Title: Acting on the Annual Duplication Report Act of 2019
Policy area: Government Operations and Politics

Summary:
Acting on the Annual Duplication Report Act of 2019
This bill requires specified federal agencies to address recommendations made to Congress by the Government Accountability Office and detailed in the annual duplication report.
Specifically
Regarding student loan debt, among other things, an institution of higher education may not include placing students in forbearance as a means of reducing the cohort default rate of the institution.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2175 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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116th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                S. 2175

     To address recommendations made to Congress by the Government 
 Accountability Office and detailed in the annual duplication report, 
                        and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             July 18, 2019

 Ms. Hassan (for herself and Mr. Paul) introduced the following bill; 
which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security 
                        and Governmental Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
     To address recommendations made to Congress by the Government 
 Accountability Office and detailed in the annual duplication report, 
                        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 ``Acting on the Annual Duplication 
Report Act of 2019''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS; SENSE OF CONGRESS.

    (a) Findings.--Congress makes the following findings:
            (1) The annual reports prepared by the Comptroller General 
        of the United States under section 21 of the Joint Resolution 
        entitled ``Joint Resolution increasing the statutory limit on 
        the public debt'', approved February 12, 2010 (13 U.S.C. 712 
        note), have produced approximately $262,000,000,000 in 
        financial benefits for the Federal Government.
            (2) The 2019 report entitled ``Additional Opportunities to 
        Reduce Fragmentation, Overlap, and Duplication and Achieve 
        Billions in Financial Benefits'' (GAO-19-285SP) identified 98 
        new actions that Congress or the executive branch can take to 
        improve efficiency and effectiveness across the Federal 
        Government, and potentially to save tens of billions of 
        dollars.
            (3) Those financial benefits cannot be realized without 
        full implementation of the actions and recommendations set 
        forth by the Comptroller General.
            (4) Of the 98 new actions, several require legislation to 
        be fully implemented, including--
                    (A) expanding the definition of allowable expenses 
                authorized by the Foreign Military Sales administrative 
                account;
                    (B) examining the optimal size of the Strategic 
                Petroleum Reserve;
                    (C) altering the metal composition of coins to 
                reduce production costs;
                    (D) requiring scannable codes on tax returns 
                prepared electronically, but filed on paper; and
                    (E) strengthening the accountability of schools for 
                student loan defaults.
    (b) Sense of Congress.--It is the sense of Congress that--
            (1) it is the responsibility of Congress and the executive 
        branch to take action to implement recommendations made in the 
        annual reports of the Government Accountability Office on 
        reducing duplication in Federal programs to be good stewards of 
        taxpayer dollars; and
            (2) legislation and adequate resources are needed to ensure 
        that all potential financial benefits are realized from the 
        implementation of those recommendations.

SEC. 3. ENHANCING FEDERAL REVENUE THROUGH REVIEWING AND REPORTING ON 
              USE AND MANAGEMENT OF ADMINISTRATIVE SURCHARGES UNDER 
              FOREIGN MILITARY SALES PROGRAM.

    (a) Foreign Military Sales Program Defined.--In this section, the 
term ``foreign military sales program'' means the program authorized 
under chapter 2 of the Arms Export Control Act (22 U.S.C. 2761 et 
seq.).
    (b) Review.--
            (1) In general.--The Secretary of Defense, acting through 
        the Director of the Defense Security Cooperation Agency, shall 
        review options for expanding the use of administrative 
        surcharges under the foreign military sales program, including 
        practices for managing administrative surcharges and contract 
        administration services surcharges.
            (2) Matters to be included.--The review conducted under 
        paragraph (1) shall include the following:
                    (A) A determination of which specific expenses are 
                incurred by the United States Government in operation 
                of the foreign military sales program that the 
                administrative surcharge does not pay for as of the 
                date of the enactment of this Act.
                    (B) The estimated annual cost of each of such 
                specific expenses.
                    (C) An assessment of the costs and benefits of 
                funding such specific expenses through the 
                administrative surcharge, including any data to support 
                such an assessment.
                    (D) An assessment of how the Department of Defense 
                could calculate an upper bound of a target range for 
                the administrative surcharge account and the contract 
                administration services surcharge account, including an 
                assessment of the costs and benefits of setting such a 
                bound.
                    (E) An assessment of how the Department of Defense 
                calculates the lower bound, or safety level, for the 
                administrative surcharge account and the contract 
                administration services surcharge account, including 
                what specific factors inform the calculation and 
                whether such a method for calculating the safety level 
                is still valid or should be revisited.
                    (F) An assessment of the process used by the 
                Department of Defense to review and set rates for the 
                administrative surcharge and the contract 
                administration services surcharge, including the extent 
                to which outside parties are consulted and any 
                proposals the Department of Defense may have for better 
                ensuring that the rates are set appropriately.
                    (G) Such other matters as the Secretary of Defense 
                determines to be appropriate.
    (c) Report Required.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Defense, acting through the 
Director of the Defense Security Cooperation Agency, shall submit to 
the Committee on Armed Services of the Senate and the Committee on 
Armed Services of the House of Representatives a report on--
            (1) the findings of the review conducted under subsection 
        (b); and
            (2) any legislative changes needed to allow the 
        administrative surcharge under the foreign military sales 
        program to pay for any expenses currently not covered by that 
        surcharge.

SEC. 4. INCREASING FEDERAL REVENUE BY REVIEWING AND REPORTING ON 
              OPTIMAL SIZE OF STRATEGIC PETROLEUM RESERVE.

