I 
115TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION H. R. 4014 
To amend chapter 5 of title 31, United States Code, to require publication 
of information relating to regulatory conflicts of interest, and for other 
purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
OCTOBER 11, 2017 
Mr. CICILLINE (for himself, Mr. CONYERS, Mr. DEFAZIO, Mr. GRIJALVA, Mr. 
CONNOLLY, and Mr. DOGGETT) introduced the following bill; which was 
referred to the Committee on the Judiciary 
A BILL 
To amend chapter 5 of title 31, United States Code, to 
require publication of information relating to regulatory 
conflicts of interest, and for other purposes. 
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 ‘‘Determining if Regu-
latory Actions are in the Interest of the Nation or the 
Swamp Act of 2017’’ or as the ‘‘DRAIN the Swamp Act 
of 2017’’. 
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SEC. 2. REQUIRING GREATER TRANSPARENCY FOR REGU-
LATORY CONFLICTS OF INTEREST. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—Chapter 5 of title 5 is amended 
by inserting after chapter 6, the following new chapter: 
‘‘CHAPTER 6A—PUBLICATION OF INFOR-
MATION RELATING TO REGULATORY 
CONFLICTS OF INTEREST 
‘‘651. Agency Submission to Comptroller General. 
‘‘652. Definitions. 
‘‘§ 651. Agency Submission to Comptroller General 
‘‘(a) REGULATORY CONFLICTS OF INTEREST.—The 
head of each agency shall submit to the Comptroller Gen-
eral of the United States in such a manner as the Comp-
troller General may reasonably require, for each major 
rule that the agency proposes or finalizes, an assessment 
and quantification of any regulatory conflict of interest 
pertaining to that major rule. 
‘‘(b) EXCEPTION.—Nothing in this chapter shall 
apply to rules which an agency for good cause finds (and 
incorporates the finding and a brief statement of reasons 
therefor in the rules issued) that notice and public proce-
dure thereon are impracticable, unnecessary, or contrary 
to the public interest. 
‘‘(c) MAJOR RULES.—Before a major rule may take 
effect, the Federal agency promulgating such rule shall 
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submit to the Comptroller General and publish in the Fed-
eral Register a report pursuant to subsection (a). 
‘‘§ 652. Definitions 
‘‘In this chapter: 
‘‘(1) AGENCY; 
RULE; 
RULE
MAKING.—The 
terms ‘agency’, ‘rule’, and ‘rule making’ have the 
meanings given those terms in section 551 of title 5, 
United States Code. 
‘‘(2) MAJOR RULE.—The term ‘major rule’ has 
the meaning given that term in section 804 of title 
5, United States Code. 
‘‘(3) REGULATORY CONFLICT OF INTEREST.— 
The term ‘regulatory conflict of interest’ means a 
major rule that has a substantial pecuniary benefit 
to a covered person. 
‘‘(4) COVERED
PERSON.—The term ‘covered 
person’ means the President, senior advisors to the 
President, including special advisors that do not re-
ceive an official salary, the head of the agency 
issuing the rule, the director of the Office of Man-
agement and Budget, the Administrator of the Of-
fice of Information and Regulatory Affairs, or any 
individual who serves on a Regulatory Reform Task 
Force established by section 3 of Executive Order 
13777.’’. 
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(b) CLERICAL AMENDMENT.—The table of chapters 
for part I of title 5, United States Code, is amended by 
inserting after the item relating to chapter 5, the fol-
lowing: 
‘‘6. The Analysis of Regulatory Functions ..............................................
601
‘‘6A. Publication of Information Relating to Regulatory Conflicts of In-
terest .............................................................................
651’’. 
SEC. 3. ACUS STUDY AND REPORT ON REGULATORY CAP-
TURE. 
(a) IN GENERAL.—The Administrative Conference of 
the United States shall conduct a study on— 
(1) compliance by Federal agencies with this 
Act and the amendments made by this Act; and 
(2) effective measures to minimize regulatory 
capture. 
(b) REPORT.—Not later than 1 year after the date 
of the enactment of this Act, the Administrative Con-
ference of the United States shall submit a report to Con-
gress that contains the findings of the study conducted 
under subsection (a). 
SEC. 4. JUDICIAL REVIEW. 
(a) AGENCY STATEMENTS ON REGULATORY CON-
FLICTS OF INTEREST.— 
(1) IN
GENERAL.—Compliance or noncompli-
ance by any agency with the provisions of this sec-
tion shall be subject to judicial review only in ac-
cordance with this section. 
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(2) LIMITED REVIEW OF AGENCY COMPLIANCE 
OR NONCOMPLIANCE.— 
(A) IN GENERAL.—Agency compliance or 
noncompliance with the provisions of this sec-
tion shall be subject to judicial review only 
under section 706(1) of title 5, and only as pro-
vided under subparagraph (B). 
(B) FAILURE
TO
PREPARE
WRITTEN 
STATEMENT.—If an agency fails to prepare the 
written statement (including the preparation of 
the estimates, analyses, statements, or descrip-
tions) under this section, a court may compel 
the agency to prepare such written statement. 
(3) REVIEW OF AGENCY RULES.—In any judi-
cial review under any other Federal law of an agency 
rule for which a written statement is required under 
this section, the inadequacy or failure to prepare 
such statement shall not be used as a basis for stay-
ing, enjoining, invalidating or otherwise affecting 
such agency rule. 
(4) CERTAIN
INFORMATION
AS
PART
OF 
RECORD.—Any information generated under this 
section that is part of the rule making record for ju-
dicial review under the provisions of any other Fed-
eral law may be considered as part of the record for 
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judicial review conducted under such other provi-
sions of Federal law. 
(5) APPLICATION OF OTHER FEDERAL LAW.— 
For any petition under paragraph (2) the provisions 
of such other Federal law shall control all other mat-
ters, such as exhaustion of administrative remedies, 
the time for and manner of seeking review and 
venue, except that if such other Federal law does not 
provide a limitation on the time for filing a petition 
for judicial review that is less than 1 year, such limi-
tation shall be 1 year after a final rule is promul-
gated by the appropriate agency. 
(b) JUDICIAL REVIEW AND RULE OF CONSTRUC-
TION.—Except as provided in subsection (a)— 
(1) any information submitted under this sec-
tion shall not be subject to judicial review; and 
(2) no provision of this Act shall be construed 
to create any right or benefit, substantive or proce-
dural, enforceable by any person in any administra-
tive or judicial action. 
SEC. 5. DEFINITIONS. 
Terms used in this Act have the meaning given such 
terms in section 652 of title 5, United States Code. 
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SEC. 6. EFFECTIVE DATE. 
This Act shall take effect beginning on the date of 
enactment shall apply only to any agency rule for which 
a general notice of proposed rule making is made on or 
after such date. 
Æ 
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