Public Disclosure of Lobbying Act
Latest action. Referred to House Committee on the Judiciary.
Public Disclosure of Lobbying Act - Establishes, as an independent establishment of the executive branch, the Federal lobbying Disclosure Commission, composed of the Comptroller General and seven members appointed by the President with the advice and consent of the Senate. Directs the Commission to avail itself of the assistance, including personnel and facilities, of the General Accounting Office and the Department of Justice. Enumerates the powers of the Commission, including the power: (1) to require any person to submit in writing such reports and answers to questions as the Commission may prescribe; and (2) to initiate, prosecute, defend, or appeal any civil or criminal action in the name of the Commission for the purpose of enforcing the provisions of this Act through its General Counsel. Provides that it shall be the duty of the Commission to perform specified tasks, including: (1) to develop and furnish to lobbyists forms required to be filed under this Act; (2) to prepare a manual setting forth recommended uniform methods of bookkeeping and reporting; (3) to develop a filing, coding, and cross-indexing system consonant with the purpose of this Act; (4) to make specified documents filed with it available for public inspection and copying; (5) to preserve such reports and statements for a period of ten years; (6) to compile and summarize (in specified categories) information contained in notices and reports filed; (7) to make audits and field investigations with respect to statements and reports filed under the provisions of this Act; (8) to prepare a special study or report upon the request of any Member of the House of Representatives or the Senate from information in the records of the Commission; and (9) to presecibe suitable rules and regulations to carry out the provisions of this Act. Provides that each lobbyist shall, within 15 days after becoming a lobbyist, file a notice of representation with the Commission. Provides that the notice of representation shall be in such form and detail as the Commission shall prescribe and sets forth minimum elements to be contained in such notice. Enumerates those persons required to maintain records of lobbying activities and sets forth the required form and content of reports to be made to the Commission containing such records. Sets forth criminal penalties for violation of this Act.
Written by analysts at the Congressional Research Service and published on Congress.gov, not by Civibrief. Summarized at the "Introduced in House" stage on August 19, 1974. It describes the bill, it is not the legal text.
Where is it in the process, and what happens next?
4 steps remain before this bill could become law.
The record's latest action, on August 19, 1974: Referred to House Committee on the Judiciary.
- Clearing the committees it was referred to, and being scheduled for a floor vote
- Passage by the House
- Passage by the Senate
- The President's signature. If the President vetoes it, two-thirds of both chambers must vote to override.
How likely is it to become law?
Civibrief does not forecast outcomes and this page has no opinion about this one. What the record supports is a base rate, which is a fact about the whole pile, not a prediction about this measure.
In the 93rd Congress (1973-74), 651 of the 23,396 bills and joint resolutions introduced became law, about 2.8 percent. That count covers every measure at every stage, including the many that never left committee.
This one is not there yet: 4 steps are still outstanding, listed above.
Has anyone actually voted on it?
No. No roll call in this Congress cites this measure. That is the ordinary outcome: most measures never reach a recorded floor vote, and a committee ends most of them simply by not acting.
A vote is not the only thing that happens to a measure. Hearings, markups, and referrals are all recorded actions, and none of them is a vote of the full chamber.
Who is behind it?
WAYNE OWENS (D-UT) introduced it on August 19, 1974, and 24 members have since signed on as cosponsors.
They come from both major parties: 15 Democrats, 9 Republicans.
Cosponsoring is a formal signature on the text. It is not a commitment to vote for the measure, it does not bind anyone's party, and a long list of cosponsors is a measure of attention rather than of prospects.
How long has it been in play?
It was introduced on August 19, 1974, 19015 days ago. The most recent recorded action was 19015 days ago, on August 19, 1974.
Measures do not carry over. Anything the 93rd Congress has not finished by January 3, 1975 dies when the term ends, and has to be introduced again from the start in the next Congress.
Every answer above is assembled from this measure's own record on Congress.gov and from published counts of what Congress has passed before. Civibrief does not predict outcomes and takes no position on any measure.
Vote history
- HouseIn committee, no floor vote yet
- SenateAwaits House passage
- PresidentAwaits both chambers