,,ii #aaith ,,congress #ast ,session ,s4 #bdgd ,,in ,,the ,,senate ,,of ,,the ,,united ,,states ,july #bh1 #bjbe ,ms4 ,hassan 7for herself and ,mr4 ,daines7 introduced the following bill2 which was read twice and referred to the ,committee on ,health1 ,education1 ,labor1 and ,pensions ,a ,,bill ,to require the ,secretary of ,labor to appoint an ,advocate for ,employee ,ownership within the ,employee ,ownership ,initiative1 and for other purposes4 #a4 ,short title ,this ,act may be cited as the ,advocate for ,employee ,ownership ,act4 #b4 ,establishment of the advocate for employee ownership 7a7 ,in general ,subtitle ,a of title ,,iii of the ,employee ,retirement ,income ,security ,act of #aigd 7#bi ,u4,s4,c4 #abja et seq47 is amended by adding at the end the following3 #cjje4 ,advocate for employee ownership 7a7 ,in general ,the ,secretary of ,labor shall appoint an ,advocate for ,employee ,ownership within the ,employee ,ownership ,initiative established under section #cdf7;b77#a7 of the ,,secure #b4j ,act of #bjbb 7division ,t of the ,consolidated ,appropriations ,act1 #bjbc 7,public ,law #aag-cbh774 ,the appointment shall be made without regard to the provisions of title #e1 ,united ,states ,code1 relating to appointments in the competitive service or ,senior ,executive ,service4 7b7 ,duties ,the ,advocate for ,employee ,ownership shall-- 7#a7 consult with the head of the ,employee ,ownership ,initiative established under section #cdf7;b77#a7 of the ,,secure #b4j ,act of #bjbb 7division ,t of the ,consolidated ,appropriations ,act1 #bjbc 7,public ,law #aag-cbh772 7#b7 act as a liaison between the ,department of ,labor1 employee ownership advocates1 employers considering employee ownership1 workers interested in employee ownership1 and other stakeholders1 including employee stock ownership plan sponsors and participants2 7#c7 provide public education and assistance related to the expansion of employee ownership through the establishment and maintenance of practices that promote employee ownership1 including the use of employee stock ownership plans2 7#d7 provide assistance for purposes of resolving a dispute between the ,department of ,labor and any employee stock ownership plan sponsor1 fiduciary1 or participant and help facilitate communication between such entities and the ,department of ,labor for such purposes2 7#e7 identify and recommend potential legislative and administrative changes1 including related to access to capital issues1 to increase practices that promote employee ownership plans1 including the use of employee stock ownership plans2 and 7#f7 coordinate with other ,federal agencies1 including the ,administrator of the ,small ,business ,administration1 the ,secretary of the ,treasury1 and the ,secretary of ,commerce1 and ,state and local governments on outreach and education to inform employees and employers about the possibilities and benefits of employee ownership as a business ownership succession planning option4 7c7 ,consultation and input ,the ,secretary of ,labor shall solicit advice and input from the ,advocate for ,employee ,ownership in developing regulations or interpretations of this ,act that relate to employee stock ownership plans4 7d7 ,compensation ,the ,advocate for ,employee ,ownership shall be entitled to compensation at the same rate as the rate of basic pay in effect for a position at level ,v of the ,executive ,schedule under section #ecaf of title #e1 ,united ,states ,code4 7e7 ,annual report 7#a7 ,in general ,not later than ,december #ca of each calendar year beginning after the date of enactment of this section1 the ,advocate for ,employee ,ownership shall submit a report to the ,committee on ,health1 ,education1 ,labor1 and ,pensions of the ,senate and the ,committee on ,education and ,workforce of the ,house of ,representatives on the activities of the ,office of the ,advocate for ,employee ,ownership during the fiscal year ending during such calendar year1 including the contents described in paragraph 7#b74 7#b7 ,contents ,each report submitted under paragraph 7#a7 shall-- 7,a7 summarize the assistance requests received by the ,advocate for ,employee ,ownership during the fiscal year ending during the calendar year of such report2 7,b7 describe the activities1 including the activities described under paragraphs 7#c7 and 7#d7 of subsection 7b71 and evaluate the effectiveness of the ,advocate for ,employee ,ownership during such fiscal year2 7,c7 describe any significant problems the ,advocate for ,employee ,ownership has identified during such fiscal year and ways to mitigate such problems2 7,d7 contain recommendations for any administrative or legislative action that may be appropriate to resolve barriers to1 and to incentivize1 practices that promote employee ownership1 including the use of employee stock ownership plans2 and 7,e7 describe progress related to employee ownership in businesses in the ,united ,states4 7#c7 ,concurrent submission ,the ,advocate for ,employee ,ownership shall submit a copy of each report submitted under paragraph 7#a7 to the ,secretary of ,labor1 and any other appropriate official1 at the same time such report is submitted under paragraph 7#a74 7#d7 ,public availability ,the ,advocate for ,employee ,ownership shall make a copy of each report submitted under paragraph 7#a7 available to the public4 7#e7 ,definition of employee stock ownership plan ,for purposes of this section1 the term employee stock ownership plan has the meaning given the term in section #dige7;e77#g7 of the ,internal ,revenue ,code of #aihf4 7f7 ,authorization of appropriations ,there is authorized to be appropriated such sums as may be necessary to carry out subsection 7d74 4 7b7 ,clerical amendment ,the table of contents in section #a of the ,employee ,retirement ,income ,security ,act of #aigd 7#bi ,u4,s4,c4 #ajja note7 is amended by inserting after the item relating to section #cjjd the following new item3 ,sec4 #cjje4 ,advocate for employee ownership4 4