[Congressional Bills 113th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 994 Reported in Senate (RS)]
Calendar No. 337
113th CONGRESS
2d Session
S. 994
[Report No. 113-139]
To expand the Federal Funding Accountability and Transparency Act of
2006 to increase accountability and transparency in Federal spending,
and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
May 21, 2013
Mr. Warner (for himself, Mr. Portman, Mr. Whitehouse, Mr. Coburn, Mr.
McCain, Mr. Johnson of Wisconsin, Mr. Enzi, Ms. Ayotte, Mr. Coons, Mr.
Carper, and Mrs. Murray) introduced the following bill; which was read
twice and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and
Governmental Affairs
March 27, 2014
Reported by Mr. Carper, with an amendment
[Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed
in italic]
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To expand the Federal Funding Accountability and Transparency Act of
2006 to increase accountability and transparency in Federal spending,
and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
<DELETED>SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.</DELETED>
<DELETED> This Act may be cited as the ``Digital Accountability and
Transparency Act of 2013''.</DELETED>
<DELETED>SEC. 2. PURPOSES.</DELETED>
<DELETED> The purposes of this Act are to--</DELETED>
<DELETED> (1) expand the Federal Funding Accountability and
Transparency Act of 2006 by disclosing direct Federal agency
expenditures and linking Federal contract, loan, and grant
spending information to programs of Federal agencies in order
to enable taxpayers and policy makers to track Federal spending
more effectively;</DELETED>
<DELETED> (2) provide consistent, reliable, and searchable
Government-wide spending data that is displayed accurately for
taxpayers and policy makers on USASpending.gov;</DELETED>
<DELETED> (3) analyze Federal spending data to proactively
prevent waste, fraud, abuse, and improper payments;</DELETED>
<DELETED> (4) simplify reporting for entities receiving
Federal funds by streamlining reporting requirements and
reducing compliance costs while improving transparency;
and</DELETED>
<DELETED> (5) improve the quality of data submitted to
USASpending.gov by holding Federal agencies accountable for the
completeness and accuracy of the data submitted.</DELETED>
<DELETED>SEC. 3. AMENDMENTS TO THE FEDERAL FUNDING ACCOUNTABILITY AND
TRANSPARENCY ACT OF 2006.</DELETED>
<DELETED> (a) In General.--Section 2 of the Federal Funding
Accountability and Transparency Act of 2006 (31 U.S.C. 6101 note) is
amended--</DELETED>
<DELETED> (1) in the section heading, by striking ``full
disclosure of entities receiving federal funding'' and
inserting ``disclosure of federal funding'';</DELETED>
<DELETED> (2) in subsection (a)--</DELETED>
<DELETED> (A) by redesignating paragraphs (2) and
(3) as paragraphs (3) and (7), respectively;</DELETED>
<DELETED> (B) by inserting after paragraph (1) the
following:</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(2) Federal agency.--The term `Federal agency'
has the meaning given the term `Executive agency' under section
105 of title 5, United States Code.'';</DELETED>
<DELETED> (C) by inserting after paragraph (3), as
redesignated by subparagraph (A), the
following:</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(4) Federal funds.--The term `Federal funds'
means any funds that are made available to or expended by a
Federal agency.</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(5) Object class.--The term `object class' means
the category assigned for purposes of the annual budget of the
President submitted under section 1105(a) of title 31, United
States Code, to the type of property or services purchased by
the Federal Government.</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(6) Program activity.--The term `program
activity' has the meaning given that term under section 1115(h)
of title 31, United States Code.''; and</DELETED>
<DELETED> (D) in paragraph (7), as redesignated by
subparagraph (A)--</DELETED>
<DELETED> (i) in subparagraph (B), by
striking ``paragraph (2)(A)(i)'' and inserting
``paragraph (3)(A)(i)''; and</DELETED>
<DELETED> (ii) in subparagraph (C), by
striking ``paragraph (2)(A)(ii)'' and inserting
``paragraph (3)(A)(ii)'';</DELETED>
<DELETED> (3) in subsection (b)--</DELETED>
<DELETED> (A) in paragraph (1)--</DELETED>
<DELETED> (i) by striking ``the Office of
Management and Budget'' and inserting ``the
Secretary of the Treasury'' each place it
appears;</DELETED>
<DELETED> (ii) by redesignating
subparagraphs (A) through (G) as clauses (i)
through (vii), respectively, and adjusting the
margin accordingly;</DELETED>
<DELETED> (iii) by striking ``for each
Federal award--'' and inserting the following:
``for all Federal funds--</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(A) for each Federal agency, component
of a Federal agency, appropriations account, program
activity, and object class (including any subcomponent
of an object class), and other accounts or data as
appropriate--</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(i) the amount of budget
authority available;</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(ii) the amount
obligated;</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(iii) the amount of
outlays;</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(iv) the amount of any Federal
funds reprogrammed or transferred;
and</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(v) the amount of expired and
unexpired unobligated balances; and</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(B) for each Federal award--'';
and</DELETED>
<DELETED> (iv) in subparagraph (B)(iii), as
so designated by this subparagraph, by
inserting ``, which shall be assigned a unique
identifier,'' after ``information on the
award'';</DELETED>
<DELETED> (B) in paragraph (3)--</DELETED>
<DELETED> (i) by striking ``Director of the
Office of Management and Budget'' and inserting
``Secretary of the Treasury''; and</DELETED>
<DELETED> (ii) by striking ``the Director
may'' and inserting ``the Secretary
may'';</DELETED>
<DELETED> (C) in paragraph (4)--</DELETED>
<DELETED> (i) by striking ``Director of the
Office of Management and Budget'' and inserting
``Secretary of the Treasury'';</DELETED>
<DELETED> (ii) by striking ``the Director
upon'' and inserting ``the Secretary upon'';
and</DELETED>
<DELETED> (iii) by striking ``the Director
in'' and inserting ``the Secretary in'';
and</DELETED>
<DELETED> (D) by adding at the end the
following:</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(5) Application of data standards.--The
Secretary of the Treasury shall apply the data standards
established by the Secretary of the Treasury under subsection
(e) to all data collection, data dissemination, and data
