Legislative Branch Appropriations Bill, 2021
Summary
Report 116-447 of the 116th Congress, 2d Session, dated July 14, 2020, from the Committee on Appropriations on H.R. 7611, the Legislative Branch Appropriations Bill, 2021, submitted by Mr. Ryan together with minority views. The bill makes appropriations for the Legislative Branch for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2021, and the index covers items from the House of Representatives to the Capitol Police. In the closing minority views, Kay Granger and Jaime Herrera Beutler say they are disappointed that the Majority party included controversial policy riders that will need to be reversed or modified, while thanking Chairman Ryan and his staff.
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“Legislative Branch Appropriations Bill, 2021.”
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116TH CONGRESS REPORT
" HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES !
2d Session 116–447
LEGISLATIVE BRANCH APPROPRIATIONS BILL, 2021
JULY 14, 2020.—Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the State of
the Union and ordered to be printed
Mr. RYAN, from the Committee on Appropriations,
submitted the following
R E P O R T
together with
MINORITY VIEWS
[To accompany H.R. 7611]
The Committee on Appropriations submits the following report in
explanation of the accompanying bill making appropriations for the
Legislative Branch for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2021,
and for other purposes.
INDEX TO BILL AND REPORT
Page Number
Bill Report
Highlights of Bill ........................................................................................ ........ 2
Title I—Legislative Branch Appropriations ............................................. 2 7
House of Representatives ................................................................... 2 7
Joint Items:
Joint Economic Committee ......................................................... 13 18
Committee on Taxation ............................................................... 14 18
Office of the Attending Physician ............................................... 14 19
Office of Congressional Accessibility Services ........................... 15 19
Capitol Police ....................................................................................... 15 19
Office of Congressional Workplace Rights ........................................ 17 23
Congressional Budget Office .............................................................. 17 23
Architect of the Capitol (except Senate Office Buildings) ............... 18 24
Library of Congress ............................................................................. 22 31
Government Publishing Office ........................................................... 28 37
Government Accountability Office ..................................................... 33 38
Open World Leadership Center Trust Fund ..................................... 34 40
John C. Stennis Center for Public Service Training and Develop-
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ment .................................................................................................. 35 40
Title II—General Provisions ...................................................................... 35 40
40–818
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Page Number
Bill Report
Bill-wide Reporting Requirements ............................................................ ........ 41
Minority Views ........................................................................................... ........ 72
HIGHLIGHTS OF THE BILL
The bill recommended by the Committee provides modest fund-
ing increases to support the staffing and other resources needed to
help Congress do its job well, maintain and build analytical capac-
ity to support lawmaking and oversight, and address high-priority
needs in areas such as information technology (IT) and security.
The legislation appropriates a total of $4,198,047,000 in fiscal
year 2021, which is $206,867,000 (5.2 percent) more than the com-
parable amount for fiscal year 2020. These appropriations support
the operations of the House of Representatives, the care and pres-
ervation of the historic buildings in which Congress works, and
agencies that provide research and analysis to assist the legislative
process. They also support other institutions such as the Library of
Congress, one of the leading repositories of knowledge and culture
in the world, as well as the Government Publishing Office.
In keeping with longstanding practice under which each chamber
of Congress determines its housekeeping requirements and the
other concurs without intervention, the bill does not include funds
for the Senate or Senate office buildings. Similarly, the Senate will
consider a Legislative Branch appropriations bill that addresses
Senate but not House funding.
House of Representatives Overview: The budget of the House of
Representatives is significantly smaller than it was at the begin-
ning of this decade, primarily because of a series of budget cuts en-
acted during fiscal years 2011 through 2013. The Committee has
heard concerns from Members of Congress and outside observers
that existing funding levels are hampering the ability of the House
to do its jobs of developing legislation to meet national needs, pro-
viding oversight of government operations, and assisting constitu-
ents in their dealings with government. The bill’s funding levels
represent a modest step towards addressing these issues.
As in previous years, three accounts together make up three-
quarters of the House of Representatives budget: Members’ Rep-
resentational Allowances (MRA), Committee salaries and expenses,
and ‘‘Government Contributions’’ (which covers payroll taxes and
benefit costs for all House employees).
Member Cost of Living Adjustment: The bill includes language
(section 213) that blocks the cost of living adjustment for Members
of Congress for fiscal year 2021.
MRA: The Committee recommends $640,000,000 for the MRA in
fiscal year 2021, $25,000,000 more than in the prior year.
Allowance for Paid Interns: The 2020 Legislative Branch Appro-
priations Act established an allowance for paid interns in Members’
offices. This was done in recognition of the importance of intern-
ships in gaining work experience and opening doors to future em-
ployment and that many well-qualified candidates are simply not
in a financial position to work as interns without pay, especially in
a high-cost area like Washington, D.C. The bill continues to sup-
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port this program, and the Committee recommends $11,025,000 for
the intern allowance in fiscal year 2021, equal to the prior year.
The Committee strongly believes in the importance of this allow-
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ance and, in a normal year, would have provided additional fund-
ing. However, due to social distancing recommendations by the Of-
fice of the Attending Physician, the Committee is concerned about
intern capacity for fiscal year 2021 in Washington, D.C. as well as
district offices.
Committee Expenses: The Committee recommends $162,825,000
for the expenses of House Committees, a $3,197,000 increase above
the prior year. This amount will support the funding allocated to
Committees for 2021 by House Resolution 245, adopted in the first
session of the 116th Congress.
House Officers and Support Agencies: The Committee-rec-
ommended bill provides $254,781,000, $22,878,000 more than in
fiscal year 2020 for the salaries and expenses of House officers and
employees, including the offices of the Clerk of the House, Sergeant
at Arms, Chief Administrative Officer (CAO), Parliamentarian, and
Legislative Counsel, among others. Most of the increases are tar-
geted to IT and security needs, including modernization of the
House Legislative Information Management System, upgrades at
House Information Resources including further movement toward
cloud computing and strengthening cybersecurity, and replacement
of the badly outdated emergency announcement system in the Cap-
itol and House office buildings. In this report, the Committee di-
rects the CAO to provide quarterly status reports on IT upgrade ef-
forts, including project milestones and spending targets. Further-
more, the CAO is directed to provide no later than the fifth of each
month the monthly obligations report. The Committee finds this re-
port extremely useful when making funding decisions.
The recommended bill continues funding for two new offices es-
tablished by the House at the beginning of the 116th Congress:
$1,500,000 for the Office of Diversity and Inclusion which is an in-
crease of $500,000 above the request and $1,000,000 for the Office
of the Whistleblower Ombudsman which is $250,000 above the re-
quest.
House Studies: The Committee has received requests and sugges-
tions from Members of the House and other interested parties for
various proposals which warrant further study and consideration,
including development of House-wide policy for medical leave for
employees, as well as a possible tuition assistance program. The
Committee is requesting the appropriate House offices to study and
report on these and other issues.
Congressional Budget Office (CBO): The Committee’s bill includes
$57,292,000 for the Congressional Budget Office, $2,351,000 more
than in fiscal year 2020. This funding level will allow CBO to con-
tinue and modestly increase its efforts to improve modeling and an-
alytical capability in critical areas and to make its work as trans-
parent and accessible as possible. In addition, this funding level
will allow CBO to fully implement the multiyear staffing plan that
was the basis for the agency’s funding increases in 2019 and 2020.
Library of Congress: For the Library of Congress, including the
Copyright Office, Congressional Research Service, and National Li-
brary Service for the Blind and Print Disabled, the Committee rec-
ommends a total of $752,750,000 in fiscal year 2021, an increase
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of $27,391,000 over the prior year. This funding level will allow
continued progress on IT and cybersecurity needs and on mod-
ernization of systems for copyright registration and recordation. It
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will also support ongoing Library initiatives such as the Veterans’
History Project and necessary infrastructure improvements for the
Law Library. The Library is directed to support a study conducted
by an outside neutral expert organization to recommend the appro-
priate path forward for the Library’s preservation efforts.
The Committee recommendation includes $10,000,000 for a third
installment of funding for the Library’s Visitor Experience initia-
tive, subject to the Committee’s review of the specific plans, cost es-
timates, and schedules for the initiative. It also includes $7,375,000
for modernizing the website that handles distribution of audio and
braille reading materials at the National Library Service and for
purchase of braille e-readers and talking book machines.
Government Accountability Office (GAO): The Committee rec-
ommends $664,346,000 for the GAO, which is an increase of
$34,346,000 over fiscal year 2020. This level should allow the GAO
to sustain recent increases in staffing to handle its large workload
and begin to address its IT and building renovation needs.
Capitol Police: The Committee recommends $464,341,000 for the
Capitol Police, equal to fiscal year 2020. Included within the total
is $3,600,000 for the Joint Audible Warning System (JAWS).
Federal Law Enforcement.—The Committee notes that the Com-
merce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act,
2021 directs the Attorney General to establish a training program
to cover the use of force and de-escalation, racial profiling, implicit
bias, and procedural justice, to include training on the duty of Fed-
eral law enforcement officers to intervene in cases where another
law enforcement officer is using excessive force, and make such
training a requirement for Federal law enforcement officers. The
Committee further notes that several Departments and agencies
funded by this Act employ Federal law enforcement officers and are
Federal Law Enforcement Training Centers partner organizations.
The Committee directs such Departments and agencies to adopt
and follow the training program established by the Attorney Gen-
eral, and to make such training a requirement for its Federal law
enforcement officers. The Committee further directs such Depart-
ments and agencies to brief the House and Senate Committees on
Appropriations on their efforts relating to training no later than 90
days after the Attorney General has established such a training
program.
In addition, the Committee directs such Departments and agen-
cies, to the extent that such Departments and agencies have not al-
ready done so, to submit their use of force data to the Federal Bu-
reau of Investigation (FBI)’s National Use of Force Data Collection
database. The Committee further directs such Departments and
agencies to brief the House and Senate Committees on Appropria-
tions no later than 90 days after enactment of this Act on their cur-
rent efforts to tabulate and submit its use of force data to the FBI.
Architect of the Capitol (AOC): The Committee recommends
$631,268,000 for the AOC, $31,579,000 more than in fiscal year
2020. (These totals do not include appropriations for Senate Office
Buildings, which, as is customary, are left to the sole consideration
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of the Senate). Multi-year construction projects will be funded at
$95,800,000, almost 60 percent of the total funding requested, in-
cluding funding for Storage Module 7 at Ft. Meade for the Library
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of Congress. $62,000,000 is provided for continuing work on the
Cannon Building revitalization project.
Office of Congressional Workplace Rights: The bill includes
$7,500,000 for the Office of Congressional Workplace Rights,
$1,167,000 more than fiscal year 2020. This funding will provide
the resources needed to continue to implement the Congressional
Accountability Reform Act changes enacted in 2018.
Technology Assessment: There has been interest among some
Members during the past several years in reinstituting the Office
of Technology Assessment (OTA), which had provided technology
assessment analysis for Congress until its de-funding in 1995. The
Committee responded to this interest by requesting the National
Academy of Public Administration (NAPA) to recommend whether
Congress should re-start OTA or take other action. The NAPA re-
port, released in November, 2019, recommended that OTA should
not be re-started and instead that GAO and the Congressional Re-
search Service should expand their technology assessment efforts.
As a result, the bill increases funding for GAO to strengthen its
new Science, Technology Assessment, and Analytics (STAA) team.
The Committee has been pleased with STAA’s initial efforts, but
will continue to review its work to see if other steps are needed in
the future.
Employment of DACA Recipients: The bill recommended by the
Committee includes legislative language permitting all the Legisla-
tive Branch agencies it funds to employ ‘‘Dreamers’’ that is, resi-
dents of the United States brought to this country as children with-
out proper immigration status who hold employment authorization
under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (‘‘DACA’’) pro-
gram. Despite that employment authorization, use of appropriated
funds to hire DACA enrollees is not currently permitted because of
a government-wide provision carried annually in the Financial
Services and General Government Appropriations Act. That provi-
sion prohibits the use of funds to employ people who are not U.S.
citizens and do not hold one of several listed types of immigration
status, a list that doesn’t currently include DACA work authoriza-
tion. Pending any government-wide resolution of this issue, the
Committee recommends welcoming these members of the national
community to seek employment in the Legislative Branch.
LEGISLATIVE BRANCH-WIDE MATTERS
Offensive U.S. Capitol Statuary: The bill includes language di-
recting the Architect to remove the statues or busts in the U.S.
Capitol that represent figures who participated in the Confederate
Army or government, as well as the statues of white supremacists
Charles Aycock, John C. Calhoun, and James Paul Clarke and the
bust of Roger B. Taney. The Architect is instructed to work with
the States who contributed Confederate statues to return them to
the donor State. The placement of statues in the Capitol commemo-
rating men who tried to overthrow the government of the United
States or who were white supremacists has been controversial for
years and offensive to many of the visitors who come to the Capitol
each year. The Committee believes their removal is long overdue.
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Reprogramming Guidelines: The Committee expects all agencies
to notify the Committees on Appropriations of the House and the
Senate (hereinafter ‘‘the Committees’’) of any significant departures
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from budget plans presented to the Committees in any agency’s
budget justifications. In particular, agencies funded through this
bill are required to notify the Committees prior to any reprogram-
ming of funds in excess of the lesser of 10 percent or $750,000 be-
tween programs, projects or activities, or in excess of $750,000 be-
tween object classifications (except for shifts within the pay cat-
egories, object class 11, 12, and 13 or as further specified in each
agency’s respective section). This includes cumulative
reprogrammings that together total at least $750,000 from or to a
particular program, activity, or object classification as well as re-
programming full time equivalents (FTE) or funds to create new or-
ganizational entities within the agency or to restructure entities
which already exist. In addition, the Committees must be notified
of reprogramming actions that involve less than the above-men-
tioned amounts if such actions would have the effect of changing
an agency’s funding requirements in future years or if programs or
projects specifically cited in the Committees’ reports are affected.
Staffing Data in Budget Documents: The Committee continues to
direct the Legislative Branch agencies to include in their budget
justifications data on FTE levels that would actually be supported
by the associated request or enacted funding levels. The Committee
also continues to direct the Legislative Branch Financial Managers
Council to coordinate on a plan for aligning FTE levels with the
Legislative Branch agencies for consistency in reporting.
Zero Base Budgeting: While the Committee continues to direct all
agencies of the Legislative Branch to develop budget requests from
a zero-base, the Committee is concerned that the zero-based budget
documents lack sufficient detail for making funding decisions. The
Committee believes that there is room for improvement and directs
House agencies to work with the Committee to ensure budget docu-
ments contain the necessary information for meaningful savings.
Contracting Opportunities for Minority-Owned Businesses: The
Committee urges all agencies across the Legislative Branch to ex-
plore opportunities to provide minority-owned businesses increased
access to vendor contracts.
Advertising Contracts: The Committee directs each department
and agency to include the following information in its fiscal year
2022 budget justification: Expenditures for fiscal year 2020 for (1)
all contracts for advertising services; and (2) contracts for the ad-
vertising services of (a) socially and economically disadvantaged
small business concerns (as defined in section 8(a)(4) of the Small
Business Act (15 U.S.C. 637(a)(4)); and (b) women- and minority-
owned businesses.
Performance Measures and Customer Service: The Committee be-
lieves that development of organizational priority goals and out-
comes, such as performance outcome measures, output measures,
and efficiency measures, is important for all agencies funded under
this bill. The Committee also notes the importance of implementing
proper customer service standards for agencies that provide direct
services to the public. Development of these service standards
should include identifying and surveying target customers and
tracking internal performance against those standards.
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Childcare Access: Providing access to quality, affordable child
care is critical for retaining staff, and advancing women in the
workplace, who are still disproportionately primary caregivers. The
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Committee strongly supports further investments to further reduce
the waitlist, expand admissions, and ensure quality care at Capitol
complex child care centers.
TITLE I—LEGISLATIVE BRANCH APPROPRIATIONS
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Appropriation, fiscal year 2020 ......................................................... $1,370,725,000
Budget request, fiscal year 2021 ....................................................... 1,530,805,000
Committee recommendation .............................................................. 1,479,819,000
Change from enacted level ............................................................. +109,094,000
Change from request ...................................................................... ¥50,986,000
The Committee recommends $1,479,819,000 for the salaries and
expenses of the House of Representatives. In addition, the
Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act)
(P.L. 116–136) included $25,000,000 for the House of Representa-
tives to prevent, prepare for, and respond to coronavirus, domesti-
cally or internationally. In addition, section 113 rescinds
$3,212,000.
HOUSE LEADERSHIP OFFICES
Appropriation, fiscal year 2020 ......................................................... $28,884,000
Budget request, fiscal year 2021 ....................................................... 28,884,000
Committee recommendation .............................................................. 28,884,000
Change from enacted level ............................................................. 0
Change from request ...................................................................... 0
The Committee recommends $28,884,000 for salaries and ex-
penses of staff in House Leadership offices.
The allocation by office follows:
Office of the Speaker .......................................................................... $8,295,000
Office of the Majority Floor Leader .................................................. 2,947,000
Office of the Majority Whip ............................................................... 2,448,000
Democratic Caucus ............................................................................. 2,340,000
Office of the Minority Floor Leader .................................................. 8,295,000
Office of the Minority Whip ............................................................... 2,219,000
Republican Conference ....................................................................... 2,340,000
MEMBERS’ REPRESENTATIONAL ALLOWANCES
Appropriation, fiscal year 2020 ......................................................... $615,000,000
Budget request, fiscal year 2021 ....................................................... 672,000,000
Committee recommendation .............................................................. 640,000,000
Change from enacted level ............................................................. +25,000,000
Change from request ...................................................................... ¥32,000,000
The Committee recommends $640,000,000 for the MRA.
