[Senate Report 113-139]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]


113th Congress                                                   Report
                                 SENATE
 2d Session                                                     113-139
_______________________________________________________________________

                                     


                                                       Calendar No. 337


 
          DIGITAL ACCOUNTABILITY AND TRANSPARENCY ACT OF 2013

                               __________

                              R E P O R T

                                 of the

                   COMMITTEE ON HOMELAND SECURITY AND

                          GOVERNMENTAL AFFAIRS

                          UNITED STATES SENATE

                              to accompany

                                 S. 994

 TO EXPAND THE FEDERAL FUNDING ACCOUNTABILITY AND TRANSPARENCY ACT OF 
 2006 TO INCREASE ACCOUNTABILITY AND TRANSPARENCY IN FEDERAL SPENDING, 
                         AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES






                 March 27, 2014.--Ordered to be printed


        COMMITTEE ON HOMELAND SECURITY AND GOVERNMENTAL AFFAIRS

                  THOMAS R. CARPER, Delaware, Chairman
CARL LEVIN, Michigan                 TOM COBURN, Oklahoma
MARK L. PRYOR, Arkansas              JOHN McCAIN, Arizona
MARY L. LANDRIEU, Louisiana          RON JOHNSON, Wisconsin
CLAIRE McCASKILL, Missouri           ROB PORTMAN, Ohio
JON TESTER, Montana                  RAND PAUL, Kentucky
MARK BEGICH, Alaska                  MICHAEL B. ENZI, Wyoming
TAMMY BALDWIN, Wisconsin             KELLY AYOTTE, New Hampshire
HEIDI HEITKAMP, North Dakota

               John P. Kilvington, Acting Staff Director
                    Beth M. Grossman, Chief Counsel
                   Jonathan M. Kraden, Senior Counsel
               Keith B. Ashdown, Minority Staff Director
         Christopher J. Barkley, Minority Deputy Staff Director
               Andrew C. Dockham, Minority Chief Counsel
                  Patrick J. Bailey, Minority Counsel
                     Laura W. Kilbride, Chief Clerk



                                                       Calendar No. 337
113th Congress                                                   Report
                                 SENATE
 2d Session                                                     113-139

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




              DIGITAL ACCOUNTABILITY AND TRANSPARENCY ACT 
                                OF 2013

                                _______
                                

                 March 27, 2014.--Ordered to be printed

                                _______
                                

 Mr. Carper, from the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental 
                    Affairs, submitted the following

                              R E P O R T

                         [To accompany S. 994]

    The Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental 
Affairs, to which was referred the bill (S. 994) to expand the 
Federal Funding Accountability and Transparency Act of 2006 to 
increase accountability and transparency in Federal spending, 
and for other purposes, having considered the same, reports 
favorably thereon with an amendment in the nature of a 
substitute and recommends that the bill, as amended, do pass.

                                CONTENTS

                                                                   Page
  I. Purpose and Summary..............................................1
 II. Background and Need for the Legislation..........................2
III. Legislative History..............................................6
 IV. Section-by-Section Analysis of the Bill, as Reported.............7
  V. Evaluation of Regulatory Impact.................................10
 VI. Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate.......................11
VII. Changes in Existing Law.........................................14

                         I. Purpose and Summary

    The Digital Accountability and Transparency Act (``DATA 
Act'') would require the Federal government to increase the 
availability, accuracy, and usefulness of on-line information 
regarding Federal spending. Specifically, it would expand 
current requirements to publish Federal spending information 
online to cover virtually all forms of government spending, 
mandate that the information appear in a form that is both 
easily searchable and downloadable, make uniform the manner in 
which agencies provide such data for online posting, and 
require agency Inspectors General and the Comptroller General 
government watchdogs to audit and report on agency compliance 
with the law's mandates.
    By making government spending information easily accessible 
to both governmental and non-governmental users, this 
legislation would facilitate increased oversight to detect and 
prevent waste, fraud, and abuse, thereby improving the 
effectiveness and efficiency of Federal spending programs. The 
legislation also would spur greater community engagement, 
because it would enable individuals and community groups to 
more easily access and understand information about how Federal 
tax dollars are being spent.

