I 
111TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION 
H. R. 263 
To amend title 28, United States Code, to grant to the House of Representa-
tives the authority to bring a civil action to enforce, secure a declaratory 
judgment concerning the validity of, or prevent a threatened refusal 
or failure to comply with any subpoena or order issued by the House 
or any committee or subcommittee of the House to secure the production 
of documents, the answering of any deposition or interrogatory, or the 
securing of testimony, and for other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
JANUARY 7, 2009 
Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas introduced the following bill; which was referred 
to the Committee on the Judiciary, and in addition to the Committee on 
Rules, 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 committee concerned 
A BILL 
To amend title 28, United States Code, to grant to the 
House of Representatives the authority to bring a civil 
action to enforce, secure a declaratory judgment con-
cerning the validity of, or prevent a threatened refusal 
or failure to comply with any subpoena or order issued 
by the House or any committee or subcommittee of the 
House to secure the production of documents, the an-
swering of any deposition or interrogatory, or the secur-
ing of testimony, and for other purposes. 
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Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Contempt of the House 
of Representatives Subpoena Authority Act of 2009’’. 
SEC. 2. AUTHORITY TO BRING ACTIONS TO ENFORCE SUB-
POENAS OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTA-
TIVES. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Title 28, United States Code, is 
amended by inserting after section 1365 the following new 
section: 
‘‘§ 1365A. House of Representatives Actions 
‘‘(a) ENFORCEMENT OF SUBPOENAS AND ORDERS.— 
The United States District Court for the District of Co-
lumbia shall have original jurisdiction, without regard to 
the amount in controversy, over any civil action brought 
by the House of Representatives or any authorized com-
mittee or subcommittee of the House to enforce, to secure 
a declaratory judgment concerning the validity of, or to 
prevent a threatened refusal or failure to comply with, any 
subpoena or order issued by the House or committee or 
subcommittee of the House to any entity acting or pur-
porting to act under color or authority of State law or 
to any natural person to secure the production of docu-
ments or other materials of any kind or the answering of 
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any deposition or interrogatory or to secure testimony or 
any combination thereof. This section shall not apply to 
an action to enforce, to secure a declaratory judgment con-
cerning the validity of, or to prevent a threatened refusal 
to comply with, any subpoena or order issued to an officer 
or employee of the executive branch of the Federal Gov-
ernment acting within his or her official capacity, except 
that this section shall apply if the refusal to comply is 
based on the assertion of a personal privilege or objection 
and is not based on a governmental privilege or objection 
the assertion of which has been authorized by the execu-
tive branch of the Federal Government. 
‘‘(b) CONTEMPT PROCEEDINGS.—Upon application 
by the House of Representatives or any authorized com-
mittee or subcommittee of the House, the district court 
shall issue an order to an entity or person refusing, or 
failing to comply with, or threatening to refuse or not to 
comply with, a subpoena or order of the House or com-
mittee or subcommittee of the House requiring such entity 
or person to comply forthwith. Any refusal or failure to 
obey a lawful order of the district court issued pursuant 
to this section may be held by such court to be a contempt 
thereof. A contempt proceeding shall be commenced by an 
order to show cause before the court why the entity or 
person refusing or failing to obey the court order should 
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not be held in contempt of court. Such contempt pro-
ceeding shall be tried by the court and shall be summary 
in manner. The purpose of sanctions imposed as a result 
of such contempt proceeding shall be to compel obedience 
to the order of the court. Process in any such action or 
contempt proceeding may be served in any judicial district 
wherein the entity or party refusing, or failing to comply, 
or threatening to refuse or not to comply, resides, trans-
acts business, or may be found, and subpoenas for wit-
nesses who are required to attend such proceeding may 
run into any other district. Nothing in this section shall 
confer upon such court jurisdiction to affect by injunction 
or otherwise the issuance or effect of any subpoena or 
order of the House or any committee or subcommittee of 
the House or to review, modify, suspend, terminate, or set 
aside any such subpoena or order. An action, contempt 
proceeding, or sanction brought or imposed pursuant to 
this section shall not abate upon adjournment sine die by 
the House at the end of a Congress if the House or the 
committee or subcommittee of the House which issued the 
subpoena or order certifies to the court that it maintains 
its interest in securing the documents, answers, or testi-
mony during such adjournment. 