Analysis of components of the MRA: In H. Report 116–64, the
Committee directed the CAO to produce and submit to the Com-
mittee a report on the adequacy of district office rent allocations in
the MRA in districts where there is no Federal office space avail-
able for rent and districts with above-average market rate rents.
The Committee looks forward to receiving this report in a timely
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manner.
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ALLOWANCE FOR COMPENSATION OF INTERNS IN MEMBER OFFICES
Appropriation, fiscal year 2020 ......................................................... $11,025,000
Budget request, fiscal year 2021 ....................................................... 11,025,000
Committee recommendation .............................................................. 11,025,000
Change from enacted level ............................................................. 0
Change from request ...................................................................... 0
The Committee recommends $11,025,000 for the compensation of
interns who serve in the offices of Members of the House of Rep-
resentatives. This recommendation maintains the intern allowance
cap of $25,000 per Member office.
ALLOWANCE FOR COMPENSATION OF INTERNS IN HOUSE
LEADERSHIP OFFICES
Appropriation, fiscal year 2020 ......................................................... $365,000
Budget request, fiscal year 2021 ....................................................... 365,000
Committee recommendation .............................................................. 365,000
Change from enacted level ............................................................. 0
Change from request ...................................................................... 0
The Committee recommends $365,000 for the compensation of in-
terns who serve in the offices of House Leadership. This rec-
ommendation includes $200,000 for the compensation of interns
who serve in House Leadership offices of the majority, to be allo-
cated among such offices by the Speaker of the House, and
$165,000 for the compensation of interns who serve in House Lead-
ership offices of the minority, to be allocated among such offices by
the Minority Floor Leader.
COMMITTEE EMPLOYEES
Appropriation, fiscal year 2020 ......................................................... $159,628,000
Budget request, fiscal year 2021 ....................................................... 162,825,000
Committee recommendation .............................................................. 162,825,000
Change from enacted level ............................................................. +3,197,000
Change from request ...................................................................... 0
The Committee recommends $162,825,000 in total for Committee
Employees, including $135,000,000 for standing and select Commit-
tees, which should be sufficient to cover the amounts allocated to
Committees (other than the Committee on Appropriations) in
House Resolution 245. The total also includes $24,725,000 for the
Committee on Appropriations and $3,100,000 for committee room
renovations. This account includes funding for salaries and ex-
penses of Committees, including equipment, telecommunications,
printing, contract services, and supplies. Funding is available until
December 31, 2022.
SALARIES, OFFICERS AND EMPLOYEES
Appropriation, fiscal year 2020 ......................................................... $231,903,000
Budget request, fiscal year 2021 ....................................................... 266,742,000
Committee recommendation .............................................................. 254,781,000
Change from enacted level ............................................................. +22,878,000
Change from request ...................................................................... ¥11,961,000
The Committee recommends $254,781,000 for the salaries and
expenses of House officers and employees of the various activities
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funded through this consolidated item.
Following is a summary of the funding allocation provided to
each component of the account:
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Office of the Clerk .............................................................................. $31,975,000
The Committee recommends $31,975,000 for the salaries and ex-
penses of the Office of the Clerk, an increase of $1,209,000 over the
fiscal year 2020 enacted total and a decrease of $849,000 from the
fiscal year 2021 request.
Digital Signatures: The Committee believes that Congressional
staff members need digital options to complete their critical day-to-
day functions, such as collecting signatures for letters. The Com-
mittee requests a report from the Clerk of the House, no later than
90 days after enactment of this Act, on the feasibility of the use
of digital signatures.
Automated Committee Roll Call Voting System: The Committee is
interested in the feasibility, and the costs and requirements for the
implementation of an automated Committee Roll Call Voting Sys-
tem for all Committees. The report should provide cost estimates
with the emphasis on flexible implementation for each Committee
if this action is possible. The report should also address the num-
ber of Committees that may be interested in automated voting.
This report should also consider whether publishing these elec-
tronic votes in a central online database, managed by the House
Clerk, would facilitate other goals of Committee vote transparency
and efficiency. This report shall be submitted no later than 180
days after enactment of this Act.
Cloakroom Dining Options: The Committee recognizes that all
those who work in the House, including Members of Congress,
should have access to healthy foods. The Cloakroom currently of-
fers several eating options which the Office of the Attending Physi-
cian has assessed as healthy food choices. The Committee encour-
ages the Cloakroom staff to continue to evaluate and offer addi-
tional healthy eating options.
Lobbyist Disclosure Unique Identifier: The Committee requests a
report from the Clerk of the House, no later than 60 days after en-
actment of this Act, regarding progress on generating a Congress-
wide unique identifier for lobbyists and disclosing that identifier to
the public as structured data as part of the lobbying disclosure
downloads.
Voting Display Board: The Committee directs the Clerk of the
House to provide a report on the feasibility and cost of installing
additional voting display boards in the House Chamber or on
smaller touch screens at certain exits to assist members in tracking
their votes during a vote series.
Electronic House Functions: The Committee is aware that due to
COVID–19 the Clerk of the House has taken action to make Office
of the Clerk functions electronic. For example, for the official re-
porters, extensions of remarks and general leave statements are
electronic. For legislative operations, Members can now introduce
legislation electronically, add cosponsors, as well as provide con-
stitutional authority statements. The Committee applauds the
Clerk’s forward thinking on these matters and encourages the
Clerk to continue to develop more electronic systems for House
processes. The Committee further directs the Clerk to provide a re-
port detailing these actions as well as the cost of implementation
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of these, and further necessary actions to update the functions of
the Office of the Clerk. This report shall be submitted no later than
180 days after enactment of this Act.
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Facilitating Public Access to Legislative Information: The Com-
mittee encourages the Clerk of the House to explore ways to make
the publication of Legislative Branch information as data more
readily available to the public, which includes providing assistance
to the public with finding and obtaining legislative data; sup-
porting the annual Legislative Data and Transparency Conference;
supporting the Bulk Data Task Force; and other duties as the
House Clerk deems appropriate that promote public or Congres-
sional access to legislative information as data.
Office of the Sergeant at Arms .......................................................... $23,260,000
The Committee recommends $23,260,000 for the salaries and ex-
penses of the Office of the Sergeant at Arms. This represents an
increase of $3,035,000 over the fiscal year 2020 enacted total and
a decrease of $2,826,000 from the fiscal year 2021 request. Half of
the increase ($1,500,000) will support the Sergeant at Arms efforts
to replace the aging wireless emergency annunciator system with
JAWS, which will be used to provide emergency notification during
emergency events to every office, hearing room, meeting room, and
work area of the House.
Digital Communications: The Committee recognizes that Mem-
bers of Congress and their staff frequently use social media and
other digital assets to communicate with their constituents in their
official capacity and in doing so, face growing threats from crimi-
nals and potentially foreign governments looking to impersonate
their online personas, perpetrate fraud or conduct other malicious
activity via these digital channels. The Committee encourages the
Sergeant at Arms to explore technology solutions to actively protect
the digital personas of Members of Congress from fraud, exploi-
tation and abuse.
Additional Security Clearance Report Information: House Report
116–64 directed the Sergeant at Arms to provide a report on Legis-
lative Branch security clearances. The Committee has received the
first of two reports and has concluded that additional information
is necessary. Therefore, the Committee directs the Sergeant at
Arms to also include, in the appropriate format, the number of
clearances disaggregated by security level as well as clearances
pending.
Office of the Chief Administrative Officer ........................................ $171,200,000
The Committee recommends $171,200,000 for the salaries and
expenses of the Office of the CAO. This represents an increase of
$17,650,000 over the fiscal year 2020 enacted total and a decrease
of $9,036,000 from the fiscal year 2021 request.
Contractor Conversions: The Committee recognizes the need to
keep certain services like furniture delivery and removal in-house
rather than delegate this type of work to a contractor. Therefore,
the recommendation includes $1,600,000 to support these con-
tractor conversions.
Electronic Consent: The Committee is aware of the ongoing pilot
to support Member offices with their casework business processes
via a casework privacy release app. The Committee supports the
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CAO’s efforts to investigate these technologies that will provide
electronic document management, accessibility, and the creation of
constituent forms that can be viewed, edited, and electronically
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signed. This type of technology is widely used by businesses and
will improve Member office efficiency, workflow, and provide cost
savings. Implementation of this technology will help Member of-
fices implement new constituent electronic consent authorities
granted under the House-passed H.R. 1079: Creating Advanced
Streamlined Electronic Services for Constituent Act of 2020 or the
‘‘CASE Act’’.
Cloud Technologies: The CAO is encouraged to continue to inves-
tigate and pilot various cloud service options that will provide
House offices with greater accessibility to their files, enhanced col-
laboration tools, and more storage. The Committee supports stand-
ardizing cloud services to strengthen the House’s security posture
and provide Member offices additional support and cost savings.
Digital Workspace Technologies: The Committee recognizes that
the use of digital workspace technologies in Member offices can in-
crease user productivity, enhance cybersecurity, and allow work-
force flexibility for both Congressional staff and Members of Con-
gress. The Committee continues to encourage the exploration of
multi-factor authentication solutions to strengthen the cybersecu-
rity posture of all legislative offices, including strategies and pro-
grams that reduce the total life cycle costs of traditional legacy
workspace infrastructure.
Pay Comparability and Disparities: The issues of pay com-
parability and disparities will be of continuing interest, particularly
as the new Office of Diversity and Inclusion begins its work. The
Committee, therefore, requests that the CAO, working with the Of-
fice of Diversity and Inclusion, explore ways of providing data on
salaries and benefits in the House on an annual basis including
through approaches such as possible use of payroll data and/or in-
formation collected during the employee onboarding process or re-
curring surveys of samples of employees or offices. The CAO should
report its conclusions and recommendations on that subject to the
Committee and the Committee on House Administration.
Intern Diversity: The Committee is concerned about diversity
among interns. The Committee notes that Congressional intern-
ships are often prerequisites to full-time staff positions. Therefore,
the Committee directs the CAO to examine and administer regular
studies of demographic and pay information for interns and provide
these reports concurrently with future budget submissions.
House Compensation Study: The Committee appreciates the ef-
fort to implement the first ever Congressional Staff Salary report
as requested in the fiscal year 2019 report. Given existing realities
of gender and racial pay gaps in America, the Committee is con-
cerned the data collected and findings asserted in the salaries re-
port, where the report details an approximate 50 percent participa-
tion rate, fails to adequately capture the necessary bench-mark
data of which was the goal of the survey. The Committee directs
the CAO to explore options to mandate participation and to re-im-
plement the survey expeditiously.
House Staff Retention Strategy: The Committee is concerned that
according to the recent House of Representatives Compensation
and Diversity Study Report, 53.5 percent of Member office staff are
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not satisfied with their pay, and as a result, 49 percent of those
staffers are considering looking for employment elsewhere. No later
than 180 days after enactment of this Act, the CAO shall produce
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and submit to the Committee a report with recommendations on
how to improve retention and bring staff salaries in line with exec-
utive agency equivalents. The CAO is further directed to solicit
anonymized input from House personnel for suggestions on how to
improve retention and increase staff salaries.
Employee Advocacy: Workplace harassment and discrimination
are an abuse of power and perpetrators must be held accountable
to promote a safe and dignified environment. While there is more
work to be done, Congress took positive action by overhauling its
reporting and dispute resolution process, requiring regular and
anonymous climate surveys and anti-harassment training, and
mandating annual reporting to Congress. Another positive step was
establishing the Office of Employee Advocacy. To continue support
of this office, the Committee recommends $1,491,000 for the Office
to cover additional full-time employees, staff travel to district of-
fices to litigate cases if necessary, and contractor support for court
reporters to transcribe hearings and depositions.
Wellness Program: The Committee continues to support the com-
prehensive wellness program created to support and empower
House staff with resources to navigate the fast pace of working on
Capitol Hill while maintaining a healthy life. Providing employees
with the proper tools leads to higher productivity, increased em-
ployee engagement, and a stronger workforce. These types of pro-
grams help in retaining talented staff. Technology companies that
have embedded wellness programs within their charters are able to
compete and think more creatively as well as manage their high
stress environments. The Committee encourages the House
Wellness Program to gather statistics on the short-term and long-
term effects on House staff who regularly utilize the program offer-
ings. In addition, the Committee recommends $300,000 in this bill
to continue growing the program.
Asset Tracking: The Committee directs the CAO to engage with
stakeholders and allocate resources to address the multi-year sig-
nificant deficiency identified in the House’s Financial Statement
Audit reports related to controls over property and equipment. The
Committee encourages the CAO to explore next-generation tech-
nology, including intelligent organization, to address asset tracking
and inventory management needs.
Food Waste: The Committee is aware that large quantities of
unserved prepared food are being wasted by House cafeterias. The
Committee directs the CAO to submit a report that details ways for
the House of Representatives to donate unserved prepared food to
charitable organizations that serve homeless persons in Wash-
ington, D.C. This report shall be submitted to the Committee no
later than 90 days after the enactment of this Act.
Food Service Workers Study: The Committee is concerned with
the recent layoffs of House cafeteria employees that have led the
remaining employees to shoulder a higher workload, and, as a re-
sult, patrons are receiving a lower quality of customer service. The
Committee directs the CAO to submit a report to this Committee
no later than 90 days after the enactment of this Act detailing the
number of current employees, the number of employees under the
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previous food service provider, and how the current food service
provider is compensating the cafeteria employees for the additional
work. In the same report, the CAO shall include the level of wages
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paid to cafeteria employees and whether this amount is a livable
wage for the Washington, D.C. area.
Emergency Care: The House Wellness Center has contracted with
the Life Care program to provide House staff with technical assist-
ance in a variety of areas, from childcare planning to financial
planning, legal aid, senior care, and caregiving. This service is an
important mechanism to help promote staff retention for employees
facing everyday life challenges. However, the current contract for
Life Care excludes backup care and is thus inconsistent with com-
parable benefits offered by many Federal agencies. Backup care of-
fers staff temporary, alternative coverage for a dependent child
when primary coverage falters. The Committee is interested in pro-
viding backup care as an option for Hill staff and requests the
Wellness Center to provide information to the Committee on what
additional resources would be needed to provide this benefit or an
equivalent alternative to make backup care available.
House-wide Leave Policy: The CAO is urged to examine the feasi-
bility of a House-wide paid family and medical leave policy for
House employees and report its findings no later 180 days after en-
actment of this Act.
House Fitness Center Extended Hours: The Committee is inter-
ested in evaluating current House gym hours for staff and directs
the CAO to conduct a House-wide staff survey on the feasibility of
implementing longer gym hours. The CAO should report its survey
findings on this subject to the Committee no later than 180 days
after enactment of this Act.
Office Equipment: Congressional offices that upgrade their IT are
often left with surplus equipment. Establishing a clear system for
wiping these computers of all data and facilitating their donation
to other Congressional offices or non-profits would support local or-
ganizations and be more environmentally friendly than recycling or
landfilling. Therefore, the Committee supports a program to allow
Members to donate surplus computer equipment to non-profits or
other Congressional offices.
Improved Processes: The Committee notes that there are several
processes within the House that could be improved and stream-
lined through technology, and that modernizing Congress is essen-
tial to its core functions as an institution. For example, all steps
of the flag request process should be submitted through a single
online portal and a universal online onboarding process for new
staff members should be implemented to help new staff become fa-
miliar with all of these processes.
Member Office Staff Cap: The Committee has received requests
and suggestions from Members and other interested parties for
various proposals that warrant further study and consideration, in-
cluding lifting the cap on the number of full-time staff a Member
of the House is able to employ. The Committee recognizes that each
Member office has its own plans for staff and personnel organiza-
tion and that the Members of the Senate have no such cap on full-
time staff. The Committee is requesting the appropriate House of-
fices study and report on these issues. In addition this study should
also address additional staff capacity for a district that has been
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impacted by a federally declared natural disaster.
Single-Use Plastic Products: The Committee is committed to re-
ducing the use of single-use plastic products on the Capitol
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grounds. The Committee encourages the elimination of single-use
plastic products, including lightweight plastic carryout bags, food
and drinkware from expanded polystyrene, plastic stirrers, plastic
utensils, and plastic straws. Such elimination shall be carried out
in consultation with disability advocacy groups. Finally, the bill in-
cludes a general provision (section 210) addressing this issue as
well.
Eligible Congressional Member Organization (eCMO): The Com-
mittee notes that the eCMO process was set up in the 114th Con-
gress to streamline the documentation process and ease of proc-
essing paperwork. The process outlined in House Rules, was
amended in the beginning of the 116th Congress to lower require-
ments for more participation of smaller CMOs. The Committee on
House Administration (CHA) adopted regulations that defined the
required paperwork for establishing and appointing staff to eCMOs
in Committee Resolution 116–06. The CAO is directed to provide
an assessment of current procedures and provide recommendations
for more efficiencies should they exist no later than 120 days after
enactment of this Act.