              II. Background and Need for the Legislation


           A. PAST MEASURES ON FEDERAL FINANCIAL TRANSPARENCY

    Over the past several years, Congress and the 
Administration have taken a number of steps to increase and 
improve the public availability of information about Federal 
spending. Greater transparency allows taxpayers to track how 
their tax dollars are used and to understand better Federal 
investments in their communities. Moreover, by making spending 
information more easily available, these transparency 
initiatives help to both deter and root out fraud and waste, 
facilitate better decision making, and improve operational 
efficiency.
    Congress first tackled the need to make Federal spending 
more transparent in 2006, with the passage of the Federal 
Funding Accountability and Transparency Act (``Transparency 
Act'').\1\ Before this legislation, there was no comprehensive, 
publicly accessible source of detailed, accurate, and timely 
information on Federal spending.\2\ The databases and reports 
that did exist were limited in capability and usefulness and 
generally not compatible with one another.\3\ The Transparency 
Act addressed these deficiencies by requiring the Office of 
Management and Budget (``OMB'') to establish a single 
searchable website, accessible to the public at no cost, that 
would contain data about the over-$1 trillion in grants, loans, 
contracts and other kinds of awards that Federal agencies 
dispense each year.\4\ Pursuant to the Transparency Act, OMB 
launched the website--called USAspending.gov--in December 2007.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \1\Pub. L. No. 109-282, (31 U.S.C. Sec. 6101 Note).
    \2\S. Rep. No. 109-329, at 2 (2006) (Comm. Rep).
    \3\Id. at 3.
    \4\Section 2(a)(2) of the Transparency Act (31 U.S.C. Sec. 6101 
Note) defines Federal awards to include grants, subgrants, loans, 
awards, cooperative agreements, contracts, subcontracts, purchase 
orders, task orders and delivery orders above $25,000. For these 
Federal awards, agencies were required to post, among other things, the 
name and location of the entity receiving the award, the amount of the 
award, and basic information about the award itself. Section 2(b) then 
requires the creation of the website.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Congress revisited the issue in February 2009, when it 
sought to ensure both Federal and public oversight of the 
nearly $300 billion in economic stimulus funds authorized under 
the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (``Recovery 
Act'').\5\ The Act created the Recovery Accountability and 
Transparency Board (``Recovery Board''), an independent 
oversight board composed of a Chairman and the Inspectors 
General of major agencies.\6\ The statute also required the 
Recovery Board to establish a website to give the public access 
to information about the projects funded under the Act.\7\ This 
website went live in the spring of 2009 under the name of 
Recovery.gov.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \5\American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, Pub. L. No. 111-
5.
    \6\Pub. L. No. 111-5, Div. A, Sec. 1521, 123 Stat. 289.
    \7\Pub. L. No. 111-5, Div. A, Sec. 1526, 123 Stat. 293.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    The Recovery Board developed a set of standard data 
elements for Recovery Act funds so that funding could be 
analyzed across agencies and programs. The Board also created a 
central data analytics center to support fraud detection, 
audits, investigations, and prosecutions. However, although the 
Recovery Board laid the groundwork for future transparency 
efforts, its own scope was necessarily limited, as the Board's 
mandate and authority extended only to projects funded under 
the Recovery Act and, as subsequently added, funds provided to 
victims of Hurricane Sandy.\8\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \8\Although the Recovery Board was due to sunset on September 15, 
2013, the Disaster Relief Appropriations Act of 2013 extended the 
Recovery Board through September 2015 and tasked the Board with 
detected and remediating waste, fraud, and abuse of funds related to 
the impact of Hurricane Sandy. Disaster Relief Appropriations Act of 
2013, Pub. L. No. 113-2, Section 904(d).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    The Administration has also taken significant steps on its 
own to improve the transparency of Federal spending data. In 
2009, OMB issued guidance to agencies on how to improve the 
quality of the data that agencies provide for 
USAspending.gov.\9\ In June 2011, President Obama established 
the Government Accountability and Transparency Board to provide 
strategic direction for enhancing the transparency of Federal 
spending and to advance efforts to detect waste, fraud, and 
abuse.\10\ More recently, in June 2013, OMB issued a memorandum 
to agency Chief Financial Officers, requiring agencies to 
implement procedures to improve the quality of financial data 
reported to USAspending.gov and establishing new requirements 
for financial assistance awards.\11\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \9\Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Memorandum, Open 
Government Directive, M-10-06 (December 8, 2009); OMB Memorandum, 
Improving Acquisition Data Quality for Fiscal years 2009 and 2010 
(October 7, 2009). http://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/omb/
assets/procurement_memo/data_quality_guidance_100709.pdf.
    \10\Exec. Order No. 13576, 76 FR 35297 (June 16, 2011).
    \11\OMB Memorandum, Improving Data Quality for USAspending.gov 
(June 12, 2013). http://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/omb/
financial/memos/improving-data-quality-for-usaspending-gov.pdf.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    In February 2014, OMB transferred responsibility for the 
USAspending.gov website from the General Services 
Administration, which had administered the website since its 
inception, to the Treasury Department.\12\ Operating 
USAspending.gov allows Treasury to integrate this financial 
transparency resource into the Federal government's overall 
financial management framework. This transition should enable 
Treasury to leverage the extensive financial data that it 
collects to significantly increase the transparency and 
accountability of the government's financial transactions and 
improve the accuracy of data on USAspending.gov.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \12\Section 2(b)(3) of the Transparency Act (31 U.S.C. Sec. 6101 
Note) authorizes the Director of OMB to designate other Federal 
agencies to operate the USAspending.gov website.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

