[Congressional Record Volume 165, Number 44 (Tuesday, March 12, 2019)]
[House]
[Pages H2667-H2671]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




           FEDERAL ADVISORY COMMITTEE ACT AMENDMENTS OF 2019

  Ms. NORTON. Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the 
bill (H.R. 1608) to amend the Federal Advisory Committee Act to 
increase the transparency of Federal advisory committees, and for other 
purposes.
  The Clerk read the title of the bill.
  The text of the bill is as follows:

                               H.R. 1608

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

[[Page H2668]]

  


     SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE; TABLE OF CONTENTS.

       (a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``Federal 
     Advisory Committee Act Amendments of 2019''.
       (b) Table of Contents.--The table of contents for this Act 
     is as follows:

Sec. 1. Short title; table of contents.
Sec. 2. Ensuring independent advice and expertise.
Sec. 3. Preventing efforts to circumvent the Federal Advisory Committee 
              Act and public disclosure.
Sec. 4. Increasing transparency of advisory committees.
Sec. 5. Managing Federal advisory committees.
Sec. 6. Comptroller General review and reports.
Sec. 7. Application of Federal Advisory Committee Act to trade advisory 
              committees.
Sec. 8. Definitions.
Sec. 9. Technical and conforming amendments.
Sec. 10. Effective date.
Sec. 11. No additional funds authorized.

     SEC. 2. ENSURING INDEPENDENT ADVICE AND EXPERTISE.

