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[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 5301 Engrossed in House (EH)]

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118th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 5301

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 AN ACT

 
To amend title 31, United States Code, to require agencies to include a 
list of outdated or duplicative reporting requirements in annual budget 
                justifications, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Eliminate Useless Reports Act of 
2024''.

SEC. 2. SUNSETS FOR AGENCY REPORTS.

    (a) In General.--Section 1125 of title 31, United States Code, is 
amended--
            (1) by redesignating subsection (c) as subsection (d);
            (2) by striking subsections (a) and (b) and inserting the 
        following:
    ``(a) Definitions.--In this section:
            ``(1) Budget justification materials.--The term `budget 
        justification materials' has the meaning given the term in 
        section 3(b)(2) of the Federal Funding Accountability and 
        Transparency Act of 2006 (31 U.S.C. 6101 note; Public Law 109-
        282).
            ``(2) Plan or report.--The term `plan or report' means any 
        plan or report submitted to Congress, any committee of 
        Congress, or subcommittee thereof, by not less than 1 agency--
                    ``(A) in accordance with Federal law; or
                    ``(B) at the direction or request of a 
                congressional report.
            ``(3) Recurring plan or report.--The term `recurring plan 
        or report' means a plan or report submitted on a recurring 
        basis.
            ``(4) Relevant congressional committee.--The term `relevant 
        congressional committee'--
                    ``(A) means a congressional committee to which a 
                recurring plan or report is required to be submitted; 
                and
                    ``(B) does not include any plan or report that is 
                required to be submitted solely to the Committee on 
                Armed Services of the House of Representatives or the 
                Senate.
    ``(b) Agency Identification of Unnecessary Reports.--
            ``(1) In general.--The head of each agency shall include in 
        the budget justification materials of the agency the following:
                    ``(A) Subject to paragraphs (2) and (3), the 
                following:
                            ``(i) A list of each recurring plan or 
                        report submitted by the agency.
                            ``(ii) An identification of whether the 
                        recurring plan or report listed in clause (i) 
                        was included in the most recent report issued 
                        by the Clerk of the House of Representatives 
                        concerning the reports that any agency is 
                        required by law or directed or requested by a 
                        committee report to make to Congress, any 
                        committee of Congress, or subcommittee thereof.
                            ``(iii) If applicable, the unique 
                        alphanumeric identifier for the recurring plan 
                        or report as required by section 
                        7243(b)(1)(C)(vii) of the James M. Inhofe 
                        National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal 
                        Year 2023 (Public Law 117-263).
                            ``(iv) The identification of any recurring 
                        plan or report the head of the agency 
                        determines to be outdated or duplicative.
                    ``(B) With respect to each recurring plan or report 
                identified in subparagraph (A)(iv), the following:
                            ``(i) A recommendation on whether to 
                        sunset, modify, consolidate, or reduce the 
                        frequency of the submission of the recurring 
                        plan or report.
                            ``(ii) A citation to each provision of law 
                        or directive or request in a congressional 
                        report that requires or requests the submission 
                        of the recurring plan or report.
                            ``(iii) A list of the relevant 
                        congressional committees for the recurring plan 
                        or report.
                    ``(C) A justification explaining, with respect to 
                each recommendation described in subparagraph (B)(i) 
                relating to a recurring plan or report--
                            ``(i) why the head of the agency made the 
                        recommendation, which may include an estimate 
                        of the resources expended by the agency to 
                        prepare and submit the recurring plan or 
                        report; and
                            ``(ii) the understanding of the head of the 
                        agency of the purpose of the recurring plan or 
                        report.
            ``(2) Agency consultation.--
                    ``(A) In general.--In preparing the list required 
                under paragraph (1)(A), if, in submitting a recurring 
                plan or report, an agency is required to coordinate or 
                consult with another agency or entity, the head of the 
                agency submitting the recurring plan or report shall 
                consult with the head of each agency or entity with 
                whom consultation or coordination is required.
                    ``(B) Inclusion in list.--If, after a consultation 
                under subparagraph (A), the head of each agency or 
                entity consulted under that subparagraph agrees that a 
                recurring plan or report is outdated or duplicative, 
