,i #aafth ,,congress #ast ,session ,h4 ,r4 #ciic ,,in ,,the ,,house ,,of ,,representatives ,july #be1 #bjai,mr4 ,johnson of ,georgia 7for himself and ,mr4 ,cohen7 introduced the following bill2 which was referred to the ,committee on the ,judiciary ,a ,,bill ,to amend title #bh1 ,united ,states ,code1 to require certain disclosures related to amicus activities4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,assessing ,monetary ,influence in the ,courts of the ,united ,states ,act or the ,,amicus ,act4 #b4 ,disclosures related to amicus activities 7a7 ,in general ,chapter #aaa of title #bh1 ,united ,states ,code1 is amended by adding at the end the following3 #affj4 ,disclosures related to amicus activities 7a7 ,definition ,in this section1 the term covered amicus means any person1 including any affiliate of the person1 that files not fewer than #c total amicus briefs in any calendar year in the ,supreme ,court of the ,united ,states and the courts of appeals of the ,united ,states4 7b7 ,disclosure 7#a7 ,in general ,any covered amicus that files an amicus brief in the ,supreme ,court of the ,united ,states or a court of appeals of the ,united ,states shall list in the amicus brief the name of any person who-- 7,a7 contributed to the preparation or submission of the amicus brief2 7,b7 contributed not less than #c percent of the gross annual revenue of the covered amicus for the previous calendar year if the covered amicus is not an individual2 or 7,c7 contributed more than #ajj1jjj to the covered amicus in the previous year4 7#b7 ,exceptions ,the requirements of this subsection shall not apply to amounts received by a covered amicus described in paragraph 7#a7 in commercial transactions in the ordinary course of any trade or business conducted by the covered amicus or in the form of investments 7other than investments by the principal shareholder in a limited liability corporation7 in an organization if the amounts are unrelated to the amicus filing activities of the covered amicus4 7c7 ,registration 7#a7 ,in general ,each covered amicus shall register as a covered amicus with the ,administrative ,office of the ,united ,states ,courts4 7#b7 ,contents ,the registration described in paragraph 7#a7 shall include-- 7,a7 the name of the registrant2 7,b7 a general description of the business or activities of the registrant2 7,c7 the name of any person described in subsection 7b77#a72 7,d7 a statement of the general issue areas in which the registrant expects to engage in amicus activities2 and 7,e7 to the extent practicable1 specific issues that have1 as of the date of the registration1 already been addressed or are likely to be addressed in the amicus activities of the registrant4 7#c7 ,deadline ,each amicus shall submit to the ,administrative ,office of the ,united ,states ,courts the registration required under this subsection not later than-- 7,a7 #de days after the date on which the amicus becomes a covered amicus2 and 7,b7 ,january #a of the calendar year after the calendar year in which the amicus was a covered amicus4 7d7 ,audit ,the ,comptroller ,general of the ,united ,states shall conduct an annual audit to ensure compliance with this section4 7e7 ,publicly available lists ,the ,administrative ,office of the ,united ,states ,courts shall periodically update the website of the ,administrative ,office of the ,united ,states ,courts with the information described in subsection 7c77#b71 which shall be made publicly available indefinitely4 7f7 ,prohibition on provision of gifts or travel by covered amici to judges and justices 7#a7 ,in general ,except as provided in paragraph 7#b71 no covered amicus may make a gift or provide travel to a judge of a court of appeals of the ,united ,states1 the ,chief ,justice of the ,united ,states1 or an associate justice of the ,supreme ,court of the ,united ,states4 7#b7 ,reimbursement for travel for appearances at accredited law schools ,paragraph 7#a7 shall not apply to reimbursement for travel for an appearance at an accredited law school4 7g7 ,civil fines 7#a7 ,in general ,whoever knowingly fails to comply with any provision of this section shall1 upon proof of such knowing violation by a preponderance of the evidence1 be subject to a civil fine of not more than #bjj1jjj1 depending on the extent and gravity of the violation4 7#b7 ,use of fines ,amounts collected from fines issued under paragraph 7#a7 may be used to maintain the website described in subsection 7e77#b74 7h7 ,rules of construction 7#a7 ,constitutional rights ,nothing in this section shall be construed to prohibit or interfere with-- 7,a7 the right to petition the ,government for the redress of grievances2 7,b7 the right to express a personal opinion2 or 7,c7 the right of association1 protected by the ,first ,amendment to the ,constitution of the ,united ,states4 7#b7 ,prohibition of activities ,nothing in this section shall be construed to prohibit1 or to authorize any court to prohibit1 amicus activities by any person or entity1 regardless of whether such person or entity is in compliance with the requirements of this section4 7i7 ,severability ,if any provision of this section1 or the application thereof1 is held invalid1 the validity of the remainder of this section and the application of such provision to other persons and circumstances shall not be affected thereby4 4 7b7 ,technical and conforming amendment ,the table of sections for chapter #aaa of title #bh1 ,united ,states ,code1 is amended by adding at the end the following3 #affj4 ,disclosures related to amicus activities4 4