IV 
115TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. RES. 975 
Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that Americans have 
a right to fair representation and that America’s democratic institutions 
are in urgent need of repair to provide greater responsiveness and ac-
countability to the people through critical reforms that empower the 
American voter, strengthen our Nation’s ethics laws, and fix our broken 
campaign finance system. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JUNE 28, 2018 
Mr. SARBANES (for himself, Ms. PELOSI, Mr. HOYER, Mr. CLYBURN, Mr. 
AGUILAR, Ms. BARRAGA´N, Mr. BERA, Mr. BEYER, Mr. BLUMENAUER, 
Mr. BRENDAN F. BOYLE of Pennsylvania, Mr. BROWN of Maryland, Mrs. 
BUSTOS, Mr. BUTTERFIELD, Mr. CAPUANO, Mr. CARTWRIGHT, Ms. CAS-
TOR of Florida, Mr. CASTRO of Texas, Ms. JUDY CHU of California, Mr. 
CICILLINE, Ms. CLARK of Massachusetts, Ms. CLARKE of New York, Mr. 
CLEAVER, Mr. COHEN, Mr. CONNOLLY, Mr. COURTNEY, Mr. CRIST, Mr. 
CROWLEY, Mr. CUMMINGS, Mrs. DAVIS of California, Ms. DEGETTE, Mr. 
DELANEY, Ms. DELAURO, Ms. DELBENE, Mr. DESAULNIER, Mr. 
DEUTCH, Mrs. DINGELL, Mr. DOGGETT, Mr. ELLISON, Ms. ESHOO, Mr. 
ESPAILLAT, Ms. ESTY of Connecticut, Ms. FRANKEL of Florida, Mr. 
GALLEGO, Mr. GARAMENDI, Mr. GENE GREEN of Texas, Mr. AL GREEN 
of Texas, Mr. GRIJALVA, Mr. GUTIE´RREZ, Ms. HANABUSA, Mr. HAS-
TINGS, Mr. HECK, Mr. HIGGINS of New York, Ms. NORTON, Mr. 
HUFFMAN, Ms. JAYAPAL, Mr. JEFFRIES, Ms. EDDIE BERNICE JOHNSON 
of Texas, Ms. KAPTUR, Ms. KELLY of Illinois, Mr. KENNEDY, Mr. 
KHANNA, Mr. KILDEE, Mr. KILMER, Mr. KRISHNAMOORTHI, Mr. CLAY, 
Mr. LANGEVIN, Mr. LARSEN of Washington, Mr. LARSON of Connecticut, 
Mr. LAWSON of Florida, Ms. LEE, Mr. LEVIN, Mr. LEWIS of Georgia, 
Mr. TED LIEU of California, Mr. LOEBSACK, Ms. LOFGREN, Mr. 
LOWENTHAL, Mr. BEN RAY LUJA´N of New Mexico, Ms. MICHELLE 
LUJAN GRISHAM of New Mexico, Mr. LYNCH, Mr. SEAN PATRICK MALO-
NEY of New York, Mrs. CAROLYN B. MALONEY of New York, Ms. MAT-
SUI, Ms. MCCOLLUM, Mr. MCEACHIN, Mr. MCGOVERN, Ms. KUSTER of 
New Hampshire, Mr. MCNERNEY, Mr. MEEKS, Mr. MOULTON, Mr. NAD-
LER, Mrs. NAPOLITANO, Mr. NOLAN, Mr. NORCROSS, Mr. O’HALLERAN, 
Mr. O’ROURKE, Mr. PALLONE, Mr. PASCRELL, Mr. PERLMUTTER, Ms. 
PINGREE, Mr. POCAN, Mr. POLIS, Mr. PRICE of North Carolina, Mr. 
QUIGLEY, Mr. RASKIN, Miss RICE of New York, Ms. ROYBAL-ALLARD, 
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Mr. RUPPERSBERGER, Ms. SA´NCHEZ, Ms. SCHAKOWSKY, Mr. SCHIFF, 
Mr. SCHNEIDER, Mr. SCOTT of Virginia, Mr. SERRANO, Ms. SEWELL of 
Alabama, Ms. SHEA-PORTER, Mr. SHERMAN, Mr. SIRES, Mr. SMITH of 
Washington, Mr. SOTO, Ms. SPEIER, Mr. SWALWELL of California, Mr. 