       B. THE DIGITAL ACCOUNTABILITY AND TRANSPARENCY ACT, S. 994

    The Federal government has made Federal spending more 
transparent in recent years and this transparency has fostered 
civil engagement by enabling citizens and communities to know 
more about how their tax dollars are being spent. However, much 
more remains to be done, both in expanding the scope of the 
spending information provided, and in making the information 
more accurate and usable.
    The Digital Accountability and Transparency Act (``DATA 
Act''), S. 994, takes several important steps towards ensuring 
that the Federal government provides consistent, reliable, and 
useful online data about how it spends taxpayer dollars. Using 
the lessons learned through the Committee's own oversight in 
this area, the work of the Government Accountability Office, 
and the experience of the Recovery Act, the DATA Act builds 
upon the foundation already laid by the Transparency Act. 
Specifically, it would expand and improve upon the spending 
information displayed on the USAspending.gov website, 
standardize financial data, and reduce the reporting burdens of 
those who do business with the Federal government.
    Posting of spending for agency operations as well as 
disbursements for awards. The DATA Act adds to the universe of 
spending data whose disclosure is mandated under the 
Transparency Act. The Transparency Act requires the posting of 
spending information on Federal awards, which are, generally 
speaking, grants, contracts, and loans made to third parties or 
individuals. The DATA Act provides a more in-depth and 
comprehensive view into Federal spending by also requiring the 
posting of information about an agency's budget, amounts that 
an agency has committed to spend and has actually spent, 
amounts that have been reprogrammed or transferred from one 
appropriations account to another, and the amounts of funds 
balances that can or cannot still be used--taking into account 
the expiration of any applicable appropriations authorities. 
The disclosure of this information on the USAspending.gov 
website, along with information about awards, will provide a 
more complete and accurate display of Federal spending.
    Providing data in a more accessible and usable form. The 
DATA Act requires information disclosed on USAspending.gov to 
be posted in a manner that allows the website's users to 
aggregate and download it in bulk. The Committee expects that 
the Treasury Department also will be able to improve the 
quality of the data displayed on the website and strive to 
provide users of USAspending.gov with the ability to download 
data sets that can assist in reviewing program level spending 
data, aid in the evaluation and review of how well Federal 
programs are performing, and support the reduction of program 
duplication.
    One of the lessons learned from the work of the Recovery 
Board was the importance and value of linking location data to 
spending data. Data about the location where money is being 
spent helps to foster improved engagement by communities and 
individual citizens who can better track and understand how 
Federal tax dollars are spent in their communities. Where 
practicable, Treasury should also work to provide information 
about the location where Federal funds are used or the service 
provided in each state, city, district, or other geographical 
location, and not just where the Federal funds were first 
awarded.
    Government-wide financial data standards. Executive branch 
agencies currently publish information about a vast array of 
programs, but in the absence of uniform definitions for various 
terms and uniform formats for presenting certain information, 
it is impossible to accurately compare one agency's activities 
with those of another. The creation and use of government-wide 
data definitions and standards for financial information will 
enhance the usability, transparency, and accountability of 
financial and performance information and significantly improve 
the ability of the government and the public to analyze Federal 
spending information.\13\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \13\Show Me the Money: Improving the Transparency of Federal 
Spending. Hearing before the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and 
Governmental Affairs, 112th Cong. 14 (July 18, 2012) (statement of Dick 
Gregg, Fiscal Assistant Secretary, U.S. Department of the Treasury). 
Mr. Gregg also testified that the use of data standards can reduce the 
operational cost of government by facilitating the ``movement towards 
greater use of shared technologies and services throughout 
government[.]'' Id. at 69. (written statement of Dick Gregg, Fiscal 
Assistant Secretary, U.S. Department of the Treasury).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    The Recovery Board showed the value of developing and using 
uniform data standards through its work regarding Recovery Act 
funds. The application of such standards to Recovery Act funds 
significantly assisted in analyzing information across 
different agencies and programs.\14\ In a July 2012 hearing on 
implementation of the Transparency Act, former Controller Danny 
Werfel clearly summed up the need for data standards when he 
stated: ``standardization provides the key to unlocking 
transparency and accountability.''\15\ The DATA Act addresses 
this issue by requiring the development and use of common 
terms, formats, and definitions for key financial data 
elements.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \14\Government Accountability Office, Federal Data Transparency: 
Opportunities Remain to Incorporate Lessons Learned as Availability of 
Spending Data Increases, GAO-13-758 at 19. See also, Government 
Accountability and Transparency Board, Report and Recommendations to 
the President (December 2011). http://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/
files/gat_board_december_2011_report_and_recommendations.pdf.
    \15\Show Me the Money: Improving the Transparency of Federal 
Spending. Hearing before the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and 
Governmental Affairs, 112th Cong. 12 (July 18, 2012) (statement of 
Danny Werfel, Controller, Office of Federal Financial Management, 
Office of Management and Budget).
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Improvements in data quality. While the Transparency Act 
has provided policymakers and the public with unprecedented 
access to data on Federal spending, USAspending.gov has 
unfortunately been plagued by data quality issues, thereby 
limiting the usefulness of the website to improve transparency 
and increase accountability. For example, in 2010, the 
Government Accountability Office (``GAO'') compared a sample of 
data on USAspending.gov to records provided by the awarding 
agencies. The results were troubling. GAO found ``widespread 
inconsistencies'' between the two sets of data with each of the 
100 awards that it sampled, demonstrating at least one blank 
data field or otherwise inconsistent piece of information.\16\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \16\Government Accountability Office, Electronic Government: 
Implementation of the Federal Funding Accountability and Transparency 
Act of 2006, GAO-10-365 at 2. In June 2012, several members of this 
Committee requested that GAO conduct another review of the completeness 
and consistency of the data on USAspending.gov. Although that audit had 
not yet been completed at the time this report was released, 
preliminary data that GAO provided to Committee staff indicates that 
USAspending.gov is still plagued by inconsistent and incomplete data.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    In addition, the Sunlight Foundation (``Sunlight''), which 
conducts an annual assessment of the direct-assistance\17\ 
spending data posted to the USAspending.gov website for 
consistency, completeness, and timeliness,\18\ has found 
widespread problems in all three areas. For example, Sunlight 
reported that a comparison between the data on USAspending.gov 
and the data on a Federal database of domestic assistance 
awards\19\ shows substantial inconsistency, which did not 
improve from 2008 to 2010.\20\
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \17\See http://sunlightfoundation.com/clearspending/. The 
USAspending.gov website contains information about two types of 
spending: contracts and direct assistance (which consists of grants, 
direct payments, loans, and loan guarantees). These two types of 
spending are tracked using two very different reporting systems, the 
Federal Awards and Assistance Data System PLUS (which tracks direct 
assistance) and the Federal Procurement Data System--Next Generation 
(which tracks contracts). The Clearspending analysis and report focuses 
on direct assistance payments.
    \18\Basically, Sunlight asks the following questions of the 
information contained on USAspending.gov: How close are the reported 
dollar amounts on USAspending.gov to the yearly estimates contained in 
other spending reports? How many of the required fields are filled out 
in each record? And how long did it take the agency to report the money 
once it was allocated to a project? See http://sunlightfoundation.com/
clearspending/.
    \19\The Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance is maintained by the 
General Services Administration and provides a full listing and 
detailed program descriptions for all Federal assistance programs.
    \20\2011 Clear Spending report at http://2011.clearspending.com/
sunlightfoundation.com/clearspending/summary/index.html.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    The executive branch has taken some steps to improve the 
site and the accuracy and quality of the underlying data. 
However, to ensure sustained progress, the DATA Act includes 
provisions to hold Federal agencies more accountable for the 
information disclosed on USAspending.gov, by requiring the 
Government Accountability Office and the agency Inspectors 
General to conduct a series of reviews and audits of agency 
information posted on USAspending.gov.
    Streamlining the reporting requirements for recipients of 
Federal awards. Under existing statutes and regulations, 
recipients of Federal awards are required to report back to the 
agencies that provided the awards to help the agency and others 
monitor the use of the funds and other aspects of the 
recipient's performance under the award. However, with better 
coordination among agencies, the reporting requirements could 
provide more useful data to the government and impose less 
burden on the reporting entities. Those who receive Federal 
awards have provided Committee staff with many examples of the 
time-consuming and burdensome process of reporting to Federal 
agencies about the contracts, grants, and loans these groups 
had received. Although it is important for agencies to receive 
information from those that they do business with or give 
grants and loans to, the reporting that is required appears to 
be highly inefficient and, in many cases, unnecessarily 
burdensome.
    To address this problem, the DATA Act instructs the 
Director of OMB to review the current reporting requirements 
for recipients of Federal awards to identify common reporting 
elements across the government, unnecessary duplication, and 
unnecessarily burdensome reporting requirements. This 
information can be used to make the reporting requirements less 
costly and burdensome to the recipients and more useful to the 
government. In addition, the DATA Act requires OMB to create a 
pilot program in order to help develop recommendations for 
common reporting elements across the Federal government, to 
eliminate unnecessary duplication in financial reporting, and 
to reduce compliance costs for recipients.