‘‘(c) REPRESENTATION.—The House of Representa-
tives or any committee or subcommittee of the House com-
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mencing and prosecuting a civil action or contempt pro-
ceeding under this section may be represented in such ac-
tion by such attorneys as the House may designate. 
‘‘(d) TREATMENT OF SELECT AND SPECIAL COMMIT-
TEES.—For the purposes of this section the term ‘com-
mittee’ includes standing, select, or special committees of 
the House of Representatives established by law or resolu-
tion.’’. 
(b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of sections 
of chapter 85 of title 28, United States Code, is amended 
by inserting after the item relating to section 1365 the 
following new item: 
‘‘1365A. House of Representatives actions.’’. 
SEC. 3. ACTION BY GENERAL COUNSEL OF HOUSE OF REP-
RESENTATIVES. 
(a) AUTHORIZATION TO BRING CIVIL ACTION TO EN-
FORCE SUBPOENA.—When directed to do so by the adop-
tion of a resolution by the House of Representatives pur-
suant to section 3, the General Counsel of the House of 
Representatives shall bring a civil action under any statute 
conferring jurisdiction on any court of the United States 
(including section 1365A of title 28, United States Code), 
to enforce, to secure a declaratory judgment concerning 
the validity of, or to prevent a threatened failure or refusal 
to comply with, any subpoena or order issued by the 
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House or a committee or a subcommittee of the House 
authorized to issue a subpoena or order. 
(b) ACTIONS IN NAME OF COMMITTEES AND SUB-
COMMITTEES.—Any directive to the General Counsel to 
bring a civil action pursuant to subsection (a) in the name 
of a committee or subcommittee of the House shall, for 
such committee or subcommittee, constitute authorization 
to bring such action within the meaning of any statute 
conferring jurisdiction on any court of the United States. 
SEC. 4. CONSIDERATION OF RESOLUTIONS AUTHORIZING 
ACTIONS. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—It shall not be in order in the 
House of Representatives to consider a resolution to direct 
the General Counsel of the House of Representatives to 
bring a civil action pursuant to this Act in the name of 
a committee or subcommittee unless— 
(1) such resolution is reported by a majority of 
the members voting, a majority being present, of 
such committee or committee of which such sub-
committee is a subcommittee; and 
(2) the report filed by such committee or com-
mittee of which such subcommittee is a sub-
committee contains a statement of— 
(A) the procedure followed in issuing such 
subpoena; 
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(B) the extent to which the party subpoe-
naed has complied with such subpoena; 
(C) any objections or privileges raised by 
the subpoenaed party; and 
(D) the comparative effectiveness of bring-
ing a civil action pursuant to this Act, certifi-
cation of a criminal action for contempt of Con-
gress, and initiating a contempt proceeding be-
fore the House. 
(b) COMMITTEE
REPORT
NOT
RECEIVABLE
IN 
COURT.—A report filed pursuant to subsection (a)(2) 
shall not be receivable in any court of law to the extent 
such report is in compliance with such subsection. 
(c) EXERCISE OF RULEMAKING AUTHORITY.—The 
provisions of subsection (a) are enacted— 
(1) as an exercise of the rulemaking power of 
the House of Representatives, and, as such, they 
shall be considered as part of the rules of the House, 
and such rules shall supersede any other rule of the 
House only to the extent that rule is inconsistent 
therewith; and 
(2) with full recognition of the constitutional 
right of the House to change such rules (so far as 
relating to the procedure in the House) at any time, 
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in the same manner, and to the same extent as in 
the case of any other rule of the House. 
SEC. 5. GENERAL COUNSEL DEFINED. 
In this Act, the term ‘‘General Counsel of the House 
of Representatives’’ has the meaning given such term in 
section 101(c) of the Legislative Branch Appropriations 
Act, 2000 (2 U.S.C. 130f(c)). 
SEC. 6. RULE OF CONSTRUCTION. 
Nothing in this Act shall limit the discretion of— 
(1) the Speaker of the House of Representa-
tives in certifying to the United States Attorney for 
the District of Columbia any matter pursuant to sec-
tion 104 of the Revised Statutes of the United 
States (2 U.S.C. 194); or 
(2) the House of Representatives to hold any 
individual or entity in contempt of the House. 
Æ 
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