[Congressional Bills 104th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1617 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

  2d Session
                                S. 1617

     To amend title 31, United States Code, to prohibit the use of 
    appropriated funds by Federal agencies for lobbying activities.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

               March 14 (legislative day, March 13), 1996

Mr. Stevens (for himself and Mr. Thomas) introduced the following bill; 
  which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Governmental 
                                Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
     To amend title 31, United States Code, to prohibit the use of 
    appropriated funds by Federal agencies for lobbying activities.

    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 ``Federal Agency Anti-Lobbying Act''.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSE.

    (a) Findings.--The Congress finds that--
            (1) Federal agency employees have used appropriated funds 
        to foster public support and opposition to legislation pending 
        before the Congress;
            (2) there are conflicting interpretations of the existing 
        anti-lobbying restrictions; and
            (3) the use of appropriated funds derived from tax revenues 
        paid to the Treasury by all Americans to preferentially support 
        or oppose pending legislation is inappropriate and improper.
    (b) Purpose.--The purpose of this Act is to establish a civil 
prohibition on the expenditure of appropriated funds by Federal 
agencies for lobbying purposes and to make clear that such funds may 
not be used in any manner or in any amount, however small, to organize 
efforts to affect the outcome of congressional action by appealing 
directly or indirectly for public support.

SEC. 3. PROHIBITION ON USE OF APPROPRIATED FUNDS FOR LOBBYING BY 
              FEDERAL AGENCIES.

    (a) In General.--Subchapter III of chapter 13 of title 31, United 
States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following new section:
``Sec. 1354. Prohibition on lobbying by Federal agencies
    ``(a) Prohibition.--Except as provided in subsection (b), until or 
unless such activity has been specifically authorized by an Act of 
Congress and notwithstanding any other provision of law, no funds made 
available to any Federal agency by appropriation shall be used by such 
agency for any activity (including the preparation, publication, 
distribution, or use of any kit, pamphlet, booklet, public 
presentation, news release, radio, television, or film presentation, 
video, or other written or oral statement) that is intended to promote 
public support or opposition to any legislative proposal (including the 
confirmation of the nomination of a public official or the ratification 
of a treaty) on which congressional action is not complete.
    ``(b) Exceptions.--
            ``(1) President and vice president.--Subsection (a) shall 
        not apply to the President or Vice President.
            ``(2) Congressional communications.--Subsection (a) shall 
        not be construed to prevent any officer or employee of a 
        Federal agency from--
                    ``(A) communicating directly to a Member of 
                Congress (or to any staff of a Member or committee of 
                Congress) a request for legislation or appropriations 
                that such officer or employee deems necessary for the 
                efficient conduct of the public business; or
                    ``(B) responding to a request for information or 
                technical assistance made by a Member of Congress (or 
                by any staff of a Member or committee of Congress).
            ``(3) Public communications on views of president.--
        Subsection (a) shall not be construed to prevent any Federal 
        agency official whose appointment is confirmed by the Senate, 
        any official in the Executive Office of the President directly 
        appointed by the President or Vice President, or the head of 
        any Federal agency described in subsection (d)(2), from 
        communicating with the American public, through radio, 
        television, or other public communication media, on the views 
        of the President for or against any pending legislative 
        proposal. The preceding sentence shall not permit any such 
        official to delegate to another person the authority to make 
        communications subject to the exemption provided by such 
        sentence.
    ``(c) Comptroller General.--
            ``(1) Assistance of inspector general.--In exercising the 
        authority provided in section 712, as applied to this section, 
        the Comptroller General may obtain, without reimbursement from 
        the Comptroller General, the assistance of the Inspector 
        General within whose Federal agency activity prohibited by 
        subsection (a) of this section is under review.
            ``(2) Evaluation.--One year after the date of the enactment 
        of this section, the Comptroller General shall report to the 
        Committee on Government Reform and Oversight of the House of 
        Representatives and the Committee on Governmental Affairs of 
        the Senate on the implementation of this section.
            ``(3) Annual report.--The Comptroller General shall, in the 
        annual report under section 719(a), include summaries of 
        investigations undertaken by the Comptroller General with 
        respect to subsection (a).
    ``(d) Definition.--For purposes of this section, the term `Federal 
agency' means--
            ``(1) any executive agency, within the meaning of section 
        105 of title 5; and
            ``(2) any private corporation created by a law of the 
        United States for which the Congress appropriates funds.''.
    (b) Conforming Amendment.--The table of sections for chapter 13 of 
title 31, United States Code, is amended by inserting after the item 
relating to section 1353 the following new item:

``1354. Prohibition on lobbying by Federal agencies.''.
    (c) Applicability.--The amendments made by this section shall apply 
to the use of funds after the date of the enactment of this Act, 
including funds appropriated or received on or before such date.
                                 <all>