                        III. Legislative History

    Senator Warner first introduced the DATA Act last Congress, 
on June 16, 2011. The bill, S. 1222, which was referred to this 
Committee, would have improved transparency of Federal spending 
by creating a new independent Commission (patterned after the 
Recovery Board) to act as the central hub to collect spending 
data, set data standards, and analyze the information.
    This Committee held a hearing in July 2012 to examine 
Federal efforts to increase and improve the transparency of 
Federal spending information. The hearing focused on the 
current state of transparency of Federal spending, 
implementation of the Transparency Act, lessonslearned from the 
Recovery Act, and what opportunities exist to improve transparency and 
accountability of Federal spending. Witnesses at the hearing included: 
Senator Warner; Eugene Dodaro, Comptroller General of the United 
States, U.S. Government Accountability Office; Daniel Werfel, 
Controller, Office of Federal Financial Management at OMB; and Richard 
Gregg, Fiscal Assistant Secretary, U.S. Department of the Treasury. 
Senator Warner testified at the hearing in support of his bill. Mr. 
Werfel from OMB discussed the executive branch's progress toward 
improved spending transparency and efforts then underway to continue 
that progress. Mr. Gregg from the Treasury Department testified about 
Treasury's efforts to modernize their payment processing systems.
    In September 2012, Senators Warner and Portman introduced a 
revised version of the DATA Act (S. 3600, 112th Congress), 
which incorporated a number of revisions suggested by the 
Administration and outside groups.
    Senators Warner and Portman again introduced the DATA Act 
this Congress, on May 21, 2013, and it was given the number S. 
994 and referred to this Committee. The Committee considered 
the bill at a November 6, 2013 business meeting. The Committee 
adopted by voice vote a substitute amendment to the bill 
offered by Senator Carper and then by voice vote ordered the 
bill, as amended, favorably reported. Members present for both 
votes were Senators Carper, Levin, McCaskill, Tester, Begich, 
Baldwin, Johnson, Portman, and Ayotte.

                    IV. Section-by-Section Analysis


Section 1. Short title

    Section 1 gives the bill the short title of the ``Digital 
Accountability and Transparency Act of 2013'' or the ``DATA 
Act.''

Section 2. Purposes

    Section 2 of the bill states the purposes of the DATA Act: 
(1) to expand the Transparency Act by disclosing direct Federal 
agency expenditures and linking information about Federal 
awards with spending information about Federal agency programs 
for use by taxpayers and policy makers; (2) to provide 
consistent, reliable and searchable government-wide spending 
data that is displayed accurately on USAspending.gov; (3) to 
simplify reporting requirements for entities receiving Federal 
funds while improving transparency; and (4) to improve the 
quality of the data submitted to USAspending.gov by holding 
Federal agencies accountable for the data submitted.

Section 3. Amendments to the Federal Funding Accountability and 
        Transparency Act of 2006 (Transparency Act)

