Agency Accountability Act of 2019

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. Short title This Act may be cited as the Agency Accountability Act of 2019 2. Appropriation of funds required (a) In general Notwithstanding any other provision of law, and consistent with subsection (c), an agency that receives a fee, fine, penalty, or proceeds from a settlement shall deposit such amount in the general fund of the Treasury. (b) Use of amounts subject to appropriation Any amounts deposited pursuant to subsection (a) shall only be available to the extent, and in such amounts, as are provided in advance in appropriation Acts. (c) Exceptions This section shall not apply to any of the following: (1) Amounts to be paid to an individual entitled to such amounts as a whistleblower, including any amounts received as a percentage of amounts received by the Government pursuant to a judgment or settlement agreement. (2) A loan guarantee program. (3) An insurance program. (d) USPTO Report to Congress required Not later than March 1 of each year, the Under Secretary of Commerce for Intellectual Property and Director of the United States Patent and Trademark Office shall submit to Congress a report that describes any fee, fine, penalty, or proceeds from a settlement collected by the United States Patent and Trademark Office for the previous fiscal year. (e) Agency defined The term agency 3. Offsetting collections and receipts as revenue (a) In general The Congressional Budget Act of 1974 ( 2 U.S.C. 621 (1) in section 3(2)(A)(iv), by inserting except as provided in section 316, offsetting receipts (2) by adding after section 315 the following: 316. Treatment of offsetting collections and receipts Notwithstanding any other provision of law, offsetting receipts and collections shall be treated as revenue for purposes of carrying out this or any other Act. The preceding sentence shall not apply to the United States Postal Service or the United States Patent and Trademark Office. . (b) Clerical amendment The table of contents of such Act is amended by inserting after the item relating to section 315 the following: 316. Treatment of offsetting collections and receipts. . (c) Application The amendments made by this section shall apply during budget years (as that term is defined in section 250(c)(12) of the Balanced Budget and Emergency Deficit Control Act of 1985 ( 2 U.S.C. 900(c)(12)

Summary: Agency Accountability Act of 2019 This bill requires any agency that receives a fee, fine, penalty, or proceeds from a settlement to deposit the amount in the general fund of the Treasury. The bill also prohibits the funds from being used unless the funding is provided in advance in an appropriations bill. The bill includes exceptions for funds to be paid to a whistle-blower, loan guarantee programs, and insurance programs. The requirements do not apply to the U.S. Postal Service or the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). The Department of Commerce and the USPTO must report annually to Congress on funds collected by the USPTO from a settlement. The bill also requires offsetting receipts and collections to be treated as revenue for the purpose of carrying out the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 and other laws. (Offsetting receipts and collections are funds collected by agencies from other government accounts or from the public in businesslike or market-oriented transactions. Under current law, the collections are treated as negative budget authority and outlays rather than revenue and may be used to offset spending for budget enforcement purposes.)