H.R. 8597

[Congressional Bills 118th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 8597 Introduced in House (IH)]

<DOC>

118th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 8597

To amend the Ethics in Government Act of 1978, the Rules of the House 
of Representatives, the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995, the 
Legislative Reorganization Act of 1946, the Duncan Hunter National 
Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2009, the Internal Revenue 
Code of 1986, the Foreign Agents Registration Act of 1938, the 
Financial Stability Act of 2010, and the Federal Funding Accountability 
and Transparency Act of 2006 to improve access to information in the 
legislative and executive branches of the Government, and for other 
purposes.

_______________________________________________________________________

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

June 3, 2024

Mr. Quigley (for himself and Ms. Norton) introduced the following bill; 
which was referred to the Committee on Oversight and Accountability, 
and in addition to the Committees on House Administration, the 
Judiciary, Ethics, Financial Services, 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 amend the Ethics in Government Act of 1978, the Rules of the House 
of Representatives, the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995, the 
Legislative Reorganization Act of 1946, the Duncan Hunter National 
Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2009, the Internal Revenue 
Code of 1986, the Foreign Agents Registration Act of 1938, the 
Financial Stability Act of 2010, and the Federal Funding Accountability 
and Transparency Act of 2006 to improve access to information in the 
legislative and executive branches of the Government, 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 ``Transparency in Government Act of 
2024''.

SEC. 2. TABLE OF CONTENTS.

The table of contents of this Act is as follows:

Sec. 1. Short title.
Sec. 2. Table of contents.
TITLE I--IMPROVING ACCESS TO INFORMATION ABOUT MEMBERS OF CONGRESS AND 
CONGRESSIONAL OFFICES

Sec. 101. Greater disclosure and electronic filing of personal 
financial information.
Sec. 102. Greater disclosure of travel reports.
Sec. 103. Greater disclosure of gift reports.
Sec. 104. Greater disclosure of earmarks.
Sec. 105. GAO study and report on effects of written requests by 
members of Congress for funding of 
projects.
TITLE II--ENHANCING PUBLIC ACCESS TO THE WORK OF CONGRESSIONAL 
COMMITTEES, LEGISLATION, AND VOTES

Sec. 201. Increased transparency of committee work.
Sec. 202. Increased transparency of recorded votes.
Sec. 203. Electronic format.
Sec. 205. Use of data standards by congressional support offices.
Sec. 206. Inclusion of digital version of funding tables in reports 
accompanying appropriations bills.
Sec. 207. Select committee on the modernization of congress.
Sec. 208. Expanded information in house staff directory.
TITLE III--EXPANDING ACCESS TO CONGRESSIONAL RESEARCH SERVICE REPORTS 
ON LIBRARY OF CONGRESS WEBSITE

Sec. 301. Inclusion of reports from archive.
Sec. 302. Availability of reports in structured format.
Sec. 303. Report on making other materials available.
Sec. 304. Effective date.
TITLE IV--LOBBYING DISCLOSURE

Sec. 401. Short title.
Sec. 402. Modifications to enforcement.
Sec. 403. Definition of lobbyist.
Sec. 404. Expedited online registration of lobbyists; thresholds for 
certain organizations whose employees are 
lobbyists.
Sec. 405. Disclosure of political contributions.
Sec. 406. Identification numbers for lobbyists.
Sec. 407. Ethics training for lobbyists.
Sec. 408. Repeal of exemption of reporting lobbying contacts reported 
under Foreign Agents Registration Act.
Sec. 409. Repeal of use of estimates based on tax reporting system.
TITLE V--TRANSPARENCY IN FEDERAL AWARDS

Sec. 501. Improving application programming interface and website data 
elements.
Sec. 502. Improving data quality.
Sec. 503. Requirements relating to reporting of award data.
Sec. 504. Recipient performance transparency.
Sec. 505. Improvement of responsibility/qualification information.
Sec. 506. Federal contractor compliance.
Sec. 507. Improving access to information disclosed on lobbying 
activities.
Sec. 508. Inclusion of narratives on USASpending.gov.
Sec. 509. Suspension and debarment database.
TITLE VI--EXECUTIVE BRANCH TRANSPARENCY

Subtitle A--Public Availability of Information

Sec. 601. Agency defined.
Sec. 602. Requirement for disclosure of Federal sponsorship of all 
Federal advertising or other 
communications.
Sec. 603. Improving access to influential executive branch official's 
visitor access records.
Sec. 604. Improving rulemaking disclosure for the Office of Information 
and Regulatory Affairs.
Sec. 605. Improving registration information from agents of foreign 
principals.
Sec. 606. Government-wide entity identifier.
Sec. 607. Grants transparency requirements.
Subtitle B--Publication of Opinions of Office of Legal Counsel

Sec. 611. Short title.
Sec. 612. Schedule of publication for final OLC opinions.
Sec. 613. Exceptions and limitation on public availability of final OLC 
opinions.
Sec. 614. Method of publication.
Sec. 615. Index of opinions.
Sec. 616. Private right of action.
Sec. 617. Severability.
Sec. 618. Definitions.
Subtitle C--Contempt of Congress Procedures and Enforcement

Sec. 621. Availability of civil action to enforce House of 
Representatives subpoenas.
Sec. 622. Alternate procedures for enforcement of criminal contempt of 
Congress.
Sec. 623. Increase in penalty for contempt of Congress.
Sec. 624. Authority of United States Capitol Police to enforce 
citations.
Sec. 625. Collection of penalties imposed by the House of 
Representatives on persons cited for 
contempt of House.
Sec. 626. No effect of expiration of Congress on pending actions.
Subtitle D--Promoting Accountability and Security in Transitions

Sec. 631. Short title.
Sec. 632. Sense of Congress.
Sec. 633. Definitions.
Sec. 634. Management and custody of Presidential records.
Sec. 635. Restrictions on access to Presidential records.
Sec. 636. Exceptions to restricted access.
Sec. 637. Regulations.
Sec. 638. Disclosure requirement for official business conducted using 
non-official electronic messaging accounts.
Sec. 639. Presidential Transition Act of 1963.
Sec. 640. Former Presidents.
Sec. 641. Presidential archival depository.
TITLE VII--STRENGTHENING THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT

Sec. 701. Digital access to records made available under the Freedom of 
Information Act.
Sec. 702. Freedom of Information Act Amendments.
Sec. 703. Other matters.
TITLE VIII--IMPROVING TRANSPARENCY WITHIN THE JUDICIAL SYSTEM

Sec. 801. Televising Supreme Court proceedings.
Sec. 802. Audio recording of Supreme Court proceedings.
Sec. 803. Availability on the internet of financial disclosure reports 
of judicial officers.
Sec. 804. GAO audit of pacer.
Sec. 805. Electronic court records reform.
TITLE IX--ENFORCEMENT

Sec. 901. Report by the Government Accountability Office.
TITLE X--MISCELLANEOUS

Sec. 1001. Transfer of certain records to archivist of United States.
Sec. 1002. Data standards.

TITLE I--IMPROVING ACCESS TO INFORMATION ABOUT MEMBERS OF CONGRESS AND 
CONGRESSIONAL OFFICES

SEC. 101. GREATER DISCLOSURE AND ELECTRONIC FILING OF PERSONAL 
FINANCIAL INFORMATION.

(a) Additional Financial Disclosure Requirements.--(1) Section 
102(a)(1)(B) of the Ethics in Government Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App. 
102(a)(1)(B)) is amended in clause (iv) by striking ``$15,000'' and 
inserting ``$25,000'' and by striking clauses (v) through (ix) and 
inserting the following new clauses:
``(v) greater than $25,000 but not more 
than $100,000, rounded to the nearest $10,000,
``(vi) greater than $100,000 but not more 
than $1,000,000, rounded to the nearest 
$100,000, or
``(vii) greater than $1,000,000, rounded to 
the nearest $1,000,000.''.
(2) Section 102(d)(1) of such Act (5 U.S.C. App. 102(d)(1)) is 
amended by striking ``(3), (4), (5), and (8)'' and inserting ``(5) and 
(8)''.
(3) Section 102(d) of such Act (5 U.S.C. App. 102(d)) is amended by 
redesignating paragraph (2) as paragraph (3) and by inserting after 
paragraph (1) the following new paragraph:
``(2) The categories for reporting the amount or value of 
the items covered in paragraphs (3) or (4) of subsection (a) 
are as follows:
``(A) Not more than $15,000.
``(B) Greater than $15,000 but not more than 
$25,000.
``(C) Greater than $25,000 but not more than 
$100,000, rounded to the nearest $10,000.
``(D) Greater than $100,000 but not more than 
$1,000,000, rounded to the nearest $100,000.
``(E) Greater than $1,000,000, rounded to the 
nearest $1,000,000.''.
(b) More Frequent Disclosure of Financial Transactions Involving 
Large Sums of Money.--
(1) Section 101 of such Act (5 U.S.C. App. 101) is amended 
by adding at the end the following new subsection:
``(j) In addition to any other report required to be filed by a 
Member of Congress or officer or employee of the Congress, each such 
individual is required to file a quarterly report on April 30, July 30, 
October 30, and January 30 of each year covering the preceding calendar 
quarter if that individual (or the spouse or any dependent child of 
that individual) purchased, sold, or exchanged any property described 
in subsection (a)(5) valued at not less than $250,000 during that 
calendar quarter. For any such transaction of not less than $250,000, 
such report shall contain all of the information required under 
subsection (a)(5).''.
(2)(A) Clause 1 of rule XXVI of the Rules of the House of 
Representatives is amended by inserting ``(a)'' after ``1.'' 
and by adding at the end the following new paragraphs:
``(b) If any report is filed with the Clerk for a calendar quarter 
pursuant to section 101(i) of the Ethics in Government Act of 1978, the 
Clerk shall compile all such reports sent to the Clerk by Members and 
have them printed as a House document, which shall be made available to 
the public, as soon as practicable.
``(c) Each individual required to file a report with the Clerk 
under title I under the Ethics in Government Act of 1978 shall file and 
maintain such report in electronic form.''.
(B) Comparable language to be added by the Senate.
(c) Availability on the Internet of Reports Filed Under This Title 
With the Clerk of the House or the Secretary of the Senate.--Section 
103 of the Ethics in Government Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App. 103) is 
amended by adding at the end the following new subsection:
``(m) The Clerk of the House of Representatives and the Secretary 
of the Senate shall each make available any report filed with them 
under this title (whether the report is filed in paper or electronic 
form) within 48 hours of the applicable submission deadline on the 
website of the Clerk or the Secretary, as applicable, in a searchable, 
sortable, downloadable, machine-readable format.''.
(d) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section shall 
apply to reports filed for calendar years or calendar quarters 
beginning after the date of enactment of this Act.

SEC. 102. GREATER DISCLOSURE OF TRAVEL REPORTS.

(a) Foreign Travel.--Clause 8(b)(3) of rule X of the Rules of the 
House of Representatives is amended by adding at the end the following 
new sentence: ``Within 48 hours after any such report is filed with the 
chair of a committee, the chair shall post the report on the Internet 
site of the committee in a searchable, sortable, downloadable, machine-
readable format.''.
(b) Effective Date.--The amendment made by subsection (a) shall 
apply to travel commencing after the date of enactment of this Act.

SEC. 103. GREATER DISCLOSURE OF GIFT REPORTS.

(a) Requiring Clerk of the House To Post Reports on Internet Not 
Later Than 48 Hours After Receipt.--(1) Clause 5(b)(5) of rule XXV of 
the Rules of the House of Representatives is amended--
(A) by striking ``shall make available'' and inserting 
``shall post on the public Internet site of the Clerk and 
otherwise make available''; and
(B) by striking ``as possible'' and inserting the 
following: ``as possible, but in no event later than 48 
hours,''.
(2) Comparable language to be added by the Senate.
(b) Effective Date.--The amendment made by subsection (a) shall 
apply with respect to reports filed on or after the date of the 
adoption of this resolution.

SEC. 104. GREATER DISCLOSURE OF EARMARKS.

(a) Electronic Disclosure by Members.--(1) Rule XXIII of the Rules 
of the House of Representatives is amended by redesignating clause 22 
as clause 23 and by inserting after clause 21 the following:
``22. A Member, Delegate, or Resident Commissioner who requests a 
congressional earmark, a limited tax benefit, or a limited tariff 
benefit shall, within 24 hours after making such request--
``(1) post on his or her public website for the remainder 
of the Congress the following--
``(A) the name and address of the intended 
recipient;
``(B) whether the intended recipient is a for-
profit or not-for-profit entity;
``(C) the requested amount (only in the case of 
congressional earmarks); and
``(D) an explanation of the request, including the 
purpose, and why it is a valuable use of taxpayer 
funds;
``(2) electronically submit to the committee of subject-
matter jurisdiction the webpage address where such information 
is posted;
``(3) identify each request as having been submitted to the 
committee of subject-matter jurisdiction; and
``(4) display on the homepage of such website a hypertext 
link that contains the words `Earmarks', `Appropriations 
Requests', `Limited Tax Benefits', or `Limited Tariff Benefits' 
and that directs to such webpage address, and maintain that 
link for at least 30 calendar days after the last such request 
is made during the Congress.''.
(2) The last sentence of clause 16 of rule XXIII of the Rules of 
the House of Representatives is amended by striking ``and clause 17'' 
and inserting ``, clause 17, and clause 22''.
(b) Electronic Disclosure by Committees.--Rule XI of the Rules of 
the House of Representatives is amended by adding at the end the 
following new clause:
``Earmark disclosure websites
``(a) Any committee that accepts any request of a Member, Delegate, 
or Resident Commissioner for a congressional earmark, a limited tax 
benefit, or a limited tariff benefit shall maintain a public website 
with an earmark disclosure webpage that contains the following for each 
such request--
``(1) the bill name;
``(2) the name, State, and district of that individual;
``(3) the name and address of the intended recipient;
``(4) whether the intended recipient is a for-profit or 
not-for-profit entity;
``(5) the requested amount (only in the case of 
congressional earmarks);
``(6) a brief description; and
``(7) the applicable department or agency of the 
Government, and the account or program (if provided to the 
committee in the request);
and
``is in a downloadable format that is searchable and 
sortable by such characteristics.
``(b) Any written statement received by a committee under clause 
17(a) of rule XXIII shall be posted on the earmark disclosure webpage 
of the committee.
``(c) The earmark disclosure webpage of a committee shall list the 
names of any Member, Delegate, and Resident Commissioner who requests a 
congressional earmark, a limited tax benefit, or a limited tariff 
benefit and link directly to their webpage addresses referred to in 
clause 18(2) of rule XXIII.
``(d) The earmark disclosure webpage of a committee shall post the 
information required under paragraphs (a) through (c) within one week 
of receipt, and shall maintain that information on that webpage for the 
remainder of the Congress.
``(e) For purposes of this clause, the terms `congressional 
earmark', `limited tax benefit', and `limited tariff benefit' shall 
have the meaning given them in clause 9 of rule XXI.''.
(c) Point of Order.--Clause 9 of rule XXI of the Rules of the House 
of Representatives is amended by redesignating paragraphs (e), (f), and 
(g) as paragraphs (f), (g), and (h), respectively, and by inserting 
after paragraph (d) the following:
``(e) It shall not be in order to consider any bill or joint 
resolution, or an amendment thereto or conference report thereon, that 
carries a congressional earmark, limited tax benefit, or limited tariff 
benefit for which a Member, Delegate, or Resident Commissioner failed 
to comply with any applicable requirement of clause 18 of rule 
XXIII.''.
(d) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section shall 
apply to requests for congressional earmarks, limited tax benefits, and 
limited tariff benefits made after the date this resolution is agreed 
to.
(e) Centralized Database for Earmarks, Limited Tax Benefits, and 
Limited Tariff Benefits.--(1) The Clerk of the House of 
Representatives, the Secretary of the Senate, and the chairs of the 
Committee on Appropriations of the House of Representatives and the 
Senate shall collaborate to create one centralized database where all 
requests for earmark, limited tax benefits, and limited tariff benefits 
are available on the Internet in a searchable, sortable, downloadable 
format to the public. The data available to the public for each earmark 
should include--
(A) an identification of the bill into which the earmark is 
to be inserted;
(B) the name, State, and district of the Member of Congress 
requesting the earmark;
(C) the name and address of the intended recipient;
(D) whether the intended recipient is a for-profit or not-
for-profit entity;
(E) the requested amount (only in the case of congressional 
earmarks);
(F) a brief description of the earmark; and
(G) the applicable department or agency of the Government, 
and the account or program (if provided to the committee in the 
request).
(2) The centralized database for earmarks referred to in paragraph 
(1) shall be implemented within six months after the date of enactment 
of this Act.

