[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 113 (Monday, July 29, 1996)]
[House]
[Pages H8613-H8614]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




          LOBBYING DISCLOSURE TECHNICAL AMENDMENTS ACT OF 1996

  Mr. HOKE. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill 
(H.R. 3435), to make technical amendments to the Lobbying Disclosure 
Act of 1995, as amended.
  The Clerk read as follows:

                               H.R. 3435

       Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 
     the United States of America in Congress assembled,

     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE AND REFERENCE.

       (a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``Lobbying 
     Disclosure Technical Amendments Act of 1996''.
       (b) Reference.--Whenever in this Act an amendment or repeal 
     is expressed in terms of an amendment to, or repeal of, a 
     section or other provision, the reference shall be considered 
     to be made to a section or other provision of the Lobbying 
     Disclosure Act of 1995''.

     SEC. 2. DEFINITION OF COVERED EXECUTIVE BRANCH OFFICICAL.

       Section 3(3)(F) (2 U.S.C. 1602(3)(F)) is amended by 
     striking ``7511(b)(2)'' and inserting ``7511(b)(2)(B)''.

     SEC. 3. CLARIFICATION OF EXCEPTION TO LOBBYING CONTACT.

       (a) Certain Communications.--Section 3(8)(B)(ix) (2 U.S.C. 
     1602(8)(B)(ix)) is amended by inserting before the semicolon 
     the following: ``, including any communication compelled by a 
     Federal contract, grant, loan, permit, or license''.
       (b) Definition of ``Public Official''.--Section 3(15)(F) (2 
     U.S.C. 1602(15)(F)) is amended by inserting ``, or a group of 
     governments acting together as an international 
     organization'' before the period.

     SEC. 4. INTERESTS.

       (a) Section 4.--Section 4(b)(4)(C) (2 U.S.C. 1603(b)(4)(C)) 
     is amended by striking ``direct interest'' and inserting 
     ``significant direct interest''.
       (b) Section 5.--Section 5(b)(2)(D) (2 U.S.C. 1604(b)(2)(D)) 
     is amended by striking ``of the interest, if any,'' and 
     inserting ``of any significant direct interest''.
       (c) Section 14.--Section 14 (2 U.S.C. 1609) is amended--
       (1) in subsection (a)(2), by striking ``a direct interest'' 
     and inserting ``a significant direct interest''; and
       (2) in subsection (b)(2), by striking ``a direct interest'' 
     and inserting ``a significant direct interest''.

     SEC. 5. ESTIMATES BASED ON TAX REPORTING SYSTEM.

       (a) Section 15(a).--Section 15(a) (2 U.S.C. 1601 (a)) is 
     amended--
       (1) by striking ``A registrant'' and inserting ``A person, 
     other than a lobbying firm,''; and
       (2) by amending paragraph (2) to read as follows:
       ``(2) for all other purposes consider as lobbying contacts 
     and lobbying activities only--
       ``(A) lobbying contacts with covered legislative branch 
     officials (as defined in section 3(4)) and lobbying 
     activities in support of such contacts; and
       ``(B) lobbying of Federal executive branch officials to the 
     extent that such activities are influencing legislation as 
     defined in section 4911(d) of the Internal Revenue Code of 
     1986.''.
       (b) Section 15(b).--Section 15(b) (2 U.S.C. 1610(b)) is 
     amended--
       (1) by striking ``A registrant that is subject to'' and 
     inserting ``A person, other than a lobbying firm, who is 
     required to account and does account for lobbying 
     expenditures pursuant to''; and
       (2) by amending paragraph (2) to read as follows:
       (2) for all other purposes consider as lobbying contacts 
     and lobbying activities only--
       ``(A) lobbying contacts with covered legislative branch 
     officials (as defined in section 3(4)) and lobbying 
     activities in support of such contacts; and
       ``(B) lobbying of Federal executive branch officials to the 
     extent that amounts paid or costs incurred in connection with 
     such activities are not deductible pursuant to section 162(e) 
     of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986.''.
       (c) Section 5(c).--Section 5(c) (2 U.S.C. 1604(c)) is 
     amended by striking paragraph (3).

     SEC. 6. DISCLOSURE OF INDIVIDUAL REGISTERED LOBBYISTS.

       Section 5(b) (2 U.S.C. 1604(b))--
       (1) in paragraph (2), by inserting ``and'' at the end of 
     subparagraph (B), by striking subparagraph (C), and by 
     redesignating subparagraph (D) as subparagraph (C), and
       (2) by redesignating paragraphs (2), (3), and (4) as 
     paragraphs (3), (4), and (5), respectively, and by adding 
     after paragraph (1) the following:
       ``(2) a list of employees of the registrant who acted as 
     lobbyists on behalf of the client during the semi-annual 
     reporting period;''.

     SEC. 7. EXEMPTION BASED ON REGISTRATION UNDER LOBBYING ACT.

       Section 3(h) of the Foreign Agents Registration Act of 1938 
     (22 U.S.C. 613(h)) is amended by striking ``is required to 
     register and does register'' and inserting ``has engaged in 
     lobbying activities and has registered''.

