Title: COMMS Act
Policy area: Congress

Summary:
Communications Outreach Media and Mail Standards Act or the COMMS Act
This bill renames the House Commission on Congressional Mailing Standards as the House Communications Standards Commission and expands the commission's authority with respect to regulating certain mass mailings of Members of the House of Representatives.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 7512 Introduced in House (IH)]

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116th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 7512

 To rename the House Commission on Congressional Mailing Standards as 
the House Communications Standards Commission, to extend the authority 
  of the Commission to regulate mass mailings of Members and Members-
     elect of the House of Representatives to all unsolicited mass 
communications of Members and Members-elect of the House, and for other 
                               purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                              July 9, 2020

  Mrs. Davis of California (for herself, Mr. Steil, Ms. Lofgren, Mr. 
Rodney Davis of Illinois, Mr. Sherman, Ms. Haaland, Mr. Walker, and Mr. 
 Loudermilk) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
Committee on House Administration, and in addition to the Committees on 
   Oversight and Reform, and Rules, for a period to be subsequently 
   determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such 
 provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To rename the House Commission on Congressional Mailing Standards as 
the House Communications Standards Commission, to extend the authority 
  of the Commission to regulate mass mailings of Members and Members-
     elect of the House of Representatives to all unsolicited mass 
communications of Members and Members-elect of the House, 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 ``Communications Outreach Media and 
Mail Standards Act'' or the ``COMMS Act''.

SEC. 2. RENAMING HOUSE COMMISSION ON CONGRESSIONAL MAILING STANDARDS.

    (a) In General.--Section 5(a) of the Act entitled ``An Act to amend 
title 39, United States Code, to clarify the proper use of the franking 
privilege by Members of Congress, and for other purposes'', approved 
December 18, 1973 (2 U.S.C. 501(a)), is amended by striking ``House 
Commission on Congressional Mailing Standards'' and inserting ``House 
Communications Standards Commission''.
    (b) Conforming Amendments.--
            (1) Title 39.--Title 39, United States Code, is amended by 
        striking ``House Commission on Congressional Mailing 
        Standards'' and inserting ``House Communications Standards 
        Commission'' each place it appears in the following sections:
                    (A) Section 3210(a)(5), (a)(6)(D), (b)(3), (d)(5), 
                and (d)(6)(A).
                    (B) Section 3216(e)(1) and (e)(2).
                    (C) Section 3220(b).
            (2) Other provisions.--Section 311 of the Legislative 
        Branch Appropriations Act, 1991 (2 U.S.C. 503) is amended by 
        striking ``House Commission on Congressional Mailing 
        Standards'' and inserting ``House Communications Standards 
        Commission'' each place it appears in subsections (a)(3), 
        (e)(1)(B), and (f).
    (c) References in Other Documents.--Any reference in any rule, 
regulation, or other document to the House Commission on Congressional 
Mailing Standards shall be deemed to be a reference to the House 
Communications Standards Commission.

SEC. 3. AUTHORITY OF COMMISSION OVER OFFICIAL MASS COMMUNICATIONS.