publication required under this section.</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(6) Data feed to recovery accountability and
transparency board.--The Secretary of the Treasury shall
provide the data described in paragraph (1) to the Recovery
Accountability and Transparency Board for inclusion in the
Recovery Operations Center described in subsection
(h).'';</DELETED>
<DELETED> (4) in subsection (c)--</DELETED>
<DELETED> (A) in paragraph (1)--</DELETED>
<DELETED> (i) in the matter preceding
subparagraph (A), by striking ``and
Grants.gov'' and inserting ``Grants.gov, the
Payment Automation Manager and Federal
Information Repository and other data or
databases from the Department of the Treasury,
the MAX Information System of the Office of
Management and Budget, and other data from
Federal agencies collected and identified by
the Office of Management and
Budget'';</DELETED>
<DELETED> (ii) in subparagraph (B), by
adding ``and'' at the end; and</DELETED>
<DELETED> (iii) by adding at the end the
following:</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(C) specify such search shall be
confined to Federal funds;'';</DELETED>
<DELETED> (B) in paragraph (2), by inserting ``the
Payment Automation Manager and Federal Information
Repository and other data or databases from the
Department of the Treasury, the MAX Information System
of the Office of Management and Budget, other data from
Federal agencies collected and identified by the Office
of Management and Budget,'' after ``Grants.gov
website,'';</DELETED>
<DELETED> (C) in paragraph (4)--</DELETED>
<DELETED> (i) by striking ``shall be updated
not later'' and inserting the following:
``shall be updated--</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(A) not later''; and</DELETED>
<DELETED> (ii) by adding at the end the
following:</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(B) not less than once each quarter with
information relating to Federal funds;'';</DELETED>
<DELETED> (D) in paragraph (5)--</DELETED>
<DELETED> (i) by inserting ``Federal funds
and'' before ``Federal awards'' the first place
it appears;</DELETED>
<DELETED> (ii) by striking ``subsection
(a)(2)(A)(i) and those described in subsection
(a)(2)(A)(ii)'' and inserting ``subsection
(a)(3)(A)(i) and those described in subsection
(a)(3)(A)(ii)''; and</DELETED>
<DELETED> (iii) by striking the period at
the end and inserting a semicolon;
and</DELETED>
<DELETED> (E) by adding at the end the
following:</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(6) shall have the ability to aggregate data for
the categories described in paragraphs (1) through (5) without
double-counting data; and</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(7) shall permit all information published under
this section to be downloaded in bulk.'';</DELETED>
<DELETED> (5) by redesignating subsections (e), (f), and (g)
as subsections (i), (j), and (k), respectively; and</DELETED>
<DELETED> (6) by inserting after subsection (d) the
following:</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(e) Department of the Treasury Requirements.--</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(1) Data standards.--</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(A) In general.--The Secretary of the
Treasury, in consultation with the Director of the
Office of Management and Budget, the Administrator of
General Services, and the heads of Federal agencies,
shall establish Government-wide financial data
standards for Federal funds, which shall--</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(i) include common data
elements, such as codes, unique award
identifiers, and fields, for financial and
payment information required to be reported by
Federal agencies and entities receiving Federal
funds, including identifiers for Federal awards
and entities receiving Federal
awards;</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(ii) to the extent reasonable
and practicable, ensure interoperability and
incorporate--</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(I) common data elements
developed and maintained by an
international voluntary consensus
standards body, as defined by the
Office of Management and Budget, such
as the International Organization for
Standardization;</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(II) common data
elements developed and maintained by
Federal agencies with authority over
contracting and financial assistance,
such as the Federal Acquisition
Regulatory Council; and</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(III) common data
elements developed and maintained by
accounting standards organizations;
and</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(iii) include data reporting
standards that--</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(I) incorporate a widely
accepted, nonproprietary, searchable,
platform-independent computer-readable
format;</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(II) be consistent with
and implement applicable accounting
principles;</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(III) be capable of
being continually upgraded as
necessary;</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(IV) are structured to
specifically support the reporting of
financial and performance-related data,
such as that any data produced,
regardless of reporting need or
software used for creation or
consumption, is consistent and
comparable across reporting
situations;</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(V) establish, for each
data point, a standard method of
conveying the reporting period,
reporting entity, unit of measure, and
other associated attributes;
and</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(VI) incorporate
nonproprietary standards in effect on
the date of enactment of the Digital
Accountability and Transparency Act of
2013.</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(B) Deadlines.--</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(i) Guidance.--The Secretary of
the Treasury, in consultation with the Director
of the Office of Management and Budget, shall
issue guidance on the data standards
established under subparagraph (A) to Federal
agencies not later than 1 year after the date
of enactment of the Digital Accountability and
Transparency Act of 2013.</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(ii) Website.--Not later than 1
year after the date on which the guidance under
clause (i) is issued, the Director of the
Office of Management and Budget shall ensure
that the website required under this section
makes data publically available in accordance
with the data standards established under
subparagraph (A).</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(iii) Agencies.--Not later than
