[House Report 109-439]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]



109th Congress                                            Rept. 109-439
                        HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
 2d Session                                                      Part 4

======================================================================

 
          LOBBYING ACCOUNTABILITY AND TRANSPARENCY ACT OF 2006

                                _______
                                

                 April 25, 2006.--Ordered to be printed

                                _______
                                

  Mr. Tom Davis of Virginia, from the Committee on Government Reform, 
                        submitted the following

                              R E P O R T

                             together with

                             MINORITY VIEWS

                        [To accompany H.R. 4975]

      [Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office]

    The Committee on Government Reform, to whom was referred 
the bill (H.R. 4975) to provide greater transparency with 
respect to lobbying activities, and for other purposes, having 
considered the same, report favorably thereon with amendments 
and recommend that the bill as amended do pass.

                                CONTENTS

                                                                   Page
Committee Statement and Views....................................     3
Section-by-Section...............................................     4
Explanation of Amendments........................................     5
Committee Consideration..........................................     5
Roll Call Votes..................................................     5
Application of Law to the Legislative Branch.....................     5
Statment of Oversight Findings and Recommendation of the 
  Committee......................................................     5
Statement of General Performance Goals and Objectives............     6
Constitutional Authority Statement...............................     6
Federal Advisory Committee Act...................................     6
Unfunded Mandate Statement.......................................     6
Committee Estimate...............................................     6
Budget Authority and Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate...     6
Changes in Existing Law Made by the Bill as Reported.............    10
Minority Views...................................................    13
    The amendments (stated in terms of the page and line 
numbers of the introduced bill) are as follows:
    Page 44, strike line 15 and all that follows through page 
50, line 2, and insert the following:

              TITLE VII--FORFEITURE OF RETIREMENT BENEFITS

SEC. 701. SHORT TITLE.

  This title may be cited as the ``Federal Pension Forfeiture Act''.

SEC. 702. CONVICTION OF CERTAIN OFFENSES.

  (a) In General.--Section 8312 of title 5, United States Code, is 
amended in subsection (a)--
          (1) in paragraph (1), by striking ``or'' at the end;
          (2) in paragraph (2), by striking the period at the end and 
        inserting ``; or'';
          (3) by adding after paragraph (2) the following new 
        paragraph:
          ``(3) was convicted of an offense named by subsection (d), to 
        the extent provided by that subsection.'';
          (4) in subparagraph (A), by striking ``and'' at the end;
          (5) in subparagraph (B), by striking the period at the end 
        and inserting ``; and''; and
          (6) by adding after subparagraph (B) the following new 
        subparagraph:
          ``(C) with respect to the offenses named by subsection (d), 
        to the period after the date of the conviction.''.
  (b) Offenses Covered.--Such section is further amended--
          (1) by redesignating subsection (d) as subsection (e); and
          (2) by inserting after subsection (c) the following new 
        subsection:
  ``(d)(1) Subject to paragraph (2), the following are the offenses to 
which subsection (a)(3) applies:
          ``(A) In title 18--
                  ``(i) section 201 (bribery of public officials and 
                witnesses);
                  ``(ii) section 219 (officers and employees acting as 
                agents of foreign principals);
                  ``(iii) section 371 (conspiracy to commit offense or 
                to defraud United States), to the extent of any 
                conspiracy to commit an act which constitutes an 
                offense within the purview of such section 201; or
                  ``(iv) section 641 (public money, property or 
                records).
          ``(B) Perjury committed under the statutes of the United 
        States in falsely denying the commission of an act which 
        constitutes an offense within the purview of a statute named by 
        subparagraph (A).
          ``(C) Subornation of perjury committed in connection with the 
        false denial of another individual as specified by subparagraph 
        (B).
  ``(2) Paragraph (1) applies only if--
          ``(A) the offense is committed while the individual is a 
        Member of Congress, a Congressional employee, or a political 
        appointee;
          ``(B) the offense is committed after the date of the 
        enactment of the Federal Pension Forfeiture Act; and
          ``(C) the offense is punishable by imprisonment for more than 
        one year.
  ``(3) In this subsection, the term `political appointee' means an 
individual--
          ``(A) who is paid at the rate for one of the levels of the 
        Executive Schedule, as provided under sections 5312 through 
        5315 or under any other provision of law;
          ``(B) who is a noncareer appointee in the Senior Executive 
        Service, as defined in section 3132(a)(7); or
          ``(C) whose position is excepted from the competitive service 
        because of its confidential, policy-determining, policy-making, 
        or policy-advocating character.''.

