade secrets and commercial or financial infor9 mation obtained from a person and privileged 

10 or confidential whose disclosure would likely 

11 cause substantial harm to the competitive posi12 tion of the person from whom the information 

13 was obtained; 

14 (E) the President, in his or her sole and 

15 nondelegable determination, formally and per16 sonally claims in writing that executive privilege 

17 prevents the release of the information and dis18 closure would cause specific identifiable harm to 

19 an interest protected by an exception or the dis20 closure is prohibited by law; or 

21 (F) information in the opinion includes 

22 personnel and medical files and similar files the 

23 disclosure of which would constitute a clearly 

24 unwarranted invasion of personal privacy. 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
67 

•HR 5048 IH

1 (2) DETERMINATION TO WITHHOLD.—Any de2 termination under this subsection to withhold infor3 mation contained in a final OLC opinion shall be 

4 made by the Attorney General or a designee of the 

5 Attorney General. The determination shall be— 

6 (A) in writing; 

7 (B) made available to the public within the 

8 same timeframe as is required of a formal OLC 

9 opinion; 

10 (C) sufficiently detailed as to inform the 

11 public of what kind of information is being 

12 withheld and the reason therefore; and 

13 (D) effective only for a period of 3 years, 

14 subject to review and reissuance, with each 

15 reissuance made available to the public. 

16 (3) FINAL OPINIONS.—For final OLC opinions 

17 for which the text is withheld in full or in substan18 tial part, a detailed unclassified summary of the 

19 opinion shall be made available to the public, in the 

20 same timeframe as required of the final OLC opin21 ion, that conveys the essence of the opinion, includ22 ing any interpretations of a statute, the Constitu23 tion, or other legal authority. A notation shall be in24 cluded in any published list of final OLC opinions 

25 regarding the extent of the withholdings. 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
68 

•HR 5048 IH

1 (4) NO LIMITATION ON FREEDOM OF INFORMA2 TION.—Nothing in this subsection shall be construed 

3 as limiting the availability of information under sec4 tion 552 of title 5, United States Code or construed 

5 as an exemption under paragraph (3) of subsection 

6 (b) of such section. 

7 (5) NO LIMITATION ON RELIEF.—A decision by 

8 the Attorney General to release or withhold informa9 tion pursuant to this title shall not preclude any ac10 tion or relief conferred by statutory or regulatory re11 gime that empowers any person to request or de12 mand the release of information. 

13 (6) REASONABLY SEGREGABLE PORTIONS OF

14 OPINIONS TO BE PUBLISHED.—Any reasonably seg15 regable portion of an opinion shall be provided after 

16 withholding of the portions which are exempt under 

17 this section. The amount of information withheld, 

18 and the exemption under which the withholding is 

19 made, shall be indicated on the released portion of 

20 the opinion, unless including that indication would 

21 harm an interest protected by the exemption in this 

22 paragraph under which the withholding is made. If 

23 technically feasible, the amount of the information 

24 withheld, and the exemption under which the withVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:58 Aug 18, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00068 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5048.IH H5048

tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
69 

•HR 5048 IH

1 holding is made, shall be indicated at the place in 

2 the opinion where such withholding is made. 

3 (c) METHOD OF PUBLICATION.—The Attorney Gen4 eral shall publish each final OLC opinion to the extent 

5 the law permits, including by publishing the opinions on 

6 a publicly accessible website that— 

7 (1) with respect to each opinion— 

8 (A) contains an electronic copy of the opin9 ion, including any transmittal letter associated 

10 with the opinion, in an open format that is plat11 form independent and that is available to the 

12 public without restrictions; 

13 (B) provides the public the ability to re14 trieve an opinion, to the extent practicable, 

15 through searches based on— 

16 (i) the title of the opinion; 

17 (ii) the date of publication or revision; 

18 or 

19 (iii) the full text of the opinion; 

20 (C) identifies the time and date when the 

21 opinion was required to be published, and when 

22 the opinion was transmitted for publication; 

23 and 

24 (D) provides a permanent means of access25 ing the opinion electronically; 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
70 

•HR 5048 IH

1 (2) includes a means for bulk download of all 

2 final OLC opinions or a selection of opinions re3 trieved using a text-based search; 

4 (3) provides free access to the opinions, and 

5 does not charge a fee, require registration, or impose 

6 any other limitation in exchange for access to the 

7 website; and 

8 (4) is capable of being upgraded as necessary to 

9 carry out the purposes of this section. 

10 (d) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

11 (1) OLC OPINION.—The term ‘‘OLC opinion’’ 

12 means views on a matter of legal interpretation com13 municated by the Office of Legal Counsel of the De14 partment of Justice to any other office or agency, or 

15 person in an office or agency, in the Executive 

16 Branch, including any office in the Department of 

17 Justice, the White House, or the Executive Office of 

18 the President, and rendered in accordance with sec19 tions 511–513 of title 28, United States Code, and 

20 relating to— 

21 (A) subtitle II, III, V, or VI of title 31, 

22 United States Code; 

23 (B) the Balanced Budget and Emergency 

24 Deficit Control Act of 1985; 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
71 

•HR 5048 IH

1 (C) the Congressional Budget and Im2 poundment Control Act of 1974; or 

3 (D) any appropriations Act, continuing 

4 resolution, or other provision of law providing 

5 or governing appropriations or budget author6 ity. 

7 (2) FINAL OLC OPINION.—The term ‘‘final 

8 OLC opinion’’ means an OLC opinion that— 

9 (A) the Attorney General, Assistant Attor10 ney General for the Office of Legal Counsel, or 

11 a Deputy Assistant Attorney General for the 

12 Office of Legal Counsel, has determined is 

13 final; or 

14 (B) is cited in another Office of Legal 

15 Counsel opinion. 

16 SEC. 525. TREATMENT OF REQUESTS FOR INFORMATION 

17 FROM MEMBERS OF CONGRESS. 

18 Section 552(d) of title 5, United States Code (com19 monly known as the ‘‘Freedom of Information Act’’), is 

20 amended, in the second sentence, by inserting ‘‘or any 

21 Member of Congress’’ before the period at the end. 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
72 

•HR 5048 IH

1 Subtitle C—Strengthening Con2 gressional Role in and Over3 sight of Emergency Declarations 

4 and Designations 

5 SEC. 531. IMPROVING CHECKS AND BALANCES ON THE USE 

6 OF THE NATIONAL EMERGENCIES ACT. 

7 (a) REQUIREMENTS RELATING TO DECLARATION

8 AND RENEWAL OF NATIONAL EMERGENCIES.—Title II of 

9 the National Emergencies Act (50 U.S.C. 1621 et seq.) 

10 is amended by striking sections 201 and 202 and inserting 

11 the following: 

12 ‘‘SEC. 201. DECLARATIONS OF NATIONAL EMERGENCIES. 

13 ‘‘(a) AUTHORITY TO DECLARE NATIONAL EMER14 GENCIES.—With respect to Acts of Congress authorizing 

15 the exercise, during the period of a national emergency, 

16 of any special or extraordinary power, the President is au17 thorized to declare such a national emergency by procla18 mation. Such proclamation shall immediately be trans19 mitted to Congress and published in the Federal Register. 

20 ‘‘(b) SPECIFICATION OF PROVISIONS OF LAW TO BE

21 EXERCISED AND REPORTING.—No powers or authorities 

22 made available by statute for use during the period of a 

23 national emergency shall be exercised unless and until the 

24 President specifies the provisions of law under which the 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
73 

•HR 5048 IH

1 President proposes that the President or other officers will 

2 act in— 

3 ‘‘(1) a proclamation declaring a national emer4 gency under subsection (a); or 

5 ‘‘(2) one or more Executive orders relating to 

6 the emergency published in the Federal Register and 

7 transmitted to Congress. 

8 ‘‘(c) PROHIBITION ON SUBSEQUENT ACTIONS IF

9 EMERGENCIES NOT APPROVED.— 

10 ‘‘(1) SUBSEQUENT DECLARATIONS.—If a joint 

11 resolution of approval is not enacted under section 

12 203 with respect to a national emergency before the 

13 expiration of the period described in section 202(a), 

14 or with respect to a national emergency proposed to 

15 be renewed under section 202(b), the President may 

16 not, during the remainder of the term of office of 

17 that President, declare a subsequent national emer18 gency under subsection (a) with respect to substan19 tially the same circumstances. 

20 ‘‘(2) EXERCISE OF AUTHORITIES.—If a joint 

21 resolution of approval is not enacted under section 

22 203 with respect to a power or authority specified by 

23 the President under subsection (b) with respect to a 

24 national emergency, the President may not, during 

25 the remainder of the term of office of that PresiVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:58 Aug 18, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00073 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5048.IH H5048

tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
74 

•HR 5048 IH

1 dent, exercise that power or authority with respect 

2 to that emergency. 

3 ‘‘(d) EFFECT OF FUTURE LAWS.—No law enacted 

4 after the date of the enactment of the Congressional 

5 Power of the Purse Act shall supersede this title unless 

6 it does so in specific terms, referring to this title, and de7 claring that the new law supersedes the provisions of this 

8 title. 

9 ‘‘(e) LIMITATIONS.— 

10 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Any emergency powers in11 voked by the President pursuant to a national emer12 gency declared under this section shall relate to the 

13 nature of, and may be used only to address, that 

14 emergency. 

15 ‘‘(2) AUTHORIZATION OR FUNDING WITH16 HELD.—No authority available to the President dur17 ing a national emergency declared under this section 

18 may be used to provide authorization or funding for 

19 any program, project, or activity for which Congress, 

20 on or after the date of the events giving rise to the 

21 emergency declaration, has withheld authorization or 

22 funding. 

23 ‘‘SEC. 202. EFFECTIVE PERIODS OF NATIONAL EMER24 GENCIES. 

25 ‘‘(a) TEMPORARY EFFECTIVE PERIODS.— 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
75 

•HR 5048 IH

1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Unless previously termi2 nated pursuant to a proclamation of the President 

3 or an Act of Congress under subsection (c), a dec4 laration of a national emergency shall remain in ef5 fect for 20 session days, in the case of the Senate, 

6 and 20 legislative days, in the case of the House, 

7 from the issuance of the proclamation under section 

8 201(a) (not counting the day on which the proclama9 tion was issued) and shall terminate when that pe10 riod expires unless there is enacted into law a joint 

11 resolution of approval under section 203 with re12 spect to the proclamation. 

13 ‘‘(2) EXERCISE OF POWERS AND AUTHORI14 TIES.—Unless the declaration of national emergency 

15 has been terminated pursuant to a proclamation of 

16 the President or an Act of Congress under sub17 section (c), any emergency power or authority made 

18 available under a provision of law specified pursuant 

19 to section 201(b) may be exercised pursuant to a 

20 declaration of a national emergency for 20 session 

21 days, in the case of the Senate, and 20 legislative 

22 days, in the case of the House, from the issuance of 

23 the proclamation or Executive order (not counting 

24 the day on which such proclamation or Executive 

25 order was issued). That power or authority may not 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
76 

•HR 5048 IH

1 be exercised after that period expires unless there is 

2 enacted into law a joint resolution of approval under 

3 section 203 approving— 

4 ‘‘(A) the proclamation of the national 

5 emergency or the Executive order; and 

6 ‘‘(B) the exercise of the power or authority 

7 specified by the President in such proclamation 

8 or Executive order. 

9 ‘‘(b) RENEWAL OF NATIONAL EMERGENCIES.—A na10 tional emergency declared by the President under section 

11 201(a) or previously renewed under this subsection, and 

12 not already terminated pursuant to subsection (a) or (c), 

13 shall terminate on the date that is one year after the 

14 President transmitted to Congress the proclamation de15 claring the emergency or the enactment of a previous re16 newal pursuant to this subsection, unless— 

17 ‘‘(1) the President publishes in the Federal 

18 Register and transmits to Congress an Executive 

19 order renewing the emergency; and 

20 ‘‘(2) there is enacted into law a joint resolution 

21 of approval renewing the emergency pursuant to sec22 tion 203 before the termination of the emergency or 

23 previous renewal of the emergency. 

24 ‘‘(c) TERMINATION OF NATIONAL EMERGENCIES.— 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
77 

•HR 5048 IH

1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Any national emergency 

2 declared by the President under section 201(a) shall 

3 terminate on the earliest of— 

4 ‘‘(A) the date provided for in subsection 

5 (a); 

6 ‘‘(B) the date provided for in subsection 

7 (b); 

8 ‘‘(C) the date specified in an Act of Con9 gress, including a joint resolution of termi10 nation under section 203, terminating the emer11 gency; or 

12 ‘‘(D) the date specified in a proclamation 

13 of the President terminating the emergency. 

14 ‘‘(2) EFFECT OF TERMINATION.—Effective on 

15 the date of the termination of a national emergency 

16 under paragraph (1)— 

17 ‘‘(A) any powers or authorities exercised 

18 by reason of the emergency shall cease to be ex19 ercised; 

20 ‘‘(B) any amounts reprogrammed, 

21 repurposed, or transferred under any provision 

22 of law with respect to the emergency that re23 main unobligated on that date shall be returned 

24 and made available for the purpose for which 

25 such amounts were appropriated; and 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
78 

•HR 5048 IH

1 ‘‘(C) any contracts entered into under any 

2 provision of law relating to the emergency shall 

3 be terminated. 

4 ‘‘SEC. 203. REVIEW BY CONGRESS OF NATIONAL EMER5 GENCIES. 

6 ‘‘(a) JOINT RESOLUTION OF APPROVAL DEFINED.— 

7 In this section, the term ‘joint resolution of approval’ 

8 means a joint resolution that does not have a preamble 

9 and that contains only the following provisions after its 

10 resolving clause: 

11 ‘‘(1) A provision approving one or more— 

12 ‘‘(A) proclamations declaring national 

13 emergencies under section 201(a); 

14 ‘‘(B) Executive orders issued under section 

15 201(b)(2); or 

16 ‘‘(C) Executive orders issued under section 

17 202(b). 

18 ‘‘(2) A provision approving a list of all or a por19 tion of the provisions of law specified by the Presi20 dent under section 201(b) in the proclamations or 

21 Executive orders that are the subject of the joint 

22 resolution. 

23 ‘‘(b) JOINT RESOLUTION OF TERMINATION DE24 FINED.—In this section, the term ‘joint resolution of terVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:58 Aug 18, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00078 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5048.IH H5048

tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
79 

•HR 5048 IH

1 mination’ means a resolution introduced in the House or 

2 Senate to terminate— 

3 ‘‘(1) a national emergency declared under sec4 tion 201; or 

5 ‘‘(2) the exercise of any authorities pursuant to 

6 that emergency. 

7 ‘‘(c) PROCEDURES FOR CONSIDERATION OF JOINT

8 RESOLUTIONS OF APPROVAL AND JOINT RESOLUTIONS

9 OF TERMINATION.— 

10 ‘‘(1) INTRODUCTION.—After the President 

11 transmits to Congress a proclamation declaring a 

12 national emergency under section 201(a), or an Ex13 ecutive order specifying emergency powers or au14 thorities under section 201(b)(2) or renewing a na15 tional emergency under section 202(b), a joint reso16 lution of approval or joint resolution of termination 

17 may be introduced in either House of Congress by 

18 any member of that House. 

19 ‘‘(2) CONSIDERATION IN SENATE.—In the Sen20 ate, the following shall apply: 

21 ‘‘(A) COMMITTEE REFERRAL.—A joint res22 olution of approval or joint resolution of termi23 nation shall be referred to the appropriate com24 mittee or committees. 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
80 

•HR 5048 IH

1 ‘‘(B) REPORTING AND DISCHARGE.—If the 

2 committee to which a joint resolution of ap3 proval or joint resolution of termination has 

4 been referred has not reported it at the end of 

5 10 calendar days after its introduction, that 

6 committee shall be discharged from further con7 sideration of the resolution and it shall be 

8 placed on the calendar. 

9 ‘‘(C) PROCEEDING TO CONSIDERATION.— 

10 Notwithstanding Rule XXII of the Standing 

11 Rules of the Senate, when a committee to which 

12 a joint resolution of approval or joint resolution 

13 of termination is referred has reported the reso14 lution, or when that committee is discharged 

15 under subparagraph (B) from further consider16 ation of the resolution, it is at any time there17 after in order to move to proceed to the consid18 eration of the joint resolution, and all points of 

19 order against the joint resolution (and against 

20 the motion to proceed to the consideration of 

21 the joint resolution) are waived. The motion to 

22 proceed shall be debatable for 4 hours evenly 

23 divided between proponents and opponents of 

24 the joint resolution of approval or joint resolu25 tion of termination. The motion is not subject 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
81 

•HR 5048 IH

1 to amendment, or to a motion to postpone, or 

2 to a motion to proceed to the consideration of 

3 other business. A motion to reconsider the vote 

4 by which the motion is agreed to or disagreed 

5 to shall not be in order. If a motion to proceed 

6 to the consideration of a joint resolution of ap7 proval or joint resolution of termination is 

8 agreed to, the joint resolution shall remain the 

9 unfinished business of the Senate until disposed 

10 of. 

11 ‘‘(D) FLOOR CONSIDERATION.—There 

12 shall be 10 hours of consideration on a joint 

13 resolution of approval or joint resolution of ter14 mination, to be divided evenly between the pro15 ponents and opponents of the joint resolution. 

16 Of that 10 hours, there shall be a total of 2 

17 hours of debate on any debatable motions in 

18 connection with the joint resolution, to be di19 vided evenly between the proponents and oppo20 nents of the joint resolution. 

21 ‘‘(E) AMENDMENTS.—No amendments 

22 shall be in order with respect to a joint resolu23 tion of approval or joint resolution of termi24 nation in the Senate. 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
82 

•HR 5048 IH

1 ‘‘(F) MOTION TO RECONSIDER VOTE ON

2 PASSAGE.—A motion to reconsider a vote on 

3 passage of a joint resolution of approval or joint 

4 resolution of termination shall not be in order. 

5 ‘‘(G) APPEALS.—Points of order and ap6 peals from the decision of the Presiding Officer 

7 shall be decided without debate. 

8 ‘‘(3) CONSIDERATION IN HOUSE OF REP9 RESENTATIVES.—In the House of Representatives, 

10 the following shall apply: 

11 ‘‘(A) REPORTING AND DISCHARGE.—If any 

12 committee to which a joint resolution of ap13 proval or joint resolution of termination has 

14 been referred has not reported it to the House 

15 within seven legislative days after the date of 

16 referral such committee shall be discharged 

17 from further consideration of the joint resolu18 tion. 

19 ‘‘(B)(i) PROCEEDING TO CONSIDER20 ATION.—Beginning on the third legislative day 

21 after each committee to which a joint resolution 

22 of approval or joint resolution of termination 

23 has been referred reports it to the House or has 

24 been discharged from further consideration 

25 thereof, it shall be in order to move to proceed 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
83 

•HR 5048 IH

1 to consider the joint resolution of approval or 

2 joint resolution of termination in the House. All 

3 points of order against the motion are waived. 

4 Such a motion shall not be in order after the 

5 House has disposed of another motion to pro6 ceed on the joint resolution of approval or joint 

7 resolution of termination. The previous question 

8 shall be considered as ordered on the motion to 

9 its adoption without intervening motion. The 

10 motion shall not be debatable. A motion to re11 consider the vote by which the motion is dis12 posed of shall not be in order. 

13 ‘‘(ii) MOTION.—A motion to proceed to the 

14 consideration of a joint resolution of approval of 

15 an Executive order described in subsection 

16 (a)(1) or a list described in subsection (a)(2) 

17 shall not be in order before the enactment of a 

18 joint resolution of approval of the proclamation 

19 described in subsection (a)(1) that is the sub20 ject of such Executive order or list. 

21 ‘‘(C) CONSIDERATION.—The joint resolu22 tion of approval or joint resolution of termi23 nation shall be considered as read. All points of 

24 order against the joint resolution of approval or 

25 joint resolution of termination and against its 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
84 

•HR 5048 IH

1 consideration are waived. The previous question 

2 shall be considered as ordered on the joint reso3 lution of approval or joint resolution of termi4 nation to final passage without intervening mo5 tion except two hours of debate equally divided 

6 and controlled by the sponsor of the joint reso7 lution of approval or joint resolution of termi8 nation (or a designee) and an opponent. A mo9 tion to reconsider the vote on passage of the 

10 joint resolution of approval or joint resolution 

11 of termination shall not be in order. 

12 ‘‘(4) COORDINATION WITH ACTION BY OTHER

13 HOUSE.— 

14 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—If, before the passage 

15 by one House of a joint resolution of approval 

16 or joint resolution of termination of that House, 

17 that House receives from the other House a 

18 joint resolution of approval or joint resolution 

19 of termination with regard to the same procla20 mation or Executive order, then the following 

21 procedures shall apply: 

22 ‘‘(i) The joint resolution of approval 

23 or joint resolution of termination of the 

24 other House shall not be referred to a com25 mittee. 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
85 

•HR 5048 IH

1 ‘‘(ii) With respect to a joint resolution 

2 of approval or joint resolution of termi3 nation of the House receiving the joint res4 olution— 

5 ‘‘(I) the procedure in that House 

6 shall be the same as if no joint resolu7 tion of approval or joint resolution of 

8 termination had been received from 

9 the other House; but 

10 ‘‘(II) the vote on passage shall be 

11 on the joint resolution of approval or 

12 joint resolution of termination of the 

13 other House. 

14 ‘‘(iii) Upon the failure of passage of 

15 the joint resolution of approval or joint 

16 resolution of termination of the other 

17 House, the question shall immediately 

18 occur on passage of the joint resolution of 

19 approval or joint resolution of termination 

20 of the receiving House. 

21 ‘‘(B) TREATMENT OF LEGISLATION OF

22 OTHER HOUSE.—If one House fails to introduce 

23 a joint resolution of approval or joint resolution 

24 of termination under this section, the joint reso25 lution of approval or joint resolution of termiVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:58 Aug 18, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00085 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5048.IH H5048

tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
86 

•HR 5048 IH

1 nation of the other House shall be entitled to 

2 expedited floor procedures under this section. 

3 ‘‘(C) APPLICATION TO REVENUE MEAS4 URES.—The provisions of this paragraph shall 

5 not apply in the House of Representatives to a 

6 joint resolution of approval or joint resolution 

7 of termination that is a revenue measure. 

8 ‘‘(5) TREATMENT OF VETO MESSAGE.—Debate 

9 on a veto message in the Senate under this section 

10 shall be 1 hour evenly divided between the majority 

11 and minority leaders or their designees. 

12 ‘‘(d) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—The enactment of a 

13 joint resolution of approval or joint resolution of termi14 nation under this section shall not be interpreted to serve 

15 as a grant or modification by Congress of statutory au16 thority for the emergency powers of the President. 