180 days after the date on which the guidance
under clause (i) is issued, each Federal agency
shall collect, report, and maintain data in
accordance with the data standards established
under subparagraph (A).</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(C) Consultation.--The Secretary of the
Treasury shall consult with public and private
stakeholders in establishing data standards under this
paragraph.</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(2) Improper payment prevention.--</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(A) In general.--The Secretary of the
Treasury, in consultation with the heads and Inspectors
General of Federal agencies, shall use the data to
which the data standards established under paragraph
(1) apply and other available data (including available
data from State and local governments) to detect,
prevent, and recover improper payments through pre-
award, post-award pre-payment, and post-payment
analysis, which shall include analysis and
investigations incorporating--</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(i) review and data matching of
payments and beneficiary enrollment lists of
State programs carried out using Federal funds
for the purposes of identifying eligibility
duplication, residency ineligibility, duplicate
payments, or other potential improper payment
issues;</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(ii) review of multiple Federal
agencies and programs for which comparison of
data could show payment duplication;
and</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(iii) review of other
information the Secretary of the Treasury
determines are effective, which may include
investigation or review of information from
multiple Federal agencies or
programs.</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(B) Report.--Not later than 180 days
after the date of enactment of the Digital
Accountability and Transparency Act of 2013, the
Secretary of the Treasury shall submit to Congress a
report, which may be included as part of another report
submitted to Congress, which shall include a
description of--</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(i) the implementation of the
fraud prevention efforts described under
subparagraph (A); and</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(ii) the metrics used in
determining whether the fraud prevention
efforts have reduced, or contributed to the
reduction of, improper payments or improper
awards.</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(3) Improvements to access to data.--</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(A) In general.--In order to carry out
this Act, upon request by the Secretary of the
Treasury--</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(i) the Commissioner of Social
Security shall make available the Social
Security earnings information of a living or
deceased employee;</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(ii) the Director of the Bureau
of Prisons shall make available information
relating to Federal prisoners; and</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(iii) the Secretary of Housing
and Urban Development shall make available
information in the Credit Alert Verification
System of the Department of Housing and Urban
Development.</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(B) Use and protection of information.--
The Secretary of the Treasury--</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(i) may only use information
obtained under subparagraph (A) to assist in
Federal debt collection and in the prevention,
identification or recovery of improper
payments; and</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(ii) shall ensure that data to
which the data standards established under
paragraph (1) apply is adequately protected and
collected in a manner consistent with privacy
protections provided for by law.</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(f) Consolidated Recipient Financial Reports.--The
Director of the Office of Management and Budget shall--</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(1) review the financial reporting required by
Federal agencies for Federal award recipients to reduce
duplicative financial reporting and compliance costs for
recipients;</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(2) request input from Federal award recipients
to reduce duplicative financial reporting, especially from
State and local governments and institutes of higher
education;</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(3) not later than 1 year after the date of
enactment of the Digital Accountability and Transparency Act of
2013, provide instructions to the heads of Federal agencies
regarding how to simplify the reporting requirements for
Federal award recipients to reduce duplicative reporting and
reports to reduce compliance costs, as appropriate;
and</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(4) not later than 18 months after the date of
enactment of the Digital Accountability and Transparency Act of
2013, submit to Congress a report regarding any legislative
action required to streamline the reporting requirements for
Federal award recipients.</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(g) Accountability for Federal Funding.--</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(1) In general.--Not later than 1 year after the
date of enactment of the Digital Accountability and
Transparency Act of 2013, and every 2 years thereafter until
the date that is 6 years after such date of enactment, the
Inspector General of each Federal agency, in consultation with
the Comptroller General of the United States, shall review a
sampling of the spending data submitted under this Act by the
Federal agency and shall submit to Congress and make publically
available a report in on the completeness, timeliness, quality,
and accuracy of the data sampled and the implementation and use
of consistent data standards by the Federal agency.</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(2) Comptroller general.--</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(A) In general.--Not later than 2 years
after the date of enactment of the Digital
Accountability and Transparency Act of 2013, and every
2 years thereafter until the date that is 6 years after
such date of enactment, and after review of the reports
submitted under paragraph (1), the Comptroller General
of the United States shall submit to Congress and make
publically available a report on the data completeness,
timeliness, quality, and accuracy of the data submitted
under this Act by each Federal agency and the
implementation and use of consistent data standards by
