Title: Abuse of the Pardon Prevention Act of 2020
Policy area: Crime and Law Enforcement

Summary:
Abuse of the Pardon Prevention Act of 2020
This bill restricts the authority of the President with respect to presidential pardons, including by prohibiting the President from pardoning himself or herself and requiring the Department of Justice to conduct oversight and submit materials to Congress regarding certain pardons, such as those arising from an investigation in which the President is a target, subject, or witness.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 4933 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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116th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 4933

   To provide increased oversight of certain pardons, to clarify the 
applicability of bribery prohibitions to pardons and commutations, and 
                          for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                            December 1, 2020

 Ms. Cortez Masto (for herself, Ms. Hirono, Mr. Blumenthal, Mr. Wyden, 
 Mr. Murphy, Mr. Markey, Mr. Casey, and Mr. Van Hollen) introduced the 
 following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on 
                             the Judiciary

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
   To provide increased oversight of certain pardons, to clarify the 
applicability of bribery prohibitions to pardons and commutations, 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 ``Abuse of the Pardon Prevention Act 
of 2020''.

SEC. 2. DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE OVERSIGHT RELATING TO CERTAIN PARDONS.

    (a) Definitions.--In this section:
            (1) Covered offense.--The term ``covered offense'' means--
                    (A) an offense against the United States that 
                arises from an investigation in which the President, or 
                a relative of the President, is a target, subject, or 
                witness;
                    (B) an offense under section 192 of title 2, United 
                States Code; or
                    (C) an offense under section 1001, 1505, 1512, or 
                1621 of title 18, United States Code, provided that the 
                offense occurred in relation to a Congressional 
                proceeding or investigation.
            (2) Inspector general.--The term ``Inspector General'' 
        means the Inspector General of the Department of Justice.
            (3) Pardon.--The term ``pardon'' includes a commutation of 
        sentence.
            (4) Relative.--The term ``relative'' has the meaning given 
        that term in section 3110(a) of title 5, United States Code.
    (b) Required Investigation.--In the event that the President grants 
an individual a pardon for a covered offense, as soon as practicable 
after the date of such pardon, the Inspector General of the Department 
of Justice shall begin an investigation of the pardon.
    (c) Required Information.--
            (1) In general.--Not later than 30 days after the date on 
        which the President grants an individual a pardon for a covered 
        offense, for purposes of an investigation under subsection 
        (b)--
                    (A) the Attorney General shall submit to the 
                Inspector General--
                            (i) all materials obtained or prepared by 
                        the prosecution team, including the Attorney 
                        General and any United States Attorney, and all 
                        materials obtained or prepared by any 
                        investigative agency of the United States 
                        government, relating to the offense for which 
                        the individual was so pardoned; and
                            (ii) all materials obtained or produced by 
                        the Department of Justice in relation to the 
                        pardon; and
                    (B) the President shall submit to the Inspector 
                General all materials obtained or produced within the 
                Executive Office of the President in relation to the 
                pardon.
            (2) Report on noncompliance.--Not later than 10 days after 
        the date on which the Attorney General or President fails or 
        refuses to comply with the requirement under paragraph (1), the 
        Inspector General shall submit a report to Congress on the 
        failure or refusal, which shall include a list of the documents 
        or information that has not been submitted as required under 
        paragraph (1).
    (d) Treatment of Information.--Rule 6(e) of the Federal Rules of 
Criminal Procedure may not be construed to prohibit the disclosure of 
information required by subsection (c) of this section.
    (e) Report.--
            (1) In general.--The Inspector General shall submit to 
        Congress and publish a report of the findings of each 
        investigation conducted under this section.
            (2) Form of report.--Each report submitted to Congress 
        under this subsection shall be in unclassified form, but may, 
        if necessary, contain a classified annex.

SEC. 3. CONGRESSIONAL OVERSIGHT RELATING TO CERTAIN PARDONS.

    (a) Submission of Information.--In the event that the President 
grants an individual a pardon for a covered offense, not later than 30 
days after the date of such pardon--
            (1) the Attorney General shall submit to the chairmen and 
        ranking members of the appropriate congressional committees--
                    (A) all materials obtained or prepared by the 
                prosecution team, including the Attorney General and 
                any United States Attorney, and all materials obtained 
                or prepared by any investigative agency of the United 
                States government, relating to the offense for which 
                the individual was so pardoned; and
                    (B) all materials obtained or produced by the 
                Department of Justice in relation to the pardon; and
            (2) the President shall submit to the chairmen and ranking 
        members of the appropriate congressional committees all 
        materials obtained or produced within the Executive Office of 
        the President in relation to the pardon.
    (b) Treatment of Information.--Rule 6(e) of the Federal Rules of 
Criminal Procedure may not be construed to prohibit the disclosure of 
information required by subsection (a) of this section.
    (c) Definitions.--In this section:
            (1) The term ``appropriate congressional committees'' 
        means--
                    (A) the Committee on the Judiciary of the House of 
                Representatives and the Committee on the Judiciary of 
                the Senate; and
                    (B) if an investigation relates to intelligence or 
                counterintelligence matters, the Permanent Select 
                Committee on Intelligence of the House of 
                Representatives and the Select Committee on 
                Intelligence of the Senate.
            (2) The term ``covered offense'' means--
                    (A) an offense against the United States that 
                arises from an investigation in which the President, or 
                a relative of the President, is a target, subject, or 
                witness;
                    (B) an offense under section 192 of title 2, United 
                States Code; or
                    (C) an offense under section 1001, 1505, 1512, or 
                1621 of title 18, United States Code, provided that the 
                offense occurred in relation to a Congressional 
                proceeding or investigation.
            (3) The term ``pardon'' includes a commutation of sentence.
            (4) The term ``relative'' has the meaning given that term 
        in section 3110(a) of title 5, United States Code.

SEC. 4. BRIBERY IN CONNECTION WITH PARDONS AND COMMUTATIONS.

    Section 201 of title 18, United States Code, is amended--
            (1) in subsection (a)--
                    (A) in paragraph (1), by inserting ``, including 
                the President and the Vice President of the United 
                States,'' after ``or an officer or employee or 
                person''; and
                    (B) in paragraph (3), by inserting before the 
                period at the end the following: ``, including any 
                pardon, commutation, or reprieve, or offer any such 
                pardon, commutation, or reprieve''; and
            (2) in subsection (b)(3), by inserting ``(including, for 
        purposes of this paragraph, any pardon, commutation, or 
        reprieve, or offer any such pardon, commutation, or reprieve)'' 
        after ``corruptly gives, offers, or promises anything of 
        value''.

SEC. 5. PROHIBITION ON PRESIDENTIAL SELF-PARDON.

    The President's grant of a pardon to himself or herself is void and 
of no effect, and shall not deprive the courts of jurisdiction, or 
operate to confer on the President any legal immunity from 
investigation or prosecution.

SEC. 6. SEVERABILITY.

    If any provision of this Act, an amendment made by this Act, or the 
application of such provision or amendment to any person or 
circumstance is held to be unconstitutional, the remainder of this Act, 
the amendments made by this Act, and the application of such provision 
or amendment to any person or circumstance shall not be affected 
thereby.
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