17 ‘‘(e) RULES OF THE HOUSE AND SENATE.—This sec18 tion is enacted by Congress— 

19 ‘‘(1) as an exercise of the rulemaking power of 

20 the Senate and the House of Representatives, re21 spectively, and as such is deemed a part of the rules 

22 of each House, respectively, but applicable only with 

23 respect to the procedure to be followed in the House 

24 in the case of joint resolutions described in this secVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:58 Aug 18, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00086 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5048.IH H5048

tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
87 

•HR 5048 IH

1 tion, and supersedes other rules only to the extent 

2 that it is inconsistent with such other rules; and 

3 ‘‘(2) with full recognition of the constitutional 

4 right of either House to change the rules (so far as 

5 relating to the procedure of that House) at any time, 

6 in the same manner, and to the same extent as in 

7 the case of any other rule of that House. 

8 ‘‘SEC. 204. EXCLUSION OF CERTAIN NATIONAL EMER9 GENCIES INVOKING INTERNATIONAL EMER10 GENCY ECONOMIC POWERS ACT. 

11 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—In the case of a national emer12 gency described in subsection (b), the provisions of the 

13 National Emergencies Act, as in effect on the day before 

14 the date of the enactment of the Congressional Power of 

15 the Purse Act, shall continue to apply on and after such 

16 date of enactment. 

17 ‘‘(b) NATIONAL EMERGENCY DESCRIBED.— 

18 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—A national emergency de19 scribed in this subsection is a national emergency 

20 pursuant to which the President proposes to exercise 

21 emergency powers or authorities made available 

22 under the International Emergency Economic Pow23 ers Act (50 U.S.C. 1701 et seq.), supplemented as 

24 necessary by a provision of law specified in para25 graph (2). 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
88 

•HR 5048 IH

1 ‘‘(2) PROVISIONS OF LAW SPECIFIED.—The 

2 provisions of law specified in this paragraph are— 

3 ‘‘(A) the United Nations Participation Act 

4 of 1945 (22 U.S.C. 287 et seq.); 

5 ‘‘(B) section 212(f) of the Immigration 

6 and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1182(f)); or 

7 ‘‘(C) any provision of law that authorizes 

8 the implementation, imposition, or enforcement 

9 of economic sanctions with respect to a foreign 

10 country. 

11 ‘‘(c) EFFECT OF ADDITIONAL POWERS AND AU12 THORITIES.—Subsection (a) shall not apply to a national 

13 emergency or the exercise of emergency powers and au14 thorities pursuant to the national emergency if, in addition 

15 to the exercise of emergency powers and authorities de16 scribed in subsection (b), the President proposes to exer17 cise, pursuant to the national emergency, any emergency 

18 powers and authorities under any other provision of law.’’. 

19 (b) REPORTING REQUIREMENTS.—Section 401 of the 

20 National Emergencies Act (50 U.S.C. 1641) is amended 

21 by adding at the end the following: 

22 ‘‘(d) REPORT ON EMERGENCIES.—The President 

23 shall transmit to Congress, with any proclamation declar24 ing a national emergency under section 201(a) or any Ex25 ecutive order specifying emergency powers or authorities 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
89 

•HR 5048 IH

1 under section 201(b)(2) or renewing a national emergency 

2 under section 202(b), a report, in writing, that includes 

3 the following: 

4 ‘‘(1) A description of the circumstances necessi5 tating the declaration of a national emergency, the 

6 renewal of such an emergency, or the use of a new 

7 emergency power or authority specified in the Exec8 utive order, as the case may be. 

9 ‘‘(2) The estimated duration of the national 

10 emergency, or a statement that the duration of the 

11 national emergency cannot reasonably be estimated 

12 at the time of transmission of the report. 

13 ‘‘(3) A summary of the actions the President or 

14 other officers intend to take, including any re15 programming or transfer of funds and any contracts 

16 anticipated to be entered into, and the statutory au17 thorities the President and such officers expect to 

18 rely on in addressing the national emergency. 

19 ‘‘(4) In the case of a renewal of a national 

20 emergency, a summary of the actions the President 

21 or other officers have taken in the preceding one22 year period, including any reprogramming or trans23 fer of funds, to address the emergency. 

24 ‘‘(e) PROVISION OF INFORMATION TO CONGRESS.— 

25 The President shall provide to Congress such other inforVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:58 Aug 18, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00089 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5048.IH H5048

tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
90 

•HR 5048 IH

1 mation as Congress may request in connection with any 

2 national emergency in effect under title II. 

3 ‘‘(f) PERIODIC REPORTS ON STATUS OF EMER4 GENCIES.—If the President declares a national emergency 

5 under section 201(a), the President shall, not less fre6 quently than every 90 days for the duration of the emer7 gency, report to Congress on the status of the emergency 

8 and the actions the President or other officers have taken 

9 and authorities the President and such officers have relied 

10 on in addressing the emergency.’’. 

11 (c) EXCLUSION OF IMPOSITION OF DUTIES AND IM12 PORT QUOTAS FROM PRESIDENTIAL AUTHORITIES

13 UNDER INTERNATIONAL EMERGENCY ECONOMIC POW14 ERS ACT.—Section 203 of the International Emergency 

15 Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1702) is amended— 

16 (1) by redesignating subsection (c) as sub17 section (d); and 

18 (2) by inserting after subsection (b) the fol19 lowing: 

20 ‘‘(c)(1) The authority granted to the President by 

21 this section does not include the authority to impose duties 

22 or tariff-rate quotas or (subject to paragraph (2)) other 

23 quotas on articles entering the United States. 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
91 

•HR 5048 IH

1 ‘‘(2) The limitation under paragraph (1) does not 

2 prohibit the President from excluding all articles imported 

3 from a country from entering the United States.’’. 

4 (d) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

5 (1) NATIONAL EMERGENCIES ACT.—Title III of 

6 the National Emergencies Act (50 U.S.C. 1631) is 

7 repealed. 

8 (2) INTERNATIONAL EMERGENCY ECONOMIC

9 POWERS ACT.—Section 207 of the International 

10 Emergency Economic Powers Act (50 U.S.C. 1706) 

11 is amended by adding at the end the following: 

12 ‘‘(c) In this section, the term ‘National Emergencies 

13 Act’ means the National Emergencies Act, as in effect on 

14 the day before the date of the enactment of the Congres15 sional Power of the Purse Act.’’. 

16 (e) EFFECTIVE DATE; APPLICABILITY.— 

17 (1) IN GENERAL.—Except as provided in para18 graph (2), this section and the amendments made by 

19 this section shall take effect on the date of the en20 actment of this Act and apply with respect to na21 tional emergencies declared under section 201 of the 

22 National Emergencies Act on or after that date. 

23 (2) APPLICABILITY TO RENEWALS OF EXISTING

24 EMERGENCIES.—When a national emergency de25 clared under section 201 of the National EmerVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:58 Aug 18, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00091 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5048.IH H5048

tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
92 

•HR 5048 IH

1 gencies Act before the date of the enactment of this 

2 Act would expire or be renewed under section 202(d) 

3 of that Act (as in effect on the day before such date 

4 of enactment), that national emergency shall be sub5 ject to the requirements for renewal under section 

6 202(b) of that Act, as amended by subsection (a). 

7 SEC. 532. NATIONAL EMERGENCIES ACT DECLARATION 

8 SPENDING REPORTING IN THE PRESIDENT’S 

9 BUDGET. 

10 Section 1105(a) of title 31, United States Code, as 

11 amended by section 514, is further amended by adding 

12 at the end the following: 

13 ‘‘(44)(A) a report on the proposed, planned, 

14 and actual obligations and expenditures of funds (for 

15 the prior fiscal year, the current fiscal year, and the 

16 fiscal years for which the budget is submitted) at17 tributable to the exercise of powers and authorities 

18 made available by statute for each national emer19 gency declared by the President, currently active or 

20 in effect during the applicable fiscal years. 

21 ‘‘(B) Obligations and expenditures contained in 

22 the report under subparagraph (A) shall be orga23 nized by Treasury Appropriation Fund Symbol or 

24 fund account and by program, project, and activity, 

25 and include— 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
93 

•HR 5048 IH

1 ‘‘(i) a description of each such program, 

2 project, and activity; 

3 ‘‘(ii) the authorities under which such 

4 funding actions are taken; and 

5 ‘‘(iii) the purpose and progress of such ob6 ligations and expenditures toward addressing 

7 the applicable national emergency. 

8 ‘‘(C) Such report shall include, with respect to 

9 any transfer, reprogramming, or repurposing of 

10 funds to address the applicable national emer11 gency— 

12 ‘‘(i) the amount of such transfer, re13 programming, or repurposing; 

14 ‘‘(ii) the authority authorizing each such 

15 transfer, reprogramming, or repurposing; and 

16 ‘‘(iii) a description of programs, projects, 

17 and activities affected by such transfer, re18 programming, or repurposing, including by a 

19 reduction in funding.’’. 

20 SEC. 533. DISCLOSURE TO CONGRESS OF PRESIDENTIAL 

21 EMERGENCY ACTION DOCUMENTS. 

22 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 30 days after the 

23 conclusion of the process for approval, adoption, or revi24 sion of any presidential emergency action document, the 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
94 

•HR 5048 IH

1 President shall submit that document to the appropriate 

2 congressional committees. 

3 (b) DOCUMENTS IN EXISTENCE BEFORE DATE OF

4 ENACTMENT.—Not later than 15 days after the date of 

5 the enactment of this Act, the President shall submit to 

6 the appropriate congressional committees all presidential 

7 emergency action documents in existence before such date 

8 of enactment. 

9 (c) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

10 (1) APPROPRIATE CONGRESSIONAL COMMIT11 TEES.—The term ‘‘appropriate congressional com12 mittees’’, with respect to a presidential emergency 

13 action document submitted under subsection (a) or 

14 (b), means— 

15 (A) the Committee on Homeland Security 

16 and Governmental Affairs, the Committee on 

17 the Judiciary, and the Select Committee on In18 telligence of the Senate; 

19 (B) the Committee on Oversight and Ac20 countability, the Committee on the Judiciary, 

21 and the Permanent Select Committee on Intel22 ligence of the House of Representatives; and 

23 (C) any other committee of the Senate or 

24 the House of Representatives with jurisdiction 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
95 

•HR 5048 IH

1 over the subject matter addressed in the presi2 dential emergency action document. 

3 (2) PRESIDENTIAL EMERGENCY ACTION DOCU4 MENT.—The term ‘‘presidential emergency action 

5 document’’ refers to— 

6 (A) each of the approximately 56 docu7 ments described as presidential emergency ac8 tion documents in the budget justification mate9 rials for the Office of Legal Counsel of the De10 partment of Justice submitted to Congress in 

11 support of the budget of the President for fiscal 

12 year 2018; and 

13 (B) any other pre-coordinated legal docu14 ment in existence before, on, or after the date 

15 of the enactment of this Act, that— 

16 (i) is designated as a presidential 

17 emergency action document; or 

18 (ii) is designed to implement a presi19 dential decision or transmit a presidential 

20 request when an emergency disrupts nor21 mal governmental or legislative processes. 

22 SEC. 534. CONGRESSIONAL DESIGNATIONS. 

23 Section 251(b)(2)(A) of the Balanced Budget and 

24 Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 (2 U.S.C. 

25 901(b)(2)(A)) is amended— 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
96 

•HR 5048 IH

1 (1) in clause (i), by striking ‘‘and the President 

2 subsequently so designates’’; and 

3 (2) in clause (ii), by striking ‘‘and the President 

4 subsequently so designates’’. 

5 TITLE VI—SECURITY FROM PO6 LITICAL INTERFERENCE IN 

7 JUSTICE 

8 SEC. 601. SHORT TITLE. 

9 This title may be cited as the ‘‘Security From Polit10 ical Interference in Justice Act of 2023’’. 

11 SEC. 602. DEFINITIONS. 

12 In this title: 

13 (1) COMMUNICATIONS LOG.—The term ‘‘com14 munications log’’ means the log required to be main15 tained under section 603(a). 

16 (2) COVERED COMMUNICATION.— 

17 (A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘‘covered 

18 communication’’ means any communication re19 lating to any contemplated or ongoing investiga20 tion or litigation conducted by the Department 

21 of Justice in any civil or criminal matter (re22 gardless of whether a civil action or criminal in23 dictment or information has been filed); and 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
97 

•HR 5048 IH

1 (B) EXCEPTIONS.—The term ‘‘covered 

2 communication’’ does not include a communica3 tion that is any of the following: 

4 (i) A communication that involves 

5 contact between the President, the Vice 

6 President, the Counsel to the President, or 

7 the Principal Deputy Counsel to the Presi8 dent, and the Attorney General, the Dep9 uty Attorney General, or the Associate At10 torney General, except to the extent that 

11 the communication concerns a con12 templated or ongoing investigation or liti13 gation in which a target or subject is one 

14 of the following: 

15 (I) The President, the Vice Presi16 dent, or a member of the immediate 

17 family of the President or Vice Presi18 dent. 

19 (II) Any individual working in 

20 the Executive Office of the President 

21 who is compensated at a rate of pay 

22 at or above level II of the Executive 

23 Schedule under section 5313 of title 

24 5, United States Code. 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
98 

•HR 5048 IH

1 (III) The current or former chair 

2 or treasurer of any national campaign 

3 committee that sought the election or 

4 seeks the reelection of the President, 

5 or any officer of such a committee ex6 ercising authority at the national 

7 level, during the tenure in office of the 

8 President. 

9 (ii) A communication that involves 

10 contact between an officer or employee of 

11 the Department of Justice and an officer 

12 or employee of the Executive Office of the 

13 President on a particular matter, if any of 

14 the President, the Vice President, the 

15 Counsel to the President, or the Principal 

16 Deputy Counsel to the President, and if 

17 any of the Attorney General, the Deputy 

18 Attorney General, or the Associate Attor19 ney General, have designated a subordinate 

20 to carry on such contact, and the person so 

21 designating monitors all subsequent com22 munications and the person designated 

23 keeps the designating person informed of 

24 each such communication, except to the ex25 tent that the communication concerns a 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
99 

•HR 5048 IH

1 contemplated or ongoing investigation or 

2 litigation in which a target or subject is 

3 one of the following: 

4 (I) The President, the Vice Presi5 dent, or a member of the immediate 

6 family of the President or Vice Presi7 dent. 

8 (II) Any individual working in 

9 the Executive Office of the President 

10 who is compensated at a rate of pay 

11 at or above level II of the Executive 

12 Schedule under section 5313 of title 

13 5, United States Code. 

14 (III) The current or former chair 

15 or treasurer of any national campaign 

16 committee that sought the election or 

17 seeks the reelection of the President, 

18 or any officer of such a committee ex19 ercising authority at the national 

20 level, during the tenure in office of the 

21 President. 

22 (iii) A communication that involves 

23 contact from or to the Deputy Counsel to 

24 the President for National Security Af25 fairs, the staff of the National Security 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
100 

•HR 5048 IH

1 Council, or the staff of the Homeland Se2 curity Council that relates to a national se3 curity matter, except to the extent that the 

4 communication concerns a pending civil or 

5 criminal action that may have national se6 curity implications. 

7 (iv) A communication that involves 

8 contact between the Office of the Pardon 

9 Attorney of the Department of Justice and 

10 the Counsel to the President or a Deputy 

11 Counsel to the President relating to par12 don matters. 

13 (v) A communication that relates sole14 ly to policy, appointments, legislation, rule15 making, budgets, public relations or af16 fairs, programmatic matters, intergovern17 mental relations, administrative or per18 sonnel matters, appellate litigation, or re19 quests for legal advice. 

20 (3) IMMEDIATE FAMILY OF THE PRESIDENT OR

21 VICE PRESIDENT.—The term ‘‘immediate family of 

22 the President or Vice President’’ means the persons 

23 to whom the President or Vice President— 

24 (A) is related by blood, marriage, or adop25 tion; or 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
101 

•HR 5048 IH

1 (B) stands in loco parentis. 

2 SEC. 603. COMMUNICATIONS LOGS. 

3 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Attorney General shall main4 tain a log of covered communications. 

5 (b) CONTENTS.—A communications log shall include, 

6 with respect to a covered communication— 

7 (1) the name and title of each officer or em8 ployee of the Department of Justice or the Executive 

9 Office of the President who participated in the cov10 ered communication; 

11 (2) the topic of the covered communication; and 

12 (3) a statement describing the purpose and ne13 cessity of the covered communication. 

14 (c) OVERSIGHT.— 

15 (1) PERIODIC DISCLOSURE OF LOGS.—Not later 

16 than January 30, April 30, July 30, and October 30 

17 of each year, the Attorney General shall submit to 

18 the Office of the Inspector General of the Depart19 ment of Justice a report containing the communica20 tions log for the 3-month period preceding that Jan21 uary, April, July, or October. 

22 (2) NOTICE OF INAPPROPRIATE OR IMPROPER

23 COMMUNICATIONS.—The Office of the Inspector 

24 General of the Department of Justice shall— 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
102 

•HR 5048 IH

1 (A) review each communications log re2 ceived under paragraph (1); and 

3 (B) notify the Committee on the Judiciary 

4 of the Senate and the Committee on the Judici5 ary of the House of Representatives if the In6 spector General determines that a covered com7 munication described in the communications 

8 log— 

9 (i) is inappropriate from a law en10 forcement perspective; or 

11 (ii) raises concerns about improper 

12 political interference. 

13 (d) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this sec14 tion may be construed to limit the valid written assertion 

15 by the President of presidential communications privilege 

16 with regard to any material required to be submitted 

17 under this section. 

18 SEC. 604. RULE OF CONSTRUCTION. 

19 Nothing in this title may be construed to affect any 

20 requirement to report pursuant to title I of this Act or 

21 the amendments made by that title. 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
103 

•HR 5048 IH

1 TITLE VII—PROTECTING 

2 WHISTLEBLOWERS 

3 Subtitle A—Whistleblower 

4 Protection Improvement 

5 SEC. 701. SHORT TITLE. 

6 This title may be cited as the ‘‘Whistleblower Protec7 tion Improvement Act of 2023’’. 

8 SEC. 702. ADDITIONAL WHISTLEBLOWER PROTECTIONS. 

9 (a) INVESTIGATIONS AS PERSONNEL ACTIONS.— 

10 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 2302(a)(2)(A) of 

11 title 5, United States Code, is amended— 

12 (A) in clause (xi), by striking ‘‘and’’ at the 

13 end; 

14 (B) by redesignating clause (xii) as clause 

15 (xiii); and 

16 (C) by inserting after the clause (xi) the 

17 following: 

18 ‘‘(xii) for purposes of subsection 

19 (b)(8)— 

20 ‘‘(I) the commencement, expan21 sion, or extension of an investigation, 

22 but not including any investigation 

23 that is ministerial or nondiscretionary 

24 (including a ministerial or nondis25 cretionary investigation described in 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
104 

•HR 5048 IH

1 section 1213) or any investigation 

2 that is conducted by an Inspector 

3 General of an entity of the Govern4 ment of an employee not employed by 

5 the office of that Inspector General; 

6 and 

7 ‘‘(II) a referral to an Inspector 

8 General of an entity of the Govern9 ment, except for a referral that is 

10 ministerial or nondiscretionary; and’’. 

11 (2) APPLICATION.—The amendment made by 

12 paragraph (1) shall apply to any investigation com13 menced, expanded, or extended, or to any referral 

14 made, as described in clause (xii) of section 

15 2302(a)(2)(A) of title 5, United States Code, as 

16 amended by such paragraph, on or after the date of 

17 enactment of this Act. 

18 (b) RIGHT TO PETITION CONGRESS.— 

19 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 2302(b)(9) of title 

20 5, United States Code, is amended— 

21 (A) in subparagraph (C), by striking ‘‘or’’ 

22 at the end; 

23 (B) in subparagraph (D), by adding ‘‘or’’ 

24 after the semicolon at the end; and 

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


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
105 

•HR 5048 IH

1 ‘‘(E) the exercise of any right protected 

2 under section 7211;’’. 

3 (2) APPLICATION.—The amendment made by 

4 paragraph (1) shall apply to the exercise of any 

5 right described in subparagraph (E) of section 

6 2302(b)(9) of title 5, United States Code, as added 

7 by that paragraph, occurring on or after the date of 

8 enactment of this Act. 

9 (c) PROHIBITION ON DISCLOSURE OF WHISTLE10 BLOWER IDENTITY.— 

11 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 2302 of title 5, 

12 United States Code, is amended by adding at the 

13 end the following: 

14 ‘‘(g)(1) No employee of an agency may willfully com15 municate or transmit to any individual who is not an offi16 cer or employee of the Government the identity of, or per17 sonally identifiable information about, any other employee 

18 because that other employee has made, or is suspected to 

19 have made, a disclosure protected by subsection (b)(8), 

20 unless— 

21 ‘‘(A) the other employee provides express writ22 ten consent prior to the communication or trans23 mission of their identity or personally identifiable in24 formation; 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
106 

•HR 5048 IH

1 ‘‘(B) the communication or transmission is 

2 made in accordance with the provisions of section 

3 552a; 

4 ‘‘(C) the communication or transmission is 

5 made to a lawyer for the sole purpose of providing 

6 legal advice to an employee accused of whistleblower 

7 retaliation; or 

8 ‘‘(D) the communication or transmission is re9 quired or permitted by any other provision of law. 

10 ‘‘(2) In this subsection, the term ‘officer or employee 

11 of the Government’ means— 

12 ‘‘(A) the President; 

13 ‘‘(B) a Member of Congress; 

14 ‘‘(C) a member of the uniformed services; 

15 ‘‘(D) an employee, as that term is defined in 

16 section 2105, including an employee of the United 

17 States Postal Service, the Postal Regulatory Com18 mission, or the Department of Veterans Affairs (in19 cluding any employee appointed pursuant to chapter 

20 73 or 74 of title 38); and 

21 ‘‘(E) any other officer or employee in any 

22 branch of the Government of the United States.’’. 

23 (2) APPLICATION.—The amendment made by 

24 paragraph (1) shall apply to any transmission or 

25 communication described in subsection (g) of section 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
107 

•HR 5048 IH

1 2302 of title 5, United States Code, as added by 

2 paragraph (1), made on or after the date of enact3 ment of this Act. 

4 (d) RIGHT TO PETITION CONGRESS.— 

5 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 7211 of title 5, 

6 United States Code, is amended to read as follows: 

7 ‘‘§ 7211. Employees’ right to petition or furnish infor8 mation or respond to Congress 

9 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Each officer or employee of the 

10 Federal Government, individually or collectively, has a 

11 right to— 

12 ‘‘(1) petition Congress or a Member of Con13 gress; 

14 ‘‘(2) furnish information, documents, or testi15 mony to either House of Congress, any Member of 

16 Congress, or any committee or subcommittee of Con17 gress; or 

18 ‘‘(3) respond to any request for information, 

19 documents, or testimony from either House of Con20 gress or any Committee or subcommittee of Con21 gress. 