    Definitions. Section 3(1)(A) of the bill adds four new 
definitions to the list of definitions in section 2(a) of the 
Transparancy Act: A ``Federal agency'' has the same meaning as 
an ``Executive agency'' under 5 U.S.C. Sec. 105, thereby making 
the Act's provisions applicable to every executive department, 
government corporation, and independent establishment. 
``Federal funds'' means any funds made available to or spent by 
a Federal agency. An ``object class'' is the category assigned 
for purposes of the President's budget to a type of property or 
services purchased by the government. A ``program activity'' 
has the meaning given under 31 U.S.C. Sec. 1115(h), which is a 
specific activity or project as listed in the schedules of the 
annual Federal budget.
    Website. Section 3(1)(B) of the bill amends section 2(c) of 
the Transparency Act to require that USAspending.gov must 
enable users to aggregate any data published under the 
Transparency Act and to download the data in bulk.
    Section 3(2) of the bill strikes existing sections 3 and 4 
of the Transparency Act and adds new sections 3 through 7 to 
the Act:
            New section 3 of the Transparency Act--Full disclosure of 
                    Federal funds
    New section 3 of the Transparency Act, as added by section 
3(2) of the bill, would expand upon the information displayed 
on the USAspending.gov website to account for all Federal funds 
and accurately display all kinds of spending, not only spending 
on Federal awards.
    The Treasury Department is currently responsible for 
operating the USAspending.gov website, on which is posted 
information about Federal awards. Under new section 3, the 
Secretary of the Treasury is given the additional 
responsibility to post on the USAspending.gov website 
information about Federal spending generally. On a monthly 
basis, the Secretary of the Treasury, in consultation with the 
Director of OMB, must ensure that financial information is 
published on the website for each Federal agency, component, 
appropriations account, program activity, and object class. For 
each of these, the published spending data must include: 
amounts of budget authority authorized, amounts obligated, 
amounts of outlays, amounts reprogrammed or transferred, and 
amounts of expired or unexpired unobligated balances.
            New section 4 of the Transparency Act--Data standards
    New section 4(a) of the Transparency Act, as added by 
section 3(2) of the bill, requires the Secretary of the 
Treasury, in consultation with the OMB Director, the GSA 
Administrator and agency heads, to establish government-wide 
financial data standards for Federal funds.
    New section 4(b) states criteria that these data standards 
must meet. These include that the standards must incorporate 
widely accepted existing standards, be computer-readable, 
include government-wide universal award identifiers for awards 
and for entities receiving awards that can track individual 
awards through the full cycle of spending, and allow for 
comparisons across program activities and agencies.
    New section 4(c) lays out the deadlines for implementing 
the data standards across the Federal government. First, the 
Secretary of the Treasury, in consultation with the Director of 
the Office of Management and Budget, has one year to issue 
guidance on the data standards. Second, after Treasury issues 
the guidance on the data standards, agencies have one year to 
start applying the data standards to their financial and 
payment information. Finally, within two years after Treasury 
issues guidance on the data standards, the Director of OMB and 
the Secretary of the Treasury must ensure that the 
USAspending.gov website is populated with financial information 
that meets these new data standards.
    Finally, new section 4(d) specifically requires that the 
Secretary of the Treasury consult with public and private 
stakeholders, including state and local governments, 
universities and contractors in establishing the data 
standards.
            New section 5 of the Transparency Act--Simplifying Federal 
                    award reporting
    Under existing statutes and regulations, recipients of 
Federal awards are required to report back to the agencies that 
provide the awards in order to help the government and others 
monitor the use of the funds and other aspects of the 
recipient's performance. The purpose of new section 5 of the 
Transparency Act, as added by section 3(c) of the bill, is to 
reduce the reporting costs and burdens for the recipients of 
Federal awards. New section 5(a) instructs the Director of OMB 
to review the current reporting requirements for recipients of 
Federal awards to identify common reporting elements across the 
government, unnecessary duplication, and unnecessarily 
burdensome reporting requirements. As part of that review, the 
OMB Director is required to consult with Federal agencies and 
with recipients of Federal awards.
    New section 5(b) requires the Director of OMB, or a 
designee, to establish a pilot program in order to develop 
recommendations for common reporting elements across the 
Federal government, for the elimination of unnecessary 
duplication in financial reporting, and for the reduction of 
compliance costs for recipients. The pilot program, to be 
established within one year of the DATA Act's enactment, must 
cover contracts, grants, and sub-awards that have an aggregate 
value of not less than $1 billion. The program must also 
include diverse recipients of awards, including, to the extent 
feasible, recipients that receive awards from multipile 
programs across multiple agencies. The pilot program also must 
collect data over a 12-month period.
    After the pilot program is completed, OMB has 90 days to 
provide guidance to agencies designed to simplify reporting 
requirements for award recipients, reduce unnecessary 
duplication, and reduce compliance costs. OMB also has 90 days 
after completion of the pilot program to submit to Congress a 
report on the program with recommendations for improving 
financial reporting and transparency and including 
recommendations for legislation to simplify reporting 
requirements for Federal award recipients.
            New section 6 of the Transparency Act--Accountability for 
                    Federal funding
    New section 6 of the Transparency Act, as added by section 
3(b) of the bill, requires a series of reviews and audits by 
GAO and agency Inspectors General intended to hold Federal 
agencies more accountable for the information that they 
disclose on USAspending.gov. New Section (6)(a) requires the 
Inspector General of each agency, in consulation with GAO, to 
review and report on the completeness, timeliness, quality and 
accuracy of the data the agency submits to USAspending.gov. The 
Inspectors General are required to report on the first audit no 
later than 18 months after the Treasury Department issues its 
guidance on the data standards. Subsequent Inspectors General 
reports are then required approximately two and four years 
after the first report was issued. For the second and third 
report, Inspectors General may include the findings of their 
data quality audits as part of the annual financial audit 
reports they are required to submit.
    New Section 6(b) requires GAO to review and report on the 
completeness, timeliness, quality, and accuracy of the data 
each agency submits to USAspending.gov and to compare the 
quality of the data submitted by each agency across the Federal 
government. GAO is required to report on its findings in the 
second, fourth, and sixth year after the date of enactment of 
the DATA Act.
            New section 7 of the Transparency Act--Classified and 
                    protected information
    New section 7 clarifies that nothing in the Transparency 
Act, as amended by the DATA Act, would require the disclosure 
of information that is classified or otherwise protected from 
disclosure under the Freedom of Information Act or the Privacy 
Act.

Section 4. Executive agency accounting and other financial management 
        reports and plans

    31 U.S.C. Sec. 3512(a) requires the Office of Management 
and Budget to annually submit a financial management status 
report and a revised government-wide five-year financial 
management plan to the appropriate committees of Congress. 
Section 4 of the bill amends these provisions to add 
requirements for OMB to--(1) publish these annual status 
reports and revised financial management plans on 
Performance.gov, and (2) also publish within one year after 
enactment of the DATA Act, and every five years thereafter, a 
report regarding implementation of the Transparency Act.

Section 5. Funding

    Section 5 of the bill allows the Treasury Secretary to use 
funds from the Treasury Franchise Fund to implement this Act. 
The Treasury Franchise Fund is a revolving fund through which 
certain offices at the Treasury Department provide financial 
management, procurement, and other administrative services to 
Treasury bureaus and to other Federal agencies on a 
reimbursable, fee-for-service basis.

                   V. Evaluation of Regulatory Impact

    Pursuant to the requirements of paragraph 11(b) of rule 
XXVI of the Standing Rules of the Senate, the Committee has 
considered the regulatory impact of this bill. The Committee 
agrees with the Congressional Budget Office that S. 994 
contains no intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as 
defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act (``UMRA'').

             VI. Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate

                                                  December 5, 2013.
Hon. Tom Carper,
Chairman, Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, U.S. 
        Senate, Washington, DC.
    Dear Mr. Chairman: The Congressional Budget Office has 
prepared the enclosed revised cost estimate for S. 994, the 
DATA Act. This version supersedes the cost estimate transmitted 
on December 4, 2013. It corrects an error in referring to the 
bill number: we mistakenly referred to the Data Act as S. 944 
in the previous estimate. There is no change, however, in the 
estimated costs of the legislation.
    If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be 
pleased to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Matthew 
Pickford.
            Sincerely,
                                              Douglas W. Elmendorf.
    Enclosure.