Staff Tuition Remission: The CAO is directed to study the feasi-
bility of a tuition remission program for House of Representative
employees in addition to the student loan repayment program cur-
rently in effect. The CAO shall share its findings with the Com-
mittee on Appropriations and CHA in a report no later than 180
days after enactment of this Act.
Office of Diversity and Inclusion ....................................................... $1,500,000
The Committee is encouraged by the establishment of the Office
of Diversity and Inclusion. The Committee supports the efforts to
staff the Office and the implementation of the House Diversity
Plan.
Witness Diversity: The Committee is aware of the diversity pilot
initiative launched in January 2020 to track the diversity of the ex-
pert witnesses who testify before Congress through an optional sur-
vey shared along with the required Truth In Testimony Form to
outside witnesses. The diversity initiative aims to ensure that a di-
versity of voices and perspectives are considered by all Committees
to ensure inclusive policies and legislation that benefit the entire
country. The Committee strongly supports this initiative and looks
forward to the results of the effort.
Committee Internships: The Committee recognizes that intern-
ships often serve as the gateway for careers in Congressional of-
fices or even as Members of Congress. Unpaid internships raise
barriers to participating that are steepest for the economically dis-
advantaged and members of historically underrepresented groups.
Paid internships may make the House even more representative.
Progress has been made by providing paid internships in Member
and Leadership offices, but given the importance of committees to
the legislative process, the Committee recognizes that the case for
providing funding for paid internships for committees may be at
least equally as strong. The Committee requests that the CAO and
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the Office of Diversity and Inclusion prepare options for providing
paid internships for majority and minority staff at the committee
and/or subcommittee level. This report should be presented to the
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Committee on Appropriations and to the Committee on House Ad-
ministration no later than 120 days after the enactment of this Act.
Office of the Whistleblower Ombudsman ......................................... $1,000,000
Congress plays a critical role in both learning from, and pro-
tecting, whistleblowers. Additionally, its constitutionally mandated
oversight work very often relies on vital disclosures from Federal
workers and employees in the private sector. The House of Rep-
resentatives took an important step during the first session of the
116th Congress in helping whistleblowers by creating the House
Office of the Whistleblower Ombudsman in the Rules Package for
the 116th Congress. The Committee continues to support the Office
of the Whistleblower Ombudsman and recommends $1,000,000 for
that purpose in this bill.
Office of the Inspector General ......................................................... $5,019,000
Office of General Counsel .................................................................. 1,815,000
Office of the Parliamentarian ............................................................ 2,088,000
Office of the Law Revision Counsel of the House ............................ 3,469,000
Office of the Legislative Counsel of the House ................................ 11,937,000
Office of Interparliamentary Affairs ................................................. 934,000
Other authorized employees .............................................................. 584,000
ALLOWANCES AND EXPENSES
Appropriation, fiscal year 2020 ......................................................... $323,920,000
Budget request, fiscal year 2021 ....................................................... 378,964,000
Committee recommendation .............................................................. 379,939,000
Change from enacted level ............................................................. +56,019,000
Change from request ...................................................................... +975,000
The Committee recommends a total of $379,939,000 for allow-
ances and expenses.
The following table summarizes the funding allocation provided
to each major component of the account:
Supplies, materials, administrative costs and Federal tort claims $1,555,000
Official mail (Committees, administrative, and leadership offices) 190,000
Government Contributions ................................................................ 340,000,000
Business Continuity and Disaster Recovery .................................... 18,508,000
Transition Activities ........................................................................... 13,000,000
Wounded Warrior Program ............................................................... 3,975,000
Office of Congressional Ethics ........................................................... 1,711,000
Miscellaneous items ........................................................................... 1,000,000
Government Contributions Actuarial Calculations: The Com-
mittee believes that while the CAO has done a good job of pro-
jecting the need of the Government Contributions account, there is
concern that the projections are becoming more complex due to in-
creased contributions. This account is largely calculated based on
a percentage of the estimated personnel dollars for the budget re-
quest year. The requested increase in funding will support an ap-
proximate 6 percent increase in personnel dollars estimated to be
earned in fiscal year 2021. Furthermore, the increase reflects fund-
ing required to support the effects of changes by the Office of Per-
sonnel Management (OPM) to the agency contributions rates for
the Federal Employees Retirement System categories. Effective Oc-
tober 1, 2020, the FERS agency contribution rate for the House is
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projected to increase from 23.9 percent to 25.7 percent and the
agency contribution for both FERS RAE and FERS FRAE is pro-
jected to increase from 16.3 percent to 17.8 percent. These changes
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will result in an average increase of 9 percent across all three cat-
egories. In order to manage this account, the Committee provides
the CAO with the authority to contract with an actuary to help
project these costs. The Committee further directs the CAO to pro-
vide written notification when this authority is used.
Wounded Warrior Program: The Wounded Warrior program is
one of the House’s most popular initiatives. The program currently
provides 110 two-year fellowship positions for wounded veterans in
Congressional offices. The Committee learned after the fiscal year
2021 budget submission that the Fellowship Program’s fiscal year
2021 request is not sufficient to support the current 95 fellows, the
new 120 fellow cap, and the new Gold Star Program. In order to
make the program whole, the recommendation provides an addi-
tional $975,000 for fiscal year 2021, for a total request of
$3,975,000.
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES MODERNIZATION INITIATIVES ACCOUNT
(INCLUDING TRANSFER OF FUNDS)
Appropriation, fiscal year 2020 ......................................................... 0
Budget request, fiscal year 2021 ....................................................... $10,000,000
Committee recommendation .............................................................. $2,000,000
Change from enacted level ............................................................. +2,000,000
Change from request ...................................................................... ¥8,000,000
The Committee recommends a total of $2,000,000 for the House
of Representatives Modernization Initiatives Account which is
$8,000,000 below the fiscal year 2021 request (Please note that
these funds were initially requested in the CAO’s fiscal year 2021
budget submission). The Select Committee on the Modernization of
Congress [hereafter ‘‘the Select Committee’’] has unanimously
passed 45 recommendations to improve the way Congress works.
The Modernization Initiatives Account is created to help implement
these recommendations. The Committee believes that investing in
these recommendations will improve the efficiency and effective-
ness of the Legislative Branch so that it can better serve the Amer-
ican people.
Bulk Purchasing: The Select Committee recommended that the
CAO leverage the bulk purchasing power of the House of Rep-
resentatives. The CAO should provide a standard suite of quality,
up-to-date devices and software, such as desktop and laptop com-
puters, tablets, printers, mobile phones and desk phones at no cost
to the MRA. The Committee believes that fragmented and duplica-
tive contracts cause inefficiencies and unnecessary costs for Mem-
ber, Committee, and Leadership offices. The Committee rec-
ommends that the CAO negotiate House-wide contracts or pur-
chasing services for Member, Committee, and Leadership offices
with the goal of saving taxpayer dollars by purchasing centrally
rather than independently.
Alternative Legislative Applications: The Committee applauds the
Clerk of the House for updating legislative systems to modernize
House operations and comply with the rules of the House such as
House rule XXI, clause 12 (referred to as the ‘‘Posey Rule’’). The
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Committee is aware of advances made in Commercial-off-the-Shelf
(COTS) products that could be used to expand resources for Mem-
bers and staff. The Committee directs the Clerk, in consultation
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17
with the CAO, to study this issue and develop a list of COTS sys-
tems that can be easily integrated with existing House platforms
leading to increase in productivity and cost savings. Furthermore,
the report should examine the comparative advantages of available
COTS alternatives that have been authorized for use by the Com-
mittee on House Administration for use throughout the House.
This report shall be submitted no later than 90 days after enact-
ment of this Act.
Baseline Technology: The CAO is also encouraged to develop and
pilot baseline tech packages for new Member offices in order to
take advantage of bulk purchasing rates and streamline the proc-
ess of equipping Member offices with necessary technologies. The
CAO, in consultation with the Committee on House Administra-
tion, should determine what constitutes a good, baseline technology
package for Member offices. The CAO may pilot a baseline tech
package with freshman offices, then expand the pilot to other of-
fices accordingly.
Centralized Human Resources: The Committee commends the
recommendations produced by the Select Committee, particularly
those regarding centralized Human Resources. A centralized
human resources program would provide standardized hiring, pro-
moting, and managing guidelines and improve in the retention and
recruitment of a diverse workforce. The Committee requests a re-
port within 120 days of enactment from the CAO on the feasibility
of a centralized Human Resources system.
Website Accessibility: According to the Bureau of the Census,
there are 40.7 million citizens who are non-institutionalized indi-
viduals with a disability, as defined by the Americans with Disabil-
ities Act. Individuals with disabilities should have full digital ac-
cess to government digital properties, especially those made avail-
able by Member offices, including websites, applications, and elec-
tronic document retrieval programs. The Select Committee has
highlighted improving access to Congressional websites for individ-
uals with disabilities as a top priority. The Committee directs the
CAO to provide a report, no later than 90 days after the date of
the enactment of this Act, on the current state of web accessibility
of Member websites and provide a plan that defines the scope,
timeline, and cost estimates for all Member of Congress websites
to be accessible for the disabled. This report shall be submitted to
the Committee and the Committee on House Administration.
Document Standardization: The Committee is supportive of the
Select Committee’s recommendations to adopt standardized formats
for legislative documents and expedite the legislation comparison
project.
Hyperlinks to House Floor Proceedings: The Clerk of the House
in consultation with the Congressional Research Service and other
relevant stakeholders, is directed to report to the Committee no
later than 180 days after enactment of this Act on the feasibility
and cost of hyperlinking Congressional Record entries to video of
floor proceedings on Congress.gov.
ADMINISTRATIVE PROVISIONS
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Section 110 provides for unspent amounts remaining in the
Members’ Representational Allowances account to be used for def-
icit or debt reduction.
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Section 111 places a limitation on the amount available to lease
vehicles.
Section 112 allows cybersecurity assistance for the House of Rep-
resentatives.
Section 113 rescinds amounts in the Stationery, Telecom, and
Page Dorm revolving funds.
Section 114 provides an adjustment to the student loan cap.
Section 115 establishes a House Modernization Initiatives Ac-
count within the Treasury Department.
JOINT ITEMS
JOINT ECONOMIC COMMITTEE
Appropriation, fiscal year 2020 ......................................................... $4,203,000
Budget request, fiscal year 2021 ....................................................... 4,203,000
Committee recommendation .............................................................. 4,203,000
Change from enacted level ............................................................. 0
Change from request ...................................................................... 0
The Committee recommends $4,203,000 for the salaries and ex-
penses of the Joint Economic Committee.
The Joint Economic Committee was created by the Employment
Act of 1946. The primary tasks of the Committee are to review eco-
nomic conditions and to recommend improvements in economic pol-
icy. The Committee performs research and economic analysis and
monitors and analyzes current economic, financial, and employ-
ment conditions.
JOINT COMMITTEE ON TAXATION
Appropriation, fiscal year 2020 ......................................................... $11,563,000
Budget request, fiscal year 2021 ....................................................... 11,905,000
Committee recommendation .............................................................. 11,905,000
Change from enacted level ............................................................. +342,000
Change from request ...................................................................... 0
The Committee recommends $11,905,000 for the salaries and ex-
penses of the Joint Committee on Taxation (JCT).
The JCT operates under the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 and
its predecessors dating to the Revenue Act of 1926. It has responsi-
bility to (1) investigate the operation and effects of internal rev-
enue taxes and the administration of such taxes; (2) investigate
measures and methods for the simplification of such taxes; (3)
make reports to the House Committee on Ways and Means and the
Senate Committee on Finance (or to the House of Representatives
and the Senate) on the results of such investigations and studies
and to make recommendations; and (4) review any proposed refund
or credit of income or estate and gift taxes or certain other taxes
set forth in Code section 6405 in excess of $2,000,000 ($5,000,000
in the case of a C corporation). In addition to these functions that
are specified in the Internal Revenue Code, the Congressional
Budget Act of 1974 requires the JCT to provide revenue estimates
for all tax legislation considered by either the House or the Senate.
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OFFICE OF THE ATTENDING PHYSICIAN
Appropriation, fiscal year 2020 ......................................................... $3,868,000
Budget request, fiscal year 2021 ....................................................... 3,869,000
Committee recommendation .............................................................. 3,869,000
Change from enacted level ............................................................. +1,000
Change from request ...................................................................... 0
The Committee recommends $3,869,000 for the Office of the At-
tending Physician (OAP). In addition, the Coronavirus Aid, Relief,
and Economic Security Act (CARES Act) (P.L. 116–136) included
$400,000 for the OAP to prevent, prepare for, and respond to
coronavirus, domestically or internationally.
Influenza Vaccine Availability: The Committee believes that in-
fluenza remains a threat to Members, staff, and visitors to the
Capitol and is supportive of OAP efforts to provide vaccination to
Members and staff. However, the Committee is concerned by re-
ports of unavailability of immunizations at the beginning of the
2019–2020 flu season. Therefore, the Committee directs the OAP to
provide a briefing on its plans to promote vaccination, ensure ade-
quate supply of vaccine and communicate effectively with Congres-
sional offices about flu season.
OFFICE OF CONGRESSIONAL ACCESSIBILITY SERVICES
SALARIES AND EXPENSES
Appropriation, fiscal year 2020 ......................................................... $1,509,000
Budget request, fiscal year 2021 ....................................................... 1,536,000
Committee recommendation .............................................................. 1,536,000
Change from enacted level ............................................................. +27,000
Change from request ...................................................................... 0
The Committee recommends $1,536,000 for the operation of the
Office of Congressional Accessibility Services (OCAS).
The OCAS provides and coordinates a variety of accessibility
services for individuals with disabilities including Members of Con-
gress, staff and visitors in the United States Capitol Complex.
Accessibility Services Request: The Committee directs the OCAS
to submit a report to the Committees no later than 120 days after
enactment of this Act on the number of interpreter requests the Of-
fice processes each year for deaf and hard-of-hearing staff mem-
bers, interns, and visiting public on Capitol Hill. In addition, the
Committee requests the OCAS to provide recommendations on
what types of deaf and hard-of-hearing technological-assisted de-
vices Capitol Hill staff, interns, and members of the public require
for use in the Capitol, and if increased funding for resources are
needed to help expand opportunities on Capitol Hill for those indi-
viduals.
CAPITOL POLICE
SALARIES
Appropriation, fiscal year 2020 ......................................................... $379,062,000
Budget request, fiscal year 2021 ....................................................... 417,197,000
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Committee recommendation .............................................................. 395,720,000
Change from enacted level ............................................................. +16,658,000
Change from request ...................................................................... ¥21,477,000
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The Committee recommends $395,720,000 for the personnel sala-
ries, benefits, and overtime requirements, to include the cost of
overtime necessary for providing training. The recommendation
provided will sustain the current levels of officers and civilians in
fiscal year 2020. In addition, the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Eco-
nomic Security Act (CARES Act) (P.L. 116–136) included
$12,000,000 for the Capitol Police to prevent, prepare for, and re-
spond to coronavirus, domestically or internationally.
Horse Mounted Units: The Committee commends the efforts by
the United States Capitol Police (USCP) and local law enforcement
partners to enhance patrol coverage on the Capitol grounds with
the deployment of Horse Mounted Units.
Wellness Programs for Law Enforcement: The Committee appre-
ciates the efforts undertaken by the United States Capitol Police to
develop and implement a holistic wellness and resiliency program
for its workforce, to include its partnership with the House
Wellness Center. The Committee recognizes the importance that
mindfulness plays in having a first responder workforce that is ho-
listically balanced and resilient. The Committee is pleased that the
new U.S. Capitol Police structure includes a dedicated FTE to this
program. Therefore, the Committee directs the United States Cap-
itol Police to continue this effort and to continue to collaborate with
the Department of Homeland Security’s Federal Law Enforcement
Training Center to expand this initiative through a pilot program,
so it may be reviewed and considered for full implementation
across all aspects of Federal law enforcement.
Diversity Training: Capitol Police officers interact with thou-
sands of domestic and international visitors every day. Visitors
have varying cultural and social needs, including but not limited
to individuals with limited English proficiency, diverse cultural and
ethnic backgrounds, and disabilities. The Committee recognizes the
U.S. Capitol Police for including diversity training as a part of the
current Capitol Police training sessions and encourages the Capitol
police to continue strengthening its curriculum to ensure service is
provided to all visitors in a culturally competent manner.
Reducing Waste: The Committee is committed to reducing the
use of single-use plastic water bottles on the Capitol grounds. The
Committee encourages the Capitol Police to reduce or eliminate use
of single-use plastic bottles where possible and if possible, issue re-
usable water bottles for Capitol Police personnel.
Use of Grounds: The Committee understands the need to main-
tain safety and order on the Capitol grounds and commends the
Capitol Police for their efforts. Given the family-style neighborhood
that the Capitol shares with the surrounding community the Com-
mittee continues to instruct the Capitol Police to forebear enforce-
ment of 2 U.S.C. 1963 (‘‘An act to protect the public property, turf,
and grass of the Capitol Grounds from injury’’) and the Traffic Reg-
ulations for the United States Capitol Grounds when encountering
snow sled riders on the grounds.
Motorized Devices: Dockless commercial scooters, or e-scooters,
and other motorized devices for rent have grown as a commuting
option for Congressional staffers, tourists, and other visitors to the
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District of Columbia and Capitol Grounds. The Committee recog-
nizes that new and expanding micromobility options in the District
can offer alternatives to car travel and increase access to public
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21
transportation. However, the Committee also believes that these
options create public safety concerns impacting vehicular and pe-
destrian traffic on Capitol Grounds if not appropriately regulated.
