[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 121 (Tuesday, September 11, 2012)]
[House]
[Pages H5776-H5778]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
GOVERNMENT SPENDING ACCOUNTABILITY ACT OF 2012
Mr. WALSH of Illinois. Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and
pass the bill (H.R. 4631) to amend title 5, United States Code, to
institute spending limits and transparency requirements for Federal
conference and travel expenditures, and for other purposes, as amended.
The Clerk read the title of the bill.
The text of the bill is as follows:
H.R. 4631
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 ``Government Spending
Accountability Act of 2012'' or the ``GSA Act of 2012''.
SEC. 2. LIMITS AND TRANSPARENCY FOR CONFERENCE AND TRAVEL
SPENDING.
(a) Amendment.--Chapter 57 of title 5, United States Code,
is amended by inserting after section 5711 the following:
``Sec. 5712. Limits and transparency for conference and
travel spending
``(a) Conference Transparency and Spending Limits.--
``(1) Public availability of conference materials.--Each
agency shall post on the public website of that agency
detailed information on any presentation made by any employee
of that agency at a conference (except to the extent the head
of an agency excludes such information for reasons of
national security) including--
``(A) the prepared text of any verbal presentation made;
and
``(B) any visual, digital, video, or audio materials
presented, including photographs, slides, and audio-visual
recordings.
``(2) Limits on amount expended on a conference.--
``(A) In general.--Except as provided in subparagraph (B),
an agency may not expend more than $500,000 to support a
single conference.
``(B) Exception.--The head of an agency may waive the
limitation in subparagraph (A) for a specific conference
after making a determination that the expenditure is
justified as the most cost-effective option to achieve a
compelling purpose. The head of an agency shall submit to the
appropriate congressional committees a report on any waiver
granted under this subparagraph, including the justification
for such waiver.
``(C) Rule of construction.--Nothing in this paragraph
shall be construed to preclude an agency from receiving
financial support or other assistance from a private entity
to pay or defray the costs of a conference the total cost of
which exceeds $500,000.
``(b) International Conference Rule.--An agency may not pay
the travel expenses for more than 50 employees of that agency
who are stationed in the United States, for any international
conference, unless the Secretary of State determines that
attendance for such employees is in the national interest.
``(c) Report on Travel Expenses Required.--At the beginning
of each quarter of each fiscal year, each agency shall post
on the public website of that agency a report on each
conference for which the agency paid travel expenses during
the preceding 3 months that includes--
``(1) the itemized expenses paid by the agency, including
travel expenses, and any agency expenditures to otherwise
support the conference;
``(2) the primary sponsor of the conference;
``(3) the location of the conference;
``(4) the date of the conference;
``(5) a brief explanation of how the participation of
employees from such agency at the conference advanced the
mission of the agency;
``(6) the title of any employee, or any individual who is
not a Federal employee, whose travel expenses or other
conference expenses were paid by the agency;
``(7) the total number of individuals whose travel expenses
or other conference expenses were paid by the agency; and
``(8) in the case of a conference for which that agency was
the primary sponsor, a statement that--
``(A) describes the cost to the agency of selecting the
specific conference venue;
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``(B) describes why the location was selected, including a
justification for such selection;
``(C) demonstrates the cost efficiency of the location;
``(D) provides a cost benefit analysis of holding a
conference rather than conducting a teleconference; and
``(E) describes any financial support or other assistance
from a private entity used to pay or defray the costs of the
conference, and for each case where such support or
assistance was used, the head of the agency shall include a
certification that there is no conflict of interest resulting
from such support or assistance.
``(d) Format and Publication of Report.--Each report posted
on the public website under subsection (c) shall--
``(1) be in a searchable electronic format; and
``(2) remain on that website for at least 5 years after the
date of posting.
``(e) Definitions.--In this section:
``(1) Agency.--The term `agency' has the meaning given that
term under section 5701, but does not include the government
of the District of Columbia.
``(2) Conference.--The term `conference' means a meeting,
retreat, seminar, symposium, or event to which an employee
travels 25 miles or more to attend, that--
``(A) is held for consultation, education, discussion, or
training; and
``(B) is not held entirely at a Government facility.