22 ‘‘(b) PROHIBITED ACTIONS.—No officer or employee 

23 of the Federal Government may interfere with or deny the 

24 right set forth in subsection (a), including by— 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
108 

•HR 5048 IH

1 ‘‘(1) prohibiting or preventing, or attempting or 

2 threatening to prohibit or prevent, any other officer 

3 or employee of the Federal Government from engag4 ing in activity protected under subsection (a); or 

5 ‘‘(2) removing, suspending from duty without 

6 pay, demoting, reducing in rank, seniority, status, 

7 pay, or performance or efficiency rating, denying 

8 promotion to, relocating, reassigning, transferring, 

9 disciplining, or discriminating in regard to any em10 ployment right, entitlement, or benefit, or any term 

11 or condition of employment of, any other officer or 

12 employee of the Federal Government, or attempting 

13 or threatening to commit any of the foregoing ac14 tions, because the other officer or employee engaged 

15 in activity protected under subsection (a). 

16 ‘‘(c) APPLICATION.—This section shall not be con17 strued to authorize disclosure of any information that is— 

18 ‘‘(1) specifically prohibited from disclosure by 

19 any other provision of Federal law; or 

20 ‘‘(2) specifically required by Executive order to 

21 be kept secret in the interest of national defense or 

22 the conduct of foreign affairs, unless disclosure is 

23 otherwise authorized by law. 

24 ‘‘(d) DEFINITION OF OFFICER OR EMPLOYEE OF

25 THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT.—For purposes of this secVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:58 Aug 18, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00108 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5048.IH H5048

tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
109 

•HR 5048 IH

1 tion, the term ‘officer or employee of the Federal Govern2 ment’ includes— 

3 ‘‘(1) the President; 

4 ‘‘(2) a Member of Congress; 

5 ‘‘(3) a member of the uniformed services; 

6 ‘‘(4) an employee (as that term is defined in 

7 section 2105); 

8 ‘‘(5) an employee of the United States Postal 

9 Service or the Postal Regulatory Commission; and 

10 ‘‘(6) an employee appointed under chapter 73 

11 or 74 of title 38.’’. 

12 (2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sec13 tions for subchapter II of chapter 72 of title 5, 

14 United States Code, is amended by striking the item 

15 related to section 7211 and inserting the following: 

‘‘7211. Employees’ right to petition or furnish information or respond to Congress.’’. 

16 SEC. 703. ENHANCEMENT OF WHISTLEBLOWER PROTEC17 TIONS. 

18 (a) DISCLOSURES RELATING TO OFFICERS OR EM19 PLOYEES OF AN OFFICE OF INSPECTOR GENERAL.—Sec20 tion 1213(c) of title 5, United States Code, is amended 

21 by adding at the end the following: 

22 ‘‘(3) If the information transmitted under this sub23 section disclosed a violation of law, rule, or regulation, or 

24 gross waste, gross mismanagement, abuse of authority, or 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
110 

•HR 5048 IH

1 a substantial and specific danger to public health or safe2 ty, by any officer or employee of an Office of Inspector 

3 General, the Special Counsel may refer the matter to the 

4 Council of the Inspectors General on Integrity and Effi5 ciency, which shall comply with the standards and proce6 dures applicable to investigations and reports under this 

7 subsection.’’. 

8 (b) RETALIATORY REFERRALS TO INSPECTORS GEN9 ERAL.—Section 1214(d) of title 5, United States Code, 

10 is amended by adding at the end the following: 

11 ‘‘(3) In any case in which the Special Counsel deter12 mines that a referral to an Inspector General of an entity 

13 of the Federal Government was in retaliation for a disclo14 sure or protected activity described in section 2302(b)(8) 

15 or in retaliation for exercising a right described in section 

16 2302(b)(9)(A)(i), the Special Counsel shall transmit that 

17 finding in writing to the Inspector General within 7 days 

18 of making the finding. The Inspector General shall con19 sider that finding and make a determination on whether 

20 to initiate an investigation or continue an investigation 

21 based on the referral that the Special Counsel found to 

22 be retaliatory.’’. 

23 (c) ENSURING TIMELY RELIEF.— 

24 (1) INDIVIDUAL RIGHT OF ACTION.—Section 

25 1221 of title 5, United States Code, is amended by 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
111 

•HR 5048 IH

1 striking ‘‘section 2302(b)(8) or section 

2 2302(b)(9)(A)(i), (B), (C), or (D),’’ each place it ap3 pears and inserting ‘‘section 2302(b)(8), section 

4 2302(b)(9)(A)(i), (B), (C), (D), or (E), section 

5 2302(b)(13), or section 2302(g),’’. 

6 (2) STAYS.—Section 1221(c)(2) of title 5, 

7 United States Code, is amended to read as follows: 

8 ‘‘(2) Any stay requested under paragraph (1) shall 

9 be granted within 10 calendar days (excluding Saturdays, 

10 Sundays, and legal holidays) after the date the request 

11 is made, if the Board— 

12 ‘‘(A) determines that there is a substantial like13 lihood that protected activity was a contributing fac14 tor to the personnel action involved; or 

15 ‘‘(B) otherwise determines that such a stay 

16 would be appropriate.’’. 

17 (3) APPEAL OF STAY.—Section 1221(c) of title 

18 5, United States Code, is amended by adding at the 

19 end the following: 

20 ‘‘(4) If any stay requested under paragraph (1) is de21 nied, the employee, former employee, or applicant for em22 ployment may, within 7 days after receiving notice of the 

23 denial, file an appeal for expedited review by the Board. 

24 The agency shall have 7 days thereafter to respond. The 

25 Board shall provide a decision not later than 21 days after 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
112 

•HR 5048 IH

1 receiving the appeal. During the period of appeal, both 

2 parties may supplement the record with information un3 available to them at the time the stay was first re4 quested.’’. 

5 (4) ACCESS TO DISTRICT COURT; JURY

6 TRIALS.— 

7 (A) IN GENERAL.—Section 1221(i) of title 

8 5, United States Code, is amended— 

9 (i) by striking ‘‘(i) Subsections’’ and 

10 inserting ‘‘(i)(1) Subsections’’; and 

11 (ii) by adding at the end the fol12 lowing: 

13 ‘‘(2)(A) If, in the case of an employee, former em14 ployee, or applicant for employment who seeks corrective 

15 action from the Merit Systems Protection Board based on 

16 an alleged prohibited personnel practice described in sec17 tion 2302(b)(8), section 2302(b)(9)(A)(i), (B), (C), (D), 

18 or (E), section 2302(b)(13), or section 2302(g), no final 

19 order or decision is issued by the Board within 180 days 

20 after the date on which a request for such corrective action 

21 has been duly submitted to the Board, such employee, 

22 former employee, or applicant may, after providing written 

23 notice to the Special Counsel and the Board and only with24 in 20 days after providing such notice, bring an action 

25 for review de novo before the appropriate United States 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
113 

•HR 5048 IH

1 district court, and such action shall, at the request of ei2 ther party to such action, be tried before a jury. Upon 

3 filing of an action with the appropriate United States dis4 trict court, any proceedings before the Board shall cease 

5 and the employee, former employee, or applicant for em6 ployment waives any right to refile with the Board. 

7 ‘‘(B) If the Board certifies (in writing) to the parties 

8 of a case that the complexity of such case requires a longer 

9 period of review, subparagraph (A) shall be applied by 

10 substituting ‘240 days’ for ‘180 days’. 

11 ‘‘(C) In any such action brought before a United 

12 States district court under subparagraph (A), the court— 

13 ‘‘(i) shall apply the standards set forth in sub14 section (e); and 

15 ‘‘(ii) may award any relief that the court con16 siders appropriate, including any relief described in 

17 subsection (g).’’. 

18 (B) APPLICATION.— 

19 (i) IN GENERAL.—The amendments 

20 made by subparagraph (A) shall apply to 

21 any corrective action duly submitted to the 

22 Merit Systems Protection Board, during 

23 the 5-year period preceding the date of en24 actment of this Act, by an employee, 

25 former employee, or applicant for employVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:58 Aug 18, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00113 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5048.IH H5048

tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
114 

•HR 5048 IH

1 ment based on an alleged prohibited per2 sonnel practice described in section 

3 2302(b)(8), 2302(b)(9)(A)(i), (B), (C), or 

4 (D), or 2302(b)(13) of title 5, United 

5 States Code, with respect to which no final 

6 order or decision has been issued by the 

7 Board. 

8 (ii) LIMITATION.—In the case of an 

9 individual described in clause (i) whose 

10 duly submitted claim to the Merit Systems 

11 Protection Board was made not later than 

12 180 days before the date of enactment of 

13 this Act, such individual may only bring an 

14 action before a United States district court 

15 as described in paragraph (2) of section 

16 1221(i) of title 5, United States Code, (as 

17 added by subparagraph (A)) if that indi18 vidual— 

19 (I) provides written notice to the 

20 Office of Special Counsel and the 

21 Merit Systems Protection Board not 

22 later than 90 days after the date of 

23 enactment of this Act; and 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
115 

•HR 5048 IH

1 (II) brings such action not later 

2 than 20 days after providing such no3 tice. 

4 (d) RECIPIENTS OF WHISTLEBLOWER DISCLO5 SURES.—Section 2302(b)(8)(B) of title 5, United States 

6 Code, is amended by striking ‘‘or to the Inspector General 

7 of an agency or another employee designated by the head 

8 of the agency to receive such disclosures’’ and inserting 

9 ‘‘the Inspector General of an agency, a supervisor in the 

10 employee’s direct chain of command up to and including 

11 the head of the employing agency, or to an employee des12 ignated by any of the aforementioned individuals for the 

13 purpose of receiving such disclosures’’. 

14 (e) ATTORNEY FEES.— 

15 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 7703(a) of title 5, 

16 United States Code, is amended by adding at the 

17 end the following: 

18 ‘‘(3) If an employee, former employee, or appli19 cant for employment is the prevailing party under a 

20 proceeding brought under this section, the employee, 

21 former employee, or applicant for employment shall 

22 be entitled to attorney fees for all representation 

23 carried out pursuant to this section. In such an ac24 tion for attorney fees, the agency responsible for 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
116 

•HR 5048 IH

1 taking the personnel action shall be the respondent 

2 and shall be responsible for paying the fees.’’. 

3 (2) APPLICATION.—In addition to any pro4 ceeding brought by an employee, former employee, 

5 or applicant for employment on or after the date of 

6 enactment of this Act in a Federal court under sec7 tion 7703 of title 5, United States Code, the amend8 ment made by paragraph (1) shall apply to any pro9 ceeding brought by an employee, former employee, 

10 or applicant for employment under such section be11 fore the date of enactment of this Act with respect 

12 to which the applicable Federal court has not issued 

13 a final decision. 

14 (f) EXTENDING WHISTLEBLOWER PROTECTION ACT

15 TO CERTAIN EMPLOYEES.— 

16 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 2302(a)(2)(A) of 

17 title 5, United States Code, is amended, in the mat18 ter following clause (xiii), as redesignated by section 

19 702(a)(1)(B)— 

20 (A) by inserting ‘‘subsection (b)(9)(A)(i), 

21 (B), (C), (D), or (E), subsection (b)(13), or 

22 subsection (g),’’ after ‘‘subsection (b)(8),’’; and 

23 (B) by inserting after ‘‘title 31’’ the fol24 lowing: ‘‘, a fellow or intern at an agency, a 

25 commissioned officer or applicant for employVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:58 Aug 18, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00116 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5048.IH H5048

tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
117 

•HR 5048 IH

1 ment in the Public Health Service, an officer or 

2 applicant for employment in the commissioned 

3 officer corps of the National Oceanic and At4 mospheric Administration, or a noncareer ap5 pointee in the Senior Executive Service’’. 

6 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—Section 261 

7 of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Adminis8 tration Commissioned Officer Corps Act of 2002 (33 

9 U.S.C. 3071) is amended— 

10 (A) in subsection (a)— 

11 (i) by striking paragraph (8); and 

12 (ii) by redesignating paragraphs (9) 

13 through (26) as paragraphs (8) through 

14 (25), respectively; and 

15 (B) in subsection (b), by striking the sec16 ond sentence. 

17 (3) APPLICATION.— 

18 (A) IN GENERAL.—With respect to an offi19 cer or applicant for employment in the commis20 sioned officer corps of the National Oceanic and 

21 Atmospheric Administration, the amendments 

22 made by paragraphs (1) and (2) shall apply to 

23 any personnel action taken against such officer 

24 or applicant on or after December 23, 2020, for 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
118 

•HR 5048 IH

1 making any disclosure protected under section 

2 2302(b)(8) of title 5, United States Code. 

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

4 not apply to any personnel action with respect 

5 to which an allegation has been submitted pur6 suant to section 1034 of title 10, United States 

7 Code, and a final decision has been made re8 garding such allegation under subsection (h) of 

9 such section. 

10 (C) DEFINITIONS.—In this paragraph, the 

11 terms ‘‘disclosure’’ and ‘‘personnel action’’ have 

12 the meanings given those terms in section 

13 2302(a) of title 5, United States Code. 

14 (g) RELIEF.— 

15 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 7701(b)(2)(A) of 

16 title 5, United States Code, is amended, in the mat17 ter preceding clause (i), by striking ‘‘upon the mak18 ing of the decision’’ and inserting ‘‘upon the making 

19 of the decision, necessary to make the employee 

20 whole as if there had been no prohibited personnel 

21 practice, including training, seniority, and pro22 motions consistent with the employee’s prior 

23 record’’. 

24 (2) APPLICATION.—In addition to any appeal 

25 made on or after the date of enactment of this Act 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
119 

•HR 5048 IH

1 to the Merit Systems Protection Board under section 

2 7701 of title 5, United States Code, the amendment 

3 made by paragraph (1) shall apply to any appeal 

4 made under such section before the date of enact5 ment of this Act with respect to which the Board 

6 has not issued a final decision. 

7 SEC. 704. CLASSIFYING CERTAIN FURLOUGHS AS ADVERSE 

8 PERSONNEL ACTIONS. 

9 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 7512 of title 5, United 

10 States Code, is amended— 

11 (1) in paragraph (4), by striking ‘‘and’’ at the 

12 end; and 

13 (2) by striking paragraph (5) and inserting the 

14 following: 

15 ‘‘(5) a furlough of more than 14 days but less 

16 than 30 days; and 

17 ‘‘(6) a furlough of 13 days or less that is not 

18 due to a lapse in appropriations;’’. 

19 (b) APPLICATION.—The amendment made by sub20 section (a) shall apply to any furlough covered by para21 graph (5) or (6) of section 7512 of title 5, United States 

22 Code (as amended by such subsection), occurring on or 

23 after the date of enactment of this Act. 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
120 

•HR 5048 IH

1 SEC. 705. CODIFICATION OF PROTECTIONS FOR DISCLO2 SURES OF CENSORSHIP RELATED TO RE3 SEARCH, ANALYSIS, OR TECHNICAL INFOR4 MATION. 

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 2302 of title 5, United 

6 States Code, as amended by section 702(c)(1), is further 

7 amended by adding at the end the following: 

8 ‘‘(h)(1) In this subsection— 

9 ‘‘(A) the term ‘applicant’ means an applicant 

10 for a covered position; 

11 ‘‘(B) the term ‘censorship related to research, 

12 analysis, or technical information’ means any effort 

13 to distort, misrepresent, or suppress research, anal14 ysis, or technical information; and 

15 ‘‘(C) the term ‘employee’ means an employee in 

16 a covered position in an agency. 

17 ‘‘(2) Any disclosure of information by an employee 

18 or applicant for employment that the employee or appli19 cant reasonably believes is evidence of censorship related 

20 to research, analysis, or technical information— 

21 ‘‘(A) shall come within the protections of sub22 section (b)(8)(A) if— 

23 ‘‘(i) the employee or applicant reasonably 

24 believes that the censorship related to research, 

25 analysis, or technical information is or will 

26 cause— 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
121 

•HR 5048 IH

1 ‘‘(I) any violation of law, rule, or reg2 ulation; or 

3 ‘‘(II) gross mismanagement, a gross 

4 waste of funds, an abuse of authority, or 

5 a substantial and specific danger to public 

6 health or safety; and 

7 ‘‘(ii) such disclosure is not specifically pro8 hibited by law or such information is not spe9 cifically required by Executive order to be kept 

10 classified in the interest of national defense or 

11 the conduct of foreign affairs; and 

12 ‘‘(B) shall come within the protections of sub13 section (b)(8)(B) if— 

14 ‘‘(i) the employee or applicant reasonably 

15 believes that the censorship related to research, 

16 analysis, or technical information is or will 

17 cause— 

18 ‘‘(I) any violation of law, rule, or reg19 ulation; or 

20 ‘‘(II) gross mismanagement, a gross 

21 waste of funds, an abuse of authority, or 

22 a substantial and specific danger to public 

23 health or safety; and 

24 ‘‘(ii) the disclosure is made to the Special 

25 Counsel, or to the Inspector General of an 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
122 

•HR 5048 IH

1 agency or another person designated by the 

2 head of the agency to receive such disclosures, 

3 consistent with the protection of sources and 

4 methods. 

5 ‘‘(3) A disclosure shall not be excluded from para6 graph (2) for any reason described in paragraph (1) or 

7 (2) of subsection (f). 

8 ‘‘(4) Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to 

9 imply any limitation on the protections of employees and 

10 applicants afforded by any other provision of law, includ11 ing protections with respect to any disclosure of informa12 tion believed to be evidence of censorship related to re13 search, analysis, or technical information.’’. 

14 (b) REPEAL.— 

15 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 110 of the Whistle16 blower Protection Enhancement Act of 2012 (5 

17 U.S.C. 2302 note) is hereby repealed. 

18 (2) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this 

19 section shall be construed to limit or otherwise affect 

20 any action under section 110 of the Whistleblower 

21 Protection Enhancement Act of 2012 (5 U.S.C. 

22 2302 note) commenced before the date of enactment 

23 of this Act or any protections afforded by such sec24 tion with respect to such action. 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
123 

•HR 5048 IH

1 SEC. 706. TITLE 5 TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMEND2 MENTS. 

3 Title 5, United States Code, is amended— 

4 (1) in section 1212(h), by striking ‘‘or (9)’’ 

5 each place it appears and inserting ‘‘, (b)(9), 

6 (b)(13), or (g)’’; 

7 (2) in section 1214— 

8 (A) in subsections (a) and (b), by striking 

9 ‘‘section 2302(b)(8) or section 2302(b)(9)(A)(i), 

10 (B), (C), or (D)’’ each place it appears and in11 serting ‘‘section 2302(b)(8), section 

12 2302(b)(9)(A)(i), (B), (C), (D), or (E), section 

13 2302(b)(13), or section 2302(g)’’; and 

14 (B) in subsection (i), by striking ‘‘section 

15 2302(b)(8) or subparagraph (A)(i), (B), (C), or 

16 (D) of section 2302(b)(9)’’ and inserting ‘‘sec17 tion 2302(b)(8), subparagraph (A)(i), (B), (C), 

18 (D), or (E) of section 2302(b)(9), section 

19 2302(b)(13), or section 2302(g)’’; 

20 (3) in section 1215(a)(3)(B), by striking ‘‘sec21 tion 2302(b)(8), or 2302(b)(9)(A)(i), (B), (C), or 

22 (D)’’ each place it appears and inserting ‘‘section 

23 2302(b)(8), section 2302(b)(9)(A)(i), (B), (C), (D), 

24 or (E), section 2302(b)(13), or section 2302(g)’’; 

25 (4) in section 2302— 

26 (A) in subsection (a)— 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
124 

•HR 5048 IH

1 (i) in paragraph (1), by inserting ‘‘or 

2 (g)’’ after ‘‘subsection (b)’’; and 

3 (ii) in paragraph (2)(C)(i), by striking 

4 ‘‘subsection (b)(8) or section 

5 2302(b)(9)(A)(i), (B), (C), or (D)’’ and in6 serting ‘‘subsection (b)(8), (b)(9)(A)(i), 

7 (B), (C), (D), or (E), (b)(13), or (g)’’; and 

8 (B) in subsection (c)(1)(B), by striking 

9 ‘‘paragraph (8) or subparagraph (A)(i), (B), 

10 (C), or (D) of paragraph (9) of subsection (b)’’ 

11 and inserting ‘‘subsection (b)(8), subparagraph 

12 (A)(i), (B), (C), or (D) of subsection (b)(9), 

13 subsection (b)(13), or subsection (g)’’; 

14 (5) in section 7515(a)(2), by striking ‘‘para15 graph (8), (9), or (14) of section 2302(b)’’ and in16 serting ‘‘paragraph (8), (9), (13), or (14) of section 

17 2302(b) or section 2302(g)’’; 

18 (6) in section 7701(c)(2)(B), by striking ‘‘sec19 tion 2302(b)’’ and inserting ‘‘subsection (b) or (g) of 

20 section 2302’’; and 

21 (7) in section 7703(b)(1)(B), by striking ‘‘sec22 tion 2302(b)(8), or 2302(b)(9)(A)(i), (B), (C), or 

23 (D)’’ and inserting ‘‘section 2302(b)(8), section 

24 2302(b)(9)(A)(i), (B), (C), (D), or (E), section 

25 2302(b)(13), or section 2302(g)’’. 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
125 

•HR 5048 IH

1 Subtitle B—Whistleblowers of the 

2 Intelligence Community 

3 SEC. 711. LIMITATION ON SHARING OF INTELLIGENCE 

4 COMMUNITY WHISTLEBLOWER COMPLAINTS 

5 WITH PERSONS NAMED IN SUCH COM6 PLAINTS. 

7 (a) IN GENERAL.—The National Security Act of 

8 1947 (50 U.S.C. 3001 et seq.) is amended by adding at 

9 the end the following new title: 

10 ‘‘TITLE XII—MATTERS REGARD11 ING INSPECTORS GENERAL 

12 OF ELEMENTS OF THE INTEL13 LIGENCE COMMUNITY 

14 ‘‘SEC. 1202. LIMITATION ON SHARING OF INTELLIGENCE 

15 COMMUNITY WHISTLEBLOWER COMPLAINTS 

16 WITH PERSONS NAMED IN SUCH COM17 PLAINTS. 

18 ‘‘(a) WHISTLEBLOWER DISCLOSURE INFORMATION

19 DEFINED.—In this section, the term ‘whistleblower disclo20 sure information’ means, with respect to a whistleblower 

21 disclosure— 

22 ‘‘(1) the disclosure; 

23 ‘‘(2) confirmation of the fact of the existence of 

24 the disclosure; or 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
126 

•HR 5048 IH

1 ‘‘(3) the identity, or other identifying informa2 tion, of the whistleblower who made the disclosure. 