SEC. 105. GAO STUDY AND REPORT ON EFFECTS OF WRITTEN REQUESTS BY 
MEMBERS OF CONGRESS FOR FUNDING OF PROJECTS.

(a) Study.--The Comptroller General of the United States shall 
conduct a study of the effect of written requests to carry out and 
provide funding for projects and activities which are submitted to 
offices of the executive branch by Members of Congress on the decisions 
made by such offices regarding the funding of those projects and 
activities.
(b) Report.--Not later than 1 year after the date of the enactment 
of this Act, the Comptroller General shall submit to Congress a report 
on the study conducted under subsection (a).

TITLE II--ENHANCING PUBLIC ACCESS TO THE WORK OF CONGRESSIONAL 
COMMITTEES, LEGISLATION, AND VOTES

SEC. 201. INCREASED TRANSPARENCY OF COMMITTEE WORK.

(a) In the House of Representatives.--Clause 1 of rule XI of the 
Rules of the House of Representatives is amended by adding at the end 
the following new paragraph:
``(e)(1) Each committee shall post on its Internet website the 
public hearings and markup schedules of the committee and each of its 
subcommittees at the same time that information is made available to 
members of the committee.
``(2) For each hearing and markup for which information is posted 
under subparagraph (1), the committee shall post on its Internet 
website within 45 days the following: the topic, related legislation, 
testimony of witnesses, opening statements of the chair and ranking 
minority member, transcripts, and audio and video recordings.
``(3) Within 24 hours after a committee or subcommittee orders any 
bill or resolution to be reported, the committee or subcommittee, as 
applicable, shall post on its Internet website all amendments that were 
agreed to, except for technical and conforming changes authorized by 
the committee or subcommittee, as well as all votes taken on the bill 
or resolution and on any amendment offered to the bill or 
resolution.''.
(b) In the Senate.--Comparable language to be added by the Senate.

SEC. 202. INCREASED TRANSPARENCY OF RECORDED VOTES.

(a) Additional Duties of the Clerk of the House and the Secretary 
of the Senate.--The Clerk of the House of Representatives and the 
Secretary of the Senate shall post on the public Internet site of the 
Office of the Clerk or of the Secretary, respectively, a record, 
organized by the name of each Member or Senator, in a structured data 
format, of the recorded votes of that Member or Senator, including the 
roll, date, issue, question, result, and title or description of the 
vote, and any cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office related 
to the vote.
(b) Web Link.--Each Member shall provide a link to the Clerk of the 
House of Representatives of a list of recorded votes from that Member's 
website, and each Senator shall provide a link to the Secretary of the 
Senate of a list of recorded votes from that Senator's website.
(c) Definition.--As used in this section, the term ``Member'' means 
a Representative in Congress, a delegate to Congress, or the Resident 
Commissioner from Puerto Rico.
(d) Effective Date.--This section shall apply to recorded votes 
occurring after the date of enactment of this Act.

SEC. 203. ELECTRONIC FORMAT.

(a) In General.--Chapter 2 of title 1 of the United States Code is 
amended by inserting after section 107 the following new section:
``Sec. 107a. Electronic format
``To the extent practicable, all bills, resolutions, orders, and 
votes shall be created, exchanged, and published in searchable 
electronic formats, consistent with data standards recommended by such 
advisory bodies as Congress may establish.''.
(b) Conforming Amendment.--The table of sections at the beginning 
of chapter 2 of title 1 of the United States Code is amended by adding 
after the item relating to section 107 the following new item:

``107a. Electronic format.''.

SEC. 205. USE OF DATA STANDARDS BY CONGRESSIONAL SUPPORT OFFICES.

All congressional support offices shall, to the extent practicable, 
use the data standards recommended by the Congressional Data Task Force 
for the congressional information that they create, exchange, and/or 
publish.

SEC. 206. INCLUSION OF DIGITAL VERSION OF FUNDING TABLES IN REPORTS 
ACCOMPANYING APPROPRIATIONS BILLS.

(a) Inclusion.--The Clerk of the House of Representatives and the 
Secretary of the Senate shall ensure that each report accompanying any 
appropriations bill reported by the Committees on Appropriations of the 
House or Senate (as the case may be) includes a formatted spreadsheet 
showing the amounts made available by the bill, in a tabular, digital 
format that shows separate entries for each fiscal year covered by the 
bill.
(b) Effective Date.--Subsection (a) shall apply with respect to any 
appropriations bill making funds available for fiscal year 2024 or any 
succeeding fiscal year.

SEC. 207. SELECT COMMITTEE ON THE MODERNIZATION OF CONGRESS.

Regular Modernization Select Committees: The House should authorize 
a Modernization Select Committee at least every fourth Congress. Prior 
to the Select Committee on the Modernization of Congress being 
established in 2019, the Joint Committee on the Organization of 
Congress in 1993 was the last organized reform entity. As the pace of 
change accelerates, Congress needs to evaluate itself at more regular 
intervals. The House, with or without the Senate, should authorize a 
Select Committee with a mandate to evaluate the operations and 
efficiency of the institution.

SEC. 208. EXPANDED INFORMATION IN HOUSE STAFF DIRECTORY.

Not later than 90 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, 
the Clerk of the House of Representatives shall submit a report to the 
Committees on Appropriations and House Administration of the House of 
Representatives on the feasibility of expanding the information 
included in the directory of employees of the House to include 
information on the position held and the areas of responsibility 
assigned to each employee.

TITLE III--EXPANDING ACCESS TO CONGRESSIONAL RESEARCH SERVICE REPORTS 
ON LIBRARY OF CONGRESS WEBSITE

SEC. 301. INCLUSION OF REPORTS FROM ARCHIVE.

Section 154(a)(2) of Legislative Branch Appropriations Act, 2018 (2 
U.S.C. 166a(a)(2)) is amended--
(1) by redesignating subparagraph (B) as subparagraph (C); 
and
(2) by inserting after subparagraph (A) the following new 
subparagraph:
``(B) Inclusion of archived material.--The term 
`CRS Report' includes any report or product described 
in subparagraph (A) which is produced prior to the 
effective date of this section, including any report or 
product maintained in a CRS archive.''.

SEC. 302. AVAILABILITY OF REPORTS IN STRUCTURED FORMAT.

Section 154(b)(1)(B) of the Legislative Branch Appropriations Act, 
2018 (2 U.S.C. 166a(b)(1)(B)) is amended by striking the period at the 
end and inserting the following: ``, and shall be available in a 
structured data format''.

SEC. 303. REPORT ON MAKING OTHER MATERIALS AVAILABLE.

Not later than 1 year after the date of the enactment of this Act, 
the Director of the Congressional Research Service shall submit a 
report to Congress describing the steps the Director would be required 
to take in order to make materials and publications of the Service 
which are not treated as CRS Reports under section 154 of the 
Legislative Branch Appropriations Act, 2018 (2 U.S.C. 166a) available 
through the website established and maintained by the Librarian of 
Congress under such section.

SEC. 304. EFFECTIVE DATE.

The amendments made by sections 301 and 302 shall take effect as if 
included in the enactment of section 154 of the Legislative Branch 
Appropriations Act, 2018 (2 U.S.C. 166a).

TITLE IV--LOBBYING DISCLOSURE

SEC. 401. SHORT TITLE.

This title may be cited as the ``Lobbyist Disclosure Enhancement 
Act''.

SEC. 402. MODIFICATIONS TO ENFORCEMENT.

(a) Lobbying Disclosure Act Task Force.--Section 6 of the Lobbying 
Disclosure Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1605) is amended by adding at the end 
the following new subsection:
``(c) Lobbying Disclosure Act Task Force.--
``(1) Establishment.--The Attorney General shall establish 
the Lobbying Disclosure Act Enforcement Task Force (in this 
subsection referred to as the `Task Force').
``(2) Functions.--The Task Force shall--
``(A) have primary responsibility for investigating 
and prosecuting each case referred to the Attorney 
General under section 6(a)(8);
``(B) collect and disseminate information to the 
public with respect to the enforcement of this Act;
``(C) audit, as frequently as the Task Force 
determines to be necessary but not less frequently than 
once each calendar year, the extent of compliance or 
noncompliance with the requirements of this Act by 
lobbyists, lobbying firms, and registrants through a 
random sampling of lobbying registrations and reports 
filed under that Act during the year;
``(D) establish, publicize, and operate a toll-free 
telephone number to serve as a hotline for members of 
the public to report noncompliance with the 
requirements of this Act; and
``(E) develop a mechanism to allow members of the 
public to report such noncompliance online.''.
(b) Referral of Cases to the Attorney General.--Section 6(a) of 
such Act (2 U.S.C. 1605(a)) is amended--
(1) in paragraph (8), by striking ``United States Attorney 
for the District of Columbia'' and inserting ``Attorney 
General''; and
(2) in paragraph (11), by striking ``United States Attorney 
for the District of Columbia'' and inserting ``Attorney 
General''.
(c) Information in Enforcement Reports.--Section 6(b)(1) of such 
Act (2 U.S.C. 1605(b)(1)) is amended by striking ``by case'' and all 
that follows through ``public record'' and inserting ``by case and name 
of the individual lobbyists or lobbying firms involved, any sentences 
imposed''.
(d) Recommendations for Improved Enforcement.--The Attorney General 
may make recommendations to Congress with respect to--
(1) the enforcement of and compliance with the Lobbying 
Disclosure Act of 1995; and
(2) the need for resources available for the enhanced 
enforcement of the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995, taking into 
consideration the recommendations of the Comptroller General in 
reports submitted under section 26 of such Act.
(e) Effective Date.--This section and the amendments made by this 
section shall take effect upon the expiration of the 90-day period 
beginning on the date of the enactment of this Act.

SEC. 403. DEFINITION OF LOBBYIST.

(a) Repeal of 20 Percent Threshold for Inclusion of Lobbying 
Activities.--Section 3(10) of the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 (2 
U.S.C. 1602(10)) is amended by striking ``, other than an individual'' 
and all that follows through ``period''.
(b) Effective Date.--The amendment made by subsection (a) shall 
take effect on the first day of the first quarterly period described in 
section 5(a) of the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1604(a)) 
that begins after the end of the 90-day period beginning on the date of 
the enactment of this Act.

SEC. 404. EXPEDITED ONLINE REGISTRATION OF LOBBYISTS; THRESHOLDS FOR 
CERTAIN ORGANIZATIONS WHOSE EMPLOYEES ARE LOBBYISTS.

(a) Expedited Registration.--Section 4(a) of the Lobbying 
Disclosure Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1603(a)) is amended--
(1) in paragraph (1)--
(A) by striking ``45 days'' and inserting ``10 
days'';
(B) by striking ``, or on the first business day 
after such 45th day if the 45th day is not a business 
day,'' and inserting ``, or on the first business day 
occurring after such 10th day if such 10th day does not 
occur on a business day,''; and
(C) by inserting ``online'' after ``shall 
register''; and
(2) in paragraph (2)--
(A) by striking ``Any organization'' and inserting 
the following:
``(A) In general.--Subject to subparagraph (B), any 
organization''; and
(B) by adding at the end the following:
``(B) Threshold for certain organizations.--In the 
case of an organization with an employee who engages in 
lobbying activities solely on behalf of the 
organization, the requirement to register under this 
subsection shall apply only if the lobbying activities 
of such employee include or are expected to include 
more than one lobbying contact.''.
(b) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section shall take 
effect on the first day of the first quarterly period described in 
section 5(a) of the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1604(a)) 
that begins after the end of the 90-day period beginning on the date of 
the enactment of this Act.

SEC. 405. DISCLOSURE OF POLITICAL CONTRIBUTIONS.

(a) Expedited Disclosure.--Section 5(d)(1) of the Lobbying 
Disclosure Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1604(d)(1)) is amended--
(1) in the matter preceding subparagraph (A), by striking 
``30 days after'' and all that follows through ``30th day is 
not'' and inserting ``20 days after the end of the quarterly 
period beginning on the first day of January, April, July, and 
October of each year, or on the first business day after such 
20th day if such 20th day is not''; and
(2) by striking ``semiannual period'' each place it appears 
and inserting ``quarterly period''.
(b) Effective Date.--The amendments made by subsection (a) shall 
take effect on the first day of the first quarterly period described in 
section 5(a) of the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1604(a)) 
that begins after the end of the 90-day period beginning on the date of 
the enactment of this Act.

SEC. 406. IDENTIFICATION NUMBERS FOR LOBBYISTS.

(a) Requiring Assignment of Unique Identification Number.--
(1) Requirement.--Section 6(a)(3) of the Lobbying 
Disclosure Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1605(a)(3)) is amended--
(A) by striking ``and'' at the end of subparagraph 
(A);
(B) by adding ``and'' after the semicolon the end 
of subparagraph (B); and
(C) by adding after subparagraph (B) the following:
``(C) a system that assigns a unique identification 
number for each lobbyist for whom a registration or 
report is filed under this Act;''.
(2) Section 406.--The amendments made by paragraph (1) 
shall apply to any registration or report that is filed under 
section 4 or 5 of the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995--
(A) on or after the 90th day after the date of the 
enactment of this Act; or
(B) before such 90th day, if such registration or 
report is, as of such 90th day, being retained under 
section 6(a)(5) of the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 
(2 U.S.C. 1605(a)(5)).
(b) Report on Implementation.--Not later than 60 days after the 
date of the enactment of this Act, the Clerk of the House of 
Representatives and the Secretary of the Senate shall submit a report 
to Congress on the progress made by the Clerk and the Secretary in 
implementing the amendment made by subsection (a), and shall include in 
the report an analysis of the progress made in including the unique 
identification number assigned to a lobbyist in the statements and 
reports filed under the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 in a structured 
data format.

SEC. 407. ETHICS TRAINING FOR LOBBYISTS.

(a) Requiring Completion of Training.--The Lobbying Disclosure Act 
of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end the 
following new section:

``SEC. 27. ETHICS TRAINING FOR LOBBYISTS.

``(a) Required Ethics Training.--Any individual who is a lobbyist 
registered or required to register under section 4 shall--
``(1) complete ethics training described in subsection 
(b)--
``(A) not later than 6 months after the individual 
is first employed or retained for services that include 
one or more lobbying contacts; and
``(B) at least once in each 5-year period during 
which the individual is registered or required to 
register under section 4; and
``(2) submit to the Clerk of the House of Representatives 
and the Secretary of the Senate certification of the training 
completed under paragraph (1).
``(b) Qualified Training.--The Ethics Committee of the House of 
Representatives and the Select Committee on Ethics of the Senate shall 
jointly--
``(1) determine the curriculum and certification 
requirements for the ethics training for individuals described 
in subsection (a);
``(2) approve those educational institutions, professional 
associations, or other persons who are qualified to provide 
such ethics training;
``(3) determine the maximum fee that may be charged for the 
ethics training; and
``(4) provide oversight of the ethics training program 
established under this section in order to determine the 
quality of instruction in, and the administration of, the 
training program.
``(c) Responsibilities of Clerk and Secretary.--The Clerk of the 
House of Representatives and the Secretary of the Senate shall--
``(1) collect and review for completion and accuracy the 
certifications of ethics training submitted under subsection 
(a)(2); and
``(2) post on the websites of the Clerk and the Secretary, 
with respect to each individual required to complete ethics 
training under this section--
``(A) whether the individual has complied with such 
requirement; and
``(B) the certifications submitted by the 
individual under subsection (a)(2).''.
(b) Effective Date.--
(1) In general.--The amendment made by subsection (a) shall 
take effect upon the expiration of the 1-year period beginning 
on the date of the enactment of this Act.
(2) Lobbyists registered as of date of enactment.--In the 
case of individuals who are registered under section 4 of the 
Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1603) as of the 
effective date under paragraph (1), the ethics training 
required under section 27(a)(1) of such Act (as added by 
subsection (a)) shall be completed not later than the end of 
the 6-month period beginning on the effective date under 
paragraph (1).

SEC. 408. REPEAL OF EXEMPTION OF REPORTING LOBBYING CONTACTS REPORTED 
UNDER FOREIGN AGENTS REGISTRATION ACT.