S. 994--DATA Act

    Summary: S. 994 aims to make information on federal 
expenditures more easily accessible and transparent. The bill 
would require the U.S. Department of the Treasury to establish 
common standards for financial data provided by all government 
agencies and to expand the amount of data that agencies must 
provide to the government website, USASpending. In addition, 
the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) would be required to 
conduct a two-year pilot program to make it easier for federal 
contractors and grant recipients to comply with federal 
reporting requirements. S. 994 also would require OMB, the 
Government Accountability Office (GAO), and the agencies' 
Inspectors General (IGs) to submit additional reports to the 
Congress. Finally, the legislation would designate the Treasury 
Franchise Fund as the source of funding for the bill's 
implementation.
    CBO estimates that implementing the bill would cost $300 
million over the 2014-2018 period, assuming appropriation of 
the necessary amounts. The legislation also could affect direct 
spending by agencies not funded through annual appropriations; 
therefore, pay-as-you-go procedures apply. CBO estimates, 
however, that any net increase in spending by those agencies 
would not be significant. Enacting the bill would not affect 
revenues.
    S. 994 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector 
mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act (UMRA); 
any costs to state, local, or tribal governments would result 
from complying with conditions for receiving federal 
assistance.
    Estimated cost to the Federal Government: The estimated 
budgetary impact of S. 994 is shown in the following table. The 
costs of this legislation fall within budget function 800 
(general government) and all other budget functions that use 
the Treasury Franchise Fund to acquire services.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                                 By fiscal year, in millions of dollars--
                                                         -------------------------------------------------------
                                                            2014     2015     2016     2017     2018   2014-2018
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                  CHANGES IN SPENDING SUBJECT TO APPROPRIATION

Collection and Reporting of Federal Data:
    Estimated Authorization Level.......................       35       50       75       75       50       285
    Estimated Outlays...................................       32       53       75       75       50       285
Other Reporting:
    Estimated Authorization Level.......................        1        3        4        3        4        15
    Estimated Outlays...................................        1        3        4        3        4        15
    Total Changes:
        Estimated Authorization Level...................       36       53       79       78       54       300
        Estimated Outlays...............................       33       56       79       78       54       300
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    Basis of estimate: For this estimate, CBO assumes that the 
legislation will be enacted in fiscal year 2014, that the 
necessary amounts will be appropriated near the start of each 
subsequent fiscal year, and that spending will follow 
historical patterns for similar activities.

Collection and reporting of financial data

    The federal government uses many databases to monitor and 
track agency spending. For example, three major databases--the 
U.S. Census Bureau's Federal Assistance Award Data System, the 
General Services Administration's Federal Procurement Data 
System, and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' 
website, Grants--contain information about federal grants and 
contracts. That information on federal spending is also 
available through OMB's website, USASpending, which displays 
award amounts for all federal contracts, grants, and loans. The 
Recovery Accountability and Transparency Board's website, 
Recovery, also provides information on federal spending, but it 
includes detailed information only on activities initiated 
under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA).
    S. 994 would expand the USASpending website to include all 
federal spending. The Treasury Department would be required to 
establish standards for developing and reporting data on all 
federal spending, including the use of common data elements for 
financial and payment information for entities receiving 
federal funds across all government computer systems, so as to 
allow data from multiple systems to be compared. In addition, 
OMB would be required to conduct a two-year pilot program aimed 
at improving the transparency of financial reports by 
consolidating and eliminating certain information and reducing 
compliance costs for recipients of federal funds. After two 
years, OMB could expand the pilot program to cover all federal 
agencies and would recommend future actions to improve 
financial reporting.
    Information from OMB, the recovery board, selected agency 
IG offices, and other federal agencies indicates that the 
federal government currently collects much of the information 
that would be needed to create a comprehensive database on 
federal spending as required under S. 994. In addition, the 
Treasury Department and OMB have taken steps under current law 
to standardize some reporting requirements and to improve the 
quality of the financial information provided by all government 
sources, including USASpending.
    However, not all of that financial information is 
standardized, accurate, or readily available as would be 
required under the bill. For example, a recent GAO report 
indicates that agencies expend significant time, effort, and 
resources to develop financial information that they should be 
able to provide on a daily or recurring basis.\1\ GAO also 
notes that federal agencies use inconsistent definitions in 
developing, tracking, and reporting on federal spending, so 
creating a consolidated system probably would be difficult, 
time consuming, and expensive. Finally, because many of the 
government's computer systems for managing financial 
information were designed to serve multiple purposes, changing 
them while preserving their multiple purposes would be 
expensive.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \1\Government Accountability Office, Federal Data Transparency; 
Opportunities Remain to Incorporate Lessons Learned as Availability of 
Spending Data Increase, GAO-13-758 (September 12, 2013) www.gao.gov/
products/GAO-13-758.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    CBO expects that improving the government's current efforts 
to collect and report on financial data would involve the 
coordinated efforts of more than 20 major federal agencies. We 
estimate that those new efforts would include modifying 
numerous computer systems and further standardizing financial 
data, training personnel, conducting the proposed pilot 
program, and improving communications between agencies and 
recipients of federal funds. Based on information from 
agencies, OMB, and the recovery board, as well as GAO reports 
on the performance and history of modifying major federal IT 
systems and conducting audits of federal agencies, CBO 
estimates that implementing those provisions would cost $2 
million to $3 million annually per agency, totaling $285 
million over the 2014-2018 period, assuming appropriation of 
the necessary amounts.
    S. 994 would authorize the use of the Treasury Franchise 
Fund to implement the legislation. Using that fund the Treasury 
Department provides accounting, procurement, travel, human 
resources, and information technology services on a 
reimbursable, fee-for-service basis to federal agencies. Under 
S. 994, federal customers would reimburse the fund for the new 
costs of programs to improve the collection and reporting of 
financial information. Those estimated discretionary costs are 
reflected in this cost estimate.

Other reports

    S. 994 would require IGs and GAO to prepare a number of 
reports. IGs would be required to review the spending data 
provided by their respective agencies and report their findings 
to the Congress. GAO would be required to review the IGs' 
reports every two years. Based on information from selected IGs 
and the costs of similar reports, CBO estimates that 
implementing those provisions would cost $15 million over the 
2014-2018 period, primarily for individual IGs to add this 
reporting requirement to their current financial statement 
audits, assuming the availability of appropriated funds.
    Pay-As-You-Go considerations: The Statutory Pay-As-You-Go 
Act of 2010 establishes budget-reporting and enforcement 
procedures for legislation affecting direct spending or 
revenues. S. 994 could affect direct spending by agencies not 
funded through annual appropriations. CBO estimates, however, 
that any net increase in spending by those agencies would not 
be significant. Enacting the bill would not affect revenues.
    Intergovernmental and private-sector impact: S. 994 
contains no intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as 
defined in UMRA. The bill would change the way state, local, 
and tribal governments report on their use of federal funds. 
Some of those changes could increase, and others could decrease 
the costs that such governments would incur to comply with 
conditions of federal assistance. However, conditions of 
assistance (and their costs) are not intergovernmental mandates 
as defined in UMRA.
    Previous CBO estimate: On November 13, 2013, CBO 
transmitted a cost estimate for H.R. 2061, the Digital 
Accountability and Transparency Act of 2013, as ordered 
reported by the House Committee on Oversight and Government 
Reform on May 22, 2013. Both pieces of legislation are aimed at 
improving financial reporting within the government, but H.R. 
2061 also would authorize the recovery board to continue its 
activities for two more years beyond 2015 (when its current 
authorization expires).