SEC. 703. ABSENCE FROM THE UNITED STATES TO AVOID PROSECUTION.

  Section 8313 of title 5, United States Code, is amended in subsection 
(a)(1)--
          (1) in subparagraph (A), by striking ``or'' at the end;
          (2) in subparagraph (B), by striking ``and'' at the end and 
        inserting ``or'' ; and
          (3) by inserting after subparagraph (B) the following new 
        subparagraph:
                  ``(C) after the date of the enactment of the Federal 
                Pension Forfeiture Act, for an offense named by section 
                8312(d) of this title; and''.

SEC. 704. REFUND OF CONTRIBUTIONS AND DEPOSITS.

  Section 8316 of title 5, United States Code, is amended in subsection 
(b)--
          (1) in paragraph (1), by striking ``or'' at the end;
          (2) in paragraph (2), by striking the period at the end and 
        inserting ``; or''; and
          (3) by inserting after paragraph (2) the following new 
        paragraph:
          ``(3) if the individual was convicted of an offense named by 
        section 8312(d), for the period after the conviction.''.

SEC. 705. RESTORATION OF ANNUITY OR RETIRED PAY.

  Section 8318(b) of title 5, United States Code, is amended by 
striking ``section 8314 or 8315'' and inserting ``section 8312(a)(3), 
8313(a)(1)(C), 8314, or 8315''.

  Page 3, in the matter before line 1, strike the item relating 
to section 701 and insert the following:

Sec. 701. Short title.
Sec. 702. Conviction of certain offenses.
Sec. 703. Absence from the United States to avoid prosecution.
Sec. 704. Refund of contributions and deposits.
Sec. 705. Restoration of annuity or retired pay.

                     Committee Statement and Views


                          PURPOSE AND SUMMARY

    On March 16, 2006, Rep. David Dreier (R-CA) introduced H.R. 
4975 to provide greater transparency with respect to lobbying 
activities. The legislation would: enhance lobbying disclosure; 
require reporting of outside employment negotiations that could 
cause conflicts of interest; impose restrictions on privately 
funded travel and lobbyist gifts; enhance transparency in the 
congressional earmarking process; amend the Federal Campaign 
Election Act; and require the forfeiture of retirement benefits 
for Members of Congress convicted of certain public interest 
related crimes.
    H.R. 4975 was referred to the Government Reform Committee 
for consideration of Title VII of the legislation, ``Forfeiture 
of Retirement Benefits.'' Title VII of the bill as introduced 
would prohibit a Member of Congress who gets convicted of a 
crime related to public corruption that is punishable by more 
than one year imprisonment--for an act committed while the 
individual was employed by the federal government--from 
accruing retirement benefits based on the time spent as a 
Member. The crimes covered by the legislation are 18 U.S.C. 201 
(bribery of public officials and witnesses), 18 U.S.C. 219 
(officers, employees acting as agents of foreign principals) 
and 18 U.S.C. 371 (conspiracy to commit offense or to defraud 
United States). In addition, the legislation would give the 
Office of Personnel Management the authority to write 
regulations providing for the restoration of the forfeited 
annuity based on a totality of the circumstances.

