[Congressional Bills 104th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 3276 Introduced in House (IH)]


104th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 3276

To provide that, to receive their pay, Members of Congress are required 
to certify that they have performed their congressional duties, and for 
                            other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             April 18, 1996

 Mr. Riggs (for himself, Mrs. Kelly, Ms. Lofgren, Mr. Poshard, and Mr. 
   Norwood) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
                      Committee on House Oversight

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To provide that, to receive their pay, Members of Congress are required 
to certify that they have performed their congressional duties, 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 ``Congressional Attendance Reform 
Act''.

SEC. 2. CERTIFICATION BY MEMBERS OF CONGRESS REQUIRED FOR RECEIPT OF 
              PAY.

    (a) In General.--Section 40 of the Revised Statutes of the United 
States (2 U.S.C. 39) is amended to read as follows:

``SEC. 40. CERTIFICATION BY MEMBERS OF CONGRESS REQUIRED FOR RECEIPT OF 
              PAY.

    ``(a) In General.--As a condition of payment of pay, each Member of 
Congress shall certify in writing, with respect to each month, that the 
Member has performed official congressional duties commensurate with 
the pay of the Member for that month. The certification--
            ``(1) shall be made to the Secretary of the Senate or the 
        Chief Administrative Officer of the House of Representatives, 
        as applicable; and
            ``(2) shall include a specification of any absence of the 
        Member on a day during which any vote is taken in the House 
        involved, together with the reason for such absence.
    ``(b) Publication.--The Secretary of the Senate and the Chief 
Administrative Officer of the House of Representatives--
            ``(1) shall make the certifications referred to in 
        subsection (a) available for public inspection; and
            ``(2) include summaries of such certifications in the 
        periodic reports of expenditures published for the Senate and 
        the House of Representatives, respectively.
    ``(c) Penalty.--Any Member of Congress who makes a false statement 
in a certification required by subsection (a) shall be imprisoned not 
more than 5 years or fined in accordance with title 18, United States 
Code, or both.
    ``(d) Deductions From Pay of Members of Congress for Absence.--If a 
Member of Congress is absent from the Senate or the House of 
Representatives on a day during which any vote is taken in the House 
involved, the Secretary of the Senate or the Chief Administrative 
Officer of the House of Representatives may not pay the Member for that 
day, unless the absence is for personal illness, family illness, or 
congressional business.
    ``(e) Civil Action.--Any citizen referred to in the next sentence 
may bring a civil action in an appropriate district court against the 
Secretary of the Senate or the Chief Administrative Officer of the 
House of Representatives, as applicable, for injunctive relief in the 
case of any payment in violation of this section. The citizens referred 
to in the preceding sentence are--
            ``(1) in the case of a Senator, a citizen of the State 
        represented by the Senator; and
            ``(2) in the case of a Representative in, or a Delegate or 
        Resident Commissioner to, the Congress, a citizen of the State 
        in which the congressional district involved is located.
    ``(f) Requirements of This Section as Additional to Other 
Requirements.--The requirements of this section with respect to 
certification, deduction from pay, publication of information, 
penalties, and civil actions shall be in addition to any other 
requirement of law, regulation, or other authority.
    ``(g) Definition.--As used in this section, the term `Member of 
Congress' means a Senator or Representative in, or a Delegate or 
Resident Commissioner to, the Congress.''.
    (b) Clerical Amendment.--The table of sections for chapter 4 of 
title I of the Revised Statutes of the United States is amended by 
striking out the item relating to section 40 and inserting in lieu 
thereof the following new item:

``40. Certification by Members of Congress required for receipt of 
                            pay.''.
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