(a) Repeal.--Section 3(8)(B) of the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 
(2 U.S.C. 1602(8)(B)) is amended by striking clause (iv).
(b) Effective Date.--The amendment made by subsection (a) shall 
take effect on the first day of the first quarterly period described in 
section 5(a) of the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1604(a)) 
that begins after the end of the 90-day period beginning on the date of 
the enactment of this Act.

SEC. 409. REPEAL OF USE OF ESTIMATES BASED ON TAX REPORTING SYSTEM.

Section 15 of the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1610) 
is repealed.

TITLE V--TRANSPARENCY IN FEDERAL AWARDS

SEC. 501. IMPROVING APPLICATION PROGRAMMING INTERFACE AND WEBSITE DATA 
ELEMENTS.

(a) In General.--Section 2 of the Federal Funding Accountability 
and Transparency Act of 2006 (Public Law 109-282; 31 U.S.C. 6101 note) 
is amended--
(1) in subsection (a)--
(A) in paragraph (4)(A)(ii), by striking ``and 
delivery orders'' and inserting ``lease agreements and 
assignments, and delivery orders'';
(B) in paragraph (7)--
(i) in subparagraph (B), by striking 
``paragraph (2)(A)(i)'' and inserting 
``paragraph (5)(A)(i)'';
(ii) in subparagraph (C)--
(I) by striking ``paragraph 
(2)(A)(ii)'' and inserting ``paragraph 
(5)(A)(ii)''; and
(II) by striking ``and'' after the 
semicolon;
(iii) in subparagraph (D), by striking the 
period at the end and inserting ``; and''; and
(iv) by adding at the end the following new 
subparagraph:
``(E) programmatically search and access all data 
in a serialized machine-readable format (such as XML) 
via a web-services application programming 
interface.'';
(C) by redesignating paragraphs (1) through (8) as 
paragraphs (2) through (9), respectively; and
(D) by inserting before paragraph (2) the following 
new paragraph:
``(1) Congressionally directed spending item.--The term 
`congressionally directed spending item' means a provision or 
report language included primarily at the request of a Member 
of Congress providing, authorizing, or recommending a specific 
amount of discretionary budget authority, credit authority, or 
other spending authority for a contract, loan, loan guarantee, 
grant, loan authority, or other expenditure with or to an 
entity, or targeted to a specific State, locality, or 
congressional district, other than through a statutory or 
administrative formula-driven or competitive award process.'';
(2) in subsection (b)(1)--
(A) in subparagraph (F), by striking the period at 
the end and inserting a semicolon;
(B) by redesignating subparagraph (G) as 
subparagraph (Q); and
(C) by inserting after subparagraph (F) the 
following new subparagraphs:
``(G) to the extent possible, the Federal agency, 
including the bureau, office, or subdivision, that 
authorized the Federal award;
``(H) the number of full-time equivalent employees 
for any entity that receives an award;
``(I) the estimated number of people who will 
benefit from the award;
``(J) after January 1, 2024, for each contract, 
subcontract, purchase order, task order, lease 
agreement and assignment, and delivery order--
``(i) information about the extent of 
competition in awarding the contract, including 
the number of bids or proposals determined to 
be responsive during the competitive process, 
and if the award was not competitive, the legal 
authority and specific rationale for awarding 
the contract without full and open competition 
(as defined in section 107 of title 41, United 
States Code);
``(ii) the full amount awarded under the 
contract or, in the case of lease agreements or 
assignments, the amount paid to the Government, 
and the full amount of any option to expand or 
extend under the contract;
``(iii) the amount of the profit incentive, 
such as an award fee;
``(iv) the type of contract, such as fixed 
price, cost plus pricing, labor hour contract, 
and time and materials contract;
``(v) a permanent link to the original 
solicitation or notice and the solicitation ID;
``(vi) an indication if the contract is the 
result of a legislative mandate, set-aside, 
preference program requirement, or other 
criteria, and whether the contract is multi-
year, consolidated, or performance-based; and
``(vii) an indication if the contract is a 
congressionally directed spending item;
``(K) after January 1, 2024, for any grant, 
subgrant, loan, award, cooperative agreement, and other 
form of financial assistance, an indication if the 
Federal award is a congressionally directed spending 
item;
``(L) the North American Industry Classification 
System code for any entity that receives a Federal 
award;
``(M) data on whether a business that receives a 
Federal award is a small business concern owned and 
controlled by women, a small business concern owned and 
controlled by veterans (as such terms are defined, 
respectively, in section 3 of the Small Business Act 
(15 U.S.C. 632)), or a small business concern owned and 
controlled by socially and economically disadvantaged 
individuals (as defined in section 8(d)(3)(C) of such 
Act (15 U.S.C. 637(d)(3)(C)));
``(N) data on if a business that receives an 
assistance award serves an underserved community, such 
as a HUBZone (as defined in section 31(b)(1) of the 
Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 657a(b)(1))) or a labor 
surplus area (as determined by the Secretary of Labor), 
or if a business participates in the program 
established under section 8(a) of the Small Business 
Act (15 U.S.C. 637(a)) or another contracting 
assistance program of the Federal Government;
``(O) the relevant National Interest Action Code, 
which tracks cross agency spending on events of 
national interest; and
``(P) after January 1, 2024, for any loan and loan 
guarantee, data on the name, address, and parent 
company of any private lender participating in the 
award; and''; and
(3) in subsection (c)(5)--
(A) by striking ``subsection (a)(2)(A)(i)'' and 
inserting ``subsection (a)(5)(A)(i)''; and
(B) by striking ``subsection (a)(2)(A)(ii)'' and 
inserting ``subsection (a)(5)(A)(ii)''.
(b) Effective Date.--Except as otherwise provided, the amendments 
made by subsection (a) shall be implemented not later than 6 months 
after the date of the enactment of this Act.

SEC. 502. IMPROVING DATA QUALITY.

The Federal Funding Accountability and Transparency Act of 2006 
(Public Law 109-282; 31 U.S.C. 6101 note) is amended by adding at the 
end the following new section:

``SEC. 9. IMPROVING DATA QUALITY.

``(a) Inspector General Data Audit.--Each Inspector General shall 
annually audit for the previous fiscal year the data used on the 
website established under section 2 for the relevant Federal agency of 
the Inspector General, in compliance with generally accepted Government 
auditing standards, and submit a report on such audit to the Director 
that includes at least the following:
``(1) A review of data used for the website to verify 
accuracy of the data and assess the process used for improving 
data quality.
``(2) A review of a statistically representative sample of 
Federal awards to determine whether the Federal agency of the 
Inspector General has appropriate measures in place to review 
data submissions under this Act for accuracy and completeness.
``(3) An identification of and report on new standards that 
the Inspector General recommends for implementation by the 
Federal agency of the Inspector General to improve data 
quality.
``(4) A review of subaward data used for the website to 
assess completeness and accuracy of the data as best as 
possible and assess the process used to collect subaward data 
for changes that could improve data quality.
``(b) OMB Report.--Not later than April 1 of each year, the 
Director shall make each report submitted under subsection (a) for the 
previous fiscal year available to the public, including a review of the 
findings of the audit and recommendations to improve data quality, 
through the website established under section 2.
``(c) Federal Subaward Reporting System.--Not later than 180 days 
after the date of the enactment of this section, the Inspector General 
of the General Services Administration shall submit to Congress a 
report that includes the results of a comprehensive review of the FFATA 
Subaward Reporting System that identifies problems within the system 
that contribute to inaccurate and incomplete subaward reporting and 
provide specific recommendations for improvements. The review shall 
include an assessment of the effectiveness and efficiency of the 
system, including the following:
``(1) The accuracy and completeness of subaward data 
reported through the system.
``(2) The consistency of reporting requirements across 
Federal agencies.
``(3) The burden on Federal award recipients to comply with 
reporting requirements.
``(4) The accessibility and availability of subaward data 
to the public and stakeholders.
``(5) The adequacy of enforcement mechanisms to ensure 
compliance with reporting requirements.
``(d) Data Verification Systems Prior to Award Distribution.--
Before making a Federal award to a recipient, the Federal agency shall 
verify the accuracy and completeness of the information of the 
recipient. To carry out this subsection, a Federal agency may use any 
available verification tools, including the System for Award Management 
database, the Do Not Pay system of the Department of the Treasury, and 
any other database designated by the Office of Management and Budget 
for verification purposes. Recipient data that must be verified 
includes the following:
``(1) The legal name of the recipient.
``(2) The street address.
``(3) A taxpayer identification number.
``(4) The number of employees of an entity, if 
applicable.''.

SEC. 503. REQUIREMENTS RELATING TO REPORTING OF AWARD DATA.

(a) Revision of Guidance.--The Director of the Office of Management 
and Budget shall revise the guidance to Federal agencies by the Office 
on reporting Federal awards to clarify--
(1) the requirement for award description entries to 
include sufficient information to convey the scope and purpose 
of the award; and
(2) requirements for validating and documenting agency 
award data submitted by Federal agencies.
(b) Inclusion of City Information.--The Director of the Office of 
Management and Budget shall include information on the city in which 
work is performed in the public reporting of the completeness of agency 
data submissions by the Office.
(c) Definitions.--In this section, the terms ``Federal agency'' and 
``Federal award'' have the meanings given those terms in section 2(a) 
of the Federal Funding Accountability and Transparency Act of 2006 
(Public Law 109-282; 31 U.S.C. 6101 note), as amended by this Act.

SEC. 504. RECIPIENT PERFORMANCE TRANSPARENCY.

(a) In General.--The Federal Funding Accountability and 
Transparency Act of 2006 (Public Law 109-282; 31 U.S.C. 6101 note), as 
amended by the preceding provisions of this Act, is further amended by 
adding at the end the following new section:

``SEC. 10. RECIPIENT PERFORMANCE TRANSPARENCY AND PAST PERFORMANCE.

``The Director shall ensure that the unique identifier required in 
section 2(b)(1)(E), which is used to link information about an entity 
receiving an award on the website established under such section, is 
also used to link information about such entity in the responsibility/
qualification information on the System for Award Management.''.
(b) Effective Date.--The amendment made by subsection (a) shall be 
implemented not later than 6 months after the date of the enactment of 
this Act.

SEC. 505. IMPROVEMENT OF RESPONSIBILITY/QUALIFICATION INFORMATION.

Section 872(c) of the Duncan Hunter National Defense Authorization 
Act for Fiscal Year 2009 (Public Law 110-417; 122 Stat. 4556) is 
amended--
(1) in the matter preceding paragraph (1), by striking ``5-
year period'' and inserting ``10-year period''; and
(2) in paragraph (1), by adding at the end the following 
new subparagraphs:
``(E) In an administrative proceeding, any 
administrative judgment that does not contain an 
explicit finding or acknowledgment of fault.
``(F) In a civil proceeding, any settlement that 
does not contain an explicit finding or acknowledgment 
of fault.''.

SEC. 506. FEDERAL CONTRACTOR COMPLIANCE.

(a) Periodic Inspection or Review of Contract Files.--Section 
2313(e)(2) of title 41, United States Code, is amended by adding at the 
end the following new subparagraph:
``(C) Periodic inspection or review.--The Inspector 
General of each Federal agency shall periodically--
``(i) conduct an inspection or review of 
each contract file described in subparagraph 
(B) to determine if the agency is providing 
appropriate consideration of the information 
included in the database established under 
subsection (a); and
``(ii) submit to the Committee on Homeland 
Security and Governmental Affairs of the Senate 
and the Committee on Oversight and 
Accountability of the House of Representatives 
a report containing the results of the 
inspection or review conducted under clause 
(i).''.
(b) Self-Reporting Requirement.--Subsection (f) of section 2313 of 
such title is amended to read as follows:
``(f) Self-Reporting Requirement.--
``(1) Contracts in excess of simplified acquisition 
threshold.--No funds appropriated or otherwise made available 
by any Act may be used for any Federal contract for the 
procurement of property or services in excess of the simplified 
acquisition threshold unless the contractor has first made the 
certifications set forth in section 52.209-5 of the Federal 
Acquisition Regulation.
``(2) Contracts in excess of $500,000.--No funds 
appropriated or otherwise made available by any Act may be used 
for any Federal contract for the procurement of property or 
services in excess of $500,000 unless the contractor--
``(A) certifies that the contractor has submitted 
to the Administrator of General Services the 
information required under subsection (c) and that such 
information is current as of the date of such 
certification; or
``(B) certifies that the contractor has cumulative 
active Federal contracts and grants with a total value 
of less than $10,000,000.''.
(c) Annual Report.--Not later than November 30 for the previous 
fiscal year, the Comptroller General of the United States shall 
annually submit a report to the appropriate congressional committees 
describing the extent to which suspended or debarred contractors on the 
Excluded Parties List System--
(1) are identified as having received Federal contracts on 
USAspending.gov; or
(2) were granted waivers from Federal agencies from 
suspension or debarment for purposes of entering into Federal 
contracts.

SEC. 507. IMPROVING ACCESS TO INFORMATION DISCLOSED ON LOBBYING 
ACTIVITIES.

(a) Information Filed With the Administrator of General Services.--
Section 1352(b) of title 31, United States Code, is amended--
(1) in paragraph (1), by striking ``file with that agency'' 
and inserting ``file electronically with the Administrator of 
General Services''; and
(2) by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
``(7) The Administrator of General Services shall establish and 
maintain an online database that--
``(A) is available to each agency and the public;
``(B) contains information disclosed pursuant to this 
subsection; and
``(C) is searchable, sortable, machine-readable, and 
downloadable.''.
(b) Deadline for Database.--Not later than 180 days after the date 
of the enactment of this Act, the Administrator of General Services 
shall establish the database required by paragraph (7) of section 
1352(b) of title 31, United States Code, as added by subsection (a).

SEC. 508. INCLUSION OF NARRATIVES ON USASPENDING.GOV.

(a) In General.--Not later than 90 days after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, the Director of the Office of Management and 
Budget shall allow any agency, in reporting a Federal award to 
USASpending.gov (or a successor website), to upload a narrative for 
such award.
(b) Definitions.--In this section:
(1) Agency.--The term ``agency'' has the meanings given 
that term in section 6101 of title 31, United States Code.
(2) Federal award.--The term ``Federal award'' has the 
meaning given that term in section 2(a) of the Federal Funding 
Accountability and Transparency Act of 2006 (Public Law 109-
282; 31 U.S.C. 6101 note).

SEC. 509. SUSPENSION AND DEBARMENT DATABASE.

(a) Expansion of Required Data; Publication of Contractor 
Evaluation Ratings.--Subsection (c) of section 2313 of title 41, United 
States Code is amended--
(1) in the matter before paragraph (1), by striking ``5-
year period'' and inserting ``10-year period'';
(2) in paragraph (1)--
(A) by striking ``in connection with the award or 
performance of a contract or grant with the Federal 
Government'';
(B) in subparagraph (B), by striking ``$5,000'' and 
inserting ``$1,000''; and
(C) in subparagraph (C)--
(i) in clause (i), by striking ``$5,000'' 
and inserting ``$1,000'';
(ii) in clause (ii), by striking 
``$100,000'' and inserting ``$10,000''; and
(3) by inserting at the end the following new paragraph:
``(9) Contractor evaluation ratings as provided for in 
subsection (b)(4) of section 42.1503 of title 48, Code of 
Federal Regulations, as in effect on the date of the enactment 
of this paragraph.''.
(b) Public Availability of Ratings.--Section 3010 of the 
Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2010 (41 U.S.C. 2313 note; Public Law 
111-212), is amended by adding after ``website'' the following: 
``Contractor evaluation ratings shall not be considered past 
performance reviews for the purposes of this section.''.
(c) Eliminate Loophole.--Subsection (d)(3) of section 2313 of title 
41, United States Code is amended by striking ``, to the extent 
practicable,''.
(d) Lower Disclosure and Beneficial Ownership Threshold.--
Subsection (f) of section 2313 of title 41, United States Code, is 
amended--
(1) in the matter before paragraph (1), by striking 
``$10,000,000'' and inserting ``$5,000,000''; and
(2) in paragraph (1), by striking ``subsection (c)'' and 
inserting ``subsections (c) and (d)''.
(e) Liability; Audits.--Section 2313 of title 41, United States 
Code, is amended by adding at th end the following new subsections:
``(h) Enforcement.--A knowing and willful failure to disclose or 
update information in accordance with subsection (f) may result in one 
or more of the following:
``(1) Entry of the violation in the database described by 
this section.
``(2) A civil fine not exceeding $200,000.
``(3) Referral for suspension or debarment.
``(i) Periodic Auditing.--
``(1) Audit process.--Not later than one year after the 
date of the enactment of this subsection, the Comptroller 
General of the United States shall develop a process to audit 
the following:
``(A) Any data reported under this section for 
compliance with this section and any regulation 
promulgated under this section.
``(B) The online presentation on the System for 
Award Management for compliance with the 21st Century 
Integrated Digital Experience Act (10 U.S.C. 3501 note; 
Public Law 115-336) and any other applicable law.
``(C) Compliance with section 508 of the 
Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 794d).
``(2) Biennial audits.--Upon completion of the process 
required pursuant to paragraph (1), and every other year 
thereafter, the Comptroller General shall conduct an audit 
pursuant to that process.
``(3) Audit reports.--Upon completion of each audit 
required pursuant to paragraph (2), the Comptroller General 
shall submit a report that details the findings of the audit to 
the following:
``(A) The Committee on Oversight and Accountability 
of the House of Representatives.
``(B) The Committee on Homeland Security and 
Governmental Affairs of the Senate.
``(C) The public through the Government 
Accountability Office website.''.
(f) Reporting Standards.--Not later than 2 years after the date of 
the enactment of this Act, the Administrator for Federal Procurement 
Policy shall revise the Federal Acquisition Regulation maintained under 
section 1303(a)(1) of title 41, United States Code, to prescribe 
minimum data quality standards requiring that information entered into 
the database required by section 2313 of title 41, United States Code, 
is reasonably informative and particular.