                  BACKGROUND AND NEED FOR LEGISLATION

    On February 1, 2006, the Committee held a hearing entitled 
``Restoring the Public Trust: A Review of the Federal Pension 
Forfeiture Act.'' The purpose of the hearing was to evaluate a 
proposal put forward by Chairman Davis which would deny federal 
retirement benefits to any Member, congressional employee or 
political appointee convicted of a crime related to public 
corruption punishable by more than one year imprisonment for an 
act committed while the individual was employed by the federal 
government. The crimes covered by Chairman Davis's proposal 
included 18 U.S.C. 201 (bribery of public officials and 
witnesses), 18 U.S.C. 203 (illegally seeking outside 
compensation), 18 U.S.C. 209 (illegally seeking outside 
compensation), 18 U.S.C. 219 (officers, employees acting as 
agents of foreign principals), 18 U.S.C. 371 (conspiracy to 
commit offense or to defraud United States), 18 U.S.C. 641 
(embezzlement), 18 U.S.C. 1001 (making false statements), 
perjury, and subornation.
    At the April 6, 2005 mark up, Chairman Davis offered an 
amendment designed to bring the pension forfeiture provisions 
in H.R. 4975 more in line with the provisions of his proposed 
``Federal Pension Forfeiture Act.'' Specifically, the amendment 
would deny federal retirement benefits to any Member of 
Congress, congressional employee, or political appointee in the 
executive branch who gets convicted of a crime related to 
public corruption that is punishable by more than one year 
imprisonment for an act committed while the individual was 
employed by the federal government. The amendment would also 
provide the President the discretion to restore a retirement 
benefit of an employee, dependent or beneficiary that gets 
denied under this legislation.
    The purpose of Chairman Davis' amendment is to ensure that 
top policymakers in the executive and legislative branches are 
sufficiently deterred from yielding to outside influences. This 
amendment would provide such a deterrent by denying federal 
retirement benefits for federal policymakers convicted of 
accepting bribes, defrauding the federal government, embezzling 
federal property, or committing perjury.

                           Section-by-Section


Section 701. Short title

    This section provided that the Title VII would be cited as 
the ``Federal Pension Forfeiture Act''.

Section 702. Conviction of certain offenses

    This section would add the following new offenses to the 
list of offenses for which a conviction might require 
forfeiture of federal retirement benefits. The new offenses 
would include: bribery of public officials and witnesses (18 
U.S.C. 201); officers, employees acting as agents of foreign 
principals, (18 U.S.C. 219); conspiracy to commit offense or to 
defraud United States (18 U.S.C. 371); embezzlement (public 
money, property or records) (18 U.S.C. 641); perjury; 
subornation. These new offenses would only require forfeiture 
if the individual was a Member of Congress, a congressional 
staff member, or a political appointee. Furthermore, these new 
offenses would only require forfeiture if the offense committed 
exposed the individual to a sentence of imprisonment by more 
than one year, and the offense was committed after the date of 
enactment of this Act. This section would also specifically 
define what the term ``political appointee'' means for the 
purposes of this section.

Section 703. Absence from the United States to avoid prosecution

    This section would add the Federal Pension Forfeiture Act 
to the list of penalties which an individual cannot forestall 
by simply remaining outside of the United States in order to 
avoid prosecution.

Section 704. Refund of contributions and deposits

    This section provided that the affected individual would be 
entitled to a refund with interest for their contributions 
toward the annuity if they were convicted under the Federal 
Pension Forfeiture Act.

Section 705. Restoration of annuity or retired pay

    The provision would authorize the President to restore the 
forfeited annuity of the employee or the employee's dependent 
or beneficiary based on the totality of the facts and 
circumstances.

                       Explanation of Amendments

    The Committee accepted a substitute amendment to title VII 
of H.R. 4975, the provisions of which are explained in the 
descriptive portions of this report.

                        Committee Consideration

    On February 1, 2006, the Committee held a hearing entitled 
``Restoring the Public Trust: A Review of the Federal Pension 
Forfeiture Act.'' The purpose of the hearing was to evaluate a 
proposal put forward by Chairman Davis which would deny federal 
retirement benefits to any Member, congressional employee or 
political appointee convicted of a crime related to public 
corruption punishable by more than one year imprisonment for an 
act committed while the individual was employed by the federal 
government. The Committee heard testimony from: the Honorable 
Linda M. Springer, Director, U.S. Office of Personnel 
Management; Ms. Chellie Pingree, President, Common Cause; and, 
Ms. Joan Claybrook, President, Public Citizen.
    On Thursday, April 6, 2006, the Committee met in open 
session and ordered reported favorably the bill, H.R. 4975, as 
amended, by voice vote, a quorum being present.