    (a) Review.--
            (1) In general.--The Secretary of Energy (referred to in 
        this section as the ``Secretary'') shall conduct a review of 
        options for a long-range target for the optimal size and 
        configuration of the Strategic Petroleum Reserve established 
        under part B of title I of the Energy Policy and Conservation 
        Act (42 U.S.C. 6231 et seq.) (referred to in this section as 
        the ``Reserve'').
            (2) Matters to be considered.--In conducting the review 
        under paragraph (1), the Secretary shall consider--
                    (A) the volume of petroleum and petroleum products 
                to be held in the Reserve;
                    (B) the infrastructure and modernization needs of 
                the Reserve;
                    (C) the projections for future oil production and 
                consumption in the United States;
                    (D) the efficacy of the existing Reserve to respond 
                to domestic supply disruptions;
                    (E) the obligations of the International Energy 
                Agency;
                    (F) the expected responses of the private sector to 
                any supply disruptions due to a suboptimal size and 
                configuration of the Reserve; and
                    (G) the costs and benefits of a range of potential 
                sizes and configurations of the Reserve.
    (b) Report.--Not later than 180 days after the date of enactment of 
this Act, the Secretary shall submit to the Committee on Energy and 
Natural Resources of the Senate and the Committee on Energy and 
Commerce of the House of Representatives a report describing--
            (1) the findings of the review conducted under subsection 
        (a); and
            (2) recommendations for legislation needed to optimize the 
        size and configuration of the Reserve.

SEC. 5. SAVING FEDERAL FUNDS BY AUTHORIZING CHANGES TO THE COMPOSITION 
              OF CIRCULATING COINS.

    Section 5112 of title 31, United States Code, is amended by adding 
at the end the following:
    ``(x) Composition of Circulating Coins.--
            ``(1) In general.--Notwithstanding any other provision of 
        law, the Director of the United States Mint may modify the 
        composition of circulating coins in accordance with a study and 
        analysis conducted by the United States Mint, if that 
        modification will--
                    ``(A) reduce costs incurred by the taxpayers of the 
                United States;
                    ``(B) be seamless, as determined through testing 
                conducted by most coin acceptors; and
                    ``(C) have no impact on the public and 
                stakeholders, except as described in subparagraph (A).
            ``(2) Notification to congress.--On the date that is 90 
        days before the date on which the Director of the United States 
        Mint makes a modification described in paragraph (1), the 
        Director shall submit to Congress notice that--
                    ``(A) provides a justification for the 
                modification, including the support for that 
                modification in the study and analysis required under 
                paragraph (1) with respect to the modification;
                    ``(B) describes how the modification will reduce 
                costs incurred by the taxpayers of the United States;
                    ``(C) certifies that the modification will be 
                seamless, as described in paragraph (1)(B); and
                    ``(D) certifies that the modification will have no 
                impact on the public or stakeholders, except as 
                described in paragraph (1)(A).''.

SEC. 6. REDUCING THE RESOURCE DRAIN BY REQUIRING THAT ELECTRONICALLY 
              PREPARED PAPER RETURNS TO INCLUDE SCANNABLE CODE.

    (a) In General.--Subsection (e) of section 6011 of the Internal 
Revenue Code of 1986, as amended by the Taxpayer First Act (Public Law 
116-25), is amended by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
            ``(7) Special rule for returns prepared electronically and 
        submitted on paper.--The Secretary shall require that any 
        return of tax which is prepared electronically, but is printed 
        and filed on paper, bear a code which can, when scanned, 
        convert such return to electronic format.''.
    (b) Conforming Amendment.--Paragraph (1) of section 6011(e) of such 
Code is amended by striking ``paragraph (3)'' and inserting 
``paragraphs (3) and (7)''.
    (c) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section shall 
apply to returns of tax the due date for which (determined without 
regard to extensions) is after December 31, 2020.

SEC. 7. MAXIMIZING EFFECTIVE USE AND RECOUPMENT OF FEDERAL STUDENT 
              LOANS BY CLOSING THE FORBEARANCE LOOPHOLE AND AMENDING 
              DEFAULT RATES.

    (a) Default Management Plan.--Section 435(a)(7)(A) of the Higher 
Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1085(a)(7)(A)) is amended--
            (1) by redesignating clause (ii) as clause (iii); and
            (2) by inserting after clause (i) the following:
                            ``(iii) Prohibition.--The plan required 
                        under clause (i) may not include placing 
                        students in forbearance as a means of reducing 
                        the cohort default rate of the institution.''.
    (b) Forbearance Rules.--Section 435(m)(1) of the Higher Education 
Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1085(m)(1)) is amended by adding at the end the 
following:
                    ``(D) With respect to a cohort default rate 
                calculated for an institution under this paragraph for 
                fiscal year 2018 and for each succeeding fiscal year, 
                the cohort default rate shall be calculated such that 
                in determining the number of current and former 
                students at an institution who enter repayment for such 
                fiscal year--
                            ``(i) any student who is in nonmandatory 
                        forbearance for such fiscal year for a period 
                        of greater than 18 months but less than 36 
                        months shall not be counted as entering 
                        repayment for that fiscal year;
                            ``(ii) any student described in clause (i) 
                        shall be counted as entering repayment for the 
                        first fiscal year for which the student ceases 
                        to be in a period of forbearance and otherwise 
                        meets the requirements for being in repayment; 
                        and
                            ``(iii) any student who is in a period of 
                        nonmandatory forbearance for 3 or more years 
                        shall be counted as in default and included in 
                        the institution's total number of students in 
                        default.''.
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