    (a) Authority To Provide Guidance Regarding Dissemination of Mass 
Communications.--
            (1) In general.--Section 5(d) of the Act entitled ``An Act 
        to amend title 39, United States Code, to clarify the proper 
        use of the franking privilege by Members of Congress, and for 
        other purposes'', approved December 18, 1973 (2 U.S.C. 501(d)), 
        is amended--
                    (A) in the first sentence, by striking ``The 
                Commission'' and inserting ``(1) The Commission''; and
                    (B) by adding at the end the following new 
                paragraph:
            ``(2) In addition to the guidance, assistance, advice, and 
        counsel described in paragraph (1), the Commission shall 
        provide--
                    ``(A) guidance, assistance, advice, and counsel, 
                through advisory opinions or consultations, in 
                connection with any law and with any rule or regulation 
                of the House of Representatives governing the 
                dissemination of mass communications other than franked 
                mail; and
                    ``(B) guidance, assistance, advice, and counsel in 
                connection with any law and with any rule or regulation 
                of the House of Representatives governing the official 
                content of other official communications of any 
                quantity, whether solicited or unsolicited.''.
            (2) Authority to investigate complaints.--Section 5(e) of 
        such Act (2 U.S.C. 501(e)) is amended--
                    (A) in the first sentence, by striking ``Any 
                complaint'' and all that follows through ``is about to 
                occur'' and inserting the following: ``Any complaint 
                that a violation of any provision of law or any rule or 
                regulation of the House of Representatives to which 
                subsection (d) applies is about to occur''; and
                    (B) in the sentence beginning with 
                ``Notwithstanding any other provision of law'', by 
                striking ``a violation of the franking laws or an abuse 
                of the franking privilege by any person listed under 
                subsection (d) of this section as entitled to send mail 
                as franked mail,'' and inserting ``a violation of any 
                provision of law or any rule or regulation of the House 
                of Representatives to which subsection (d) applies,''.
            (3) Mass communication defined.--Section 5 of such Act (2 
        U.S.C. 501) is amended by adding at the end the following new 
        subsection:
    ``(h) In this section, the term `mass communication' means a mass 
mailing described in section 3210(a)(6)(E) of title 39, United States 
Code, or any other unsolicited communication of substantially identical 
content which is transmitted to 500 or more persons in a session of 
Congress, as provided under regulations of the Commission, except that 
such term does not include--
            ``(1) any communication from an individual described in 
        subsection (d) to another individual described in subsection 
        (d), a Senator, or any Federal, State, local, or Tribal 
        government official;
            ``(2) any news release to the communications media;
            ``(3) any such mass mailing or unsolicited communication 
        made in direct response to a communication from a person to 
        whom the mass mailing or unsolicited communication was 
        transmitted; or
            ``(4) in the case of any such unsolicited communication 
        which is transmitted in a digital format, a communication for 
        which the cost of the content is less than a threshold amount 
        established under regulations of the House Communications 
        Standards Commission.''.
    (b) Authority To Review All Unsolicited Mass Communications.--
            (1) Requiring review before dissemination.--Section 311(f) 
        of the Legislative Branch Appropriations Act, 1991 (2 U.S.C. 
        503(f)) is amended--
                    (A) by striking ``any mass mailing'' and inserting 
                ``any mass communication'';
                    (B) by striking ``mail matter'' and inserting 
                ``matter''; and
                    (C) by striking ``such proposed mailing'' and 
                inserting ``such proposed communication''.
            (2) Exception for certain communications.--Section 311(f) 
        of such Act (2 U.S.C. 503(f)) is amended--
                    (A) by striking ``A Member'' and inserting ``(1) 
                Except as provided in paragraph (2), a Member''; and
                    (B) by adding at the end the following new 
                paragraph:
    ``(2) Paragraph (1) does not apply in the case of any type of mass 
communication which is designated as exempt from the requirements of 
such paragraph as provided under regulations of the House 
Communications Standards Commission.''.
            (3) Definition.--Section 311(g) of such Act (2 U.S.C. 
        503(g)) is amended--
                    (A) by striking ``and'' at the end of paragraph 
                (1);
                    (B) by striking the period at the end of paragraph 
                (2) and inserting ``; and''; and
                    (C) by adding at the end the following new 
                paragraph:
            ``(3) the term `mass communication' means a mass mailing 
        described in section 3210(a)(6)(E) of title 39, United States 
        Code, or any other unsolicited communication of substantially 
        identical content which is transmitted to 500 or more persons 
        in a session of Congress, as provided under regulations of the 
        House Communications Standards Commission, except that such 
        term does not include--
                    ``(A) any communication from a Member of the House 
                of Representatives to another Member of the House of 
                Representatives, a Senator, or any Federal, State, or 
                local government official;
                    ``(B) any news release to the communications media;
                    ``(C) any such mass mailing or unsolicited 
                communication made in direct response to a 
                communication from a person to whom the mass mailing or 
                unsolicited communication was transmitted; or
                    ``(D) in the case of any such unsolicited 
                communication which is transmitted in a digital format, 
                a communication for which the cost of the content is 
                less than a threshold amount established under 
                regulations of the House Communications Standards 
                Commission.''.
    (c) Conforming Amendment to Rules of the House of 
Representatives.--Clause 9 of rule XXIV of the Rules of the House of 
Representatives is amended by inserting after ``that session,'' the 
following: ``or any other unsolicited communication of substantially 
identical content which is transmitted to 500 or more persons in that 
session or, in the case of a digital communication of substantially 
identical content, which is disseminated at a cost exceeding a 
designated amount, as provided under regulations of the House 
Communications Standards Commission,''.