3 ‘‘(b) IN GENERAL.—It shall be unlawful for any em4 ployee or officer of the Federal Government to knowingly 

5 and willfully share any whistleblower disclosure informa6 tion with any individual named as a subject of the whistle7 blower disclosure and alleged in the disclosure to have en8 gaged in misconduct, unless— 

9 ‘‘(1) the whistleblower consented, in writing, to 

10 such sharing before the sharing occurs; 

11 ‘‘(2) a covered Inspector General to whom such 

12 disclosure is made— 

13 ‘‘(A) determines that such sharing is nec14 essary to advance an investigation, audit, in15 spection, review, or evaluation by the Inspector 

16 General; and 

17 ‘‘(B) notifies the whistleblower of such 

18 sharing before the sharing occurs; or 

19 ‘‘(3) an attorney for the Federal Government— 

20 ‘‘(A) determines that such sharing is nec21 essary to advance an investigation by the attor22 ney; and 

23 ‘‘(B) notifies the whistleblower of such 

24 sharing before the sharing occurs.’’. 

25 (b) TECHNICAL AND CLERICAL AMENDMENTS.— 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
127 

•HR 5048 IH

1 (1) TRANSFER.—The National Security Act of 

2 1947 (50 U.S.C. 3001 et seq.) is amended as fol3 lows: 

4 (A) Section 1104 (50 U.S.C. 3234) is— 

5 (i) transferred to title XII of such 

6 Act, as added by subsection (a); 

7 (ii) inserted before section 1202 of 

8 such Act, as added by such subsection; and 

9 (iii) redesignated as section 1201. 

10 (B) Section 1106 (50 U.S.C. 3236) is— 

11 (i) amended by striking ‘‘section 

12 1104’’ each place it appears and inserting 

13 ‘‘section 1201’’; 

14 (ii) transferred to title XII of such 

15 Act, as added by subsection (a); 

16 (iii) inserted after section 1202 of 

17 such Act, as added by such subsection; and 

18 (iv) redesignated as section 1203. 

19 (2) CLERICAL AMENDMENTS.—The table of sec20 tions at the beginning of the National Security Act 

21 of 1947 is amended— 

22 (A) by striking the items relating to sec23 tion 1104 and section 1106; and 

24 (B) by adding after the items relating to 

25 title XI the end the following new items: 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
128 

•HR 5048 IH

‘‘TITLE XII—MATTERS REGARDING INSPECTORS GENERAL OF 

ELEMENTS OF THE INTELLIGENCE COMMUNITY 

‘‘Sec. 1201. Prohibited personnel practices in the intelligence community. 

‘‘Sec. 1202. Limitation on sharing of intelligence community whistleblower complaints with persons named in such complaints. 

‘‘Sec. 1203. Inspector general external review panel.’’. 

1 (c) DEFINITIONS.—Section 3 of such Act (50 U.S.C. 

2 3003) is amended by adding at the end the following new 

3 paragraphs: 

4 ‘‘(8) The term ‘covered Inspector General’ 

5 means each of the following: 

6 ‘‘(A) The Inspector General of the Intel7 ligence Community. 

8 ‘‘(B) The Inspector General of the Central 

9 Intelligence Agency. 

10 ‘‘(C) The Inspector General of the Defense 

11 Intelligence Agency. 

12 ‘‘(D) The Inspector General of the Na13 tional Reconnaissance Office. 

14 ‘‘(E) The Inspector General of the Na15 tional Geospatial-Intelligence Agency. 

16 ‘‘(F) The Inspector General of the Na17 tional Security Agency. 

18 ‘‘(9) The term ‘whistleblower’ means a person 

19 who makes a whistleblower disclosure. 

20 ‘‘(10) The term ‘whistleblower disclosure’ 

21 means a disclosure that is protected under section 

22 1201 of this Act or section 3001(j)(1) of the IntelVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:58 Aug 18, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00128 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5048.IH H5048

tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
129 

•HR 5048 IH

1 ligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 

2 2004 (50 U.S.C. 3341(j)).’’. 

3 (d) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 5331 of the 

4 Damon Paul Nelson and Matthew Young Pollard Intel5 ligence Authorization Act for Fiscal Years 2018, 2019, 

6 and 2020 (division E of Public Law 116–92; 50 U.S.C. 

7 3033 note) is amended by striking ‘‘section 1104 of the 

8 National Security Act of 1947 (50 U.S.C. 3234)’’ and in9 serting ‘‘section 1201 of the National Security Act of 

10 1947’’. 

11 SEC. 712. DISCLOSURES TO CONGRESS. 

12 (a) IN GENERAL.—Title XII of the National Security 

13 Act of 1947, as added by section 711, is further amended 

14 by inserting after section 1203, as designated by section 

15 711(b), the following new section: 

16 ‘‘SEC. 1204. PROCEDURES REGARDING DISCLOSURES TO 

17 CONGRESS. 

18 ‘‘(a) GUIDANCE.— 

19 ‘‘(1) OBLIGATION TO PROVIDE SECURITY DI20 RECTION UPON REQUEST.—Upon the request of a 

21 whistleblower, the head of the relevant element of 

22 the intelligence community, acting through the cov23 ered Inspector General for that element, shall fur24 nish on a confidential basis to the whistleblower in25 formation regarding how the whistleblower may diVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:58 Aug 18, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00129 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5048.IH H5048

tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
130 

•HR 5048 IH

1 rectly contact the congressional intelligence commit2 tees, in accordance with appropriate security prac3 tices, regarding a complaint or information of the 

4 whistleblower pursuant to section 103H(k)(5)(D) or 

5 other appropriate provision of law. 

6 ‘‘(2) NONDISCLOSURE.—Unless a whistleblower 

7 who makes a request under paragraph (1) provides 

8 prior consent, a covered Inspector General may not 

9 disclose to the head of the relevant element of the 

10 intelligence community— 

11 ‘‘(A) the identity of the whistleblower; or 

12 ‘‘(B) the element at which such whistle13 blower is employed, detailed, or assigned as a 

14 contractor employee. 

15 ‘‘(b) OVERSIGHT OF OBLIGATION.—If a covered In16 spector General determines that the head of an element 

17 of the intelligence community denied a request by a whis18 tleblower under subsection (a), directed the whistleblower 

19 not to contact the congressional intelligence committees, 

20 or unreasonably delayed in providing information under 

21 such subsection, the covered Inspector General shall notify 

22 the congressional intelligence committees of such denial, 

23 direction, or unreasonable delay. 

24 ‘‘(c) PERMANENT SECURITY OFFICER.—The head of 

25 each element of the intelligence community may designate 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
131 

•HR 5048 IH

1 a permanent security officer in the element to provide to 

2 whistleblowers the information under subsection (a).’’. 

3 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 

4 at the beginning of the National Security Act of 1947 is 

5 amended by inserting after the item relating to section 

6 1203, as added by section 711(b)(2), the following new 

7 item: 

‘‘Sec. 1204. Procedures regarding disclosures to Congress.’’. 

8 (c) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—Section 

9 103H(k)(5)(D)(i) of the National Security Act of 1947 

10 (50 U.S.C. 3033(k)(5)(D)(i)) is amended by adding at the 

11 end the following: ‘‘The employee may request information 

12 pursuant to section 1204 with respect to contacting such 

13 committees.’’. 

14 SEC. 713. PROHIBITION AGAINST DISCLOSURE OF WHIS15 TLEBLOWER IDENTITY AS REPRISAL 

16 AGAINST WHISTLEBLOWER DISCLOSURE BY 

17 EMPLOYEES AND CONTRACTORS IN INTEL18 LIGENCE COMMUNITY. 

19 (a) IN GENERAL.—Paragraph (3) of subsection (a) 

20 of section 1201 of the National Security Act of 1947, as 

21 designated by section 711(b)(1)(A), is amended— 

22 (1) in subparagraph (I), by striking ‘‘; or’’ and 

23 inserting a semicolon; 

24 (2) by redesignating subparagraph (J) as sub25 paragraph (K); and 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
132 

•HR 5048 IH

1 (3) by inserting after subparagraph (I) the fol2 lowing new subparagraph: 

3 ‘‘(J) a knowing and willful disclosure re4 vealing the identity or other personally identifi5 able information of such employee or such con6 tractor employee without the express written 

7 consent of such employee or such contractor 

8 employee or if the Inspector General determines 

9 such disclosure is necessary for the exclusive 

10 purpose of investigating a complaint or infor11 mation received under section 416 of title 5, 

12 United States Code; or’’. 

13 (b) APPLICABILITY TO DETAILEES.—Such subsection 

14 is amended by adding at the end the following new para15 graph: 

16 ‘‘(5) EMPLOYEE.—The term ‘employee’, with 

17 respect to an agency or a covered intelligence com18 munity element, includes an individual who has been 

19 detailed to such agency or covered intelligence com20 munity element.’’. 

21 (c) PRIVATE RIGHT OF ACTION FOR UNLAWFUL DIS22 CLOSURE OF WHISTLEBLOWER IDENTITY.—Subsection 

23 (f) of such section is amended to read as follows: 

24 ‘‘(f) ENFORCEMENT.— 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
133 

•HR 5048 IH

1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Except as otherwise pro2 vided in this subsection, the President shall provide 

3 for the enforcement of this section. 

4 ‘‘(2) PRIVATE RIGHT OF ACTION FOR UNLAW5 FUL, WILLFUL DISCLOSURE OF WHISTLEBLOWER

6 IDENTITY.—In a case in which an employee of an 

7 agency, or other employee or officer of the Federal 

8 Government, takes a personnel action described in 

9 subsection (a)(3)(J) against an employee of a cov10 ered intelligence community element as a reprisal in 

11 violation of subsection (b) or in a case in which a 

12 contractor employee takes a personnel action de13 scribed in such subsection against another con14 tractor employee as a reprisal in violation of sub15 section (c), the employee or contractor employee 

16 against whom the personnel action was taken may 

17 bring a private action for all appropriate remedies, 

18 including injunctive relief and compensatory and pu19 nitive damages, against the employee or contractor 

20 employee who took the personnel action, in a Fed21 eral district court of competent jurisdiction within 

22 180 days of when the employee or contractor em23 ployee first learned of or should have learned of the 

24 violation.’’. 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
134 

•HR 5048 IH

1 TITLE VIII—ACCOUNTABILITY 

2 FOR ACTING OFFICIALS 

3 SEC. 801. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This title may be cited as the ‘‘Accountability for Act5 ing Officials Act’’. 

6 SEC. 802. CLARIFICATION OF FEDERAL VACANCIES RE7 FORM ACT OF 1998. 

8 (a) ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS.—Section 3345 of 

9 title 5, United States Code, is amended as follows: 

10 (1) In subsection (a)— 

11 (A) in paragraph (1), by adding before the 

12 semicolon at the end the following: ‘‘, but, and 

13 except as provided in subsection (e), only if the 

14 individual serving in the position of first assist15 ant has occupied such position for a period of 

16 at least 30 days during the 365-day period pre17 ceding the date of the death, resignation, or be18 ginning of inability to serve of the applicable of19 ficer’’; and 

20 (B) by striking subparagraph (A) of para21 graph (3) and inserting the following: 

22 ‘‘(A) the officer or employee served in a 

23 position in such agency for a period of at least 

24 1 year preceding the date of death, resignation, 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
135 

•HR 5048 IH

1 or beginning of inability to serve of the applica2 ble officer; and’’. 

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

4 ‘‘(d) For purposes of this section, a position shall be 

5 considered to be the first assistant to the office with re6 spect to which a vacancy occurs only if such position has 

7 been designated, at least 30 days before the date of the 

8 vacancy, by law, rule, or regulation as the first assistant 

9 position. The previous sentence shall begin to apply on the 

10 date that is 180 days after the date of enactment of the 

11 Accountability for Acting Officials Act. 

12 ‘‘(e) The 30-day service requirement in subsection 

13 (a)(1) shall not apply to any individual who is a first as14 sistant if— 

15 ‘‘(1)(A) the office of such first assistant is an 

16 office for which appointment is required to be made 

17 by the President, by and with the advice and consent 

18 of the Senate; and 

19 ‘‘(B) the Senate has approved the appointment 

20 of such individual to such office; or 

21 ‘‘(2) the individual began serving in the position 

22 of first assistant during the 180-day period begin23 ning on a transitional inauguration day (as that 

24 term is defined in section 3349a(a)).’’. 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
136 

•HR 5048 IH

1 (b) QUALIFICATIONS.—Section 3345(b) of title 5, 

2 United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the 

3 following: 

4 ‘‘(3) Any individual directed to perform the functions 

5 and duties of the vacant office temporarily in an acting 

6 capacity under subsection (a)(2) or (f) shall possess the 

7 qualifications (if any) set forth in law, rule, or regulation 

8 that are otherwise applicable to an individual appointed 

9 by the President, by and with the advice and consent of 

10 the Senate, to occupy such office.’’. 

11 (c) APPLICATION TO INDIVIDUALS REMOVED FROM

12 OFFICE.—Section 3345(c)(2) of title 5, United States 

13 Code, is amended by inserting after ‘‘the expiration of a 

14 term of office’’ the following: ‘‘, or removal (voluntarily 

15 or involuntarily) from office,’’. 

16 (d) TESTIMONY OF ACTING OFFICIALS BEFORE CON17 GRESS.—Section 3345 of title 5, United States Code, is 

18 amended by adding at the end the following: 

19 ‘‘(f)(1) Any individual serving as an acting officer due 

20 to a vacancy to which this section applies, or any indi21 vidual who has served in such capacity and continues to 

22 perform the same or similar duties beyond the time limits 

23 described in section 3346, shall appear, at least once dur24 ing any 60-day period that the individual is so serving, 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
137 

•HR 5048 IH

1 before the appropriate committees of jurisdiction of the 

2 Senate and the House of Representatives. 

3 ‘‘(2) Paragraph (1) may be waived upon mutual 

4 agreement of the chairs and ranking members of the com5 mittees described in that paragraph.’’. 

6 (e) TIME LIMITATION FOR PRINCIPAL OFFICES.— 

7 Section 3346 of title 5, United States Code, is amended— 

8 (1) in subsection (a), in the matter preceding 

9 paragraph (1), by inserting ‘‘or as provided in sub10 section (d)’’ after ‘‘sickness’’; and 

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

12 ‘‘(d) With respect to the vacancy of the position of 

13 head of any agency listed in section 901(b) of title 31 (or 

14 of any other Executive department) and to which this sec15 tion applies, subsections (a) through (c) of this section and 

16 sections 3348(c), 3349(b), and 3349a(b) shall be applied 

17 by substituting ‘120’ for ‘210’ in each instance.’’. 

18 (f) EXCLUSIVITY.—Section 3347 of title 5, United 

19 States Code, is amended— 

20 (1) by redesignating subsection (b) as sub21 section (c); and 

22 (2) by inserting after subsection (a) the fol23 lowing: 

24 ‘‘(b) Notwithstanding subsection (a), any statutory 

25 provision covered under paragraph (1) of such subsection 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
138 

•HR 5048 IH

1 that contains a non-discretionary order or directive to des2 ignate an officer or employee to perform the functions and 

3 duties of a specified office temporarily in an acting capac4 ity shall be the exclusive means for temporarily author5 izing an acting official to perform the functions and duties 

6 of such office.’’. 

7 (g) REPORTING OF VACANCIES.— 

8 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 3349 of title 5, 

9 United States Code, is amended— 

10 (A) in subsection (a)— 

11 (i) by striking ‘‘immediately upon’’ in 

12 each instance and inserting ‘‘not later than 

13 7 days after’’; 

14 (ii) in paragraph (3), by striking 

15 ‘‘and’’ at the end; 

16 (iii) in paragraph (4), by striking the 

17 period at the end and inserting ‘‘; and’’; 

18 and 

19 (iv) by adding at the end the fol20 lowing: 

21 ‘‘(5) notification of the end of the term of serv22 ice of any person serving in an acting capacity and 

23 the name of any subsequent person serving in an 

24 acting capacity and the date the service of such subVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:58 Aug 18, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00138 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5048.IH H5048

tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
139 

•HR 5048 IH

1 sequent person began not later than 7 days after 

2 such date.’’; and 

3 (B) in subsection (b), in the matter pre4 ceding paragraph (1), by striking ‘‘imme5 diately’’ and inserting ‘‘not later than 14 days 

6 after the date of such determination’’. 

7 (2) TECHNICAL CORRECTIONS.—Paragraphs 

8 (1) and (2) of section 3349(b) of title 5, United 

9 States Code, are amended to read as follows: 

10 ‘‘(1) the Committee on Homeland Security and 

11 Governmental Affairs of the Senate; 

12 ‘‘(2) the Committee on Oversight and Account13 ability of the House of Representatives;’’. 

14 (3) VACANCIES DURING PRESIDENTIAL INAU15 GURAL TRANSITIONS.—Section 3349a(b) of title 5, 

16 United States Code, is amended to read as follows: 

17 ‘‘(b) Notwithstanding section 3346 (except as pro18 vided in paragraph (2) of this subsection) or 3348(c), with 

19 respect to any vacancy that exists on a transitional inau20 guration day, or that arises during the 60-day period be21 ginning on such day, the person serving as an acting offi22 cer as described in section 3345 may serve in the office— 

23 ‘‘(1) for no longer than 300 days beginning on 

24 such day; or 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
140 

•HR 5048 IH

1 ‘‘(2) subject to section 3346(b), once a first or 

2 second nomination for the office is submitted to the 

3 Senate, from the date of such nomination for the pe4 riod that the nomination is pending in the Senate.’’. 

5 TITLE IX—STRENGTHENING 

6 HATCH ACT ENFORCEMENT 

7 AND PENALTIES 

8 Subtitle A—Strengthening Hatch 

9 Act Enforcement and Penalties 

10 SEC. 901. SHORT TITLE. 

11 This title may be cited as the ‘‘Hatch Act Account12 ability Act’’. 

13 SEC. 902. STRENGTHENING HATCH ACT ENFORCEMENT 

14 AND PENALTIES AGAINST POLITICAL AP15 POINTEES. 

16 (a) INVESTIGATIONS BY OFFICE OF SPECIAL COUN17 SEL.—Section 1216 of title 5, United States Code, as 

18 amended by section 307, is amended— 

19 (1) in subsection (c), by striking ‘‘(1),’’; and 

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

21 ‘‘(e)(1) In addition to the authority otherwise pro22 vided in this chapter, the Special Counsel— 

23 ‘‘(A) shall conduct an investigation with respect 

24 to any allegation concerning political activity prohibVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:58 Aug 18, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00140 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5048.IH H5048

tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
141 

•HR 5048 IH

1 ited under subchapter III of chapter 73 (relating to 

2 political activities by Federal employees); and 

3 ‘‘(B) may, regardless of whether the Special 

4 Counsel has received an allegation, conduct any in5 vestigation as the Special Counsel considers nec6 essary concerning political activity prohibited under 

7 subchapter III of chapter 73. 

8 ‘‘(2) With respect to any investigation under para9 graph (1), the Special Counsel may seek corrective action 

10 under section 1214 and disciplinary action under section 

11 1215 in the same way as if a prohibited personnel practice 

12 were involved. 

13 ‘‘(f)(1) Notwithstanding section 1215(b), consistent 

14 with paragraph (3) of this subsection, if, after an inves15 tigation under subsection (d)(1), the Special Counsel de16 termines that a political appointee has violated section 

17 7323 or 7324, the Special Counsel may present a com18 plaint to the Merit Systems Protection Board under the 

19 process provided in section 1215 against such political ap20 pointee. 

21 ‘‘(2) Notwithstanding section 7326, a final order of 

22 the Board on a complaint of a violation of section 7323 

23 or 7324 by a political appointee may impose an assess24 ment of a civil penalty not to exceed $50,000. 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
142 

•HR 5048 IH

1 ‘‘(3) The Special Counsel may not present a com2 plaint under paragraph (1) of this subsection— 

3 ‘‘(A) unless no disciplinary action or civil pen4 alty has been taken or assessed, respectively, against 

5 the political appointee pursuant to section 7326; and 

6 ‘‘(B) until on or after the date that is 90 days 

7 after the date that the complaint regarding the polit8 ical appointee was presented to the President under 

9 section 1215(b), notwithstanding whether the Presi10 dent submits a written statement pursuant to para11 graph (4) of this subsection. 

12 ‘‘(4)(A) Not later than 90 days after receiving from 

13 the Special Counsel a complaint recommending discipli14 nary action under section 1215(b) with respect to a polit15 ical appointee for a violation of section 7323 or 7324, the 

16 President shall provide a written statement to the Special 

17 Counsel on whether the President imposed the rec18 ommended disciplinary action, imposed another form of 

19 disciplinary action and the nature of that disciplinary ac20 tion, or took no disciplinary action against the political 

21 appointee. 

22 ‘‘(B) Not later than 14 days after the date on which 

23 the Special Counsel receives a written statement under 

24 subparagraph (A) of this paragraph, the Special Counsel 

25 shall— 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
143 

•HR 5048 IH

1 ‘‘(i) submit the written statement to the Com2 mittee on Homeland Security and Governmental Af3 fairs of the Senate and the Committee on Oversight 

4 and Accountability of the House of Representatives; 

5 and 

6 ‘‘(ii) publish the written statement on the public 

7 website of the Office of Special Counsel. 

8 ‘‘(5) Not later than 14 days after the date on which 

9 the Special Counsel determines a political appointee has 

10 violated section 7323 or 7324, the Special Counsel shall— 

11 ‘‘(A) submit a report on the investigation into 

12 such political appointee, and any communications 

13 sent from the Special Counsel to the President rec14 ommending discipline of such political appointee, to 

15 the Committee on Homeland Security and Govern16 mental Affairs of the Senate and the Committee on 

17 Oversight and Accountability of the House of Rep18 resentatives; and 

19 ‘‘(B) publish the report and the communica20 tions described in subparagraph (A) on the public 

21 website of the Office of Special Counsel. 

22 ‘‘(6) In this subsection, the term ‘political appointee’ 

23 means any individual, other than the President and the 

24 Vice President, employed or holding office— 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
144 

•HR 5048 IH

1 ‘‘(A) in the Executive Office of the President, 

2 the Office of the Vice President, or any other office 

3 of the White House, but not including any career 

4 employee; or 

5 ‘‘(B) in a confidential, policy-making, policy-de6 termining, or policy-advocating position appointed by 

7 the President, by and with the advice and consent 

8 of the Senate (other than an individual in the For9 eign Service).’’. 

10 (b) CLARIFICATION ON APPLICATION OF HATCH ACT

11 TO EOP AND OVP EMPLOYEES.—Section 7322(1)(A) of 

12 title 5, United States Code, is amended by inserting after 

13 ‘‘Executive agency’’ the following: ‘‘, including the Execu14 tive Office of the President, the Office of the Vice Presi15 dent, and any other office of the White House,’’. 