``(3) International conference.--The term `international
conference' means a conference occurring outside the United
States attended by representatives of--
``(A) the Government of the United States; and
``(B) any foreign government, international organization,
or foreign nongovernmental organization.''.
(b) Technical and Conforming Amendment.--The table of
sections for chapter 57 of title 5, United States Code, is
amended by inserting after the item relating to section 5711
the following:
``5712. Limits and transparency for conference and travel spending.''.
(c) Annual Travel Expense Limits.--
(1) In general.--In the case of each of fiscal years 2013
through 2017, an agency (as defined under section 5712(e) of
title 5, United States Code, as added by subsection (a)) may
not make, or obligate to make, expenditures for travel
expenses, in an aggregate amount greater than 70 percent of
the aggregate amount of such expenses for fiscal year 2010.
(2) Identification of travel expenses.--
(A) Responsibilities.--Not later than December 31, 2012,
and after consultation with the Administrator of General
Services and the Director of the Administrative Office of the
United States Courts, the Director of the Office of
Management and Budget shall establish guidelines for the
determination of what expenses constitute travel expenses for
purposes of this subsection. The guidelines shall identify
specific expenses, and classes of expenses, that are to be
treated as travel expenses.
(B) Exemption for military travel.--The guidelines required
under subparagraph (A) shall exclude military travel expenses
in determining what expenses constitute travel expenses.
Military travel expenses shall include travel expenses
involving military combat, the training or deployment of
uniformed military personnel, and such other travel expenses
as determined by the Director of the Office of Management and
Budget, in consultation with the Administrator of General
Services and the Director of the Administrative Office of the
United States Courts.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from
Illinois (Mr. Walsh) and the gentleman from Missouri (Mr. Clay) each
will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Illinois.
General Leave
Mr. WALSH of Illinois. Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that
all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and
extend their remarks and include extraneous material on the bill under
consideration.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from Illinois?
There was no objection.
Mr. WALSH of Illinois. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I
may consume.
The Government Spending Accountability Act, or GSA Act, will end the
days of unnecessary boondoggles and lavish trips for Federal
bureaucrats.
I think we're all aware of GSA's recent escapades in Las Vegas where
the agency paid more than $44 a head for breakfast, $7,000 in sushi at
a networking reception, and $75,000 to build bicycles.
I think we can all agree that all of this spending is outrageous and
unacceptable. We can't continue to ask hardworking taxpayers to tighten
their belts and make tough decisions when for years the GSA and other
Federal agencies have thrown away those taxpayer dollars on lavish
conferences like this.
The days of wasting taxpayer dollars on fancy junkets for government
bureaucrats should soon be over. I introduced the GSA Act because, as
stewards of taxpayer dollars, it is our responsibility to ensure that
they are not wasted on lavish conferences and posh junkets.
The GSA Act requires that every quarter Federal agencies publish an
open report that details every conference for which the agency paid
travel and expenses. The bill also limits the amount that an agency can
spend on any one conference to $500,000 and on travel annually to 70
percent of the amount the agency spent on travel in 2010.
I would like to thank Chairman Issa, Ranking Member Cummings, and my
friends across the aisle for joining me in this effort. The
bipartisanship displayed here shows what Congress can accomplish when
both parties come together to tackle reckless spending.
We need to come together to fix Washington and start cultivating some
respect for hard-earned taxpayer dollars. The GSA Act will help change
the culture of waste in Washington and put us on a path to a
sustainable future for our children and grandchildren.
Please join me in standing up for taxpayers. I support this measure
and urge its adoption.
With that, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. CLAY. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Madam Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 4631, the Government
Spending Accountability Act, as amended.
This legislation will improve congressional oversight of Federal
Government spending on meetings and conferences. It is modeled on
similar reporting requirements contained in the DATA Act, which passed
the House of Representatives earlier this year with bipartisan support.
This legislation will help rein in the type of wasteful spending of
taxpayer dollars that we have witnessed over the past several months.
In April, the committee held a hearing to examine the GSA's expenditure
of $800,000 on a single conference in Las Vegas in 2010.
The gross abuse of Federal funds must not be repeated, and one way to
avoid that is to monitor more closely how Federal agencies use their
funds on such activities.