The safety and security concerns raised by the USCP and other
members of the Congressional community have been addressed.
Pursuant to the Traffic Regulations for the United States Capitol
Grounds, commercial dockless scooters are prohibited on Capitol
Grounds. On January 31, 2020, United States Capitol Police offi-
cials met with District of Columbia Department of Transportation
(DDOT) officials to discuss public safety concerns regarding
dockless electric scooters unlawfully operating on the United States
Capitol Grounds. An agreement was reached to modify the 2020
Terms and Conditions established by the DDOT for commercial
dockless scooter vendors and these Terms and Conditions now re-
quire commercial dockless scooter vendors to install geofencing on
their vehicles to ensure that commercial dockless scooters do not
enter onto Capitol Grounds consistent with Traffic Regulations for
the United States Capitol Grounds prohibitions. USCP also agreed
to work with DDOT to locate parking for dockless scooters adjacent
to Capitol Grounds. Therefore, the Committee instructs the United
States Capitol Police and the Architect of the Capitol to continue
to work to better educate e-scooter users, including Congressional
staff, District residents, and visitors, regarding the operation of
commercial e-scooters on Capitol Grounds.
Diversity in the USCP: The goal of any organization should be to
build a workforce with people from diverse backgrounds. The Com-
mittee believes that hiring more officers from underrepresented
groups in the U.S. should be a critical priority for the USCP.
Therefore, the Committee directs the USCP to provide a report con-
current with the budget submissions that details: 1) the number of
activities to try to promote workforce diversity, including
partnering with organizations that focus on developing opportuni-
ties for minorities and women; 2) the steps taken to attract and re-
tain a diverse workforce, and; 3) a breakout of USCP positions,
sworn and civilian, by race and gender.
Racial Profiling: The Committee is interested in what programs
and training methods and procedures USCP use to eliminate racial
profiling. The Committee directs the USCP to provide a report to
the Committee on Appropriations and the Committee on House Ad-
ministration detailing: 1) what policies and procedures are in place
at the academy to eliminate unconscious bias and racial profiling
during training; 2) what steps the USCP has taken to eliminate ex-
isting practices that permit or encourage racial profiling; and 3) ar-
rest information disaggregated by race, ethnicity, and gender.
GENERAL EXPENSES
Appropriation, fiscal year 2020 ......................................................... $85,279,000
Budget request, fiscal year 2021 ....................................................... 103,144,000
Committee recommendation .............................................................. 68,621,000
Change from enacted level ............................................................. ¥16,658,000
Change from request ...................................................................... ¥34,523,000
The Committee recommends $68,621,000 for general expenses to
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support the responsibilities for law enforcement, Capitol complex
physical and technological security, dignitary protection, intel-
ligence analysis, event management, hazardous material/devices,
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22
IT, and other specialized responses, as well as logistical and admin-
istrative support.
Arrest Summary Data: The Committee is aware that the U.S.
Capitol Police does publicly share its arrest data, however, it is not
available in a user-friendly format that is searchable, sortable, and
downloadable, and is made available on a cumulative basis. The
Committee directs the U.S. Capitol Police to explore the potential
of developing a system that can meet these requirements and pro-
vide the Committees a report of the cost of such a system no later
than 180 days after enactment of this Act.
USCP Inspector General Reports: The Committee is aware that
the public does not have access to reports issued by the Capitol Po-
lice Office of Inspector General. While the Committee understands
that these reports can be sensitive to law enforcement actions and
Congressional security, the Committee is interested in what reports
can be shared with the general public. The Committee believes that
the Inspector General should make an effort to make appropriate
reports public if they do not compromise law enforcement activities,
national security, or Congressional security and processes without
redaction. Therefore, no later than 90 days after the enactment of
this Act, the Inspector General is directed to conduct a review of
all issued reports within the previous 3 years and provide to the
Committees a report listing which reports could have been made
public.
USCP Information Sharing: While the USCP is not subject to the
Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) (5 USC 552), the Committee
encourages the USCP to develop a policy and procedure for the
sharing of information that follows the spirit of the Freedom of In-
formation Act. This policy should be consistent with, and not inter-
fere with, USCP’s primary function of protecting the Congress.
USCP Public Information Office: USCP communication is vital to
provide accurate and timely information to Members and staff, as
well as the general public that often visits the Capitol Hill Com-
plex. While the USCP does an excellent job of keeping Members
and staff informed, the Committee is concerned that the general
public is often not aware of severe weather events and security in-
cidents while on the complex grounds. The Committee directs the
USCP to establish a community notification system that can be uti-
lized by visitors and community members to allow a larger audi-
ence to receive USCP notifications. The USCP may leverage social
platforms to meet this goal. The Committee further directs the
USCP to provide a report no later than 90 days after the enact-
ment of this Act on its progress to meet this directive.
USCP Jurisdiction: The USCP’s primary mission is to ‘‘Protect
the Congress—its Members, employees, visitors, and facilities—so
it can fulfill its constitutional and legislative responsibilities in a
safe, secure and open environment.’’ The Committee is interested
in how the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) and USCP navi-
gate overlapping jurisdiction and what agreements and regulations
are in place that allows the USCP to operate beyond their primary
and extended jurisdictions. The Committee directs the UCSP to
provide a report that details its working relationship with MPD,
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the number of arrests made beyond USCP’s primary and extended
jurisdictions, and how many times USCP has responded to inci-
dents outside of its jurisdiction, as well as the reason for respond-
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23
ing. This report shall be submitted no later than 90 days after the
enactment of this Act.
ADMINISTRATIVE PROVISION
Section 116 amends 2 USC 1936(c), by increasing the employee
educational assistance program reimbursement limit from $60,000
to $80,000 for student loan repayments.
OFFICE OF CONGRESSIONAL WORKPLACE RIGHTS
SALARIES AND EXPENSES
Appropriation, fiscal year 2020 ......................................................... $6,333,000
Budget request, fiscal year 2021 ....................................................... 7,500,000
Committee recommendation .............................................................. 7,500,000
Change from enacted level ............................................................. +1,167,000
Change from request ...................................................................... 0
The Committee recommends $7,500,000 for salaries and expenses
of the Office of Congressional Workplace Rights as requested. Of
the total, $1,000,000 shall remain available until September 30,
2022.
The Congressional Accountability Act (CAA) established an inde-
pendent Office of Congressional Workplace Rights (OCWR), for-
merly the Office of Compliance, to apply the rights and protections
of 13 Federal labor and employment statutes to employees within
the Legislative Branch. The Office provides administrative dispute
resolution services, safety and health compliance inspections, re-
views of public access for disabled Capitol visitors, labor-manage-
ment relations services, and education and outreach for Members
and staff. In 2018, the Congressional Accountability Act of 1995
Reform Act expanded the Office’s duties and responsibilities, as
well as the number of Legislative Branch offices covered by the
CAA. Increased funding will provide the Office resources needed to
continue the initiatives begun to respond to these new responsibil-
ities, such as upgrading the Office’s secure e-filing system and pro-
ducing new training and educational materials.
CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
SALARIES AND EXPENSES
Appropriation, fiscal year 2020 ......................................................... $54,941,000
Budget request, fiscal year 2021 ....................................................... 57,292,000
Committee recommendation .............................................................. 57,292,000
Change from enacted level ............................................................. +2,351,000
Change from request ...................................................................... 0
The Committee recommends $57,292,000 for salaries and ex-
penses of the CBO.
This office is responsible for producing independent analyses of
budgetary and economic issues to support the Congressional budget
process. Each year, the agency produces dozens of reports, includ-
ing its outlook on the budget and economy, and hundreds of cost
estimates for proposed legislation.
Responsiveness: The Committee continues to expect CBO to en-
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sure a high level of responsiveness to Committees, Leadership and
Members, to the greatest extent practicable under the priorities for
CBO set by law, especially when working on current pending legis-
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24
lation. As an agency that prides itself as being nonpartisan, CBO
should be providing the same information to all stakeholders at the
appropriate time when addressing legislation that has been made
public.
Wage Group Study: The Committee encourages CBO to conduct
a study on the relationship between monetary policy and wage
growth. An emphasis should be placed on examining the accuracy
of the Federal Reserve’s previous estimates of unemployment and
its record of reaching those metrics. An emphasis should also be
placed on studying the interaction of interest rates and wage
growth.
Cost of Legislation: The Committee is interested in the costs and
benefits of allowing lawmakers to request and receive formal cost
estimates of legislation prior to Committee markups. CBO should
examine the feasibility, cost, benefits, and drawbacks of providing
formal cost estimates, and provide guidance on the amount of time
and resources such requests would demand from CBO. The report
should also shall assess how many additional personnel might be
required to accomplish this task. This report should be submitted
to the Committee no later than 180 days after enactment of this
Act.
Access to Data: The CBO provides Congress with budgetary and
economic analysis that supports the legislative process and can
have significant policy implications. The Committee supports the
work CBO has done in the area of responsiveness and recognizes
that CBO’s access to Federal agency data enhances its ability to re-
spond quickly to the Congress. To that end, the Committee re-
quests information pertaining to CBO’s access to Federal agency
data, including both data sources and data sets. The requested in-
formation should be submitted to the Committee no later than 180
days after enactment of this Act.
Advanced Data Management: CBO is charged with providing
Congress with independent analyses of budgetary and economic
issues to support the Congressional budget process. Each year, the
agency’s economists and budget analysts produce dozens of reports
and hundreds of cost estimates for proposed legislation, not to men-
tion thousands of informal analyses upon request. To accomplish
this task, CBO must ingest, analyze, store, manage, secure, and re-
port on a variety of disparate datasets. These data sources and the
complexity of analyses continue to grow. The Committee is con-
cerned that CBO relies on legacy technologies including spread-
sheets and manual processes. The Committee recommends that
CBO explore using new technology such as artificial intelligence
that could improve budgetary analysis to ensure CBO continues to
provide Congress with effective and efficient analysis of budgetary
and economic issues.
ARCHITECT OF THE CAPITOL
The AOC is responsible for the maintenance, operation, develop-
ment, and preservation of the United States Capitol Complex. This
includes mechanical and structural maintenance of the Capitol,
Congressional office buildings, the Library of Congress buildings,
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the U.S. Botanic Garden, the Capitol Power Plant, and other facili-
ties, as well as the upkeep and improvement of the grounds sur-
rounding the Capitol complex.
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ARCHITECT OF THE CAPITOL
(EXCLUDING SENATE OFFICE BUILDINGS)
Appropriation, fiscal year 2020 ......................................................... $599,509,000
Budget request, fiscal year 2021 ....................................................... 698,156,000
Committee recommendation .............................................................. 631,268,000
Change from enacted level ............................................................. +31,759,000
Change from request ...................................................................... ¥66,888,000
The Committee recommends $631,268,000 for the activities of the
AOC.
Excluded are Senate items which are traditionally left for consid-
eration by that body. Within the recommended level, the Com-
mittee continues its prioritization of projects that: (1) promote the
safety and health of workers, occupants, and visitors; (2) decrease
the deferred maintenance backlog; and (3) invest to achieve future
energy savings. The Committee is able to support generally half of
the pay raise and inflation adjustments proposed in the operating
budgets of the AOC accounts and almost 60 percent of the value
of requested line-item construction projects.
The following table summarizes the allocation of funds by appro-
priation account:
Capital Construction and Operations ............................................. $139,238,000
Capitol Building ................................................................................ 36,129,000
Capitol Grounds ................................................................................ 20,560,000
House Office Buildings ..................................................................... 144,273,000
Capitol Power Plant ......................................................................... 116,461,000
Library Buildings and Grounds ...................................................... 83,446,000
Capitol Police Buildings, Grounds and Security ............................ 45,993,000
Botanic Garden ................................................................................. 20,895,000
Capitol Visitor Center ...................................................................... 24,272,000
The bill provides the request of $32,500,000 for minor construc-
tion throughout these accounts.
CAPITAL CONSTRUCTION AND OPERATIONS
Appropriation, fiscal year 2020 ......................................................... $120,000,000
Budget request, fiscal year 2021 ....................................................... 139,239,000
Committee recommendation .............................................................. 139,239,000
Change from enacted level ............................................................. +19,239,000
Change from request ...................................................................... 0
The Committee recommends $139,239,000 for campus-wide archi-
tectural and engineering design; project, property and construction
management; financial management; procurement; personnel serv-
ices; equipment; communications; and other central support activi-
ties of the AOC. In addition, the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Eco-
nomic Security Act (CARES Act) (P.L. 116–136) included
$25,000,000 for the Architect to prevent, prepare for, and respond
to coronavirus in the Capitol complex.
Within the total, the Committee provides no less than $4,348,000
for the AOC Inspector General office to support no less than 16
FTE. The $200,000 increase above the request is intended for one
FTE follow-up evaluator.
Budget Justifications: The Committee requests that Congres-
sional budget justifications for fiscal year 2022-onward include a
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description of the activities of the AOC Construction Division, iden-
tifying the number and size of projects, the number of staff funded
through Construction Division activities, and the funding provided
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26
to the Division from AOC jurisdiction accounts. The Committee
also requests that the justifications include in each jurisdiction’s
section the appropriations bill language requested, along with any
changes to be identified with brackets and italicization.
Committee
Item recommendation
Operating Expenses ........................................................................................................................................ $139,239,000
CAPITOL BUILDING
Appropriation, fiscal year 2020 ......................................................... $68,878,000
Budget request, fiscal year 2021 ....................................................... 41,201,000
Committee recommendation .............................................................. 36,129,000
Change from enacted level ............................................................. ¥32,749,000
Change from request ...................................................................... ¥5,072,000
The Committee recommends $36,129,000 for the operation, main-
tenance, and care of the U.S. Capitol and Capitol Visitor Center
(CVC). Of the total, $6,099,000 shall remain available until Sep-
tember 30, 2025.
Committee
Item recommendation
Operating Expenses ........................................................................................................................................ $30,030,000
Projects:
Minor Construction ................................................................................................................................ 5,500,000
Conservation of Fine and Architectural Art .......................................................................................... 599,000
Depictions of Native Americans: The Committee included lan-
guage in its fiscal year 2020 report regarding depictions of Native
Americans in the Capitol Complex and is pleased that the Architect
is working with interested Members and appears to be making
progress on implementing those recommendations. The Committee
encourages the Architect to continue these efforts.
CAPITOL GROUNDS
Appropriation, fiscal year 2020 ......................................................... $15,024,000
Budget request, fiscal year 2021 ....................................................... 20,981,000
Committee Recommendation ............................................................. 20,560,000
Change from enacted level ............................................................. +5,536,000
Change from request ...................................................................... ¥421,000
The Committee recommends $20,560,000 for the care of the
grounds surrounding the Capitol. Of the total, $7,800,000 shall re-
main available until September 30, 2025.
Committee
Item recommendation
Operating Expenses ........................................................................................................................................ $12,245,000
Projects:
Gardeners FTE Increase ......................................................................................................................... 515,000
AOC Campus Wide Utility Survey .......................................................................................................... 4,800,000
Minor Construction ................................................................................................................................ 3,000,000
Bike Lanes: The Committee supports the completion of a pro-
tected bike lane to safely connect residents, commuters, and tour-
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ists to the U.S. Capitol, Union Station, and the National Mall. The
Committee encourages DDOT to pursue completion of this project
in a timely manner, in collaboration with the Architect, the Senate
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27
Sergeant at Arms, and the U.S. Capitol Police, and in accordance
with all applicable laws and regulations.
Capitol Grounds Improvements: The Committee encourages the
Architect to continue to improve the hardscape and softscape of the
area adjacent to the Capitol South Metro Station, with the goal of
improving the surroundings.
Road Conditions around the Capitol: The Committee encourages
the AOC to work with DDOT to evaluate and improve road condi-
tions in and immediately around the Capitol Complex.
HOUSE OFFICE BUILDINGS
(INCLUDING TRANSFER OF FUNDS)
Appropriation, fiscal year 2020 ......................................................... $145,273,000
Budget request, fiscal year 2021 ....................................................... 146,047,000
Committee recommendation .............................................................. 144,273,000
(Offsetting collections) ..................................................................... +9,000,000)
(Total available) .............................................................................. (153,273,000)
Change from enacted level ............................................................. ¥1,000,000
Change from request ...................................................................... ¥1,774,000
The Committee recommends $144,273,000 for the operation,
maintenance, and care of the Rayburn, Cannon, Longworth, Ford,
and O’Neill House Office Buildings, and the House underground
garages. In addition, $9,000,000 will be derived from the House Of-
fice Building Fund for operations and maintenance of the O’Neill
House Office Building. Of the total provided, $14,540,000 shall re-
main available until September 30, 2025. The bill includes
$62,000,000 for future phases of the Cannon House Office Building
renovation project, which shall remain available until expended, to
continue the established funding strategy. The bill does not include
additional funding for the House Historic Buildings Revitalization
Trust Fund.
