I 
118TH CONGRESS 
2D SESSION 
H. R. 8489 
To amend title 5, United States Code, to require additional ethics disclosures 
for the President, Vice President, and their family members, and for 
other purposes. 
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
MAY 22, 2024 
Mr. COMER (for himself and Ms. PORTER) introduced the following bill; which 
was referred to the Committee on Oversight and Accountability 
A BILL 
To amend title 5, United States Code, to require additional 
ethics disclosures for the President, Vice President, and 
their family members, 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 ‘‘Presidential Ethics Re-
form Act’’. 
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SEC. 2. ADDITIONAL REPORTING REQUIREMENTS FOR 
PRESIDENTS AND VICE PRESIDENTS. 
(a) ADDITIONAL
ETHICS
REPORTING
REQUIRE-
MENTS FOR PRESIDENTS AND VICE PRESIDENTS.—Sec-
tion 13103 of title 5, United States Code, is amended— 
(1) by redesignating subsection (i) as subsection 
(j); 
(2) by inserting after subsection (h) the fol-
lowing new subsection: 
‘‘(i) ADDITIONAL ETHICS REPORTS FOR PRESIDENTS 
AND VICE PRESIDENTS.— 
‘‘(1) UPON ENTERING.—Within 30 days of as-
suming the office of President or Vice President, an 
individual shall file a report containing the informa-
tion described in each of subsections (j) through (m) 
of section 13104 with respect to the 2 years pre-
ceding the assumption of such office. 
‘‘(2) ADDITIONAL ANNUAL REPORTS.—Any in-
dividual who occupies the office of President or Vice 
President shall file on or before May 15 a report 
containing, with respect to the prior calendar year 
for which such individual occupies the office, the in-
formation described in each of subsections (j) 
through (o) of section 13104. 
‘‘(3) POST-DEPARTURE REPORTS.— 
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‘‘(A) INITIAL POST-DEPARTURE REPORT.— 
Following the date on which an individual 
ceases to occupy the office of President or Vice 
President, such individual shall file a report 
containing, with respect to the final calendar 
year during which such individual occupied the 
office and any applicable partial calendar year 
immediately preceding such date, the informa-
tion described in each of subsections (j) through 
(o) of section 13104— 
‘‘(i) on or before the first-occurring 
May 15 after the full regular term in office 
of the individual has ended; or 
‘‘(ii) within 30 calendar days of the 
date that such individual ceases to occupy 
office if such date is prior to the end of 
their full regular term in office. 
‘‘(B) SUBSEQUENT POST-DEPARTURE RE-
PORTS.—Beginning on the date that is one year 
after the date on which an individual ceased to 
occupy the office of President or Vice President 
and annually thereafter, such individual shall 
file on or before May 15 a report containing, 
with respect to the prior year, the information 
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described in each of subsections (j) through (m) 
of section 13104. 
‘‘(C) DURATION.—The requirement under 
subparagraph (B) ends on the first-occurring 
May 15 following the date that is 2 years after 
the date on which such individual ceased to oc-
cupy such office. 
‘‘(4) 
REPORTS
REQUIRING
PERIODIC
UP-
DATES.—With respect to an individual required to 
submit a report under paragraphs (1) through (3), 
such individual shall— 
‘‘(A) with respect to subsection (n), submit 
an addendum to the report required under 
paragraphs (2) and (3)(A) to the entities under 
paragraph (5)(A) within 30 days of a new con-
flict of interest becoming known; and 
‘‘(B) with respect to subsection (o), submit 
an addendum to the report required under 
paragraphs (2) and (3)(A) to the entities des-
ignated under paragraph (5) within 30 days of 
a relative accompanying such individual on offi-
cial travel. 
‘‘(5) SUBMISSION OF REPORTS.— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Each report or adden-
dum required to be submitted under this sub-
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section shall be submitted to the following enti-
ties: 
‘‘(i) The Committee on Oversight and 
Accountability of the House of Representa-
tives. 
‘‘(ii) The Judiciary Committee of the 
Senate. 
‘‘(iii) The Director of the Office of 
Government Ethics to be made publicly 
available by the Director within 30 days of 
receipt, in conformity with the require-
ments under paragraph (6). 
