I 
111TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 3679 
To prohibit the Federal Government from awarding contracts, grants, or 
other agreements to, providing any other Federal funds to, or engaging 
in activities that promote certain corporations or companies guilty of 
certain felony convictions. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
SEPTEMBER 30, 2009 
Ms. MCCOLLUM (for herself, Mr. STARK, Mr. GRIJALVA, Mr. MCDERMOTT, 
Mr. ELLISON, Ms. LEE of California, Mr. OBEY, and Ms. WOOLSEY) in-
troduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Over-
sight and Government Reform 
A BILL 
To prohibit the Federal Government from awarding con-
tracts, grants, or other agreements to, providing any 
other Federal funds to, or engaging in activities that 
promote certain corporations or companies guilty of cer-
tain felony convictions. 
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 ‘‘Against Corporations 
Organizing to Rip-off the Nation Act’’ or the ‘‘ACORN 
Act’’. 
VerDate Nov 24 2008 
03:51 Oct 01, 2009
Jkt 079200
PO 00000
Frm 00001
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H3679.IH
H3679
smartinez on DSKB9S0YB1PROD with BILLS
SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 
(1) According to the Corporate Fraud Task 
Force Report to the President, 2008, in fiscal year 
2007, United States Attorneys’ offices opened 878 
new criminal health care fraud investigations involv-
ing 1,548 potential defendants. Federal prosecutors 
had 1,612 health care fraud criminal investigations 
pending, involving 2,603 potential defendants, and 
filed criminal charges in 434 cases involving 786 de-
fendants. A total of 560 defendants were convicted 
for health care fraud-related crimes during the year. 
(2) On September 2, 2009, it was announced 
that Pfizer Inc. and its subsidiary Pharmacia & 
Upjohn Company Inc., agreed to pay $2.3 billion, 
the largest health care fraud settlement in the his-
tory of the Department of Justice, to resolve crimi-
nal liability from the illegal promotion of certain 
pharmaceutical products. 
(3) Pharmacia & Upjohn Company agreed to 
plead guilty to a felony violation of the Federal 
Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act for misbranding 
Bextra with the intent to defraud or mislead. 
(4) Pharmacia & Upjohn Company marketed 
‘‘off-label’’ uses of Bextra for several uses and dos-
ages that the Food and Drug Administration de-
clined to approve due to safety concerns. 
VerDate Nov 24 2008 
03:51 Oct 01, 2009
Jkt 079200
PO 00000
Frm 00002
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H3679.IH
H3679
smartinez on DSKB9S0YB1PROD with BILLS
(5) The Assistant Attorney General for the 
Civil Division has stated, ‘‘Illegal conduct and fraud 
by pharmaceutical companies puts the public health 
at risk, corrupts medical decisions by health care 
providers, and costs the Government billions of dol-
lars.’’. 
(6) The Director of the Defense Department’s 
Criminal Investigative Services stated, ‘‘The off-label 
promotion of pharmaceutical drugs by Pfizer signifi-
cantly impacted the integrity of TRICARE, the De-
partment of Defense’s health care system. This ille-
gal activity increases patients’ costs, threatens their 
safety and negatively affects the health care services 
to the over nine million military members, retirees 
and their families who rely on this system.’’. 
SEC. 3. PROHIBITIONS ON FEDERAL FUNDS AND OTHER 
ACTIVITIES WITH RESPECT TO CERTAIN COR-
PORATIONS OR COMPANIES. 
(a) PROHIBITIONS.—Subject to subsection (e), with 
respect to any covered corporation or company or applica-
ble individual the following prohibitions apply: 
(1) No Federal contract, grant, cooperative 
agreement, or any other form of agreement (includ-
ing a memorandum of understanding) may be 
awarded to or entered into with the corporation or 
VerDate Nov 24 2008 
03:51 Oct 01, 2009
Jkt 079200
PO 00000
Frm 00003
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H3679.IH
H3679
smartinez on DSKB9S0YB1PROD with BILLS
company for a 5-year period beginning 30 days after 
the date of the criminal conviction involved or termi-
nation of charter (as the case may be). 