TITLE VI--EXECUTIVE BRANCH TRANSPARENCY

Subtitle A--Public Availability of Information

SEC. 601. AGENCY DEFINED.

In this subtitle (except as provided for in section 606), the term 
``agency'' has the meaning given that term under section 551 of title 
5, United States Code.

SEC. 602. REQUIREMENT FOR DISCLOSURE OF FEDERAL SPONSORSHIP OF ALL 
FEDERAL ADVERTISING OR OTHER COMMUNICATIONS.

(a) Requirement.--Except as provided for in subsection (b), each 
advertisement or other communication paid for by an agency, either 
directly or through a contract awarded by the agency, shall include a 
prominent notice informing the target audience that the advertisement 
or other communication is paid for by that agency.
(b) Exceptions.--The requirement in subsection (a) shall not apply 
to an advertisement or other communication--
(1) that is 200 characters or less; or
(2) that is distributed through a short message service.
(c) Advertisement or Other Communications Defined.--In this 
section, the term ``advertisement or other communication'' includes--
(1) an advertisement disseminated in any form, including 
print or by any electronic means; and
(2) a communication by an individual in any form, including 
speech, print, or by any electronic means.

SEC. 603. IMPROVING ACCESS TO INFLUENTIAL EXECUTIVE BRANCH OFFICIAL'S 
VISITOR ACCESS RECORDS.

(a) Disclosure of White House Visitor Access Records.--Not later 
than 30 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, and monthly 
thereafter, the President shall disclose to the public all White House 
visitor access records and any meeting log for a virtual business 
meeting for the previous month that are redacted in accordance with 
subsection (c).
(b) Disclosure of Agency Visitor Access Records.--Not later than 30 
days after the date of the enactment of this Act, and monthly 
thereafter, the head of each agency shall disclose to the public all 
visitor access records for the previous month for such agency that are 
redacted in accordance with subsection (c).
(c) Information Not Disclosed.--The President under subsection (a) 
and the head of the relevant agency under subsection (b), as the case 
may be, may determine to not disclose the following information 
pursuant to this section:
(1) Any information--
(A) that implicates personal privacy or law 
enforcement concerns (such as date of birth, social 
security number, and contact phone number);
(B) that implicates the personal safety of White 
House staff (including daily arrival and departure); or
(C) whose release would so threaten national 
security interests that it outweighs a strong 
presumption in favor of the public interest in 
disclosure.
(2) For a non-renewable period of up to a year, any 
information related to purely personal guests, but only if the 
interest of the executive branch in protecting an unfettered 
consultation conducted in secret strongly outweighs the public 
interest in an accountable government free of corruption and 
political influence.
(3) Any information related to a small group of 
particularly sensitive meetings (such as visits of potential 
Supreme Court nominees).

SEC. 604. IMPROVING RULEMAKING DISCLOSURE FOR THE OFFICE OF INFORMATION 
AND REGULATORY AFFAIRS.

(a) Inclusion in the Rulemaking Docket of Documents and 
Communications Related to the Implementation of Centralized Regulatory 
Review.--As soon as practicable and not later than 15 days after the 
conclusion of a centralized regulatory review for a draft proposed or 
draft final rule, the Administrator of the Office of Information and 
Regulatory Affairs shall include in the rulemaking docket the 
following:
(1) A copy of the draft proposed or draft final rule and 
supporting analyses submitted to the Office of Information and 
Regulatory Affairs for review.
(2) A copy of the draft proposed or draft final rule that 
incorporates substantive changes, if any, made to the rule as 
part of implementing centralized regulatory review.
(3) A document describing in a complete, clear, and simple 
manner any substantive change made by the Office of Information 
and Regulatory Affairs to the draft proposed or draft final 
rule submitted by the agency to the Office for review.
(4) A copy of any document and written communication 
(including any electronic mail and electronic mail file 
attachment), and a summary of any oral communication (including 
any phone call, phone conference, and meeting), exchanged as 
part of the implementation of the centralized regulatory review 
between or among any of the following:
(A) The agency responsible for the rule.
(B) The Office of Information and Regulatory 
Affairs.
(C) Any other office or entity within the Executive 
Office of the President.
(D) An agency that is not the agency responsible 
for the rule.
(E) An individual who is not employed by--
(i) the executive branch of the Federal 
Government; or
(ii) an agency that is not the agency 
responsible for the rule.
(b) Definitions.--In this section:
(1) Centralized regulatory review.--The term ``centralized 
regulatory review'' means the institutional process of 
Presidential oversight of individual agency rules governed by 
Executive Order 12866 (58 Fed. Reg. 51735; relating to 
regulatory planning and review), or any successor to such 
Executive order.
(2) Rule.--The term ``rule'' has the meaning given that 
term in section 551 of title 5, United States Code.
(c) Rule of Construction.--Nothing in this section shall be 
construed to preempt or displace the disclosure requirements under any 
other provision of law affecting administrative procedure, if such 
requirements are not inconsistent with the requirements of this 
section.

SEC. 605. IMPROVING REGISTRATION INFORMATION FROM AGENTS OF FOREIGN 
PRINCIPALS.

(a) Improving Online Access to Registration Information.--Section 
6(d)(1) of the Foreign Agents Registration Act of 1938 (22 U.S.C. 
616(d)(1)) is amended by striking ``in a searchable, sortable, and 
downloadable manner'' and inserting ``in a format which is directly 
searchable, sortable, downloadable, and machine-readable''.
(b) Repealing Exemption From Registration Under Foreign Agents 
Registration Act of 1938 for Persons Filing Disclosure Reports Under 
Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995.--
(1) Repeal of exemption.--Section 3 of the Foreign Agents 
Registration Act of 1938 (22 U.S.C. 613) is amended by striking 
subsection (h).
(2) Timing of filing of registration statements.--Section 2 
of the Foreign Agents Registration Act of 1938 (22 U.S.C. 612) 
is amended--
(A) in subsection (a), in the matter preceding 
paragraph (1), in the fourth sentence, by striking 
``The registration statement shall include'' and 
inserting ``Except as provided in subsection (h), the 
registration statement shall include''; and
(B) by adding at the end the following:
``(h) Timing for Filing of Statements by Persons Registered Under 
Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995.--In the case of an agent of a person 
described in section 1(b)(2) or an entity described in section 1(b)(3) 
who has registered under the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 
1601 et seq.), after the agent files the first registration required 
under subsection (a) in connection with the agent's representation of 
such person or entity, the agent shall file all subsequent statements 
required under this section at the same time, and in the same 
frequency, as the reports filed with the Clerk of the House of 
Representatives or the Secretary of the Senate (as the case may be) 
under section 5 of the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 (2 U.S.C. 1604) 
in connection with the agent's representation of such person or 
entity.''.
(c) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section shall take 
effect upon the expiration of the 30-day period which begins on the 
date of the enactment of this Act.

SEC. 606. GOVERNMENT-WIDE ENTITY IDENTIFIER.

(a) Agency Defined.--In this section, the term ``agency'' has the 
meaning given the term ``Executive agency'' under section 105 of title 
5, United States Code.
(b) Requirement for All Agencies to Use a Government-Wide Entity 
Identifier.--The head of each agency shall, to the extent practicable, 
require each private sector entity from which the agency regularly 
collects reports, filings, forms, disclosures, or other regularized 
information to obtain a unique entity identifier that allows the 
private sector entity to be identified uniquely across all Federal 
regulatory, procurement, assistance, and other reporting regimes.
(c) Publication of Information Categorized Using Government-Wide 
Entity Identifier.--The head of each agency shall, to the extent 
practicable, publish any public regulatory, procurement, assistance, 
and other reported information categorized using the unique entity 
identifier required under this section.
(d) Governance.--The unique entity identifier required under this 
section shall be based on the global entity identifier issued by--
(1) utilities endorsed by the Regulatory Oversight 
Committee, whose charter was set forth by the Finance Ministers 
and Central Bank Governors of the Group of Twenty and the 
Financial Stability Board; or
(2) utilities endorsed or otherwise governed by the Global 
LEI Foundation so long as that Foundation remains recognized by 
the Regulatory Oversight Committee or any successor global 
public oversight body.

SEC. 607. GRANTS TRANSPARENCY REQUIREMENTS.

(a) In General.--Subtitle V of title 31, United States Code, is 
amended by inserting after chapter 73 the following:

``CHAPTER 74--GRANTS TRANSPARENCY REQUIREMENTS

``Sec. 
``Sec. 7401. Definitions.
``Sec. 7402. Pre-award evaluation requirements.
``Sec. 7403. Website relating to federal grants.
``Sec. 7404. Postdecision explanation for failed applicants.
``Sec. 7401. Definitions
``In this chapter:
``(1) Applicant.--The term `applicant' means an entity that 
submits a proposal or application for a grant.
``(2) Competitive grant.--The term `competitive grant' 
means a discretionary grant entered into through the use of 
merit-based selection procedures for the purpose of allocating 
funds authorized under a grant program of an Executive agency.
``(3) Executive agency.--The term `Executive agency' has 
the meaning given the term in section 105 of title 5, except 
the term does not include the Government Accountability Office.
``(4) Grant.--The term `grant' means an award of Federal 
financial assistance through a grant agreement or cooperative 
agreement making payment in cash or in kind to a recipient to 
carry out a public purpose authorized by law.
``(5) Grant reviewer.--The term `grant reviewer', with 
respect to a grant--
``(A) means any individual who reviews, evaluates, 
or participates in the decision to select an applicant 
for award of the grant; and
``(B) includes--
``(i) a peer reviewer;
``(ii) a merit reviewer; and
``(iii) a member of a technical evaluation 
panel or board or a special emphasis panel.
``Sec. 7402. Pre-award evaluation requirements
``(a) Evaluation Required.--
``(1) In general.--Before awarding a competitive grant and 
after determining eligibility and conducting a merit-based 
review, the head of an Executive agency shall conduct an 
evaluation of the risk posed by an applicant to successfully 
carry out the grant in accordance with section 200.205 of title 
2, Code of Federal regulations (or any successor thereto).
``(2) Review of interagency duplication.--To the extent 
practicable, each evaluation conducted under paragraph (1) 
shall include a review of any interagency duplication of 
efforts for research grants, which may be completed through a 
text-similarity detection process.
``(b) Simplified Evaluation Procedure for Certain Applicants.--
``(1) Covered applicant defined.--In this subsection, the 
term `covered applicant' means an applicant that, based on a 
risk assessment conducted by the Executive agency, is 
determined to pose a relatively low risk of failing to execute 
the grant successfully and properly.
``(2) Procedure.--In conducting the evaluation required 
under subsection (a) with respect to a covered applicant, the 
head of an Executive agency shall--
``(A) minimize the burden on the covered applicant; 
and
``(B) consider any existing findings with respect 
to the covered applicant under the single audit process 
under chapter 75 of this title.
``Sec. 7403. Website relating to Federal grants
``(a) Requirement.--The Director of the Office of Management and 
Budget shall consult with the head of each Executive agency to upgrade 
grants.gov or any proposed successor public website for finding Federal 
grant opportunities and applying for those grants so that the website--
``(1) may serve as a central point of information and 
provide full access for applicants for competitive grants; and
``(2) shall capture in one site, or provide electronic 
links to, other relevant databases.
``(b) Notice of Competitive Grant Funds Availability.--At the time 
the head of an Executive agency issues a solicitation or otherwise 
announces the availability of funds for a competitive grant, the head 
of the Executive agency shall post on the grants website maintained 
under this section, in a searchable electronic format, relevant 
information about the grant opportunity, including the following:
``(1) The grant announcement and purpose of the grant.
``(2) The anticipated period of performance for any new 
award and whether the Executive agency anticipates that the 
grant will be continued.
``(3) In the case of an announcement with respect to which 
a specific sum is reserved, the amount of funds available for 
the grant.
``(4) A statement of eligibility requirements for the 
grant.
``(5) Contact information for the Executive agency, 
including the name, telephone number, and electronic mail 
address of a specific person or persons responsible for 
answering questions about the grant and the application process 
for the grant.
``(6) A clear statement of the evaluation factors or 
criteria that the Executive agency intends to use to evaluate 
and rank grant applications or proposals submitted, including 
the weight to be applied to each factor or criterion.
``(7) A description of the process and standards to be used 
by the Executive agency to determine that each grant reviewer 
does not have a prohibited conflict of interest, as defined by 
applicable statute or regulation, with respect to the 
evaluation or review of a grant application or proposal, or the 
decision to award a grant.
``(8) The anticipated deadline for submission of grant 
applications or proposals.
``(9) A set of sample winning grant proposals awarded under 
the same or similar program within the last 3 years.
``(c) Use by Applicants.--The grants website maintained under this 
section shall, to the greatest extent practicable, allow applicants 
to--
``(1) use the website with any widely-used computer 
platform;
``(2) search the website for any competitive grant by 
purpose, funding agency, program source, and other relevant 
criteria; and
``(3) apply for a competitive grant using the website.
``(d) Technical Assistance for Grantees.--
``(1) In general.--The head of each Executive agency shall 
make available on the grants website maintained under this 
section detailed grant guidance and written technical 
assistance for applicants.
``(2) Grant award process information posted.--With respect 
to each grant awarded by an Executive agency, the head of the 
Executive agency shall, not later than 30 days after the date 
on which the grant is awarded, post on the grants website 
maintained under this section--
``(A) documentation explaining the basis for the 
selection decision for the grant, the number of 
proposals received for the grant, and, with respect to 
the proposal that resulted in the grant award, whether 
the grant was awarded consistent with a numerical 
ranking or other recommendations by grant reviewers; 
and
``(B) in any case in which the award of the grant 
is not consistent with the numerical rankings or any 
other recommendations made by grant reviewers, a 
written justification explaining the rationale for the 
decision not to follow the rankings or recommendations.
``(3) Sensitive information.--
``(A) Personally identifiable information.--The 
head of each Executive agency may redact any personally 
identifiable information from a post on the grants 
website maintained under this section.
``(B) Adverse information.--An Executive agency may 
not post on the grants website maintained under this 
section any sensitive information that the head of the 
Executive agency determines would adversely affect an 
applicant.
``(e) Submission and Publication of Grant Solicitation Forecast on 
the Grants Website.--
``(1) Requirement.--Not later than November 30 of each 
fiscal year or not later than 60 days after the date on which 
amounts are appropriated to an Executive agency for a fiscal 
year, whichever is later, the head of the Executive agency 
shall post a forecast, in accordance with paragraph (2), of any 
nonemergency grant solicitation that the Executive agency 
expects to issue for the following calendar year, which--
``(A) shall be based on the best information 
available; and
``(B) shall not be binding on the Executive agency.
``(2) Matters included.--The forecast required under 
paragraph (1) shall include, to the extent practicable, for 
each expected grant solicitation in a machine-readable format 
the following:
``(A) A brief description of the subject and 
purpose of the grant, organized by the organizational 
unit of the Executive agency.
``(B) Contact information for the organizational 
unit or individual responsible for the grant, if known, 
including name, telephone number, and electronic mail 
address.
``(C) Each expected or actual date for the issuance 
of the grant solicitation and application and the grant 
application submission deadline.
``(D) The estimated amount of the average grant 
award, the estimated maximum and minimum amounts of the 
grant award, if applicable, and the estimated total 
number of grant awards to be made.
``(E) A description of the total amount available 
to be awarded.
``(f) Publication of Information.--
``(1) In general.--Except as provided in paragraph (2), 
nothing in this section shall be construed to require the 
publication of information otherwise exempt from disclosure 
under section 552 of title 5 (commonly referred to as the 
`Freedom of Information Act').
``(2) Limitation.--The exemption under section 552(b)(5) of 
title 5 shall not exempt from publication predecisional 
documents required to be posted pursuant to the requirements 
under subsection (d)(2).
``(g) Transparency of Information.--To the extent practicable, the 
grants website maintained under this section shall do the following:
``(1) Make available information described in this 
section--
``(A) in its original format; and
``(B) without charge, license, or registration 
requirement.
``(2) Permit the information described in this section to 
be--
``(A) searched;
``(B) downloaded in bulk;
``(C) disseminated via automatic electronic means; 
and
``(D) freely shared by the public, such as by 
social media.
``(3) Use permanent uniform resource locators for the 
information described in this section.
``(4) Provide an opportunity for the public to provide 
input about the usefulness of the site and recommendations for 
improvements.
``Sec. 7404. Postdecision explanation for failed applicants
``If requested by an applicant for a competitive grant, for each 
grant award made in an amount in excess of $100,000 pursuant to a 
merit-based selection procedure, an Executive agency shall provide the 
applicant with a timely direct interaction describing the basis for the 
award decision of the Executive agency, including, if applicable, the 
decision not to award a grant to the applicant.''.
(b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of chapters at the beginning of 
subtitle V of title 31, United States Code, is amended by inserting 
after the item relating to chapter 73 the following:

