To amend section 442 of title 18, United States Code, to exempt certain interests in mutual funds, unit investment trusts, employee benefit plans, and retirement plans from conflict of interest limitations for the Government Publishing Office.
PL 116-78 (H.R.5277), enacted 12/05/2019

[116th Congress Public Law 78]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]



[[Page 133 STAT. 1175]]

Public Law 116-78
116th Congress

                                 An Act


 
To amend section 442 of title 18, United States Code, to exempt certain 
  interests in mutual funds, unit investment trusts, employee benefit 
 plans, and retirement plans from conflict of interest limitations for 
the Government Publishing Office. <<NOTE: Dec. 5, 2019 -  [H.R. 5277]>> 

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. GOVERNMENT PUBLISHING OFFICE.

    (a) In General.--Section 442 of title 18, United States Code, is 
amended to read as follows:
``Sec. 442. Government Publishing Office

    ``(a) Definitions.--In this section--
            ``(1) the terms `diversified', `employee benefit plan', 
        `holdings', `mutual fund', and `unit investment trust' have the 
        meanings given those terms under section 2640.102 of title 5, 
        Code of Federal Regulations, or any successor thereto; and
            ``(2) the term `printing-related interest' means an 
        interest, direct or indirect, in--
                    ``(A) the publication of any newspaper or 
                periodical;
                    ``(B) any printing, binding, engraving, or 
                lithographing of any kind; or
                    ``(C) any contract for furnishing paper or other 
                material connected with the public printing, binding, 
                lithographing, or engraving.

    ``(b) Offense.--
            ``(1) In general.--Except as provided in paragraph (2), the 
        Director of the Government Publishing Office, Deputy Director of 
        the Government Publishing Office, nor any of their assistants as 
        determined by the Director of the Government Publishing Office 
        shall not, during his or her continuance in office, have any 
        printing-related interest.
            ``(2) Exception for mutual funds, unit investment trusts, 
        employee benefit plans, and retirement plans.--It shall not be a 
        violation of paragraph (1) for an individual who is described in 
        such paragraph to have an interest in a diversified mutual fund, 
        diversified unit investment trust, employee benefit plan, 
        investment fund under the Thrift Savings Plan under subchapter 
        III of chapter 84 of title 5, or pension plan established or 
        maintained by a State government or any political subdivision of 
        a State government for its employees that has 1 or more holdings 
        that are printing-related interests if the fund, trust, or plan 
        does not exhibit a practice of concentrating in printing-related 
        interests.

[[Page 133 STAT. 1176]]

            ``(3) Authority of supervising ethics office.--The 
        supervising ethics office for the Government Publishing Office 
        under the Ethics in Government Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App.) shall 
        have the authority to issue rules and promulgate regulations 
        governing the implementation of this subsection.

    ``(c) Penalty.--Whoever violates subsection (b)(1) shall be fined 
under this title, imprisoned for not more than 1 year, or both.''.
    (b) Technical and Conforming Amendment.--The table of sections for 
chapter 23 of title 18, United States Code, <<NOTE: 18 USC 431 prec.>>  
is amended by striking the item relating to section 442 and inserting 
the following:

``442. Government Publishing Office.''.

    Approved December 5, 2019.

LEGISLATIVE HISTORY--H.R. 5277:
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CONGRESSIONAL RECORD, Vol. 165 (2019):
            Dec. 3, considered and passed House.
            Dec. 4, considered and passed Senate.

                                  <all>