Restoring Trust in Public Servants Act
Bill: H.R.6844 | Sponsor: Rep. Kim, Andy (D-NJ)
Policy area: Government Operations and Politics

Summary:
Restoring Trust in Public Servants Act
This bill prohibits a public official or the spouse or dependent of a public official from owning or trading a covered investment. Any official who violates the prohibition is subject to a civil fine equal to the official's salary for each month that the official is in violation.
The bill also prohibits Members of Congress from receiving any outside income or having any outside employment while in office.
Further, the bill revises post-employment lobbying restrictions on former Members of Congress. Specifically, it makes permanent the post-employment lobbying ban on a former Member of the Senate (currently, two years) or a former Member of the House of Representatives (currently, one year).

To prohibit Federal officials from owning covered investments, and for 
                            other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Restoring Trust in Public Servants 
Act''.

SEC. 2. OWNERSHIP OF COVERED INVESTMENTS.

    (a) Ownership of Covered Investments.--
            (1) Conduct during federal service.--Except as described in 
        paragraph (2), no covered official or family member of a Member 
        of Congress may own or trade any covered investment.
            (2) Compliance.--
                    (A) In general.--Except as provided in subparagraph 
                (B), to comply with the requirements under paragraph 
                (1), a covered official or family member of a Member of 
                Congress shall divest of any covered investment prior 
                to the expiration of the applicable compliance period.
                    (B) Applicable compliance period.--In this 
                subsection, the term ``applicable compliance period'' 
                means--
                            (i) with respect to a covered investment 
                        held by a covered official or family member of 
                        a Member of Congress on the date of the 
                        enactment of this Act, the 90-day period which 
                        begins on the date of the enactment of this 
                        Act;
                            (ii) with respect to a covered investment 
                        held by an individual on the date on which the 
                        individual becomes a covered official or 
                        becomes a family member of a Member of Congress 
                        after the date of the enactment of this Act, 
                        the 90-day period which begins on the date on 
                        which the individual becomes a covered official 
                        or becomes a family member of a Member of 
                        Congress; and
                            (iii) with respect to a covered investment 
                        which is first held by a covered official or a 
                        family member of a Member of Congress after the 
                        last day of either of the periods described in 
                        clauses (i) or (ii), the 90-day period which 
                        begins on the date on which such investment was 
                        first held by such official or family member.
    (b) Penalties.--
            (1) In general.--Except as provided in paragraph (2), a 
        covered official in violation of this section, as determined by 
        the supervising ethics office, shall pay a penalty in an amount 
        equal to the fee set forth under section 104(d)(1) of the 
        Ethics in Government Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App. 104(d)(1)) for 
        each such violation.
            (2) Exception.--
                    (A) Penalty.--An individual described in 
                subparagraph (C) who during any month is in violation 
                of this section with respect to a covered investment, 
                as determined by the supervising ethics office, shall 
                pay a penalty in an amount equal to--
                            (i) in the case of an individual who is a 
                        covered official, the salary of such official 
                        for that month; or
                            (ii) in the case of an individual who is a 
                        family member of a Member of Congress, the 
                        salary of the Member of Congress for that 
                        month.
                    (B) Amount determined without regard to number of 
                violations.--The amount of the penalty imposed under 
                subparagraph (A) shall apply to an individual without 
                regard to the number of covered investments with 
                respect to which the individual is in violation during 
                the month in which the penalty is imposed.
                    (C) Individuals described.--The individuals 
                described in this paragraph are the following:
                            (i) A Member of Congress or a family member 
                        of a Member of Congress.
                            (ii) The President.
                            (iii) The Vice-President.
                            (iv) A political appointee who was 
                        appointed to such position by the President, by 
                        and with the advice and consent of the Senate.
                            (v) A judicial officer.
    (c) Publication.--For each individual in violation of this section 
as determined by the supervising ethics office, such office shall make 
available a list, on a publicly accessible website of such office, 
detailing the names, occupation, and office of employment for each such 
individual, or in the case of a family member of a Member of Congress, 
the name of such family member and of such Member of Congress.
    (d) Application of Certificate of Divestiture Program.--For 
purposes of section 1043 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986--
            (1) any person required to dispose of any property by 
        reason of this section shall be treated as an eligible person;
            (2) this section shall be treated as a Federal conflict of 
        interest statute; and
            (3) in the case of an individual described in subsection 
        (e)(2)(A), the requirement of section 1043(b)(2)(B) of such 
        Code shall be treated as satisfied with respect to any written 
        determination if such determination is issued by the 
        supervising ethics office.
    (e) Definitions.--In this section:
            (1) Covered investment.--
                    (A) In general.--The term ``covered investment'' 
                means--
                            (i) an investment in a security, a 
                        commodity, or a future; and
                            (ii) any economic interest comparable to an 
                        interest described in clause (i) that is 