                            Roll Call Votes

    No roll call votes were held.

              Application of Law to The Legislative Branch

    Section 102(b)(3) of Public Law 104-1 requires a 
description of the application of this bill to the legislative 
branch where the bill relates to the terms and conditions of 
employment or access to public services and accommodations. 
This bill would deny federal retirement benefits to any Member 
of Congress or congressional employee who gets convicted of a 
crime related to public corruption that is punishable by more 
than one year imprisonment for an act committed while the 
individual was employed by the federal government.

  Statement of Oversight Findings and Recommendations of the Committee

    In compliance with clause 3(c)(1) of rule XIII and clause 
(2)(b)(1) of rule X of the Rules of the House of 
Representatives, the Committee's oversight findings and 
recommendations are reflected in the descriptive portions of 
this report.

         Statement of General Performance Goals and Objectives

    In accordance with clause 3(c)(4) of rule XIII of the Rules 
of the House of Representatives, the Committee's performance 
goals and objectives are reflected in the descriptive portions 
of this report.

                   Constitutional Authority Statement

    Under clause 3(d)(1) of rule XIII of the Rules of the House 
of Representatives, the Committee must include a statement 
citing the specific powers granted to Congress to enact the law 
proposed by H.R. 4975. Article I, Section 8, Clause 18 of the 
Constitution of the United States grants the Congress the power 
to enact this law.

                     Federal Advisory Committee Act

    The Committee finds that the legislation does not establish 
or authorize the establishment of an advisory committee within 
the definition of 5 U.S.C. App., Section 5(b).

                       Unfunded Mandate Statement

    Section 423 of the Congressional Budget and Impoundment 
Control Act (as amended by Section 101(a)(2) of the Unfunded 
Mandate Reform Act, P.L. 104-4) requires a statement whether 
the provisions of the reported bill include unfunded mandates. 
In compliance with this requirement the Committee has received 
a letter from the Congressional Budget Office included herein.

                           Committee Estimate

    Clause 3(d)(2) of rule XIII of the Rules of the House of 
Representatives requires an estimate and a comparison by the 
Committee of the costs that would be incurred in carrying out 
H.R. 4975. However, clause 3(d)(3)(B) of that rule provides 
that this requirement does not apply when the Committee has 
included in its report a timely submitted cost estimate of the 
bill prepared by the Director of the Congressional Budget 
Office under section 402 of the Congressional Budget Act.

     Budget Authority and Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate

    With respect to the requirements of clause 3(c)(2) of rule 
XIII of the Rules of the House of Representatives and section 
308(a) of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974 and with respect 
to requirements of clause (3)(c)(3) of rule XIII of the Rules 
of the House of Representatives and section 402 of the 
Congressional Budget Act of 1974, the Committee has received 
the following cost estimate for H.R. 4975 from the Director of 
Congressional Budget Office:

H.R. 4975--Lobbying Accountability and Transparency Act of 2006

    Summary: H.R. 4975 would amend the Lobbying Disclosure Act 
of 1995 and the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971. Major 
provisions of the legislation would expand reporting 
requirements for lobbyists and Members of Congress, temporarily 
ban privately funded travel, create additional restrictions on 
gifts and travel, and require training for Members and staff on 
ethics issues. The legislation also would eliminate pension 
benefits for Members convicted of certain offenses. In 
addition, H.R. 4975 would require certain political 
organizations involved in federal election activities to 
register with the Federal Election Commission (FEC).
    CBO estimates that implementing H.R. 4975 would cost about 
$2 million in fiscal year 2007 and $1 million a year in 
subsequent years, subject to the availability of appropriated 
funds. Enacting the bill could affect direct spending and 
revenues from reduced pensions for certain Members of Congress, 
and new violations of campaign finance laws, but CBO estimates 
that those effects would not be significant.
    H.R. 4975 contains no intergovernmental mandates as defined 
in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act (UMRA) and would impose no 
costs on state, local, or tribal governments.
    H.R. 4975 would impose several private-sector mandates, as 
defined in UMRA, on the lobbying industry and certain political 
organizations. Based on information from government sources, 
CBO estimates that the total direct cost of all of the mandates 
in the bill would fall below the annual threshold established 
by UMRA for private-sector mandates ($128 million in 2006, 
adjusted annually for inflation).
    Estimated Cost to the Federal Government: Estimated 
budgetary impact of H.R. 4975 is shown in the following table. 
The costs of this legislation fall within budget function 800 
(general government).

