[Congressional Bills 108th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 3899 Introduced in House (IH)]






108th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 3899

  To require agencies to submit to Congress any contracts in amounts 
     greater than $1,000,000 that are proposed to be awarded using 
                       noncompetitive procedures.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             March 4, 2004

 Mr. Boswell introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
 Committee on Government Reform, and in addition to the Committees on 
Armed 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 require agencies to submit to Congress any contracts in amounts 
     greater than $1,000,000 that are proposed to be awarded using 
                       noncompetitive procedures.

    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 ``Contract Accountability for 
Taxpayers Savings Act''.

SEC. 2. REQUIREMENT FOR SUBMISSION TO CONGRESS OF CONTRACTS PROPOSED TO 
              BE AWARDED USING NONCOMPETITIVE PROCEDURES.

    (a) Notification to Congress.--Before the award of a contract in an 
amount greater than $1,000,000 using procedures other than competitive 
procedures, the head of an agency shall submit to Congress a written 
notification that includes a copy of the contract, the proposed date of 
award of the contract, and a detailed explanation and justification of 
the contract.
    (b) Period for Congressional Disapproval.--The head of an agency 
may not award a contract described in subsection (a) before the 
expiration of 30 legislative days after the date of submission by the 
agency of the notification under subsection (a), except that the 
contract may be entered into immediately after one of the following 
occurs:
            (1) Either House of Congress considers a joint resolution 
        described in section 3(a) with respect to the contract and 
        fails to pass it.
            (2) The time period has expired for Congress to reconsider 
        such a resolution after a presidential veto, and Congress did 
        not override the veto during such period.
    (c) Procedures Other Than Competitive Procedures.--For purposes of 
this section, a contract is entered into using procedures other than 
competitive procedures if it is entered into--
            (1) in the case of a defense contract, pursuant to the 
        authority provided under section 2304(c) of title 10, United 
        States Code; and
            (2) in the case of any contract other than a defense 
        contract, pursuant to the authority provided under section 
        303(c) of title III of the Federal Property and Administrative 
        Services Act of 1949 (41 U.S.C. 253(c)).
    (d) Legislative Day.--In this Act, the term ``legislative day'' 
means a day on which either House of Congress is in session, except the 
term does not include any day a House is in session during the period 
beginning on the date a joint resolution described in section 3(a) is 
presented to the President and ending on the date the joint resolution 
becomes law or is vetoed.

SEC. 3. CONGRESSIONAL CONSIDERATION OF RESOLUTION OF DISAPPROVAL OF 
              PROPOSED CONTRACTS.