each Federal agency.</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(B) Ranking.--The Comptroller General of
the United States shall make available a ranking of
Federal agencies regarding data quality, accuracy, and
compliance with this Act.</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(h) Recovery Accountability and Transparency Board.--
</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(1) Resources and mechanisms.--The Recovery
Accountability and Transparency Board shall develop and test
information technology resources and oversight mechanisms to
enhance the transparency of, and detect and remediate waste,
fraud, and abuse in, Federal spending for Inspectors
General.</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(2) Website.--The Recovery Accountability and
Transparency Board shall maintain a website informing the
public of the activities of the Recovery Accountability and
Transparency Board to identify waste, fraud, and abuse and
increase transparency of Federal spending to provide analytical
support for Inspectors General.</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(3) Recovery operations center.--The Recovery
Accountability and Transparency Board shall establish and
maintain a Recovery Operations Center as a governmentwide
Internet-based data access system to carry out the functions
described in paragraph (4).</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(4) Functions of the recovery operations
center.--The functions described in this paragraph are the
following:</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(A) In general.--The Recovery Operations
Center shall incorporate--</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(i) all information described in
subsection (b)(1);</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(ii) other information
maintained by Federal, State, local, and
foreign government agencies; and</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(iii) other commercially and
publicly available information.</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(B) Specific functions.--The Recovery
Operations Center shall be designed and operated to
carry out the following functions:</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(i) Combine information
described in subsection (b)(1) with other
compilations of information, including those
listed in subparagraph (A).</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(ii) Permit Inspectors Generals,
in accordance with applicable law, to detect
and remediate waste, fraud, and
abuse.''.</DELETED>
<DELETED>SEC. 4. PILOT PROGRAM TO EVALUATE CONSOLIDATED RECIPIENT
REPORTING.</DELETED>
<DELETED> (a) In General.--Not later than 90 days after the date of
enactment of this Act, the Recovery Accountability and Transparency
Board, in consultation with the Secretary of the Treasury and the
Director of the Office of Management, shall establish a pilot program
relating to reporting by recipients of Federal funds (in this section
referred to as the ``pilot program'') for the purpose of increasing
financial transparency to--</DELETED>
<DELETED> (1) display the full cycle of Federal
funds;</DELETED>
<DELETED> (2) improve the accuracy of Federal financial
data; and</DELETED>
<DELETED> (3) develop recommendations for reducing reporting
required of recipients of Federal funds by consolidating and
automating financial reporting requirements across the Federal
Government.</DELETED>
<DELETED> (b) Requirements.--The pilot program shall--</DELETED>
<DELETED> (1) include recipients that collectively receive
not less than $1,000,000,000 in Federal funds each fiscal
year;</DELETED>
<DELETED> (2) include recipients that receive Federal funds
under multiple programs across multiple agencies; and</DELETED>
<DELETED> (3) include recipients that collectively receive
Federal funds under contracts, grants, and subawards.</DELETED>
<DELETED> (c) Reporting and Evaluation Requirements.--Each recipient
of Federal funds participating in the pilot program shall submit to the
Recovery Accountability and Transparency Board reports on the finances
of the selected Federal awards.</DELETED>
<DELETED> (d) Publication of Information.--All the information
collected by the Recovery Accountability and Transparency Board under
the pilot program shall be made publicly available and searchable on
the website established under section 2 of the Federal Funding
Accountability and Transparency Act of 2006 (31 U.S.C. 6101
note).</DELETED>
<DELETED> (e) Termination.--The pilot program shall terminate on the
date that is 3 years after the date on which the Recovery
Accountability and Transparency Board establishes the pilot
program.</DELETED>
<DELETED> (f) Report to Congress.--Not later than 90 days after the
date on which the pilot program terminates under subsection (e), the
Recovery Accountability and Transparency Board shall submit to the
Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs and the
Committee on the Budget of the Senate and the Committee on Oversight
and Government Reform and the Committee on the Budget of the House of
Representatives a report on the pilot program, which shall include--
</DELETED>
<DELETED> (1) a description of financial data collected
under the pilot program, the accuracy of the data provided, and
the cost to collect the data from recipients; and</DELETED>
<DELETED> (2) recommendations for--</DELETED>
<DELETED> (A) consolidating some or all aspects of
Federal financial reporting to reduce the costs to
recipients of Federal funds;</DELETED>
<DELETED> (B) automating some or all aspects of
Federal financial reporting to increase efficiency and
reduce the costs to recipients of Federal funds;
and</DELETED>
<DELETED> (C) improving financial
transparency.</DELETED>
<DELETED>SEC. 5. CLASSIFIED AND PROTECTED INFORMATION.</DELETED>
<DELETED> Section 3 of the Federal Funding Accountability and
Transparency Act of 2006 (31 U.S.C. 6101 note) is amended to read as
follows:</DELETED>
<DELETED>``SEC. 3. CLASSIFIED AND PROTECTED INFORMATION.</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``Nothing in this Act shall require the disclosure to the
public or to any person without an identifiable need to know--
</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(1) information protected under section 552 of
title 5, United States Code (commonly known as the `Freedom of
Information Act'); or</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(2) information protected under section 552a of
title 5, United States Code (commonly known as the `Privacy Act
of 1974'), or section 6103 of the Internal Revenue Code of
1986.''.</DELETED>
<DELETED>SEC. 6. EXPANDING ACCESS BY THE SECRETARY OF THE TREASURY TO
THE NATIONAL DIRECTORY OF NEW HIRES.</DELETED>
<DELETED> Section 453(j)(9) of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C.