       (a) Bar on Political Litmus Tests.--Section 9 of the 
     Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.) is amended--
       (1) in the section heading, by inserting ``membership;'' 
     after ``advisory committees;'';
       (2) by redesignating subsections (b) and (c) as subsections 
     (e) and (f), respectively; and
       (3) by inserting after subsection (a) the following:
       ``(b) Appointments Made Without Regard to Political 
     Affiliation or Activity.--All appointments to advisory 
     committees shall be made without regard to political 
     affiliation or political campaign activity, unless required 
     by Federal statute.''.
       (b) Minimizing Conflicts of Interest.--Section 9 of the 
     Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.), as amended by 
     subsection (a) of this section, is further amended by 
     inserting after subsection (b) (as added by such subsection 
     (a)) the following:
       ``(c) Public Nominations of Committee Members.--
       ``(1) Before making an appointment to an advisory 
     committee, the head of an agency shall--
       ``(A) solicit nominations for potential committee members;
       ``(B) if the head of the agency is required to publish a 
     notice under subsection (a)(2), include in the notice a 
     solicitation for nominations of potential committee members; 
     and
       ``(C) provide in the notice under subparagraph (B) a 
     mechanism for interested persons to comment through a 
     publicly available website of the agency.
       ``(2) The head of an agency shall consider any comments 
     submitted in accordance with paragraph (1)(C) in appointing 
     the members of an advisory committee.
       ``(3) The head of an agency shall solicit nominations under 
     paragraph (1) not less frequently than once every 2 years.
       ``(4) Notwithstanding paragraph (1), if a vacancy in an 
     advisory committee occurs before the next scheduled 
     solicitation for nominations under this subsection, an agency 
     may appoint a member from among individuals that were 
     previously nominated to be a member of the advisory 
     committee.
       ``(d) Designation of Committee Members.--
       ``(1) An individual appointed to an advisory committee who 
     is not a full-time or permanent part-time officer or employee 
     of the Federal Government shall be designated as--
       ``(A) a special Government employee, if the individual is 
     providing advice based on the individual's expertise or 
     experience; or
       ``(B) a representative, if the individual is representing 
     the views of an entity or entities outside of the Federal 
     Government.
       ``(2) An agency may not designate committee members as 
     representatives to avoid subjecting them to Federal ethics 
     rules and requirements.
       ``(3) The designated agency ethics official for each agency 
     shall review the members of each advisory committee that 
     reports to the agency to determine whether each member's 
     designation is appropriate, and to redesignate members if 
     appropriate. The designated agency ethics official shall 
     certify to the head of the agency that such review has been 
     made--
       ``(A) following the initial appointment of members; and
       ``(B) at the time a committee's charter is renewed, or, in 
     the case of a committee with an indefinite charter, every 2 
     years.
       ``(4) The head of each agency shall inform each individual 
     who is not a full-time or permanent part-time officer or 
     employee of the Federal Government appointed to an advisory 
     committee that reports to the agency whether the individual 
     is appointed as a special Government employee or as a 
     representative. The agency head shall provide each committee 
     member with an explanation of the differences between special 
     Government employees and representatives and a summary of 
     applicable ethics requirements. The agency head, acting 
     through the designated agency ethics official, shall obtain 
     signed and dated written confirmation from each committee 
     member that the member received and reviewed the information 
     required by this paragraph.
       ``(5) The Director of the Office of Government Ethics shall 
     provide guidance to agencies on what to include in the 
     summary of ethics requirements required by paragraph (4).
       ``(6) The head of each agency shall, to the extent 
     practicable, develop and implement strategies to minimize the 
     need for written determinations under section 208(b)(3) of 
     title 18, United States Code. Strategies may include such 
     efforts as improving outreach efforts to potential committee 
     members and seeking public input on potential committee 
     members.
       ``(7) Nothing in this subsection shall be construed to 
     supersede the inapplicability of this Act with respect to 
     peer review groups appointed under paragraph (16) of section 
     402(b) of the Public Health Service Act, as described in the 
     flush text following paragraph (25)(B) of such section.''.
       (c) Regulations Implementing FACA.--Section 7(c) of the 
     Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.) is amended by 
     inserting ``promulgate regulations and'' after ``The 
     Administrator shall''.
       (d) Ensuring Independent Advice and Recommendations.--The 
     Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.) is amended--
       (1) in section 8--
       (A) in the section heading, by inserting ``independent 
     advice and recommendations;'' after ``responsibilities of 
     agency heads;'';
       (B) by redesignating subsection (b) as subsection (c); and
       (C) by inserting after subsection (a) the following:
       ``(b) The head of each agency shall ensure that the agency 
     does not interfere with the free and independent 
     participation, expression of views, and deliberation by 
     committee members. Each advisory committee shall include a 
     statement describing the process used by the advisory 
     committee in formulating the advice and recommendations when 
     they are transmitted to the agency.''; and
       (2) in section 10--
       (A) in the section heading, by inserting ``; chair'' after 
     ``attendance''; and
       (B) by inserting after subsection (f) the following new 
     subsection:
       ``(g) The chair shall not be an employee of the agency to 
     which the advisory committee reports, unless--
       ``(1) a statute specifically authorizes selection of such 
     an employee as the chair; or
       ``(2) the head of the agency directs an employee to serve 
     as the chair.''.

     SEC. 3. PREVENTING EFFORTS TO CIRCUMVENT THE FEDERAL ADVISORY 
                   COMMITTEE ACT AND PUBLIC DISCLOSURE.

       (a) Subcommittees.--Section 4 of the Federal Advisory 
     Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.) is amended by striking 
     subsection (a) and inserting the following:
       ``(a) Application.--The provisions of this Act or of any 
     rule, order, or regulation promulgated under this Act shall 
     apply to each advisory committee, including any subcommittee 
     or subgroup thereof, except to the extent that any Act of 
     Congress establishing any such advisory committee 
     specifically provides otherwise. Any subcommittee or subgroup 
     that reports to a parent committee established under section 
     9(a) is not required to comply with section 9(f).''.
       (b) Committees Created Under Contract.--Section 3(2) of the 
     Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.) is amended in 
     the matter following subparagraph (C) by adding at the end 
     the following: ``An advisory committee is considered to be 
     established by an agency, agencies, or the President if it is 
     formed, created, or organized under contract, other 
     transactional authority, cooperative agreement, grant, or 
     otherwise at the request or direction of an agency, agencies, 
     or the President.''.
       (c) Advisory Committees Containing Special Government 
     Employees.--Section 4 of the Federal Advisory Committee Act 
     (5 U.S.C. App.), as amended by subsections (a) and (b) of 
     this section, is further amended by adding at the end the 
     following new subsection:
       ``(d) Special Government Employees.--Committee members 
     appointed as special Government employees shall not be 
     considered full-time or permanent part-time officers or 
     employees of the Federal Government for purposes of 
     determining the applicability of this Act under section 
     3(2).''.