                        acquired through synthetic means, such as the 
                        use of a derivative, including an option, 
                        warrant, or other, similar means.
                    (B) Inclusions.--The term ``covered investment'' 
                includes an investment or economic interest described 
                in subparagraph (A) that is held directly, or in which 
                an individual has an indirect, beneficial, or economic 
                interest, through--
                            (i) an investment fund;
                            (ii) a trust;
                            (iii) an employee benefit plan; or
                            (iv) a deferred compensation plan, 
                        including a carried interest or other agreement 
                        tied to the performance of an investment, other 
                        than a fixed cash payment.
                    (C) Exclusions.--The term ``covered investment'' 
                does not include--
                            (i) a diversified mutual fund (including 
                        any holdings of such a fund);
                            (ii) a diversified exchange-traded fund 
                        (including any holdings of such a fund);
                            (iii) a United States Treasury bill, note, 
                        or bond;
                            (iv) compensation from the primary 
                        occupation of a spouse or dependent of a Member 
                        of Congress; or
                            (v) any investment fund held in a Federal, 
                        State, or local government employee retirement 
                        plan.
                    (D) Clarification.--An investment that achieves 
                compliance with applicable environmental, social, and 
                governance criteria shall not be considered to be a 
                covered investment solely by reason of that compliance.
            (2) Covered official.--The term ``covered official'' means 
        the following:
                    (A) In the legislative branch, a Member of Congress 
                and each of the following (other than an employee who 
                is considered an intern or a fellow for purposes of any 
                law or regulation establishing a limit on the number of 
                employees of an office of the House of Representatives 
                or Senate):
                            (i) An employee of a Member of the House of 
                        Representatives (as described in section 
                        207(e)(9)(E) of title 18, United States Code).
                            (ii) An employee of a Senator (as described 
                        in section 207(e)(9)(F) of title 18, United 
                        States Code).
                            (iii) An employee of a committee of 
                        Congress (as defined in section 207(e)(9)(A) of 
                        title 18, United States Code).
                            (iv) An employee on the leadership staff of 
                        the House of Representatives (as defined in 
                        section 207(e)(9)(H) of title 18, United States 
                        Code).
                            (v) An employee on the leadership staff of 
                        the Senate (as defined in section 207(e)(9)(I) 
                        of title 18, United States Code).
                    (B) In the executive branch--
                            (i) the President;
                            (ii) the Vice-President;
                            (iii) a political appointee; or
                            (iv) any officer or employee of the 
                        executive branch who is--
                                    (I) not a political appointee; and
                                    (II) occupies a position described 
                                under paragraphs (3) through (8) of 
                                section 101(f) of the Ethics in 
                                Government Act of 1978. (5 U.S.C. App. 
                                101).
                    (C) A judicial officer.
            (3) Executive branch.--The term ``executive branch'' has 
        the meaning given such term defined in section 109 of the 
        Ethics in Government Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App. 109).
            (4) Family member.--The term ``family member'' means a 
        spouse or a dependent child as defined in section 109 of the 
        Ethics in Government Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App. 109).
            (5) Judicial officer.--The term ``judicial officer''--
                    (A) has the meaning given such term in section 109 
                of the Ethics in Government Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App. 
                109); and
                    (B) includes bankruptcy judges and magistrate 
                judges.
            (6) Member of congress.--The term ``Member of Congress'' 
        has the meaning given such term defined in section 109 of the 
        Ethics in Government Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App. 109).
            (7) Political appointee.--The term ``political appointee'' 
        means any individual occupying a position in the executive 
        branch of Government--
                    (A) who was appointed to such position by the 
                President, by and with the advice and consent of the 
                Senate;
                    (B) described under sections 5312 through 5316 of 
                title 5, United States Code (relating to the Executive 
                Schedule);
                    (C) as a noncareer appointment in the Senior 
                Executive Service, as defined under paragraph (7) of 
                section 3132(a) of such title; or
                    (D) that is of a confidential or policy-determining 
                character under schedule C of subpart C of part 213 of 
                title 5, Code of Federal Regulations, or any other 
                position that is excepted from the competitive service 
                because of its confidential policy-determining, policy-
                making or policy-advocating character.
            (8) Supervising ethics office.--The term ``supervising 
        ethics office'' means any of the following:
                    (A) In the case of an individual described in 
                paragraph (2)(A)--
                            (i) the Select Committee on Ethics of the 
                        Senate; or
                            (ii) the Committee on Ethics of the House 
                        of Representatives.
                    (B) In the case of an individual described in 
                paragraph (2)(B), the Office of Government Ethics.
                    (C) In the case of a judicial officer, the Judicial 
                Conference.