653(j)(9)) is amended--</DELETED>
<DELETED> (1) in the paragraph heading, by inserting ``and
in the prevention, identification, and recovery of improper
payments'' after ``collection'';</DELETED>
<DELETED> (2) in subparagraph (A)--</DELETED>
<DELETED> (A) in the matter preceding clause (i), by
striking ``with respect to persons--'' and inserting
``to assist in Federal debt collection and in the
prevention, identification, or recovery of improper
payments with respect to--'';</DELETED>
<DELETED> (B) by striking ``who owe'' and inserting
the following: ``persons--</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(I) who owe'';</DELETED>
<DELETED> (C) by striking ``31 U.S.C. 3711(g).'' and
inserting ``section 3711(g) of title 31, United States
Code; or'';</DELETED>
<DELETED> (D) redesignating clause (ii) as subclause
(II), and adjusting the margin accordingly;
and</DELETED>
<DELETED> (E) by adding at the end the
following:</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(ii) persons--</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(I) who receive a
payment the head of a Federal
executive, judicial, or legislative
agency certifies is under review to
determine the eligibility of the person
to receive the payment; or</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(II) whose eligibility,
or continuing eligibility, to
participate in a program of the Federal
Government (including a program
administered by a State or local
government) is being
reviewed.'';</DELETED>
<DELETED> (3) in subparagraph (B), by striking ``to improve
collection of the debt'' and inserting ``for the
purposes'';</DELETED>
<DELETED> (4) in subparagraph (D), by striking ``of
collecting the debt'';</DELETED>
<DELETED> (5) in subparagraph (E)--</DELETED>
<DELETED> (A) in clause (i), by striking ``of
collecting the debt'';</DELETED>
<DELETED> (B) in clause (ii), by inserting ``and to
a Federal, State, or local agency in connection with
preventing, identifying, or recovering improper
payments as described in subparagraph (A)'' before the
period at the end;</DELETED>
<DELETED> (C) in clause (iv)(II), by striking
``described in subparagraph (A),'' and all that follows
and inserting ``, in connection with a purpose
described in subparagraph (A), to a contractor or agent
of either Secretary, to the Federal agency (including
any contractor or agent of the Federal agency) that
referred a debt to the Secretary of the Treasury for
collection, or to a Federal, State, or local agency
(including any contractor or agent of any such agency)
for purposes of preventing, identifying, or recovering
improper payments, subject to the conditions in clause
(iii) and such additional conditions as agreed by the
Secretaries.''; and</DELETED>
<DELETED> (D) in clause (v), by striking
``collecting the debt'' and inserting ``the purposes'';
and</DELETED>
<DELETED> (6) in subparagraph (F), by adding at the end the
following: ``The Secretary of the Treasury shall reimburse the
Secretary for any costs attributable to the prevention,
identification, or recovery of improper payments out of any
appropriation available to the Secretary of the Treasury for
this purpose.''.</DELETED>
<DELETED>SEC. 7. AMERICAN RECOVERY AND REINVESTMENT ACT OF 2009
AMENDMENTS.</DELETED>
<DELETED> Title XV of division A of the American Recovery and
Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Public Law 111-5; 123 Stat. 286) is amended--
</DELETED>
<DELETED> (1) in section 1501, by striking paragraph (4) and
inserting the following:</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(4) Covered funds.--The term `covered funds'--
</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(A) except as provided in subparagraph
(B), means any funds that are expended or obligated
from appropriations made under this Act; and</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(B) for purposes of sections 1522 and
1524, means funds that are expended or obligated by an
agency from appropriations made under this or any other
Act.'';</DELETED>
<DELETED> (2) in section 1512, by adding at the end the
following:</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(i) Expiration.--The requirements under this section
shall terminate on September 30, 2013.'';</DELETED>
<DELETED> (3) in section 1523, by adding at the end the
following:</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(d) Expiration.--The requirements under this section
shall terminate on September 30, 2013.'';</DELETED>
<DELETED> (4) in section 1526, by adding at the end the
following:</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(e) Expiration.--The requirements under this section
