Title: Safeguarding Awards for Victims and Enforcement Settlements Act of 2020
Policy area: Law

Summary:
Safeguarding Awards for Victims and Enforcement Settlements Act of 2020
This bill imposes limitations on settlement agreements to which the United States is a party.
With certain exceptions, the United States may not enter into a settlement agreement requiring a payment or loan to an individual or to an entity other than the United States. Exceptions to this prohibition include payments or loans that (1) are intended to directly remedy the harm caused by the paying party and suffered by the recipient, (2) are for services rendered in connection with the case, and (3) are going to a third party for claims against that same third party.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 4691 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

<DOC>






116th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 4691

To limit donations made pursuant to settlement agreements to which the 
           United States is a party, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                           September 24, 2020

  Mr. Lankford (for himself, Mr. Tillis, Mr. Cornyn, and Mr. Inhofe) 
introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the 
        Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To limit donations made pursuant to settlement agreements to which the 
           United States is a party, 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 ``Safeguarding Awards for Victims and 
Enforcement Settlements Act of 2020''.

SEC. 2. LIMITATION ON DONATIONS MADE PURSUANT TO SETTLEMENT AGREEMENTS 
              TO WHICH THE UNITED STATES IS A PARTY.

    (a) Limitation on Required Donations.--
            (1) In general.--An official or agent of the Government may 
        not enter into or enforce any settlement agreement on behalf of 
        the United States, directing or providing for a payment or loan 
        to any person or entity other than the United States, other 
        than a payment or loan that--
                    (A) provides restitution for or is otherwise 
                intended to directly remedy actual harm (including to 
                the environment) directly caused by the party making 
                the payment or loan, and, to the extent any victim 
                thereof was an identifiable person, suffered by the 
                payee or lendee; or
                    (B) constitutes payment for services rendered in 
                connection with the case, including for settlement or 
                compliance monitoring or for divestiture trustee 
                services, or a payment pursuant to section 3663 of 
                title 18, United States Code.
            (2) Exceptions.--Nothing in this subsection shall--
                    (A) prohibit the United States from participating 
                in a settlement through which claims against one or 
                more third parties are resolved through payments to the 
                same third parties;
                    (B) limit any payment under section 110(l)(4)(A) of 
                title 11, United States Code;
                    (C) prohibit the United States from participating 
                in a settlement agreement that, pursuant to a non-
                prosecution agreement, deferred prosecution agreement, 
                or plea agreement, provides for remedial training, 
                establishment of a compliance program, or enhancement 
                of a compliance program designed to remediate the 
                alleged criminal violations identified in the 
                settlement, or avoid such violations in the future;
                    (D) proscribe or otherwise limit the manner in 
                which forfeited assets linked to foreign corruption 
                affecting the United States financial system or assets 
                recovered following the filing of an asset forfeiture 
                action to recover assets linked to foreign corruption 
                shall be returned for the benefit of the people harmed 
                by the corruption;
                    (E) prohibit the United States from participating 
                in a settlement or resolution with a party in which the 
                United States coordinates with any other domestic or 
                foreign civil, criminal, or regulatory authority to 
                credit payments the party makes to any other such 
                authority so as to avoid duplicative penalties, fines, 
                forfeiture, and disgorgement; or
                    (F) limit payments expressly authorized by law.
    (b) Prohibition on Cy-Pres Redistributions in Settlements.--Except 
as otherwise provided by law, when the United States has entered into a 
settlement involving a fund for payments to individual claimants, 
amounts remaining after all claims on the settlement fund have been 
satisfied shall be repaid proportionally to each party who contributed 
to the settlement fund.
    (c) Effective Date.--Subsections (a) and (b) apply only in the case 
of a settlement agreement concluded on or after the date of enactment 
of this Act.
    (d) Definitions.--In this section:
            (1) Payment.--The term ``payment'' means any transfer of 
        money, cash, or other consideration, including constructive 
        transfer in lieu of money.
            (2) Settlement agreement.--The term ``settlement 
        agreement'' means a settlement agreement resolving a civil 
        action or potential civil action, participation in any pretrial 
        diversion program, a plea agreement, a deferred prosecution 
        agreement, or a non-prosecution agreement.
    (e) Reports on Settlement Agreements.--
            (1) In general.--Beginning at the end of the first fiscal 
        year that begins after the date of the enactment of this Act, 
        and annually thereafter, the head of each Federal agency shall 
        submit electronically to the Congressional Budget Office a 
        report on each settlement agreement entered into by that agency 
        (other than a settlement agreement for a qui tam action or 
        under section 586(a) of title 28, United States Code) during 
        that fiscal year that directs or provides for a payment or loan 
        to a person or entity other than the United States that 
        provides restitution for or otherwise directly remedies actual 
        harm (including to the environment) directly caused by the 
        party making the payment or loan, or constitutes payment for 
        services rendered in connection with the case, including the 
        parties to each settlement agreement, the source of the 
        settlement funds, and where and how such funds were and will be 
        distributed.
            (2) Prohibition on additional funding.--No additional funds 
        are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this subsection.
            (3) Sunset.--This subsection shall cease to be effective on 
        the date that is 7 years after the date of the enactment of 
        this Act.
    (f) Annual Audit Requirement.--
            (1) In general.--Beginning at the end of the first fiscal 
        year that begins after the date of the enactment of this Act, 
        and annually thereafter, the Inspector General of each Federal 
        agency shall submit a report to the Committees on the 
        Judiciary, on the Budget and on Appropriations of the House of 
        Representatives and the Senate, on any settlement agreement 
        entered into in violation of this section by that agency.
            (2) Prohibition on additional funding.--No additional funds 
        are authorized to be appropriated to carry out this subsection.
                                 <all>