     SEC. 4. INCREASING TRANSPARENCY OF ADVISORY COMMITTEES.

       (a) Information Requirement.--Section 11 of the Federal 
     Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.) is amended to read as 
     follows:

     ``SEC. 11. DISCLOSURE OF INFORMATION.

       ``(a) In General.--With respect to each advisory committee, 
     the head of the agency to which the advisory committee 
     reports shall make publicly available in accordance with 
     subsection (b) the following information:
       ``(1) The charter of the advisory committee.
       ``(2) A description of the process used to establish and 
     appoint the members of the advisory committee, including the 
     following:
       ``(A) The process for identifying prospective members.
       ``(B) The process of selecting members for balance of 
     viewpoints or expertise.
       ``(C) The reason each member was appointed to the 
     committee.
       ``(D) A justification of the need for representative 
     members, if any.
       ``(3) A list of all current members, including, for each 
     member, the following:
       ``(A) The name of any person or entity that nominated the 
     member.
       ``(B) Whether the member is--
       ``(i) designated as a special Government employee;

[[Page H2669]]

       ``(ii) a representative; or
       ``(iii) a full-time or permanent part-time officer or 
     employee of the Federal Government.
       ``(C) In the case of a representative, the individuals or 
     entity whose viewpoint the member represents.
       ``(4) A list of all members designated as special 
     Government employees for whom written certifications were 
     made under section 208(b) of title 18, United States Code, a 
     copy of each such certification, a summary description of the 
     conflict necessitating the certification, and the reason for 
     granting the certification.
       ``(5) Any recusal agreement made by a member or any recusal 
     known to the agency that occurs during the course of a 
     meeting or other work of the committee.
       ``(6) A summary of the process used by the advisory 
     committee for making decisions.
       ``(7) Detailed minutes of all meetings of the committee and 
     a description of committee efforts to make meetings 
     accessible to the public using online technologies (such as 
     video recordings) or other techniques (such as audio 
     recordings).
       ``(8) Any written determination by the President or the 
     head of the agency to which the advisory committee reports, 
     pursuant to section 10(d), to close a meeting or any portion 
     of a meeting and the reasons for such determination.
       ``(9) Notices of future meetings of the committee.
       ``(10) Any additional information considered relevant by 
     the head of the agency to which the advisory committee 
     reports.
       ``(b) Manner of Disclosure.--
       ``(1) In general.--Except as provided in paragraph (2), the 
     head of an agency shall make the information required to be 
     disclosed under subsection (a) available electronically on a 
     publicly available website of the agency and to the 
     Administrator at least 15 calendar days before each meeting 
     of an advisory committee. If the head of the agency 
     determines that such timing is not practicable for any 
     required information, such head shall make the information 
     available as soon as practicable but no later than 48 hours 
     before the next meeting of the committee. An agency may 
     withhold from disclosure any information that would be exempt 
     from disclosure under section 552 of title 5, United States 
     Code.
       ``(2) Website availability.--The head of an agency shall 
     make available electronically, on a publicly available 
     website of the agency, detailed minutes and, to the extent 
     available, a transcript or audio or video recording of each 
     advisory committee meeting not later than 45 calendar days 
     after such meeting.
       ``(3) Grant reviews.--In the case of grant reviews, 
     disclosure of information required by subsection (a)(3) may 
     be provided in the aggregate rather than by individual grant.
       ``(c) Provision of Information by Administrator of General 
     Services.--The Administrator of General Services shall 
     provide, on a publicly available website of the General 
     Services Administration, electronic access to the information 
     made available by each agency under this section.
       ``(d) Availability of Meeting Materials.--
       ``(1) In general.--Except as provided in paragraph (2) and 
     where prohibited by contractual agreements entered into prior 
     to the effective date of the Federal Advisory Committee Act 
     Amendments of 2019, agencies and advisory committees shall 
     make available to any person, at actual cost of duplication, 
     copies of advisory committee meeting materials.
       ``(2) Applicability.--Nothing in this subsection shall be 
     construed to require the disclosure of information that is 
     protected from mandatory disclosure by statute.''.
       (b) Charter Filing.--Subsection (f) of section 9 of the 
     Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. App.), as 
     redesignated by section 2(a) of this Act, is amended to read 
     as follows:
       ``(f) No advisory committee shall meet or take any action 
     until an advisory committee charter has been filed with the 
     Administrator, the head of the agency to whom any advisory 
     committee reports, and the standing committees of the Senate 
     and of the House of Representatives having legislative 
     jurisdiction of such agency. Such charter shall contain the 
     following information in the following order:
       ``(1) The committee's official designation.
       ``(2) The authority under which the committee is 
     established.
       ``(3) The committee's objectives and the scope of its 
     activity.
       ``(4) A description of the duties for which the committee 
     is responsible, and, if such duties are not solely advisory, 
     a specification of the authority for such functions.
       ``(5) The agency or official to whom the committee reports.
       ``(6) The agency responsible for providing the necessary 
     support for the committee.
       ``(7) The responsibilities of the officer or employee of 
     the Federal Government designated under section 10(e).
       ``(8) The estimated number and frequency of committee 
     meetings.
       ``(9) The period of time necessary for the committee to 
     carry out its purposes.
       ``(10) The committee's termination date, if less than 2 
     years from the date of the committee's establishment.
       ``(11) The estimated number of members and a description of 
     the expertise needed to carry out the objectives of the 
     committee.
       ``(12) A description of whether the committee will be 
     composed of full- or part-time Government employees, special 
     Government employees, representatives, or a combination of 
     categories.
       ``(13) Whether the agency intends to create subcommittees 
     and if so, the agency official authorized to exercise such 
     authority.
       ``(14) The estimated annual operating costs in dollars and 
     full-time equivalent positions for such committee.
       ``(15) The recordkeeping requirements of the committee.
       ``(16) The date the charter is filed.
     A copy of any such charter shall also be furnished to the 
     Library of Congress.''.