``74. Grant transparency requirements....................... 7401''.
(c) Inspector General Review of Peer Review Process.--
(1) Review.--Not later than 18 months after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, the Inspector General of each Executive 
agency that awards competitive grants shall conduct a review of 
the effectiveness of the conflicts of interest policy of the 
Executive agency, including a review of a random selection of 
peer review processes, with respect to the peer review process 
for competitive grants in order to detect favoritism.
(2) Definitions.--In this subsection, the terms 
``competitive grant'' and ``Executive agency'' have the meaning 
given those terms in section 7401 of title 31, United States 
Code, as added by subsection (a).
(d) Grants Workforce Report.--
(1) Definitions.--In this subsection:
(A) Executive agency.--The term ``Executive 
agency'' has the meaning given the term in section 105 
of title 5, United States Code, except the term does 
not include the Government Accountability Office.
(B) Federal grants workforce.--The term ``Federal 
grants workforce'', with respect to an Executive 
agency, means each employee of the Executive agency who 
spends some or all of their time engaged in any of the 
following:
(i) Grant planning, including any 
programmatic activity.
(ii) Preparing grant solicitations, Notices 
of Funding Opportunity, Notices Inviting 
Applications, or other requests for grant 
proposals.
(iii) Evaluating or reviewing grant 
applications, including serving on a peer 
review board.
(iv) Monitoring or administering grant 
performance by grantees.
(v) Preparing the Notice of Award and 
negotiating terms and conditions.
(vi) Post-award closeout activities, 
including final technical and financial 
reports.
(2) Report.--Not later than 180 days after the date of 
enactment of this Act, the Comptroller General of the United 
States shall submit to the Committee on Homeland Security and 
Governmental Affairs of the Senate and the Committee on 
Oversight and Accountability of the House of Representatives a 
report on the Federal grants workforce, which shall address the 
following:
(A) The size of the Federal grants workforce and 
expected trends in Federal employment for the Federal 
grants workforce.
(B) The adequacy of training opportunities for the 
Federal grants workforce.
(C) Whether the Federal Acquisition Institute or 
any other existing entity engaged in acquisition 
workforce training should be made available for grant 
training.
(D) Whether a warrant system similar to that used 
in the Federal acquisition system should be established 
for Federal officials authorized to award grants.
(E) The use by Executive agencies of suspension and 
debarment actions taken against grantees during the 3-
year period preceding the date on which the report is 
submitted, and the level of agency resources assigned 
to the suspension and debarment functions.
(F) Any recommendations for improving the Federal 
grants workforce.

Subtitle B--Publication of Opinions of Office of Legal Counsel

SEC. 611. SHORT TITLE.

This subtitle may be cited as the ``See UNdisclosed Legal 
Interpretations and Get Honest Transparency Act of 2024'' or as the 
``SUNLIGHT Act of 2024''.

SEC. 612. SCHEDULE OF PUBLICATION FOR FINAL OLC OPINIONS.

Each final opinion issued by the Office of Legal Counsel must be 
made publicly available in its entirety as soon as is practicable, 
but--
(1) not later than 30 days after the opinion is issued or 
updated if such action takes place on or after the date of 
enactment of this Act;
(2) not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of 
this Act for an opinion issued on or after January 20, 1993;
(3) not later than 2 years after the date of enactment of 
this Act for an opinion issued on or after January 20, 1981 and 
before or on January 19, 1993;
(4) not later than 3 years after the date of enactment of 
this Act for an opinion issued on or after January 20, 1969 and 
before or on January 19, 1981; and
(5) not later than 4 years after the date of enactment of 
this Act for all other opinions.

SEC. 613. EXCEPTIONS AND LIMITATION ON PUBLIC AVAILABILITY OF FINAL OLC 
OPINIONS.

(a) In General.--A final OLC opinion or part thereof may be 
withheld only to the extent--
(1) information contained in the opinion was--
(A) specifically authorized to be kept secret, 
under criteria established by an Executive order, in 
the interest of national defense or foreign policy;
(B) in fact properly classified, including all 
procedural and marking requirements, pursuant to such 
Executive order;
(C) the Attorney General determines that the 
national defense or foreign policy interests protected 
outweigh the public's interest in access to the 
information; and
(D) has been put through declassification review 
within the past two years.
(2) information contained in the opinion relates to the 
appointment of a specific individual not confirmed to Federal 
office;
(3) information contained in the opinion is specifically 
exempted from disclosure by statute (other than sections 552 
and 552b of title 5, United States Code), provided that such 
statute--
(A) requires that the material be withheld in such 
a manner as to leave no discretion on the issue; or
(B) establishes particular criteria for withholding 
or refers to particular types of material to be 
withheld;
(4) information in the opinion includes trade secrets and 
commercial or financial information obtained from a person and 
privileged or confidential whose disclosure would likely cause 
substantial harm to the competitive position of the person from 
whom the information was obtained;
(5) the President, in his or her sole and nondelegable 
determination, formally and personally claims in writing that 
executive privilege prevents the release of the information and 
disclosure would cause specific identifiable harm to an 
interest protected by an exception or the disclosure is 
prohibited by law; or
(6) information in the opinion includes personnel and 
medical files and similar files the disclosure of which would 
constitute a clearly unwarranted invasion of personal privacy.
(b) Determination To Withhold.--Any determination under this 
section to withhold information contained in a final OLC opinion must 
be made by the Attorney General or a designee of the Attorney General. 
The determination shall be--
(1) in writing;
(2) made available to the public within the same timeframe 
as is required of a formal OLC opinion;
(3) sufficiently detailed as to inform the public of what 
kind of information is being withheld and the reason therefore; 
and
(4) effective only for a period of 3 years, subject to 
review and reissuance, with each reissuance made available to 
the public.
(c) Final Opinions.--For final OLC opinions for which the text is 
withheld in full or in substantial part, a detailed unclassified 
summary of the opinion must be made available to the public, in the 
same timeframe as required of the final OLC opinion, that conveys the 
essence of the opinion, including any interpretations of a statute, the 
Constitution, or other legal authority. A notation must be included in 
any published list of OLC opinions regarding the extent of the 
withholdings.
(d) No Limitation on Relief.--A decision by the Attorney General to 
release or withhold information pursuant to this Act shall not preclude 
any action or relief conferred by statutory or regulatory regime that 
empowers any person to request or demand the release of information.
(e) Reasonably Segregable Portions of Opinions to Be Published.--
Any reasonably segregable portion of an opinion shall be provided after 
withholding of the portions which are exempt under this subsection. The 
amount of information withheld, and the exemption under which the 
withholding is made, shall be indicated on the released portion of the 
opinion, unless including that indication would harm an interest 
protected by the exemption in this subsection under which the 
withholding is made. If technically feasible, the amount of the 
information withheld, and the exemption under which the withholding is 
made, shall be indicated at the place in the opinion where such 
withholding is made.

SEC. 614. METHOD OF PUBLICATION.

The Attorney General shall publish each final OLC opinion to the 
extent the law permits, including by publishing the opinions on a 
publically accessible website that--
(1) with respect to each opinion--
(A) contains an electronic copy of the opinion, 
including any transmittal letter associated with the 
opinion, in an open format that is platform independent 
and that is available to the public without 
restrictions;
(B) provides the public the ability to retrieve an 
opinion, to the extent practicable, through searches 
based on--
(i) the title of the opinion;
(ii) the date of publication or revision; 
or
(iii) the full text of the opinion; and
(C) identifies the time and date when the opinion 
was required to be published, and when the opinion was 
transmitted for publication; and
(D) provides a permanent means of accessing the 
opinion electronically;
(2) includes a means for bulk download of all OLC opinions 
or a selection of opinions retrieved using a text-based search;
(3) provides free access to the opinions, and does not 
charge a fee, require registration, or impose any other 
limitation in exchange for access to the website; and
(4) is capable of being upgraded as necessary to carry out 
the purposes of this Act.

SEC. 615. INDEX OF OPINIONS.

(a) Publication of Index.--
(1) In general.--The Office of Legal Counsel shall publish 
a complete list of final OLC opinions, arranged 
chronologically, within 90 days of the date of the enactment of 
this Act.
(2) Updates and revisions.--The list of opinions shall be 
updated immediately every time an OLC opinion becomes final, 
and a revision to an opinion shall be listed as if it were a 
new opinion.
(b) Requirements for List.--Each list under subsection (a) shall 
comply with the following:
(1) The list must be made available to the public by 
publication on the website under section 614.
(2) The list shall--
(A) include, for each opinion--
(i) the full name of the opinion;
(ii) the date it was finalized or revised;
(iii) each author's name;
(iv) each recipient's name;
(v) a summary of the opinion;
(vi) a unique identifier assigned to each 
final or revised opinion; and
(vii) whether an opinion has been 
withdrawn; and
(B) be published in both human-readable and 
machine-readable formats.

SEC. 616. PRIVATE RIGHT OF ACTION.

On complaint, the district court of the United States in the 
district in which the complainant resides, or has his principal place 
of business, or in the District of Columbia, has jurisdiction to enjoin 
the agency from withholding information contained in a final OLC 
opinion and to order the production of information improperly withheld 
from the complainant. In such a case the court shall determine the 
matter de novo, and may examine the contents of such OLC opinion in 
camera to determine whether such information or any part thereof shall 
be withheld under any of the exemptions set forth in section 613, and 
the burden is on the agency to sustain its action.

SEC. 617. SEVERABILITY.

If any provision of this subtitle, any amendment made by this 
subtitle, or the application thereof to any person or circumstances is 
held invalid, the validity of the remainder of this subtitle, of any 
such amendments, and of the application of such provisions to other 
persons and circumstances shall not be affected thereby.

SEC. 618. DEFINITIONS.

(a) OLC Opinion.--The term ``OLC opinion'' means views on a matter 
of legal interpretation communicated by the Office of Legal Counsel of 
the Department of Justice to any other office or agency, or person in 
an office or agency, in the Executive Branch, including any office in 
the Department of Justice, the White House, or the Executive Office of 
the President, and rendered in accordance with sections 511-513 of 
title 28, United States Code. Where the communication of the legal 
interpretation takes place verbally, a memorialization of that 
communication qualifies as an ``OLC opinion''.
(b) Final OLC Opinion.--The term ``final OLC opinion'' means an OLC 
opinion that--
(1) the Attorney General, Assistant Attorney General for 
OLC, or a Deputy Assistant General for OLC, has determined is 
final;
(2) government officials or government contractors are 
relying on;
(3) is relied upon to formulate legal guidance; or
(4) is directly or indirectly cited in another Office of 
Legal Counsel opinion.
(c) Revised OLC Opinion.--The term ``revised OLC opinion'' means an 
OLC opinion that is withdrawn, information is added to, or information 
is removed from.

Subtitle C--Contempt of Congress Procedures and Enforcement

SEC. 621. AVAILABILITY OF CIVIL ACTION TO ENFORCE HOUSE OF 
REPRESENTATIVES SUBPOENAS.

(a) Civil Action.--The House of Representatives may in a civil 
action obtain any appropriate relief to enforce compliance with a 
subpoena or order of the House, or to enforce compliance with a 
subpoena or order issued by a committee or subcommittee of the House 
authorized to issue a subpoena or order, if the House by resolution 
authorizes the commencement of that civil action.
(b) Representation by General Counsel.--Unless the House otherwise 
provides, the Office of the General Counsel of the House of 
Representatives shall represent the House in the civil action.
(c) Personal Jurisdiction.--Personal jurisdiction of the court over 
a defendant in a civil action under this section extends outside the 
territorial jurisdiction of the court if the claim--
(1) arose out of conduct by the defendant--
(A) within that territorial jurisdiction, or
(B) causing any injury, including informational 
injury to the right of the House to make an 
investigation, within that territorial jurisdiction; or
(2) otherwise has a reasonable relationship to contacts of 
the defendant with the territorial jurisdiction.
(d) Assessment of Competing Interests.--
(1) In general.--In any civil action brought under this 
section, if the court has determined that the information or 
material which is the subject of the subpoena or order involved 
is presumptively privileged based upon the President's 
generalized interest in confidentiality, the House may overcome 
this presumption by showing that--
(A) the House, or a committee or subcommittee 
thereof, has a specific need for the information or 
material in order to carry out its constitutional 
obligations; and
(B) the information is not otherwise available.
(2) Enforcement.--If the court determines that the House, 
or a committee or subcommittee thereof, has made the showing 
described in paragraph (1), it shall enforce the subpoena or 
order involved.
(e) Expedition of Trial and Appellate Proceedings.--The court shall 
hear and determine a civil action under this section as expeditiously 
as possible, and to the maximum extent practicable during the Congress 
in which the action is commenced. Any appellate proceedings relating to 
such a civil action shall similarly be expedited to assure to the 
extent possible that the matter is fully resolved during the Congress 
in which the action was commenced.

SEC. 622. ALTERNATE PROCEDURES FOR ENFORCEMENT OF CRIMINAL CONTEMPT OF 
CONGRESS.

