,,ii #aahth ,,congress #b;d ,session ,s4 #eacc ,,in ,,the ,,senate ,,of ,,the ,,united ,,states ,september #ai1 #bjbd,mr4 ,peters 7for himself and ,mr4 ,lankford7 introduced the following bill2 which was read twice and referred to the ,committee on ,homeland ,security and ,governmental ,affairs ,a ,,bill ,to establish a tracker for ,senate-confirmed executive branch positions4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,improving ,senate ,confirmation and ,vacancy ,oversight ,act of #bjbd4 #b4 ,establishment of tracker for ,senate-confirmed executive branch positions 7a7 ,definitions ,in this section3 7#a7 ,appropriate congressional committees ,the term appropriate congressional committees means-- 7,a7 the ,committee on ,homeland ,security and ,governmental ,affairs of the ,senate2 and 7,b7 the ,committee on ,oversight and ,accountability of the ,house of ,representatives4 7#b7 ,covered ,,pas position ,the term covered ,,pas position means a policy and supporting position 7as defined in section #cccj;f of title #e1 ,united ,states ,code7 in an executive branch agency for which appointment is made by the ,president1 by and with the advice and consent of the ,senate4 7#c7 ,director of ,,opm ,the term ,director of ,,opm means the ,director of the ,office of ,personnel ,management4 7#d7 ,executive branch agency ,the term executive branch agency means an agency described in subparagraph 7,a7 or 7,c7 of section #cccj;f7a77#a7 of title #e1 ,united ,states ,code4 7#e7 ,,pas ,tracker ,the term ,,pas ,tracker means the ,senate ,confirmed ,position ,tracker established under subsection 7b77#a74 7#f7 ,,plum reporting website ,the term ,,plum reporting website means the website established and maintained under section #cccj;f7b7 of title #e1 ,united ,states ,code4 7b7 ,establishment of tracker 7#a7 ,in general ,not later than #b years after the date of enactment of this ,act1 the ,comptroller ,general of the ,united ,states1 in consultation with the ,librarian of ,congress1 the ,director of ,,opm1 and the ,director of the ,congressional ,research ,service1 shall publish on the public-facing website of the ,government ,accountability ,office a new interface or webpage1 to be known as the ,senate ,confirmed ,position ,tracker1 that displays data1 which shall be updated on not less than a weekly basis1 tracking covered ,,pas positions1 including the individuals occupying covered ,,pas positions and the status1 within the ,senate advice and consent process1 of individuals nominated for covered ,,pas positions4 7#b7 ,design ,the ,comptroller ,general shall ensure that the ,,pas ,tracker1 in addition to tracking each covered ,,pas position throughout the ,senate advice and consent process1 publishes information1 and displays the information through graphics and charts1 on trends and analyses of all covered ,,pas positions1 including-- 7,a7 data and trends broken down by positions with the same title1 including the percentage of covered ,,pas positions that-- 7i7 are occupied by an official confirmed by the ,senate2 7ii7 are occupied by an acting official2 or 7iii7 are not occupied by any official2 7,b7 data and trends broken down by ,senate committees of jurisdiction1 including the percentage of covered ,,pas positions that-- 7i7 are occupied by an official confirmed by the ,senate2 7ii7 are occupied by an acting official2 or 7iii7 are not occupied by any official2 7,c7 data and trends broken down by executive branch agency and components thereof1 including the percentage of covered ,,pas positions that-- 7i7 are occupied by an official confirmed by the ,senate2 7ii7 are occupied by an acting official2 or 7iii7 are not occupied by any official2 and 7,d7 the percentage of all covered ,,pas positions that-- 7i7 are occupied by an official confirmed by the ,senate2 7ii7 are occupied by an acting official2 or 7iii7 are not occupied by any official4 7#c7 ,consistent information 7,a7 ,in general ,in establishing and maintaining the ,,pas tracker1 the ,comptroller ,general shall-- 7i7 collect data from all executive branch agencies and components thereof2 and 7ii7 assess and utilize data available to the ,comptroller ,general on covered ,,pas positions1 including information provided by the ,library of ,congress and the ,office of ,personnel ,management4 7,b7 ,relation to ,,plum reporting website ,the ,comptroller ,general and the ,director of ,,opm shall work in coordination to ensure that-- 7i7 all relevant information displayed on both the ,,plum reporting website and the ,,pas ,tracker is consistent and accurate2 and 7ii7 there is a process to both regularly review data across the #b sources described in clause 7i7 and address any discrepancies in a timely fashion4 7#d7 ,data collected and published 7,a7 ,coordination2 data agreements ,to the maximum extent practicable1 the ,comptroller ,general shall coordinate with the ,librarian of ,congress1 the ,director of ,,opm1 and the ,secretary of the ,senate1 and enter into relevant data agreements with the ,librarian of ,congress and the ,director of ,,opm1 to enable the ,comptroller ,general to carry out paragraph 7#c7 and subparagraph 7,c7 of this paragraph and to facilitate the ,secretary's implementation of