    (a) Terms of Resolution.--For purposes of this section, the term 
``joint resolution'' means only a joint resolution which is introduced 
within the 5 legislative days beginning on the date on which the head 
of an agency submits a notification to Congress under section 2(a) 
and--
            (1) which does not have a preamble;
            (2) the matter after the resolving clause of which is as 
        follows: ``That Congress disapproves the proposed contract as 
        submitted by ___ on ___, and such contract may not be 
        awarded.'' (the blank spaces being filled in with the 
        appropriate agency head and date); and
            (3) the title of which is as follows: ``Joint resolution 
        disapproving proposed contract submitted by ___ on ___.'' (the 
        blank spaces being filled in with the appropriate agency head 
        and date).
    (b) Discharge.--If the committee to which a resolution described in 
subsection (a) is referred has not reported such resolution (or an 
identical resolution) by the end of the period of 10 legislative days 
beginning on the date on which the agency submits the notification 
under section 2(a), such committee shall be, at the end of such period, 
discharged from further consideration of such resolution, and such 
resolution shall be placed on the appropriate calendar of the House 
involved.
    (c) Consideration.--
            (1) On or after the third day after the date on which a 
        joint resolution is reported or discharged from committee 
        pursuant to subsection (b), it is in order (even though a 
        previous motion to the same effect has been disagreed to) for 
        any Member of the respective House to move to proceed to the 
        consideration of the resolution. A Member may make the motion 
        only on the day after the calendar day on which the Member 
        announces to the House concerned the Member's intention to make 
        the motion. All points of order against the resolution (and 
        against consideration of the resolution) are waived. The motion 
        is highly privileged in the House of Representatives and is 
        privileged in the Senate and is not debatable. The motion is 
        not subject to amendment, or to a motion to postpone, or to a 
        motion to proceed to the consideration of other business. A 
        motion to reconsider the vote by which the motion is agreed to 
        or disagreed to shall not be in order. If a motion to proceed 
        to the consideration of the resolution is agreed to, the 
        respective House shall immediately proceed to consideration of 
        the joint resolution without intervening motion, order, or 
        other business, and the resolution shall remain the unfinished 
        business of the respective House until disposed of.
            (2) Debate on the resolution, and on all debatable motions 
        and appeals in connection therewith, shall be limited to not 
        more than 2 hours, which shall be divided equally between those 
        favoring and those opposing the resolution. An amendment to the 
        resolution is not in order. A motion further to limit debate is 
        in order and not debatable. A motion to postpone, or a motion 
        to proceed to the consideration of other business, or a motion 
        to recommit the resolution is not in order. A motion to 
        reconsider the vote by which the resolution is agreed to or 
        disagreed to is not in order.
            (3) Immediately following the conclusion of the debate on a 
        resolution described in subsection (a) and a single quorum call 
        at the conclusion of the debate if requested in accordance with 
        the rules of the appropriate House, the vote on final passage 
        of the resolution shall occur.
            (4) Appeals from the decisions of the Chair relating to the 
        application of the rules of the Senate or the House of 
        Representatives, as the case may be, to the procedure relating 
        to a resolution described in subsection (a) shall be decided 
        without debate.
    (d) Consideration by Other House.--
            (1) If, before the passage by one House of a resolution of 
        that House described in subsection (a), that House receives 
        from the other House a resolution described in subsection (a), 
        then the following procedures shall apply:
                    (A) The resolution of the other House shall not be 
                referred to a committee and may not be considered in 
                the House receiving it except in the case of final 
                passage as provided in subparagraph (B)(ii).
                    (B) With respect to a resolution described in 
                subsection (a) of the House receiving the resolution--
                            (i) the procedure in that House shall be 
                        the same as if no resolution had been received 
                        from the other House; but
                            (ii) the vote on final passage shall be on 
                        the resolution of the other House.
            (2) Upon disposition of the resolution received from the 
        other House, it shall no longer be in order to consider the 
        resolution that originated in the receiving House.
    (e) National Emergency.--In the case of a national emergency 
declared by the President, with respect to any contract subject to this 
Act for which the President determines there are urgent and compelling 
circumstances requiring the award of the contract without waiting for 
the expiration of the period of 30 legislative days under section 2(b), 
the President may award the contract using procedures other than 
competitive procedures pursuant to the authority provided in paragraphs 
(2) and (6) of section 2304(c) of title 10, United States Code (in the 
case of a defense contract) or paragraphs (2) and (6) of section 303(c) 
of title III of the Federal Property and Administrative Services Act of 
1949 (41 U.S.C. 253(c) (in the case of contracts other than defense 
contracts).
    (f) Rules of the Senate and House.--This section is enacted by 
Congress--
            (1) an exercise of the rulemaking power of the Senate and 
        House of Representatives, respectively, and as such it is 
        deemed a part of the rules of each House, respectively, but 
        applicable only with respect to the procedure to be followed in 
        that House in the case of a resolution described in subsection 
        (a), and it supersedes other rules only to the extent that it 
        is inconsistent with such rules; and
            (2) with full recognition of the constitutional right of 
        either House to change the rules (so far as relating to the 
        procedure of that House) at any time, in the same manner, and 
        to the same extent as in the case of any other rule of that 
        House.
                                 <all>