Committee
Item recommendation
Operating Expenses ........................................................................................................................................ $67,733,000
Projects:
CAO Project Support .............................................................................................................................. 7,540,000
Minor Construction ................................................................................................................................ 7,000,000
Cannon Building Restoration ................................................................................................................ 62,000,000
Cannon Building Costs: The Committee recognizes the urgent
need to complete the Cannon Building renewal, which will replace
outdated building systems, conserve historic aspects of the build-
ing, and optimize the functionality of Member suites, among other
improvements. However, the Committee is concerned that the cost
estimate for the project has increased by 19 percent to a total of
$896,000,000. That estimate has been recently validated by the
General Accountability Office, the AOC Inspector General and an
expert outside contractor, who have all concluded that the estimate
is within a 90 percent confidence interval. The AOC has taken sev-
eral important steps to control future costs in the project: (a) estab-
lishing a cut-off date for change requests; (b) incorporating known
changes from early phases into the base contract to avoid paying
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change order premiums; (c) using more aggressive schedule man-
agement to quickly identify the schedule impacts of changes and
better control acceleration costs; (d) requiring a better protocol for
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28
contractors to provide cost, schedule and feasibility feedback for
proposed changes; and (e) expediting the evaluation and selective
demolition in the basement and fifth floor to identify potential un-
foreseen site conditions early to lessen the impact on cost and
schedule. The Committee receives periodic reports from the Archi-
tect, the AOC IG, and the GAO on the Cannon project schedule, ac-
tual costs incurred and expected future costs, and design and con-
struction modifications. However, a recent report from the AOC has
acknowledged that the COVID–19 virus pandemic is one of the top
risks for timely completion of the project. The report indicated that
cost and schedule impacts are possible due to supply chain issues,
workforce availability, site access, and enhanced protection meas-
ures related to the virus. Therefore, the Committee expects to re-
ceive fast turnaround notice in the periodic reports that are pro-
vided if any further cost increases are anticipated and how the
AOC expects to absorb them. The AOC is reminded of the adminis-
trative provision in the bill prohibiting funding for incentive or
award payments to contractors for projects that are behind sched-
ule or over budget.
Recognition of Increasing Numbers of Women in Congress: The
116th Congress celebrates the highest number of female Members
of Congress ever to serve in the body. Recognizing the increasing
numbers of women in Congress and in honor of this historic
progress, the Committee continues to support and commend the
work of the Architect, the House Curator, and the Capital Histor-
ical Society to increase images of women in public spaces in Con-
gress. To further increase female representation, the Committee re-
quests the House curator to create a list of ten notable female his-
toric figures not already displayed as a Capitol statue who have
made remarkable contributions to society, as well as ten former or
current female members of Congress who have set trailblazing
records. These lists should provide a blueprint for the incorporation
of more female images in Congressional public spaces. The Com-
mittee also directs the House curator, in collaboration with the
AOC, to provide a report identifying areas within House-controlled
facilities and spaces, including but not limited to, hearing rooms,
meeting spaces, points of entry and hallways, where there is space
for new portraits of distinguished female members to be displayed.
Gender-Neutral Facilities: The Committee is concerned by the
lack of availability of gender-neutral restrooms throughout the
House office buildings. The Committee requests the Architect to
submit a report within 90 days of enactment of this Act detailing
the number and availability of gender-neutral public bathrooms in
each House office building. The Architect is further encouraged to
consider how to incorporate gender-neutral bathrooms in appro-
priate future construction and remodeling projects for House office
buildings.
Hygiene Products: The Committee understands there is interest
in making menstrual hygiene products available at no cost to all
those who use restroom facilities in House office buildings. The
Committee hopes that CHA will consider making this policy
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change. As part of this process, the Committee requests the Archi-
tect to submit a report to both the Committee and CHA no less
than 90 days after enactment of this Act on the feasibility, scope,
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29
and cost of making these products available at no cost in House of-
fice buildings.
Energy Efficiencies: The Committee is interested in the potential
use of waterless and low-flow plumbing fixtures in restroom facili-
ties in House office buildings to reduce water usage and associated
costs. The Committee requests the Architect to submit a report to
the Committee no later than 120 days after enactment of this Act
on the potential costs and savings associated with the installation
and usage of waterless toilet fixtures, low-flow plumbing fixtures,
and other water usage reduction technologies in the restrooms of
the House office buildings.
Entrance Protection: The Committee is concerned about visitors
to the House office buildings being required to stand outside for
long periods in inclement weather while waiting in line for entry.
The Architect is requested to provide a report within 120 days of
enactment of this Act describing options that have been considered
for overhang coverings at entrances to shield visitors and staff,
which options are currently planned, if any, and the projected cost
of these projects.
Green the House Initiative: The Committee directs the AOC in
consultation with the CAO and other relevant stakeholders to de-
velop recommendations to provide an environmentally responsible
working environment for the House of Representatives with a focus
on reducing its carbon footprint and if possible, achieving carbon-
neutrality. These recommendations shall be submitted to the Com-
mittee no later than 180 days after enactment of this Act.
CAPITOL POWER PLANT
Appropriation, fiscal year 2020 ......................................................... $98,957,000
Budget request, fiscal year 2021 ....................................................... 122,166,000
Committee recommendation .............................................................. 116,461,000
(Offsetting collections) ..................................................................... (+10,000,000)
(Total available) .............................................................................. (126,461,000)
Change from enacted level ............................................................. +17,504,000
Change from request ...................................................................... ¥5,705,000
The Committee recommends $116,461,000 in direct appropria-
tions for the operations of the Capitol Power Plant, which is the
centralized provider of utility services for the Capitol campus. Of
the total, $32,400,000 shall remain available until September 30,
2025. In addition, $10,000,000 in offsetting collections is available
from reimbursements for steam and chilled water.
Committee
Item recommendation
Operating Expenses ........................................................................................................................................ $84,061,000
Projects:
Piping Replacement and Egress Improvements ................................................................................... 28,400,000
Minor Construction ................................................................................................................................ 4,000,000
LIBRARY BUILDINGS AND GROUNDS
Appropriation, fiscal year 2020 ......................................................... $55,746,000
Budget request, fiscal year 2021 ....................................................... 111,193,000
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Committee recommendation .............................................................. 83,446,000
Change from enacted level ............................................................. +27,700,000
Change from request ...................................................................... ¥27,747,000
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The Committee recommends $83,446,000 for the care and main-
tenance of the Thomas Jefferson Building; James Madison Memo-
rial Building; John Adams Building; Packard Campus; Ft. Meade
Collection Storage Facility; National Library Services Facility; and
the St. Cecilia Special Services Facilities Center. Of the total,
$51,600,000 shall remain available until September 30, 2025.
$753,000 of the total is made available for Library construction
mission requirements.
Committee
Item recommendation
Operating Expenses ........................................................................................................................................ $31,846,000
Projects:
Collection Storage Module 7, Ft. Meade ............................................................................................... 41,500,000
Rain Leader Replacement, JAB ............................................................................................................. 2,100,000
Exterior Masonry and Envelope Repairs, JAB ........................................................................................ 2,000,000
West Main Pavilion, Exit Stair G, TJB ................................................................................................... 2,000,000
Minor Construction ................................................................................................................................ 4,000,000
CAPITOL POLICE BUILDINGS, GROUNDS, AND SECURITY
Appropriation, fiscal year 2020 ......................................................... $55,216,000
Budget request, fiscal year 2021 ....................................................... 70,790,000
Committee recommendation .............................................................. 45,993,000
Change from enacted level ............................................................. ¥9,223,000
Change from request ...................................................................... ¥24,797,000
The Committee recommends $45,993,000 for the maintenance,
care and operation of buildings, grounds and security enhance-
ments of the United States Capitol Police and AOC security oper-
ations. Of the total, $15,700,000 shall remain available until Sep-
tember 30, 2025 and $2,500,000 shall remain available until ex-
pended.
Committee
Item recommendation
Operating Expenses ........................................................................................................................................ $27,793,000
Projects:
Barrier Lifecycle and Security Kiosk Repair, Phase V .......................................................................... 8,300,000
Resiliency Upgrades, OSP ..................................................................................................................... 2,400,000
Minor Construction ................................................................................................................................ 5,000,000
Joint Audible Warning System (JAWS) ................................................................................................... 2,500,000
BOTANIC GARDEN
Appropriation, fiscal year 2020 ......................................................... $16,094,000
Budget request, fiscal year 2021 ....................................................... 21,266,000
Committee recommendation .............................................................. 20,895,000
Change from enacted level ............................................................. +4,801,000
Change from request ...................................................................... ¥371,000
The Committee recommends $20,895,000 for the improvement,
operation, care, and maintenance of the United States Botanic Gar-
den (USBG) Conservatory; the National Garden; the Administra-
tion Building; the Bartholdi Park and Fountain; heritage and other
plant collections; and the USBG Production Facility at D.C. Vil-
lage. Of the total, $8,300,000 shall remain available until Sep-
tember 30, 2025.
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Committee
Item recommendation
Operating Expenses ........................................................................................................................................ $12,166,000
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Committee
Item recommendation
Projects:
FTE Increase for BG Mission Support ................................................................................................... 429,000
Production Facility Renewal, BGDC ....................................................................................................... 4,300,000
Minor Construction ................................................................................................................................ 4,000,000
Collaboration with the United States Department of Agriculture
(USDA): The Committee recognizes the value of the USBG sup-
porting the evolution of urban agriculture. The Committee encour-
ages USBG to collaborate with USDA to support the USBG’s ef-
forts to host and serve as an educational and training location for
local and national audiences, and to explore reviving the Victory
Gardens concept for community agriculture programming.
CAPITOL VISITOR CENTER
Appropriation, fiscal year 2020 ......................................................... $24,321,000
Budget request, fiscal year 2021 ....................................................... 25,273,000
Committee recommendation .............................................................. 24,272,000
Change from enacted level ............................................................. ¥49,000
Change from request ...................................................................... ¥1,001,000
The Committee recommends $24,272,000 for the operations of
the CVC. The CVC was established to provide a secure public envi-
ronment to welcome and manage the large number of visitors and
to protect the Capitol, its occupants, and guests in an atmosphere
of open access.
Non-English Tours: The Committee commends the AOC for mak-
ing tours of the U.S. Capitol available in languages other than
English. The Committee also commends the AOC for introducing a
pilot program for Chinese and Spanish tours through assistive lis-
tening device transmitters. Hundreds of thousands of international
visitors visit the Capitol each year. Currently, translated brochures
are available in twelve languages, while listening devices for tours
are available in five languages. The Committee encourages the
AOC to make listening devices and in-person tours available in ad-
ditional languages, beginning with those for which brochures have
already been translated.
ADMINISTRATIVE PROVISION
Section 117 prohibits payment of bonuses to contractors behind
schedule or over budget during fiscal year 2021.
LIBRARY OF CONGRESS
Established by Congress in 1800, the Library of Congress (LOC)
is the largest library in the world, with a collection of more than
170,000,000 print, audio, and video items in 470 languages. Among
its major programs are acquisitions, preservation, administration of
U.S. copyright laws by the Copyright Office, research and analysis
of policy issues for the Congress by the Congressional Research
Service, and administration of a national program to provide read-
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ing material to the blind and print disabled. The Library maintains
a significant number of collections and provides a range of services
to libraries in the United States and abroad.
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SALARIES AND EXPENSES
Appropriation, fiscal year 2020 ......................................................... $504,164,000
Budget request, fiscal year 2021 ....................................................... 538,582,000
Committee recommendation .............................................................. 523,654,000
Offsetting collections ....................................................................... (+6,000,000)
Total available ................................................................................ (529,654,000)
Change from enacted level ............................................................. +19,490,000
Change from request ...................................................................... ¥14,928,000
The Committee recommends $523,654,000, plus authority to
spend $6,000,000 in receipts, for salaries and expenses. In addition,
the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES
Act) (P.L. 116–136) included $700,000 for the LOC to prevent, pre-
pare for, and respond to coronavirus, with regard to its childcare
facility employees on furlough. Within total funding provided, the
bill makes the following amounts available until expended:
$9,110,000 for the Teaching with Primary Sources Program,
$1,350,000 for the Legislative Branch Financial Management Sys-
tem, $250,000 for the Surplus Books Program, $3,720,000 for the
Veterans History Project, and $10,000,000 for the Visitors Experi-
ence project. In addition, $4,370,000 of the total funding provided
shall remain available until September 30, 2025 for the Law Li-
brary shelving replacement project and $5,500,000 shall remain
available until September 30, 2022 for preservation efforts, subject
to Committee approval. Funds are provided for the Automated
Records Management initiative and cybersecurity enhancements.
Within the total, the Committee provides no less than $4,203,000
for the LOC Inspector General office to support no less than 14
FTE.
Visitor Experience Initiative: The Committee supports the LOC
Visitor Experience initiative to improve and enhance the Jefferson
Building program for its nearly two million annual visitors. The
initiative involves a public/private partnership, which has been a
strategy for many similar institutions’ efforts to showcase the Na-
tion’s treasures. The initiative has the potential to transform the
way in which the Library shares its collections with visitors. The
Committee includes $10,000,000 for the Visitors Experience pro-
gram, which is the third appropriation of $10,000,000 for the
project. In addition, $11,110,000 in private donations have been
pledged to date. The bill includes language making the $10,000,000
available only upon the approval of the Committees.
As the Library begins its detailed design and cost estimating for
the project, it is possible that the cost of the project will exceed
early estimates, requiring cost reengineering to stay within its
budget. Therefore, the Committee expects to be notified on a quar-
terly basis of the latest cost estimates for the project as well as ob-
ligations incurred, by fiscal year source. The cost estimates in the
report should be validated by both the Librarian and the Architect.
IT Modernization: The Committee was encouraged to receive the
Library’s IT Modernization and Integrated Master Schedule this
spring. The Committee expects the LOC to continue to refine the
Master Schedule and consider it an evolving document. The plan
should be used to integrate schedules and cost baselines for respon-
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sible project management. In addition, the leadership of Office of
the Librarian should help shape and use it as an important man-
agement tool.
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The Library is engaged in many agency-wide modernization ef-
forts, which are being coordinated through a centralized chief infor-
mation officer (CIO) directorate. This centralization was imple-
mented based on the recommendations of GAO and other oversight
entities because of the efficiencies it would create from a funding,
IT support, cybersecurity, and IT development perspective. Some of
these benefits have already been realized under the new structure.
However, on occasion, the centralized structure may determine a
lower priority for initiatives that benefit only one of the Library
agencies rather than all of them, even though the project would
help the single agency fulfill its mission. The Committee urges the
Library to provide a report to the Committee no later than 90 days
after enactment of this Act detailing the internal safeguards the
Office of the CIO uses to ensure that funds will be allocated in a
way responsive to both agency-specific and crosscutting IT needs,
as well as the priorities identified by Congress and other external
stakeholders.
Law Library: The Committee commends the Law Library for con-
tinuing to provide support to the time-sensitive and complex needs
of the Congress, the Supreme Court, executive branch agencies,
courts, practicing attorneys, State bars, State and local govern-
ments, American businesses, scholars, journalists, and those with
legal research needs. The Committee urges the Law Library to con-
tinue its digitization strategy as part of the Library’s overall
digitization strategy to increase online access to major parts of its
collection, such as the U.S. Serial Sets and Supreme Court Records
and Briefs.
Preservation: The Committee has long supported the Library’s
preservation efforts as one of its core missions. For the last 30
years, a principal part of that effort has been de-acidification of
documents in the collection that are printed on acidic paper. Since
the initiation of the de-acidification effort, new preservation tech-
niques have been developed that also perform that function, such
as environmentally optimized storage. The Committee is aware
that the Library wishes to rebalance its preservation efforts, mov-
ing away from de-acidification to these other methods based on a
number of factors such as broader applicability, cost savings, and
storage creation. However, the Committee is also aware of strong
opinions within the community about whether the rebalancing ef-
fort is appropriate. Given the conflicting statements and data pre-
sented to support these positions, the Committee feels it must turn
to neutral outside experts to provide an analysis of how the Library
should proceed in its preservation efforts.
Accordingly, the bill includes language allocating $5,500,000 for
preservation activities, the total requested, but withholding its
availability until approval by the Committees. To provide the Com-
mittees the information they need to release the funding, the Li-
brary is directed to contract for a study from an outside expert,
neutral organization such as the National Academies of Sciences,
Engineering and Medicine. The Library should consult with the
Committees about its choice of organization prior to finalizing the
contract. The organization selected would be required to submit a
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report within 6 months of enactment of this Act. The organization
should undertake the following activities as part of its overall anal-
ysis:
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34
• review existing scientific literature about the various pres-
ervation methods, their length of effectiveness and relative
cost, to include associated costs of labor, storage and transpor-
tation;
• review the preservation strategies used by other large re-
search libraries;
• review the Library’s planned preservation strategy and
documentation;
• assess the number of pieces in the collection that require
preservation and the type of preservation that would be appro-
priate, by category and share of the collection;
• develop estimates of the likely volume of future acquisi-
tions appropriate for de-acidification versus other modes of
preservation; and
• develop recommendations about the most cost-effective ap-
proach for future Library preservation efforts.
Once the report has been completed and submitted to the Com-
mittees and reviewed, funds will be made available for the preser-
vation activities recommended in the report. The funding allocated
is made available for two years to permit any required contracts to
be awarded within the normal time cycle.
Veterans History Project: The Committee recommends an appro-
priation of $3,720,000 for the Veterans History Project, recognizing
its importance as a way to collect, preserve and make accessible
the personal accounts of American war veterans for the benefit of
future generations. Funding is provided to continue digitization ef-
forts of already-collected materials, reach greater numbers of vet-
erans to record their stories, and promote public access to the
Project.