                the head of the agency required to submit the recurring 
                plan or report shall--
                            ``(i) include the recurring plan or report 
                        in the list described in paragraph (1)(A); and
                            ``(ii) identify each agency or entity with 
                        which the head of the agency is required to 
                        coordinate or consult in submitting the 
                        recurring plan or report.
                    ``(C) Disagreement.--If the head of any agency or 
                entity consulted under subparagraph (A) does not agree 
                that a recurring plan or report is outdated or 
                duplicative, the head of the agency required to submit 
                the recurring plan or report shall not include the 
                recurring plan or report in the list described in 
                paragraph (1)(A).
            ``(3) Government-wide or multi-agency plan and report 
        submissions.--With respect to a recurring plan or report 
        required to be submitted by not less than 2 agencies, the 
        Director of the Office of Management and Budget shall--
                    ``(A) determine whether the requirement to submit 
                the recurring plan or report is outdated or 
                duplicative; and
                    ``(B) make recommendations to Congress accordingly.
            ``(4) Plan and report submissions conformity to the access 
        to congressionally mandated reports act.--With respect to an 
        agency recommendation, citation, or justification made under 
        subparagraph (B) or (C) of paragraph (1) or a recommendation by 
        the Director of the Office of Management and Budget under 
        paragraph (3), the agency or Director, as applicable, shall 
        also provide this information to the Director of the Government 
        Publishing Office in conformity with the agency submission 
        requirements under section 7244(a) of the James M. Inhofe 
        National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2023 (Public 
        Law 117-263; chapter 41 of title 44 note) in conformity with 
        guidance issued by the Director of the Office of Management and 
        Budget under section 7244(b) of such Act.
    ``(c) Rule of Construction on Agency Requirements.--Nothing in this 
section shall be construed to exempt the head of an agency from a 
requirement to submit a recurring plan or report.''; and
            (3) in subsection (d), as so redesignated, by striking ``in 
        the budget of the United States Government, as provided by 
        section 1105(a)(37)'' and inserting ``in the budget 
        justification materials of each agency''.
    (b) Budget Contents.--Section 1105(a) of title 31, United States 
Code, is amended by striking paragraph (39).
    (c) Conformity to the Access to Congressionally Mandated Reports 
Act.--
            (1) Amendment.--Subsections (a) and (b) of section 7244 of 
        the James M. Inhofe National Defense Authorization Act for 
        Fiscal Year 2023 (Public Law 117-263; chapter 41 of title 44, 
        United States Code, note), are amended to read as follows:
    ``(a) Submission of Electronic Copies of Reports.--Not earlier than 
30 days or later than 60 days after the date on which a congressionally 
mandated report is submitted to either House of Congress or to any 
committee of Congress or subcommittee thereof, the head of the Federal 
agency submitting the congressionally mandated report shall submit to 
the Director the information required under subparagraphs (A) through 
(D) of section 7243(b)(1) with respect to the congressionally mandated 
report. Notwithstanding section 7246, nothing in this subtitle shall 
relieve a Federal agency of any other requirement to publish the 
congressionally mandated report on the online portal of the Federal 
agency or otherwise submit the congressionally mandated report to 
Congress or specific committees of Congress, or subcommittees thereof.
    ``(b) Guidance.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the 
enactment of this subsection and periodically thereafter as 
appropriate, the Director of the Office of Management and Budget, in 
consultation with the Director, shall issue guidance to agencies on the 
implementation of this subtitle as well as the requirements of section 
1125(b) of title 31, United States Code.''.
            (2) Updated omb guidance.--Not later than 180 days after 
        the date of the enactment of this Act, the Director of the 
        Office of Management and Budget shall issue updated guidance to 
        agencies to ensure that the requirements under subsections (a) 
        and (b) of section 1125 of title 31, United States Code, as 
        amended by this Act, for agency submissions of recommendations 
        and justifications for plans and reports to sunset, modify, 
        consolidate, or reduce the frequency of the submission of are 
        also submitted as a separate attachment in conformity with the 
        agency submission requirements of electronic copies of reports 
        submitted by agencies under section 7244(a) of the James M. 
        Inhofe National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2023 
        (Public Law 117-263; chapter 41 of title 44, United States 
        Code, note) for publication on the online portal established 
        under section 7243 of such Act.

            Passed the House of Representatives November 12, 2024.

            Attest:

                                                                 Clerk.
118th CONGRESS

  2d Session

                               H. R. 5301

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 AN ACT

To amend title 31, United States Code, to require agencies to include a 
list of outdated or duplicative reporting requirements in annual budget 
                justifications, and for other purposes.
```