Title: Congressional Subpoena Compliance and Enforcement Act of 2017
Policy area: Law

Summary:
Congressional Subpoena Compliance and Enforcement Act of 2017
This bill amends the federal judicial code to establish certain rules that apply in a civil action by the Senate, House of Representatives, or a congressional committee or subcommittee against an individual who receives, but fails to comply with, a congressional subpoena.
Additionally, the bill amends the Revised Statutes of the United States to establish requirements for the recipient of a subpoena from a congressional committee or subcommittee.

[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4010 Introduced in House (IH)]

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115th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 4010

To amend the Revised Statutes of the United States and title 28, United 
   States Code, to enhance compliance with requests for information 
pursuant to legislative power under Article I of the Constitution, and 
                          for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                            October 11, 2017

Mr. Issa (for himself, Mr. Goodlatte, Mr. Smith of Texas, Mr. Sessions, 
 and Mr. Farenthold) introduced the following bill; which was referred 
                   to the Committee on the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To amend the Revised Statutes of the United States and title 28, United 
   States Code, to enhance compliance with requests for information 
pursuant to legislative power under Article I of the Constitution, 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 ``Congressional Subpoena Compliance 
and Enforcement Act of 2017''.

SEC. 2. ENFORCEMENT OF CONGRESSIONAL SUBPOENAS.

    (a) In General.--Chapter 85 of title 28, United States Code, is 
amended by inserting after section 1365 the following:
``Sec. 1365a. Congressional actions against subpoena recipients
    ``(a) Civil Action.--
            ``(1) Special rules.--In any civil action brought by the 
        United States House of Representatives, the United States 
        Senate, or a committee or subcommittee thereof, against the 
        recipient of a subpoena to secure declaratory, injunctive, or 
        other relief as may be appropriate concerning the failure to 
        comply with a subpoena issued by a congressional committee or 
        subcommittee, the following rules shall apply:
                    ``(A) The action shall be filed in a United States 
                district court of competent jurisdiction.
                    ``(B) It shall be the duty of the United States 
                district courts, the United States courts of appeal, 
                and the Supreme Court of the United States to advance 
                on the docket and to expedite to the greatest possible 
                extent the disposition of any such action and appeal.
                    ``(C) If a three-judge court is expressly requested 
                by the plaintiff in the initial pleading, the action 
                shall be heard by a three-judge court convened pursuant 
                to section 2284 of title 28, United States Code, and 
                shall be reviewable only by appeal directly to the 
                Supreme Court of the United States. Such appeal shall 
                be taken by the filing of a notice of appeal within 10 
                days, and the filing of a jurisdictional statement 
                within 30 days, of the entry of the final decision.
            ``(2) Monetary penalties in cases involving government 
        agencies.--
                    ``(A) The court may impose monetary penalties 
                directly against the head of a government agency or a 
                component thereof held to have willfully failed to 
                comply with any part of a congressional subpoena.
                    ``(B) No appropriated funds, funds provided from 
                any accounts in the Treasury, or funds derived from the 
                collection of fees shall be used to pay any monetary 
                penalty imposed by the court pursuant to this section.
            ``(3) Waiver of privilege.--Any assertion of a privilege or 
        other ground for noncompliance (whether statutory, common law, 
        or otherwise) asserted by the recipient of a congressional 
        subpoena may be determined to have been waived as to any 
        particular record withheld from production if the court finds 
        that the recipient failed in a timely manner to comply with the 
        requirement of section 105 of the Revised Statutes of the 
        United States that it produce a privilege log with respect to 
        such record.
            ``(4) Definition.--For purposes of this section, the term 
        `government agency' means an executive department listed in 
        section 101 of title 5, United States Code, an independent 
        establishment, commission, board, bureau, division, or office 
        in the executive branch, or other agency of the Federal 
        Government, including wholly or partly owned Government 
        corporations.''.
    (b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of sections for chapter 85 of 
title 28, United States Code, is amended by inserting after the item 
relating to section 1365 the following:

``1365a. Congressional actions against subpoena recipients.''.

SEC. 3. COMPLIANCE WITH CONGRESSIONAL SUBPOENAS.

    (a) In General.--Chapter seven of title II of the Revised Statutes 
of the United States (2 U.S.C. 191 et seq.) is amended by adding at the 
end the following:

``SEC. 105. RESPONSE TO CONGRESSIONAL SUBPOENAS.

    ``(a) Subpoena by Congressional Committee.--Any recipient of any 
subpoena from a congressional committee or subcommittee shall appear 
and testify or produce records in a manner consistent with the subpoena 
and this section.
    ``(b) Congressional Subpoenas for Records.--
            ``(1) Identification of records withheld.--In the case of a 
        record that is withheld, in whole or in part, by the subpoena 
        recipient, the subpoena recipient shall provide a log 
        containing the following information concerning such record:
                    ``(A) An express assertion and description of the 
                legal basis asserted for withholding the record.
                    ``(B) The type of record.
                    ``(C) The general subject matter.
                    ``(D) The date, author, and addressee.
                    ``(E) The relationship of the author and addressee 
                to each other.
                    ``(F) The custodian of the record.
                    ``(G) Any other descriptive information that may be 
                produced or disclosed regarding the record that will 
                enable the congressional committee or subcommittee 
                issuing the subpoena to assess the legal basis asserted 
                for withholding the record.
            ``(2) Missing records.--In the case of any record 
        responsive to the subpoena submitted under paragraph (1) that 
        was, but no longer is, in the possession, custody, or control 
        of the subpoena recipient, the subpoena recipient shall 
        identify the record (including the date, author, subject, and 
        each recipient of the record) and explain the circumstances 
        under which the record ceased to be in the possession, custody, 
        or control of the subpoena recipient.
            ``(3) Electronic records.--Electronic records shall be 
        produced pursuant to this subsection in their native or 
        original file format. Electronic records shall be delivered on 
        a storage device (such as compact disk, memory stick, or thumb 
        drive) and, to the extent feasible, shall be organized, 
        identified, and indexed electronically and shall include an 
        index describing the contents of the production.
    ``(b) Definitions.--For purposes of this section the term `record' 
includes any books, papers, documents, data, or other objects requested 
in a subpoena issued by a congressional committee or subcommittee.''.
    (b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of contents for chapter 7 of 
title II of the Revised Statutes of the United States is amended by 
adding at the end the following:

``Sec. 105. Response to congressional subpoenas.''.

SEC. 4. RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.

    Nothing in this Act shall be interpreted to diminish Congress' 
inherent authority or previously established methods and practices for 
enforcing compliance with congressional subpoenas, nor shall anything 
in this Act be interpreted to establish Congress' acceptance of any 
privilege or other legal basis for noncompliance with a congressional 
subpoena.
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