(a) Alternate Procedure.--
(1) Scope of application.--If the House of Representatives 
finds a current or former officer or employee of the Executive 
branch has violated section 102 of the Revised Statutes of the 
United States (2 U.S.C. 192) or that any person has violated 
such section at the direction of the President or another 
officer of the Executive branch, the procedures of this section 
apply.
(2) Certification by speaker.--In accordance with section 
104 of the Revised Statutes of the United States (2 U.S.C. 
194), upon the finding by the House of Representatives of a 
violation to which this section applies, the Speaker shall 
certify that finding to the appropriate United States attorney, 
whose duty it shall be to bring the matter before the grand 
jury for its action.
(3) Circumstances leading to appointment of special 
counsel.--If--
(A) the Attorney General or the United States 
attorney to whom the finding was certified informs the 
court or the House that the Department of Justice will 
not prosecute the case; or
(B) by the end of the 30th day after the date of 
receipt of a certification made under paragraph (2) a 
grand jury has not returned an indictment based on the 
violation alleged in the certification;
the Special Division established under subsection (b) 
(hereinafter in this Act referred to as the ``Special 
Division'') shall appoint a special counsel under subsection 
(c). It shall be the duty of the Attorney General to inform 
that court and the House if a grand jury does not return an 
indictment by the end of the 30-day period. The Speaker of the 
House, or any interested congressional party, may file with the 
Special Division a suggestion that circumstances giving rise to 
a duty to appoint a special counsel have occurred after the 30-
day period ends without the return of an indictment.
(b) Special Division.--
(1) Establishment.--There is hereby established within the 
United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia a 
Special Division to carry out the appointment of special 
counsels under this section.
(2) Designation.--
(A) In general.--The Chief Justice of the United 
States shall designate three judges or justices of the 
United States, one of whom shall be an active judge of 
the United States Court of Appeals for the District of 
Columbia, to serve on the Special Division, except that 
none of the judges or justices serving on the Special 
Division may serve or have served on the same court.
(B) Priority.--In designating judges and justices 
to serve on the Special Division, the Chief Justice 
shall give priority to senior circuit judges and 
retired justices of the United States Supreme Court.
(C) Deadline.--The Chief Justice shall make the 
first such designation not later than 45 days after the 
date of the enactment of this Act.
(3) Term of service.--Each designation to the Special 
Division shall be for a term of 2 years, but the Chief Justice 
may fill any vacancy arising before the end of a term for the 
remainder of that term.
(c) Appointment, Qualifications, and Prosecutorial Jurisdiction of 
Special Counsel, and Administrative Matters Relating to the Special 
Counsel.--
(1) Appointment, qualifications, and prosecutorial 
jurisdiction of special counsel.--
(A) Appointment and qualifications.--The Special 
Division shall appoint the special counsel, who must be 
an attorney in good standing with substantial 
prosecutorial experience--
(i) who has not served in any capacity in 
the administration of the President who is or 
who was in office at the time the Speaker of 
the House certified the finding of a violation; 
and
(ii) who is or who was not a Member, 
officer, or employee of Congress at the time 
the Speaker of the House certified the finding 
of a violation.
(B) Prosecutorial jurisdiction.--The Special 
Division shall define the special counsel's 
prosecutorial jurisdiction as comprising the 
investigation and prosecution of the alleged violation, 
any conspiracy to commit the alleged violation, and any 
perjury, false statement, or obstruction of justice 
occurring in relation to such investigation and 
prosecution.
(2) Authority of special counsel with respect to matters 
within prosecutorial jurisdiction.--With respect to all matters 
in that special counsel's prosecutorial jurisdiction, a special 
counsel appointed under this section shall have full power and 
independent authority to exercise all prosecutorial functions 
and powers, and any other functions and powers normally 
ancillary thereto, of the Department of Justice, the Attorney 
General, and any other officer or employee of the Department of 
Justice, except that the Attorney General shall exercise 
direction or control as to those matters that specifically 
require the Attorney General's personal action under section 
2516 of title 18, United States Code.
(3) Compliance with policies of the department of 
justice.--
(A) In general.--A special counsel shall, except to 
the extent that to do so would be inconsistent with the 
purposes of this section, comply with the written or 
other established policies of the Department of Justice 
respecting enforcement of the criminal laws.
(B) National security.--A special counsel shall 
comply with guidelines and procedures used by the 
Department in the handling and use of classified 
material.
(4) Salary.--The special counsel shall receive a salary 
equivalent to the salary of the United States Attorney for the 
District of Columbia.
(5) Staff.--The special counsel may appoint and fix the 
salaries of such staff, not to exceed 12 in number, as the 
special counsel deems necessary to carry out the functions of 
the special counsel under this section. However, no salary of a 
member of such staff may exceed the salary of the special 
counsel.
(6) Expenses.--The Department of Justice shall pay all 
costs relating to the establishment and operation of any office 
of special counsel. The Attorney General shall submit to the 
Congress, not later than 30 days after the end of each fiscal 
year, a report on amounts paid during that fiscal year for 
expenses of investigations and prosecutions the special 
counsel.
(7) Report to congress.--Each special counsel shall report 
to Congress annually on the special counsel's activities under 
this section. The report shall include a description of the 
progress of any investigation or prosecution conducted by the 
special counsel and provide information justifying the costs of 
the activities reported on.
(d) Removal of Special Counsel.--
(1) In general.--A special counsel may be removed from 
office, other than by impeachment and conviction, only by the 
personal action of the Attorney General, and only for good 
cause, physical or mental disability, or any other condition 
that substantially impairs the performance of that special 
counsel's duties.
(2) Report upon removal.--If a special counsel is removed 
from office, the Attorney General shall promptly submit to the 
Special Division and to Congress a report specifying the facts 
found and the ultimate grounds for the removal.
(3) Judicial review of removal.--A special counsel removed 
from office may obtain judicial review of the removal in a 
civil action. The Special Division may not hear or determine 
any appeal of a decision in any such civil action. The special 
counsel may be reinstated or granted other appropriate relief 
by order of the court.
(4) Appointment of replacement.--Upon removal of a special 
counsel, the Special Division shall appoint a similarly 
qualified individual to continue the functions of the special 
counsel.
(e) Termination of Special Counsel's Authority.--
(1) In general.--The authority of the special counsel shall 
cease 2 years after the date of the special counsel's 
appointment, but the Special Division may extend that authority 
for an additional period not to exceed one year, if the Special 
Division finds good cause to do so. Good cause to do so 
includes that the investigation or prosecution undertaken by 
the special counsel has been delayed by dilatory tactics by 
persons who could provide evidence that would significantly 
assist the investigation or prosecution, and also includes the 
need to allow the special counsel to participate in any 
appellate proceedings related to prosecutions engaged in by the 
special counsel.
(2) Termination by court.--The Special Division, either on 
the Special Division's own motion or upon the request of the 
Attorney General, may terminate an office of special counsel at 
any time, on the ground that the investigation of all matters 
within the prosecutorial jurisdiction of such special counsel, 
and any resulting prosecutions, have been completed or so 
substantially completed that it would be appropriate for the 
Department of Justice to complete such investigations and 
prosecutions.

SEC. 623. INCREASE IN PENALTY FOR CONTEMPT OF CONGRESS.

Section 102 of the Revised Statutes of the United States (2 U.S.C. 
192) is amended by striking ``deemed'' and all that follows through 
``twelve months'' and inserting ``fined not more than $1,000,000 or 
imprisoned not more than 2 years, or both''.

SEC. 624. AUTHORITY OF UNITED STATES CAPITOL POLICE TO ENFORCE 
CITATIONS.

(a) Authority.--Section 9B(a) of the Act entitled ``An Act to 
define the area of the United States Capitol Grounds, to regulate the 
use thereof, and for other purposes'', approved July 31, 1946 (2 U.S.C. 
1967(a)), is amended--
(1) by striking ``and'' at the end of paragraph (4);
(2) by striking the period at the end of paragraph (5) and 
inserting ``; and''; and
(3) by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
``(6) within any area, to enforce a citation issued with 
respect to a violation of section 102 of the Revised Statutes 
of the United States which relates to the House of 
Representatives, or any citation issued with respect to a 
resolution adopted by the House citing a person for contempt of 
the House.''.
(b) Effective Date.--The amendment made by subsection (a) shall 
apply with respect to citations issued on or after the expiration of 
the 90-day period which begins on the date of the enactment of this 
Act.

SEC. 625. COLLECTION OF PENALTIES IMPOSED BY THE HOUSE OF 
REPRESENTATIVES ON PERSONS CITED FOR CONTEMPT OF HOUSE.

(a) Civil Action.--If the House of Representatives adopts a 
resolution citing a person for contempt of the House, the House may 
commence a civil action to collect a monetary penalty from the person 
if the House by subsequent resolution authorizes the commencement of 
that civil action.
(b) Representation by General Counsel.--Unless the House otherwise 
provides, the Office of the General Counsel of the House of 
Representatives shall represent the House in the civil action.
(c) Personal Jurisdiction.--Personal jurisdiction of the court over 
a defendant in a civil action under this section extends outside the 
territorial jurisdiction of the court if the claim--
(1) arose out of conduct by the defendant--
(A) within that territorial jurisdiction; or
(B) causing any injury, including informational 
injury to the right of the House to make an 
investigation, within that territorial jurisdiction; or
(2) otherwise has a reasonable relationship to contacts of 
the defendant with the territorial jurisdiction.
(d) Expedition of Trial and Appellate Proceedings.--The court shall 
hear and determine a civil action under this section as expeditiously 
as possible, and to the maximum extent practicable during the Congress 
in which the action is commenced. Any appellate proceedings relating to 
such a civil action shall similarly be expedited to assure to the 
extent possible that the matter is fully resolved during the Congress 
in which the action was commenced.

SEC. 626. NO EFFECT OF EXPIRATION OF CONGRESS ON PENDING ACTIONS.

Any civil action commenced by the House of Representatives pursuant 
to this subtitle, and the authority of the Office of the General 
Counsel of the House of Representatives with respect to the action, 
shall not be rendered moot or otherwise affected as the result of the 
expiration of the Congress in which the House commenced the action.

Subtitle D--Promoting Accountability and Security in Transitions

SEC. 631. SHORT TITLE.

This subtitle may be cited as the ``Promoting Accountability and 
Security in Transitions Act of 2024'' or the ``PAST Act of 2024''.

SEC. 632. SENSE OF CONGRESS.

The sense of Congress is the following:
(1) The preservation of Presidential records (as defined in 
section 2201 of title 44, United States Code) is a legal 
obligation for every Presidential administration, as 
Presidential records are the most important and widely used 
source for studying how the executive branch of the Federal 
Government works, how it has changed over time, and how it 
might evolve to serve the needs of a new era.
(2) The preservation of Presidential records is therefore 
vital for--
(A) the public to be able to understand and learn 
from the past;
(B) future policymaking to build on the past 
administration's successes and experience;
(C) ensuring accountability for results, 
performance, and conduct; and
(D) other purposes that serve to strengthen 
American democracy.
(3) Any effort to destroy, alter, or remove Presidential 
records in violation of chapter 22 of title 44, United States 
Code--
(A) threatens the values described in paragraph 
(2); and
(B) may subject a person engaging in such efforts 
to other criminal penalties under section 641 or 2071 
of title 18, United States Code.
(4) The lawful disposal of Presidential records that no 
longer have administrative, historical, informational, or 
evidentiary value must follow a process as described in section 
2203 of title 44, United States Code.
(5) What constitutes a Presidential record is determined 
solely by whether the record relates to the ``carrying out of 
constitutional, statutory, or other official or ceremonial 
duties of the President'', as indicated in the definition of 
the term ``Presidential records'' in section 2201 of title 44, 
United States Code, and by the content of the information 
contained in the record.
(6) For communication between agencies and the Executive 
Office of the President, the copy of the record belonging to 
the agency is retained as an agency record pursuant to section 
3301 of title 44, United States Code.
(7) Consistent with section 2203 of title 44, United States 
Code, any Presidential records created with non-official 
electronic media shall be ``preserved'', which includes a 
comprehensive documentation of all records and associated 
metadata and attachments.
(8) Applications or software with an automatic deleting 
functionality are antithetical to the legal and historical 
obligations described under chapter 22 of title 44, United 
States Code.
(9) Periods of Presidential transition are moments where 
the national security of the United States is most vulnerable, 
necessitating an early, good faith, and consistent commitment 
by the outgoing administration to ensure continuity of 
operations as it relates to national security and protecting 
critical infrastructure, among other reasons.
(10) Agencies and the Executive Office of the President are 
required by law to cooperate with the Archivist of the United 
States and the Federal Transition Coordinator of the General 
Service Administration, who is tasked with ensuring agencies 
comply with all statutory requirements relating to transition 
planning under section 4(c) of the Presidential Transition Act 
of 1963 (3 U.S.C. 102 note).
(11) During a Presidential transition, Presidential 
records, which contain valuable information regarding 
agreements or negotiations with foreign governments and 
international organizations and the actions and beliefs of 
foreign nations or actors are of enormous value to the national 
security.
(12) Any effort to delay briefings, coordination, and 
sharing information regarding key national security 
relationships, threats, and operations with an incoming 
administration or the destruction, removal, or alteration of 
Presidential records that attest to the information described 
in this section could pose a grave danger to the national 
security.
(13) An expeditious ascertainment of the plausible 
President-elect and Vice-President-elect by the Administrator 
of General Services plays a vital role in ensuring continuity 
of Government and protecting national security such that the 
risk of redundant expenditure is overwhelmed by the advantages 
of an early access to transition resources to allow for 
transition planning.
(14) The National Archives and Records Administration plays 
an essential role in ensuring the official proceedings of 
Government are documented to improve democracy in the United 
States, protect national security, provide continuity of 
Government during a transition, and promote accountability for 
actions taking during a Presidency.
(15) The robust funding of the National Archives and 
Records Administration and protection of its officers and 
employees from political interference is a national imperative 
and must be a priority for Congress.

SEC. 633. DEFINITIONS.

Section 2201 of title 44, United States Code, is amended--
(1) in paragraph (1), by inserting ``, and includes the 
metadata associated with all such material'' before the period; 
and
(2) by adding at the end the following:
``(6) The term `electronic messaging account' includes 
electronic mail, chat or instant messaging, text messaging, 
voicemail messaging, and other messaging platforms or apps, 
such as social media or mobile applications, among other 
applications.
``(7) The term `official electronic messaging account' 
includes electronic messaging accounts provided by an executive 
agency or the Executive Office of the President.
``(8) The term `dispose', with respect to documentary 
material, means to remove, deface, alter, corrupt, delete, 
erase, or otherwise destroy the documentary material.''.

SEC. 634. MANAGEMENT AND CUSTODY OF PRESIDENTIAL RECORDS.

(a) In General.--Section 2203 of title 44, United States Code, is 
amended--
(1) by redesignating subsections (e), (f), and (g) as 
subsections (g), (h), and (i), respectively;
(2) by redesignating subsection (d) as subsection (e);
(3) by striking subsection (c) and inserting the following:
``(c) The President shall obtain the advice of the Archivist in 
applying standards, procedures, and techniques designed to--
``(1) improve the management of records;
``(2) promote the maintenance and security of records 
determined appropriate for preservation; and
``(3) facilitate the segregation and disposal of records of 
temporary value.
``(d)(1) During the President's term of office, if the President 
wishes to dispose of those Presidential records of such President that 
no longer have administrative, historical, informational, or 
evidentiary value--
``(A) the President shall request, in writing, the views of 
the Archivist concerning the proposed disposal of such 
Presidential records; and
``(B) the Archivist shall indicate, in writing, whether the 
Archivist intends to take any action under subsection (g) of 
this section with respect to the Presidential records.
``(2) Not later than 5 business days after the date on which the 
Archivist provides a written indication under paragraph (1)(B), the 
Archivist shall make publicly available on a website any communications 
received or sent by the Archivist regarding the potential disposal of 
Presidential records under paragraph (1).'';
(4) in subsection (e), as so redesignated--
(A) by striking ``subsection (c)'' and inserting 
``subsection (d)''; and
(B) by striking ``subsection (e)'' and inserting 
``subsection (g)''; and
(5) by inserting after subsection (e), as so redesignated, 
the following:
``(f) In January of each even-numbered year, the Archivist shall, 
in coordination with the Office of Administration of the Executive 
Office of the President, submit to the Chairman and Ranking Member of 
each committee of jurisdiction of either House of Congress, of the 
Committee on Appropriations of the Senate, and of the Committee on 
Appropriations of the House of Representatives and to the President a 
report that--
``(1) is based on inspections conducted by the Archivist, 
in coordination with the Office of Administration of the 
Executive Office of the President, of the Presidential records 
management programs of the Executive Office of the President; 
and
``(2) evaluates--
``(A) the records management activities and 
training conducted and standard operating procedures 
and guidance issued pursuant to this section; and
``(B) responses to any recommendations resulting 
from inspections or studies conducted under this 
section.''.
(b) Conforming Amendments.--
(1) Section 2105(a)(2) of title 44, United States Code, is 
amended by striking ``paragraph (f)(2)'' and inserting 
``subsection (i)(2)''.
(2) Chapter 22 of title 44, United States Code, is 
amended--
(A) in section 2204(b)(2)(A), by striking ``section 
2203(d)(1)'' and inserting ``2203(i)(1)''; and
(B) in section 2206(1), by striking ``section 
2203(f)(3)'' and inserting ``section 2203(i)(4)''.

SEC. 635. RESTRICTIONS ON ACCESS TO PRESIDENTIAL RECORDS.