16 (c) CRIMINAL PENALTY.— 

17 (1) IN GENERAL.—Subchapter III of chapter 

18 73 of title 5, United States Code, is amended by 

19 adding at the end the following: 

20 ‘‘§ 7327. Criminal penalty for Hatch Act violations 

21 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Any person who knowingly vio22 lates section 7323 or 7324 shall be fined $50,000 (not23 withstanding section 3571(e) of title 18), imprisoned for 

24 not more than 1 year, or both. Notwithstanding section 

25 3571(e) of title 18, for each violation after the first, the 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
145 

•HR 5048 IH

1 fine applicable under this section shall be double the 

2 amount of the fine assessed for the previous violation. 

3 ‘‘(b) ATTORNEY FEES.—A court may assess against 

4 the United States reasonable attorney fees and other liti5 gation costs reasonably incurred in any case under this 

6 section in which an employee has established, by a prepon7 derance of the evidence, that a superior ordered or other8 wise coerced the employee into taking any act that re9 sulted in a violation of section 7323 or 7324.’’. 

10 (2) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sec11 tions for subchapter III of chapter 73 of title 5, 

12 United States Code, is amended by inserting after 

13 the item relating to section 7326 the following: 

‘‘7327. Criminal penalty for Hatch Act violations.’’. 

14 (3) TRAINING.—After the first violation by an 

15 individual of section 7323 or 7324 of title 5, United 

16 States Code, that individual shall be provided train17 ing by the employing agency of the individual on 

18 how to avoid subsequent violations of either such 

19 section. 

20 SEC. 903. INCLUDING EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF THE PRESI21 DENT UNDER LIMITATION ON NEPOTISM IN 

22 THE CIVIL SERVICE. 

23 Section 3110(a)(1)(A) of title 5, United States Code, 

24 is amended by inserting ‘‘, including the Executive Office 

25 of the President’’ after ‘‘Executive agency’’. 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
146 

•HR 5048 IH

1 SEC. 904. DISCLOSURE OF HATCH ACT INVESTIGATIONS 

2 FOR CERTAIN POLITICAL EMPLOYEES. 

3 Section 1216 of title 5, United States Code, is 

4 amended by adding at the end the following: 

5 ‘‘(d)(1) With respect to any investigation of an alle6 gation of prohibited activity under subsection (a)(1) 

7 against a political employee, not later than 14 days after 

8 the date on which the Special Counsel makes a final deter9 mination under that investigation with respect to whether 

10 a violation occurred, the Special Counsel shall— 

11 ‘‘(A) publish, on the website of the Office of 

12 Special Counsel, that determination and a report on 

13 that determination; and 

14 ‘‘(B) submit the report required under subpara15 graph (A) to the Committee on Homeland Security 

16 and Governmental Affairs of the Senate and the 

17 Committee on Oversight and Accountability of the 

18 House of Representatives. 

19 ‘‘(2) In this subsection, the term ‘political employee’ 

20 means any individual occupying any of the following posi21 tions in the executive branch of Government (including an 

22 individual carrying out the duties of such a position in 

23 an acting capacity): 

24 ‘‘(A) Any position required to be filled by an 

25 appointment by the President, by and with the ad26 vice and consent of the Senate. 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
147 

•HR 5048 IH

1 ‘‘(B) Any position in the executive branch of 

2 the Government of a confidential or policy-deter3 mining character under schedule C of subpart C of 

4 part 213 of title 5, Code of Federal Regulations, or 

5 any successor regulations. 

6 ‘‘(C) Any position in or under the Executive Of7 fice of the President. 

8 ‘‘(D) Any position in or under the Office of the 

9 Vice President. 

10 ‘‘(E) Any position in the Senior Executive Serv11 ice that is not a career appointee, a limited term ap12 pointee, or a limited emergency appointee (as those 

13 terms are defined in section 3132(a)).’’. 

14 SEC. 905. CLARIFICATION ON CANDIDATES VISITING FED15 ERAL PROPERTY. 

16 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 7323 of title 5, United 

17 States Code, is amended by adding at the end the fol18 lowing: 

19 ‘‘(d) Nothing in this section or section 7324 shall be 

20 construed to prohibit an employee from allowing a Mem21 ber of Congress or any other elected official from visiting 

22 Federal facilities for an official purpose, including receiv23 ing briefings, tours, or other official information.’’. 

24 (b) TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

25 Section 7323 of title 5, United States Code, is amended— 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
148 

•HR 5048 IH

1 (1) in subsection (a)(1), by striking ‘‘his official 

2 authority or influence’’ and inserting ‘‘the official 

3 authority or influence of the employee’’; and 

4 (2) in subsection (c)— 

5 (A) by striking ‘‘he’’ and inserting ‘‘the 

6 employee’’; and 

7 (B) by striking ‘‘his opinion’’ and inserting 

8 ‘‘the opinion of the employee’’. 

9 SEC. 906. APPLYING HATCH ACT TO PRESIDENT AND VICE 

10 PRESIDENT WHILE ON FEDERAL PROPERTY. 

11 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subchapter III of chapter 73 of 

12 title 5, United States Code, as amended by section 902(c), 

13 is further amended— 

14 (1) by redesignating sections 7326 and 7327 as 

15 sections 7327 and 7328, respectively; and 

16 (2) by inserting after section 7325 the fol17 lowing: 

18 ‘‘§ 7326. Limitations on political activity of President 

19 and Vice President while on White House 

20 grounds 

21 ‘‘Notwithstanding section 7322(1), the prohibitions 

22 on political activity under sections 7323(a) and 7324 shall 

23 apply to the President and Vice President while the Presi24 dent and Vice President are on or in any part of the White 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
149 

•HR 5048 IH

1 House, or any part of the White House grounds, that is 

2 regularly used in the discharge of official duties.’’. 

3 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 

4 of subchapter III of chapter 73 of title 5, United States 

5 Code, as amended by section 902(c), is further amended 

6 by striking the items relating to sections 7326 and 7327 

7 and inserting the following: 

‘‘7326. Limitations on political activity of President and Vice President while 

on Federal property. 

‘‘7327. Penalties. 

‘‘7327. Criminal penalty for Hatch Act violations.’’. 

8 SEC. 907. GRANTING THE OFFICE OF SPECIAL COUNSEL 

9 RULEMAKING AUTHORITY. 

10 Notwithstanding any other law, rule, or regulation, 

11 the Office of Special Counsel shall have exclusive authority 

12 to promulgate regulations with respect to authority grant13 ed to the Office under subchapter III of chapter 73 of 

14 title 5, United States Code. 

15 SEC. 908. GREATER ACCOUNTABILITY FOR POLITICAL AP16 POINTEES. 

17 Section 1204(c) of title 5, United States Code, is 

18 amended by adding at the end the following: ‘‘Notwith19 standing the previous sentences, in the case of contumacy 

20 or failure by an individual to obey a subpoena issued under 

21 subsection (b)(2)(A) or section 1214(b) with respect to an 

22 investigation into any violation of section 7323 or 7324, 

23 the Board may issue an order requiring that individual 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
150 

•HR 5048 IH

1 to appear at any designated place to testify or to produce 

2 documentary or other evidence.’’. 

3 SEC. 909. INVESTIGATING FORMER POLITICAL EMPLOYEES. 

4 (a) DEFINITION.—In this section, the term ‘‘em5 ployee’’ has the meaning given the term in section 7322 

6 of title 5, United States Code. 

7 (b) CONTINUATION OF INVESTIGATION.—Notwith8 standing any other provision of law, the Office of Special 

9 Counsel may continue an investigation of a violation of 

10 section 7323 or 7324 of title 5, United States Code, of 

11 an individual who is a former employee only if that inves12 tigation commenced while the individual was an employee. 

13 SEC. 910. GAO REVIEW OF REIMBURSABLE POLITICAL 

14 EVENTS. 

15 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 60 days after the 

16 date of enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General 

17 of the United States shall submit to Congress a report 

18 on reimbursable political events held at the White House 

19 or on the White House grounds during the period begin20 ning on January 1, 1997, and ending on the date of enact21 ment of this Act (referred to in this section as the ‘‘cov22 ered period’’). 

23 (b) CONTENTS.—The report required under sub24 section (a) shall include the following: 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
151 

•HR 5048 IH

1 (1) Whether, during the covered period, the re2 quirements in annual appropriations Acts with re3 spect to reimbursable political events have been fol4 lowed, including the requirements under the heading 

5 ‘‘Executive Residence At the White House—Reim6 bursable Expenses’’ in title II of division D of the 

7 Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2019 (Public Law 

8 116–6). 

9 (2) An assessment of what constitutes a polit10 ical event during the covered period. 

11 (3) Whether an event that was not classified as 

12 a political event during the covered period should 

13 have been classified as such an event. 

14 (4) A review of any payment made by a political 

15 entity under the terms of the requirements described 

16 in paragraph (1). 

17 (5) Recommendations for Congress on— 

18 (A) a definition for the term ‘‘political 

19 event’’; 

20 (B) how to assess whether presidential ad21 ministrations are following the requirements de22 scribed in paragraph (1); and 

23 (C) how to hold presidential administra24 tions accountable if the requirements described 

25 in paragraph (1) are not followed. 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
152 

•HR 5048 IH

1 Subtitle B—Strengthening Ethics 

2 Enforcement and Penalties for 

3 Federal Executive Employees 

4 SEC. 911. DEFINITIONS. 

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subject to subsection (b), in this 

6 subtitle: 

7 (1) ADMINISTRATION.—‘‘Administration’’ 

8 means each term of office of the incumbent Presi9 dent serving at the time of the appointment of an 

10 appointee. 

11 (2) APPOINTEE.—The term ‘‘appointee’’— 

12 (A) includes each individual appointed— 

13 (i) to a full-time, noncareer position 

14 by the President or the Vice President; 

15 (ii) to a position on the Executive 

16 Schedule under sections 5312 through 

17 5316 of title 5, United States Code; 

18 (iii) to a position as a noncareer ap19 pointee in the in the Senior Executive 

20 Service, as defined in section 3132(a) of 

21 title 5, United States Code, or as a non22 career appointee under another comparable 

23 personnel system for senior personnel; or 

24 (iv) to a position in an Executive 

25 agency excepted from the competitive servVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:58 Aug 18, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00152 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5048.IH H5048

tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
153 

•HR 5048 IH

1 ice by reason of being of a confidential or 

2 policy-determining character under sched3 ule C of subpart C of part 213 of title 5, 

4 Code of Federal Regulations, or another 

5 position excepted from the competitive 

6 service under comparable criteria; and 

7 (B) does not include any individual ap8 pointed to a position in the Senior Foreign 

9 Service or solely as a uniformed service commis10 sioned officer. 

11 (3) COVERED EXECUTIVE BRANCH OFFICIAL; 

12 LOBBYING ACTIVITIES, LOBBYIST.—The terms ‘‘cov13 ered executive branch official’’, ‘‘lobbying activities’’, 

14 and ‘‘lobbyist’’ have the meanings given those terms 

15 in section 3 of the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 

16 (2 U.S.C. 1602). 

17 (4) DIRECTLY AND SUBSTANTIALLY RELATED

18 TO MY FORMER EMPLOYER OR ANY FORMER CLI19 ENT.—The term ‘‘directly and substantially related 

20 to my former employer or any former client’’ means 

21 any matter in which the former employer or a 

22 former client of an appointee is a party or rep23 resents a party to the matter. 

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

25 agency’’ has the meaning given the term ‘‘Executive 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
154 

•HR 5048 IH

1 agency’’ in section 105 of title 5, United States 

2 Code, except that such term— 

3 (A) includes— 

4 (i) the Executive Office of the Presi5 dent; 

6 (ii) the United States Postal Service; 

7 and 

8 (iii) the Postal Regulatory Commis9 sion; and 

10 (B) does not include the Government Ac11 countability Office. 

12 (6) FORMER CLIENT.—The term ‘‘former cli13 ent’’— 

14 (A) means any person for whom an ap15 pointee, during the 2-year period before the 

16 date of the appointment of the appointee, 

17 served personally as agent, attorney, or consult18 ant, except that such service as an agent, attor19 ney, or consultant shall not include any in20 stance in which the service provided was limited 

21 to speeches or similar appearances; and 

22 (B) does not include any clients of the 

23 former employer of the appointee to whom the 

24 appointee did not personally provide services. 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
155 

•HR 5048 IH

1 (7) FORMER EMPLOYER.—The term ‘‘former 

2 employer’’— 

3 (A) means any person for whom an ap4 pointee, during the 2-year period before the 

5 date of appointment of the appointee, served as 

6 an employee, officer, director, trustee, or gen7 eral partner; and 

8 (B) does not include any Executive agency 

9 or other entity of the Federal Government, any 

10 State or local government, the government of 

11 the District of Columbia, any Tribal govern12 ment, any government of a United States terri13 tory or possession, or any international organi14 zation of which the United States is a member 

15 state. 

16 (8) GIFT.—The term ‘‘gift’’— 

17 (A) has the meaning given the term in sec18 tion 2635.203(b) of title 5, Code of Federal 

19 Regulations; 

20 (B) includes any gift that is indirectly so21 licited or accepted, as defined under section 

22 2635.203(f) of title 5, Code of Federal Regula23 tions; and 

24 (C) does not include any item excepted 

25 under subsections (b), (c), (e)(1), (e)(3), (j), or 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
156 

•HR 5048 IH

1 (l) of section 2635.204 of title 5, Code of Fed2 eral Regulations. 

3 (9) GOVERNMENT OFFICIAL.—The term ‘‘Gov4 ernment official’’ means any employee of the execu5 tive branch of the Government. 

6 (10) LOBBY.—The term ‘‘lobby’’ means to act 

7 or have acted as a registered lobbyist. 

8 (11) MATERIALLY ASSIST.—The term ‘‘materi9 ally assist’’— 

10 (A) means to provide substantive assist11 ance; and 

12 (B) does not include— 

13 (i) the provision of background or 

14 general education on a matter of law or 

15 policy based upon the subject matter ex16 pertise of an individual; or 

17 (ii) any conduct or assistance per18 mitted under section 207(j) of title 18, 

19 United States Code. 

20 (12) PARTICIPATE.—The term ‘‘participate’’ 

21 means to participate personally and substantially. 

22 (13) PARTICULAR MATTER.—The term ‘‘par23 ticular matter’’ has the meaning given the term in 

24 section 207 of title 18, United States Code, and secVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:58 Aug 18, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00156 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5048.IH H5048

tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
157 

•HR 5048 IH

1 tion 2635.402(b)(3) of title 5, Code of Federal Reg2 ulations. 

3 (14) PARTICULAR MATTER INVOLVING SPECIFIC

4 PARTIES.—The term ‘‘particular matter involving 

5 specific parties’’ has the meaning given the term in 

6 section 2641.201(h) of title 5, Code of Federal Reg7 ulations, except that the term shall also include any 

8 meeting or other communication relating to the per9 formance of the official duties of an individual with 

10 a former employer or former client of the individual, 

11 unless— 

12 (A) the communication applies to a par13 ticular matter of general applicability; and 

14 (B) participation in the meeting or other 

15 event is open to all interested parties. 

16 (15) PLEDGE.—The term ‘‘pledge’’ means the 

17 ethics pledge under section 912. 

18 (16) REGISTERED LOBBYIST OR LOBBYING OR19 GANIZATION.—The term ‘‘registered lobbyist or lob20 bying organization’’ means— 

21 (A) any lobbyist or an organization filing a 

22 registration pursuant to section 4 of the Lob23 bying Disclosure Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1603); 

24 and 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
158 

•HR 5048 IH

1 (B) in the case of an organization filing 

2 such a registration, includes each of the lobby3 ists of the organization identified therein. 

4 (17) SENIOR WHITE HOUSE STAFF.—The term 

5 ‘‘Senior White House staff’’ means any person ap6 pointed by— 

7 (A) the President to a position under sub8 paragraph (A) or (B) of section 105(a)(2) of 

9 title 3, United States Code; or 

10 (B) the Vice President to a position under 

11 subparagraph (A) or (B) of section 106(a)(1) of 

12 title 3, United States Code. 

13 (b) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Any reference to a 

14 provision of Federal law, including any regulation, under 

15 this subtitle shall be construed to refer to any such provi16 sion in effect on January 20, 2021. 

17 SEC. 912. ETHICS PLEDGE. 

18 Each appointee in each Executive agency appointed 

19 on or after January 20, 2021, shall sign, and upon signing 

20 shall be contractually committed to, an ethics pledge that 

21 states the following: 

22 ‘‘I recognize that this pledge is part of a broader eth23 ics in Government plan designed to restore and maintain 

24 public trust in Government, and I commit myself to con25 duct consistent with that plan. I commit to decision-makVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:58 Aug 18, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00158 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5048.IH H5048

tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
159 

•HR 5048 IH

1 ing on the merits and exclusively in the public interest, 

2 without regard to private gain or personal benefit. I com3 mit to conduct that upholds the independence of law en4 forcement and precludes improper interference with inves5 tigative or prosecutorial decisions of the Department of 

6 Justice. I commit to ethical choices of post-Government 

7 employment that do not raise the appearance that I have 

8 used my Government service for private gain, including 

9 by using confidential information acquired and relation10 ships established for the benefit of future clients. 

11 ‘‘Accordingly, as a condition, and in consideration, of 

12 my employment in the United States Government in a po13 sition invested with the public trust, I commit myself to 

14 the following obligations, which I understand are binding 

15 on me and are enforceable under law: 

16 ‘‘(1) LOBBYIST GIFT BAN.—I will not accept 

17 any gift from any registered lobbyist or lobbying or18 ganization for the duration of my service as an ap19 pointee. 

20 ‘‘(2) REVOLVING DOOR BAN; ALL APPOINTEES

21 ENTERING GOVERNMENT.—For a period of 2 years 

22 beginning on the date of my appointment, I will not 

23 participate in any particular matter involving spe24 cific parties that is directly and substantially related 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
160 

•HR 5048 IH

1 to my former employer or former clients, including 

2 regulations and contracts. 

3 ‘‘(3) REVOLVING DOOR BAN; LOBBYISTS AND

4 REGISTERED AGENTS ENTERING GOVERNMENT.—If, 

5 during the 2 year period before the date of my ap6 pointment, I was registered under the Lobbying Dis7 closure Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.) or the 

8 Foreign Agents Registration Act of 1938, as amend9 ed, (22 U.S.C. 611 et seq.), in addition to abiding 

10 by the limitations of paragraph (2), I will not, for 

11 a period of 2 years beginning on the date of my ap12 pointment— 

13 ‘‘(A) participate in any particular matter 

14 with respect to which I lobbied, or engaged in 

15 any activity that would require registration 

16 under the Foreign Agents Registration Act of 

17 1938, as amended (22 U.S.C. 611 et seq.), dur18 ing the 2-year period before the date of my ap19 pointment; 

20 ‘‘(B) participate in the specific issue area 

21 involving the particular matter described in 

22 subparagraph (A); or 

23 ‘‘(C) seek or accept employment with any 

24 Executive agency with respect to which I lob25 bied, or engaged in any activity that would reVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:58 Aug 18, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00160 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5048.IH H5048

tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
161 

•HR 5048 IH

1 quire registration under the Foreign Agents 

2 Registration Act of 1938, as amended (22 

3 U.S.C. 611 et seq.), during the 2-year period 

4 before the date of my appointment. 

5 ‘‘(4) REVOLVING DOOR BAN; APPOINTEES LEAV6 ING GOVERNMENT.—If, upon my departure from the 

7 Government, the post-employment restrictions relat8 ing to communicating with employees of my former 

9 Executive agency under section 207(c) of title 18, 

10 United States Code, and any implementing regula11 tions, apply to me, I agree that I will abide by those 

12 restrictions for a period of 2 years beginning on the 

13 last date of my appointment. I will abide by those 

14 same restrictions with respect to communicating 

15 with the Senior White House staff. 

16 ‘‘(5) REVOLVING DOOR BAN; SENIOR AND VERY

17 SENIOR APPOINTEES LEAVING GOVERNMENT.—If, 

18 upon my departure from the Government, the post19 employment restrictions under subsections (c) or (d) 

20 of section 207 of title 18, United States Code, and 

21 any implementing regulations, apply to me, I agree 

22 that, in addition to abiding by those restrictions, for 

23 a period of 1 year beginning on the last date of my 

24 appointment, I will not materially assist any other 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
162 

•HR 5048 IH

1 person in making any communication or appearance 

2 that I am prohibited from undertaking myself by— 

3 ‘‘(A) holding myself out as being available 

4 to engage in lobbying activities in support of 

5 any such communication or appearance; or 

6 ‘‘(B) engaging in any such lobbying activi7 ties. 

8 ‘‘(6) REVOLVING DOOR BAN; APPOINTEES LEAV9 ING GOVERNMENT TO LOBBY.—In addition to abid10 ing by the limitations under paragraph (4), I also 

11 agree, upon leaving Government service, not to lobby 

12 any covered executive branch official or non-career 

13 Senior Executive Service appointee, or engage in any 

14 activity on behalf of any foreign government or for15 eign political party that, if such activity was under16 taken on January 20, 2021, would require that I 

17 register under the Foreign Agents Registration Act 

18 of 1938, as amended (22 U.S.C. 611 et seq.), for 

19 the remainder of the Administration or the 2-year 

20 period beginning on the last date of my appoint21 ment, whichever is later. 

22 ‘‘(7) GOLDEN PARACHUTE BAN.—I have not ac23 cepted and will not accept, including after entering 

24 Government, any salary or other cash payment from 

25 my former employer the eligibility for and payment 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
163 

•HR 5048 IH

1 of which is limited to individuals accepting a position 

2 in the United States Government. I also have not ac3 cepted and will not accept any non-cash benefit from 

4 my former employer that is provided in lieu of such 

5 a prohibited cash payment. 

6 ‘‘(8) EMPLOYMENT QUALIFICATION COMMIT7 MENT.—I agree that any hiring or other employment 

8 decisions I make will be based on the qualifications, 

9 competence, and experience of the candidate. 

10 ‘‘(9) ASSENT TO ENFORCEMENT.—I acknowl11 edge that subtitle B of title IX of the Protecting 

12 Our Democracy Act, which I have read before sign13 ing this document, defines certain of the terms ap14 plicable to the foregoing obligations and sets forth 

15 the methods for enforcing them. I expressly accept 

16 the provisions of that subtitle as a part of this 

17 agreement and as binding on me. I understand that 

18 the terms of this pledge are in addition to any statu19 tory or other legal restrictions applicable to me by 

20 virtue of Federal Government service.’’. 

21 SEC. 913. WAIVERS. 

22 (a) IN GENERAL.— 

23 (1) REQUIREMENTS FOR WAIVER.—The Direc24 tor of the Office of Management and Budget, in con25 sultation with the Counsel to the President, may 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
164 

•HR 5048 IH

1 grant to any current or former appointee a written 

2 waiver of any restrictions contained in the pledge 

3 signed by such appointee if, and to the extent that, 

4 the Director of the Office of Management and Budg5 et certifies in writing— 

6 (A) that the literal application of the re7 striction is inconsistent with the purposes of the 

8 restriction; or 

9 (B) that, subject to subsection (c), it is in 

10 the public interest to grant the waiver. 