‘‘(B) ADDITIONAL ENTITIES.—In the case 
of subsection (o), the report or addendum shall 
also be submitted to the following: 
‘‘(i) The Committee on Armed Serv-
ices of the House of Representatives. 
‘‘(ii) The Permanent Select Com-
mittee on Intelligence of the House of Rep-
resentatives. 
‘‘(iii) The Committee on Armed Serv-
ices of the Senate. 
‘‘(iv) The Select Committee on Intel-
ligence of the Senate. 
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‘‘(v) The Director of the White House 
Military Office to be made publicly avail-
able by the Director within 30 days of re-
ceipt, in conformity with the requirements 
under paragraph (6). 
‘‘(6) AVAILABILITY OF REPORTS.—The applica-
ble reports under paragraph (5) shall be made pub-
licly available on a website, which may utilize an ex-
isting government website, in a manner that— 
‘‘(A) allows the public to search, sort, fil-
ter, and download reports by the category of 
additional reports required under this sub-
section, the filer name or name of the filer’s rel-
ative, or a date or the date range of the period 
covered by the report; and 
‘‘(B) is fully compliant with the web design 
requirements under subsection (a) of section 3 
of the 21st Century Integrated Digital Experi-
ence Act (44 U.S.C. 3501 note).’’; and 
(3) in subsection (j) as redesignated by para-
graph (1), by inserting ‘‘, except subsection (i),’’ 
after ‘‘under this section’’. 
(b) CONTENTS OF ADDITIONAL ETHICS REPORTS.— 
Section 13104 of title 5, United States Code, is amended 
by adding at the end the following new subsections: 
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‘‘(j) GIFTS.—Each report filed pursuant to section 
13103(i) shall include a full and complete statement with 
respect to each gift valued at more than $10,000— 
‘‘(1) received by such individual during the ap-
plicable time period from a relative; and 
‘‘(2) received by a relative during the applicable 
time period. 
‘‘(k) LOANS.—Each report filed pursuant to section 
13103(i) shall include a full and complete statement with 
respect to all loans or loan repayments, including the 
terms and repayment schedules of each such loan or loan 
repayment, made during the applicable time period— 
‘‘(1) to such individual by a relative; or 
‘‘(2) to a relative of such an individual in an 
amount greater than $10,000, other than commer-
cial loans or repayments thereof, which may include 
loans that have customary interest rates based on 
commonly accepted categories of loans and that are 
evidenced by a written instrument between parties 
that defines the terms of repayment. 
‘‘(l) FOREIGN PAYMENTS.— 
‘‘(1) Each report filed pursuant to section 
13103(i) shall include a full and complete statement 
with respect to any payment, transfer, or other item 
of value received during the applicable time period 
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by such individual or a relative of such individual 
from a foreign principal or a foreign principal’s 
agent, representative, employee, or servant. 
‘‘(2) In this subsection, the term ‘foreign prin-
cipal’ includes— 
‘‘(A) a government of a foreign country 
and a foreign political party; 
‘‘(B) a person outside of the United 
States, unless it is established that such person 
is an individual and a citizen of and domiciled 
within the United States, or that such person is 
not an individual and is organized under or cre-
ated by the laws of the United States or of any 
State or other place subject to the jurisdiction 
of the United States and has its principal place 
of business within the United States; and 
‘‘(C) a partnership, association, corpora-
tion, organization or other combination of per-
sons organized under the laws of or having its 
principal place of business in a foreign country. 
‘‘(m) FEDERAL INCOME TAX RETURNS.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Each report filed pursuant 
to section 13103(i) shall include a copy of each ap-
plicable Federal income tax return with respect to 
the reporting individual for any taxable year which 
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ends in or with the time period covered by such re-
port. In the case of any such income tax return 
which is not filed with the Internal Revenue Service 
before the date on which such report is filed, such 
return shall be submitted under section 13103(i) not 
later than 30 days after the date that such income 
tax return is filed with the Internal Revenue Service. 
‘‘(2) CONFIDENTIALITY.—Before making pub-
licly available any income tax return under this sub-
chapter, the Director of the Office of Government 
Ethics shall redact such information as the Director 
determines is necessary for protecting against iden-
tity theft, such as social security numbers. 
