,,ii #aagth ,,congress #ast ,session ,s4 #caha ,,in ,,the ,,senate ,,of ,,the ,,united ,,states ,november #d1 #bjba,mr4 ,blumenthal 7for himself1 ,mr4 ,whitehouse1 ,mr4 ,markey1 ,ms4 ,warren1 ,ms4 ,hirono1 ,mr4 ,booker1 ,mr4 ,sanders1 ,mr4 ,wyden1 ,mrs4 ,gillibrand1 and ,ms4 ,klobuchar7 introduced the following bill2 which was read twice and referred to the ,committee on ,homeland ,security and ,governmental ,affairs ,a ,,bill ,to prohibit certain foreign and domestic emoluments1 and for other purposes4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,foreign and ,domestic ,emoluments ,enforcement ,act4 #b4 ,findings ,the ,congress finds the following3 7#a7 ,the ,founders of the ,united ,states believed that political corruption and the interference of foreign governments were among the gravest threats the ,nation faced4 ,as a result1 they viewed anti-corruption measures as essential to preserving an enduring democracy4 7#b7 ,the ,founders wanted to ensure that the ,nation's leaders would be dependent on the people alone1 not on those offering private financial rewards--and would be motivated solely by the national interest1 not their own personal interests4 7#c7 ,the ,founders were especially worried that foreign powers would interfere with the internal affairs of the ,united ,states1 undermining the ,nation's republican institutions and making its leaders subservient to foreign interests4 ,in ,the ,federalist ,no4 #bb1 ,alexander ,hamilton wrote that one of the vulnerabilities of republics is that they afford too easy an inlet to foreign corruption4 ,he was aware that eighteenth-century monarchs used lavish presents to ingratiate themselves with ambassadors and ministers from other nations and wanted to avoid the potential for such corruption in the new ,government of the ,united ,states4 7#d7 ,of particular concern to the ,founders was the risk that benefits and rewards given by foreign states would subvert the ,president's undivided loyalty to the ,nation's best interests4 ,as ,hamilton noted during the ,constitutional ,convention1 the personal interest of a hereditary monarch was so interwoven with that of the ,nation 4 4 4 that he was placed above the danger of being corrupted from abroad44 ,by contrast1 as ,james ,madison observed1 an elected ,president would lack that permanent stake in the public interest which would place him out of the reach of foreign corruption44 7#e7 ,the ,founders were also concerned that domestic government officials might corrupt the ,president's independence and gain the loyalty of the ,president by giving the ,president financial benefits and advantages4 ,hamilton observed in ,the ,federalist ,no4 #gc that a power over a man's support is a power over his will1 and that if legislatures could alter the ,president's financial circumstances1 they could tempt him by largesses and thereby cause the ,president to surrender at discretion his judgment to their inclinations44 7#f7 ,to increase the likelihood that the ,nation's leaders would be dependent upon ,we the ,people alone1 the ,founders included in the ,constitution a number of safeguards against corruption1 including article ,i1 section #i1 clause #h 7in this section referred to as the ,foreign ,emoluments ,clause7 and article ,,ii1 section #a1 clause #g 7in this section referred to as the ,domestic ,emoluments ,clause74 7#g7 ,in the ,foreign ,emoluments ,clause1 the ,founders mandated congressional approval of presents1 emoluments1 offices1 and titles offered by foreign states to ,federal officeholders4 ,they recognized that the dangers of foreign-government influence and divided loyalty would be reduced if officeholders were required to obtain the affirmative consent of ,congress before accepting any foreign benefit4 ,as ,representative ,james ,bayard explained in the #agijs1 the ,foreign ,emoluments ,clause requires officeholders to make known to the world whatever presents they might receive from foreign ,courts and to place themselves in such a situation as to make it impossible for them to be unduly influenced by any such presents44 7#h7 ,in the ,domestic ,emoluments ,clause1 the ,founders provided that ,presidents must receive a fixed compensation1 which may not be increased or decreased during their time in office1 and that ,presidents are prohibited from accepting anything beyond that compensation from ,federal1 ,state1 or local governments4 ,these requirements were meant to prevent ,federal1 ,state1 and local officials from exerting undue influence over ,presidents by manipulating the financial rewards of their office4 7#i7 ,at the time of the ,founding1 the word emolument was a broad and commonly used term that meant profit1 advantage1 