Short title

This Act may be cited as the

Government Accountability Office Improvement Act of 2008

Authority to obtain records

(a)

Authority To obtain records

Section 716 of title 31, United States Code, is amended in subsection (a)— (1)by striking (a) and inserting (2); and (2)by inserting after the section heading the following:

(a) (1)The Comptroller General is authorized to obtain such agency records as the Comptroller General requires to discharge his duties (including audit, evaluation, and investigative duties), including through the bringing of civil actions under this section. In reviewing a civil action under this section, the court shall recognize the continuing force and effect of the authorization in the preceding sentence until such time as the authorization is repealed pursuant to law.

(b)

Interviews

Section 716(a) of title 31, United States Code, as amended by subsection (a), is further amended in the second sentence of paragraph (2) by inserting and interview agency officers and employees after agency record.

Administering oaths

Section 711 of title 31, United States Code, is amended by striking paragraph (4) and inserting the following:

(4)administer oaths to witnesses, except that, in matters other than auditing and settling accounts, the authority of an officer or employee to administer oaths to witnesses pursuant to a delegation under paragraph (2) shall not be available without the prior express approval of the Comptroller General (or a designee).

Access to certain information

(a)

Access to certain information

Subchapter II of chapter 7 of title 31, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the following:

721.

Access to certain information

(a)No provision of the Social Security Act shall be construed to limit, amend, or supersede the authority of the Comptroller General to obtain any information, to inspect any record, or to interview any officer or employee under section 716 of this title, including with respect to any information disclosed to or obtained by the Secretary of Health and Human Services under part C or D of title XVIII of the Social Security Act. (b)No provision of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act shall be construed to limit, amend, or supersede the authority of the Comptroller General to obtain any information, to inspect any record, or to interview any officer or employee under section 716 of this title, including with respect to any information concerning any method or process which as a trade secret is entitled to protection. (c)No provision of the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act of 1976 and the amendments made by that Act shall be construed to limit, amend, or supersede the authority of the Comptroller General to obtain any information, to inspect any record, or to interview any officer or employee under section 716 of this title, including with respect to any information disclosed to the Assistant Attorney General of the Antitrust Division of the Department of Justice or the Federal Trade Commission for purposes of pre-merger review under section 7A of the Clayton Act (15 U.S.C. 18a). (d) (1)The Comptroller General shall prescribe such policies and procedures as are necessary to protect from public disclosure proprietary or trade secret information obtained consistent with this section. (2)Nothing in this section shall be construed— (A)to alter or amend the prohibitions against the disclosure of trade secret or other sensitive information prohibited by section 1905 of title 18 and other applicable laws; or (B)to affect the applicability of section 716(e) of this title, including the protections against unauthorized disclosure contained in that section, to information obtained consistent with this section.

(b)

Clerical amendment

The analysis for chapter 7 of title 31, United States Code, is amended by inserting after the item relating to section 720 the following:

721. Access to certain information.

Comptroller General reports

Section 719 of title 31, United States Code, is amended— (1)in subsection (b)(1)(B), by striking and at the end; (2)in subsection (b)(1)(C), by striking the period at the end and inserting ; and; (3)by adding at the end of subsection (b)(1) the following:

(D)for agencies subject to sections 901 to 903 and other agencies designated by the Comptroller General, an assessment of their overall degree of cooperation in making personnel available for interview, providing written answers to questions, submitting to an oath authorized by the Comptroller General under section 711, granting access to records, providing timely comments to draft reports, adopting recommendations in reports and responding to such other matters as the Comptroller General deems appropriate.

;

(4)in subsection (c)(2)(B), by striking and at the end; (5)in subsection (c)(3), by striking the period at the end and inserting ; and, and (6)by adding at the end of subsection (c) the following:

(4)as soon as practicable when an agency does not, within a reasonable time, respond to a request by the Comptroller General regarding any matter described in subsection (b)(1)(D).