[Congressional Bills 110th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 6388 Introduced in House (IH)]
110th CONGRESS
2d Session
H. R. 6388
To provide additional authorities to the Comptroller General of the
United States, and for other purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
June 26, 2008
Mr. Waxman (for himself, Mr. Dingell, Mr. Conyers, Mr. Obey, Mr.
Rangel, Mr. George Miller of California, Mr. Oberstar, Mr. Rahall, Mr.
Skelton, Mr. Frank of Massachusetts, Mr. Berman, Mr. Spratt, Mr. Gordon
of Tennessee, Ms. Slaughter, Mr. Filner, Mr. Thompson of Mississippi,
Ms. Velazquez, Mr. Reyes, and Mr. Brady of Pennsylvania) introduced the
following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Oversight and
Government Reform
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To provide additional authorities to the Comptroller General of the
United States, 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 ``Government Accountability Office
Improvement Act of 2008''.
SEC. 2. AUTHORITY TO OBTAIN RECORDS.
(a) Authority To Obtain Records.--Section 716 of title 31, United
States Code, is amended in subsection (a)--
(1) by striking ``(a)'' and inserting ``(2)''; and
(2) by inserting after the section heading the following:
``(a)(1) The Comptroller General is authorized to obtain such
agency records as the Comptroller General requires to discharge his
duties (including audit, evaluation, and investigative duties),
including through the bringing of civil actions under this section. In
reviewing a civil action under this section, the court shall recognize
the continuing force and effect of the authorization in the preceding
sentence until such time as the authorization is repealed pursuant to
law.''.
(b) Interviews.--Section 716(a) of title 31, United States Code, as
amended by subsection (a), is further amended in the second sentence of
paragraph (2) by inserting ``and interview agency officers and
employees'' after ``agency record''.
SEC. 3. ADMINISTERING OATHS.
Section 711 of title 31, United States Code, is amended by striking
paragraph (4) and inserting the following:
``(4) administer oaths to witnesses, except that, in
matters other than auditing and settling accounts, the
authority of an officer or employee to administer oaths to
witnesses pursuant to a delegation under paragraph (2) shall
not be available without the prior express approval of the
Comptroller General (or a designee).''.
SEC. 4. ACCESS TO CERTAIN INFORMATION.
(a) Access to Certain Information.--Subchapter II of chapter 7 of
title 31, United States Code, is amended by adding at the end the
following:
``Sec. 721. Access to certain information
``(a) No provision of the Social Security Act shall be construed to
limit, amend, or supersede the authority of the Comptroller General to
obtain any information, to inspect any record, or to interview any
officer or employee under section 716 of this title, including with
respect to any information disclosed to or obtained by the Secretary of
Health and Human Services under part C or D of title XVIII of the
Social Security Act.
``(b) No provision of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act
shall be construed to limit, amend, or supersede the authority of the
Comptroller General to obtain any information, to inspect any record,
or to interview any officer or employee under section 716 of this
title, including with respect to any information concerning any method
or process which as a trade secret is entitled to protection.
``(c) No provision of the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements
Act of 1976 and the amendments made by that Act shall be construed to
limit, amend, or supersede the authority of the Comptroller General to
obtain any information, to inspect any record, or to interview any
officer or employee under section 716 of this title, including with
respect to any information disclosed to the Assistant Attorney General
of the Antitrust Division of the Department of Justice or the Federal
Trade Commission for purposes of pre-merger review under section 7A of
the Clayton Act (15 U.S.C. 18a).''.
(b) Clerical Amendment.--The analysis for chapter 7 of title 31,
United States Code, is amended by inserting after the item relating to
section 720 the following:
``721. Access to certain information.''.
SEC. 5. COMPTROLLER GENERAL REPORTS.
Section 719 of title 31, United States Code, is amended--
(1) in subsection (b)(1)(B), by striking ``and'' at the
end;
(2) in subsection (b)(1)(C), by striking the period at the
end and inserting ``; and'';
(3) by adding at the end of subsection (b)(1) the
following:
``(D) for agencies subject to sections 901 to 903 and other
agencies designated by the Comptroller General, an assessment
of their overall degree of cooperation in making personnel
available for interview, providing written answers to
questions, submitting to an oath authorized by the Comptroller
General under section 711, granting access to records,
providing timely comments to draft reports, adopting
recommendations in reports and responding to such other matters
as the Comptroller General deems appropriate.'';
(4) in subsection (c)(2)(B), by striking ``and'' at the
end;
(5) in subsection (c)(3), by striking the period at the end
and inserting ``; and'', and
(6) by adding at the end of subsection (c) the following:
``(4) as soon as practicable when an agency does not,
within a reasonable time, respond to a request by the
Comptroller General regarding any matter described in
subsection (b)(1)(D).''.
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