SEC. 3. BAN ON ALL OUTSIDE EARNED INCOME AND ALL SERVICE ON BOARDS BY 
              MEMBERS OF CONGRESS.

    (a) Outside Earned Income.--
            (1) In general.--Section 501(a)(1) of the Ethics in 
        Government Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App. 501(a)(1)) is amended by 
        striking ``outside earned income attributable to such calendar 
        year which exceeds 15 percent'' and inserting ``any outside 
        earned income attributable to such calendar year, except that 
        such an officer or employee may have outside earned income 
        attributable to such calendar year which does not exceed 15 
        percent''.
            (2) Individuals becoming members during calendar year.--
        Section 501(a)(2) of such Act (5 U.S.C. App. 501(a)(2)) is 
        amended--
                    (A) by striking ``outside earned income 
                attributable to the portion of that calendar year which 
                occurs after such individual becomes a Member or such 
                an officer or employee which exceeds 15 percent'' and 
                inserting ``any outside earned income attributable to 
                the portion of that calendar year which occurs after 
                such individual becomes a Member or such an officer or 
                employee, except that such an officer or employee may 
                have outside earned income attributable to such portion 
                of that calendar year which does not exceed 15 
                percent''; and
                    (B) by striking ``such individual is a Member or 
                such officer or employee'' and inserting ``such 
                individual is such an officer or employee''.
            (3) Preserving authority of officers and employees of 
        congress to earn compensation from practicing medicine.--
        Section 502(a) of such Act (5 U.S.C. App. 502(a)) is amended by 
        striking ``fiduciary relationship'' each place it appears in 
        paragraphs (1) and (3) and inserting ``fiduciary relationship, 
        except that such an officer or employee of the House of 
        Representatives or Senate may receive such compensation if the 
        fiduciary relationship involves the practice of medicine''.
            (4) Application of ban to income earned from teaching.--
        Section 502(a)(5) of such Act (5 U.S.C. App. 502(a)(5)) is 
        amended by striking ``without the prior notification'' and 
        inserting ``except that such an officer or employee may receive 
        compensation for teaching with the prior notification''.
            (5) Definition.--Section 505 of such Act (5 U.S.C. App. 
        505) is amended by adding at the end the following:
            ``(6) The term `outside earned income', with respect to a 
        Member of Congress, has the meaning given such term in clause 
        4(d) of rule XXV of the Rules of the House of Representatives 
        for the One Hundred Seventeenth Congress, except that paragraph 
        (d)(1)(D) of such clause shall not apply. Such term shall apply 
        with respect to a Senator in the same manner as such term 
        applies to a Member of the House of Representatives under such 
        clause.''.
    (b) Service on Boards.--Section 502(a)(4) of such Act (5 U.S.C. 
App. 502(a)(4)) is amended to read as follows:
            ``(4) serve as an officer or member of the board of any 
        association, corporation, or other entity, except that--
                    ``(A) a Member and such an officer or employee may 
                serve without compensation as an officer or member of 
                the board of any nonprofit association, nonprofit 
                corporation, or other nonprofit entity, and
                    ``(B) such an officer or employee may serve without 
                compensation as an officer or member of any other 
                association, corporation or other entity; or''.