     SEC. 5. MANAGING FEDERAL ADVISORY COMMITTEES.

       (a) Committee Management Officers.--Subsection (c) of 
     section 8 of the Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. 
     App.), as redesignated by section 2(d) of this Act, is 
     amended to read as follows:
       ``(c) The head of each agency that has an advisory 
     committee shall designate an Advisory Committee Management 
     Officer who shall--
       ``(1) be a senior official who is--
       ``(A) an expert in implementing the requirements of this 
     Act and regulations promulgated pursuant to this Act; and
       ``(B) the primary point of contact for the General Services 
     Administration;
       ``(2) ensure the establishment, management, and supervision 
     of the advisory committees of the agency, including 
     establishing procedures, performance measures, and outcomes 
     for such committees;
       ``(3) ensure the assembly and maintenance of the reports, 
     records, and other papers (including advisory committee 
     meeting materials) of any such committee during its 
     existence;
       ``(4) ensure any such committee and corresponding agency 
     staff adhere to the provisions of this Act and any 
     regulations promulgated pursuant to this Act;
       ``(5) ensure the maintenance of records on each employee of 
     any such committee and completion of training required for 
     any such employee;
       ``(6) be responsible for providing the information required 
     in section 7(b) of this Act to the Administrator; and
       ``(7) carry out, on behalf of that agency, the provisions 
     of section 552 of title 5, United States Code, with respect 
     to the reports, records, and other papers described in 
     paragraph (3).''.

     SEC. 6. COMPTROLLER GENERAL REVIEW AND REPORTS.