------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                      By fiscal year, in millions of
                                                 dollars--
                                 ---------------------------------------
                                   2007    2008    2009    2010    2011
------------------------------------------------------------------------
             CHANGES IN SPENDING SUBJECT TO APPROPRIATION a

Estimated Authorization Level...       2       1       1       1       1
Estimated Outlays...............       2       1       1       1       1
------------------------------------------------------------------------
a Enacting the bill could also reduce pensions for certain Members of
  Congress, and increase revenues from civil penalties, but CBO
  estimates any such effects would be less than $500,000 a year.

    Basis of Estimate: For this estimate, CBO assumes that the 
bill will be enacted near the end of fiscal year 2006 and that 
spending will follow historical patterns for similar 
activities.

Spending subject to appropriation

    The legislation would expand reporting requirements for 
lobbyists and would require the Congress to provide Members and 
staff with additional training on ethics issues. Based on 
information from Congressional administrative staff, CBO 
estimates that Congressional offices and committees would spend 
about $1 million annually to collect and disseminate newly 
reported information from lobbyists and to provide the required 
ethics training.
    In addition, H.R. 4975 would require certain political 
organizations, defined by section 527 of the tax code, to 
register with the FEC. Based on information from the FEC and 
subject to the availability of appropriated funds, CBO 
estimates that implementing the legislation would cost the FEC 
about $1 million in fiscal year 2007. This cost covers the one-
time computer-related expenses as well as writing new 
regulations to implement the new provisions of the legislation. 
In future years, the legislation would increase general 
administrative costs to the FEC, but we estimate that those 
additional costs would not be significant.