gain1 or benefit1 including payments and other financial rewards derived from private commerce4 ,the use of this broad term in the ,foreign ,emoluments ,clause and the ,domestic ,emoluments ,clause was consistent with the ,framers' goal of preventing the corruption of leaders of the ,united ,states through private rewards4 #c4 ,definitions ,in this ,act3 7#a7 ,business entity ,the term business entity-- 7,a7 means a for-profit corporation1 association1 partnership1 limited liability company1 limited liability partnership1 other legal entity1 or sole proprietorship2 and 7,b7 does not include an entity-- 7i7 in which #ajj or more individuals hold a share or ownership interest2 7ii7 in which the official covered by this section owns or has a beneficial interest in no more than #e percent of the ownership interests2 and 7iii7 that-- 7,i7 issues securities registered with the ,securities and ,exchange ,commission pursuant to section #ab of the ,securities ,exchange ,act of #aicd 7#ae ,u4,s4,c4 #ghl72 7,,ii7 is an investment company registered pursuant to section #h of the ,investment ,company ,act of #aidj 7#ae ,u4,s4,c4 #hj;a-#h7 that does not have a stated policy of concentrating the investments of the investment company in any industry1 business1 single country other than the ,united ,states1 or bonds of a single ,state within the ,united ,states2 or 7,,iii7 is a unit investment trust1 as defined in section #d of the ,investment ,company ,act of #aidj 7#ae ,u4,s4,c4 #hj;a-#d7 that-- 7aa7 is a regulated investment company1 as defined in section #hea of the ,internal ,revenue ,code of #aihf2 and 7bb7 does not have a stated policy of concentrating the investments of the investment company in any industry1 business1 single country other than the ,united ,states1 or bonds of a single ,state within the ,united ,states4 7#b7 ,emolument ,the term emolument means any profit1 gain1 advantage1 or payment 7including a payment arising from a commercial transaction1 without regard to whether the payment is at fair market value7 that is received directly or indirectly from-- 7,a7 any government of a foreign country2 7,b7 the ,federal ,government2 7,c7 any ,state2 or 7,d7 any instrumentality of a government described in subparagraphs 7,a7 through 7,c74 7#c7 ,government of a foreign country ,the term government of a foreign country has the meaning given the term in section #a of the ,foreign ,agents ,registration ,act of #aich1 as amended 7#bb ,u4,s4,c4 #faa74 7#d7 ,person holding any office of profit or trust under the ,united ,states ,the term person holding any office of profit or trust under the ,united ,states-- 7,a7 means any individual holding a position listed in paragraph 7,a7 through 7,f7 of section #gcdb7;a77#a7 of title #e1 ,united ,states ,code1 including any individual appointed pursuant to section #aje7;a71 #ajf7;a71 or #ajg of title #c1 ,united ,states ,code2 and 7,b7 includes the ,president and the ,vice ,president4 #d4 ,prohibition on acceptance of foreign and domestic emoluments 7a7 ,foreign ,except as provided in section #gcdb of title #e1 ,united ,states ,code1 it shall be unlawful for any person holding any office of profit or trust under the ,united ,states to accept from a government of a foreign country1 without first obtaining the consent of ,congress1 any present1 emolument1 office1 or title4 7b7 ,domestic ,it shall be unlawful for the ,president to accept from the ,united ,states1 or a ,state1 any emolument other than the compensation for his or her services as ,president provided for by ,federal law4 7c7 ,applicability ,the prohibitions under this section apply if the present1 emolument1 office1 or title is-- 7#a7 provided directly or indirectly-- 7,a7 by the government of a foreign country or an instrumentality thereof2 or 7,b7 in the case of the ,president1 provided directly or indirectly by the ,united ,states1 a ,state1 or an instrumentality of the ,united ,states or a ,state2 and 7#b7 provided to-- 7,a7 the person holding any office of profit or trust under the ,united ,states2 or 7,b7 any business entity or trust in which the person holding any office of profit or trust under the ,united ,states has a beneficial or ownership interest4 7d7 ,consent ,congress consents to-- 7#a7 the acceptance1 by any person who holds an office of profit or trust under the ,united ,states1 of any emolument that has a monetary value below the minimum value set under section #gcdb7;a77#e77;,a7 of title #e1 ,united ,states ,code2 7#b7 the acceptance1 by any person who holds an office of profit or trust under the ,united ,states1 other than the ,president or the ,vice ,president1 of any emolument that solely constitutes a benefit or compensation-- 