Answer COVID FOIAs Now Act
Bill: H.R.6321 | Sponsor: Rep. Roy, Chip (R-TX)
Policy area: Government Operations and Politics

Summary:
Answer COVID FOIAs Now Act
This bill addresses pending Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests related to COVID-19.
Specifically, the bill requires each federal agency, within 100 calendar days, to complete all pending FOIA requests related to a drug or medical device to prevent, diagnose, mitigate, or treat COVID-19; gain-of-function or potential pandemic pathogen research; or a policy, rule, or standard requiring COVID-19 vaccination of individuals.
For each calendar day on which any applicable FOIA request remains pending, the Department of the Treasury must transfer $1 million from the appropriations account of the office of the head of the agency to the Countermeasures Injury Compensation Program of the Health Resources and Services Administration.
A person submitting such a request shall be deemed to have demonstrated a compelling need for expedited processing.

To require the head of each Federal agency, within 100 calendar days, 
to complete all pending Freedom of Information Act requests related to 
   a drug or medical device to prevent, diagnose, mitigate, or treat 
COVID-19, gain-of-function or potential pandemic pathogen research, or 
     a policy, rule, or standard requiring COVID-19 vaccination of 
                  individuals, 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 ``Answer COVID FOIAs Now Act''.

SEC. 2. COMPLETION OF FOIA REQUESTS RELATING TO DRUGS AND MEDICAL 
              DEVICES TO PREVENT, DIAGNOSE, MITIGATE, OR TREAT COVID-
              19.

    (a) In General.--
            (1) Completion of requests.--Notwithstanding any other 
        provision of law, the head of each Federal agency shall, not 
        later than 100 calendar days after the date of enactment of 
        this Act, complete all requests for records made under section 
        552(a) of title 5, United States Code, that are--
                    (A) made to the Federal agency;
                    (B) pending as of the date of enactment of this 
                Act; and
                    (C) related to--
                            (i) a drug or medical device to prevent, 
                        diagnose, mitigate, or treat COVID-19;
                            (ii) gain-of-function research or potential 
                        pandemic pathogen research; or
                            (iii) a policy, rule, or standard requiring 
                        COVID-19 vaccination of individuals.
            (2) Rule of construction.--Nothing in this Act shall be 
        construed to require the disclosure of information that is 
        exempt from disclosure under section 552(b) of title 5, United 
        States Code.
    (b) List of Pending Requests.--The head of a Federal agency shall 
publicly and electronically make available a list of all requests 
described in subsection (a)(1).
    (c) Reports.--
            (1) Initial report.--Not later than 7 business days after 
        the date of enactment of this Act, the head of each Federal 
        agency shall provide the list required by subsection (b) to--
                    (A) the Committee on the Judiciary, the Committee 
                on Energy and Commerce, and the Committee on Oversight 
                and Reform of the House of Representatives;
                    (B) the Committee on the Judiciary, the Committee 
                on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions, and the 
                Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs 
                of the Senate; and
                    (C) the Secretary of the Treasury.
            (2) Subsequent report.--Not later than 100 calendar days 
        after the date of enactment of this Act, the head of each 
        Federal agency shall provide a list of all requests described 
        in subsection (a)(1) that remain pending, if any, to--
                    (A) the committees referred to in paragraph (1); 
                and
                    (B) the Secretary of the Treasury.
    (d) Definitions.--In this section:
            (1) The term ``Federal agency'' means an agency as that 
        term is defined in section 551 of title 5, United States Code.
            (2) The term ``gain-of-function research'' means any 
        research that may be reasonably anticipated to confer an 
        attribute to a pathogen such that the pathogen would have 
        enhanced pathogenicity or transmissibility in mammals.
            (3) The term ``potential pandemic pathogen'' means a 
        pathogen that, prior to any gain-of-function research--
                    (A) is likely highly transmissible and likely 
                capable of wide and uncontrollable spread in human 
                populations; and
                    (B) is likely highly virulent and likely to cause 
                significant morbidity or mortality in humans.

SEC. 3. PENALTY FOR FAILURE TO DISPOSE OF PENDING FOIA REQUESTS.

    Beginning on the day that is 101 calendar days after the date of 
enactment of this Act, the Secretary of the Treasury shall transfer 
from the appropriations account of the office of the head of a Federal 
agency (as defined in section 2(d)) to the Countermeasures Injury 
Compensation Program of the Health Resources and Services 
Administration $1,000,000 for each calendar day on which any request 
described in section 2(a)(1) remains pending with such Federal agency.

SEC. 4. COMPELLING NEED FOR EXPEDITED PROCESSING.

    With respect to affirming or denying a request for expedited 
processing of a record under section 552(a)(6)(E) of title 5, United 
States Code, a person submitting such request to a Federal agency (as 
defined in section 2(d)) shall be deemed to have demonstrated a 
compelling need for such record if such record is related to--
            (1) a drug or medical device to prevent, diagnose, 
        mitigate, or treat COVID-19;
            (2) gain-of-function research or potential pandemic 
        pathogen research (as such terms are defined in section 2(e)); 
        or
            (3) a policy, rule, or standard requiring COVID-19 
        vaccination of individuals.
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