Revenues and direct spending

    Enacting H.R. 4975 would likely increase collections of 
fines and penalties for violations of campaign finance law for 
failure to register with the FEC. Such collections are recorded 
in the budget as revenues. CBO estimates that the additional 
collections of penalties and fines would not be significant 
because of the relatively small number of cases likely to be 
involved.
    H.R. 4975 would also deny pension benefits (based on 
periods of elected service) to Members convicted of bribery, 
acting as foreign agents, or defrauding the federal government. 
CBO estimates that any savings in direct spending as a result 
of this provision would not be significant because we expect 
that the number of violations would be small.
    Estimated impact on State, local, and tribal governments: 
H.R. 4975 contains no intergovernmental mandates as defined in 
the UMRA and would impose no costs on state, local, or tribal 
governments.
    Estimated impact on the private sector: H.R. 4975 would 
impose several private-sector mandates, as defined in UMRA, on 
the lobbying industry and certain political organizations. The 
bill would impose new restrictions on lobbying activities and 
require lobbyists and lobbying organizations to submit 
additional reports and disclosures to the Senate Office of 
Public Records and the Office of the Clerk of the House. The 
bill also would require certain 527 organizations to register 
as political committees with the Federal Election Commission 
and comply with current regulations on federal campaign 
finance. Based on information from government sources, CBO 
estimates that the total direct cost of all of the mandates in 
the bill would fall below the annual threshold established by 
UMRA for private-sector mandates ($128 million in 2006, 
adjusted annually for inflation).
    The bill would impose several new requirements on lobbyists 
and lobbying organizations. Requirements on lobbyists and 
lobbying organizations would include but not be limited to:
          Electronic filing of lobbyist registrations 
        and disclosure reports filed with the Secretary of the 
        Senate or the Clerk of the House of Representatives;
          Quarterly, instead of semiannual, filing of 
        lobbying disclosure reports; and
          Additional information in registration and 
        disclosure reports including information on: 
        contributions to Members, Congressional staff, federal 
        officers and political entities by lobbyists; any gifts 
        distributed by lobbying entities; and whether or not 
        each registered lobbyist had prior experience as a 
        covered executive or legislative branch official.
    As of January 1, 2006, all lobbyists and lobbying 
organizations must register and file semiannual disclosure 
reports electronically to the Clerk of the House. However, 
electronic reporting is still optional for lobbyists and 
lobbying organizations filing in the Senate. Since all 
lobbyists must file similar reports to both the Clerk of the 
House and the Secretary of the Senate, the incremental cost of 
filing reports electronically to the Senate should be minimal. 
Generally, because such entities already collect the 
information requested in the registration and disclosure 
reports, CBO estimates that the incremental costs associated 
with the new reporting requirements in the bill would not be 
substantial relative to UMRA's annual threshold for private-
sector mandates.
    The bill also would prohibit lobbyists from traveling on an 
aircraft that is owned by a client and is not licenced by the 
FAA to operate for compensation if a Member, delegate, resident 
commissioner, officer or employee of the House is on board. 
According to government and industry sources, roughly 500 or 
less of those recorded flights are made each year. That 
estimate includes federal officials and staff from both the 
executive and legislative branches. H.R. 4975 would only 
restrict the travel of a lobbyist with House officials and 
staff. The bill would not prohibit employees of the client from 
traveling on such planes with a Member, delegate, resident 
commissioner, officer or employee of the House. Thus, CBO 
estimates that the direct costs associated with complying with 
the mandate would be minimal compared to UMRA's threshold.
    The bill would change the definition of a political 
committee to include certain ``527'' organizations, as defined 
by section 527 of the Internal Revenue Code. Those 
organizations would be required to register as political 
committees with the FEC and comply with current regulations on 
federal campaign finance including certain limits on 
contributions and reporting and disclosure requirements. Based 
on information from the FEC, CBO estimates that the direct 
costs associated with those requirements would be minimal.
    Previous CBO estimates: Many of the lobbying reform and 
campaign finance provisions in the eight pieces of legislation 
listed below are contained in H.R. 4975. The differences among 
these bills are reflected in the cost estimates. However, the 
four versions of H.R. 4975 are very similar, and as such, their 
estimated costs are nearly identical.
          On April 19, 2006, CBO transmitted a cost 
        estimate for H.R. 4975 as ordered reported by the House 
        Committee on Rules on April 5, 2006.
          On April 19, 2006, CBO transmitted a cost 
        estimate for H.R. 4975 as ordered reported by the House 
        Committee on House Administration on April 6, 2006.
          On April 19, 2006, CBO transmitted a cost 
        estimate for H.R. 4975 as ordered reported by the House 
        Committee on the Judiciary on April 5, 2006.
          On March 7, 2006, CBO transmitted a cost 
        estimate for S. 2349, the Legislative Transparency and 
        Accountability Act of 2006, as ordered reported by the 
        Senate Committee on Rules and Administration on March 
        1, 2006.
          On March 6, 2006, CBO transmitted a cost 
        estimate for S. 2128, the Lobbying Transparency and 
        Accountability Act of 2006, as ordered reported by the 
        Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental 
        Affairs on March 3, 2006.
          On July, 13,2005, CBO transmitted a cost 
        estimate for H.R. 513, the 527 Reform Act of 2005, as 
        ordered reported by the House Committee on 
        Administration on June 29, 2005.
          On July 6, 2005, CBO transmitted a cost 
        estimate for S. 1053, the 527 Reform Act of 2005, as 
        ordered reported by the Senate Committee on Rules and 
        Administration on April 27, 2005.
          On June 17, 2005, CBO transmitted a cost 
        estimate for H.R. 1316, the 527 Fairness Act of 2005, 
        as ordered reported by the House Committee on House 
        Administration on June 8, 2005.
    Estimate prepared by: Federal Costs: Matthew Pickford and 
Deborah Reis. Impact on State, Local, and Tribal Governments: 
Sarah Puro. Impact on the Private-Sector: Craig Cammarata.
    Estimate approved by: Peter H. Fontaine, Deputy Assistant 
Director for Budget Analysis.