7,a7 accepted by the spouse or minor child of a person other than the ,president or ,vice ,president as an employee1 consultant1 or contractor2 and 7,b7 that has not been given or enhanced-- 7i7 because of the relationship of the spouse or minor child to the office holder2 7ii7 in return for the office holder being influenced in the performance of an official act2 or 7iii7 for the purpose of avoiding the requirements of this section2 7#c7 the acceptance of any emolument by any person in the ,federal executive branch1 other than the ,president and ,vice ,president1 who holds an office of profit or trust under the ,united ,states and is not appointee of the ,president or the ,vice ,president1 if the emolument-- 7,a7 is attributable to such individual solely as a result of the individual or the individual's spouse or minor child having a beneficial or ownership interest in a business entity that accepted the emolument2 and 7,b7 has been exempted as part of a class of emoluments1 by regulation issued by the ,director of the ,office of ,government ,ethics and published in the ,federal ,register1 from the requirements of subsection 7a7 as being too remote or too inconsequential to affect the integrity of the services of the class or classes of ,federal ,government officers or employees to which such regulation applies2 and 7#d7 the acceptance of any emolument by a ,member of ,congress or by an officer or employee of the ,congress1 if the emolument-- 7,a7 is attributable to such individual solely as a result of the individual or the individual's spouse or minor child having a beneficial or ownership interest in a business entity that accepted the emolument2 and 7,b7 has been exempted as part of a class of emoluments1 by the supervising ethics office1 as defined in section #aji of the ,ethics in ,government ,act of #aigh 7#e ,u4,s4,c4 ,app471 from the requirements of subsection 7a7 as being too remote or too inconsequential to affect the integrity of the services to the ,government of individual's to which such exemption applies4 7e7 ,acceptance ,an emolument is accepted by a person who holds an office of profit or trust under the ,united ,states if-- 7#a7 the emolument is received directly by the officer holder1 the spouse of the office holder 7unless such individual and his or her spouse are separated7 or a dependent1 as defined in section #aeb of the ,internal ,revenue ,code of #aihf1 of the office holder2 or 7#b7 the emolument is received by-- 7,a7 any other person on the basis of designation1 recommendation1 or other specification by an individual described in subparagraph 7#a72 or 7,b7 a business entity or trust in which an individual described in 7#a7 has a beneficial or ownership interest2 and 7#c7 the emolument is retained4 #e4 ,civil actions by ,congress concerning foreign emoluments 7a7 ,cause of action ,the ,house of ,representatives or the ,senate may bring a civil action against any person for a violation of section #d7;a74 7b7 ,special rules ,in any civil action described in subsection 7a71 the following rules shall apply3 7#a7 ,the action shall be filed in the ,united ,states ,district ,court for the ,district of ,columbia4 7#b7 ,the action shall be heard by a #c-;judge court convened pursuant to section #bbhd of title #bh1 ,united ,states ,code4 ,it shall be the duty of such court to advance on the docket and to expedite to the greatest possible extent the disposition of any such action4 ,such action shall be reviewable only by appeal directly to the ,supreme ,court of the ,united ,states4 ,such appeal shall be taken by the filing of a notice of appeal within #aj days1 and the filing of a jurisdictional statement within #cj days1 of the entry of the final decision4 7#c7 ,it shall be the duty of the ,supreme ,court of the ,united ,states to advance on the docket and to expedite to the greatest possible extent the disposition of any such action and appeal4 7c7 ,remedy ,if the court determines that a violation of section #d7;a7 has occurred1 the court-- 7#a7 shall issue an order enjoining the course of conduct found to constitute the violation2 and 7#b7 may order1 as are appropriate-- 7,a7 the disgorgement of the value of any foreign present or emolument2 7,b7 the surrender of the physical present or emolument to the ,department of ,state1 which shall1 if practicable1 dispose of the present or emolument and deposit the proceeds into the general fund of the ,treasury2 7,c7 the renunciation of any office or title accepted in violation of section #d7;a72 7,d7 a prohibition on the use or holding of such an office or title2 and 7,e7 such other relief as the court determines appropriate4 7d7 ,use of ,government funds prohibited ,no