National Film and Sound Preservation: The Committee recog-
nizes the important work of the National Film Preservation Pro-
gram and the National Sound Recording Preservation Program, in-
cluding the Federally-chartered National Film and National Re-
cording Preservation Foundations. Consistent with the authorizing
statute, the Foundations utilize both public and private matching
funds to provide grants to a wide array of educational and non-
profit organizations that help preserve historical and cultural arti-
facts that would otherwise disappear or be destroyed over time.
Rare Books and Special Collections.—The Committee commends
the Library of Congress on its continued excellence and the
strength of its rare books and special collections. Many are world-
renowned, including the publications and materials relating to
magic contained in the Harry Houdini Collection. The Committee
encourages the complete digitization of this important collection,
and others that are similar to it, and encourages the publication
online of the Library’s digitized collection. Wherever prioritization
decisions must be made with respect to the digitizing of materials
contained in the Library’s vast magic collections, the Committee
encourages the consultation with practitioners in order to deter-
mine which of the materials are most important to the magic com-
munity. The Committee also encourages a public display of valued
portions of the collection, again in consultation with practicing ma-
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gicians.
Library Storage Facilities: The bill includes $4,370,000, to re-
main available until September 30, 2025, to complete the second of
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35
three phases of the shelving replacement project in the Law Li-
brary’s collection storage areas to address existing safety and col-
lection damage issues.
Within the Architect of the Capitol accounts in the bill,
$41,500,000 is provided for the permanent collection storage Mod-
ule 7 at the Ft. Meade LOC campus to alleviate the shortage of col-
lection capacity on Capitol Hill. When the 9 planned modules are
complete by 2026, the Library’s storage needs will be resolved
through the mid-2040s. The Committee looks forward to the receipt
by the end of 2020 of the new long-range plan for Ft. Meade being
developed by the Library, with the participation of the AOC.
Outreach to Minority-Serving Institutions: The Committee en-
courages the Library of Congress to increase cooperative partner-
ships, fellowship opportunities, and curriculum program associa-
tions with community colleges, Historically Black Colleges and Uni-
versities, Hispanic-serving institutions, Asian American and native
American Pacific Islander-serving institutions, American Indian
Tribally-controlled colleges and universities, Alaska native and Na-
tive Hawaiian-serving institutions, and other minority serving-in-
stitutions.
Womens Suffrage Anniversary: With an historic number of
women serving in the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S.
Senate, the 100-year anniversary of women achieving the right to
vote in the U.S. aligns perfectly with the diverse composition of the
116th Congress. The Committee recognizes the significance of the
centennial of the passage and ratification of the 19th Amendment
to the Constitution. The Committee encourages the Library of Con-
gress to continue to raise awareness of this anniversary through
displays, exhibits, and commemorative documents, such as pam-
phlets and flyers.
COPYRIGHT OFFICE
SALARIES AND EXPENSES
Appropriation, fiscal year 2020 ......................................................... $42,137,000
Budget request, fiscal year 2021 ....................................................... 50,109,000
Committee recommendation .............................................................. 46,627,000
(Offsetting collections) ..................................................................... (+44,782,000)
(Total available) .............................................................................. (91,409,000)
Change from enacted level ............................................................. +4,490,000
Change from request ...................................................................... ¥3,482,000
The Committee recommends $46,627,000 in direct appropriations
to the Copyright Office. An additional $41,782,000 is made avail-
able from receipts for salaries and expenses and $3,000,000 is
available from prior year unobligated balances for a total of
$91,409,000. Funding is provided as requested for additional copy-
right royalty judges staffing. In addition, within the total,
$4,214,000 is provided to cover a projected user fee collections
shortfall in fiscal year 2021.
Copyright Modernization: Few government bodies are more im-
portant to the growth of creativity and commercial artistic activity
in the Nation than the Copyright Office. The Committee continues
to support the Copyright Office’s efforts to modernize its IT infra-
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structure in order to effectively serve users and copyright owners
in the 21st century. The Committee encourages the Library to re-
main sensitive to the specialized requirements of the Copyright Of-
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36
fice as the Office implements its IT modernization plan in conjunc-
tion with the overall Library IT modernization effort.
Copyright Expertise: The Committee continues to support the Of-
fice’s use of funds to offer expertise on copyright matters to the Ex-
ecutive Branch, including participation in international discussions.
Consistent with historical practice, the Committee expects the Li-
brary to continue to defer to the copyright expertise of the Register
of Copyrights and to ensure direct consultation between the Copy-
right Office and Congress.
CONGRESSIONAL RESEARCH SERVICE
SALARIES AND EXPENSES
Appropriation, fiscal year 2020 ......................................................... $120,495,000
Budget request, fiscal year 2021 ....................................................... 129,516,000
Committee recommendation .............................................................. 123,030,000
Change from enacted level ............................................................. +2,535,000
Change from request ...................................................................... ¥6,486,000
The Committee recommends $123,030,000 for salaries and ex-
penses of the Congressional Research Service (CRS). CRS works for
the Members and Committees to support their legislative, over-
sight, and representational functions by providing nonpartisan and
confidential research and policy analysis. CRS provides an impor-
tant service for Members and staff, publishing hundreds of reports
annually free of charge and providing briefings on pertinent policy
issues considered by Congress. The expert nonpartisan analysts at
CRS keep Congress informed, contributing to intelligent and re-
sponsible policymaking.
Continuing Education for Congressional Staff: The CRS provides
valuable education seminars for Congressional staff on the legisla-
tive process. To strengthen and expand those educational opportu-
nities and to assist in retaining staff, the Committee is interested
in the concept of a more rigorous and extensive program for staff
training. CRS is requested to provide a report within 120 days of
enactment of this Act that develops a design concept for a one-year
pilot continuing education Congressional law program for senior
Congressional staff. The pilot could be operated by CRS or by a
local law school chosen by competitive grant. Subject matter could
include topics such as Federal judiciary and constitutional law; leg-
islation and the regulatory state; and international law. The CRS
report should include recommendations on the appropriate number
of participants, the composition of the group, and selection process,
the projected costs of such a pilot, and possible funding sources, to
include Member office and student contributions.
Access to Archival Materials: The Committee requests that with-
in 60 days of enactment of this Act the CRS provide a report to the
Committee evaluating the possibility of publication of CRS reports
contained in its CRSX archive, specifically examining the feasi-
bility, cost, and benefits of integrating all or a subset of the reports
online. This analysis should include an assessment of the utility to
the public and Congress of online access to the reports.
Alternate Format for Public Reports: The Library is requested to
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provide to the Committee within 60 days of enactment of this Act
a report describing the process, timeframe and costs of making
available to the public all currently available non-confidential CRS
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Reports in HTML format rather than PDF, or a successor format
when appropriate. The Committee understands that CRS already
publishes reports on its internal website in HTML. Making this
change in format for external audiences would facilitate the use
and re-use of the information contained in the reports.
NATIONAL LIBRARY SERVICE FOR THE BLIND AND PRINT DISABLED
SALARIES AND EXPENSES
Appropriation, fiscal year 2020 ......................................................... $58,563,000
Budget request, fiscal year 2021 ....................................................... 60,639,000
Committee recommendation .............................................................. 59,439,000
Change from enacted level ............................................................. +876,000
Change from request ...................................................................... ¥1,200,000
The Committee recommends $59,439,000 for salaries and ex-
penses of the National Library Service for the Blind and Print Dis-
abled (NLS).
The NLS is a free braille and talking book library service for peo-
ple with temporary or permanent low vision, blindness, or a dis-
ability that prevents them from reading or holding the printed
page. Through a national network of regional and sub-regional li-
braries, NLS circulates books and magazines in braille and audio
formats, which are delivered by postage-free mail or are instantly
downloadable.
Braille eReader and Talking Book Machine Initiative: The Com-
mittee provides $2,375,000 for the Braille eReader and Talking
Book Machine initiative. This funding will permit the acquisition
of 2,000–4,000 new e-Reader devices for distribution through the
NLS Machine Lending Agencies, which also distribute talking book
machines.
BARD Modernization: The Committee provides $5,000,000 for
the Braille and Audio Reading Download (BARD) Infrastructure
Modernization program, which distributes audio and electronic
braille materials. The program’s objective is to transition these
services to a cloud-based environment.
ADMINISTRATIVE PROVISION
Section 118 limits to $252,552,000 the amount that may be obli-
gated during fiscal year 2021 from various reimbursements and re-
volving funds available to the Library of Congress.
GOVERNMENT PUBLISHING OFFICE
The Government Publishing Office (GPO) publishes and dissemi-
nates Federal government publications to Congress, Federal agen-
cies, Federal depository libraries, and the American public.
CONGRESSIONAL PUBLISHING
(INCLUDING TRANSFER OF FUNDS)
Appropriation, fiscal year 2020 ......................................................... $79,000,000
Budget request, fiscal year 2021 ....................................................... 78,000,000
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Committee recommendation .............................................................. 78,000,000
Change from enacted level ............................................................. ¥1,000,000
Change from request ...................................................................... 0
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The Committee recommends $78,000,000 for Congressional Pub-
lishing. This account funds the costs of publishing Congressional
information products in both digital and print formats.
PUBLIC INFORMATION PROGRAMS OF THE SUPERINTENDENT OF
DOCUMENTS
SALARIES AND EXPENSES
(INCLUDING TRANSFER OF FUNDS)
Appropriation, fiscal year 2020 ......................................................... $31,296,000
Budget request, fiscal year 2021 ....................................................... 32,300,000
Committee recommendation .............................................................. 32,300,000
Change from enacted level ............................................................. +1,004,000
Change from request ...................................................................... 0
The Committee recommends $32,300,000 for the salaries and ex-
penses of the Public Information Programs of the Superintendent
of Documents.
This appropriation primarily supports the cataloguing and index-
ing of Federal Government publications (the results of which are
now available online) and for operating the Federal Depository Li-
brary system and providing Federal documents to the network of
1,133 depository libraries nationwide.
GOVERNMENT PUBLISHING OFFICE BUSINESS OPERATIONS
REVOLVING FUND
Appropriation, fiscal year 2020 ......................................................... $6,704,000
Budget request, fiscal year 2021 ....................................................... 6,700,000
Committee recommendation .............................................................. 6,700,000
Change from enacted level ............................................................. ¥4,000
Change from request ...................................................................... 0
The Committee recommends $6,700,000 for the Government Pub-
lishing Office Business Operations Revolving Fund, which finances
GPO’s publishing operations.
This business-like fund is used to pay GPO’s costs in performing
or procuring from private-sector sources Congressional and agency
publishing, information product procurement, and publications dis-
semination activities. The fund is reimbursed from payments from
customer agencies, sales to the public, appropriations to the fund,
and transfers from GPO’s two annual appropriations.
GOVERNMENT ACCOUNTABILITY OFFICE
GAO was established by the Budget and Accounting Act of 1921.
GAO works for Congress by responding to requests for studies of
Federal government programs and expenditures and may also ini-
tiate its own work.
SALARIES AND EXPENSES
Appropriation, fiscal year 2020 ......................................................... $630,000,000
Budget request, fiscal year 2021 ....................................................... 706,142,000
Committee recommendation .............................................................. 664,346,000
(Offsetting Collections) .................................................................... (+31,342,000)
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(Total available) .............................................................................. (695,688,000)
Change from enacted level ............................................................. +34,346,000
Change from request ...................................................................... ¥41,796,000
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The Committee recommends $664,346,000 in direct appropria-
tions for GAO. In addition, $31,342,000 is available in offsetting
collections derived from reimbursements for conducting financial
audits of government corporations and rental of space in the GAO
building. The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act
(CARES Act) (P.L. 116–136) included $20,000,000 for the GAO to
prevent, prepare for, and respond to coronavirus, domestically or
internationally.
Funds provided in this bill will support the annualized costs of
staff hired during fiscal year 2020 and maintain 2020 staffing lev-
els in 2021, as well as address IT and infrastructure requests.
Within the total, the Committee provides no less than $2,438,000
for the GAO Inspector General office to support no less than 11
FTE.
Science and Technology Assessment: The Committee is pleased
with GAO’s efforts to strengthen its technology and science func-
tion by creating the Science, Technology Assessment, and Analytics
(STAA) team. The STAA’s initial products such as its first tech-
nology assessments and its Science and Tech Spotlights recognize
Congressional interest in the production of short- to medium-term
analyses. The Committee encourages GAO to continue to develop
new components of STAA studies by including policy recommenda-
tion options, when appropriate to the subject. STAA is also encour-
aged to identify new cloud data management and storage solutions
for GAO’s enormous volume of data that would enhance STAA’s
analytic capabilities and make the data more accessible and usable.
Appropriations and Budget Law: The Committee remains con-
cerned that the GAO Budget Appropriations Group (the Group) is
not always prompt with formal legal opinions, informal legal advice
and its responsibilities under the Impoundment Control Act. The
Committee noted in the report accompanying P.L. 116–94 that the
number of requests to the Group has increased dramatically over
the last five years, demonstrating how GAO’s analyses are vital to
the Committee’s work. The Committee is pleased by the adminis-
trative steps taken by GAO to increase the future efficiency of the
Group, however, the agency is encouraged to consider whether its
resources are optimally allocated between its operational teams to
adequately support its important appropriations law functions and
to provide more timely responses to the Committee.
Duplicative Government Programs: Since passage of Public Law
111–139, GAO has been mandated to produce a report to Congress
identifying duplicative programs throughout the Federal govern-
ment. In a yearly report GAO identifies Federal programs, agen-
cies, offices and initiatives that have duplicative goals or activities.
Since 2011, GAO has presented 805 actions in more than 300 areas
for Congress or executive branch agencies to reduce, eliminate, or
better manage fragmentation, overlap or duplication. As of March,
2019, Congress and the executive branch have addressed or par-
tially addressed 621 of those actions resulting in roughly
$216,000,000,000 in financial benefits. The Committee continues to
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direct GAO to issue these reports and urges Congress and the exec-
utive branch to address duplicative programs.
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OPEN WORLD LEADERSHIP CENTER (OWLC) TRUST FUND
Appropriation, fiscal year 2020 ......................................................... $5,900,000
Budget request, fiscal year 2021 ....................................................... 5,900,000
Committee recommendation .............................................................. 6,000,000
Change from enacted level ............................................................. +100,000
Change from request ...................................................................... +100,000
The Committee recommends $6,000,000 for salaries and expenses
of the Open World Leadership Center Trust Fund.
Grant Writer: The Committee believes that a grant writer may
help to accurately represent OWLC’s needs and help secure non-ap-
propriated funds for its mission. A grant writer can help improve
OWLC’s public communications, educational curriculum, as well as
research grant opportunities for OWLC. Most importantly a grant
writer can help evaluate the current program and provide a fresh
look for OWLC. Therefore, the recommendation provides a small
increase of $100,000 for OWLC to hire a grant writer to help secure
additional funds for its mission.
Poland: The Committee remains concerned that the murder of
Gdansk mayor Pawel Adamowicz may foster political polarization.
The Committee is pleased with Open World’s efforts to explore in-
creased exchange with Poland as a former Communist country in
Central and Eastern Europe.
Hungary: The Committee remains concerned about opportunities
for increased Russian influence in the region, including challenges
with corruption and weakening civil society in Hungary. The Com-
mittee is pleased with Open World efforts to explore increased ex-
change with Hungary as a former Communist country in Central
and Eastern Europe.
JOHN C. STENNIS CENTER FOR PUBLIC SERVICE TRAINING
AND DEVELOPMENT
Appropriation, fiscal year 2020 ......................................................... $430,000
Budget request, fiscal year 2021 ....................................................... 430,000
Committee recommendation .............................................................. 430,000
Change from enacted level ............................................................. 0
Change from request ...................................................................... 0
The Committee recommends $430,000 for salaries and expenses
for the Stennis Center. The Center provides Congressional staff
training and development opportunities to promote and strengthen
public service leadership in America.
TITLE II—GENERAL PROVISIONS
Continues a number of provisions from prior years, including lan-
guage regarding maintenance and care of private vehicles, fiscal
year limitation, rates of compensation and designation, consulting
services, the Legislative Branch Financial Managers Council, a lim-
itation on transfers, guided tours of the Capitol, limitations on tele-
communications equipment procurement, prohibition on certain
operational expenses, and plastic waste reduction.
Includes new language standardizing the salary rates for certain
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Legislative Branch officials to the salary rates provided for most
Legislative Branch officials by the P.L. 116–94, the fiscal year 2020
consolidated appropriations act.
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Includes new language permitting funding in this Act to be used
to employ individuals with an employment authorization document
under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) Program.
Includes a limitation for the cost of living adjustment for Mem-
bers of Congress for fiscal year 2021.
Includes language requiring the Architect of the Capitol to re-
move statues and a bust in the U.S. Capitol representing Confed-
erate Army or Government officials, as well as the statuary for four
white supremacists, including Roger B. Taney.
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES REPORT REQUIREMENTS
The following items are included in accordance with various re-
quirements of the Rules of the House of Representatives:
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Insert offset folio 45 here HR447.001
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STATEMENT OF GENERAL PERFORMANCE GOALS AND OBJECTIVES
Pursuant to clause 3(c)(4) of rule XIII of the Rules of the House
of Representatives, the following is a statement of general perform-
ance goals and objectives for which this measure authorizes fund-
ing:
The Committee considers program performance, including a pro-
gram’s success in developing and attaining outcome-related goals
and objectives, in developing funding recommendations.