‘‘(3) APPLICABLE FEDERAL INCOME TAX RE-
TURN.—For purposes of this subsection, the term 
‘applicable Federal income tax return’ means any 
Federal income tax return of— 
‘‘(A) a reporting individual; 
‘‘(B) an individual who is married (within 
the meaning of section 7703(a) of the Internal 
Revenue Code of 1986) to a reporting indi-
vidual for the taxable year to which such return 
relates; 
‘‘(C) any corporation or partnership which 
is controlled by any individual described in sub-
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paragraph (A) or (B) at any time during the 
taxable year to which such return relates; 
‘‘(D) the estate of any person described in 
(A) or (B) or any estate with respect to which 
any person described in subparagraph (A), (B), 
or (C) is an executor, or beneficiary at any time 
during the taxable year to which such return 
relates; and 
‘‘(E) any trust with respect to which any 
person described in subparagraph (A), (B), (C), 
or (D) is a grantor, fiduciary or beneficiary, or 
for which another trust described in this sub-
paragraph is a grantor or beneficiary, at any 
time during the taxable year to which such re-
turn relates. 
Such term shall include any schedule, attachment, or 
other document filed with such return. 
‘‘(4) CONTROL.—For purposes of paragraph 
(3)(C)— 
‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—Except as otherwise 
provided in this paragraph, control shall be de-
termined under the rules of paragraphs (2) and 
(3) of section 6038(e) of the Internal Revenue 
Code of 1986 (determined without regard to 
subparagraphs (A) and (B) of such paragraph 
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(2) and without regard to subparagraph (C) of 
paragraph (3) thereof). 
‘‘(B) RESTRICTION ON FAMILY ATTRIBU-
TION.— 
‘‘(i) IN
GENERAL.—Except as pro-
vided in clause (ii), for purposes of apply-
ing subparagraph (A)— 
‘‘(I) section 318 of the Internal 
Revenue Code of 1986 shall be ap-
plied without regard to subsection 
(a)(1)(A)(ii) thereof; and 
‘‘(II) section 267(c) of the Inter-
nal Revenue Code of 1986 shall be ap-
plied by treating the family of an indi-
vidual as including only such individ-
ual’s spouse (in lieu of the application 
of paragraph (4) thereof). 
‘‘(ii) EXCEPTION FOR RECENT TRANS-
FER TO FAMILY MEMBERS.—For purposes 
of determining whether any corporation or 
partnership is controlled by a reporting in-
dividual under paragraph (3)(C) for any 
taxable year, clause (i) shall not apply if 
such corporation or partnership was con-
trolled by such reporting individual (after 
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application of clause (i)) at any time dur-
ing the 4 immediately preceding taxable 
years. 
‘‘(5) APPLICATION TO AMENDED RETURNS.— 
For purposes of this paragraph (1), any amendment 
or supplement to a return of tax shall be treated as 
for the taxable year to which the underlying return 
relates. 
‘‘(n) CONFLICTS OF INTEREST.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Each report filed pursuant 
to section 13103(i) shall include a full and complete 
statement with respect to each instance during the 
applicable time period in which the reporting indi-
vidual or a relative of such individual— 
‘‘(A) knows that a particular matter in-
volving specific parties had a direct effect or is 
likely to have both a direct and predictable ef-
fect on the financial interest of such individual 
or such relative; or 
‘‘(B) knows that a person with whom the 
individual or such relative has a covered rela-
tionship, as described in paragraph (2), is or 
represents a party to such matter. 
‘‘(2) COVERED
RELATIONSHIP.—With respect 
to a particular matter involving specific parties, an 
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individual or relative has a covered relationship with 
such a party or a representative of such a party if 
the individual or relative— 
‘‘(A) has served, is serving, or is seeking to 
serve as an officer, director, trustee, general 
partner, agent, attorney, consultant, contractor 
or employee of the party or a representative; 
‘‘(B) otherwise has or seeks a business, 
contractual, or other financial relationship with 
the party or a representative that involves other 
than a routine consumer transaction; 
‘‘(C) is a member of the household of the 
party or is otherwise a family member of the 
party or a representative with a close personal 
relationship; or 
‘‘(D) is otherwise an active participant in 
an organization in which the party or a rep-
resentative is also an active participant. 