                      VII. Changes in Existing Law

    In compliance with paragraph 12 of rule XXVI of the 
Standing Rules of the Senate, the following changes in existing 
law made by S. 994, as reported, are shown as follows (existing 
law proposed to be omitted is enclosed in black brackets, new 
matter is printed in italic, and existing law in which no 
change is proposed is shown in roman).

FEDERAL FUNDING ACCOUNTABILITY AND TRANSPARENCY ACT OF 2006, AS AMENDED


 Public Law 109-282, Sept. 26, 2006, as amended by Public Law 110-252, 
title VI, 6202(a), June 30, 2008, (31 U.S.C. 6101 note)

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


SECTION 2. FULL DISCLOSURE OF ENTITIES RECEIVING FEDERAL FUNDING.

    (a) Definitions. In [this section] this Act:
          (1) * * *

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *

          (2) Federal agency.--The term ``Federal agency'' has 
        the meaning given the term ``Executive agency'' under 
        section 105 of title 5, United States Code.
          [(2)] (3) * * *

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *

          (4) Federal funds.--The term ``Federal funds'' means 
        any funds that are made available to or expended by a 
        Federal agency.
          (5) Object class.--The term ``object class'' means 
        the category assigned for purposes of the annual budget 
        of the President submitted under section 1105(a) of 
        title 31, United States Code, to the type of property 
        or services purchased by the Federal Government.
          (6) Program activity.--The term ``program activity'' 
        has the meaning given that term under section 1115(h) 
        of title 31, United States Code.
          [(3)] (7) * * *

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *

    (c) Website.--

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *

          (4) shall be updated not later than 30 days after the 
        award of any Federal award requiring a posting; [and]
          (5) shall provide for separate searches for Federal 
        awards described in subsection (a) to distinguish 
        between the Federal awards described in subsection 
        (a)(2)(A)(i) and those described in subsection 
        (a)(2)(A)(ii)[.];
          (6) shall have the ability to aggregate data for the 
        categories described in paragraphs (1) through (5) 
        without double-counting data; and
          (7) shall permit all information published under this 
        section to be downloaded in bulk.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


[SECTION 3. CLASSIFIED INFORMATION.

    [Nothing in this Act shall require the disclosure of 
classified information.

[SECTION 4. GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY OFFICE REPORTING REQUIREMENT.

    [Not later than January 1, 2010, the Comptroller General 
shall submit to Congress a report on compliance with this Act.]

SECTION 3. FULL DISCLOSURE OF FEDERAL FUNDS.

    (a) In General.--Not later than 3 years after the date of 
enactment of the Digital Accountability and Transparency Act of 
2013, and every month thereafter, the Secretary of the 
Treasury, in consultation with the Director of the Office of 
Management and Budget, shall ensure that the information in 
subsection (b) is posted on the website established under 
section 2.
    (b) Information To Be Posted.--The information to be posted 
shall include, for each Federal agency, component of a Federal 
agency, appropriations account, program activity, and object 
class (including any subcomponent of an object class), and 
other accounts or data as appropriate--
          (1) the amount of budget authority authorized;
          (2) the amount obligated;
          (3) the amount of outlays;
          (4) the amount of any Federal funds reprogrammed or 
        transferred; and
          (5) the amount of expired and unexpired unobligated 
        balances.

SECTION 4. DATA STANDARDS.

    (a) In General.--The Secretary of the Treasury, in 
consultation with the Director of the Office of Management and 
Budget, the Administrator of General Services, and the heads of 
Federal agencies, shall establish Government-wide financial 
data standards for Federal funds, which shall include common 
data elements for financial and payment information required to 
be reported by Federal agencies and entities receiving Federal 
funds.
    (b) Requirements.--The data standards established under 
subsection (a) shall, to the extent reasonable and 
practicable--
          (1) incorporate widely accepted common data elements, 
        such as those developed and maintained by--
                  (A) an international voluntary consensus 
                standards body;
                  (B) Federal agencies with authority over 
                contracting and financial assistance; and
                  (C) accounting standards organizations;
          (2) incorporate a widely accepted, nonproprietary, 
        searchable, platform-independent computer-readable 
        format;
          (3) include Government-wide universal identifiers for 
        Federal awards and entities receiving Federal awards;
          (4) be consistent with and implement applicable 
        accounting principles;
          (5) be capable of being continually upgraded as 
        necessary;
          (6) produce consistent and comparable data, including 
        across program activities; and
          (7) establish a standard method of conveying the 
        reporting period, reporting entity, unit of measure, 
        and other associated attributes.
    (c) Deadlines.--
          (1) Guidance.--Not later than 1 year after the date 
        of enactment of the Digital Accountability and 
        Transparency Act of 2013, the Secretary of the 
        Treasury, in consultation with the Director of the 
        Office of Management and Budget, shall issue guidance 
        to Federal agencies on the data standards established 
        under subsection (a).
          (2) Agencies.--Not later than 1 year after the date 
        on which the guidance under paragraph (1) is issued, 
        each Federal agency shall collect, report, and maintain 
        financial and payment information data in accordance 
        with the data standards established under subsection 
        (a).
          (3) Website.--Not later than 2 years after the date 
        on which the guidance under paragraph (1) is issued, 
        the Director of the Office of Management and Budget and 
        the Secretary of the Treasury shall ensure that the 
        data standards established under subsection (a) are 
        applied to the data made available on the website 
        established under section 2.
    (d) Consultation.--The Secretary of the Treasury shall 
consult with public and private stakeholders in establishing 
data standards under this section.

SECTION 5. SIMPLIFYING FEDERAL AWARD REPORTING.