shall terminate on September 30, 2013.''; and</DELETED>
<DELETED> (5) in section 1530, by striking ``September 30,
2013,'' and inserting ``September 30, 2017.''.</DELETED>
<DELETED>SEC. 8. DISASTER RELIEF APPROPRIATIONS ACT OF 2013
AMENDMENTS.</DELETED>
<DELETED> Section 904(d) of division A of the Disaster Relief
Appropriations Act of 2013 (Public Law 113-2; 127 Stat. 18) is amended
in section 904(d)--</DELETED>
<DELETED> (1) by striking ``for purposes related to the
impact of Hurricane Sandy'';</DELETED>
<DELETED> (2) by striking ``related to the impact of
Hurricane Sandy'' after ``receiving appropriations'';
and</DELETED>
<DELETED> (3) by striking ``related to funds appropriated
for the impact of Hurricane Sandy'' after ``on its
activities''.</DELETED>
<DELETED>SEC. 9. EXECUTIVE AGENCY ACCOUNTING AND OTHER FINANCIAL
MANAGEMENT REPORTS AND PLANS.</DELETED>
<DELETED> Section 3512(a) of title 31, United States Code, is
amended--</DELETED>
<DELETED> (1) in paragraph (1), by inserting ``and make
available on the website described under section 1122'' after
``appropriate committees of Congress'';</DELETED>
<DELETED> (2) in paragraph (3)(B)(vi), by inserting ``,
system development, financial management workforce development,
related risk assessment and mitigation for the Federal
Government as a whole, related risk assessment and mitigation
for executive agencies, development of capacity to prevent and
detect fraud,'' after ``equipment acquisitions''; and</DELETED>
<DELETED> (3) in paragraph (4), by adding at the end the
following:</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(C) Not later than 90 days after the date of enactment
of the Digital Accountability and Transparency Act of 2013, and every
90 days thereafter, the Director shall make available on the website
described under section 1122 a report regarding--</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(i) specific goals for the most recent full
fiscal year, the fiscal year during which the report is
submitted, and the fiscal year following the year during which
the report is submitted that are necessary steps toward
implementing the Federal Funding Accountability and
Transparency Act of 2006 (31 U.S.C. 6101 note) fully and in an
effective, efficient, and accurate manner; and</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(ii) the status and progress achieved toward
each goal described in clause (i), including any changes to the
cost, schedule, or performance baselines of achieving each
goal, using earned value management where
appropriate.''.</DELETED>
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Digital Accountability and
Transparency Act of 2013'' or the ``DATA Act''.
SEC. 2. PURPOSES.
The purposes of this Act are to--
(1) expand the Federal Funding Accountability and
Transparency Act of 2006 (31 U.S.C. 6101 note) by disclosing
direct Federal agency expenditures and linking Federal
contract, loan, and grant spending information to programs of
Federal agencies to enable taxpayers and policy makers to track
Federal spending more effectively;
(2) provide consistent, reliable, and searchable
Government-wide spending data that is displayed accurately for
taxpayers and policy makers on USASpending.gov;
(3) simplify reporting for entities receiving Federal funds
by streamlining reporting requirements and reducing compliance
costs while improving transparency; and
(4) improve the quality of data submitted to
USASpending.gov by holding Federal agencies accountable for the
completeness and accuracy of the data submitted.
SEC. 3. AMENDMENTS TO THE FEDERAL FUNDING ACCOUNTABILITY AND
TRANSPARENCY ACT OF 2006.
The Federal Funding Accountability and Transparency Act of 2006 (31
U.S.C. 6101 note) is amended--
(1) in section 2--
(A) in subsection (a)--
(i) in the matter preceding paragraph (1),
by striking ``this section'' and inserting
``this Act'';
(ii) by redesignating paragraphs (2) and
(3) as paragraphs (3) and (7), respectively;
(iii) by inserting after paragraph (1) the
following:
``(2) Federal agency.--The term `Federal agency' has the
meaning given the term `Executive agency' under section 105 of
title 5, United States Code.''; and
(iv) by inserting after paragraph (3), as
redesignated by subparagraph (A), the
following:
``(4) Federal funds.--The term `Federal funds' means any
funds that are made available to or expended by a Federal
agency.
``(5) Object class.--The term `object class' means the
category assigned for purposes of the annual budget of the
President submitted under section 1105(a) of title 31, United
States Code, to the type of property or services purchased by
the Federal Government.