subparagraph 7,b77ii7 of this paragraph4 7,b7 ,information on new ,,pas positions 7i7 ,reporting by committees ,each committee of the ,senate or the ,house of ,representatives shall report to the ,secretary of the ,senate the titles and number of new covered ,,pas positions that would be created under-- 7,i7 any legislation that is ordered reported by the committee1 not later than #cj days after the legislation is ordered reported2 or 7,,ii7 any amendment on the floor of the ,senate or the ,house of ,representatives1 respectively1 to legislation that is within the jurisdiction of the committee1 not later than #cj days after the amendment is agreed to4 7ii7 ,reporting by ,secretary of the ,senate ,annually1 the ,secretary of the ,senate shall issue a report to ,congress and the ,comptroller ,general containing the titles and number of covered ,,pas positions that were created under legislation that was enacted into law during the year covered by the report4 7,c7 ,data ,the ,comptroller ,general shall collect1 and publish through the ,,pas ,tracker in a searchable1 sortable1 downloadable1 machine-readable format1 the following data3 7i7 ,each covered ,,pas position1 including-- 7,i7 any covered ,,pas position that has never been occupied or is not occupied as of the date of publication by an official confirmed by the ,senate1 including a covered ,,pas position identified under subparagraph 7,b77ii72 and 7,,ii7 any covered ,,pas position on a board or commission that is administratively inactive1 as indicated in the ,federal ,advisory ,committee ,act database4 7ii7 ,for each covered ,,pas position1 the following information3 7,i7 ,all the information for the covered ,,pas position that is included on the ,,plum reporting website pursuant to subsections 7b7 and 7c7 of section #cccj;f of title #e1 ,united ,states ,code4 7,,ii7 ,for any covered ,,pas position that is not occupied by an official confirmed by the ,senate or an acting official-- 7aa7 the dates on which the acting official who most recently served in the covered ,,pas position1 if any1 began serving and ceased serving1 respectively1 in the covered ,,pas position2 7bb7 the date on which an individual was most recently appointed to the covered ,,pas position2 7cc7 the date on which a nomination for the covered ,,pas position was most recently submitted to the ,senate2 and 7dd7 whether any statute specific to the executive branch agency governs the filling of the position4 7,,iii7 ,each key ,senate advice and consent process milestone collected on congress4gov1 including the date of the nomination for the covered ,,pas position1 the date of the nomination hearing1 the date of the committee vote1 the date of each vote of the ,senate1 and the date of final confirmation4 7,,iv7 ,the dates on which the official who most recently served in the covered ,,pas position began serving and ceased serving1 respectively1 in the covered ,,pas position1 including in an acting capacity4 7,v7 ,in the case of an acting official currently serving in the covered ,,pas position1 if no nomination has extended the time limit under section #ccdf of title #e1 ,united ,states ,code1 and to the maximum extent practicable1 the number of days for which the official may continue to serve in an acting capacity before violating such section #ccdf4 7,d7 ,facilitation of collection and publication of data 7i7 ,,faca data ,in order to assist the ,comptroller ,general in carrying out subparagraph 7,c77i77,,ii71 the ,committee ,management ,secretariat of the ,general ,services ,administration shall provide information regarding any board or commission that is administratively inactive to the ,comptroller ,general1 the ,director of ,,opm1 and ,congress not less than twice each year4 7ii7 ,agency-specific statutes governing filling vacant positions ,the ,comptroller ,general shall carry out subparagraph 7,c77ii77,,ii77dd7 in coordination with the applicable executive branch agency and the ,office of ,legal ,counsel of the ,department of ,justice4 7#e7 ,coordination with ,,opm regarding acting officials ,in the case of an individual serving in a covered ,,pas position in an acting capacity1 the ,comptroller ,general shall coordinate with the ,director of ,,opm to align1 and resolve any discrepancies between-- 7,a7 information reported to the ,office of ,personnel ,management about the individual2 and 7,b7 the information posted on the ,,pas ,tracker about the individual under paragraph 7#d77;,c77ii77,v74 7#f7 ,agency reports regarding positions without ,senate-confirmed officials ,for purposes of paragraph 7#d77;,c77ii77,v71 in the case of any covered ,,pas position that is not occupied by an official confirmed by the ,senate1 the executive branch agency shall report to the ,comptroller ,general not later than #e days after the date on which an individual is designated to serve in the position in an acting capacity4 7#g7 ,agency reports regarding start and end dates ,not later than #aj days after the date on which an official begins serving or ceases serving in a covered ,,pas position1 including in an acting capacity1 the executive branch agency shall report that start date or end date1 respectively1 to the ,comptroller ,general