     SEC. 8. FURNISHING INFORMATION.

       (a) Information to Agency or Official of Government.--
     Section 4(e) of the Foreign Agents Registration Act of 1938 
     (22 U.S.C. 614(e)) is amended--
       (1) by striking ``political propaganda'' and inserting'' 
     informational materials''; and
       (2) by striking ``the propaganda'' and inserting ``the 
     informational materials''.
       (b) Reports.--Section 11 of the Foreign Agents Registration 
     Act of 1938 (22 U.S.C. 621) is amended by striking 
     ``political propaganda'' and inserting ``informational 
     materials''.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from 
Ohio [Mr. Hoke] and the gentleman from Virginia [Mr. Scott] each will 
control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Ohio [Mr. Hoke].


                             General Leave

  Mr. HOKE. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may 
have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks 
on the bill, H.R. 3435, as amended.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from Ohio?
  There was no objection.
  Mr. HOKE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, H.R. 3435, the Lobbying Disclosure Technical Amendments 
Act of 1996 addresses several technical issues which have been raised 
during the initial months of implementation of the Lobbying Disclosure 
Act of 1995. The amendments made by the bill will strengthen what is 
already widely viewed as a significant and successful law.
  The Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 was the first substantive reform 
in the

[[Page H8614]]

laws governing lobbying disclosure since the Federal Regulation of 
Lobbying Act of 1946. This reform was necessary due to the Supreme 
Court's narrow construction of the 1946 Regulation of Lobbying Act in 
United States versus Harriss which effectively eviscerated that act. 
Last fall, this House passed this landmark legislation in identical 
form to the Senate-passed language. This action enabled the 104th 
Congress to send the bill directly to the President, thus passing the 
first meaningful lobbying disclosure legislation in over 40 years.
  Section 2 of the bill would clarify the definition of a covered 
executive branch official under the act. Section 3 of the bill would 
add a clarification of the exception to a lobbying contact so that any 
communication compelled by a Federal contract, grant, loan, permit or 
license would not be considered a lobbying contact. Section 3 also 
would make plain that groups of governments acting together as 
international organizations would not be required to register under the 
Lobbying Disclosure Act. Section 4 of the bill would clarify what a 
``direct interest'' is when a registrant has an affiliation with a 
foreign interest.
  In addition, section 5 of the bill would clarify how estimates based 
on the tax reporting system can an should be used in relation to 
reporting lobbying expenses. This section also would provide that 
registrants engaging in executive branch lobbying and who make a 
section 15 election must use the Tax Code uniformly for all of their 
executive branch lobbying registration and reporting under the act.
  Section 6 of the bill would make the reporting requirement of the act 
consistent with the registration requirement by eliminating the 
duplicative reporting requirement of maintaining a list of lobbyists 
for each general issue area under the act. This section would make 
uniform the registration requirement that the name of each employee of 
the registrant who acts as a lobbyist on behalf of a client be 
disclosed in a similar fashion in the registration's semiannual 
reports.
  Moreover, section 7 of H.R. 3435 would clarify the original intent of 
the act by providing that anyone engaged in even a de minimis level of 
lobbying activities on behalf of a foreign commercial entity can 
register under the Lobbying Disclosure Act rather than the Foreign 
Agents Registration Act of 1938. This change would reaffirm the 
Congressional intent of requiring disclosure of foreign non-government 
representations under the Lobbying Disclosure Act and disclosure of 
foreign governmental representations under the Foreign Agents 
Registration Act.
  Finally Mr. Speaker, section 8 of the bill would make a purely 
technical change to the Foreign Agents Registration Act by striking the 
term ``political propaganda'' and inserting in its place 
``informational materials.'' The changes made by section 8 would 
complete the changes made to the terminology that were first made in 
the Lobbying Disclosure Act.
  Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Mr. SCOTT. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 3435. Last session, with 
strong bipartisan support, this Congress passed a major overhaul of the 
lobbying disclosure rules which require the reporting of meaningful and 
important information from registered lobbyists.
  Since the passage of that measure, the Secretary of the Senate and 
the Clerk of the House have worked hard to provide the specific rules 
to implement this legislation. During the course of the promulgation of 
the rules, suggestions have been made to improve and in some cases 
strengthen the reporting requirements of the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 
1995.
  Further suggestions have been made to simplify what in this case may 
have been duplicative and burdensome requirements on some not-for-
profit institutions.
  Mr. Speaker, the technical amendments in today's bill reflect those 
improvements.

                              {time}  1430

  We have corrected unnecessary requirements, we have provided fairness 
for those whose lobbying efforts are negligible, and we have 
streamlined the duplicative reporting requirements.
  The measure was passed out of the Committee on the Judiciary 
unanimously, and I urge its passage today under the suspension of the 
rules.
  Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Mr. HOKE. Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I 
yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Calvert). The question is on the motion 
offered by the gentleman from Ohio [Mr. Hoke] that the House suspend 
the rules and pass the bill, H.R. 3435, as amended.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds having voted in favor 
thereof) the rules were suspended and the bill, as amended, was passed.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

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