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S. 2349, the Lobbying Transparency and Accountability Act of 2006 As reported by the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee and passed by the Senate on March 29, 2006 Section-by-Section Summary Title I - Legislative Transparency and Accountability Act of 2006 Section 101. Short Title: Title I shall be referred to as the Legislative Transparency and Accountability Act of 2006. Section 102. Out of Scope Matters in Conference Reports: New Point of Order against out of scope matters in Conference Reports. Point of Order can be waived by 60 votes. If the Point of Order is sustained, the offending material is deleted from the Conference Report and returned to the House for its concurrence. Section 103. Earmarks: Creates a new Standing Rule (XLIV) dealing with earmarks. Earmarks are defined as "a provision that specifies the identity of a non-Federal entity to receive assistance...." "Assistance" is defined to include budget authority, contract authority, loan authority, and other expenditures including tax expenditures or other revenue items. This new Standing Rule requires that all Senate bills or conference reports include a list of all earmarks in the measure; an identification of the Member who proposed the earmark, and an explanation of the essential government purpose of the earmark. The bill or Conference Report, including the list of earmarks, must be available to the Senate and to the general public on the Internet for at least 48 hours before its consideration. Section 104. Availability of Conference Reports on the Internet: Provides for the implementation of the requirement that Conference Reports be available to the general public for at least 48 hours before its consideration. Requires the creation of a new Senate website capable of posting this information. The effective date of this Section is set as 60 days after the date of enactment of the Act. Section 105. Floor Privileges for Former Members: Amends Standing Rule XXIII of the Standing Rules of the Senate to eliminate floor privileges for former Members, former Senate Officers, and former Speakers of the House who are either registered lobbyists or employed by an entity for the purpose of influencing the passage, defeat or amendment of any legislative proposal. Permits the Committee on Rules and Administration to issue regulations allowing floor privileges for such individuals for ceremonial functions or events designated by the Majority and Minority Leader. Section 106. Gifts and Meals: Amends Standing Rule XXXV to ban gifts from registered lobbyists or foreign agents. The current exceptions and dollar limits on acceptable gifts and meals are retained. Section 107. Pre-Clearance of Trips and Disclosure: Subsection (a) amends Standing Rule XXXV to require pre-clearance approval by the Senate Select Committee on Ethics to receive transportation or lodging provided by a third party, other than travel sponsored by a governmental entity. The person providing the transportation and lodging would have to certify that the trip was not financed, in whole, or in part by a registered lobbyist or foreign agent and that the person sponsoring the trip did not accept directly, or indirectly, funds from a registered lobbyist or foreign agent earmarked to finance the trip. In addition, the certification must provide that the trip was not planned, organized or arranged by or at the request of a registered lobbyist or foreign agent and that registered lobbyists will not participate in or attend the trip. A detailed trip itinerary would have to be provided to the Ethics Committee along with a written determination by the Senator that the trip is primarily educational; consistent with official duties, does not create an appearance of use of public office for private gain, and has a minimal, or no, recreational component, before the Committee could approve the trip. Not later than 30 days after the trip is completed, the Member would have to file with the Select Committee on Ethics and the Secretary of the Senate a description of the meetings and events attended during the trip and the name of any registered lobbyist who accompanies the Member during the trip. Such information would also have to be posted on the Member's Senate website. Disclosure would not be required if such disclosure would jeopardize the safety of an individual or adversely affect national security. Subsection (b) amends Standing Rule XXXV to require that a Member or employee who is provided a flight on a private aircraft, other than an aircraft that is owned, operated or leased by a governmental entity, file a publicly available disclosure report with the Secretary of the Senate identifying the date, destination and owner or lessee of the aircraft, the purpose of the trip and the persons on the trip except the persons flying the aircraft. A similar disclosure, without an exclusion for government flights, would be required to be filed with the Federal Election Commission if such a flight took place as part of a federal election campaign. Section 108: Post-Employment Restrictions: Amends Standing Rule XXXVII to conform the post-employment registered lobbyist restrictions on Senate staff earning 75 percent of the rate of pay of a Member with the restrictions that are imposed on former Senators. Such staff would be prohibited from lobbying the Senate for one year after their employment terminates. For purposes of the one year prohibition, lobbying contacts would not include seeking lobbying disclosure compliance information from the Clerk of the House or the Secretary of the Senate. The effective date of the one year prohibition on staff lobbying the Senate is 60 days after the date of enactment. Section 109: Public Disclosure of Employment Negotiations: Amends Standing Rule XXXVII to require that a Member who is engaged in prospective private sector employment negotiations, prior to the election of the Senator's successor, must file a public disclosure statement with the Secretary of Senate regarding such negotiations within three business days after the commencement of such negotiations. Section 110: Lobbying by Family Members: Amends Standing Rule XXXVII to provide if a Member's spouse or immediate family member is a registered lobbyist or employed by a registered lobbyist, staff employed by the Member are prohibited from having any official contact with the Member's spouse or immediate family member.