(2) No Federal funds in any other form may be 
provided to the corporation or company for such 5- 
year period. 
(3) No Federal employee or contractor may 
promote in any way (including recommending to a 
person or referring to a person for any purpose) the 
corporation or company for such 5-year period. 
(4) No covered corporation or company or ap-
plicable individual may contribute funds to a can-
didate for Federal office, Federal political action 
committee, or Federal or State political party during 
such a 5-year period. 
(5) No more than $1,000,000 in any calendar 
year may be used by the corporation or company, or 
applicable individual, for the purpose of lobbying 
Congress or Federal employees during such 5-year 
period. 
(b) COVERED CORPORATION OR COMPANY.—In this 
section, the term ‘‘covered corporation or company’’ means 
any of the following: 
(1) Any corporation or company guilty of felony 
criminal violations under any Federal or State law— 
VerDate Nov 24 2008 
03:51 Oct 01, 2009
Jkt 079200
PO 00000
Frm 00004
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H3679.IH
H3679
smartinez on DSKB9S0YB1PROD with BILLS
(A) including a felony violation of the Fed-
eral Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act, sections 
3729 through 3733 of title 31, United States 
Code (formerly known as the False Claims 
Act), or a violation for the filing of a fraudulent 
form with any Federal or State regulatory 
agency; but 
(B) excluding a violation for which the cor-
poration or company has fully completed all 
terms of criminal sentencing or a criminal set-
tlement agreement as of the date of the enact-
ment of this Act. 
(2) Any corporation or company that had its 
State corporate charter terminated due to its failure 
to comply with Federal or State lobbying disclosure 
requirements. 
(3) Any corporation or company that, within 
the 5-year period beginning 30 days after the date 
of conviction of an applicable individual of a viola-
tion described in subsection (c)(2)(B)— 
(A) employs the applicable individual, in a 
permanent or temporary capacity; 
(B) has under contract or retains the ap-
plicable individual; or 
VerDate Nov 24 2008 
03:51 Oct 01, 2009
Jkt 079200
PO 00000
Frm 00005
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H3679.IH
H3679
smartinez on DSKB9S0YB1PROD with BILLS
(C) has the applicable individual acting on 
the behalf of the corporation or company or 
with the express or apparent authority of the 
corporation or company. 
(c) ADDITIONAL DEFINITIONS.—In this section: 
(1) The term ‘‘corporation or company’’ in-
cludes Pfizer, Pharmacia & Upjohn Company Inc. 
and any Pfizer-related affiliate. 
(2) The term ‘‘applicable individual’’ means, 
with respect to a corporation or company, an indi-
vidual who— 
(A) is a director, officer, or executive of 
the corporation or company; and 
(B) has been found guilty of a felony viola-
tion under Federal or State law in relation to 
the individual’s conduct in the individual’s ca-
pacity as a director, officer, or executive of a 
corporation or company. 
(d) REVISION OF FEDERAL ACQUISITION REGULA-
TION.—The Federal Acquisition Regulation shall be re-
vised to carry out the provisions of this Act relating to 
contracts. 
(e) PRESIDENTIAL WAIVER AUTHORITY.—The Presi-
dent may waive a prohibition in subsection (a) with re-
VerDate Nov 24 2008 
03:51 Oct 01, 2009
Jkt 079200
PO 00000
Frm 00006
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6201
E:\BILLS\H3679.IH
H3679
smartinez on DSKB9S0YB1PROD with BILLS
spect to a corporation, company, or applicable individual 
if the President— 
(1) determines such a waiver is in the national 
interest; and 
(2) provides notice to all appropriate Congres-
sional committees of the intent to grant such waiver 
15 days before the date such waiver is granted. 
Æ 
VerDate Nov 24 2008 
03:51 Oct 01, 2009
Jkt 079200
PO 00000
Frm 00007
Fmt 6652
Sfmt 6301
E:\BILLS\H3679.IH
H3679
smartinez on DSKB9S0YB1PROD with BILLS