‘‘(3) DEFINITIONS.—In this subsection: 
‘‘(A) DIRECT
AND
PREDICTABLE
EF-
FECT.—For the purposes of the term ‘direct 
and predictable effect’— 
‘‘(i) a ‘direct effect’ (of a particular 
matter on a financial interest)— 
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‘‘(I) is characterized by a close 
causal link between any decision or 
action to be taken in the matter and 
any effect or expected effect of the 
matter on the financial interest, even 
if the effect does not occur imme-
diately; 
‘‘(II) is not characterized by— 
‘‘(aa) an attenuated chain of 
causation or a chain of causation 
contingent upon the occurrence 
of events that are speculative or 
that are independent of, and un-
related to, the matter; or 
‘‘(bb) an effect on a finan-
cial interest only as a con-
sequence of effects on the general 
economy; and 
‘‘(ii) a ‘predictable effect’ (of a par-
ticular matter on a financial interest) is 
characterized by a reasonable expectation 
of a real, as opposed to a speculative possi-
bility, that the matter will affect the finan-
cial interest regardless of whether the mag-
nitude of the gain or loss be known, or the 
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dollar amount of the gain or loss is imma-
terial. 
‘‘(B) PARTICULAR
MATTER
INVOLVING 
SPECIFIC PARTIES.—The term ‘particular mat-
ter involving specific parties’ means any judicial 
or other proceeding, application, request for a 
ruling or other determination, contract, claim, 
controversy, investigation, charge, accusation, 
arrest or other particular matter involving a 
specific party or parties in which the United 
States is a party or has a direct and substantial 
interest. 
‘‘(o) ACCOMPANIMENT ON OFFICIAL TRAVEL.— 
‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Each report or addendum 
filed pursuant to section 13103(i) shall, with respect 
to the applicable time period, include a full and com-
plete statement with respect to the following: 
‘‘(A) Each instance on which a relative 
(other than a minor child) accompanied the re-
porting individual on official travel and a de-
scription of the official purpose for the relative 
to accompany the reporting individual, includ-
ing a listing of related events and meetings on 
the trip which the relative attended. 
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‘‘(B) Each instance on which the accom-
paniment of the relative under subparagraph 
(A) also related to a commercial purpose. 
‘‘(C) A description of each commercial pur-
pose under subparagraph (B) to which the ac-
companiment under subparagraph (A) is re-
lated. 
‘‘(D) The name, professional title or role, 
and associated entity of each person involved in 
any meeting or other engagement or activity 
with the relative relating to each commercial 
purpose described in subparagraph (C). 
‘‘(E) Each instance on which the accom-
paniment of the relative under subparagraph 
(A) included a meeting with a foreign principal 
that otherwise exceeded the scope of the official 
purpose of the travel described in subparagraph 
(A). 
‘‘(2) CLASSIFIED ANNEX.—The reporting indi-
vidual may submit a classified annex to the report 
or addendum required under this subsection to pro-
tect properly classified national security information. 
‘‘(p) INFORMATION RELATING TO RELATIVES.— 
‘‘(1) IN CASE OF ESTRANGEMENT.—With re-
spect to each report or addendum required by sec-
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tion 13103(i) containing the information required in 
each of subsections (j) through (o), the reporting in-
dividual may exclude the information of any relative 
if the reporting individual— 
‘‘(A) certifies to the Director of the Office 
of Government Ethics that the reporting indi-
vidual— 
‘‘(i) engaged in a sustained and dili-
gent effort to contact or connect with any 
such relative in order to acquire the rel-
evant information from any such relative; 
and 
‘‘(ii) is unable to acquire relevant in-
formation from any such relative to comply 
with the reporting requirements under sub-
sections (j) through (o) despite the effort 
engaged in under clause (i); and 
‘‘(B) provides documentation of such en-
gagement. 
‘‘(2) IN CASE OF RELATIVE WHO IS A FEDERAL 
EMPLOYEE
OR
OFFICEHOLDER.—With respect to 
each report or addendum required by section 
13103(i) containing the information required in each 
of subsections (j) through (o), the reporting indi-
vidual may exclude the information of any relative if 
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