``(6) Program activity.--The term `program activity' has
the meaning given that term under section 1115(h) of title 31,
United States Code.''; and
(B) in subsection (c)--
(i) in paragraph (4), by striking ``and''
at the end;
(ii) in paragraph (5), by striking the
period at the end and inserting a semicolon;
and
(iii) by adding at the end the following:
``(6) shall have the ability to aggregate data for the
categories described in paragraphs (1) through (5) without
double-counting data; and
``(7) shall permit all information published under this
section to be downloaded in bulk.''; and
(2) by striking sections 3 and 4 and inserting the
following:
``SEC. 3. FULL DISCLOSURE OF FEDERAL FUNDS.
``(a) In General.--Not later than 3 years after the date of
enactment of the Digital Accountability and Transparency Act of 2013,
and every month thereafter, the Secretary of the Treasury, in
consultation with the Director of the Office of Management and Budget,
shall ensure that the information in subsection (b) is posted on the
website established under section 2.
``(b) Information to Be Posted.--The information to be posted shall
include, for each Federal agency, component of a Federal agency,
appropriations account, program activity, and object class (including
any subcomponent of an object class), and other accounts or data as
appropriate--
``(1) the amount of budget authority authorized;
``(2) the amount obligated;
``(3) the amount of outlays;
``(4) the amount of any Federal funds reprogrammed or
transferred; and
``(5) the amount of expired and unexpired unobligated
balances.
``SEC. 4. DATA STANDARDS.
``(a) In General.--The Secretary of the Treasury, in consultation
with the Director of the Office of Management and Budget, the
Administrator of General Services, and the heads of Federal agencies,
shall establish Government-wide financial data standards for Federal
funds, which shall include common data elements for financial and
payment information required to be reported by Federal agencies and
entities receiving Federal funds.
``(b) Requirements.--The data standards established under
subsection (a) shall, to the extent reasonable and practicable--
``(1) incorporate widely accepted common data elements,
such as those developed and maintained by--
``(A) an international voluntary consensus
standards body;
``(B) Federal agencies with authority over
contracting and financial assistance; and
``(C) accounting standards organizations;
``(2) incorporate a widely accepted, nonproprietary,
searchable, platform-independent computer-readable format;
``(3) include Government-wide universal identifiers for
Federal awards and entities receiving Federal awards;
``(4) be consistent with and implement applicable
accounting principles;
``(5) be capable of being continually upgraded as
necessary;
``(6) produce consistent and comparable data, including
across program activities; and
``(7) establish a standard method of conveying the
reporting period, reporting entity, unit of measure, and other
associated attributes.
``(c) Deadlines.--
``(1) Guidance.--Not later than 1 year after the date of
enactment of the Digital Accountability and Transparency Act of
2013, the Secretary of the Treasury, in consultation with the
Director of the Office of Management and Budget, shall issue
guidance to Federal agencies on the data standards established
under subsection (a).
``(2) Agencies.--Not later than 1 year after the date on
which the guidance under paragraph (1) is issued, each Federal
agency shall collect, report, and maintain financial and
payment information data in accordance with the data standards
established under subsection (a).
``(3) Website.--Not later than 2 years after the date on
which the guidance under paragraph (1) is issued, the Director
of the Office of Management and Budget and the Secretary of the
Treasury shall ensure that the data standards established under
subsection (a) are applied to the data made available on the
website established under section 2.
``(d) Consultation.--The Secretary of the Treasury shall consult
with public and private stakeholders in establishing data standards
under this section.
``SEC. 5. SIMPLIFYING FEDERAL AWARD REPORTING.
``(a) In General.--The Director of the Office of Management and
Budget, in consultation with relevant Federal agencies, recipients of
Federal funds, including State and local governments, and institutions
of higher education (as defined in section 102 of the Higher Education
Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 1002)), shall review the information required to
be reported by recipients of Federal awards to identify--
``(1) common reporting elements across the Federal
Government;
``(2) unnecessary duplication in financial reporting; and
``(3) unnecessarily burdensome reporting requirements for
recipients of Federal awards.
``(b) Pilot Program.--
``(1) Establishment.--Not later than 1 year after the date
of enactment of the Digital Accountability and Transparency Act
of 2013, the Director of the Office of Management and Budget,
or a designee of the Director, shall establish a pilot program
relating to reporting (in this section referred to as the
`pilot program') to facilitate the development of
recommendations for--
``(A) common reporting elements across the Federal
Government;
``(B) the elimination of unnecessary duplication in
financial reporting; and
``(C) the reduction of compliance costs for
recipients of Federal awards.
``(2) Requirements.--The pilot program shall--
``(A) include a combination of Federal contracts,
grants, and subawards, the aggregate value of which is
not less than $1,000,000,000;
``(B) include a diverse group of recipients of
Federal awards; and
``(C) to the extent practicable, include recipients
who receive Federal awards from multiple programs
across multiple agencies.
``(3) Data collection.--The pilot program shall include
data collected during a 12-month reporting cycle.