       (a) Review.--The Comptroller General of the United States 
     shall review compliance by agencies with the Federal Advisory 
     Committee Act, as amended by this Act, including whether 
     agencies are appropriately appointing advisory committee 
     members who are not full-time or permanent part-time officers 
     or employees of the Federal Government as either special 
     Government employees or representatives.
       (b) Report.--The Comptroller General shall submit to the 
     committees described in subsection (c) two reports on the 
     results of the review, as follows:
       (1) The first report shall be submitted not later than 1 
     year after the date of promulgation of regulations under 
     section 7(c) of the Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. 
     App.), as amended by section 2(c).
       (2) The second report shall be submitted not later than 5 
     years after such date of promulgation of regulations.
       (c) Committees.--The committees described in this 
     subsection are the Committee on Oversight and Reform of the 
     House of Representatives and the Committee on Homeland 
     Security and Governmental Affairs of the Senate.

     SEC. 7. APPLICATION OF FEDERAL ADVISORY COMMITTEE ACT TO 
                   TRADE ADVISORY COMMITTEES.

       Section 135(f)(2)(A) of the Trade Act of 1974 (19 U.S.C. 
     2155(f)(2)(A)) is amended by striking ``subsections (a) and 
     (b) of sections 10 and 11 of the Federal Advisory Committee 
     Act'' and inserting ``subsections (a) and (b) of section 10 
     and subsections (a)(7), (a)(8), (a)(9), (b)(2), and (d) of 
     section 11 of the Federal Advisory Committee Act''.

     SEC. 8. DEFINITIONS.

       Section 3 of the Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. 
     App.) is amended by adding at the end the following new 
     paragraph:
       ``(5) The term `special Government employee' has the 
     meaning given that term in section 202(a) of title 18, United 
     States Code.''.

     SEC. 9. TECHNICAL AND CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.

       Section 7(d)(1) of the Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 
     U.S.C. App.) is amended--
       (1) in subparagraph (A), by striking ``the rate specified 
     for GS-18 of the General Schedule under section 5332'' and 
     inserting ``the rate for level IV of the Executive Schedule 
     under section 5315''; and
       (2) in subparagraph (C)(i), by striking ``handicapped 
     individuals (within the meaning of section 501 of the 
     Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 794))'' and inserting 
     ``individuals with disabilities (as defined in section 7(20) 
     of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973)''.

     SEC. 10. EFFECTIVE DATE.

       This Act and the amendments made by this Act shall take 
     effect 30 days after the date of the enactment of this Act.

     SEC. 11. NO ADDITIONAL FUNDS AUTHORIZED.

       No additional funds are authorized to carry out the 
     requirements of this Act and the amendments made by this Act. 
     Such requirements shall be carried out using amounts 
     otherwise authorized.

[[Page H2670]]

  


     SEC. 12. DETERMINATION OF BUDGETARY EFFECTS.

       The budgetary effects of this Act, for the purpose of 
     complying with the Statutory Pay-As-You-Go Act of 2010, shall 
     be determined by reference to the latest statement titled 
     ``Budgetary Effects of PAYGO Legislation'' for this Act, 
     submitted for printing in the Congressional Record by the 
     Chairman of the House Budget Committee, provided that such 
     statement has been submitted prior to the vote on passage.

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentlewoman from 
the District of Columbia (Ms. Norton) and the gentleman from North 
Carolina (Mr. Meadows) each will control 20 minutes.
  The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from the District of Columbia.


                             General Leave

  Ms. NORTON. Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members 
may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks 
and include extraneous material on this measure.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentlewoman from the District of Columbia?
  There was no objection.
  Ms. NORTON. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  Madam Speaker, I rise in strong support of the Federal Advisory 
Committee Act Amendments.
  Representative Lacy Clay, my good friend from Missouri, has 
introduced this bill each Congress for a decade now. The bill passed in 
each of the previous two Congresses, and it passed the House last year 
without opposition.
  The Federal Advisory Committee Act was originally enacted in 1972. It 
is intended to ensure that committees that provide advice to Federal 
agencies and the President operate with transparency.
  The bill we are considering today would strengthen FACA to make 
Federal advisory committees more transparent and to make agencies more 
accountable in how they select members for these committees.
  Agencies often avoid the requirements of FACA by conducting advisory 
committee business through subcommittees. This bill makes it clear that 
FACA applies to subcommittees as well as parent committees. The bill 
also clarifies that a committee set up by a contractor is subject to 
FACA if it is formed under direction of the President or an agency.
  Under the Federal Advisory Committee Act Amendments, agencies would 
be required to disclose how advisory members are chosen and whether 
they have financial conflicts of interest. They would also be required 
to disclose if they are appointed to provide their own expertise and 
who they work for if they are representing a specific interest.
  Last Congress, this legislation was approved without opposition by 
the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs in the 
Senate. Chairman Ron Johnson and his staff were very helpful in pushing 
this bill through the Senate.
  The bill we are considering today includes changes made following 
negotiations we engaged in during the process. These are changes to 
address concerns raised last Congress by the Department of Health and 
Human Services and technical corrections from the General Services 
Administration.
  Madam Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this bill, and I 
reserve the balance of my time.

