Safeguarding Awards for Victims and Enforcement Settlements Act of 2022
Bill: S.4444 | Sponsor: Sen. Lankford, James (R-OK)
Policy area: Law

Summary:
Safeguarding Awards for Victims and Enforcement Settlements Act of 2022
This bill prohibits the federal government from entering into or enforcing a settlement agreement on behalf of the United States that provides for a payment to any person or entity other than the United States that is not a party to a dispute. The bill provides exceptions to allow certain payments, including those that (1) remedy actual harm (including to the environment) caused by the party making the payment, and (2) constitute a payment for services rendered in connection with the case.

To limit donations made pursuant to settlement agreements to which the 
           United States is a party, 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 ``Safeguarding Awards for Victims and 
Enforcement Settlements Act of 2022''.

SEC. 2. LIMITATION ON DONATIONS MADE PURSUANT TO SETTLEMENT AGREEMENTS 
              TO WHICH THE UNITED STATES IS A PARTY.

    (a) Limitation on Required Donations.--
            (1) In general.--Except as provided in paragraph (2), an 
        official or agent of the Government may not enter into or 
        enforce any settlement agreement on behalf of the United 
        States, directing or providing for a payment or loan, in cash 
        or in kind, to any person or entity other than the United 
        States that is not a party to the dispute.
            (2) Exceptions.--An official or agency of the Government 
        may enter into or enforce a settlement agreement on behalf of 
        the United States described in paragraph (1) only if--
                    (A) the payment or loan provides restitution for or 
                is otherwise intended to directly remedy actual harm 
                (including to the environment) directly caused by the 
                party making the payment or loan, and, to the extent 
                any victim thereof was an identifiable person, suffered 
                by the payee or lendee, which shall not include an 
                agreement that requires a defendant in an environmental 
                case, in lieu of payment to the Federal Government, to 
                expend funds to provide goods or services to third 
                parties for supplemental environmental projects;
                    (B) the payment or loan constitutes payment for 
                services rendered in connection with the case, 
                including for settlement or compliance monitoring or 
                for divestiture trustee services, or a payment pursuant 
                to section 3663 of title 18, United States Code;
                    (C) in cases of foreign official corruption, a 
                trusted third party is required to facilitate the 
                repatriation and use of funds to directly benefit those 
                harmed by the foreign corruption; or
                    (D) payment is expressly authorized by statute or 
                regulation, including restitution and forfeiture.
    (b) Prohibition on Cy-Pres Redistributions in Settlements.--Except 
as otherwise provided by law, when the United States has entered into a 
settlement involving a fund for payments to individual claimants, 
amounts remaining after all claims on the settlement fund have been 
satisfied shall be repaid proportionally to each party who contributed 
to the settlement fund.
    (c) Effective Date.--Subsections (a) and (b) shall apply to any 
settlement agreement concluded on or after the date of enactment of 
this Act.
    (d) Reports on Settlement Agreements.--
            (1) In general.--Not later than September 30 of the first 
        fiscal year that begins after the date of the enactment of this 
        Act, and of each fiscal year thereafter, the head of each 
        Federal agency shall submit electronically to the Congressional 
        Budget Office a report on each settlement agreement described 
        in subsection (a)(1) entered into by that Federal agency during 
        such fiscal year (other than a settlement agreement for a qui 
        tam action or under section 586(a) of title 28, United States 
        Code) that meets the requirements of an exception described in 
        subparagraph (A) or (B) of subsection (a)(2), which shall 
        include including the parties to each such settlement 
        agreement, the source of the settlement funds, and where and 
        how such funds were and will be distributed.
            (2) Prohibition on additional funding.--No additional funds 
        are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this subsection.
            (3) Sunset.--This subsection shall cease to be effective on 
        the date that is 7 years after the date of enactment of this 
        Act.
    (e) Annual Audit Requirement.--
            (1) In general.--Not later than September 30 of the first 
        fiscal year that begins after the date of the enactment of this 
        Act, and of each fiscal year thereafter, the Inspector General 
        of each Federal agency shall submit a report on any settlement 
        agreement entered into by that Federal agency during such 
        fiscal year in violation of this section to--
                    (A) the Committee on the Judiciary, the Committee 
                on the Budget, and the Committee on Appropriations of 
                the Senate; and
                    (B) the Committee on the Judiciary, the Committee 
                on the Budget, and the Committee on Appropriations of 
                the House of Representatives.
            (2) Prohibition on additional funding.--No additional funds 
        are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this subsection.
    (f) Definitions.--In this section:
            (1) Payment.--The term ``payment'' means any transfer of 
        money, cash, or other consideration, including constructive 
        transfer in lieu of money.
            (2) Settlement agreement.--The term ``settlement 
        agreement'' means a settlement agreement resolving a civil 
        action or potential civil action, participation in any pretrial 
        diversion program, a plea agreement, a deferred prosecution 
        agreement, or a non-prosecution agreement.
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