[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 3378 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
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117th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 3378
To require agencies to submit certain settlement agreements to
Congress, to allow Congress to disapprove of those settlement
agreements, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
December 13, 2021
Mr. Scott of Florida (for himself, Mr. Toomey, Mr. Cassidy, Mr. Rounds,
Mr. Hagerty, Mr. Braun, and Mr. Lankford) introduced the following
bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Homeland
Security and Governmental Affairs
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To require agencies to submit certain settlement agreements to
Congress, to allow Congress to disapprove of those settlement
agreements, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Congressional Review of Agency Legal
Settlements Act of 2021''.
SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.
In this Act:
(1) Agency.--The term ``agency'' has the meaning given the
term in section 551 of title 5, United States Code.
(2) Agency rule.--The term ``agency rule'' means--
(A) a substantive rule of general applicability of
an agency;
(B) a statement of general policy of an agency; or
(C) an interpretation of general applicability
formulated and adopted by an agency pursuant to
relevant law.
(3) Covered settlement agreement.--The term ``covered
settlement agreement'' means a proposed voluntary compromise
settlement to be entered into by an agency to resolve 1 or more
pending legal claims against the United States that includes--
(A) a financial award paid by the agency that is
more than $10,000,000, aggregated across all similarly
situated cases or legal claims against the agency; or
(B) an agreement to modify or alter an agency rule
of the agency.
(4) End of session period.--The term ``end of session
period'' means the period--
(A) beginning on the date occurring, in the case of
the Senate, 60 session days, or in the case of the
House of Representatives, 60 legislative days before
the date the Congress adjourns a session of Congress;
and
(B) ending on the date on which the same or
succeeding Congress first convenes its next session.
(5) Joint resolution of disapproval.--The term ``joint
resolution of disapproval'' means a joint resolution--
(A) introduced during the period beginning on the
submission date and ending 60 days thereafter
(excluding days either House of Congress is adjourned
for more than 3 days during a session of Congress); and
(B) the matter after the resolving clause of which
is as follows:
(i) For covered settlement agreements
involving a financial award: ``That Congress
finds that the settlement agreement proposed by
the ___ relating to ___ is an unauthorized use
of amounts appropriated by Congress, and the
___ may not enter into the settlement agreement
using amounts appropriated by Congress.'' (The
blank spaces being appropriately filled in).
(ii) For covered settlement agreements
involving a modification or alteration of an
agency rule: ``That Congress disapproves
modification or alteration of the agency rule
within the settlement agreement proposed by the
___ relating to ___, and such modification or
alteration of the agency rule shall have no
force or effect.'' (The blank spaces being
appropriately filled in).
(6) Submission date.--The term ``submission date'' means
the date on which a report submitted by an agency under section
3(a) is received by Congress.
SEC. 3. CONGRESSIONAL REVIEW OF CERTAIN AGENCY SETTLEMENT AGREEMENTS.
(a) In General.--Before an agency may enter into a covered
settlement agreement, the agency shall submit to Congress a report that
includes--
(1) information relating to each legal claim resolved by
the covered settlement agreement;
(2) the terms of the covered settlement agreement;
(3) the class of claimants covered by the covered
settlement agreement;
(4) the total amount of the financial award to be paid
under the covered settlement agreement;
(5) the factual and legal basis for calculating the amount
described in paragraph (4);
(6) the factual and legal basis for modifying or altering
each agency rule of the agency modified or altered under the
covered settlement agreement; and
(7) whether each modification or alteration of an agency
rule described in paragraph (6) will require the agency to
initiate rulemaking proceedings under section 553 of title 5,
United States Code and the date those rulemaking proceedings
will commence.
(b) Receipt by Congress.--Upon receipt of a report from an agency
under subsection (a), each House shall provide a copy of the report to
the chairman and ranking member of the standing committee with
jurisdiction over the agency and the operating budget of the agency.
(c) Joint Resolution.--Not later than 60 days after the date on
which Congress receives a report under subsection (a), Congress may
pass a joint resolution of disapproval of the covered settlement
agreement that is the subject of the report in accordance with section
4.
(d) Effect of Joint Resolution.--If Congress passes a joint
resolution of disapproval relating to a covered settlement agreement in
accordance with section 4, the agency may not--
(1) pay a financial award under the covered settlement
agreement using amounts otherwise appropriated by Congress; or
(2) modify or alter an agency rule of the agency under the
covered settlement agreement without complying with the
rulemaking requirements under section 553 of title 5, United
States Code.
(e) Waiting Period.--Subject to subsection (f), an agency may enter
into a covered settlement agreement as otherwise provided by law if, on
the date that is 60 days after the submission date, Congress has not
passed a joint resolution of disapproval relating to the covered
settlement agreement.