SEC. 4. REVISION TO MASS MAILING NOTICE ON TAXPAYER FUNDING.

    Section 311(a) of the Legislative Branch Appropriations Act, 1997 
(2 U.S.C. 506(a)) is amended--
            (1) by striking ``(a) Each mass mailing'' and inserting 
        ``(a)(1) Each mass mailing'';
            (2) by striking ``the following notice:'' and all that 
        follows through ``or a notice'' and inserting ``one of the 
        notices described in paragraph (2) or a notice''; and
            (3) by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
    ``(2) The notices described in this paragraph are as follows:
            ``(A) `Paid for with official funds from the office of 
        _____.', with the blank filled in with the name of the Member 
        sending the mailing.
            ``(B) `Paid for by the funds authorized by the House of 
        Representatives for District __ of _____.', with the first 
        blank filled in with the name of the congressional district 
        number, and the second blank filled in with the name of the 
        State, of the Member sending the mailing.
            ``(C) `Paid for by official funds authorized by the House 
        of Representatives.'''.

SEC. 5. REVISIONS TO RESTRICTIONS ON MAIL MATTER CONSIDERED FRANKABLE.

    (a) Expressions of Congratulations.--Section 3210(a)(3)(F) of title 
39, United States Code, is amended by striking ``to a person who has 
achieved some public distinction''.
    (b) Biographical Information Related to Official and 
Representational Duties.--Section 3210(a)(3)(I) of such title is 
amended by striking ``publication or in response to a specific request 
therefor'' and inserting the following: ``publication, in response to a 
specific request therefor, or which relates to the Member's or Member-
elect's official and representational duties,''.
    (c) Photos and Likenesses Included in Newsletters or General Mass 
Mailings.--Section 3210(a)(3) of such title is amended--
            (1) by adding ``or'' at the end of subparagraph (H);
            (2) in subparagraph (I), by striking ``; or'' and inserting 
        a period; and
            (3) by striking subparagraph (J).
    (d) Clarification of Ability of Members to Use Franked Mail To Send 
Personal Messages to Constituents.--Section 3210(a)(4) of such title is 
amended by striking the period at the end and inserting the following: 
``, except that nothing in this paragraph may be construed to prohibit 
the use of the franking privilege for the transmission of matter which 
is purely personal to a recipient who is a constituent of a Member of 
Congress and which is related to the official business, activities, and 
duties of the Member.''.
    (e) Holiday Cards.--Section 3210(a)(5)(B)(iii) of such title is 
amended by striking ``holiday greetings'' and inserting ``religious 
holiday greetings''.
    (f) Uniform Blackout Period for All Members of Congress.--
            (1) Uniform period.--Section 3210(a)(6)(A) of such title is 
        amended--
                    (A) in clause (i), by striking ``(or, in the case 
                of a Member of the House, fewer than 90 days)''; and
                    (B) in clause (ii)(II), by striking ``90 days'' and 
                inserting ``60 days''.
            (2) Effective date.--The amendments made by paragraph (1) 
        shall apply with respect to the regularly scheduled general 
        election for Federal office held in November 2020 and each 
        succeeding election for public office.
    (g) Nonapplication of Blackout Period to Party Nominating 
Conventions or Caucuses.--Section 3210(a)(6) of such title is amended 
by adding at the end the following new subparagraph:
    ``(G) For purposes of this paragraph, the term `primary election' 
does not include a convention or caucus of a political party which has 
authority to nominate a candidate.''.
    (h) Information on Certain Matters.--Section 3210(a)(6)(E) of such 
title is amended--
            (1) by striking ``or'' at the end of clause (ii);
            (2) by striking the period at the end of clause (iii) and 
        inserting ``; or''; and
            (3) by adding at the end the following new clause:
            ``(iv) providing information exclusively on competitions 
        which are officially sanctioned by the House of Representatives 
        or Senate, nominations to military service academies, official 
        employment listings for positions in the House of 
        Representatives (including listings for positions in the 
        Wounded Warrior Program or the Gold Star Family Fellowship 
        Program), or natural disasters or other threats to public 
        health and life safety.''.

SEC. 6. EFFECTIVE DATE.

    Except as provided in section 5(f)(2), this Act and the amendments 
made by this Act shall apply with respect to communications 
disseminated on or after the date of the enactment of this Act.
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