``(4) Reporting and evaluation requirements.--Each
recipient of a Federal award participating in the pilot program
shall submit to the Office of Management and Budget any
requested reports of the selected Federal awards.
``(5) Termination.--The pilot program shall terminate on
the date that is 2 years after the date on which the Director
of the Office of Management and Budget establishes the pilot
program.
``(6) Agency guidance.--Not later than 90 days after the
date on which the pilot program terminates under paragraph (5),
the Director of the Office of Management and Budget shall
provide guidance to the heads of Federal agencies regarding how
to simplify the reporting requirements for recipients of
Federal awards to reduce unnecessary duplicative reports and to
reduce compliance costs, as appropriate.
``(7) Report to congress.--Not later than 90 days after the
date on which the pilot program terminates under paragraph (5),
the Director of the Office of Management and Budget shall
submit to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental
Affairs and the Committee on the Budget of the Senate and the
Committee on Oversight and Government Reform and the Committee
on the Budget of the House of Representatives a report on the
pilot program, which shall include--
``(A) a description of the data collected under the
pilot program, the usefulness of the data provided, and
the cost to collect the data from recipients; and
``(B) recommendations for--
``(i) consolidating aspects of Federal
financial reporting to reduce the costs to
recipients of Federal awards;
``(ii) automating aspects of Federal
financial reporting to increase efficiency and
reduce the costs to recipients of Federal
awards;
``(iii) any legislative action required to
simplify the reporting requirements for
recipients of Federal awards; and
``(iv) improving financial transparency.
``SEC. 6. ACCOUNTABILITY FOR FEDERAL FUNDING.
``(a) Inspector General Reports.--
``(1) In general.--In accordance with paragraph (2), the
Inspector General of each Federal agency, in consultation with
the Comptroller General of the United States, shall--
``(A) review a statistically valid sampling of the
spending data submitted under this Act by the Federal
agency; and
``(B) submit to Congress and make publically
available a report assessing the completeness,
timeliness, quality, and accuracy of the data sampled
and the implementation and use of data standards by the
Federal agency.
``(2) Deadlines.--
``(A) First report.--Not later than 18 months after
the date on which guidance is issued under section
4(c)(1), the Inspector General of each Federal agency
shall submit a report as described in paragraph (1).
``(B) Subsequent reports.--On the same date as the
Inspector General of each Federal agency submits the
second and fourth reports under sections 3521(f) and
9105(a)(3) of title 31, United States Code, that are
submitted after the report under subparagraph (A), the
Inspector General shall submit a report as described in
paragraph (1). The report submitted under this
subparagraph may be submitted as a part of the report
submitted under section 3521(f) or 9105(a)(3) of title
31, United States Code.
``(b) Comptroller General.--Not later than 2 years after the date
of enactment of the Digital Accountability and Transparency Act of
2013, and every 2 years thereafter until the date that is 6 years after
such date of enactment, and after review of the reports submitted under
subsection (a), the Comptroller General of the United States shall
submit to Congress and make publically available a report assessing and
comparing the data completeness, timeliness, quality, and accuracy of
the data submitted under this Act by Federal agencies and the
implementation and use of data standards by Federal agencies.
``SEC. 7. CLASSIFIED AND PROTECTED INFORMATION.
``Nothing in this Act shall require the disclosure to the public
of--
``(1) information protected from disclosure under section
552 of title 5, United States Code (commonly known as the
`Freedom of Information Act'); or
``(2) information protected under section 552a of title 5,
United States Code (commonly known as the `Privacy Act of
1974'), or section 6103 of the Internal Revenue Code of
1986.''.
SEC. 4. EXECUTIVE AGENCY ACCOUNTING AND OTHER FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT
REPORTS AND PLANS.
Section 3512(a) of title 31, United States Code, is amended--
(1) in paragraph (1), by inserting ``and make available on
the website described under section 1122'' after ``appropriate
committees of Congress''; and
(2) in paragraph (4), by adding at the end the following:
``(C) Not later than 1 year after the date of
enactment of the Digital Accountability and
Transparency Act of 2013, and every 5 years thereafter,
the Director shall make available on the website
described under section 1122 a report regarding the
implementation of the Federal Funding Accountability
and Transparency Act of 2006 (31 U.S.C. 6101 note).''.
SEC. 5. FUNDING.
The Secretary of the Treasury may use amounts in the Department of
the Treasury franchise fund established under the matter under the
heading ``Treasury Franchise Fund'' (as contained in section 101(f) of
division A of title I of Public Law 104-208 (31 U.S.C. 322 note; 110
Stat. 3009-316)) without further appropriation to carry out this Act
and the amendments made by this Act.
Calendar No. 337
113th CONGRESS
2d Session
S. 994
[Report No. 113-139]
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To expand the Federal Funding Accountability and Transparency Act of
2006 to increase accountability and transparency in Federal spending,
and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
March 27, 2014
Reported with an amendment