appropriated funds1 funds provided from any accounts in the ,treasury1 funds derived from the collection of fees1 or any other ,government funds shall be used to pay any disgorgement imposed by the court pursuant to this section4 #f4 ,disclosures concerning foreign and domestic emoluments 7a7 ,disclosures ,section #ajb7;a7 of the ,ethics in ,government ,act of #aigh 7#e ,u4,s4,c4 ,app47 is amended by adding at the end the following3 7#i7 ,any present1 emolument1 office1 or title received from a government of a foreign country1 including the source1 date1 type1 and amount or value of each present or emolument accepted on or before the date of filing during the preceding calendar year4 7#aj7 ,each financial interest or arrangement that is reasonably expected to result in the receipt of any present or emolument from a government of a foreign country during the current calendar year4 7#aa7 ,with respect to a report filed by the ,president-- 7,a7 any emolument received from the ,united ,states1 or any of them1 other than the compensation for his or her services as ,president provided for by ,federal law2 and 7,b7 any financial interest or arrangement that is reasonably expected to result in the receipt of any emolument from the ,united ,states1 or any of them4 4 7b7 ,rule of construction ,nothing in the amendments made by this section shall be construed to affect the prohibition against the acceptance of presents and emoluments under section #d4 #g4 ,enforcement authority of the ,director of the ,office of ,government ,ethics 7a7 ,general authority ,section #djb7;a7 of the ,ethics in ,government ,act of #aigh 7#e ,u4,s4,c4 ,app47 is amended-- 7#a7 by striking 7a7 ,the ,director and inserting 7a77#a7 ,the ,director2 and 7#b7 by adding at the end the following3 7#b7 ,the ,director shall provide overall direction of executive branch policies related to compliance with the ,foreign and ,domestic ,emoluments ,enforcement ,act and the amendments made by that ,act1 including having the authority to-- 7,a7 issue administrative fines to individuals for violations2 7,b7 order individuals to take corrective action1 including disgorgement1 divestiture1 and recusal1 as the ,director deems necessary2 and 7,c7 bring civil actions to enforce such fines and orders4 4 7b7 ,specific authorities ,section #djb7;b7 of the ,ethics in ,government ,act of #aigh 7#e ,u4,s4,c4 ,app47 is amended-- 7#a7 in paragraph 7#ad71 by striking and at the end2 7#b7 by striking the period at the end of paragraph 7#ae7 and inserting 2 and2 and 7#c7 by adding at the end the following3 7#af7 developing and promulgating rules and regulations to ensure compliance with the ,foreign and ,domestic ,emoluments ,enforcement ,act and the amendments made by that ,act1 including establishing-- 7,a7 requirements for reporting and disclosure2 7,b7 a schedule of administrative fines that may be imposed by the ,director for violations2 and 7,c7 a process for referring matters to the ,office of ,special ,counsel for investigation in accordance with section #abaf7;d7 of title #e1 ,united ,states ,code4 4 #h4 ,jurisdiction of the ,office of ,special ,counsel ,section #abaf of title #e1 ,united ,states ,code1 is amended-- 7#a7 in subsection 7a7-- 7,a7 in paragraph 7#d71 by striking and at the end2 7,b7 in paragraph 7#e7 by striking the period and inserting 2 and2 and 7,c7 by adding at the end the following3 7#f7 any violation of section #d of the ,foreign and ,domestic ,emoluments ,enforcement ,act and paragraphs 7#i71 7#aj71 and 7#aa7 of section #ajb7;a7 of the ,ethics in ,government ,act of #aigh 7#e ,u4,s4,c4 ,app474 2 and 7#b7 by adding at the end the following3 7d7 7#a7 ,if the ,director of the ,office of ,government ,ethics refers a matter for investigation pursuant to section #djb of the ,ethics in ,government ,act of #aigh 7#e ,u4,s4,c4 ,app471 or if the ,special ,counsel receives a credible complaint of a violation referred to in subsection 7a77#f71 the ,special ,counsel shall complete an investigation not later than #abj days thereafter4 7#b7 ,if the ,special ,counsel investigates any violation pursuant to subsection 7a77#f71 the ,special ,counsel shall report not later than #g days after the completion of the investigation to the ,director of the ,office of ,government ,ethics and to ,congress on the results of the investigation4 4 #i4 ,severability ,if any provision of this ,act or amendment made by this ,act1 or the application of a provision or amendment to any person or circumstance1 is held to be unconstitutional1 the remainder of this ,act and amendments made by this ,act1 and the application of the provisions and amendment to any person or circumstance1 shall not be affected by the holding4