(f) End of Session Submission.--In addition to the opportunity for
Congress to review a covered settlement agreement as otherwise provided
under this Act, in the case of any covered settlement agreement for
which a report is submitted in accordance with subsection (a) during an
end of session period--
(1) section 4 shall apply to the covered settlement
agreement in the succeeding session of Congress; and
(2) in applying section 4 for purposes of such additional
review, the covered settlement agreement shall be treated as
though a report on such covered settlement agreement were
submitted to Congress under subsection (a) on, with respect to
the date on which the succeeding session of Congress first
convenes--
(A) in the case of the Senate, the 15th session day
after that date; or
(B) in the case of the House of Representatives,
the 15th legislative day after that date.
SEC. 4. EXPEDITED PROCEDURE FOR JOINT RESOLUTIONS OF DISAPPROVAL.
(a) Referral.--A joint resolution shall be referred to the
committees in each House of Congress with jurisdiction.
(b) Discharge From Committee.--In the Senate, if the committee to
which a joint resolution of disapproval is referred under subsection
(a) has not reported the joint resolution of disapproval (or an
identical joint resolution of disapproval) at the end of 20 calendar
days after the submission date, the committee may be discharged from
further consideration of the joint resolution of disapproval upon a
petition supported in writing by 30 Members of the Senate, and such
joint resolution of disapproval shall be placed on the calendar.
(c) Procedure.--
(1) In general.--In the Senate, when the committee to which
a joint resolution of disapproval is referred has reported, or
when a committee is discharged (under subsection (b)) from
further consideration of a joint resolution of disapproval, it
is at any time thereafter in order (even though a previous
motion to the same effect has been disagreed to) for a motion
to proceed to the consideration of the joint resolution of
disapproval, and all points of order against the joint
resolution of disapproval (and against consideration of the
joint resolution of disapproval) are waived. The motion is not
subject to amendment, or to a motion to postpone, or to a
motion to proceed to the consideration of other business. A
motion to reconsider the vote by which the motion is agreed to
or disagreed to shall not be in order. If a motion to proceed
to the consideration of the joint resolution of disapproval is
agreed to, the joint resolution of disapproval shall remain the
unfinished business of the Senate until disposed of.
(2) Debate limitation.--In the Senate, debate on the joint
resolution of disapproval, and on all debatable motions and
appeals in connection therewith, shall be limited to not more
than 10 hours, which shall be divided equally between those
favoring and those opposing the joint resolution of
disapproval. A motion further to limit debate is in order and
not debatable. An amendment to, or a motion to postpone, or a
motion to proceed to the consideration of other business, or a
motion to recommit the joint resolution of disapproval is not
in order.
(3) Vote on final passage.--In the Senate, immediately
following the conclusion of the debate on a joint resolution of
disapproval, and a single quorum call at the conclusion of the
debate if requested in accordance with the rules of the Senate,
the vote on final passage of the joint resolution of
disapproval shall occur.
(4) Appeals.--Appeals from the decisions of the Chair
relating to the application of the rules of the Senate to the
procedure relating to a joint resolution of disapproval shall
be decided without debate.
(d) Limitation.--In the Senate, the procedure described in
subsection (b) or (c) shall not apply to the consideration of a joint
resolution of disapproval--
(1) after the expiration of the 60 session days beginning
with the applicable submission date; or
(2) if the report described in section 3(a) was submitted
during an end of session period, after the expiration of the 60
session days beginning on the 15th session day after the
succeeding session of Congress first convenes.
(e) Effect of Passage in One House.--If, before the passage by one
House of a joint resolution of disapproval of that House, that House
receives from the other House a joint resolution of disapproval, then
the following procedures shall apply:
(1) The joint resolution of disapproval of the other House
shall not be referred to a committee.
(2) With respect to a joint resolution of disapproval of
the House receiving the joint resolution of disapproval--
(A) the procedure in that House shall be the same
as if no joint resolution of disapproval had been
received from the other House; but
(B) the vote on final passage shall be on the joint
resolution of disapproval of the other House.
(f) Rule of Construction.--This section is enacted by Congress--
(1) as an exercise of the rulemaking power of the Senate
and House of Representatives, respectively, and, as such, it is
deemed a part of the rules of each House, respectively, but
applicable only with respect to the procedure to be followed in
that House in the case of a joint resolution of disapproval,
and it supersedes other rules only to the extent that it is
inconsistent with such rules; and
(2) with full recognition of the constitutional right of
either House to change the rules (so far as relating to the
procedure of that House) at any time, in the same manner, and
to the same extent as in the case of any other rule of that
House.
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