"Immediate Family Member" is defined as the son, daughter, stepson, stepdaughter, son-in-law, daughter-in-law, mother, father, stepmother, stepfather, mother-in-law, father-in-law, brother, sister, stepbrother, or stepsister of the Member." Section 111: Unlawfully Using Public Office to Influence Hiring Decisions: Amends Standing Rule XLIII to prohibit a Member from seeking to influence, on the basis of political affiliation, an employment decision of any private entity by taking or withholding or offering or threatening to take or withhold an official act; or to influence or offer or threaten to influence, the official act of another. Section 112: Sense of the Senate on Scope of Restrictions in The Act: A Sense of the Senate resolution that any restrictions imposed by this Act on Members and employees of Congress should apply to the Executive and Judicial branches. Section 113. Amounts of COLA Adjustments Not Paid to Certain Members of Congress: Provides that any cost of living adjustment provided for under section 601(a) of the Legislative Reorganization Act of 1946 (2. U.S.C. 31) shall not be paid to a Member of Congress who voted for any amendment (or against the tabling of any amendment) that provided that such adjustment would not be made. The effective date of this section is the first day of the first applicable pay period beginning on or after February 1, 2007. Section 114. Requirement of Notice of Intent to Proceed: Establishes a Standing Order providing that the Senate Majority and Minority Leaders shall not recognize a "hold" from a member of their caucus unless the "hold"is submitted to the appropriate leader in writing and, within three session days after such submission, the Senator submits the "hold" for publication in the Congressional Record. The Secretary of the Senate shall establish a new section in the Senate Legislative and Executive Calendars entitled "Notices of Intent to Object to Proceeding" where all "holds" will be listed. Section 115: Effective Date: Provides that the Act shall take effect on the date of enactment except in those cases where a different enactment date is provided. Title II - Lobbying Transparency and Accountability Act of 2006 Section 200. Short Title: Title II shall be referred to as the Lobbying Transparency and Accountability Act of 2006. Subtitle A - Enhancing Lobbying Disclosure Section 211. Quarterly filing of lobbying disclosure reports: Requires filing of quarterly rather than semi-annual disclosures under the Lobbying Disclosure Act, and reduces the amounts of income and expenditures that trigger registration by lobbyists to conform to shorter disclosure periods to $2,500 and $10,000, respectively. Section 212. Annual report on contributions: Requires each registrant to make an annual disclosure of contributions to federal candidates and office holders, their leadership PACs, and political party committees. Requires disclosure of fund-raising events hosted, co-hosted, or otherwise sponsored by registrants. Section 213. Public database of lobbying disclosure information: Requires the creation of an electronic database containing lobbying registration and reporting information available to the public over the Internet. Requires electronically filed lobbying disclosure reports to be made available over the Internet within 48 hours. Section 214. Disclosure by registered lobbyists of all past executive and congressional employment: Requires disclosure of whether a lobbyist has ever worked as a covered executive or legislative branch official. Current law requires only disclosure for two years following employment with the executive or legislative branches. Section 215. Disclosure of lobbyist travel and payments: Requires new quarterly disclosures of payments by lobbyists, lobbying firms, and lobbying organizations registered under the Lobbying Disclosure Act. Requires registrants and their employees listed as lobbyists to report travel by executive and legislative branch officials for which they provided, or directed or arranged to be provided, payment or reimbursement. Lobbyists would be required to make travel disclosures not later than 30 days after the travel. Requires registrants and their employees listed as lobbyists to report contributions:
Lobbyists would also be required to disclose any gift valued in excess of $20 and would be required to identify clients as being either public or private entities. Section 216. Increased penalty for failure to comply with lobbying disclosure requirements: Increases the maximum civil fine for violations of the Lobbying Disclosure Act from $50,000 to $200,000. Section 217. Disclosure of lobbying activities by certain coalitions and associations: Requires disclosure of organizations that: (1) contribute $10,000 or more to a coalition or association registered under the Lobbying Disclosure Act; and (2) participate in a substantial way in the management of lobbying activities. Current law requires disclosure only if an organization "in whole or in major part plans, supervises, or controls such lobbying activities." Section 218. Disclosure of enforcement for noncompliance: Requires the Secretary of the Senate and the Clerk of the House to disclose the number of referrals to the Justice Department for enforcement, and the Justice Department to disclose the number of enforcement actions undertaken on those referrals. Section 219. Electronic filing of lobbying disclosure reports: Requires electronic filing of lobbying disclosure reports. Section 