                                      Committee on Ways and Means,


                                     House of Representatives,

                                   Washington, DC, March 11, 2019.
     Hon. Elijah Cummings,
     Chairman, Committee on Oversight and Reform,
     Rayburn House Office Building, Washington, DC.
       Dear Chairman Cummings: In recognition of the desire to 
     expedite consideration of H.R. 1608, ``Federal Advisory 
     Committee Act Amendments of 2019,'' the Committee on Ways and 
     Means agrees to waive formal consideration of the bill as to 
     provisions that fall within the rule X jurisdiction of the 
     Committee on Ways and Means.
       The Committee on Ways and Means takes this action with the 
     mutual understanding that we do not waive any jurisdiction 
     over the subject matter contained in this or similar 
     legislation, and the Committee will be appropriately 
     consulted and involved as the bill or similar legislation 
     moves forward so that we may address any remaining issues 
     within our jurisdiction. The Committee also reserves the 
     right to seek appointment of an appropriate number of 
     conferees to any House-Senate conference involving this or 
     similar legislation.
       Finally, I would appreciate your response to this letter 
     confirming this understanding, and would ask that a copy of 
     our exchange of letter on this matter be included in the 
     Congressional Record during floor consideration of H.R. 1608.
           Sincerely,
                                                  Richard E. Neal,
     Chairman.
                                  ____

                                         House of Representatives,


                            Committee on Oversight and Reform,

                                   Washington, DC, March 12, 2019.
     Hon. Richard E. Neal,
     Chairman, Committee on Ways and Means,
     House of Representatives, Washington, DC.
       Dear Mr. Chairman: Thank you for your letter regarding H.R. 
     1608, the Federal Advisory Committee Act Amendments of 2019. 
     As you know, the bill was referred primarily to the Committee 
     on Oversight and Reform, with an additional referral to the 
     Committees on Ways and Means.
       I thank you for allowing the Committee on Ways and Means to 
     be discharged from further consideration of the bill to 
     expedite floor consideration. This discharge in no way 
     affects your jurisdiction over the subject matter of the 
     bill, and it will not serve as precedent for future 
     referrals. In addition, should a conference on the bill be 
     necessary, I would support your request to have the Committee 
     on Ways and Means represented on the conference committee.
       I would be pleased to include this letter in the 
     Congressional Record during floor consideration in order to 
     memorialize our understanding.
           Sincerely,
                                               Elijah E. Cummings,
                                                         Chairman.

