Ethics Reform Act
This bill establishes a number of ethics requirements for members of Congress and the President and Vice President.
Specifically, the bill
The bill also prohibits contributions or donations by foreign nationals in connection with state or local ballot initiatives or referenda.
[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 3550 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
<DOC>
117th CONGRESS
2d Session
S. 3550
To prohibit Members of Congress from buying or selling individual
securities and lobbying for compensation after leaving Congress, and
for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
February 1, 2022
Mr. Sasse introduced the following bill; which was read twice and
referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To prohibit Members of Congress from buying or selling individual
securities and lobbying for compensation after leaving Congress, 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 ``Ethics Reform Act''.
SEC. 2. PROHIBITION ON BUYING OR SELLING INDIVIDUAL SECURITIES.
(a) In General.--No Member of Congress may buy or sell any
individual security.
(b) Widely Held Investment Funds.--Subsection (a) shall not apply
to the buying or selling of any widely held investment fund described
in section 102(f)(8) of the Ethics in Government Act of 1978 (5 U.S.C.
App.).
(c) Penalty.--Whoever violates this section shall be fined not more
than $1,000,000, imprisoned for not more than 5 years, or both.
SEC. 3. LOBBYING FOR COMPENSATION BAN.
(a) Purpose.--The purpose of this section is to prohibit Members of
Congress from lobbying for compensation after leaving Congress.
(b) Prohibition.--No individual serving as a Member of Congress on
or after the date of enactment of this Act shall, upon the completion
of the term of office of the Member of Congress, accept compensation
for offering any advice or engaging in written or oral communication
with regard to--
(1) the formulation, modification, or adoption of Federal
legislation (including legislative proposals);
(2) the formulation, modification, or adoption of a Federal
rule, regulation, Executive order, or any other program,
policy, or position of the United States Government;
(3) the administration or execution of a Federal program or
policy (including the negotiation, award, or administration of
a Federal contract, grant, loan, permit, or license);
(4) the nomination or confirmation of an individual for a
position subject to confirmation by the Senate; or
(5) the representation of any party in a pending matter
involving the Federal Government before a Federal court or in a
Federal administrative proceeding.
(c) Exception.--Subsection (b) shall not apply to full-time
employment by or elected service in Federal, State, or local
government, unless the activities described in that subsection
constitute a primary responsibility of employment.
(d) Penalty.--Whoever violates this section shall be fined the
greater of not greater than $1,000,000 or the value of the compensation
received by the individual, imprisoned for not more than 5 years, or
both.
SEC. 4. PROHIBITION ON IMMEDIATE FAMILY MEMBERS OF CERTAIN COVERED
OFFICIALS SOLICITING OR OTHERWISE RAISING FUNDS FROM
CERTAIN FOREIGN ENTITIES.
(a) Definitions.--In this section:
(1) Close associate.--The term ``close associate'' means,
with respect to a senior foreign political figure, an
individual who is widely and publicly known to maintain a close
relationship with the senior foreign political figure, unless
it is established that such individual is a citizen of and
domiciled within the United States.
(2) Covered foreign entity.--The term ``covered foreign
entity'' means--
(A) a government of a foreign country;
(B) a foreign political party; or
(C) any entity that is owned or controlled by a
government of a foreign country or a foreign political
party.
(3) Covered official.--The term ``covered official''
means--
(A) the President;
(B) the Vice President; and
(C) the head of a relevant agency or department.
(4) Foreign political party; government of a foreign
country.--The terms ``foreign political party'' and
``government of a foreign country'' have the meanings given
those terms in section 1 of the Foreign Agents Registration Act
of 1938, as amended (22 U.S.C. 611).
(5) Immediate family member of a covered official.--The
term ``immediate family member of a covered official'' means,
with respect to a covered official, a sibling, spouse, or child
of the covered official.
(6) Immediate family member of a senior foreign political
figure.--The term ``immediate family member of a senior foreign
political figure'' means, with respect to a senior foreign
political figure, a sibling, spouse, or child of the senior
foreign political figure, unless it is established that such
sibling, spouse, or child is a citizen of and domiciled within
the United States.
(7) Relevant agency or department.--The term ``relevant
agency or department'' means--
(A) the Environmental Protection Agency; or
(B) an ``Executive department'', as defined in
section 101 of title 5, United States Code.
(8) Senior foreign political figure.--The term ``senior
foreign political figure'' means--
(A) a senior official in any branch of the
government of a foreign country; or
(B) a senior official of a foreign political party.
(b) Prohibition.--During the period in which an individual is
serving as a covered official, the covered official or the immediate
family member of the covered official may not solicit or otherwise
raise funds for any purpose from any--
(1) covered foreign entity;
(2) senior foreign political figure;
(3) immediate family member of a senior foreign political
figure;
(4) close associate of a senior foreign political figure;
or
(5) entity that is owned or controlled by an individual
described in paragraph (2), (3), or (4).
(c) Penalties.--Whoever knowingly fails to comply with this section
shall be fined not more than $1,000,000, imprisoned not more than 5
years, or both.
(d) Effective Date.--This section shall take effect on the date
that is 30 days after the date of enactment of this Act.
SEC. 5. DISCLOSURE OF RETURNS AND RETURN INFORMATION OF CANDIDATES FOR
PRESIDENT AND VICE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES.
(a) In General.--Subsection (k) of section 6103 of the Internal
Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by adding at the end the following new
paragraph:
``(16) Disclosure of returns and return information of
candidates for president and vice president of the united
states.--
``(A) In general.--The Secretary shall disclose and
make publicly available returns and return information,
except as provided in subparagraphs (B) and (C), of any
candidate (as defined in section 9002(2)).
``(B) Exceptions.--The information disclosed under
subparagraph (A) shall not include the social security
number of any individual, any financial account number,
the name of any individual under age 18, or any home
address of any individual (other than the city and
State in which such address is located).
``(C) Scope.--Subparagraph (A) shall apply to any
return, and return information included on any return,
which is filed within the 10 taxable years preceding
the year in which the individual becomes a candidate
(as so defined).''.
(b) Effective Date.--The amendment made by this section shall apply
to individuals becoming a candidate (within the meaning of section
9002(2) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986) after the date of
enactment of this Act.
SEC. 6. PROHIBITION ON CONTRIBUTIONS AND DONATIONS BY FOREIGN NATIONALS
IN CONNECTION WITH BALLOT INITIATIVES AND REFERENDA.
(a) In General.--Section 319(a)(1)(A) of the Federal Election
Campaign Act of 1971 (52 U.S.C. 30121(a)(1)(A)) is amended by striking
``election;'' and inserting ``election, including a State or local
ballot initiative or referendum;''.
(b) Effective Date.--The amendment made by this section shall apply
with respect to elections held in 2023 or any succeeding year.
<all>
Introduced in Senate
Read twice and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs.
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