Title: Presidential Tax Disclosure Act of 2017
Policy area: Government Operations and Politics

Summary:
Presidential Tax Disclosure Act of 2017
This bill requires any individual holding the office of President to submit federal tax returns to the Office of Government Ethics (OGE). The individual must submit: (1) each return filed with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) for any year ending while the individual is President, and (2) each return filed with the IRS for the three years before the individual assumed office.
After receiving the returns, the OGE must: (1) make the returns publicly available on the Internet, and (2) submit the returns to specified congressional committees.
No information may be redacted from the disclosed returns except for: (1) Social Security, tax identification, and account identification numbers; and (2) the names of any dependent of the taxpayer.
The bill establishes civil and criminal penalties to enforce the disclosure requirements. It also amends the Internal Revenue Code to permit the IRS to disclose to the OGE any federal tax return that is required to be disclosed by this bill, but has not been submitted to the OGE within a specified deadline.

[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 540 Introduced in House (IH)]

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115th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 540

  To require the disclosure of the Federal income tax returns of the 
                               President.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            January 13, 2017

  Mr. Cicilline (for himself, Ms. Bonamici, Mr. Beyer, Ms. Titus, Ms. 
Clark of Massachusetts, Mr. DeFazio, Mr. Ryan of Ohio, Ms. Schakowsky, 
Mr. Ted Lieu of California, Ms. Velazquez, Ms. Kaptur, Mr. Nadler, Mr. 
  Evans, Ms. Roybal-Allard, Mr. Brendan F. Boyle of Pennsylvania, Mr. 
 Ellison, Mr. Meeks, Mr. Garamendi, Ms. Slaughter, Mr. Cohen, and Ms. 
   Lofgren) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
 Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, and in addition to the 
Committee on Ways and Means, for a period to be subsequently determined 
 by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as 
        fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
  To require the disclosure of the Federal income tax returns of the 
                               President.

    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 ``Presidential Tax Disclosure Act of 
2017''.

SEC. 2. DISCLOSURE OF FEDERAL INCOME TAX RETURNS OF THE PRESIDENT.

    (a) In General.--Any individual holding the office of President 
shall submit to the Director of the Office of Government Ethics a copy 
of each Federal income tax return filed by such individual with the 
Internal Revenue Service for any taxable year ending during the period 
such individual holds such office. Such copy shall be so submitted not 
later than the earlier of the date which is 90 days after such return 
is so filed or the end of the calendar year in which such return is so 
filed.
    (b) Application to Certain Prior Year Returns.--Not later than 90 
days after an individual first assumes the office of President, such 
individual shall submit to the Director of the Office of Government 
Ethics a copy of each Federal income tax return filed by such 
individual with the Internal Revenue Service for the 3 most recent 
taxable years ending before the date on which such individual first 
assumes such office.
    (c) Public Disclosure.--In the case of any Federal income tax 
return received by the Director of the Office of Government Ethics 
under subsection (a) or (b) of this section or section 6103(l)(23) of 
the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, the Director shall, not later than 7 
business days after receiving such return--
            (1) make such return publicly available on the Internet; 
        and
            (2) submit such return to the Committees on the Judiciary, 
        Ways and Means, and Oversight and Government Reform of the 
        House of Representatives and to the Committees on the Judiciary 
        and Finance of the Senate.
    (d) Special Rules.--
            (1) Disclosure of entire return.--Any reference in this 
        section to a Federal income tax return includes all schedules, 
        supplements, amendments, and attachments with respect to such 
        return. In the case of any such schedule, supplement, 
        amendment, or attachment which is not filed with the Internal 
        Revenue Service on the same date as the return, such schedule, 
        supplement, amendment, or attachment shall be treated as a 
        separate return for purposes of determining the deadline for 
        submission and disclosure under this section.
            (2) Permitted redactions.--No information may be redacted 
        from any return submitted or disclosed under this section, 
        except the following information:
                    (A) Any Social Security number of any individual.
                    (B) Any taxpayer identification number of any 
                person.
                    (C) Any account identification number.
                    (D) Any name of any dependent of the taxpayer.
            (3) Application to spouses.--
                    (A) Joint returns.--In the case of any return which 
                is filed jointly with the spouse of any individual, the 
                entire return shall be treated as the return of such 
                individual for purposes of this section.
                    (B) Separate returns.--If the spouse of any 
                individual to whom subsection (a) applies files a 
                Federal income tax return which is separate from such 
                individual, this section and section 6103(l)(23) of the 
                Internal Revenue Code of 1986 shall apply to such 
                return in the same manner as such section would apply 
                if such return were filed by such individual.
    (e) Enforcement by Attorney General.--
            (1) The Attorney General may bring a civil action in any 
        appropriate United States district court against any individual 
        who knowingly falsifies or who knowingly fails to submit or 
        disclose any information that such individual is required to 
        submit or disclose pursuant to this section or section 
        6103(l)(23) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986. The court may 
        assess against such individual a civil penalty in an amount of 
        not more than $50,000.
            (2) It shall be unlawful for any person to knowingly--
                    (A) falsify any information that such person is 
                required to submit or disclose under this section or 
                section 6103(l)(23) of the Internal Revenue Code of 
                1986; or
                    (B) fail to so submit or disclose such information.
            (3) Any person who--
                    (A) violates paragraph (2)(A) shall be fined not 
                more than $50,000, imprisoned for not more than 6 
                months, or both, and
                    (B) violates paragraph (2)(B) shall be fined not 
                more than $50,000, imprisoned for not more than 6 
                months or both.
            (4) The Director of the Office of Government Ethics, or any 
        Committee referred to in subsection (c)(2), may refer to the 
        Attorney General the name of any individual which such Director 
        or Committee has reasonable cause to believe has violated 
        paragraph (2).
    (f) Alternative Disclosure by Secretary of the Treasury.--Section 
6103(l) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by adding at 
the end the following new paragraph:
            ``(23) Disclosure of tax returns of the president.--
                    ``(A) In general.--If any Federal income tax return 
                required to be submitted to the Director of the Office 
                of Government Ethics under subsection (a) or (b) of 
                section 2 of the Presidential Tax Disclosure Act of 
                2017 is not so submitted before the date specified in 
                such subsection with respect to such submission (or if 
                any such return so submitted is incomplete or 
                inaccurate), the Secretary shall disclose such return 
                to the Director of the Office of Government Ethics not 
                later than 30 days after such date.
                    ``(B) Redactions; etc.--Rules similar to the rules 
                of section 2(d) of the Presidential Tax Disclosure Act 
                of 2017 shall apply for purposes of this paragraph, 
                except that the Secretary shall redact the information 
                described in subparagraphs (A) through (D) of paragraph 
                (2) of such section before disclosing such return under 
                subparagraph (A).
                    ``(C) Redisclosure.--Return information disclosed 
                under subparagraph (A) may be redisclosed by the 
                Director of the Office of Government Ethics as provided 
                in section 2(c) of the Presidential Tax Disclosure Act 
                of 2017.''.
    (g) Effective Date.--This section, and the amendments made by this 
section, shall apply with respect to individuals assuming the office of 
President after December 31, 2016.
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