[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 166 (Tuesday, November 12, 2024)]
[House]
[Pages H5949-H5950]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
GAO INSPECTOR GENERAL PARITY ACT
Mr. HIGGINS of Louisiana. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules
and pass the bill (S. 1510) to amend provisions relating to the Office
of the Inspector General of the Government Accountability Office, and
for other purposes.
The Clerk read the title of the bill.
The text of the bill is as follows:
S. 1510
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 ``GAO Inspector General Parity
Act''.
SEC. 2. OFFICE OF THE INSPECTOR GENERAL OF THE GOVERNMENT
ACCOUNTABILITY OFFICE.
Section 705 of title 31, United States Code, is amended--
(1) in subsection (b)--
(A) in paragraph (2)--
(i) by inserting ``(A)'' before ``The Inspector General'';
(ii) in subparagraph (A), as so designated, by striking the
second sentence; and
(iii) by adding at the end the following:
``(B) If the Inspector General is removed from office or is
transferred to another position or location within the
Government Accountability Office, the Comptroller General
shall communicate in writing the substantive rationale,
including detailed and case-specific reasons, for any such
removal or transfer to both Houses of Congress (including to
the appropriate congressional committees), not later than 30
days before the removal or transfer.
``(C) If there is an open or completed inquiry into the
Inspector General that relates to the removal or transfer of
the Inspector General under subparagraph (A), the written
communication required under subparagraph (B) shall--
``(i) identify each entity that is conducting, or that
conducted, the inquiry; and
``(ii) in the case of a completed inquiry, contain the
findings made during the inquiry.
``(D) Nothing in this paragraph shall prohibit a personnel
action otherwise authorized by law, other than transfer or
removal.'';
(B) by redesignating paragraph (3) as paragraph (4); and
(C) by inserting after paragraph (2) the following:
``(3)(A) Subject to the other provisions of this paragraph,
only the Comptroller General may place the Inspector General
on non-duty status.
``(B) If the Comptroller General places the Inspector
General on non-duty status, the Comptroller General shall
communicate in writing the substantive rationale, including
detailed and case-specific reasons, for the change in status
to both Houses of Congress (including to the appropriate
congressional committees) not later than 15 days before the
date on which the change in status takes effect, except that
the Comptroller General may submit that communication not
later than the date on which the change in status takes
effect if--
``(i) the Comptroller General has made a determination that
the continued presence of the Inspector General in the
workplace poses a specific threat; and
``(ii) in the communication, the Comptroller General
includes a report on the determination described in clause
(i), which shall include--
``(I) the substantive rationale, including detailed and
case-specific reasons, for the determination made under
clause (i);
``(II) an identification of each entity that is conducting,
or that conducted, any inquiry upon which the determination
under clause (i) was made; and
``(III) in the case of an inquiry described in subclause
(II) that is completed, the findings made during that
inquiry.
``(C) The Comptroller General may not place the Inspector
General on non-duty status during the 30-day period preceding
the date on which the Inspector General is removed or
transferred under paragraph (2)(A) unless the Comptroller
General--
``(i) has made a determination that the continued presence
of the Inspector General in the workplace poses a specific
threat; and
``(ii) not later than the date on which the change in
status takes effect, submits to both Houses of Congress
(including to the appropriate congressional committees) a
written communication that contains the information required
under subparagraph (B), including the report required under
clause (ii) of that subparagraph.
``(D) Nothing in this paragraph may be construed to limit
or otherwise modify any statutory protection that is afforded
to the Inspector General or a personnel action that is
otherwise authorized by law.'';
(2) in subsection (f)--
(A) by striking ``The Comptroller General'' and inserting
the following:
``(1) Prohibition.--The Comptroller General''; and
(B) by adding at the end the following:
``(2) Budget independence.--The Comptroller General shall
include the annual budget request of the Inspector General in
the budget of the Government Accountability Office without
change.''; and
(3) in subsection (g)--
(A) in paragraph (1), in the second sentence, by striking
``, except that no personnel of the Office may be paid at an
annual rate greater than $1,000 less than the annual rate of
pay of the Inspector General''; and
(B) by adding at the end the following:
``(5) Legal advice.--The Inspector General shall, in
accordance with applicable laws and regulations governing
selections, appointments, and employment at the Government
Accountability Office, obtain legal advice from a counsel
reporting directly to the Inspector General or another
Inspector General.''.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from
Louisiana (Mr. Higgins) and the gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Raskin)
each will control 20 minutes.
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Louisiana.
General Leave
Mr. HIGGINS of Louisiana. Mr. 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
gentleman from Louisiana?
[[Page H5950]]
There was no objection.
Mr. HIGGINS of Louisiana. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I
may consume.
Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of S. 1510, the GAO Inspector General
Parity Act.
Two years ago, Congress passed sweeping bipartisan reforms for the
inspector general community. Those reforms, passed in the fiscal year
2023 NDAA, provided critical reforms to enable both the independence of
Federal agency inspectors general and proper congressional oversight
over their activities.
As a legislative branch entity, the Government Accountability
Office's inspector general was not included in those reforms. H.R. 5300
fixes that by providing the GAO inspector general the same resources
and oversight now provided to other IGs across the government.
Those reforms include requiring the head of GAO to notify the
Congress if the GAO inspector general is to be removed or transferred,
providing Congress the knowledge it needs to weigh in on such decisions
if necessary.
Mr. Speaker, I encourage my colleagues to support this bill, and I
reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. RASKIN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 1510, the GAO Inspector
General Parity Act. I commend both Senator Michael Braun for
introducing the bill and also my colleagues, Representatives Robert
Garcia and Lisa McClain, for introducing the House companion.
Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from California (Mr.
Robert Garcia) to explain the bill.
{time} 1945
Mr. ROBERT GARCIA of California. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to urge
the House to pass the bipartisan Government Accountability Office
Inspector General Parity Act.
The GAO, of course, is an independent, nonpartisan agency responsible
for monitoring government operations to detect waste, fraud, and abuse.
Like other Federal agencies, the GAO has an inspector general
watching over their operations, conducting audits, improving
efficiency, and ensuring the agency follows the law.
Congress has in the past several years made important reforms to
strengthen the inspectors general systems for all of our agencies, to
guarantee their independence, and to make sure they have the resources
and the tools that they need.
Those reforms regrettably did not apply to the GAO. Our bill is a
simple and bipartisan fix to correct these oversights.
Among other reforms, we are going to ensure the GAO has the
independent general counsel they need to communicate budget requests
directly to Congress without any sort of interference.
The bill did pass the Senate unanimously, thanks to the Senate
sponsors, Senator and now Governor-elect Mike Braun and Homeland
Security and Government Affairs Committee Chairman Gary Peters.
In the House, I am grateful for the support of Chairman Comer,
Ranking Member Raskin, and my House co-lead, Representative Lisa
McClain of Michigan.
This bill passed unanimously by voice vote from the Oversight
Committee, and I urge adoption of this long overdue bill to send to the
President's desk and urge it to become law.
Mr. RASKIN. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. HIGGINS of Louisiana. Mr. Speaker, I have no further speakers on
this bill, and I am prepared to close.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentleman has the only time remaining.
Mr. HIGGINS of Louisiana. Mr. Speaker, I encourage my House
colleagues to support this commonsense bill to support the GAO
Inspector General in carrying out their oversight mission.
Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the
gentleman from Louisiana (Mr. Higgins) that the House suspend the rules
and pass the bill, S. 1510.
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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