SEC. 4. LIFETIME LOBBYING BAN.

    (a) In General.--Section 207(e) of title 18, United States Code, is 
amended as follows:
            (1) Paragraph (1) is amended to read as follows:
            ``(1) Members of congress.--
                    ``(A) In general.--Any person who is a Senator or a 
                Member of the House of Representatives and who, after 
                that person leaves office, knowingly makes any lobbying 
                contacts to, or engages in lobbying activities with, a 
                covered executive branch official, or to any Member, 
                officer, or employee of either House of Congress, shall 
                be punished as provided in section 216 of this title.
                    ``(B) Definitions.--In this paragraph:
                            ``(i) The terms `lobbying activities', and 
                        `covered executive branch official' have the 
                        meanings given those terms in section 3 of the 
                        Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 
                        1602).
                            ``(ii) The term `lobbying contact' has the 
                        meaning given such term in section 3(8) of the 
                        Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 
                        1602(8)) except that subparagraph (B)(iv) of 
                        such paragraph shall not apply.''.
            (2) Paragraph (2) is amended--
                    (A) by striking ``(2) Any person'' and inserting 
                the following:
            ``(2) Officers and certain staff.--
                    ``(A) Officers and staff of the senate.--Any 
                person''; and
                    (B) by adding at the end the following:
                    ``(B) Officers of the house of representatives.--
                            ``(i) Any person who is an elected officer 
                        of the House of Representatives and who, within 
                        1 year after that person leaves office, 
                        knowingly makes, with the intent to influence, 
                        any communication to or appearance before any 
                        of the persons described in clause (ii), on 
                        behalf of any other person (except the United 
                        States) in connection with any matter on which 
                        such elected officer seeks action by a Member, 
                        officer, or employee of either House of 
                        Congress, in his or her official capacity, 
                        shall be punished as provided in section 216 of 
                        this title.
                            ``(ii) The persons referred to in clause 
                        (i) with respect to appearances or 
                        communications by a former elected officer are 
                        any Member, officer, or employee of the House 
                        of Representatives.''.
    (b) Restrictions Relating to Foreign Entities.--Section 207(f) of 
title 18, United States Code, is amended--
            (1) in paragraph (1), by striking ``Any person'' and 
        inserting ``Except as provided in paragraph (2), any person'';
            (2) by redesignating paragraphs (2) and (3) as paragraphs 
        (3) and (4), respectively;
            (3) by adding after paragraph (1) the following new 
        paragraph:
            ``(2) Member of congress.--With respect to the restrictions 
        under paragraph (1), any person who is a Member of Congress may 
        not engage in any of the activities under such paragraph at any 
        time after leaving office.''; and
            (4) in paragraph (4), as redesignated by paragraph (2)--
                    (A) by striking ``means'' and inserting ``means--
                '';
                    (B) by striking ``the government'' and inserting 
                ``(A) the government'';
                    (C) by striking the period and inserting ``; or''; 
                and
                    (D) by adding at the end the following:
            ``(B) in the case of a Member of Congress, any foreign 
        principal as defined in section 1(b) of the Foreign Agents 
        Registration Act of 1938, as amended (22 U.S.C. 611(b)).''.
    (c) Effective Date.--The amendments made by subsection (a) shall 
apply to individuals who leave office or employment to which such 
amendments apply on or after the date of commencement of the first 
session of the One Hundred Eighteenth Congress sine die or January 3, 
2023, whichever date is earlier.
                                 <all>