The House now could vote at any time on a bill (S-1109) passed previously by the Senate to require agencies to more fully disclose settlement agreements with a value of more than $1 million they enter with any non-federal entity related to an alleged violation of federal civil or criminal law.
The bill, recently passed by the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, would require agencies to make publicly available on the agency website a copy of such agreements including: the names of the parties to and the date; a description of the claims that were settled; the amount each party is obligated to pay; the portion that specified as a civil or criminal penalty or fine and any amount expressly specified as not deductible for tax purposes; and a description of where the money was deposited.
That information would have to remain publicly available for at least five years.
Agencies also would have to produce annual reports on: how many covered settlement agreements they entered; how many had terms that were kept confidential; the amount of attorney fees, costs, and expenses paid to non-federal persons; and the number that involved regulatory action or regulatory changes.
Also, GAO would issue a report on how agencies determine whether the terms or existence of a settlement agreement will be treated as confidential.