RESCISSIONS
Pursuant to clause 3(f)(2) of rule XIII of the Rules of the House
of Representatives, the following details the rescissions in the ac-
companying bill:
$212,000 from the revolving fund established under House Reso-
lution 64, 98th Congress.
$1,000,000 from the revolving fund relating to ‘‘Stationery’’ under
the heading ‘‘House of Representatives, Contingent Expenses of the
House’’ in the first section of the Legislative Branch Appropriation
Act, 1948.
$2,000,000 from the ‘‘Net Expenses of the Telecommunications’’
revolving fund’ under section 102 of the Legislative Branch Appro-
priation Act, 2005 (2 U.S.C. 5538).
TRANSFER OF FUNDS
Pursuant to clause 3(f)(2) of rule XIII of the Rules of the House
of Representatives, the following lists the transfers of funds in-
cluded in the accompanying bill:
An administrative provision that creates the House Moderniza-
tion Initiatives Account allows transfers among House accounts.
A proviso in the appropriation for ‘‘Architect of the Capitol,
House Office Buildings’’ directs transfer of $9,000,000 into that ac-
count from the House Office Buildings Fund.
Within the Government Publishing Office, provisos in the appro-
priations for ‘‘Congressional Publishing’’ and ‘‘Public Information
Programs of the Superintendent of Documents, Salaries and Ex-
penses’’ authorize transfer of unobligated or unexpended balances
of expired discretionary funds appropriated under those headings
for fiscal year 2021 to the ‘‘Government Publishing Office Business
Operations Revolving Fund’’ account.
DISCLOSURE OF EARMARKS AND CONGRESSIONALLY DIRECTED
SPENDING ITEMS
Pursuant to clause 9 of rule XXI of the Rules of the House of
Representatives, this bill, as reported, contains no Congressional
earmarks, limited tax benefits, or limited tariff benefits as defined
in clause 9 of rule XXI.
COMPLIANCE WITH RULE XIII, CL. 3(e) (RAMSEYER RULE)
In compliance with clause 3(e) of rule XIII of the Rules of the
House of Representatives, changes in existing law made by the bill,
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as reported, are shown as follows (existing law proposed to be omit-
ted is enclosed in black brackets, new matter is printed in italics,
existing law in which no change is proposed is shown in roman):
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44
SECTION 105 OF THE LEGISLATIVE BRANCH
APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 2003
* * * * * * *
SEC. 105. (a) ESTABLISHMENT.—The Chief Administrative Officer
shall establish a program under which an employing office of the
House of Representatives may agree to repay (by direct payment
on behalf of the employee) any student loan previously taken out
by an employee of the office. For purposes of this section, a Mem-
ber of the House of Representatives (including a Delegate or Resi-
dent Commissioner to the Congress) shall not be considered to be
an employee of the House of Representatives.
(b) LIFETIME LIMIT ON AGGREGATE PAYMENTS MADE ON BEHALF
OF ANY INDIVIDUAL.—The aggregate amount of payments made on
behalf of any individual under the program under this section by
all employing offices of the House of Representatives may not exceed
$80,000.
ø(b)¿ (c) REGULATIONS.—The Committee on House Administra-
tion shall promulgate such regulations as may be necessary to
carry out the program under this section.
ø(c) ¿ (d) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There are au-
thorized to be appropriated such sums as may be necessary to
carry out the program under this section during fiscal year 2003
and each succeeding fiscal year.
SECTION 101 OF THE LEGISLATIVE BRANCH
APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 1993
ADMINISTRATIVE PROVISIONS
SEC. 101. (a) Amounts appropriated for any fiscal year for the
House of Representatives under the heading ‘‘ALLOWANCES AND
EXPENSES’’ may be transferred among and merged with the var-
ious categories of allowances and expenses under such heading, ef-
fective upon the expiration of the 21-day period (or such alternative
period that may be imposed by the Committee on Appropriations
of the House of Representatives) which begins on the date such
Committee has been notified of the transfer.
(b) Amounts appropriated for any fiscal year for the House of
Representatives under the heading ‘‘SALARIES, OFFICERS AND
EMPLOYEES’’ may be transferred among and merged with the
various offices and activities under such heading, effective upon the
expiration of the 21-day period (or such alternative period that may
be imposed by the Committee on Appropriations of the House of
Representatives) which begins on the date such Committee has
been notified of the transfer.
(c)(1) Amounts appropriated for any fiscal year for the House of
Representatives under the headings specified in paragraph (2) may
be transferred among and merged with such headings, effective
upon the expiration of the 21-day period (or such alternative period
that may be imposed by the Committee on Appropriations of the
House of Representatives) which begins on the date such Com-
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mittee has been notified of the transfer.
(2) The headings referred to in paragraph (1) are ‘‘House Leader-
ship Offices’’, ‘‘Members’ Representational Allowances’’, ‘‘Committee
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45
Employees’’, ‘‘Salaries, Officers and Employees’’, ‘‘Allowances and
Expenses’’, the heading for any joint committee under the heading
‘‘Joint Items’’ (to the extent that amounts appropriated for the joint
committee are disbursed by the Chief Administrative Officer of the
House of Representatives), ‘‘Office of the Attending Physician’’, ‘‘Al-
lowance for Compensation of Interns in Member Offices’’ø, and ‘‘Al-
lowance for Compensation of Interns in House Leadership Of-
fices’’.¿ ‘‘Allowance for Compensation of Interns in House Leader-
ship Offices’’, and ‘‘House of Representatives Modernization Initia-
tives Account’’.
(d) Amounts appropriated for any fiscal year for the House of
Representatives under the heading ‘‘Allowances and Expenses’’
may be transferred to the Architect of the Capitol and merged with
and made available under the heading ‘‘House Office Buildings’’,
subject to the approval of the Committee on Appropriations of the
House of Representatives.
(e) Amounts appropriated for any fiscal year for the House of
Representatives under any heading other than the heading ‘‘Mem-
bers’ Representational Allowances’’ may be transferred to the Ar-
chitect of the Capitol and merged with and made available under
the heading ‘‘House Historic Buildings Revitalization Trust Fund’’,
subject to the approval of the Committee on Appropriations of the
House of Representatives.
(f) Amounts appropriated for any fiscal year for the House of
Representatives under the heading ‘‘House Leadership Offices’’ may
be transferred among and merged with the various offices and ac-
tivities under such heading, effective upon the expiration of the 21-
day period (or such alternative period that may be imposed by the
Committee on Appropriations of the House of Representatives)
which begins on the date such Committee has been notified of the
transfer.
SECTION 109 OF THE EMERGENCY SUPPLEMENTAL ACT,
2002
SEC. 908. EDUCATIONAL ASSISTANCE PROGRAM FOR EMPLOYEES.
(a) ESTABLISHMENT.—In order to recruit or retain qualified per-
sonnel, the Chief of the Capitol Police may establish an educational
assistance program for employees of the Capitol Police under which
the Capitol Police may agree—
(1) to repay (by direct payments on behalf of the partici-
pating employee) all or any portion of a student loan previously
taken out by the employee;
(2) to make direct payments to an educational institution on
behalf of a participating employee or to reimburse a partici-
pating employee for all or any portion of any tuition or related
educational expenses paid by the employee.
(b) SPECIAL RULES FOR STUDENT LOAN REPAYMENTS.—
(1) APPLICATION OF REGULATIONS UNDER EXECUTIVE BRANCH
PROGRAM.—In carrying out subsection (a)(1), the Chief of the
Capitol Police may, by regulation, make applicable such provi-
sions of section 5379 of title 5, United States Code, as the
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Chief determines necessary to provide for such program.
(2) RESTRICTIONS ON PRIOR REIMBURSEMENTS.—The Capitol
Police may not reimburse any individual under subsection
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46
(a)(1) for any repayments made by the individual prior to en-
tering into an agreement with the Capitol Police to participate
in the program under this section.
(3) USE OF RECOVERED AMOUNTS.—Any amount repaid by, or
recovered from, an individual under subsection (a)(1) and its
implementing regulations shall be credited to the appropriation
account available for salaries or general expenses of the Cap-
itol Police at the time of repayment or recovery. Such credited
amount may be used for any authorized purpose of the account
and shall remain available until expended.
(c) LIMIT ON AMOUNT OF PAYMENTS.—The total amount paid by
the Capitol Police with respect to any individual under the pro-
gram under this section may not exceed ø$60,000¿ $80,000.
(d) NO REVIEW OF DETERMINATIONS.—Any determination made
under the program under this section shall not be reviewable or ap-
pealable in any manner.
(e) EFFECTIVE DATE.—This section shall apply with respect to fis-
cal year 2003 and each succeeding fiscal year.
CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET ACT OF 1974
* * * * * * *
TITLE II—CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE
ESTABLISHMENT OF OFFICE
SEC. 201. (a) IN GENERAL.—
(1) There is established an office of the Congress to be known
as the Congressional Budget Office (hereinafter in this title re-
ferred to as the ‘‘Office’’). The Office shall be headed by a Di-
rector; and there shall be a Deputy Director who shall perform
such duties as may be assigned to him by the Director and,
during the absence or incapacity of the Director or during a va-
cancy in that office, shall act as Director.
(2) The Director shall be appointed by the Speaker of the
House of Representatives and the President pro tempore of the
Senate after considering recommendations received from the
Committees on the Budget of the House and the Senate, with-
out regard to political affiliation and solely on the basis of his
fitness to perform his duties. The Deputy Director shall be ap-
pointed by the Director.
(3) The term of office of the Director shall be 4 years and
shall expire on January 3 of the year preceding each Presi-
dential election. Any individual appointed as Director to fill a
vacancy prior to the expiration of a term shall serve only for
the unexpired portion of that term. An individual serving as
Director at the expiration of a term may continue to serve until
his successor is appointed. Any Deputy Director shall serve
until the expiration of the term of office of the Director who ap-
pointed him (and until his successor is appointed), unless soon-
er removed by the Director.
(4) The Director may be removed by either House by resolu-
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tion.
(5)(A) The Director shall receive compensation at an annual
rate of pay øthat is equal to the maximum rate of pay in effect
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47
under section 105(f) of the Legislative Branch Appropriation
Act, 1968 (2 U.S.C. 4575(f)).¿ that is equal to the annual rate
of basic pay for level II of the Executive Schedule.
(B) The Deputy Director shall receive compensation at an an-
nual rate of pay that is $1,000 less than the annual rate of pay
received by the Director, as determined under subparagraph
(A).
(b) PERSONNEL.—The Director shall appoint and fix the com-
pensation of such personnel as may be necessary to carry out the
duties and functions of the Office. All personnel of the Office shall
be appointed without regard to political affiliation and solely on the
basis of their fitness to perform their duties. The Director may pre-
scribe the duties and responsibilities of the personnel of the Office,
and delegate to them authority to perform any of the duties, pow-
ers, and functions imposed on the Office or on the Director. For
purposes of pay (other than pay of the Director and Deputy Direc-
tor) and employment benefits, rights, and privileges, all personnel
of the Office shall be treated as if they were employees of the
House of Representatives.
(c) EXPERTS AND CONSULTANTS.—In carrying out the duties and
functions of the Office, the Director may procure the temporary
(not to exceed one year) or intermittent services of experts or con-
sultants or organizations thereof by contract as independent con-
tractors, or, in the case of individual experts or consultants, by em-
ployment at rates of pay not in excess of the daily equivalent of the
highest rate of basic pay payable under the General Schedule of
section 5332 of title 5, United States Code.
(d) RELATIONSHIP TO EXECUTIVE BRANCH.—The Director is au-
thorized to secure information, data, estimates, and statistics di-
rectly from the various departments, agencies, and establishments
of the executive branch of Government and the regulatory agencies
and commissions of the Government. All such departments, agen-
cies, establishments, and regulatory agencies and commissions
shall furnish the Director any available material which he deter-
mines to be necessary in the performance of his duties and func-
tions (other than material the disclosure of which would be a viola-
tion of law). The Director is also authorized, upon agreement with
the head of any such department, agency, establishment, or regu-
latory agency or commission, to utilize its services, facilities, and
personnel with or without reimbursement; and the head of each
such department, agency, establishment, or regulatory agency or
commission is authorized to provide the Office such services, facili-
ties, and personnel.
(e) RELATIONSHIP TO OTHER AGENCIES OF CONGRESS.—In car-
rying out the duties and functions of the Office, and for the purpose
of coordinating the operations of the Office with those of other con-
gressional agencies with a view to utilizing most effectively the in-
formation, services, and capabilities of all such agencies in carrying
out the various responsibilities assigned to each, the Director is au-
thorized to obtain information, data, estimates, and statistics devel-
oped by the General Accounting Office, and the Library of Con-
gress, and (upon agreement with them) to utilize their services, fa-
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cilities, and personnel with or without reimbursement. The Comp-
troller General, and the Librarian of Congress are authorized to
provide the Office with the information, data, estimates, and statis-
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48
tics, and the services, facilities, and personnel, referred to in the
preceding sentence.
(f) REVENUE ESTIMATES.—For the purposes of revenue legislation
which is income, estate and gift, excise, and payroll taxes (i.e., So-
cial Security), considered or enacted in any session of Congress, the
Congressional Budget Office shall use exclusively during that ses-
sion of Congress revenue estimates provided to it by the Joint Com-
mittee on Taxation. During that session of Congress such revenue
estimates shall be transmitted by the Congressional Budget Office
to any committee of the House of Representatives or the Senate re-
questing such estimates, and shall be used by such Committees in
determining such estimates. The Budget Committees of the Senate
and House shall determine all estimates with respect to scoring
points of order and with respect to the execution of the purposes
of this Act.
(g) APPROPRIATIONS.—There are authorized to be appropriated to
the Office for each fiscal year such sums as may be necessary to
enable it to carry out its duties and functions. Until sums are first
appropriated pursuant to the preceding sentence, but for a period
not exceeding 12 months following the effective date of this sub-
section, the expenses of the Office shall be paid from the contingent
fund of the Senate, in accordance with the paragraph relating to
the contingent fund of the Senate under the heading ‘‘UNDER
LEGISLATIVE’’ in the Act of October 1, 1888 (28 Stat. 546; 2
U.S.C. 68), and upon vouchers approved by the Director.
* * * * * * *
CONGRESSIONAL ACCOUNTABILITY ACT OF 1995
* * * * * * *
TITLE III—OFFICE OF CONGRESSIONAL
WORKPLACE RIGHTS
* * * * * * *
SEC. 302. OFFICERS, STAFF, AND OTHER PERSONNEL.
(a) EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR.—
(1) APPOINTMENT AND REMOVAL.—
(A) IN GENERAL.—The Chair, subject to the approval of
the Board, shall appoint and may remove an Executive Di-
rector. Selection and appointment of the Executive Direc-
tor shall be without regard to political affiliation and solely
on the basis of fitness to perform the duties of the Office.
The first Executive Director shall be appointed no later
than 90 days after the initial appointment of the Board of
Directors.
(B) QUALIFICATIONS.—The Executive Director shall be an
individual with training or expertise in the application of
laws referred to in section 102(a).
(C) DISQUALIFICATIONS.—The disqualifications in section
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301(d)(2) shall apply to the appointment of the Executive
Director.
(2) COMPENSATION.—
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49
(A) AUTHORITY TO FIX COMPENSATION.—The Chair may
fix the compensation of the Executive Director.
ø(B) LIMITATION.—The rate of pay for the Executive Di-
rector may not exceed the maximum rate of pay in effect
under section 105(f) of the Legislative Branch Appropria-
tion Act, 1968 (2 U.S.C. 4575(f)).¿
(B) LIMITATION.—The annual rate of pay for the Execu-
tive Director may not exceed the annual rate of basic pay
for level II of the Executive Schedule.
(3) TERM.—The term of office of the Executive Director shall
be not more than 2 terms of 5 years, except that the first Exec-
utive Director shall have a single term of 7 years.
(4) DUTIES.—The Executive Director shall serve as the chief
operating officer of the Office. Except as otherwise specified in
this Act, the Executive Director shall carry out all of the re-
sponsibilities of the Office under this Act.
(b) DEPUTY EXECUTIVE DIRECTORS.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—The Chair, subject to the approval of the
Board, shall appoint and may remove a Deputy Executive Di-
rector for the Senate and a Deputy Executive Director for the
House of Representatives. Selection and appointment of a Dep-
uty Executive Director shall be without regard to political af-
filiation and solely on the basis of fitness to perform the duties
of the office. The disqualifications in section 301(d)(2) shall
apply to the appointment of a Deputy Executive Director.
(2) TERM.—The term of office of a Deputy Executive Director
shall be not more than 2 terms of 5 years, except that the first
Deputy Executive Directors shall have a single term of 6 years.
(3) COMPENSATION.—
(A) AUTHORITY TO FIX COMPENSATION.—The Chair may
fix the compensation of the Deputy Executive Directors.
(B) LIMITATION.—The rate of pay for a Deputy Executive
Director may not exceed 96 percent of the lesser of—
(i) the highest annual rate of compensation of any
officer of the Senate; or
(ii) the highest annual rate of compensation of any
officer of the House of Representatives.
