Title: REIGN Act of 2020
Policy area: Government Operations and Politics

Summary:
Restraint of Executive In Governing Nation Act of 2020 or the REIGN Act of 2020
This bill requires the President to disclose to Congress presidential emergency action documents within a specified time frame. Such documents may include draft executive orders, proclamations, and messages to Congress prepared in advance of anticipated emergencies.
Specifically, the President shall submit to Congress (1) any such document not later than 30 days after the conclusion of the process for approval, adoption, or revision; and (2) all such documents in existence before this bill's enactment date not later than 15 days after such date.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 4279 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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116th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 4279

To require the disclosure to Congress of presidential emergency action 
                               documents.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             July 22, 2020

Mr. Markey (for himself and Mr. Bennet) introduced the following bill; 
which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security 
                        and Governmental Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To require the disclosure to Congress of presidential emergency action 
                               documents.

    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 ``Restraint of Executive In Governing 
Nation Act of 2020'' or the ``REIGN Act of 2020''.

SEC. 2. DISCLOSURE TO CONGRESS OF PRESIDENTIAL EMERGENCY ACTION 
              DOCUMENTS.

    (a) In General.--Not later than 30 days after the conclusion of the 
process for approval, adoption, or revision of any presidential 
emergency action document, the President shall submit that document to 
the appropriate congressional committees.
    (b) Documents in Existence Before Date of Enactment.--Not later 
than 15 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the President 
shall submit to the appropriate congressional committees all 
presidential emergency action documents in existence before such date 
of enactment.
    (c) Definitions.--In this section:
            (1) Appropriate congressional committees.--The term 
        ``appropriate congressional committees'', with respect to a 
        presidential emergency action document submitted under 
        subsection (a) or (b), means--
                    (A) the Committee on Homeland Security and 
                Governmental Affairs, the Committee on the Judiciary, 
                and the Select Committee on Intelligence of the Senate;
                    (B) the Committee on Oversight and Reform, the 
                Committee on the Judiciary, and the Permanent Select 
                Committee on Intelligence of the House of 
                Representatives; and
                    (C) any other committee of the Senate or the House 
                of Representatives with jurisdiction over the subject 
                matter addressed in the presidential emergency action 
                document.
            (2) Presidential emergency action document.--The term 
        ``presidential emergency action document'' refers to--
                    (A) each of the approximately 56 documents 
                described as presidential emergency action documents in 
                the budget justification materials for the Office of 
                Legal Counsel of the Department of Justice submitted to 
                Congress in support of the budget of the President for 
                fiscal year 2018; and
                    (B) any other pre-coordinated legal document in 
                existence before, on, or after the date of the 
                enactment of this Act, that--
                            (i) is designated as a presidential 
                        emergency action document; or
                            (ii) is designed to implement a 
                        presidential decision or transmit a 
                        presidential request when an emergency disrupts 
                        normal governmental or legislative processes.
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