We are all aware that conferences are an important part of staff
development and can help improve the quality of Federal Government
work; however, we must make sure that they do not turn into resort
vacations funded by taxpayers, many of whom are continuing to struggle
to make ends meet.
{time} 1240
Madam Speaker, the GSA incident tarnished the reputation of
government workers who dedicate their lives to public service, which I
believe is unfair. This legislation, as amended, would prevent a few
reckless and selfish individuals from engaging in activities that
discredit the entire Federal workforce.
Madam Speaker, I urge support for this bill, and I reserve the
balance of my time.
Mr. WALSH. I continue to reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. CLAY. Madam Speaker, I yield 4 minutes to the gentleman from New
Jersey (Mr. Holt).
Mr. HOLT. I thank my friend from Missouri.
Madam Speaker, I rise in opposition to H.R. 4631. I oppose this bill
because it would make significant changes to Federal employees' ability
to travel to conferences and meetings.
Although I appreciate the sponsors' efforts to ensure oversight on
travel expenditures, I'm not sure they realize the impact that this
legislation would have on science and technology, which is the engine
of American innovation.
This bill institutes prohibitions and impediments that would hinder
American scientists' ability to collaborate and communicate with
scientists at other institutions and laboratories. Now, to be sure,
they can probably get around these prohibitions and impediments, but we
should not be putting these in place in the first matter.
As a scientist, I know firsthand how important scientific conferences
and
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meetings are. The informal conversations, as well as the formal
presentations and poster sessions and everything else that goes into it
between scientists from different institutions, lead to new
collaborations that have the promise of new discoveries. These are not
fancy junkets.
Now, people often ask students, well, what is science. What's so
special about science? Why does it work? Well, it works because one of
its fundamental tenets is communication.
To be sure, there are various ways to have communication, but
scientific conferences are critically important. In a recent op-ed by
the presidents of the American Chemical Society and the president of
the American Physical Society, they discuss, for example, an anticancer
drug that was the result of collaboration between a team of scientists
from three laboratories that took place at conferences.
This bill would hinder that kind of collaboration. Just about any
scientific society in this country can give you examples where large
numbers of federally sponsored researchers go off to conferences. It
happens in plasma physics. It happens in microbiology. It happens in
AIDS policy and AIDS research.
In a time when the Federal Government should be making science a
priority, passing a bill that would make scientists jump through
hurdles and get around impediments would, in fact, weaken American
scientists, weaken American science, and impede the ability of American
scientists to innovate.
That is not wise. This is not the way to build our economy. We should
be investing more in research and development, which means, of course,
investing in scientists, but also investing in their ability to pursue
science.
We should be spending more on international conferences. We should be
spending more on national conferences. We should be spending more on
national laboratories. We should be spending more on public and private
research and development for the sake of jobs, for the sake of our
economic vitality, for the sake of the quality of life of Americans.
This is not the way to build our economy and to foster innovation.
I urge my colleagues to vote ``no.''
Mr. WALSH. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
I appreciate the concerns of my colleague, and I would only note that
new technology, I think, has made it easier to teleconference and
communicate remotely. This not only would save money, which is
important, but it has already and will continue to increase the amount
of collaboration.
Mr. HOLT. Will the gentleman yield?
Mr. WALSH. I yield to the gentleman.
Mr. HOLT. Do you think that the Congress of the United States might
do better if we don't meet in person, if we stay home and get on
conference calls every once in a while and phone in?
I don't think so. I think the gains that are made in good legislation
that come from conferences, as we gather here for votes, on the side
between votes, is invaluable. The same can be said many times over for
microbiology, for plasma physics, for--let's go through a long list.
Mr. WALSH. Reclaiming my time, again, I would say Congress, in
today's day and age, where we hit $16 trillion in debt last week,
Congress, like all institutions in this country, needs to figure out
how to work more efficiently and save hard-earned taxpayer dollars.
Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. CLAY. Madam Speaker, I also urge my colleagues to vote in favor
of H.R. 4631, and I yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. WALSH. Madam Speaker, I urge all Members to join me in support of
this bill, and I yield back the balance of my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the
gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Walsh) that the House suspend the rules
and pass the bill, H.R. 4631, as amended.
The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the
rules were suspended and the bill, as amended, was passed.
A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.
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