11 (2) CONTENTS.—Any waiver granted under 

12 paragraph (1) shall— 

13 (A) reflect the basis for the waiver; and 

14 (B) in the case of a waiver of the restric15 tions under subparagraph (B) or (C) of para16 graph (3) of the pledge, include a discussion of 

17 the findings with respect to the considerations 

18 set forth in subsection (c)(2) of this section. 

19 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE; PUBLICATION.— 

20 (1) EFFECTIVE DATE.—A waiver granted under 

21 subsection (a) shall take effect on the date on which 

22 the Director of the Office of Management and Budg23 et signs the waiver. 

24 (2) PUBLICATION.—The Director of the Office 

25 of Management and Budget shall make any waiver 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
165 

•HR 5048 IH

1 granted under subsection (a) public not later than 

2 10 days after the waiver is granted. 

3 (c) PUBLIC INTEREST.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—With respect to consider5 ation of the public interest under subsection 

6 (a)(2)(B), the public interest shall include exigent 

7 circumstances relating to national security, the econ8 omy, public health, or the environment. 

9 (2) SPECIFIC CONSIDERATIONS.—In deter10 mining whether it is in the public interest to grant 

11 a waiver under subsection (a)(2)(B) of the restric12 tions under subparagraph (B) or (C) of paragraph 

13 (3) of the pledge, the responsible official may con14 sider the following factors— 

15 (A) the need of the Government for the 

16 services of the individual, including the exist17 ence of special circumstances related to national 

18 security, the economy, public health, or the en19 vironment of the United States; 

20 (B) the uniqueness of the qualifications of 

21 the individual to meet the needs of the Govern22 ment; 

23 (C) the scope and nature of the prior lob24 bying activities of the individual, including 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
166 

•HR 5048 IH

1 whether such activities were de minimis or ren2 dered on behalf of a nonprofit organization; and 

3 (D) the extent to which the purposes of the 

4 restriction may be satisfied through other limi5 tations on the services of the individual, such as 

6 those required by paragraph (3)(A) of the 

7 pledge. 

8 SEC. 914. ADMINISTRATION. 

9 (a) IN GENERAL.—The head of each Executive agen10 cy shall, in consultation with the Director of the Office 

11 of Government Ethics, establish such rules or procedures 

12 (conforming as nearly as practicable to the general ethics 

13 rules and procedures of the Executive agency, including 

14 those relating to designated agency ethics officials) as are 

15 necessary or appropriate to ensure— 

16 (1) that every appointee in the Executive agen17 cy signs the pledge upon assuming the appointed of18 fice or otherwise becoming an appointee; 

19 (2) that compliance with paragraph (3) of the 

20 pledge is addressed in a written ethics agreement 

21 with each appointee to whom it applies, which agree22 ment shall also be approved by the Counsel to the 

23 President prior to the appointee commencing work; 

24 (3) that any spousal employment issue or other 

25 conflict not expressly addressed by the pledge is adVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:58 Aug 18, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00166 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5048.IH H5048

tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
167 

•HR 5048 IH

1 dressed in ethics agreements with appointees or, 

2 where no such agreements are required, through eth3 ics counseling; and 

4 (4) that the Executive agency generally com5 plies with this subtitle. 

6 (b) EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT.—With 

7 respect to the Executive Office of the President, the duties 

8 set forth in subsection (a) shall be the responsibility of 

9 the Counsel to the President. 

10 (c) DIRECTOR OF THE OFFICE OF GOVERNMENT

11 ETHICS GENERAL RESPONSIBILITIES.—The Director of 

12 the Office of Government Ethics shall— 

13 (1) ensure that the pledge and a copy of this 

14 subtitle are made available for use by each Executive 

15 agency in fulfilling the duties of the Executive agen16 cy under subsection (a); 

17 (2) in consultation with the Attorney General or 

18 the Counsel to the President, when appropriate, as19 sist designated agency ethics officials in providing 

20 advice to current or former appointees regarding the 

21 application of the pledge; and 

22 (3) in consultation with the Attorney General 

23 and the Counsel to the President, adopt such rules 

24 or procedures as are necessary or appropriate— 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
168 

•HR 5048 IH

1 (A) to carry out the foregoing responsibil2 ities; 

3 (B) to authorize limited exceptions to the 

4 lobbyist gift ban under paragraph (1) of the 

5 pledge for circumstances that do not implicate 

6 the purposes of the ban; 

7 (C) to make clear that no individual shall 

8 have violated the lobbyist gift ban under para9 graph (1) of the pledge if the individual prop10 erly disposes of a gift as provided under section 

11 2635.206 of title 5, Code of Federal Regula12 tions; 

13 (D) to ensure that existing rules and pro14 cedures for Government employees engaged in 

15 negotiations for future employment with private 

16 businesses that are affected by the official ac17 tions of the employees do not affect the integ18 rity of the programs and operations of the Gov19 ernment; and 

20 (E) to ensure, in consultation with the Di21 rector of the Office of Personnel Management, 

22 that the requirement set forth in paragraph (6) 

23 of the pledge is honored by every employee of 

24 the executive branch; 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
169 

•HR 5048 IH

1 (4) in consultation with the Director of the Of2 fice of Management and Budget, submit a report to 

3 the President on whether full compliance is being 

4 achieved with existing Federal laws and regulations 

5 governing executive branch procurement lobbying 

6 disclosure, provided that such report shall include— 

7 (A) recommendations relating to steps the 

8 executive branch can take to expand, to the 

9 fullest extent practicable, disclosure of both ex10 ecutive branch procurement lobbying and of lob11 bying for presidential pardons; and 

12 (B) recommendations relating to both im13 mediate actions the executive branch can take 

14 and, if necessary, recommendations for legisla15 tion; and 

16 (5) provide an annual report on the administra17 tion of the pledge and this subtitle. 

18 (d) REVOLVING DOOR BAN REPORT.—The Director 

19 of the Office of Government Ethics shall, in consultation 

20 with the Attorney General, the Counsel to the President, 

21 and the Director of the Office of Personnel Management, 

22 report to the President on steps the executive branch can 

23 take to expand to the fullest extent practicable the revolv24 ing door ban under paragraph (5) of the pledge to all exec25 utive branch employees who are involved in the procureVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:58 Aug 18, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00169 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5048.IH H5048

tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
170 

•HR 5048 IH

1 ment process such that those employees may not for 2 

2 years after leaving Government service lobby any Govern3 ment official regarding a Government contract that was 

4 under the official responsibility of the employee during the 

5 last 2 years of Government service of the employee. This 

6 report shall include both immediate actions the executive 

7 branch can take and, if necessary, recommendations for 

8 legislation. 

9 (e) FILING AND RETENTION.—Each pledge signed by 

10 an appointee, and any waiver granted under section 913 

11 with respect thereto, shall be filed with the head of the 

12 agency of the relevant appointee for permanent retention 

13 in the official personnel folder of the appointee or any 

14 equivalent folder. 

15 SEC. 915. ENFORCEMENT. 

16 (a) IN GENERAL.—The contractual, fiduciary, and 

17 ethical commitments in the pledge provided for herein are 

18 solely enforceable by the United States pursuant to this 

19 section by any legally available means, including— 

20 (1) debarment proceedings within any affected 

21 Executive agency; or 

22 (2) judicial civil proceedings for declaratory, in23 junctive, or monetary relief. 

24 (b) BAR ON LOBBYING.— 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
171 

•HR 5048 IH

1 (1) IN GENERAL.—Any former appointee who is 

2 determined, after notice and hearing, by the duly 

3 designated authority within any Executive agency, to 

4 have violated the pledge signed by the appointee may 

5 be barred from lobbying any officer or employee of 

6 the Executive agency to which the appointee was ap7 pointed for not more than 5 years in addition to any 

8 other restriction on lobbying under the pledge signed 

9 by the appointee. 

10 (2) PROCEDURES.—The head of each Executive 

11 agency shall, in consultation with the Director of the 

12 Office of Government Ethics, establish procedures to 

13 implement this subsection, which shall include pro14 viding for fact-finding and investigation of possible 

15 violations of this subtitle and for referrals to the At16 torney General for consideration pursuant to sub17 section (c). 

18 (c) AUTHORITY OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL.— 

19 (1) IN GENERAL.—The Attorney General 

20 may— 

21 (A) upon receiving information regarding 

22 the possible breach of any commitment in a 

23 signed pledge by an appointee, request any ap24 propriate Federal investigative authority to conVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:58 Aug 18, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00171 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5048.IH H5048

tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
172 

•HR 5048 IH

1 duct an investigation of the alleged breach, as 

2 may be appropriate; and 

3 (B) upon determining that there is a rea4 sonable basis to believe that a breach of a com5 mitment in a signed pledge by an appointee has 

6 occurred, will occur, or will continue to occur if 

7 not enjoined, commence a civil action against 

8 the former employee in any United States Dis9 trict Court with jurisdiction to consider the 

10 matter. 

11 (2) CIVIL RELIEF.—In any civil action com12 menced under paragraph (1)(B), the Attorney Gen13 eral may request any and all relief authorized by 

14 Federal law, including— 

15 (A) such temporary restraining orders and 

16 preliminary and permanent injunctions as may 

17 be appropriate to restrain future, recurring, or 

18 continuing conduct by the former appointee in 

19 breach of the commitments in the pledge he or 

20 she signed; and 

21 (B) establishment of a constructive trust 

22 for the benefit of the United States, requiring 

23 an accounting and payment to the United 

24 States Treasury of all money and other things 

25 of value received by, or payable to, the former 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
173 

•HR 5048 IH

1 employee arising out of any breach or at2 tempted breach of the pledge signed by the 

3 former appointee. 

4 SEC. 916. GENERAL PROVISIONS. 

5 (a) SEVERABILITY.—If any provision of this subtitle 

6 or the application of such provision is held to be invalid, 

7 the remainder of this subtitle and other dissimilar applica8 tions of such provision shall not be affected. 

9 (b) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in this sub10 title shall be construed to impair or otherwise affect— 

11 (1) the authority granted by Federal law to any 

12 Executive agency, or the head thereof; or 

13 (2) the functions of the Director of the Office 

14 of Management and Budget relating to budgetary, 

15 administrative, or legislative proposals. 

16 (c) IMPLEMENTATION.—This subtitle shall be imple17 mented consistent with applicable law and subject to the 

18 availability of appropriations. 

19 (d) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—This subtitle is not 

20 intended to, and does not, create any right or benefit, sub21 stantive or procedural, enforceable at law or in equity by 

22 any party against the United States, its departments, 

23 agencies, or entities, its officers, employees, or agents, or 

24 any other person. 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
174 

•HR 5048 IH

1 TITLE X—PRESIDENTIAL AND 

2 VICE PRESIDENTIAL TAX 

3 TRANSPARENCY 

4 SEC. 1001. PRESIDENTIAL AND VICE PRESIDENTIAL TAX 

5 TRANSPARENCY. 

6 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section— 

7 (1) The term ‘‘covered candidate’’ means a can8 didate of a major party in a general election for the 

9 office of President or Vice President. 

10 (2) The term ‘‘income tax return’’ means, with 

11 respect to an individual, any return (as such term is 

12 defined in section 6103(b)(1) of the Internal Rev13 enue Code of 1986, except that such term shall not 

14 include declarations of estimated tax) of— 

15 (A) such individual, other than information 

16 returns issued to persons other than such indi17 vidual; or 

18 (B) of any corporation, partnership, or 

19 trust in which such individual holds, directly or 

20 indirectly, a significant interest as the sole or 

21 principal owner or the sole or principal bene22 ficial owner (as such terms are defined in regu23 lations prescribed by the Secretary). 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
175 

•HR 5048 IH

1 (3) The term ‘‘major party’’ has the meaning 

2 given the term in section 9002 of the Internal Rev3 enue Code of 1986. 

4 (4) The term ‘‘Secretary’’ means the Secretary 

5 of the Treasury or the delegate of the Secretary. 

6 (b) DISCLOSURE.— 

7 (1) IN GENERAL.— 

8 (A) CANDIDATES FOR PRESIDENT AND

9 VICE PRESIDENT.—Not later than the date that 

10 is 15 days after the date on which an individual 

11 becomes a covered candidate, the individual 

12 shall submit to the Federal Election Commis13 sion a copy of the individual’s income tax re14 turns for the 10 most recent taxable years for 

15 which a return has been filed with the Internal 

16 Revenue Service. 

17 (B) PRESIDENT AND VICE PRESIDENT.— 

18 With respect to an individual who is the Presi19 dent or Vice President, not later than the due 

20 date for the return of tax for each taxable year, 

21 such individual shall submit to the Federal 

22 Election Commission a copy of the individual’s 

23 income tax returns for the taxable year and for 

24 the 9 preceding taxable years. 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
176 

•HR 5048 IH

1 (C) TRANSITION RULE FOR SITTING PRESI2 DENTS AND VICE PRESIDENTS.—Not later than 

3 the date that is 30 days after the date of enact4 ment of this section, an individual who is the 

5 President or Vice President on such date of en6 actment shall submit to the Federal Election 

7 Commission a copy of the income tax returns 

8 for the 10 most recent taxable years for which 

9 a return has been filed with the Internal Rev10 enue Service. 

11 (2) FAILURE TO DISCLOSE.—If any require12 ment under paragraph (1) to submit an income tax 

13 return is not met, the chairman of the Federal Elec14 tion Commission shall submit to the Secretary a 

15 written request that the Secretary provide the Fed16 eral Election Commission with the income tax re17 turn. 

18 (3) PUBLICLY AVAILABLE.—The chairman of 

19 the Federal Election Commission shall make publicly 

20 available each income tax return submitted under 

21 paragraph (1) in the same manner as a return pro22 vided under section 6103(l)(23) of the Internal Rev23 enue Code of 1986 (as added by this section). 

24 (4) TREATMENT UNDER THE FEDERAL ELEC25 TION CAMPAIGN ACT OF 1971.—Section 304(a)(11) 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
177 

•HR 5048 IH

1 of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 

2 U.S.C. 30104(a)(11)) is amended by adding at the 

3 end the following: 

4 ‘‘(E) An income tax return filed under the 

5 Protecting Our Democracy Act shall be filed in 

6 electronic form accessible by computers and 

7 shall be treated as a report filed under and re8 quired by this Act for purposes of subpara9 graphs (B) and (C), except that if it would re10 quire considerable, extensive, and significant 

11 time for the Commission to make redactions to 

12 such a return, as required under section 

13 1001(b)(3) of the Protecting Our Democracy 

14 Act or subparagraph (B)(ii) of section 

15 6103(l)(23) of the Internal Revenue Code of 

16 1986, the Commission may make the return 

17 available for public inspection more than 48 

18 hours after receipt by the Commission, but in 

19 no event later than 30 days after receipt by the 

20 Commission.’’. 

21 (c) DISCLOSURE OF RETURNS OF PRESIDENTS AND

22 VICE PRESIDENTS AND CERTAIN CANDIDATES FOR

23 PRESIDENT AND VICE PRESIDENT.— 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
178 

•HR 5048 IH

1 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 6103(l) of the Inter2 nal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by adding at 

3 the end the following new paragraph: 

4 ‘‘(23) DISCLOSURE OF RETURN INFORMATION

5 OF PRESIDENTS AND VICE PRESIDENTS AND CER6 TAIN CANDIDATES FOR PRESIDENT AND VICE PRESI7 DENT.— 

8 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Upon written request 

9 by the chairman of the Federal Election Com10 mission under section 1001(b)(2) of the Pro11 tecting Our Democracy Act, not later than the 

12 date that is 15 days after the date of such re13 quest, the Secretary shall provide copies of any 

14 return which is so requested to officers and em15 ployees of the Federal Election Commission 

16 whose official duties include disclosure or redac17 tion of such return under this paragraph. 

18 ‘‘(B) DISCLOSURE TO THE PUBLIC.— 

19 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—The chairman of 

20 the Federal Election Commission shall 

21 make publicly available any return which is 

22 provided under subparagraph (A). 

23 ‘‘(ii) REDACTION OF CERTAIN INFOR24 MATION.—Before making publicly available 

25 under clause (i) any return, the chairman 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
179 

•HR 5048 IH

1 of the Federal Election Commission shall 

2 redact such information as the Federal 

3 Election Commission and the Secretary 

4 jointly determine is necessary for pro5 tecting against identity theft, such as so6 cial security numbers.’’. 

7 (2) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—Section 

8 6103(p)(4) of such Code is amended— 

9 (A) in the matter preceding subparagraph 

10 (A) by striking ‘‘or (22)’’ and inserting ‘‘(22), 

11 or (23)’’; and 

12 (B) in subparagraph (F)(ii) by striking ‘‘or 

13 (22)’’ and inserting ‘‘(22), or (23)’’. 

14 (3) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made 

15 by this subsection shall apply to disclosures made on 

16 or after the date of enactment of this Act. 

17 DIVISION C—MISCELLANEOUS 

18 TITLE XI—REPORTING FOREIGN 

19 INTERFERENCE IN ELECTIONS 

20 SEC. 1101. FEDERAL CAMPAIGN REPORTING OF FOREIGN 

21 CONTACTS. 

22 (a) INITIAL NOTICE.— 

23 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 304 of the Federal 

24 Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30104), 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
180 

•HR 5048 IH

1 as amended by section 309, is amended by adding 

2 at the end the following new subsection: 

3 ‘‘(i) DISCLOSURE OF REPORTABLE FOREIGN CON4 TACTS.— 

5 ‘‘(1) COMMITTEE OBLIGATION TO NOTIFY.— 

6 Not later than 1 week after a reportable foreign con7 tact, each political committee shall notify the Fed8 eral Bureau of Investigation and the Commission of 

9 the reportable foreign contact and provide a sum10 mary of the circumstances with respect to such re11 portable foreign contact. The Federal Bureau of In12 vestigation, not later than 1 week after receiving a 

13 notification from a political committee under this 

14 paragraph, shall submit to the political committee, 

15 the Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence of 

16 the House of Representatives, and the Select Com17 mittee on Intelligence of the Senate written or elec18 tronic confirmation of receipt of the notification. 

19 ‘‘(2) INDIVIDUAL OBLIGATION TO NOTIFY.— 

20 Not later than 3 days after a reportable foreign con21 tact— 

22 ‘‘(A) each candidate and each immediate 

23 family member of a candidate shall notify the 

24 treasurer or other designated official of the 

25 principal campaign committee of such candidate 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
181 

•HR 5048 IH

1 of the reportable foreign contact and provide a 

2 summary of the circumstances with respect to 

3 such reportable foreign contact; and 

4 ‘‘(B) each official, employee, or agent of a 

5 political committee shall notify the treasurer or 

6 other designated official of the committee of the 

7 reportable foreign contact and provide a sum8 mary of the circumstances with respect to such 

9 reportable foreign contact. 

10 ‘‘(3) REPORTABLE FOREIGN CONTACT.—In this 

11 subsection: 

12 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘reportable 

13 foreign contact’ means any direct or indirect 

14 contact or communication that— 

15 ‘‘(i) is between— 

16 ‘‘(I) a candidate, an immediate 

17 family member of the candidate, a po18 litical committee, or any official, em19 ployee, or agent of such committee; 

20 and 

21 ‘‘(II) an individual that the per22 son described in subclause (I) knows, 

23 has reason to know, or reasonably be24 lieves is a covered foreign national; 

25 and 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
182 

•HR 5048 IH

1 ‘‘(ii) the person described in clause 

2 (i)(I) knows, has reason to know, or rea3 sonably believes involves— 

4 ‘‘(I) an offer or other proposal 

5 for a contribution, donation, expendi6 ture, disbursement, or solicitation de7 scribed in section 319; or 

8 ‘‘(II) coordination or collabora9 tion with, an offer or provision of in10 formation or services to or from, or 

11 persistent and repeated contact with, 

12 a covered foreign national in connec13 tion with an election. 

14 ‘‘(B) EXCEPTIONS.— 

15 ‘‘(i) CONTACTS IN OFFICIAL CAPACITY

16 AS ELECTED OFFICIAL.—The term ‘report17 able foreign contact’ shall not include any 

18 contact or communication with a covered 

19 foreign national by an elected official or an 

20 employee of an elected official solely in an 

21 official capacity as such an official or em22 ployee. 

23 ‘‘(ii) CONTACTS FOR PURPOSES OF

24 ENABLING OBSERVATION OF ELECTIONS

25 BY INTERNATIONAL OBSERVERS.—The 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
183 

•HR 5048 IH

1 term ‘reportable foreign contact’ shall not 

2 include any contact or communication with 

3 a covered foreign national by any person 

4 which is made for purposes of enabling the 

5 observation of elections in the United 

6 States by a foreign national or the obser7 vation of elections outside of the United 

8 States by a candidate, political committee, 

9 or any official, employee, or agent of such 

10 committee. 

11 ‘‘(iii) EXCEPTIONS NOT APPLICABLE

12 IF CONTACTS OR COMMUNICATIONS IN13 VOLVE PROHIBITED DISBURSEMENTS.—A 

14 contact or communication by an elected of15 ficial or an employee of an elected official 

16 shall not be considered to be made solely 

17 in an official capacity for purposes of 

18 clause (i), and a contact or communication 

19 shall not be considered to be made for pur20 poses of enabling the observation of elec21 tions for purposes of clause (ii), if the con22 tact or communication involves a contribu23 tion, donation, expenditure, disbursement, 

24 or solicitation described in section 319. 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
184 

•HR 5048 IH

1 ‘‘(C) COVERED FOREIGN NATIONAL DE2 FINED.— 

3 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—In this paragraph, 

4 the term ‘covered foreign national’ 

5 means— 

6 ‘‘(I) a foreign principal (as de7 fined in section 1(b) of the Foreign 

8 Agents Registration Act of 1938 (22 

9 U.S.C. 611(b))) that is a government 

10 of a foreign country or a foreign polit11 ical party; 

12 ‘‘(II) any person who acts as an 

13 agent, representative, employee, or 

14 servant, or any person who acts in 

15 any other capacity at the order, re16 quest, or under the direction or con17 trol, of a foreign principal described in 

18 subclause (I) or of a person any of 

19 whose activities are directly or indi20 rectly supervised, directed, controlled, 

21 financed, or subsidized in whole or in 

22 major part by a foreign principal de23 scribed in subclause (I); or 

24 ‘‘(III) any person included in the 

25 list of specially designated nationals 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
185 

•HR 5048 IH

1 and blocked persons maintained by 

2 the Office of Foreign Assets Control 

3 of the Department of the Treasury 

4 pursuant to authorities relating to the 

5 imposition of sanctions relating to the 

6 conduct of a foreign principal de7 scribed in subclause (I). 

8 ‘‘(ii) CLARIFICATION REGARDING AP9 PLICATION TO CITIZENS OF THE UNITED

10 STATES.—In the case of a citizen of the 

11 United States, subclause (II) of clause (i) 

12 applies only to the extent that the person 

13 involved acts within the scope of that per14 son’s status as the agent of a foreign prin15 cipal described in subclause (I) of clause 

16 (i). 