Section 2204 of title 44, United States Code, is amended--
(1) in subsection (b)(3), by striking ``shall not be 
subject to judicial review, except as provided'' and inserting 
``shall be subject to judicial review, including as provided''; 
and
(2) in subsection (e)--
(A) by inserting ``(1)'' before ``The United 
States''; and
(B) by adding at the end the following:
``(2)(A) A person seeking access to a Presidential record to which 
access is restricted under subsection (a) may file an action in the 
United States District Court for the District of Columbia seeking 
release of the Presidential record.
``(B) In an action filed under subparagraph (A), the court shall 
direct the release of a Presidential record, or a reasonably segregable 
portion thereof, if the court determines that the Presidential record, 
or the reasonably segregable portion thereof, is not within any of the 
categories specified in subsection (a) and there is not a valid claim 
of constitutionally based privilege against disclosure.''.

SEC. 636. EXCEPTIONS TO RESTRICTED ACCESS.

Section 2205(2)(C) of title 44, United States Code, is amended--
(1) by striking ``to any committee or subcommittee 
thereof'' and inserting ``upon request by the Chairman or 
Ranking Member of a committee or subcommittee thereof, to such 
Chairman or ranking member,''; and
(2) by striking ``its business'' and inserting ``the 
business of the committee or subcommittee''.

SEC. 637. REGULATIONS.

Section 2206 of title 44, United States Code, is amended--
(1) by inserting ``(a)'' before ``The Archivist'';
(2) in subsection (a), as so designated--
(A) in paragraph (3), by striking ``and'' at the 
end;
(B) in paragraph (4), by striking the period and 
inserting a semicolon; and
(C) by adding at the end the following:
``(5) provisions--
``(A) for what constitutes official and non-
official electronic messaging accounts; and
``(B) establishing procedures for documenting--
``(i) Presidential records created on non-
official electronic messaging accounts 
(including emerging technologies, applications, 
and platforms); and
``(ii) required metadata;
``(6) provisions for the preservation of digital media, 
including from social media accounts, that may appear to be 
personal records or private property but the preservation of 
which may be required under this chapter; and
``(7) provisions for the appropriate circumstances and 
controls for the use of messaging applications and software 
with automatic deleting or other similar functionalities.''; 
and
(3) by adding at the end the following:
``(b) The Archivist shall issue, and shall annually update, 
implementation guidance with respect to the regulations described in 
paragraphs (5) and (6) of subsection (a).''.

SEC. 638. DISCLOSURE REQUIREMENT FOR OFFICIAL BUSINESS CONDUCTED USING 
NON-OFFICIAL ELECTRONIC MESSAGING ACCOUNTS.

(a) In General.--Section 2209(a) of title 44, United States Code, 
is amended--
(1) in the matter preceding paragraph (1), by striking 
``create or send'' and inserting ``create, send, or receive'';
(2) by redesignating paragraphs (1) and (2) as 
subparagraphs (A) and (B), respectively, and adjusting the 
margin accordingly; and
(3) by striking ``The President,'' and inserting the 
following:
``(1) Limitations.--Not later than 90 days after assuming 
office, the President shall publicly release guidelines for 
officers and employees of the Executive Office of the President 
who create or receive documentary material that--
``(A) prohibit the use of non-official electronic 
messaging accounts that cannot be easily copied or 
forwarded to an official electronic messaging account 
for official business; and
``(B) prohibit the use of messaging accounts or 
software with automatic deleting or other similar 
functionalities.
``(2) Requirements for use.--The President,''.

SEC. 639. PRESIDENTIAL TRANSITION ACT OF 1963.

The Presidential Transition Act of 1963 (3 U.S.C. 102 note) is 
amended--
(1) in section 3--
(A) in subsection (a)(8)(A), by striking clause (v) 
and inserting the following:
``(v)(I)(aa) Activities under this paragraph shall include the 
preparation of a detailed classified, compartmented summary by the 
relevant outgoing executive branch officials of--
``(AA) specific strategic, tactical, and operational 
threats to national security;
``(BB) major military or covert operations; and
``(CC) pending decisions on possible uses of military force 
or covert actions.
``(bb) The summary prepared under item (aa) shall be 
provided to the President-elect and members of office staff 
with appropriate clearances that are designated by the 
President-elect as soon as possible after the date of the 
general elections held to determine the electors of President 
and Vice President under section 1 or 2 of title 3, United 
States Code.
``(II) The Archivist of the United States shall collaborate with 
the Federal Transition Coordinator and agencies, including the 
Executive Office of the President, to ensure that the President-elect 
and members of office staff with appropriate clearances that are 
designated by the President-elect can easily access national security 
information (including documents, videos, audio, and briefings) created 
by the previous administration after the inauguration of the President-
elect.
``(III) The Archivist of the United States shall submit to the 
Chairman and Ranking Member of each committee of jurisdiction of either 
House of Congress, of the Committee on Appropriations of the Senate, 
and of the Committee on Appropriations of the House of Representatives 
a report if the Archivist of the United States believes there appears 
to be noncompliance with the requirements under this clause.''; and
(B) in subsection (c)--
(i) by redesignating paragraph (3) as 
paragraph (4); and
(ii) by inserting after paragraph (2) the 
following:
``(3)(A) Not later than 6 days after the date of a general election 
described in paragraph (1), the Administrator shall make the 
ascertainment described in paragraph (1) without any interference or 
undue pressure from the President or a candidate for President, or any 
representative thereof, based on provisional results from State 
election officials and expert analysis of results.
``(B) Given the imperatives of an orderly transition, if there is a 
plausible chance that the apparent successful candidate for the office 
of President and Vice President, respectively, are not the incumbent, 
or if the incumbent was not a candidate, the Administrator shall 
provide a portion of the services and facilities authorized to be 
provided under this section to all parties with a plausible chance of 
being the successful candidate.''; and
(2) in section 4--
(A) in subsection (d)--
(i) in paragraph (2)--
(I) in subparagraph (B), by 
striking ``and'' at the end;
(II) in subparagraph (C), by 
striking the period at the end and 
inserting ``; and''; and
(III) by adding at the end the 
following:
``(D) under the guidance of the Archivist of the 
United States, monitor compliance with chapter 22 of 
title 44, United States Code, including the 
preservation of all records and prevention of any 
records from being disposed unless done in accordance 
with such chapter.'';
(ii) in paragraph (3)--
(I) by redesignating subparagraphs 
(C) and (D) as subparagraphs (D) and 
(E), respectively; and
(II) by inserting after 
subparagraph (B) the following:
``(C) the Archivist of the United States;''; and
(iii) by adding at the end the following:
``(5) Role of the archivist.--
``(A) In general.--Not later than 120 days before 
the date of a Presidential election, the Archivist of 
the United States shall send a written communication to 
all officers and employees of the Executive Office of 
the President who create or receive documentary 
material (as defined under section 2201 of title 44, 
United States Code)--
``(i) describing the requirements under 
chapter 22 of title 44, United States Code; and
``(ii) establishing a timeline for 
cooperation with the Archivist of the United 
States to ensure an orderly and timely 
transition of records subject to such chapter 
if there is a Presidential transition.
``(B) Reporting.--
``(i) In general.--Not later than 30 days 
after the date of a Presidential election which 
results in a Presidential transition, the 
Archivist of the United States, in coordination 
with the Federal Transition Coordinator, shall 
submit to the Chairman and Ranking Member of 
each committee of jurisdiction of either House 
of Congress, of the Committee on Appropriations 
of the Senate, and of the Committee on 
Appropriations of the House of Representatives 
a report discussing the status of the 
transition activities of the White House 
Transition Coordinating Council and identifying 
concerns, if any, regarding compliance with 
chapter 22 of title 44, United States Code.
``(ii) Noncompliance.--The Archivist of the 
United States shall submit to the Chairman and 
Ranking Member of each committee of 
jurisdiction of either House of Congress, of 
the Committee on Appropriations of the Senate, 
and of the Committee on Appropriations of the 
House of Representatives a report if the 
Archivist of the United States believes there 
appears to be noncompliance with the 
requirements or timeline described in 
subparagraph (A).'';
(B) in subsection (e)(2)--
(i) in subparagraph (D), by striking 
``and'' at the end;
(ii) in subparagraph (E), by striking the 
period at the end and inserting ``; and''; and
(iii) by adding at the end the following:
``(F) under the guidance of the Archivist of the 
United States, monitor compliance with chapter 22 of 
title 44, United States Code, including the 
preservation of all records and prevention of any 
records from being disposed unless done in accordance 
with such chapter.'';
(C) by redesignating subsection (i) as subsection 
(j); and
(D) by inserting after subsection (h) the 
following:
``(i) Role of the Archivist.--
``(1) In general.--Not later than 120 days before the date 
of a Presidential election, the Archivist of the United States 
shall send a written communication to the head of each agency--
``(A) describing the requirements under chapter 33 
of title 44, United States Code; and
``(B) establishing a timeline for cooperation with 
the Archivist of the United States to ensure an orderly 
and timely transition of records subject to such 
chapter if there is a Presidential transition.
``(2) Reporting.--
``(A) In general.--Not later than 30 days after the 
date of a Presidential election which results in a 
Presidential transition, the Archivist of the United 
States, in coordination with the Federal Transition 
Coordinator, shall submit to the Chairman and Ranking 
Member of each committee of jurisdiction of either 
House of Congress, of the Committee on Appropriations 
of the Senate, and of the Committee on Appropriations 
of the House of Representatives a report discussing the 
status of the transition activities of agencies and 
identifying concerns, if any, regarding compliance with 
chapter 33 of title 44, United States Code.
``(B) Noncompliance.--The Archivist of the United 
States shall submit to the Chairman and Ranking Member 
of each committee of jurisdiction of either House of 
Congress, of the Committee on Appropriations of the 
Senate, and of the Committee on Appropriations of the 
House of Representatives a report if the Archivist of 
the United States believes there appears to be 
noncompliance with the requirements or timeline 
described in paragraph (1).''.

SEC. 640. FORMER PRESIDENTS.

The Act entitled ``An Act to provide retirement, clerical 
assistants, and free mailing privileges to former Presidents of the 
United States, and for other purposes'', approved August 25, 1958 
(commonly known as the ``Former Presidents Act of 1958'') (3 U.S.C. 102 
note), is amended by adding at the end the following:
``(h) If the Archivist of the United States determines that a 
former President did not comply with major requirements under chapter 
22 of title 44, United States Code, or the Presidential Transition Act 
of 1963 (3 U.S.C. 102 note), the monetary amounts described in 
subsections (a) and (b) shall be withheld until the later of--
``(1) 1 year after the date on which the Archivist makes 
that determination; or
``(2) the date on which the Archivist determines the former 
President has adequately complied with the requirements.''.

SEC. 641. PRESIDENTIAL ARCHIVAL DEPOSITORY.

Section 2112 of title 44, United States Code, is amended--
(1) in subsection (b)--
(A) by striking ``When the Archivist'' and 
inserting ``(1) Subject to paragraph (2), when the 
Archivist''; and
(B) by adding at the end the following:
``(2) The Archivist may not deposit papers, documents, or 
other historical materials accepted under section 2111 of this 
title or other Federal records appropriate for preservation in 
a Presidential archival depository relating to a former 
President under paragraph (1) until after the date on which the 
Archivist determines that the former President has adequately 
complied with the requirements under chapter 22 relating to 
Presidential records (as defined in section 2201).'';
(2) in subsection (g), by adding at the end the following:
``(6)(A) Notwithstanding paragraphs (3), (4), and (5) (to the 
extent that such paragraphs are inconsistent with this paragraph), this 
subsection shall be administered in accordance with this paragraph with 
respect to any Presidential archival depository created as a depository 
for the papers, documents, and other historical materials and 
Presidential records pertaining to any President who takes any action, 
including destruction, alteration, concealment, or removal, that 
threatens or damages the integrity and statutory preservation 
requirements under chapter 22 for Presidential records (as defined in 
section 2201).
``(B) For purposes of subparagraphs (A)(ii), (B)(i)(II), and 
(B)(ii)(II) of paragraph (3) the percentage of 100 percent shall apply 
instead of 60 or 20 percent.''; and
(3) by adding at the end the following:
``(h) None of the funds in the account in the National Archives 
Trust Fund that may be expended for the benefit and in the interest of 
a Presidential archival depository relating to a former President may 
be used for the cost of digitizing records the former President wishes 
to deposit in and make available through the Presidential archival 
depository.''.

TITLE VII--STRENGTHENING THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT

SEC. 701. DIGITAL ACCESS TO RECORDS MADE AVAILABLE UNDER THE FREEDOM OF 
INFORMATION ACT.

Section 552(a)(3) is amended by adding at the end the following:
``(F) Not later than two months after the date on 
which the head of an agency makes a record available to 
a person under this paragraph, the head of the agency 
shall make available on the website of the agency, at 
no cost to the public and in a searchable, sortable, 
downloadable, and machine-readable format, electronic 
copies of the request for the record and any response 
provided to the person that made the request for the 
record (including the record made available to the 
person), unless the head of the agency determines that 
the excessive cost of making such copies available on 
the website would place an undue burden on the 
agency.''.

SEC. 702. FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT AMENDMENTS.

(a) Disclosure of Certain Records.--Section 552(a)(2) of title 5, 
United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following:
``(F)(i) materials related to the operations and establishment of 
advisory committees (as defined in section 1001) and any subcommittee 
thereof, including events, timelines, agendas, minutes, transcripts, 
recordings, committee member names and biographies, conflict of 
interest waivers, committee charters, and any other related materials;
``(ii) unclassified reports submitted to Congress by the 
head of the agency;
``(iii) unclassified testimony submitted to Congress by the 
head of the agency;
``(iv) agency organization charts and directories with the 
contact information for all offices of the agency;
``(v) any log relating to a request for a record under 
paragraph (3), including any tracking number assigned to the 
request, the date the request was received by the head of the 
agency, the subject of the request, and the disposition of the 
request;
``(vi) any record that reflects the official calendar of 
the head of the agency, including a record that reflects an 
event, meeting, or telephone call scheduled for the head of the 
agency;
``(vii) a list--
``(I) identifying--
``(aa) each contract or grant of the agency 
with a value exceeding $100,000,000; or
``(bb) the 10 contracts or grants of the 
agency with the highest value if fewer than 10 
contracts or grants have a value exceeding 
$100,000,000;
``(II) the award ID for each such contract or 
grant;
``(III) a description of each such contract or 
grant, including the award type of the contract or 
grant;
``(IV) the recipient of each such contract or 
grant;
``(V) the start and end date each such contract or 
grant; and
``(VI) the total obligations related to the 
contract or grant;
``(viii) final reports or memoranda created by an entity 
other than the agency, including other Governmental entities, 
at the request of the head of the agency and used to make a 
final policy decision;
``(ix) any memorandum from the Office of Legal Council of 
the Department of Justice provided to the head of the agency;
``(x) any documents containing legal analysis relied upon 
formally or informally by the head of the agency to respond to 
the public;
``(xi) any documents containing legal analysis relied upon 
formally or informally by the head of the agency to inform 
policy analysis or policy determinations; and
``(xii) unclassified reports of the Inspector General of 
the agency.''.
(b) Access to Electronic Records by FOIA Officers.--Section 
552(a)(3)(C) of title 5, United States Code, is amended to read as 
follows:
``(C) In responding under this paragraph to a request for a record 
originally created in an electronic form or format, an agency shall 
make a reasonable effort to produce the record in that form or format, 
except when such an effort would significantly interfere with the 
operation of the automated information system of the agency.
``(D) For the purpose of responding under this paragraph to a 
request for a record, the Chief FOIA Officer of the agency may access 
and retrieve any such record without making a request to a document 
custodian of the agency for such access or retrieval.''.
(c) Clarifying Authorization for Court Order Compliance.--Section 
552(a)(4)(B) of title 5, United States Code, is amended to read as 
follows:
``(B)(i) A person aggrieved by a failure of an agency to comply 
with any requirement of this section may bring an action against the 
agency in a district court of the United States. The district courts 
shall have original jurisdiction of all actions arising under this 
section. Venue over such an action is proper in the district in which 
the complainant resides, or has his principal place of business, or in 
which the agency records that are the subject of the action are 
situated, or in the District of Columbia. The court in such an action 
may--
``(I) enjoin the agency from withholding an agency 
record;
``(II) order the agency to publish records in the 
Federal Register as required by paragraph (1), and to 
require such publication on a continuing basis;
``(III) order the agency to make records available 
for public inspection in an electronic format as 
required by paragraph (2), and to require such public 
access on a continuing basis;
``(IV) order the agency to produce agency records 
in response to a request under paragraph (3);
``(V) provide relief to resolve any dispute over--
``(aa) the validity of a request under 
paragraph (3), including whether a request 
reasonably describes the records sought or has 
been submitted in accordance with an agency's 
published rules and procedures;
``(bb) an agency's interpretation of the 
scope of a request under paragraphs (1), (2), 
or (3);
``(cc) the validity of an agency 
determination under paragraph (6);
``(dd) the reasonableness of an agency's 
search for records;
``(ee) the ability of an agency to 
reproduce a record in a particular form or 
format;
``(ff) the treatment of a record under 
paragraph (2) of subsection (f);
``(gg) any fee issue, including an agency's 
denial of a request for the waiver or reduction 
fees; and
``(hh) the denial of a request for 
expedited processing;
``(VI) enjoin the agency from maintaining or 
applying any policy or practice that impairs lawful 
access to records or otherwise fails to abide by the 
terms of this section;
``(VII) issue a declaratory judgment, to the extent 
authorized by section 2201 of title 28; and
``(VIII) provide any other appropriate equitable 
relief to remedy a violation of this section.
``(ii) In any action brought under this section, the court 
shall determine the matter de novo. The court, may examine the 
contents of agency records in camera to determine whether such 
records or any part thereof shall be withheld under any of the 
exemptions set forth in subsection (b) of this section. The 
burden is on the agency to sustain its action. In addition to 
any other matters to which a court accords substantial weight, 
a court shall accord substantial weight to an affidavit of an 
agency concerning the agency's determination as to technical 
feasibility under paragraph (2)(C) and subsection (b), and 
reproducibility under paragraph (3)(B).''.
(d) Disclosure of Certain Commercial or Financial Information Under 
FOIA.--Section 552(b)(4) of the United States Code is amended by 
inserting after ``confidential'' the following: ``except for commercial 
or financial information the disclosure of which under this subsection 
would not cause substantial harm to the person from any competitor of 
the person''.
(e) Additional Matters To Be Included in Annual Report.--Section 
552(e)(1) of title 5, United States Code, is amended--
(1) in subparagraph (P), by striking ``; and'' and 
inserting a semicolon;
(2) in subparagraph (Q), by striking the period at the end 
and inserting ``; and''; and
(3) by adding at the end the following:
``(R) a detailed description of any steps taken by the 
agency to design or format information or records, such that 
such information or records may be made available to the public 
under subsection (a);
``(S) the number of requests for records the agency found 
to be not reasonably described or unduly burdensome; and
``(T) the number of requests for records with respect to 
which the agency could neither confirm nor deny the existence 
of the records.''.