220. Disclosure of paid efforts to stimulate grassroots lobbying: Requires disclosure of efforts to encourage members of the general public to contact legislative or executive branch officials. Communications made by an entity directed at its members, employees, officers, or shareholders are excluded from reporting. Defines "paid efforts to stimulate grassroots lobbying" as any paid attempt in support of lobbying contacts on behalf of a client to influence the general public or segments thereof to contact one or more covered legislative or executive branch officials (or Congress as a whole) to urge such officials (or Congress) to take specific action with respect to specific issues or proposals, as defined under the Lobbying Disclosure Act. This section exempts de minimis grassroots lobbying from reporting requirements, excluding any effort that amounts to under $25,000 per quarter and excluding any attempt to stimulate grassroots lobbying that is directed at 500 members of the general public or less. Any entity that already reports expenditures of grassroots lobbying to the Internal Revenue Service under 26 U.S.C. ｧ 4911 would be allowed to report the same expenditures under the Lobbying Disclosure Act without reference to the definitions in this section. Under this provision and section 217, no member of a grassroots lobbying coalition is subject to disclosure solely for contributing to the coalition. To be disclosed, a coalition member must contribute at least $10,000 to the lobbying activities of the coalition, and must have a substantial role in the direction of lobbying activities. Section 221. Electronic Filing and Public Database for Lobbyists of Foreign Governements: Requires electronic filing and Internet publication of filings under the Foreign Agents Registration Act. Section 222. Effective date: Sets effective date of January 1, 2007. Subtitle B - Oversight of Ethics and Lobbying Section 231. Comptroller General audit and annual report: Directs the Comptroller General to review and audit on an annual basis the activities under the Lobbying Disclosure Act and provide recommendations to improve compliance and identify needed resources and authorities. Section 232. Mandatory Senate Ethics training for Members and staff: Provides for mandatory ethics training for Members and staff. Current Members and staff would be required to complete training within 120 days of the date of enactment. Newly elected Members and appointed staff would be required to complete training within 60 days of election or appointment. Section 233. Sense of the Senate that there should be greater self-regulation within the lobbying community: Expresses the Sense of the Senate that the lobbying community should develop proposals for multiple self-regulatory organizations which could provide for -
Section 234. Annual ethics committees reports: Requires the congressional ethics committees to annually disclose -
Subtitle C - Slowing the Revolving Door Section 241. Amendments to restrictions on former officers, employees, and elected officials of the executive and legislative branches: Extends the "revolving door" provisions from one year to two years for Members of Congress and very senior executive branch officials. Extends the limitation on lobbying contacts for covered congressional staff from the former employer or employing entity to the entire body in which they formerly served. Subtitle D- Ban on Provision of Gifts or Travel by Lobbyists in Violation of the Rules of Congress Section 251. Prohibition on provision of gifts or travel by registered lobbyists to Members of Congress and to congressional employees: Bans lobbyists from providing travel and gifts to Members and staff except in conformance with House and Senate rules. Subtitle E - Commission to Strengthen Confidence in Congress Act of 2006 Section 261. Short Title: Subtitle E shall be referred to as the Commission to Strengthen Confidence in Congress Act of 2006. Section 262. Establishment of Commission: Creates a "Commission to Strengthen Confidence in Congress. Section 263. Purposes: To evaluate and improve congressional rules and federal statutes related to the following matters-
Section 264. Composition of Commission: Ten bipartisan members appointed by Republican and Democratic leaders in the House and Senate. The members should be five Republicans and five Democrats and may not be federal, state or local government official or employee at the time of appointment. The membership must include at least two former Senators and two former Representatives. Section 265. Functions of Commission: To issue a report related to the purposes of the Commission. Section 266. Powers of Commission: Holding hearings, taking testimony, collecting evidence. Section 267. Administration: The Commission has authority to pay its members, compensate for travel, hire and pay staff, hire and pay experts and consultants on a temporary basis, obtain office space in the Capitol complex, make use of GAO support services, frank mail, and make use of GPO printing services. Section 268. Security Clearances for Commission Members and Staff: Federal agencies and departments shall cooperate to provide necessary security clearances. Section 269. Commission Reports; Termination: The Commission must submit its initial report to Congress no later than July 1, 2006, with annual reports thereafter, until a final report is issued in five years. Section 270. Funding: Appropriations are authorized as necessary to carry out this subtitle. |