TAKANO, Ms. TITUS, Mr. TONKO, Ms. TSONGAS, Mr. VARGAS, Ms. 
VELA´ZQUEZ, Mr. WALZ, Ms. WASSERMAN
SCHULTZ, Ms. MAXINE 
WATERS of California, Mrs. WATSON COLEMAN, Mr. WELCH, Mr. YAR-
MUTH, Ms. BLUNT ROCHESTER, Ms. BONAMICI, Ms. BROWNLEY of Cali-
fornia, Mr. VEASEY, Mr. DEFAZIO, Ms. JACKSON LEE, Mr. PAYNE, Mrs. 
LOWEY, Mr. GONZALEZ of Texas, Mr. VELA, Mr. BRADY of Pennsyl-
vania, Mrs. MURPHY of Florida, Mr. THOMPSON of California, Mr. MI-
CHAEL F. DOYLE of Pennsylvania, Mr. ENGEL, Ms. BASS, Ms. ROSEN, 
Mr. COSTA, Mr. PETERS, Ms. MENG, Mr. RYAN of Ohio, Mr. RUSH, Mr. 
KIHUEN, Mr. CARSON of Indiana, Mr. RUIZ, Ms. MOORE, Mr. CARBAJAL, 
and Mr. FOSTER) submitted the following resolution; which was referred 
to the Committee on House Administration, and in addition to the Com-
mittees on the Judiciary, and Oversight and Government Reform, 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 com-
mittee concerned 
RESOLUTION 
Expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that 
Americans have a right to fair representation and that 
America’s democratic institutions are in urgent need of 
repair to provide greater responsiveness and account-
ability to the people through critical reforms that em-
power the American voter, strengthen our Nation’s ethics 
laws, and fix our broken campaign finance system. 
Resolved, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This resolution may be cited as the ‘‘By the People 
Resolution’’. 
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SEC. 2. PURPOSE. 
It is the purpose of this resolution to express the 
sense of the House of Representatives that Congress 
should advance a comprehensive set of political reforms 
to restore trust in, and integrity to, our institutions of de-
mocracy. Such reforms will— 
(1) empower the American voter; 
(2) strengthen our Nation’s ethics laws; and 
(3) fix our broken campaign finance system. 
TITLE I—EMPOWERING THE 
AMERICAN VOTER 
SEC. 101. EXPANDING ACCESS TO THE BALLOT BOX. 
It is the sense of the House of Representatives that— 
(1) the right to vote for all Americans is sac-
rosanct and rules for voting and election administra-
tion should protect the right to vote and promote 
voter participation; 
(2) in recent years, we have witnessed unprece-
dented efforts to turn back the clock and erect bar-
riers to voting for disabled, minority, young, elderly, 
and low-income Americans; and 
(3) Congress should respond by modernizing 
the electoral system to— 
(A) improve access to the ballot; 
(B) enhance the integrity and security of 
our voting systems; and 
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(2) a partisan arms race has broken out, with 
majority parties in the States crafting district lines 
to maximize political advantage; 
(3) the public has lost confidence in the way 
that Congressional districts are drawn; and 
(4) Congress should put an end to this partisan 
arms race and require all States to establish inde-
pendent, multi-party citizen redistricting commis-
sions to draw open, transparent, and fair statewide 
district maps after each decennial census. 
SEC. 104. RESTORING THE INTEGRITY OF THE VOTING 
RIGHTS ACT. 
It is the sense of the House of Representatives that— 
(1) we must remain vigilant in protecting every 
American’s right to vote, regardless of race, color, or 
creed; 
(2) systemic voter discrimination and intimida-
tion still occurs in communities across the country; 
(3) the Supreme Court, in Shelby County v. 
