IIB 

111TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION H. R. 2646 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JANUARY 20, 2010 

Received; read twice and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and 

Governmental Affairs 

AN ACT 

To amend title 31, United States Code, to enhance the 

oversight authorities of the Comptroller General, 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, 


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1 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

2 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Government Account3 ability Office Improvement Act of 2010’’. 

4 SEC. 2. AUTHORITY TO OBTAIN INFORMATION. 

5 (a) AUTHORITY TO OBTAIN RECORDS.—Section 716 

6 of title 31, United States Code, is amended in subsection 

7 (a)— 

8 (1) by striking ‘‘(a)’’ and inserting ‘‘(2)’’; and 

9 (2) by inserting after the section heading the 

10 following: 

11 ‘‘(a)(1) The Comptroller General is authorized to ob12 tain such agency records as the Comptroller General re13 quires to discharge his duties (including audit, evaluation, 

14 and investigative duties), including through the bringing 

15 of civil actions under this section. In reviewing a civil ac16 tion under this section, the court shall recognize the con17 tinuing force and effect of the authorization in the pre18 ceding sentence until such time as the authorization is re19 pealed pursuant to law.’’. 

20 (b) COPIES AND INTERVIEWS.—Section 716(a) of 

21 title 31, United States Code, as amended by subsection 

22 (a), is further amended in the second sentence of para23 graph (2) by striking ‘‘inspect an agency record’’ and in24 serting ‘‘inspect, and make and retain copies of, an agency 

25 record and interview agency officers and employees’’. 


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1 (c) RULES OF CONSTRUCTION.—Section 716 of title 

2 31, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end 

3 the following new subsection: 

4 ‘‘(f) No provision of any law in existence on the date 

5 of the enactment of this section or enacted after such date 

6 shall be construed to limit, amend, or supersede the au7 thority of the Comptroller General to obtain any informa8 tion, to inspect any record, or to interview any officer or 

9 employee under this section, except to the extent such pro10 vision expressly and specifically refers to this section and 

11 provides for such limitation, amendment, or superses12 sion.’’. 

13 SEC. 3. ADMINISTERING OATHS. 

14 Paragraph (4) of section 711 of title 31, United 

15 States Code, is amended to read as follows: 

16 ‘‘(4) administer oaths to witnesses, except that, 

17 in matters other than auditing and settling accounts, 

18 the authority of an officer or employee to administer 

19 oaths to witnesses pursuant to a delegation under 

20 paragraph (2) shall not be available without the 

21 prior express approval of the Comptroller General 

22 (or a designee).’’. 

23 SEC. 4. AGENCY REPORTS. 

24 Section 720(b) of title 31, United States Code, is 

25 amended— 


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1 (1) in the matter preceding paragraph (1), by 

2 inserting ‘‘or planned’’ after ‘‘action taken’’; and 

3 (2) by amending paragraph (1) to read as fol4 lows: 

5 ‘‘(1) the Committee on Homeland Security and 

6 Governmental Affairs of the Senate, the Committee 

7 on Oversight and Government Operations of the 

8 House of Representatives, the congressional commit9 tees with jurisdiction over the agency program or ac10 tivity that is the subject of the recommendation, and 

11 the Government Accountability Office before the 

12 61st day after the date of the report; and’’. 

Passed the House of Representatives January 13, 

2010. 

Attest: LORRAINE C. MILLER, 

Clerk. 


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