         Changes in Existing Law Made by the Bill, as Reported

  Pursuant to the terms of the referral of the bill to the 
Committee, the Committee adopted an amendment striking those 
provisions which were referred to the Committee and inserting 
new text.
  In compliance with clause 3(e) of rule XIII of the Rules of 
the House of Representatives, changes in existing law made by 
the provisions of the bill referred to the Committee, as 
reported, are shown as follows (existing law proposed to be 
omitted is enclosed in black brackets, new matter is printed in 
italics, existing law in which no change is proposed is shown 
in roman):

               CHAPTER 83 OF TITLE 5, UNITED STATES CODE

CHAPTER 83--RETIREMENT

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


SUBCHAPTER II--FORFEITURE OF ANNUITIES AND RETIRED PAY

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


Sec. 8312. Conviction of certain offenses

  (a) An individual, or his survivor or beneficiary, may not be 
paid annuity or retired pay on the basis of the service of the 
individual which is creditable toward the annuity or retired 
pay, subject to the exceptions in section 8311(2) and (3) of 
this title, if the individual--
          (1) was convicted, before, on, or after September 1, 
        1954, of an offense named by subsection (b) of this 
        section, to the extent provided by that subsection; 
        [or]
          (2) was convicted, before, on, or after September 26, 
        1961, of an offense named by subsection (c) of this 
        section, to the extent provided by that subsection[.]; 
        or
          (3) was convicted of an offense named by subsection 
        (d), to the extent provided by that subsection.
The prohibition on payment of annuity or retired pay applies--
          (A) with respect to the offenses named by subsection 
        (b) of this section, to the period after the date of 
        the conviction or after September 1, 1954, whichever is 
        later; [and]
          (B) with respect to the offenses named by subsection 
        (c) of this section, to the period after the date of 
        conviction or after September 26, 1961, whichever is 
        later[.]; and
          (C) with respect to the offenses named by subsection 
        (d), to the period after the date of the conviction.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *

  (d)(1) Subject to paragraph (2), the following are the 
offenses to which subsection (a)(3) applies:
          (A) In title 18--
                  (i) section 201 (bribery of public officials 
                and witnesses);
                  (ii) section 219 (officers and employees 
                acting as agents of foreign principals);
                  (iii) section 371 (conspiracy to commit 
                offense or to defraud United States), to the 
                extent of any conspiracy to commit an act which 
                constitutes an offense within the purview of 
                such section 201; or
                  (iv) section 641 (public money, property or 
                records).
          (B) Perjury committed under the statutes of the 
        United States in falsely denying the commission of an 
        act which constitutes an offense within the purview of 
        a statute named by subparagraph (A).
          (C) Subornation of perjury committed in connection 
        with the false denial of another individual as 
        specified by subparagraph (B).
  (2) Paragraph (1) applies only if--
          (A) the offense is committed while the individual is 
        a Member of Congress, a Congressional employee, or a 
        political appointee;
          (B) the offense is committed after the date of the 
        enactment of the Federal Pension Forfeiture Act; and
          (C) the offense is punishable by imprisonment for 
        more than one year.
  (3) In this subsection, the term ``political appointee'' 
means an individual--
          (A) who is paid at the rate for one of the levels of 
        the Executive Schedule, as provided under sections 5312 
        through 5315 or under any other provision of law;
          (B) who is a noncareer appointee in the Senior 
        Executive Service, as defined in section 3132(a)(7); or
          (C) whose position is excepted from the competitive 
        service because of its confidential, policy-
        determining, policy-making, or policy-advocating 
        character.
  [(d)] (e)(1) * * *