17 ‘‘(4) IMMEDIATE FAMILY MEMBER.—In this 

18 subsection, the term ‘immediate family member’ 

19 means, with respect to a candidate, a parent, parent20 in-law, spouse, adult child, or sibling.’’. 

21 (2) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made 

22 by paragraph (1) shall apply with respect to report23 able foreign contacts which occur on or after the 

24 date of the enactment of this Act. 

25 (b) INFORMATION INCLUDED ON REPORT.— 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
186 

•HR 5048 IH

1 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 304(b) of such Act 

2 (52 U.S.C. 30104(b)) is amended— 

3 (A) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of para4 graph (7); 

5 (B) by striking the period at the end of 

6 paragraph (8) and inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

7 (C) by adding at the end the following new 

8 paragraph: 

9 ‘‘(9) for any reportable foreign contact (as de10 fined in subsection (i)(3))— 

11 ‘‘(A) the date, time, and location of the 

12 contact; 

13 ‘‘(B) the date and time of when a des14 ignated official of the committee was notified of 

15 the contact; 

16 ‘‘(C) the identity of individuals involved; 

17 and 

18 ‘‘(D) a description of the contact, including 

19 the nature of any contribution, donation, ex20 penditure, disbursement, or solicitation involved 

21 and the nature of any activity described in sub22 section (i)(3)(A)(ii)(II) involved.’’. 

23 (2) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made 

24 by paragraph (1) shall apply with respect to reports 

25 filed on or after the expiration of the 60-day period 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
187 

•HR 5048 IH

1 which begins on the date of the enactment of this 

2 Act. 

3 SEC. 1102. FEDERAL CAMPAIGN FOREIGN CONTACT RE4 PORTING COMPLIANCE SYSTEM. 

5 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 302 of the Federal Elec6 tion Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30102) is amended 

7 by adding at the end the following new subsection: 

8 ‘‘(j) REPORTABLE FOREIGN CONTACTS COMPLIANCE

9 POLICY.— 

10 ‘‘(1) REPORTING.—Each political committee 

11 shall establish a policy that requires all officials, em12 ployees, and agents of such committee to notify the 

13 treasurer or other appropriate designated official of 

14 the committee of any reportable foreign contact (as 

15 defined in section 304(i)) not later than 3 days after 

16 such contact was made. 

17 ‘‘(2) RETENTION AND PRESERVATION OF

18 RECORDS.—Each political committee shall establish 

19 a policy that provides for the retention and preserva20 tion of records and information related to reportable 

21 foreign contacts (as so defined) for a period of not 

22 less than 3 years. 

23 ‘‘(3) CERTIFICATION.— 

24 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Upon filing its state25 ment of organization under section 303(a), and 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
188 

•HR 5048 IH

1 with each report filed under section 304(a), the 

2 treasurer of each political committee (other 

3 than an authorized committee) shall certify 

4 that— 

5 ‘‘(i) the committee has in place poli6 cies that meet the requirements of para7 graphs (1) and (2); 

8 ‘‘(ii) the committee has designated an 

9 official to monitor compliance with such 

10 policies; and 

11 ‘‘(iii) not later than 1 week after the 

12 beginning of any formal or informal affili13 ation with the committee, all officials, em14 ployees, and agents of such committee 

15 will— 

16 ‘‘(I) receive notice of such poli17 cies; 

18 ‘‘(II) be informed of the prohibi19 tions under section 319; and 

20 ‘‘(III) sign a certification affirm21 ing their understanding of such poli22 cies and prohibitions. 

23 ‘‘(B) AUTHORIZED COMMITTEES.—With 

24 respect to an authorized committee, the canVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:58 Aug 18, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00188 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5048.IH H5048

tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
189 

•HR 5048 IH

1 didate shall make the certification required 

2 under subparagraph (A).’’. 

3 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.— 

4 (1) IN GENERAL.—The amendment made by 

5 subsection (a) shall apply with respect to political 

6 committees which file a statement of organization 

7 under section 303(a) of the Federal Election Cam8 paign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30103(a)) on or after 

9 the date of the enactment of this Act. 

10 (2) TRANSITION RULE FOR EXISTING COMMIT11 TEES.—Not later than 30 days after the date of the 

12 enactment of this Act, each political committee 

13 under the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 

14 shall file a certification with the Federal Election 

15 Commission that the committee is in compliance 

16 with the requirements of section 302(j) of such Act 

17 (as added by subsection (a)). 

18 SEC. 1103. CRIMINAL PENALTIES. 

19 Section 309(d)(1) of the Federal Election Campaign 

20 Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30109(d)(1)) is amended by add21 ing at the end the following new subparagraphs: 

22 ‘‘(E) Any person who knowingly and will23 fully commits a violation of subsection (i) or 

24 (b)(9) of section 304 or section 302(j) shall be 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
190 

•HR 5048 IH

1 fined not more than $500,000, imprisoned not 

2 more than 5 years, or both. 

3 ‘‘(F) Any person who knowingly and will4 fully conceals or destroys any materials relating 

5 to a reportable foreign contact (as defined in 

6 section 304(i)) shall be fined not more than 

7 $1,000,000, imprisoned not more than 5 years, 

8 or both.’’. 

9 SEC. 1104. REPORT TO CONGRESSIONAL INTELLIGENCE 

10 COMMITTEES. 

11 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year after the 

12 date of enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter, 

13 the Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation shall 

14 submit to the congressional intelligence committees a re15 port relating to notifications received by the Federal Bu16 reau of Investigation under section 304(i)(1) of the Fed17 eral Election Campaign Act of 1971 (as added by section 

18 1101(a) of this Act). 

19 (b) ELEMENTS.—Each report under subsection (a) 

20 shall include, at a minimum, the following with respect 

21 to notifications described in subsection (a): 

22 (1) The number of such notifications received 

23 from political committees during the year covered by 

24 the report. 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
191 

•HR 5048 IH

1 (2) A description of protocols and procedures 

2 developed by the Federal Bureau of Investigation re3 lating to receipt and maintenance of records relating 

4 to such notifications. 

5 (3) With respect to such notifications received 

6 during the year covered by the report, a description 

7 of any subsequent actions taken by the Director re8 sulting from the receipt of such notifications. 

9 (c) CONGRESSIONAL INTELLIGENCE COMMITTEES

10 DEFINED.—In this section, the term ‘‘congressional intel11 ligence committees’’ has the meaning given that term in 

12 section 3 of the National Security Act of 1947 (50 U.S.C. 

13 3003). 

14 SEC. 1105. RULE OF CONSTRUCTION. 

15 Nothing in this title or the amendments made by this 

16 title shall be construed— 

17 (1) to impede legitimate journalistic activities; 

18 or 

19 (2) to impose any additional limitation on the 

20 right to express political views or to participate in 

21 public discourse of any individual who— 

22 (A) resides in the United States; 

23 (B) is not a citizen of the United States or 

24 a national of the United States, as defined in 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
192 

•HR 5048 IH

1 section 101(a)(22) of the Immigration and Na2 tionality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101(a)(22)); and 

3 (C) is not lawfully admitted for permanent 

4 residence, as defined by section 101(a)(20) of 

5 the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 

6 1101(a)(20)). 

7 TITLE XII—ELIMINATING FOR8 EIGN INTERFERENCE IN 

9 ELECTIONS 

10 SEC. 1201. CLARIFICATION OF APPLICATION OF FOREIGN 

11 MONEY BAN. 

12 (a) CLARIFICATION OF TREATMENT OF PROVISION

13 OF CERTAIN INFORMATION AS CONTRIBUTION OR DONA14 TION OF A THING OF VALUE.—Section 319 of the Federal 

15 Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30121) is 

16 amended by adding at the end the following new sub17 section: 

18 ‘‘(c) CLARIFICATION OF TREATMENT OF PROVISION

19 OF CERTAIN INFORMATION AS CONTRIBUTION OR DONA20 TION OF A THING OF VALUE.—For purposes of this sec21 tion, a ‘contribution or donation of money or other thing 

22 of value’ includes the provision of opposition research, 

23 polling, or other non-public information relating to a can24 didate for election for a Federal, State, or local office for 

25 the purpose of influencing the election, regardless of 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
193 

•HR 5048 IH

1 whether such research, polling, or information has mone2 tary value, except that nothing in this subsection shall be 

3 construed to treat the mere provision of an opinion about 

4 a candidate as a thing of value for purposes of this sec5 tion.’’. 

6 (b) CLARIFICATION OF APPLICATION OF FOREIGN

7 MONEY BAN TO ALL CONTRIBUTIONS AND DONATIONS

8 OF THINGS OF VALUE AND TO ALL SOLICITATIONS OF

9 CONTRIBUTIONS AND DONATIONS OF THINGS OF

10 VALUE.—Section 319(a) of such Act (52 U.S.C. 

11 30121(a)) is amended— 

12 (1) in paragraph (1)(A), by striking ‘‘promise 

13 to make a contribution or donation’’ and inserting 

14 ‘‘promise to make such a contribution or donation’’; 

15 (2) in paragraph (1)(B), by striking ‘‘donation’’ 

16 and inserting ‘‘donation of money or other thing of 

17 value, or to make an express or implied promise to 

18 make such a contribution or donation,’’; and 

19 (3) by amending paragraph (2) to read as fol20 lows: 

21 ‘‘(2) a person to solicit, accept, or receive (di22 rectly or indirectly) a contribution or donation de23 scribed in subparagraph (A) or (B) of paragraph 

24 (1), or to solicit, accept, or receive (directly or indi25 rectly) an express or implied promise to make such 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
194 

•HR 5048 IH

1 a contribution or donation, from a foreign na2 tional.’’. 

3 (c) ENHANCED PENALTY FOR CERTAIN VIOLA4 TIONS.— 

5 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 309(d)(1) of such 

6 Act (52 U.S.C. 30109(d)(1)), as amended by section 

7 1103, is further amended by adding at the end the 

8 following new subparagraph: 

9 ‘‘(G)(i) Any person who knowingly and 

10 willfully commits a violation of section 319 

11 which involves a foreign national which is a 

12 government of a foreign country or a foreign 

13 political party, or which involves a thing of 

14 value consisting of the provision of opposition 

15 research, polling, or other non-public informa16 tion relating to a candidate for election for a 

17 Federal, State, or local office for the purpose of 

18 influencing the election, shall be fined under 

19 title 18, United States Code, or imprisoned for 

20 not more than 5 years, or both. 

21 ‘‘(ii) In clause (i), each of the terms ‘gov22 ernment of a foreign country’ and ‘foreign polit23 ical party’ has the meaning given such term in 

24 section 1 of the Foreign Agents Registration 

25 Act of 1938, as Amended (22 U.S.C. 611).’’. 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
195 

•HR 5048 IH

1 (2) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made 

2 by paragraph (1) shall apply with respect to viola3 tions committed on or after the date of the enact4 ment of this Act. 

5 SEC. 1202. REQUIRING ACKNOWLEDGMENT OF FOREIGN 

6 MONEY BAN BY POLITICAL COMMITTEES. 

7 (a) PROVISION OF INFORMATION BY FEDERAL ELEC8 TION COMMISSION.—Section 303 of the Federal Election 

9 Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30103) is amended by 

10 adding at the end the following new subsection: 

11 ‘‘(e) ACKNOWLEDGMENT OF FOREIGN MONEY

12 BAN.— 

13 ‘‘(1) NOTIFICATION BY COMMISSION.—Not later 

14 than 30 days after a political committee files its 

15 statement of organization under subsection (a), and 

16 biennially thereafter until the committee terminates, 

17 the Commission shall provide the committee with a 

18 written explanation of section 319. 

19 ‘‘(2) ACKNOWLEDGMENT BY COMMITTEE.— 

20 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 30 

21 days after receiving the written explanation of 

22 section 319 under paragraph (1), the committee 

23 shall transmit to the Commission a signed cer24 tification that the committee has received such 

25 written explanation and has provided a copy of 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
196 

•HR 5048 IH

1 the explanation to all members, employees, con2 tractors, and volunteers of the committee. 

3 ‘‘(B) PERSON RESPONSIBLE FOR SIGNA4 TURE.—The certification required under sub5 paragraph (A) shall be signed— 

6 ‘‘(i) in the case of an authorized com7 mittee of a candidate, by the candidate; or 

8 ‘‘(ii) in the case of any other political 

9 committee, by the treasurer of the com10 mittee.’’. 

11 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE; TRANSITION FOR EXISTING

12 COMMITTEES.— 

13 (1) IN GENERAL.—The amendment made by 

14 subsection (a) shall apply with respect to political 

15 committees which file statements of organization 

16 under section 303 of the Federal Election Campaign 

17 Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30103) on or after the date 

18 of the enactment of this Act. 

19 (2) TRANSITION FOR EXISTING COMMITTEES.— 

20 (A) NOTIFICATION BY FEDERAL ELECTION

21 COMMISSION.—Not later than 90 days after the 

22 date of the enactment of this Act, the Federal 

23 Election Commission shall provide each political 

24 committee under such Act with the written ex25 planation of section 319 of such Act, as reVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:58 Aug 18, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00196 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5048.IH H5048

tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
197 

•HR 5048 IH

1 quired under section 303(e)(1) of such Act (as 

2 added by subsection (a)). 

3 (B) ACKNOWLEDGMENT BY COMMITTEE.— 

4 Not later than 30 days after receiving the writ5 ten explanation under subparagraph (A), each 

6 political committee under such Act shall trans7 mit to the Federal Election Commission the 

8 signed certification, as required under section 

9 303(e)(2) of such Act (as added by subsection 

10 (a)). 

11 SEC. 1203. PROHIBITION ON CONTRIBUTIONS AND DONA12 TIONS BY FOREIGN NATIONALS IN CONNEC13 TION WITH BALLOT INITIATIVES AND 

14 REFERENDA. 

15 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 319(a)(1)(A) of the Fed16 eral Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 

17 30121(a)(1)(A)) is amended by striking ‘‘State, or local 

18 election’’ and inserting the following: ‘‘State, or local elec19 tion, including a State or local ballot initiative or ref20 erendum’’. 

21 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by 

22 this section shall apply with respect to elections held in 

23 2024 or any succeeding year. 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
198 

•HR 5048 IH

1 TITLE XIII—HONEST ADS 

2 SEC. 1301. SHORT TITLE. 

3 This title may be cited as the ‘‘Honest Ads Act’’. 

4 SEC. 1302. PURPOSE. 

5 The purpose of this title is to enhance the integrity 

6 of American democracy and national security by improving 

7 disclosure requirements for online political advertisements 

8 in order to uphold the Supreme Court’s well-established 

9 standard that the electorate bears the right to be fully in10 formed. 

11 SEC. 1303. SENSE OF CONGRESS. 

12 It is the sense of Congress that— 

13 (1) the dramatic increase in digital political ad14 vertisements, and the growing centrality of online 

15 platforms in the lives of Americans, requires the 

16 Congress and the Federal Election Commission to 

17 take meaningful action to ensure that laws and reg18 ulations provide the accountability and transparency 

19 that is fundamental to our democracy; 

20 (2) free and fair elections require both trans21 parency and accountability which give the public a 

22 right to know the true sources of funding for polit23 ical advertisements, be they foreign or domestic, in 

24 order to make informed political choices and hold 

25 elected officials accountable; and 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
199 

•HR 5048 IH

1 (3) transparency of funding for political adver2 tisements is essential to enforce other campaign fi3 nance laws, including the prohibition on campaign 

4 spending by foreign nationals. 

5 SEC. 1304. EXPANSION OF DEFINITION OF PUBLIC COMMU6 NICATION. 

7 (a) IN GENERAL.—Paragraph (22) of section 301 of 

8 the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 

9 30101(22)) is amended by striking ‘‘or satellite commu10 nication’’ and inserting ‘‘satellite, paid internet, or paid 

11 digital communication’’. 

12 (b) TREATMENT OF CONTRIBUTIONS AND EXPENDI13 TURES.—Section 301 of such Act (52 U.S.C. 30101) is 

14 amended— 

15 (1) in paragraph (8)(B)(v), by striking ‘‘on 

16 broadcasting stations, or in newspapers, magazines, 

17 or similar types of general public political adver18 tising’’ and inserting ‘‘in any public communica19 tion’’; and 

20 (2) in paragraph (9)(B)— 

21 (A) by amending clause (i) to read as fol22 lows: 

23 ‘‘(i) any news story, commentary, or 

24 editorial distributed through the facilities 

25 of any broadcasting station or any print, 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
200 

•HR 5048 IH

1 online, or digital newspaper, magazine, 

2 publication, periodical, blog, or platform, 

3 unless such broadcasting, print, online, or 

4 digital facilities are owned or controlled by 

5 any political party, political committee, or 

6 candidate;’’; and 

7 (B) in clause (iv), by striking ‘‘on broad8 casting stations, or in newspapers, magazines, 

9 or similar types of general public political ad10 vertising’’ and inserting ‘‘in any public commu11 nication’’. 

12 (c) DISCLOSURE AND DISCLAIMER STATEMENTS.— 

13 Subsection (a) of section 318 of such Act (52 U.S.C. 

14 30120) is amended— 

15 (1) by striking ‘‘financing any communication 

16 through any broadcasting station, newspaper, maga17 zine, outdoor advertising facility, mailing, or any 

18 other type of general public political advertising’’ 

19 and inserting ‘‘financing any public communication’’; 

20 and 

21 (2) by striking ‘‘solicits any contribution 

22 through any broadcasting station, newspaper, maga23 zine, outdoor advertising facility, mailing, or any 

24 other type of general public political advertising’’ 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
201 

•HR 5048 IH

1 and inserting ‘‘solicits any contribution through any 

2 public communication’’. 

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

4 this section shall take effect on the date of the enactment 

5 of this Act and shall take effect without regard to whether 

6 or not the Federal Election Commission has promulgated 

7 the final regulations necessary to carry out this part and 

8 the amendments made by this part by the deadline set 

9 forth in subsection (e). 

10 (e) REGULATION.—Not later than 1 year after the 

11 date of the enactment of this Act, the Federal Election 

12 Commission shall promulgate regulations on what con13 stitutes a paid internet or paid digital communication for 

14 purposes of paragraph (22) of section 301 of the Federal 

15 Election Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30101(22)), 

16 as amended by subsection (a), except that such regulation 

17 shall not define a paid internet or paid digital communica18 tion to include communications for which the only pay19 ment consists of internal resources, such as employee com20 pensation, of the entity paying for the communication. 

21 SEC. 1305. EXPANSION OF DEFINITION OF ELECTION22 EERING COMMUNICATION. 

23 (a) EXPANSION TO ONLINE COMMUNICATIONS.— 

24 (1) APPLICATION TO QUALIFIED INTERNET AND

25 DIGITAL COMMUNICATIONS.— 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
202 

•HR 5048 IH

1 (A) IN GENERAL.—Subparagraph (A) of 

2 section 304(f)(3) of the Federal Election Cam3 paign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30104(f)(3)(A)) 

4 is amended by striking ‘‘or satellite communica5 tion’’ each place it appears in clauses (i) and 

6 (ii) and inserting ‘‘satellite, or qualified internet 

7 or digital communication’’. 

8 (B) QUALIFIED INTERNET OR DIGITAL

9 COMMUNICATION.—Paragraph (3) of section 

10 304(f) of such Act (52 U.S.C. 30104(f)) is 

11 amended by adding at the end the following 

12 new subparagraph: 

13 ‘‘(D) QUALIFIED INTERNET OR DIGITAL

14 COMMUNICATION.—The term ‘qualified internet 

15 or digital communication’ means any commu16 nication which is placed or promoted for a fee 

17 on an online platform (as defined in subsection 

18 (j)(3)).’’. 

19 (2) NONAPPLICATION OF RELEVANT ELEC20 TORATE TO ONLINE COMMUNICATIONS.—Section 

21 304(f)(3)(A)(i)(III) of such Act (52 U.S.C. 

22 30104(f)(3)(A)(i)(III)) is amended by inserting ‘‘any 

23 broadcast, cable, or satellite’’ before ‘‘communica24 tion’’. 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
203 

•HR 5048 IH

1 (3) NEWS EXEMPTION.—Section 

2 304(f)(3)(B)(i) of such Act (52 U.S.C. 

3 30104(f)(3)(B)(i)) is amended to read as follows: 

4 ‘‘(i) a communication appearing in a 

5 news story, commentary, or editorial dis6 tributed through the facilities of any 

7 broadcasting station or any online or dig8 ital newspaper, magazine, publication, peri9 odical, blog, or platform, unless such 

10 broadcasting, online, or digital facilities are 

11 owned or controlled by any political party, 

12 political committee, or candidate;’’. 

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

14 this section shall apply with respect to communications 

15 made on or after January 1, 2024, and shall take effect 

16 without regard to whether or not the Federal Election 

17 Commission has promulgated regulations to carry out 

18 such amendments. 

19 SEC. 1306. APPLICATION OF DISCLAIMER STATEMENTS TO 

20 ONLINE COMMUNICATIONS. 

21 (a) CLEAR AND CONSPICUOUS MANNER REQUIRE22 MENT.—Subsection (a) of section 318 of the Federal Elec23 tion Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30120(a)) is 

24 amended— 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
204 

•HR 5048 IH

1 (1) by striking ‘‘shall clearly state’’ each place 

2 it appears in paragraphs (1), (2), and (3) and in3 serting ‘‘shall state in a clear and conspicuous man4 ner’’; and 

5 (2) by adding at the end the following flush 

6 sentence: ‘‘For purposes of this section, a commu7 nication does not make a statement in a clear and 

8 conspicuous manner if it is difficult to read or hear 

9 or if the placement is easily overlooked.’’. 

10 (b) SPECIAL RULES FOR QUALIFIED INTERNET OR

11 DIGITAL COMMUNICATIONS.— 

12 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 318 of such Act (52 

13 U.S.C. 30120) is amended by adding at the end the 

14 following new subsection: 

15 ‘‘(e) SPECIAL RULES FOR QUALIFIED INTERNET OR

16 DIGITAL COMMUNICATIONS.— 

17 ‘‘(1) SPECIAL RULES WITH RESPECT TO STATE18 MENTS.—In the case of any qualified internet or 

19 digital communication (as defined in section 

20 304(f)(3)(D)) which is disseminated through a me21 dium in which the provision of all of the information 

22 specified in this section is not possible, the commu23 nication shall, in a clear and conspicuous manner— 

24 ‘‘(A) state the name of the person who 

25 paid for the communication; and 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
205 

•HR 5048 IH

1 ‘‘(B) provide a means for the recipient of 

2 the communication to obtain the remainder of 

3 the information required under this section with 

4 minimal effort and without receiving or viewing 

5 any additional material other than such re6 quired information. 