                              {time}  1330

  Mr. MEADOWS. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  Madam Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 1608, the Federal Advisory 
Committee Act Amendments of 2019. I thank the sponsor of this 
legislation, my colleague from Missouri (Mr. Clay). In spite of the 
fact that he is not wearing his stylish red glasses today, I want to 
acknowledge the great work that he has done. He has been a tireless 
advocate on this important reform over many Congresses.
  H.R. 1608 will help improve the governance and transparency of 
Federal advisory committees. The Federal advisory committees are groups 
of experts and stakeholders who provide advice and recommendations to 
Federal policymakers.
  Currently, Madam Speaker, there are over 1,000 advisory committees 
that are covered by the transparency and accountability requirements in 
the Federal Advisory Committee Act. But many more advisory committees 
are exempt from the law and may not receive the same level of scrutiny, 
due to a lack of transparency of their own operations.
  The gentleman from Missouri (Mr. Clay) has been right in working 
tirelessly to make sure that advisory committees covered under the law 
are required to report on their operational costs. Those reports show 
advisory committees cost the Federal Government, many times, over $300 
million annually, Madam Speaker.
  We need to make sure that we are getting the most from the 
hardworking American taxpayers' dollars. The 1972 act does not do 
enough to ensure transparency and openness to the Federal 
decisionmaking process.
  This bill provides the needed transparency for how committee members 
are selected and how committee activities function. I encourage all my 
colleagues to support this particular legislation.
  Madam Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
  Ms. NORTON. Madam Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the 
gentleman from Missouri (Mr. Clay).
  Mr. CLAY. Madam Speaker, I thank my friend from the District of 
Columbia for her generosity in time and consideration, as well as my 
colleague and friend from North Carolina (Mr. Meadows), who supports 
the legislation also.
  Madam Speaker, I rise today in support of the Federal Advisory 
Committee Act Amendments of 2019.
  As was mentioned, I introduced this bill in previous Congresses, and 
it most recently passed the House by voice vote in 2017, without 
opposition.
  This legislation fits well with the theme of Sunshine Week, as the 
House joins together to address the need for more transparency in our 
government.
  The Federal Advisory Committee Act, or FACA, as it is known, was 
originally enacted in 1972, as was mentioned, to ensure that the 
advisory groups that provide counsel to the executive branch operate 
with transparency.

[[Page H2671]]

  Advisory committees provide the government with recommendations on a 
wide range of issues of importance to the American public. For example, 
advisory committees to the Department of Health and Human Services 
provide advice about critical issues such as human trafficking. The 
National Advisory Committee on the Sex Trafficking of Children and 
Youth in the U.S. makes recommendations on Federal programs, such as 
best practices to provide housing for children and youth who are 
victims of trafficking. The individuals on that committee are trusted 
to have experience relevant to the issues facing these children and 
share their reports with child welfare agencies that provide direct 
services around the country.
  The bill we are considering today would strengthen FACA to make 
Federal advisory committees more transparent and make agencies more 
accountable in how they select and use their committees.
  Under current law, agencies are able to avoid the requirements of 
FACA by conducting advisory committee business through subcommittees, 
as Ms. Norton mentioned.
  This bill makes it clear that FACA applies to subcommittees as well 
as their parent committees. The bill also clarifies that a committee 
set up by a contractor is subject to FACA if it is formed under the 
direction of the President or its agency.
  Under FACA, agencies will be required to disclose how advisory 
committee members are selected; whether they have financial conflicts 
of interest; if they are appointed to provide their own expertise; and 
who they work for, if they are representing a specific interest.
  Madam Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this bill, and I hope 
that the Senate will take it up quickly and send it to the President.
  Mr. MEADOWS. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may 
consume.
  I thank the gentleman for his thoughtfulness. I have often said there 
are two ways things get done here in Washington, D.C.: slow and never. 
Let's hope that this is one of those times where it is just slow and 
that we get the Senate to act on it.
  I would inform the gentlewoman from the District of Columbia that I 
have no further speakers, and I am prepared to close.
  But before I do that, I want to thank the staff on both sides of the 
committee. Oftentimes, we get up here and get to deliberate this, but 
it is the staffs who do the hard work. I thank our staff in the 
minority and, certainly, the majority staff for their hard work.
  Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  Ms. NORTON. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
  I must say that my friend from Missouri has been indefatigable in 
trying to get this bill passed. It looks like it received some notice, 
at least the last time, in the Senate.
  I have joked with my friend that maybe if he got somebody else to 
introduce it, we could get the bill passed. But he keeps trying. If at 
first you don't succeed--
  I believe that because he has understood that these advisory 
committees are very important and sometimes amount to enacting 
legislation, so important are some of them to our process, that he has 
to keep plugging away until we get it done. I thank him for doing so.
  Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore (Ms. Adams). The question is on the motion 
offered by the gentlewoman from the District of Columbia (Ms. Norton) 
that the House suspend the rules and pass the bill, H.R. 1608.
  The question was taken; and (two-thirds being in the affirmative) the 
rules were suspended and the bill was passed.
  A motion to reconsider was laid on the table.

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