II 

115TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 299 

To require the appropriation of funds to use a fee, fine, penalty, or proceeds 

from a settlement received by a Federal agency, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

FEBRUARY 3, 2017 

Mr. LEE (for himself and Mr. PAUL) introduced the following bill; which was 

read twice and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and 

Governmental Affairs 

A BILL 

To require the appropriation of funds to use a fee, fine, 

penalty, or proceeds from a settlement received by a 

Federal agency, 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 ‘‘Agency Accountability 

5 Act of 2017’’. 

6 SEC. 2. APPROPRIATION OF FUNDS REQUIRED. 

7 (a) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other provi8 sion of law, and consistent with subsection (c), an agency 

9 that receives a fee, fine, penalty, or proceeds from a settleVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:04 Feb 10, 2017 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S299.IS S299

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•S 299 IS

1 ment shall deposit such amount in the general fund of the 

2 Treasury. 

3 (b) USE OF AMOUNTS.— 

4 (1) SUBJECT TO APPROPRIATION.—Consistent 

5 with paragraph (2), any amounts deposited pursuant 

6 to subsection (a) shall only be available to the ex7 tent, and in such amounts, as are provided in ad8 vance in appropriation Acts. 

9 (2) OBLIGATION LIMITATION; DEFICIT REDUC10 TION.—Of the amounts so deposited during the fis11 cal year in which this section is enacted, such 

12 amounts— 

13 (A) may not be available for obligation 

14 during such fiscal year; and 

15 (B) shall be used for purposes of deficit re16 duction. 

17 (c) EXCEPTION.—This section shall not apply to any 

18 amounts to be paid to an individual entitled to such 

19 amounts as a whistleblower, including any amounts re20 ceived as a percentage of amounts received by the Govern21 ment pursuant to a judgment or settlement agreement. 

22 (d) USPTO REPORT TO CONGRESS REQUIRED.—Not 

23 later than March 1 of each year, the Under Secretary of 

24 Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director of the 

25 United States Patent and Trademark Office shall submit 


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1 to Congress a report that describes any fee, fine, penalty, 

2 or proceeds from a settlement collected by the United 

3 States Patent and Trademark Office for the previous fis4 cal year. 

5 (e) AGENCY DEFINED.—The term ‘‘agency’’ has the 

6 meaning given that term in section 551 of title 5, United 

7 States Code, but does not include the United States Postal 

8 Service or the United States Patent and Trademark Of9 fice. 

10 SEC. 3. OFFSETTING COLLECTIONS AND RECEIPTS AS REV11 ENUE. 

12 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Congressional Budget Act of 

13 1974 (2 U.S.C. 621 et seq.) is amended— 

14 (1) in section 3(2)(A)(iv), by inserting ‘‘except 

15 as provided in section 316,’’ before ‘‘offsetting re16 ceipts’’; and 

17 (2) by adding after section 315 the following: 

18 ‘‘TREATMENT OF OFFSETTING COLLECTIONS AND

19 RECEIPTS

20 ‘‘SEC. 316. Notwithstanding any other provision of 

21 law, offsetting receipts and collections shall be treated as 

22 revenue for purposes of carrying out this or any other Act. 

23 The preceding sentence shall not apply to the United 

24 States Postal Service or the United States Patent and 

25 Trademark Office.’’. 


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

2 of such Act is amended by inserting after the item relating 

3 to section 315 the following: 

‘‘316. Treatment of offsetting collections and receipts.’’. 

4 (c) APPLICATION.—The amendments made by this 

5 section shall apply during budget years (as that term is 

6 defined in section 250(c)(12) of the Balanced Budget and 

7 Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 (2 U.S.C. 

8 900(c)(12))) beginning in 2019. 

Æ 


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