Holder, struck down core provisions of the Voting 
Rights Act, undermining decades-long protections 
for communities of color that faced historic and con-
tinuing discrimination; and 
(4) Congress should restore protections for vot-
ers in States with a recent history of discrimination 
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and bolster prophylactic protections for those com-
munities with a history of voter disenfranchisement. 
SEC. 105. PROTECTING THE INTEGRITY OF THE ELECTION 
SYSTEM. 
It is the sense of the House of Representatives that— 
(1) the security of election systems must be im-
proved; 
(2) attacks from hostile actors, both foreign 
and domestic, must never compromise the integrity 
or security of our election system; and 
(3) Congress must advance comprehensive re-
forms to protect and harden our election system, 
providing the resources and tools to our State and 
local partners to ensure attempts to undermine our 
election system remain unsuccessful. 
TITLE II—STRENGTHENING OUR 
NATION’S ETHICS LAWS 
SEC. 201. ENDING THE REVOLVING DOOR OF SPECIAL IN-
TERESTS INTO AND OUT OF GOVERNMENT. 
It is the sense of the House of Representatives that— 
(1) the line between public service and private 
interests is too often blurred, because government 
positions are regularly filled with industry insiders 
who work to secure undue access and influence for 
their former employers, and that this preferential 
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treatment is later used to secure for those same in-
dividuals future employment and profit, fueling a 
cycle of exploitative government service; 
(2) the public is rightly disgusted by this ‘‘re-
volving door’’ into and out of government, and as 
stewards of the public trust, government officials 
should be— 
(A) required to submit to a stringent set of 
ethical guidelines that restrict their engagement 
on matters directly related to past employment; 
and 
(B) prohibited from seeking immediate em-
ployment after their government tenure with 
private interests with business related to their 
government service. 
SEC. 202. EXPANDING ETHICS LAWS TO APPLY TO THE 
PRESIDENT AND TO PROMOTE GREATER AC-
COUNTABILITY OF THE CHIEF EXECUTIVE. 
It is the sense of the House of Representatives that— 
(1) government officials at every level, including 
the Office of the President and Vice President, 
should be held to the highest ethical standards; 
(2) government service should not be a means 
to personal profit, nor should conflicts of interest 
cloud the judgment of our Nation’s leaders; 
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(3) all existing and applicable ethics laws and 
protocols to prevent conflicts of interest should apply 
to the Office of President and Vice President; and 
(4) candidates for President and Vice-President 
should be required to disclose their tax returns as a 
condition of their candidacy, as the electorate de-
serves to be provided with the necessary information 
to determine if an individual can pursue the public 
interest unencumbered by private conflicts of inter-
est. 
SEC. 203. REFORMING THE OFFICE OF GOVERNMENT ETH-
ICS. 
It is the sense of the House of Representatives that— 
(1) the entirety of the Federal Government, and 
the public servants who comprise it, must comply 
with all relevant ethics laws and regulations; 
(2) it has become apparent that— 
(A) there are significant differences in the 
ways that certain agencies, government employ-
ees, and political appointees abide by the rel-
evant ethics statutes; and 
(B) the existing enforcement tools are defi-
cient; 
(3) Americans are right to expect their public 
servants to be free from conflicts of interest; and 
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(4) Congress should bolster compliance across 
the Federal Government and ensure those charged 
with overseeing the law have the necessary tools of 
enforcement. 
SEC. 204. UPDATING THE LOBBYING DISCLOSURE ACT AND 
PROHIBITING 
BUNDLED 
CAMPAIGN 
CON-
TRIBUTIONS FROM LOBBYISTS. 
It is the sense of the House of Representatives that— 
(1) all Americans have the right to petition 
their government, as granted by the First Amend-
ment; 
(2) the modern-day lobbying industry has 
abused this right, deploying sophisticated tactics to 
maximize their influence and to minimize trans-
parency and public scrutiny of their actions; 
(3) the American people deserve to know who is 
influencing their representatives in Congress; 
(4) professional lobbyists should not be able to 
circumvent campaign finance contribution limits to 
gain improper access and influence Congress to ad-
vance the positions of their clients; and 
(5) Congress should act to impose stronger lob-
bying rules and prohibitions. 
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