and the ,director of ,,opm4 7c7 ,position unique identifiers 7#a7 ,plan and process for implementation ,not later than #a year after the date of enactment of this ,act1 the ,comptroller ,general1 in coordination with the ,director of ,,opm1 the ,librarian of ,congress1 and the ,secretary of the ,senate1 shall establish a plan and process for implementation of a unique identifier for each covered ,,pas position that enables public-facing resources1 including the ,,pas ,tracker1 the ,,plum reporting website1 and congress4gov1 to have consistent and accurate information on covered ,,pas positions4 7#b7 ,congressional briefing ,no later than #cj days after establishing the plan and process for implementation under paragraph 7#a71 the ,comptroller ,general1 the ,director of ,,opm1 the ,librarian of ,congress1 and the ,secretary of the ,senate shall brief the appropriate congressional committees on the plan and process for implementation4 7d7 ,reports 7#a7 ,agency reports of ,senate-confirmed positions ,in addition to updating the ,,pas ,tracker1 each year1 on a date determined by the ,comptroller ,general in coordination with the ,director of ,,opm and taking into consideration the ,director's schedule for collecting data for the ,,plum reporting website1 the head of each executive branch agency shall submit to the ,comptroller ,general and the ,director of ,,opm the following information3 7,a7 ,a list of each covered ,,pas position in the executive branch agency1 including identification of any change to the title of any such covered ,,pas position1 along with the total number of covered ,,pas positions in the executive branch agency4 7,b7 ,each covered ,,pas position newly established in the executive branch agency by statute since the previous submission of information under this paragraph4 7,c7 ,the number of covered ,,pas positions that each covered ,,pas position in the executive branch agency reports to4 7#b7 ,,gao reports to ,congress on noncompliant agencies ,annually1 the ,comptroller ,general shall submit to the appropriate congressional committees a report that indicates any executive branch agency that has not provided information1 or has provided incomplete information1 under paragraph 7#a74 7#c7 ,biennial ,,gao reports 7,a7 ,in general ,not less frequently than once every #b years for #aj years1 the ,comptroller ,general shall review the implementation of this section and publish and submit to ,congress a report containing the findings of the review4 7,b7 ,contents ,the ,comptroller ,general shall include in each review under subparagraph 7,a7-- 7i7 a review of the accuracy and timeliness of information provided in the ,,pas ,tracker2 7ii7 an analysis of all covered ,,pas positions1 including-- 7,i7 an indication of any covered ,,pas position that is on an inactive board or commission within an executive branch agency or for which an individual has not been nominated or confirmed for a period of more than #h years1 which may be a good candidate for elimination or for removal of the ,senate advice and consent requirement2 7,,ii7 an analysis of any impact vacancies in covered ,,pas positions have had on the performance and operation of executive branch agencies2 and 7,,iii7 recommendations for additional data needed to understand the impacts of vacancies in covered ,,pas positions2 7iii7 a review of any challenges experienced by1 and best practices used by1 the ,comptroller ,general1 the ,director of ,,opm1 or executive branch agencies in quickly obtaining accurate information required to implement this section2 and 7iv7 a determination of-- 7,i7 each covered ,,pas position that was not occupied by an official confirmed by the ,senate for any period of more than #cfe days during the preceding #b-year period2 7,,ii7 each covered ,,pas position that was not occupied by an official confirmed by the ,senate or an acting official1 and for which no individual had been nominated1 for any period of more than #cfe days during the preceding #b-year period2 and 7,,iii7 any covered ,,pas position that may not need or benefit from the advice and consent of the ,senate4 7#d7 ,committee briefings 7,a7 ,initial briefing ,not later than #a year after the date of enactment of this ,act1 the ,comptroller ,general shall brief the appropriate congressional committees on the status of the development of the ,,pas ,tracker1 including a review of-- 7i7 any difficulties the ,comptroller ,general is experiencing in acquiring data needed to complete the ,,pas ,tracker in accordance with this section2 and 7ii7 any challenges executive branch agencies have reported experiencing in providing the information required under this section4 7,b7 ,second briefing ,not later than #ahj days after the date on which the ,comptroller ,general establishes the ,,pas ,tracker1 the ,comptroller ,general shall brief the appropriate congressional committees on the status of the ,,pas ,tracker1 including an assessment of-- 7i7 the implementation of the ,,pas ,tracker2 and 7ii7 the key challenges and successes in implementing the ,,pas ,tracker4 7e7 ,authorization of appropriations ,there are authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be necessary to carry out this section4