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


Sec. 8313. Absence from the United States to avoid prosecution

  (a) An individual, or his survivor or beneficiary, may not be 
paid annuity or retired pay on the basis of the service of the 
individual which is creditable toward the annuity or retired 
pay, subject to the exceptions in section 8311(2) and (3) of 
this title, if the individual--
          (1) is under indictment, or has outstanding against 
        him charges preferred under the Uniform Code of 
        Military Justice--
                  (A) after July 31, 1956, for an offense named 
                by section 8312(b) of this title; [or]
                  (B) after September 26, 1961, for an offense 
                named by section 8312(c) of this title; [and] 
                or
                  (C) after the date of the enactment of the 
                Federal Pension Forfeiture Act, for an offense 
                named by section 8312(d) of this title; and

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


Sec. 8316. Refund of contributions and deposits

  (a) * * *
  (b) A refund under subsection (a) of this section shall be 
made with interest at the rate and for the period provided 
under the statute, regulation, or agreement under which the 
annuity would have been payable. However, interest may not be 
computed--
          (1) if the individual was convicted of an offense 
        named by section 8312(b) of this title, or violated 
        section 8314 or 8315(a)(1) of this title, for the 
        period after the conviction or commission of the 
        violation, or after September 1, 1954, whichever is 
        later; [or]
          (2) if the individual was convicted of an offense 
        named by section 8312(c) of this title, or violated 
        section 8315(a)(2) of this title, for the period after 
        the conviction or commission of the violation, or after 
        September 26, 1961, whichever is later[.]; or
          (3) if the individual was convicted of an offense 
        named by section 8312(d), for the period after the 
        conviction.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


Sec. 8318. Restoration of annuity or retired pay

  (a) * * *
  (b) The President may restore, effective as of the date he 
prescribes, the right to receive annuity or retired pay which 
is denied, before, on, or after September 1, 1954, under 
[section 8314 or 8315] section 8312(a)(3), 8313(a)(1)(C), 8314, 
or 8315 of this title, to the individual and to his survivor or 
beneficiary.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


     MINORITY VIEWS ON H.R. 4975, THE LOBBYING ACCOUNTABILITY AND 
                        TRANSPARENCY ACT OF 2006

    The Committee considered the pension reform provisions of 
H.R. 4975, a proposal developed by the Republican leadership in 
the name of reforming ethics practices in the legislative 
branch. Unfortunately, H.R. 4975 constitutes a partisan effort 
that would not take steps essential to cleaning up the culture 
of corruption pervasive in Washington today.
    In the recent months, we have seen a senior Republican 
member of Congress plead guilty to taking millions of dollars 
in bribes. We have seen top aides to the former Republican 
Majority Leader plead guilty to public corruption charges. We 
have seen members of Congress acknowledge that their families 
are taking commission payments out of contributions to their 
own campaigns.
    This culture of corruption has real consequences for the 
American public. During consideration of the Medicare 
prescription drug bill, the Bush Administration illegally 
withheld cost estimates from Congress, the Administration's top 
Medicare official secretly negotiated job offers representing 
drug companies, and, according to one Republican member who 
opposed the legislation, Republican leaders offered a bribe on 
the House floor. The resulting law has led to enrichment of 
drug companies and private insurers, while failing to ensure 
significant savings for seniors in the purchase of popular 
drugs.
    Meaningful ethics reform should provide for an oversight 
mechanism that would identify and punish corrupt lawmakers. 
H.R. 4975 fails to ensure the existence of such entity. 
Instead, the Republican leadership has undermined oversight by 
the House Ethics Committee with rules changes that have led to 
quagmire.
    There are numerous other gaping holes in H.R. 4975. For 
example, it fails to place meaningful restrictions on gifts 
from lobbyists. It doesn't address the use of corporate jets 
for official travel. And it omits steps necessary to restore 
integrity to the legislative process, such as prohibiting House 
voting practices like keeping votes open for hours to twist 
arms.
    For these reasons, we oppose H.R. 4975.

                                   Henry A. Waxman.
                                   Tom Lantos.
                                   Carolyn B. Maloney.
                                   Elijah E. Cummings.
                                   Dennis J. Kucinich.
                                   Diane E. Watson.
                                   Chris Van Hollen.
                                   Eleanor Holmes Norton.

                                  
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