7 ‘‘(2) SAFE HARBOR FOR DETERMINING CLEAR

8 AND CONSPICUOUS MANNER.—A statement in quali9 fied internet or digital communication (as defined in 

10 section 304(f)(3)(D)) shall be considered to be made 

11 in a clear and conspicuous manner as provided in 

12 subsection (a) if the communication meets the fol13 lowing requirements: 

14 ‘‘(A) TEXT OR GRAPHIC COMMUNICA15 TIONS.—In the case of a text or graphic com16 munication, the statement— 

17 ‘‘(i) appears in letters at least as large 

18 as the majority of the text in the commu19 nication; and 

20 ‘‘(ii) meets the requirements of para21 graphs (2) and (3) of subsection (c). 

22 ‘‘(B) AUDIO COMMUNICATIONS.—In the 

23 case of an audio communication, the statement 

24 is spoken in a clearly audible and intelligible 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
206 

•HR 5048 IH

1 manner at the beginning or end of the commu2 nication and lasts at least 3 seconds. 

3 ‘‘(C) VIDEO COMMUNICATIONS.—In the 

4 case of a video communication which also in5 cludes audio, the statement— 

6 ‘‘(i) is included at either the beginning 

7 or the end of the communication; and 

8 ‘‘(ii) is made both in— 

9 ‘‘(I) a written format that meets 

10 the requirements of subparagraph (A) 

11 and appears for at least 4 seconds; 

12 and 

13 ‘‘(II) an audible format that 

14 meets the requirements of subpara15 graph (B). 

16 ‘‘(D) OTHER COMMUNICATIONS.—In the 

17 case of any other type of communication, the 

18 statement is at least as clear and conspicuous 

19 as the statement specified in subparagraph (A), 

20 (B), or (C).’’. 

21 (2) NONAPPLICATION OF CERTAIN EXCEP22 TIONS.—The exceptions provided in section 

23 110.11(f)(1)(i) and (ii) of title 11, Code of Federal 

24 Regulations, or any successor to such rules, shall 

25 have no application to qualified internet or digital 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
207 

•HR 5048 IH

1 communications (as defined in section 304(f)(3)(D) 

2 of the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971). 

3 (c) MODIFICATION OF ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS

4 FOR CERTAIN COMMUNICATIONS.—Section 318(d) of such 

5 Act (52 U.S.C. 30120(d)) is amended— 

6 (1) in paragraph (1)(A)— 

7 (A) by striking ‘‘which is transmitted 

8 through radio’’ and inserting ‘‘which is in an 

9 audio format’’; and 

10 (B) by striking ‘‘BY RADIO’’ in the heading 

11 and inserting ‘‘AUDIO FORMAT’’; 

12 (2) in paragraph (1)(B)— 

13 (A) by striking ‘‘which is transmitted 

14 through television’’ and inserting ‘‘which is in 

15 video format’’; and 

16 (B) by striking ‘‘BY TELEVISION’’ in the 

17 heading and inserting ‘‘VIDEO FORMAT’’; and 

18 (3) in paragraph (2)— 

19 (A) by striking ‘‘transmitted through radio 

20 or television’’ and inserting ‘‘made in audio or 

21 video format’’; and 

22 (B) by striking ‘‘through television’’ in the 

23 second sentence and inserting ‘‘in video for24 mat’’. 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
208 

•HR 5048 IH

1 (d) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by 

2 subsection (a) shall take effect on the date of the enact3 ment of this Act and shall take effect without regard to 

4 whether or not the Federal Election Commission has pro5 mulgated regulations to carry out such amendments. 

6 SEC. 1307. POLITICAL RECORD REQUIREMENTS FOR ON7 LINE PLATFORMS. 

8 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 304 of the Federal Elec9 tion Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30104), as amend10 ed by sections 309 and 1101, is amended by adding at 

11 the end the following new subsection: 

12 ‘‘(j) DISCLOSURE OF CERTAIN ONLINE ADVERTISE13 MENTS.— 

14 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.— 

15 ‘‘(A) REQUIREMENTS FOR ONLINE PLAT16 FORMS.— 

17 ‘‘(i) IN GENERAL.—An online plat18 form shall maintain, and make available 

19 for online public inspection in machine 

20 readable format, a complete record of any 

21 qualified political advertisement which is 

22 purchased by a person whose aggregate 

23 purchases of qualified political advertise24 ments on such online platform during the 

25 calendar year exceeds $500. 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
209 

•HR 5048 IH

1 ‘‘(ii) REQUIREMENT RELATING TO PO2 LITICAL ADS SOLD BY THIRD-PARTY AD3 VERTISING VENDORS.—An online platform 

4 that displays a qualified political advertise5 ment sold by a third-party advertising ven6 dor shall include on its own platform— 

7 ‘‘(I) an easily accessible and 

8 identifiable link to the records main9 tained by the third-party advertising 

10 vendor under clause (i) regarding 

11 such qualified political advertisement; 

12 or 

13 ‘‘(II) in any case in which the 

14 third-party advertising vendor does 

15 not make such records available, a 

16 statement that no records from the 

17 third-party advertising vendors 

18 records are available. 

19 ‘‘(B) REQUIREMENTS FOR ADVER20 TISERS.—Any person who purchases a qualified 

21 political advertisement on an online platform 

22 shall provide the online platform with such in23 formation as is necessary for the online plat24 form to comply with the requirements of sub25 paragraph (A). 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
210 

•HR 5048 IH

1 ‘‘(2) CONTENTS OF RECORD.—A record main2 tained under paragraph (1)(A) shall contain— 

3 ‘‘(A) a digital copy of the qualified political 

4 advertisement; 

5 ‘‘(B) a description of the audience that re6 ceived the advertisement, the number of views 

7 generated from the advertisement, and the date 

8 and time that the advertisement is first dis9 played and last displayed; and 

10 ‘‘(C) information regarding— 

11 ‘‘(i) the total cost of the advertise12 ment (which may be rounded to the near13 est $100); 

14 ‘‘(ii) the name of the candidate to 

15 which the advertisement refers and the of16 fice to which the candidate is seeking elec17 tion, the election to which the advertise18 ment refers, or the national legislative 

19 issue to which the advertisement refers (as 

20 applicable); 

21 ‘‘(iii) in the case of a request made 

22 by, or on behalf of, a candidate, the name 

23 of the candidate, the authorized committee 

24 of the candidate, and the treasurer of such 

25 committee; and 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
211 

•HR 5048 IH

1 ‘‘(iv) in the case of any request not 

2 described in clause (iii), the name of the 

3 person purchasing the advertisement, the 

4 name and address of a contact person for 

5 such person, and a list of the chief execu6 tive officers or members of the executive 

7 committee or of the board of directors of 

8 such person. 

9 ‘‘(3) ONLINE PLATFORM.— 

10 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—For purposes of this 

11 subsection, subject to subparagraph (B), the 

12 term ‘online platform’ means any public-facing 

13 website, web application, or digital application 

14 (including a social network, ad network, or 

15 search engine) which— 

16 ‘‘(i)(I) sells qualified political adver17 tisements; and 

18 ‘‘(II) has 50,000,000 or more unique 

19 monthly United States visitors or users for 

20 a majority of months during the preceding 

21 12 months; or 

22 ‘‘(ii) is a third-party advertising ven23 dor that has 50,000,000 or more unique 

24 monthly United States visitors in the ag25 gregate on any advertisement space that it 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
212 

•HR 5048 IH

1 has sold or bought for a majority of 

2 months during the preceding 12 months, 

3 as measured by an independent digital rat4 ings service accredited by the Media Rat5 ings Council (or its successor). 

6 ‘‘(B) EXEMPTION.—Such term shall not 

7 include any online platform that is a distribu8 tion facility of any broadcasting station or 

9 newspaper, magazine, blog, publication, or peri10 odical. 

11 ‘‘(C) THIRD-PARTY ADVERTISING VENDOR

12 DEFINED.—For purposes of this subsection, the 

13 term ‘third-party advertising vendor’ includes 

14 any third-party advertising vendor network, ad15 vertising agency, advertiser, or third-party ad16 vertisement serving company that buys and 

17 sells advertisement space on behalf of unaffili18 ated third-party websites, search engines, dig19 ital applications, or social media sites. 

20 ‘‘(4) QUALIFIED POLITICAL ADVERTISEMENT.— 

21 For purposes of this subsection, the term ‘qualified 

22 political advertisement’ means any advertisement 

23 (including search engine marketing, display adver24 tisements, video advertisements, native advertise25 ments, and sponsorships) that— 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
213 

•HR 5048 IH

1 ‘‘(A) is made by or on behalf of a can2 didate; or 

3 ‘‘(B) communicates a message relating to 

4 any political matter of national importance, in5 cluding— 

6 ‘‘(i) a candidate; 

7 ‘‘(ii) any election to Federal office; or 

8 ‘‘(iii) a national legislative issue of 

9 public importance. 

10 ‘‘(5) TIME TO MAINTAIN FILE.—The informa11 tion required under this subsection shall be made 

12 available as soon as possible and shall be retained by 

13 the online platform for a period of not less than 4 

14 years. 

15 ‘‘(6) SPECIAL RULE.—For purposes of this sub16 section, multiple versions of an advertisement that 

17 contain no material differences (such as versions 

18 that differ only because they contain a recipient’s 

19 name, or differ only in size, color, font, or layout) 

20 may be treated as a single qualified political adver21 tisement. 

22 ‘‘(7) PENALTIES.—For penalties for failure by 

23 online platforms, and persons requesting to purchase 

24 a qualified political advertisement on online platVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:58 Aug 18, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00213 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5048.IH H5048

tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
214 

•HR 5048 IH

1 forms, to comply with the requirements of this sub2 section, see section 309.’’. 

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

4 this section shall take effect on the date of the enactment 

5 of this Act and shall take effect without regard to whether 

6 or not the Federal Election Commission has promulgated 

7 the final regulations necessary to carry out this part and 

8 the amendments made by this part by the deadline set 

9 forth in subsection (c). 

10 (c) RULEMAKING.—Not later than 120 days after the 

11 date of the enactment of this Act, the Federal Election 

12 Commission shall establish rules— 

13 (1) for determining whether an advertisement 

14 communicates a national legislative issue for pur15 poses of section 304(j) of the Federal Election Cam16 paign Act of 1971 (as added by subsection (a)); 

17 (2) requiring common data formats for the 

18 record required to be maintained under such section 

19 304(j) so that all online platforms submit and main20 tain data online in a common, machine-readable and 

21 publicly accessible format; and 

22 (3) establishing search interface requirements 

23 relating to such record, including searches by can24 didate name, issue, purchaser, and date. 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
215 

•HR 5048 IH

1 (d) REPORTING.—Not later than 2 years after the 

2 date of the enactment of this Act, and biannually there3 after, the Chairman of the Federal Election Commission 

4 shall submit a report to Congress on— 

5 (1) matters relating to compliance with and the 

6 enforcement of the requirements of section 304(j) of 

7 the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971, as 

8 added by subsection (a); 

9 (2) recommendations for any modifications to 

10 such section to assist in carrying out its purposes; 

11 and 

12 (3) identifying ways to bring transparency and 

13 accountability to political advertisements distributed 

14 online for free. 

15 SEC. 1308. PREVENTING CONTRIBUTIONS, EXPENDITURES, 

16 INDEPENDENT EXPENDITURES, AND DIS17 BURSEMENTS FOR ELECTIONEERING COM18 MUNICATIONS BY FOREIGN NATIONALS IN 

19 THE FORM OF ONLINE ADVERTISING. 

20 Section 319 of the Federal Election Campaign Act 

21 of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30121), as amended by section 1201, 

22 is amended by redesignating subsections (b) and (c) as 

23 subsections (c) and (d), respectively, and by inserting after 

24 subsection (a) the following new subsection: 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
216 

•HR 5048 IH

1 ‘‘(b) RESPONSIBILITIES OF BROADCAST STATIONS, 

2 PROVIDERS OF CABLE AND SATELLITE TELEVISION, AND

3 ONLINE PLATFORMS.— 

4 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Each television or radio 

5 broadcast station, provider of cable or satellite tele6 vision, or online platform (as defined in section 

7 304(j)(3)) shall make reasonable efforts to ensure 

8 that communications described in section 318(a) and 

9 made available by such station, provider, or platform 

10 are not purchased by a foreign national, directly or 

11 indirectly. 

12 ‘‘(2) REGULATIONS.—Not later than 1 year 

13 after the date of the enactment of this subsection, 

14 the Commission shall promulgate regulations on 

15 what constitutes reasonable efforts under paragraph 

16 (1).’’. 

17 SEC. 1309. REQUIRING ONLINE PLATFORMS TO DISPLAY 

18 NOTICES IDENTIFYING SPONSORS OF POLIT19 ICAL ADVERTISEMENTS AND TO ENSURE NO20 TICES CONTINUE TO BE PRESENT WHEN AD21 VERTISEMENTS ARE SHARED. 

22 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 304 of the Federal Elec23 tion Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30104), as amend24 ed by sections 309, 1101, and 1307(a), is amended by 

25 adding at the end the following new subsection: 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
217 

•HR 5048 IH

1 ‘‘(k) ENSURING DISPLAY AND SHARING OF SPONSOR

2 IDENTIFICATION IN ONLINE POLITICAL ADVERTISE3 MENTS.— 

4 ‘‘(1) REQUIREMENT.—Any online platform that 

5 displays a qualified political advertisement (regard6 less of whether such qualified political advertisement 

7 was purchased directly from the online platform) 

8 shall— 

9 ‘‘(A) display with the advertisement a visi10 ble notice identifying the sponsor of the adver11 tisement (or, if it is not practical for the plat12 form to display such a notice, a notice that the 

13 advertisement is sponsored by a person other 

14 than the platform); and 

15 ‘‘(B) ensure that the notice will continue to 

16 be displayed if a viewer of the advertisement 

17 shares the advertisement with others on that 

18 platform. 

19 ‘‘(2) SAFE HARBOR.—An online platform shall 

20 not be treated as having failed to comply with the 

21 requirements of paragraph (1)(A) for the 

22 misidentification of a person as the sponsor of the 

23 advertisement if— 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
218 

•HR 5048 IH

1 ‘‘(A) the person placing the online adver2 tisement designated the person displayed in the 

3 advertisement as the sponsor; and 

4 ‘‘(B) the online platform relied on such 

5 designation in good faith. 

6 ‘‘(3) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection— 

7 ‘‘(A) the term ‘online platform’ has the 

8 meaning given such term in subsection (j)(3); 

9 ‘‘(B) the term ‘‘qualified political adver10 tisement’ has the meaning given such term in 

11 subsection (j)(4); and 

12 ‘‘(C) the term ‘sponsor’ means the person 

13 purchasing the advertisement.’’. 

14 (b) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by 

15 subsection (a) shall apply with respect to advertisements 

16 displayed on or after the 120-day period which begins on 

17 the date of the enactment of this Act and shall take effect 

18 without regard to whether or not the Federal Election 

19 Commission has promulgated regulations to carry out 

20 such amendments. 

21 TITLE XIV—PREVENTING A 

22 PATRONAGE SYSTEM 

23 SEC. 1401. SHORT TITLE. 

24 This title may be cited as the ‘‘Saving the Civil Serv25 ice Act’’. 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
219 

•HR 5048 IH

1 SEC. 1402. LIMITATIONS ON EXCEPTING POSITIONS FROM 

2 COMPETITIVE SERVICE AND TRANSFERRING 

3 POSITIONS. 

4 (a) IN GENERAL.—A position in the competitive serv5 ice may not be excepted from the competitive service un6 less such position is placed— 

7 (1) in any of the schedules A through E as de8 scribed in section 6.2 of title 5, Code of Federal 

9 Regulations, as in effect on September 30, 2020; 

10 and 

11 (2) under the terms and conditions under part 

12 6 of such title as in effect on such date. 

13 (b) TRANSFERS.— 

14 (1) WITHIN EXCEPTED SERVICE.—A position in 

15 the excepted service may not be transferred to any 

16 schedule other than a schedule described in sub17 section (a)(1). 

18 (2) OPM CONSENT REQUIRED.—An agency 

19 may not transfer any occupied position from the 

20 competitive service or excepted service into schedule 

21 C of subpart C of part 213 of title 5, Code of Fed22 eral Regulations, without the prior consent of the 

23 Director. 

24 (3) LIMIT DURING PRESIDENTIAL TERM.—Dur25 ing any 4-year presidential term, an agency may not 

26 transfer from the competitive service into the exVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:58 Aug 18, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00219 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5048.IH H5048

tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
220 

•HR 5048 IH

1 cepted service a total number of employees that is 

2 more than 1 percent of the total number of employ3 ees at such agency as of the first day of such term, 

4 or 5 employees, whichever is greater. 

5 (4) EMPLOYEE CONSENT REQUIRED.—Notwith6 standing any other provision of this section— 

7 (A) an employee who occupies a position in 

8 the excepted service may not be transferred to 

9 an excepted service schedule other than the 

10 schedule in which such position is located with11 out the prior written consent of the employee; 

12 and 

13 (B) an employee who occupies a position in 

14 the competitive service may not be transferred 

15 to the excepted service without the employee’s 

16 prior written consent. 

17 (c) OTHER MATTERS.— 

18 (1) APPLICATION.—Notwithstanding section 

19 7425(b) of title 38, United States Code, this section 

20 shall apply to positions under chapters 73 and 74 of 

21 such title. 

22 (2) REGULATIONS.—The Director shall issue 

23 regulations to implement this section. 

24 (d) DEFINITIONS.—In this section— 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
221 

•HR 5048 IH

1 (1) the term ‘‘agency’’ means any department, 

2 agency, or instrumentality of the Federal Govern3 ment; 

4 (2) the term ‘‘competitive service’’ has the 

5 meaning given that term in section 2102 of title 5, 

6 United States Code; 

7 (3) the term ‘‘Director’’ means the Director of 

8 the Office of Personnel Management; and 

9 (4) the term ‘‘excepted service’’ has the mean10 ing given that term in section 2103 of title 5, United 

11 States Code. 

12 TITLE XV—USE OF FEDERAL 

13 PROPERTY; VISITOR RECORDS 

14 SEC. 1501. PROHIBITION ON USE OF FEDERAL PROPERTY 

15 FOR POLITICAL CONVENTIONS. 

16 (a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 29 of title 18, United 

17 States Code, is amended by inserting after section 611 the 

18 following: 

19 ‘‘§ 612. Prohibition on use of Federal property for 

20 certain political activities 

21 ‘‘(a) A convention of a national political party held 

22 to nominate a candidate for the office of President or Vice 

23 President may not be held on or in any Federal property. 

24 ‘‘(b) Any candidate or the authorized committee of 

25 the candidate under the Federal Election Campaign Act 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
222 

•HR 5048 IH

1 of 1971 which was responsible for a convention in violation 

2 of subsection (a) shall be subject to an assessment of a 

3 civil penalty equal to the fair market value of the cost of 

4 the convention or $50,000, whichever is greater, or impris5 oned not more than five years, or both. 

6 ‘‘(c) In this section, the term ‘Federal property’ 

7 means any building, land, or other real property owned, 

8 leased, or occupied by any department, agency, or instru9 mentality of the United States, including the White House 

10 grounds and the White House (including the Old Execu11 tive Office Building, the West Wing, the East Wing, the 

12 Rose Garden, and the Executive Residence, but not includ13 ing the second floor of the Executive Residence).’’. 

14 (b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 

15 for such chapter is amended by inserting after the item 

16 relating to section 611 the following: 

‘‘612. Prohibition on use of Federal property for certain political activities.’’. 

17 (c) APPLICATION.— 

18 (1) IN GENERAL.—This Act and the amend19 ments made by this Act shall apply to any conven20 tion described in section 612(a) of title 18, United 

21 States Code, as added by subsection (a), occurring 

22 on or after the date of enactment of this Act. 

23 (2) TRAVEL.—Nothing in this Act or the 

24 amendments made by this Act shall be construed to 

25 limit or otherwise prevent the President or Vice 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
223 

•HR 5048 IH

1 President from using vehicles (including aircraft) 

2 owned or leased by the Government for travel to or 

3 from any such convention. 

4 SEC. 1502. IMPROVING ACCESS TO INFLUENTIAL VISITOR 

5 ACCESS RECORDS. 

6 (a) DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 

7 (1) COVERED LOCATION.—The term ‘‘covered 

8 location’’ means— 

9 (A) the White House; 

10 (B) the residence of the Vice President; 

11 and 

12 (C) any other location at which the Presi13 dent or the Vice President regularly conducts 

14 official business. 

15 (2) COVERED RECORDS.—The term ‘‘covered 

16 records’’ means information relating to a visit at a 

17 covered location, which shall include— 

18 (A) the name of each visitor at the covered 

19 location; 

20 (B) the name of each individual with whom 

21 each visitor described in subparagraph (A) met 

22 at the covered location; and 

23 (C) the purpose of the visit. 

24 (b) REQUIREMENT.—Except as provided in sub25 section (c), not later than 90 days after the date of enactVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:58 Aug 18, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00223 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H5048.IH H5048

tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
224 

•HR 5048 IH

1 ment of this Act, the President shall establish and update, 

2 every 90 days thereafter, a publicly available database that 

3 contains covered records for the preceding 90-day period, 

4 on a publicly available website in an easily searchable and 

5 downloadable format. 

6 (c) EXCEPTIONS.— 

7 (1) IN GENERAL.—The President shall not in8 clude in the database established under subsection 

9 (b) any covered record— 

10 (A) the posting of which would implicate 

11 personal privacy or law enforcement concerns or 

12 threaten national security; 

13 (B) relating to a purely personal guest at 

14 a covered location; or 

15 (C) that reveals the social security number, 

16 taxpayer identification number, birth date, 

17 home address, or personal phone number of an 

18 individual, the name of an individual who is less 

19 than 18 years old, or a financial account num20 ber. 

21 (2) SENSITIVE MEETINGS.—With respect to a 

22 particularly sensitive meeting at a covered location, 

23 the President shall— 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS
225 

•HR 5048 IH

1 (A) include the number of visitors at the 

2 covered location in the database established 

3 under subsection (b); 

4 (B) post the applicable covered records in 

5 the database established under subsection (b) 

6 when the President determines that release of 

7 the covered records is no longer sensitive; and 

8 (C) post any reasonably segregable portion 

9 that is not covered by an exception described in 

10 subsection (c) of any such excepted record on 

11 the website described under subsection (b). 

12 DIVISION D—SEVERABILITY 

13 TITLE XVI—SEVERABILITY 

14 SEC. 1601. SEVERABILITY. 

15 If any provision of this Act or any amendment made 

16 by this Act, or the application of a provision of this Act 

17 or an amendment made by this Act to any person or cir18 cumstance, is held to be unconstitutional, the remainder 

19 of this Act, and the application of the provisions to any 

20 person or circumstance, shall not be affected by the hold21 ing. 

Æ 


tkelley on DSK125TN23PROD with BILLS