    (a) In General.--The Director of the Office of Management 
and Budget, in consultation with relevant Federal agencies, 
recipients of Federal funds, including State and local 
governments, and institutions of higher education (as defined 
in section 102 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 
1002)), shall review the information required to be reported by 
recipients of Federal awards to identify--
          (1) common reporting elements across the Federal 
        Government;
          (2) unnecessary duplication in financial reporting; 
        and
          (3) unnecessarily burdensome reporting requirements 
        for recipients of Federal awards.
    (b) Pilot Program.--
          (1) Establishment.--Not later than 1 year after the 
        date of enactment of the Digital Accountability and 
        Transparency Act of 2013, the Director of the Office of 
        Management and Budget, or a designee of the Director, 
        shall establish a pilot program relating to reporting 
        (in this section referred to as the `pilot program') to 
        facilitate the development of recommendations for--
                  (A) common reporting elements across the 
                Federal Government;
                  (B) the elimination of unnecessary 
                duplication in financial reporting; and
                  (C) the reduction of compliance costs for 
                recipients of Federal awards.
          (2) Requirements.--The pilot program shall--
                  (A) include a combination of Federal 
                contracts, grants, and subawards, the aggregate 
                value of which is not less than $1,000,000,000;
                  (B) include a diverse group of recipients of 
                Federal awards; and
                  (C) to the extent practicable, include 
                recipients who receive Federal awards from 
                multiple programs across multiple agencies.
          (3) Data collection.--The pilot program shall include 
        data collected during a 12-month reporting cycle.
          (4) Reporting and evaluation requirements.--Each 
        recipient of a Federal award participating in the pilot 
        program shall submit to the Office of Management and 
        Budget any requested reports of the selected Federal 
        awards.
          (5) Termination.--The pilot program shall terminate 
        on the date that is 2 years after the date on which the 
        Director of the Office of Management and Budget 
        establishes the pilot program.
          (6) Agency guidance.--Not later than 90 days after 
        the date on which the pilot program terminates under 
        subsection (b)(5), the Director of the Office of 
        Management and Budget shall provide guidance to the 
        heads of Federal agencies regarding how to simplify the 
        reporting requirements for recipients of Federal awards 
        to reduce unnecessary duplicative reports and to reduce 
        compliance costs, as appropriate.
          (7) Report to congress.--Not later than 90 days after 
        the date on which the pilot program terminates under 
        subsection (b)(5), the Director of the Office of 
        Management and Budget shall submit to the Committee on 
        Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs and the 
        Committee on the Budget of the Senate and the Committee 
        on Oversight and Government Reform and the Committee on 
        the Budget of the House of Representatives a report on 
        the pilot program, which shall include--
                  (A) a description of the data collected under 
                the pilot program, the usefulness of the data 
                provided, and the cost to collect the data from 
                recipients; and
                  (B) recommendations for--
                          (i) consolidating aspects of Federal 
                        financial reporting to reduce the costs 
                        to recipients of Federal awards;
                          (ii) automating aspects of Federal 
                        financial reporting to increase 
                        efficiency and reduce the costs to 
                        recipients of Federal awards;
                          (iii) any legislative action required 
                        to simplify the reporting requirements 
                        for recipients of Federal awards; and
                          (iv) improving financial 
                        transparency.

SECTION 6. ACCOUNTABILITY FOR FEDERAL FUNDING.

    (a) Inspector General Reports.--
          (1) In general.--In accordance with paragraph (2), 
        the Inspector General of each Federal agency, in 
        consultation with the Comptroller General of the United 
        States, shall--
                  (A) review a statistically valid sampling of 
                the spending data submitted under this Act by 
                the Federal agency; and
                  (B) submit to Congress and make publically 
                available a report assessing the completeness, 
                timeliness, quality, and accuracy of the data 
                sampled and the implementation and use of data 
                standards by the Federal agency.
          (2) Deadlines.--
                  (A) First report.--Not later than 18 months 
                after the date on which guidance is issued 
                under section 4(c)(1), the Inspector General of 
                each Federal agency shall submit a report as 
                described in paragraph (1).
                  (B) Subsequent reports.--On the same date as 
                the Inspector General of each Federal agency 
                submits the second and fourth reports under 
                sections 3521(f) and 9105(a)(3) of title 31, 
                United States Code, that are submitted after 
                the report under subparagraph (A), the 
                Inspector General shall submit a report as 
                described in paragraph (1). The report 
                submitted under this subparagraph may be 
                submitted as a part of the report submitted 
                under section 3521(f) or 9105(a)(3) of title 
                31, United States Code.
    (b) Comptroller General.--Not later than 2 years after the 
date of enactment of the Digital Accountability and 
Transparency Act of 2013, and every 2 years thereafter until 
the date that is 6 years after such date of enactment, and 
after review of the reports submitted under subsection (a), the 
Comptroller General of the United States shall submit to 
Congress and make publically available a report assessing and 
comparing the data completeness, timeliness, quality, and 
accuracy of the data submitted under this Act by Federal 
agencies and the implementation and use of data standards by 
Federal agencies.

SECTION 7. CLASSIFIED AND PROTECTED INFORMATION.

    Nothing in this Act shall require the disclosure to the 
public of--
          (1) information protected from disclosure under 
        section 552 of title 5, United States Code (commonly 
        known as the `Freedom of Information Act'); or
          (2) information protected under section 552a of title 
        5, United States Code (commonly known as the `Privacy 
        Act of 1974'), or section 6103 of the Internal Revenue 
        Code of 1986.
                              ----------                              


                      TITLE 31. MONEY AND FINANCE

                   Subtitle III. Financial Management

                 CHAPTER 35. ACCOUNTING AND COLLECTION


Subchapter II. Accounting Requirements, Systems, and Information

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *



Sec. 3512. Executive agency accounting and other financial management 
                    reports and plans

    (a)(1) The Director of the Office of Management and Budget 
shall prepare and submit to the appropriate committees of the 
Congress and make available on the website described under 
section 1122 a financial management status report and a 
governmentwide 5-year financial management plan.

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *

    (4)(A) * * *
    (C) Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of 
the Digital Accountability and Transparency Act of 2013, and 
every 5 years thereafter, the Director shall make available on 
the website described under section 1122 a report regarding the 
implementation of the Federal Funding Accountability and 
Transparency Act of 2006 (31 U.S.C. 6101 note).

           *       *       *       *       *       *       *


                                  