SEC. 703. OTHER MATTERS.

(a) Presumption of Openness.--
(1) Amendments.--Section 552(b) of title 5, United States 
Code, is amended--
(A) in paragraph (3)(B), by inserting ``with an 
explanation for the exemption'' after ``specifically 
cites to this paragraph'';
(B) in paragraph (5), by inserting before the 
semicolon at the end the following: ``, except for 
inter-agency and intra-agency memorandums or letters 
required to be disclosed under subsection (a), 
including--
``(A) opinions that are controlling interpretations 
of law;
``(B) final reports or memoranda created by an 
entity other than the agency, including other 
Governmental entities, at the request of the agency and 
used to make a final policy decision; or
``(C) guidance documents used by the agency to 
respond to the public.'';
(C) in paragraph (6), by striking ``similar files'' 
and inserting ``files that contain personal information 
(such as contact information or financial information 
of a person)''; and
(D) in the matter following paragraph (9)--
(i) by inserting before ``Any reasonably 
segregable portion'' the following: ``An agency 
may not withhold information under this 
subsection unless such agency reasonably 
foresees that disclosure would cause specific 
identifiable harm to an interest protected by 
an exemption''; and
(ii) by inserting before ``If technically 
feasible,'' the following: ``For each record 
not released in whole or in part pursuant to 
the exemption under paragraph (3), the agency 
shall, at the time the agency provides the 
record or a response to the request for such 
record, identify that the record was not 
released in whole or in part pursuant to such 
exemption''.
(2) Exemption decision transparency.--Section 
552(a)(6)(C)(i) of title 5, United States Code, is amended by 
striking the fourth sentence and inserting at the end the 
following: ``Any notification of denial or partial denial of 
any request for records under this subsection shall set forth 
each name and title or position of each person responsible for 
the denial or partial denial or any decision to withhold a 
responsive record under subsection (b).''.
(3) Provisions relating to the office of government 
information services.--Section 552(h) of title 5, United States 
Code, is amended by adding at the end the following:
``(7) Access to Agency Records.--The head of an administrative 
agency shall provide to the Director of the Office of Government 
Information Services any record requested by the Director for the 
purpose of carrying out mediation services pursuant to paragraph 
(3).''.
(b) Government Accountability Office.--Subsection (i) of section 
552 of title 5, United States Code, is amended to read as follows:
``(i) The Comptroller General shall--
``(2) not later than one year following enactment of this 
clause, and every 2 years thereafter, audit each agency to 
determine compliance with and implementation of the 
requirements of this section and issue reports to the Committee 
on Judiciary of the House of Representatives and the Senate on 
the result of such audit;
``(3) catalog the matters specifically exempted from 
disclosure by statute pursuant to subsection (b)(3), and any 
use of such exemptions by agencies; and
``(4) review and prepare a report on the processing of 
requests by agencies for information pertaining to an entity 
that has received assistance under title I of the Emergency 
Economic Stabilization Act of 2008 (12 U.S.C. 5211 et seq.) 
during any period in which the Federal Government owns or owned 
more than 50 percent of the stock of such entity.''.
(c) Annual Report by Congressional Research Service.--Section 552 
of title 5, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the 
following:
``(n) Annual Report by Congressional Research Service.--The 
Congressional Research Service shall, on an annual basis--
``(1) compile a list of statutes that specifically exempt 
records from disclosure pursuant to subsection (b)(3); and
``(2) make such list available to--
``(A) the Committee on Oversight and Accountability 
of the House of Representatives and the Committee on 
Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs of the 
Senate; and
``(B) the public.''.
(d) Public Interest Balancing Test.--Section 552(a)(8)(A)(i)(I) of 
title 5, United States Code is amended by inserting ``, and such harm 
outweighs the public interest (including the interest in furthering 
public understanding of the operations or decision making of an 
official or employee of an agency, facilitating the ability of the 
public to make informed decisions with respect to electoral or 
democratic processes, investigating any reasonable suspicion of 
governmental wrongdoing, and furthering public health or safety) in 
making available such information'' after ``described in subsection 
(b)''.

TITLE VIII--IMPROVING TRANSPARENCY WITHIN THE JUDICIAL SYSTEM

SEC. 801. TELEVISING SUPREME COURT PROCEEDINGS.

(a) In General.--Chapter 45 of title 28, United States Code, is 
amended by adding at the end the following:
``Sec. 678. Televising supreme court proceedings
``The Supreme Court shall permit television coverage of all open 
sessions of the Court unless the Court decides, by a vote of the 
majority of justices, that allowing such coverage in a particular case 
would constitute a violation of the due process rights of one or more 
of the parties before the Court.''.
(b) Clerical Amendment.--The chapter analysis for chapter 45 of 
title 28, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the 
following:

``678. Televising Supreme Court proceedings.''.

SEC. 802. AUDIO RECORDING OF SUPREME COURT PROCEEDINGS.

The Chief Justice of the United States shall ensure that the audio 
of an oral argument before the Supreme Court of the United States is 
recorded and is made publicly available on the internet website of the 
Supreme Court at the same time that it is recorded.

SEC. 803. AVAILABILITY ON THE INTERNET OF FINANCIAL DISCLOSURE REPORTS 
OF JUDICIAL OFFICERS.

Section 103 of the Ethics in Government Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C. App. 
103), as amended by this Act, is further amended by inserting at the 
end the following:
``(n) The Judicial Conference shall make available any report filed 
with it under this title by a judicial officer within 48 hours of the 
applicable submission deadline on the website of the Judicial 
Conference in a searchable, sortable, downloadable, machine-readable 
format.''.

SEC. 804. GAO AUDIT OF PACER.

Not later than one year after the date of the enactment of this 
Act, the Comptroller General of the United States shall conduct an 
audit of the public access to court electronic records system 
maintained by the Administrative Office of the United States Courts, 
and shall submit to Congress, the Administrative Office of the United 
States Courts, and any other appropriate Federal agency or office, a 
report that contains the results of the audit, along with any 
recommendations for improving the public access to court electronic 
records system.

SEC. 805. ELECTRONIC COURT RECORDS REFORM.

(a) Consolidation of the Case Management/Electronic Case Files 
System.--
(1) In general.--Not later than 2 years after the date of 
the enactment of this Act, the Director of the Administrative 
Office of the United States Courts, in coordination with the 
Administrator of General Services, shall consolidate the Case 
Management/Electronic Case Files system, and shall develop one 
system for all filings with courts of the United States, which 
shall be administered by the Administrative Office of the 
United States Courts.
(2) Use of technology.--In developing the system under 
paragraph (1), the Director shall use modern technology in 
order--
(A) to improve security, data accessibility, 
affordability, and performance; and
(B) to minimize the burden on pro se litigants.
(3) Availability to states.--
(A) In general.--A State may choose to participate 
in the system developed under this subsection.
(B) Fee.--The Director shall charge a fee to a 
State that chooses to participate in the system, which 
is set at a level to recover the cost of providing the 
services associated with the administration and 
maintenance of the system to the State.
(b) Public Access to Court Electronic Records System 
Requirements.--
(1) In general.--Not later than 2 years after the date of 
the enactment of this Act, the Director of the Administrative 
Office of the United States Courts, in coordination with the 
Administrator of General Services, shall update the Public 
Access to Court Electronic Records system, which shall be 
subject to the following requirements:
(A) A document filed with a court shall be made 
publicly accessible upon filing, except as ordered by a 
court or by rule of the Judicial Conference.
(B) All documents on the system shall be available 
to the public and to parties before the court free of 
charge.
(C) Any information that is prohibited from public 
disclosure by law or court order shall be redacted.
(D) All documents shall be text-searchable and 
machine-readable.
(E) To the extent practicable, external websites 
shall be able to link to documents on the system.
(F) The system shall include digital audio and 
visual files of court recordings, when such files are 
available.
(G) The system shall provide search functions for 
public use.
(2) Minimizing the burden on pro se litigants.--In 
developing the system to comply with the requirements under 
paragraph (1), the Director shall, to the extent practicable, 
not impose a disproportionate impact on pro se litigants.
(3) Use of technology.--In developing the system under 
paragraph (1), the Director shall use modern technology in 
order--
(A) to improve security, data accessibility, 
affordability, and performance; and
(B) to minimize the burden on pro se litigants.
(4) Authority to exempt certain documents.--The Director 
may identify categories of documents which are not made 
publicly accessible under subsection (a)(1), and categories of 
court proceedings, the recordings of which are not made 
available under paragraph (1)(F).
(c) Definition of Machine-Readable.--In this section, the term 
``machine-readable'' means a format in which information or data can be 
easily processed by a computer without human intervention while 
ensuring no semantic meaning is lost.

TITLE IX--ENFORCEMENT

SEC. 901. REPORT BY THE GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY OFFICE.

(a) Study.--The Comptroller General of the United States shall 
conduct an annual audit of the activities of agencies in the 
legislative and executive branch to determine, with respect to in the 
year prior to the study--
(1) whether data required by law to be provided to the 
public through the Internet by an agency in the legislative or 
executive branch of the Federal Government was--
(A) made available in accordance with the law, 
except for data that is subject to privacy, security, 
or privilege exemptions;
(B) collected at the source, with the highest 
possible level of granularity, not in aggregate or 
modified forms;
(C) made available as quickly as necessary to 
preserve the value of the data;
(D) available to the widest range of users for the 
widest range of purposes;
(E) reasonably structured to allow automated 
processing;
(F) available to anyone, with no registration 
requirement;
(G) available in a format over which no person has 
exclusive control; and
(H) subject to any copyright, patent, trademark, or 
trade secret protections (with reasonable privacy, 
security, and privilege restrictions); and
(2) determine whether the data provided to the public under 
this Act is produced and maintained using any standard for data 
publication required by a law, regulation, executive order, or 
policy of the Federal Government, including any such standard 
established by the National Technology Transfer and Advancement 
Act of 1995 (Public law 104-113), the DATA Act (Public Law 101-
113), or OMB Circular A-119.
(b) Report.--The Comptroller General shall submit a report on the 
results of each audit required by subsection (a) to the Committee on 
Oversight and Accountability of the House of Representatives and the 
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs of the Senate.

TITLE X--MISCELLANEOUS

SEC. 1001. TRANSFER OF CERTAIN RECORDS TO ARCHIVIST OF UNITED STATES.

(a) In General.--Subject to subsection (b), not later than 90 days 
after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Attorney General of 
the United States shall transfer to the Archivist of the United States 
each record--
(1) created during the period beginning on January 1, 1981, 
and ending December 31, 1986; and
(2) subject to Item 7 of Records Schedule N1-60-10-31 of 
the National Archives and Records Administration.
(b) Retention.--
(1) In general.--Not later than 60 days after the date of 
the enactment of this Act, the Attorney General of the United 
States may submit to the Archivist of the United States a 
written request to retain any record described in subsection 
(a), in accordance with section 1235.14 of title 36, Code of 
Federal Regulations. The Archivist shall approve or deny each 
such request not later than 60 days after receiving the 
request.
(2) Transfer of records after denial.--Not later than 30 
days after the Archivist of the United States denies a request 
under paragraph (1), the Attorney General shall transfer to the 
Archivist each record for which the request for retention has 
been denied.
(c) Enforcement.--If the Attorney General fails to comply with the 
requirements of this section, the Archivist of the United States may 
bring an action in the proper district court of the United States to 
enforce compliance with this section.

SEC. 1002. DATA STANDARDS.

(a) In General.--Subtitle A of title I of the Financial Stability 
Act of 2010 (12 U.S.C. 5311 et seq.) is amended by adding at the end 
the following:

``SEC. 124. DATA STANDARDS.

``(a) In General.--The Secretary of the Treasury shall, by rule, 
promulgate data standards for the information reported to member 
agencies by financial entities under the jurisdiction of the member 
agency and the data collected from member agencies on behalf of the 
Council.
``(b) Standardization.--Member agencies, in consultation with the 
Secretary of the Treasury, shall implement regulations promulgated by 
the Secretary of the Treasury under subsection (a) to standardize the 
types and formats of data reported to member agencies or collected on 
behalf of the Council, as described under subsection (a). If a member 
agency fails to implement such regulations prior to the expiration of 
the 3-year period following the date of publication of final 
regulations, the Secretary of the Treasury, in consultation with the 
Chairperson, may implement such regulations with respect to the 
financial entities under the jurisdiction of the member agency.
``(c) Data Standards.--
``(1) Common identifiers and data formats.--The data 
standards promulgated under subsection (a) shall include--
``(A) common identifiers for information reported 
to member agencies or collected on behalf of the 
Council, including a common legal entity identifier for 
all entities required to report to member agencies; and
``(B) common data formats for information reported 
to member agencies or collected on behalf of the 
Council.
``(2) Data standard requirements.--The data standards 
promulgated under subsection (a) shall, to the extent 
practicable--
``(A) render information fully searchable and 
machine-readable;
``(B) be nonproprietary;
``(C) incorporate standards developed and 
maintained by voluntary consensus standards bodies; and
``(D) be consistent with and implement applicable 
accounting and reporting principles.
``(3) Consultation.--In promulgating data standards under 
subsection (a), the Secretary of the Treasury shall consult 
with other Federal departments and agencies and multi-agency 
initiatives responsible for Federal data standards.
``(4) Interoperability of data.--In promulgating data 
standards under subsection (a), the Secretary of the Treasury 
shall seek to promote interoperability of financial regulatory 
data across members of the Council.''.
(b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of contents under section 1(b) 
of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act is 
amended by inserting after the item relating to section 123 the 
following:

``Sec. 124. Data standards.''.
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