(4) DUTIES.—The Deputy Executive Director for the Senate
shall recommend to the Board regulations under section
304(a)(2)(B)(i), maintain the regulations and all records per-
taining to the regulations, and shall assume such other respon-
sibilities as may be delegated by the Executive Director. The
Deputy Executive Director for the House of Representatives
shall recommend to the Board the regulations under section
304(a)(2)(B)(ii), maintain the regulations and all records per-
taining to the regulations, and shall assume such other respon-
sibilities as may be delegated by the Executive Director.
(c) GENERAL COUNSEL.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—The Chair, subject to the approval of the
Board, shall appoint a General Counsel. Selection and appoint-
ment of the General Counsel shall be without regard to polit-
ical affiliation and solely on the basis of fitness to perform the
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duties of the Office. The disqualifications in section 301(d)(2)
shall apply to the appointment of a General Counsel.
(2) COMPENSATION.—
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50
(A) AUTHORITY TO FIX COMPENSATION.—The Chair may
fix the compensation of the General Counsel.
(B) LIMITATION.—The rate of pay for the General Coun-
sel may not exceed the lesser of—
(i) the highest annual rate of compensation of any
officer of the Senate; or
(ii) the highest annual rate of compensation of any
officer of the House of Representatives.
(3) DUTIES.—The General Counsel shall—
(A) exercise the authorities and perform the duties of the
General Counsel as specified in this Act; and
(B) otherwise assist the Board and the Executive Direc-
tor in carrying out their duties and powers, including rep-
resenting the Office in any judicial proceeding under this
Act.
(4) ATTORNEYS IN THE OFFICE OF THE GENERAL COUNSEL.—
The General Counsel shall appoint, and fix the compensation
of, and may remove, such additional attorneys as may be nec-
essary to enable the General Counsel to perform the General
Counsel’s duties.
(5) TERM.—The term of office of the General Counsel shall be
not more than 2 terms of 5 years.
(6) REMOVAL.—
(A) AUTHORITY.—The General Counsel may be removed
from office by the Chair but only for—
(i) disability that substantially prevents the General
Counsel from carrying out the duties of the General
Counsel,
(ii) incompetence,
(iii) neglect of duty,
(iv) malfeasance, including a felony or conduct in-
volving moral turpitude, or
(v) holding an office or employment or engaging in
an activity that disqualifies the individual from serv-
ice as the General Counsel under paragraph (1).
(B) STATEMENT OF REASONS FOR REMOVAL.—In removing
the General Counsel, the Speaker of the House of Rep-
resentatives and the President pro tempore of the Senate
shall state in writing to the General Counsel the specific
reasons for the removal.
(d) CONFIDENTIAL ADVISORS.—
(1) IN GENERAL.—The Executive Director shall—
(A) appoint, and fix the compensation of, and may re-
move, 1 or more confidential advisors to carry out the du-
ties described in this subsection; or
(B) designate 1 or more employees of the Office to serve
as a confidential advisor.
(2) DUTIES.—
(A) VOLUNTARY SERVICES.—A confidential advisor ap-
pointed or designated under paragraph (1) shall offer to
provide to covered employees described in paragraph (4)
the services described in subparagraph (B), which a cov-
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ered employee may accept or decline.
(B) SERVICES.—The services referred to in subparagraph
(A) are—
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51
(i) informing, on a privileged and confidential basis,
a covered employee who has been subject to a practice
that may be a violation of part A of title II about the
employee’s rights under this Act;
(ii) consulting, on a privileged and confidential basis,
with a covered employee who has been subject to a
practice that may be a violation of part A of title II re-
garding—
(I) the roles, responsibilities, and authority of
the Office; and
(II) the relative merits of securing private coun-
sel, designating a non-attorney representative, or
proceeding without representation for proceedings
before the Office;
(iii) advising and consulting with, on a privileged
and confidential basis, a covered employee who has
been subject to a practice that may be a violation of
part A of title II regarding any claims the covered em-
ployee may have under title IV, the factual allegations
that support each such claim, and the relative merits
of the procedural options available to the employee for
each such claim;
(iv) assisting, on a privileged and confidential basis,
a covered employee who seeks consideration under
title IV of an allegation of a violation of part A of title
II in understanding the procedures, and the signifi-
cance of the procedures, described in title IV, includ-
ing—
(I) assisting or consulting with the covered em-
ployee regarding the drafting of a claim to be filed
under section 402(a); and
(II) consulting with the covered employee re-
garding the procedural options available to the
covered employee after a claim is filed, and the
relative merits of each option; and
(v) informing, on a privileged and confidential basis,
a covered employee who has been subject to a practice
that may be a violation of part A of title II about the
option of pursuing, in appropriate circumstances, a
complaint with the Committee on Ethics of the House
of Representatives or the Select Committee on Ethics
of the Senate.
(C) CONTINUITY OF SERVICE.—Once a covered employee
has accepted and received any services offered under this
section from a confidential advisor appointed or designated
under paragraph (1), any other services requested under
this subsection by the covered employee shall be provided,
to the extent practicable, by the same confidential advisor.
(3) QUALIFICATIONS.—A confidential advisor appointed or
designated under paragraph (1) shall be a lawyer who—
(A) is admitted to practice before, and is in good stand-
ing with, the bar of a State of the United States, the Dis-
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trict of Columbia, or a territory of the United States; and
(B) has experience representing clients in cases involv-
ing the workplace laws incorporated by part A of title II.
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52
(4) INDIVIDUALS COVERED.—The services described in para-
graph (2) are available to any covered employee (which, for
purposes of this subsection, shall include any staff member de-
scribed in section 201(d) and any former covered employee (in-
cluding any such former staff member)), except that—
(A) a former covered employee may only request such
services if the practice that may be a violation of part A
of title II occurred during the employment or service of the
employee; and
(B) a covered employee described in this paragraph may
only request such services before the expiration of the 180-
day period described in section 402(d).
(5) RESTRICTIONS.—A confidential advisor appointed or des-
ignated under paragraph (1)—
(A) shall not act as the designated representative for any
covered employee in connection with the covered employ-
ee’s participation in any proceeding, including any pro-
ceeding under this Act, any judicial proceeding, or any pro-
ceeding before any committee of Congress;
(B) shall not offer or provide services described in para-
graph (2)(B) to a covered employee if the covered employee
has designated an attorney representative in connection
with the covered employee’s participation in any pro-
ceeding under this Act, except that a confidential advisor
may provide general assistance and information to such at-
torney representative regarding this Act and the role of
the Office as the confidential advisor determines appro-
priate; and
(C) shall not serve as a mediator in any mediation con-
ducted pursuant to section 404.
(e) OTHER STAFF.—The Executive Director shall appoint, and fix
the compensation of, and may remove, such other additional staff,
including hearing officers, but not including attorneys employed in
the office of the General Counsel, as may be necessary to enable
the Office to perform its duties.
(f) DETAILED PERSONNEL.—The Executive Director may, with the
prior consent of the department or agency of the Federal Govern-
ment concerned, use on a reimbursable or nonreimbursable basis
the services of personnel of any such department or agency, includ-
ing the services of members or personnel of the Government Ac-
countability Office Personnel Appeals Board.
(g) CONSULTANTS.—In carrying out the functions of the Office,
the Executive Director may procure the temporary (not to exceed
1 year) or intermittent services of consultants.
* * * * * * *
PUBLIC LAW 96–146
AN ACT An Act to fix the annual rates of pay for the Architect of the Capitol and
the Assistant Architect of the Capitol
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øSECTION 1. COMPENSATION.
øThe compensation of the Architect of the Capitol shall be at an
annual rate which is equal to the maximum rate of pay in effect
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53
under section 105(f) of the Legislative Branch Appropriation Act,
1968 (2 U.S.C. 4575(f)).¿
SECTION 1. COMPENSATION.
The compensation of the Architect of the Capitol shall be at an
annual rate equal to the annual rate of basic pay for level II of the
Executive Schedule.
* * * * * * *
PUBLIC LAW 96–152
AN ACT An Act to establish by law the position of Chief of the Capitol Police, and
for other purposes
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled, That (a) section
1821 of the Revised Statutes of the United States (40 U.S.C. 206)
is amended by adding at the end thereof the following new sen-
tence: ‘‘The Capitol Police shall be headed by a Chief who shall be
appointed by the Capitol Police Board and shall serve at the pleas-
ure of the Board.’’.
(b) The individual serving as Chief of the Capitol Police on the
effective date of this Act shall be deemed, effective on such date,
to be appointed to the position established by the amendment made
by subsection (a).
ø(c) The annual rate of pay for the Chief of the Capitol Police
shall be the amount equal to $1,000 less than the maximum rate
of pay in effect under section 105(f) of the Legislative Branch Ap-
propriation Act, 1968 (2 U.S.C. 4575(f)).¿
(c) The annual rate of pay for the Chief of the Capitol Police shall
be equal to the annual rate of basic pay for level II of the Executive
Schedule.
* * * * * * *
CHANGES IN THE APPLICATION OF EXISTING LAW
Pursuant to clause 3(f)(1)(A) of rule XIII of the Rules of the
House of Representatives, the following statements are submitted
describing the effect of provisions in the accompanying bill that di-
rectly or indirectly change the application of existing law:
1. The bill provides that certain appropriation items remain
available for more than one year, where programs or projects are
continuing in nature under the provisions of authorizing legislation
but for which that legislation does not specifically authorize such
extended availability.
2. The bill includes a number of provisions which place limita-
tions on or change or extend existing limitations, appropriations, or
authorizations, and which under some circumstances might be con-
strued as changing the application of existing law.
3. The bill continues the practice of providing official reception
and representation allowances for officers and offices of the Legisla-
tive Branch.
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4. The bill authorizes disbursal of funds for various agencies.
5. The bill authorizes transfer authority between accounts for
certain agencies in the bill.
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6. The bill includes language allowing the use of funds for stud-
ies and examinations of executive agencies and temporary per-
sonnel services. Funds can also be available for reimbursement to
agencies for services performed.
7. The bill includes language providing funds for the Family
Room, the Superintendent of Garages, Office of Emergency Man-
agement, and preparing the Digest of Rules.
8. The bill includes language providing funds for House motor ve-
hicles, interparliamentary receptions, and gratuities.
9. The bill requires unspent funds remaining in Members’ Rep-
resentational Allowances to be used for deficit or debt reduction.
10. The bill includes language that places a limitation on the
amount that a Member can spend on a leased vehicle per month.
11. The bill includes language requiring that any Federal agen-
cies that are assisting the House with cybersecurity risks ensure
the constitutional integrity of the separate branches of government.
12. The bill includes language that creates a House Moderniza-
tion Initiatives Account.
13. The bill authorizes allowances for employees of the Office of
the Attending Physician and provides reimbursement to the De-
partment of the Navy.
14. The bill authorizes expenses of the Capitol Police for motor
vehicles, communications and other equipment, uniforms, weapons,
supplies, materials, training, medical services, forensic services,
stenographic services, personal and professional services, the em-
ployee assistance program, the awards program, postage, commu-
nication services, travel advances, and relocation expenses.
15. The bill provides that the cost of Capitol Police basic training
at the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center be paid by the
Department of Homeland Security.
16. The bill includes language raising the cap of student loans.
17. The bill allows the Architect of the Capitol to purchase or ex-
change, maintain, and operate one passenger motor vehicle.
18. The bill includes authorization allowing reimbursements for
chilled water and steam provided to the Government Publishing
Office, the Washington City Post Office, the Supreme Court, the
Thurgood Marshall Federal Judiciary Building, Union Station
Complex, and the Folger Shakespeare Library to be credited to the
AOC Capitol Power Plant appropriation and made available for ob-
ligation.
19. The bill allows the Architect of the Capitol to expend funds
to maintain, care for, and operate the National Garden.
20. The bill prohibits paying bonuses for contractors who are be-
hind schedule or over budget.
21. The bill establishes that the amount available for obligation
by the Library of Congress is reduced by offsetting collections.
22. The bill provides specific funding for the American Folklife
Center, the Teaching with Primary Sources program, the Legisla-
tive Branch Financial Management System, the Surplus Books
Program, the Veterans History Project, and the Visitors Experience
project.
23. The bill allows the Library of Congress to hire or purchase
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one passenger motor vehicle.
24. The bill allows funds from offsetting collections to be used for
the Library’s Copyright Office.
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55
25. The bill includes language authorizing the expenditure of re-
ceipts, with the exception of salaries and benefits, for the adminis-
tration of the Copyright Royalty Judges program.
26. The bill contains language which provides that no funds in
the Congressional Research Service can be used to publish or pre-
pare material to be issued by the Library of Congress unless ap-
proved by the appropriate Committee, with an exception.
27. The bill provides funds to provide newspapers to the blind
and print disabled.
28. The bill contains language under the Library of Congress
placing a limitation on obligations for Reimbursable and Revolving
Fund activities.
29. The bill includes language authorizing the Public Information
Programs of the Superintendent of Documents to pay for printing
certain publications in prior years for the depository library pro-
gram. There is language authorizing the transfer of unexpended
balances.
30. There is language authorizing the operation of the Govern-
ment Publishing Office revolving fund, and which authorizes travel
expenses for advisory councils, the purchase of not more than 12
passenger motor vehicles and that the revolving fund may be used
to provide information in any format.
31. The bill includes language relating to the Government Ac-
countability Office, authorizing the direct procurement of expert
and consultant services under 5 U.S.C. 3109 at certain rates; au-
thorizing the hire of one passenger motor vehicle, as required by
31 U.S.C. 1343; authorizing the Government Accountability Office
to make advance payments in foreign countries in accordance with
31 U.S.C. 3324; and providing certain benefits, including rental of
living quarters in foreign countries. Appropriations are authorized
for administrative expenses of any other member department or
agency to finance an appropriate share of the costs of the National
Intergovernmental Audit Forum or a Regional Intergovernmental
Audit Forum.
32. The bill includes language prohibiting the use of funds in the
Act for the maintenance or care of private vehicles except for emer-
gency assistance and cleaning as may be provided under regula-
tions relating to parking facilities for the House issued by the Com-
mittee on House Administration and for the Senate by the Com-
mittee on Rules and Administration.
33. The bill provides no part of the funds appropriated in this Act
shall remain available for obligation beyond fiscal year 2021 unless
expressly so provided in this Act.
34. The bill provides that whenever any office or position not spe-
cifically established by the Legislative Pay Act of 1929 is appro-
priated for herein, or whenever the rate of compensation or des-
ignation of any position appropriated for herein is different from
that specifically established for such position by such Act, the rate
of compensation and the designation of the position, either appro-
priated for or provided herein, shall be the permanent law with re-
spect thereto. The bill also provides that the provisions herein for
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the various items of official expenses of Members, officers, and the
Committees, and clerk hire for Senators and Members shall be the
permanent law with respect thereto.
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35. The bill requires that certain information regarding con-
sulting services shall be a matter of public record.
36. The bill authorizes Legislative Branch entities to share the
costs of the Legislative Branch Financial Managers Council.
37. The bill limits the transfer of funds in this Act.
38. The bill prohibits funds in this Act being used to eliminate
or restrict staff-led guided tours.
39. The bill prohibits funds from being used to acquire tele-
communications equipment from a particular class of vendors.
40. The bill prohibits funds from being used to maintain or estab-
lish a computer network unless the network blocks pornography.
41. The bill includes language requiring agencies funded in the
Act to eliminate or reduce plastic waste.
42. The bill includes language adjusting the annual rates of pay
for certain heads of Legislative Branch agencies to make them
equal to rates established for other heads of agencies in the fiscal
year 2020 consolidated appropriation act.
43. The bill includes language permitting funds in the Act to be
used to employ individuals with an employment authorization doc-
ument under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA)
Program.
44. The bill includes language blocking the cost of living adjust-
ment for Members of Congress.
45. The bill includes language requiring the Architect of the Cap-
itol to remove statues and busts in the U.S. Capitol representing
Confederate Army or Government officials, as well as the statuary
for four white supremacists, including Roger B. Taney.
APPROPRIATIONS NOT AUTHORIZED BY LAW
Pursuant to clause 3(f)(1)(B) of rule XIII of the Rules of the
House of Representatives, the following lists the appropriations in
the accompanying bill which are not authorized by law for the pe-
riod concerned:
1. An appropriation of $2,000,000 for the House of Representa-
tives Modernization Initiatives Account; this account will be au-
thorized and appropriated for the first time in the Legislative
Branch Appropriations Act, 2021.
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PROGRAM DUPLICATION
Pursuant to clause 3(c)(5) of rule XIII of the Rules of the House
of Representatives, the following states that: No provision of this
bill establishes or reauthorizes a program of the Federal Govern-
ment known to be duplicative of another Federal program, a pro-
gram that was included in any report from the Government Ac-
countability Office to Congress pursuant to section 21 of Public
Law 111–139, or a program related to a program identified in the
most recent Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance.
COMMITTEE HEARINGS
For the purpose of section 103(i) of H. Res. 6 (116th Congress)
the following hearings were used to develop or consider the Legisla-
tive Branch Appropriations Act, 2021:
Date Title of Hearing Witnesses
February 11, 2020 ................. U.S. Capitol Police FY 2021 Mr. Steven A. Sund, Chief, U.S. Capitol Police
Budget Request.
February 11, 2020 ................. Open World Leadership Cen- Ms. Jane Sargus, Executive Director, Open World Leadership
ter FY2021 Budget Re- Center
quest.
February 12, 2020 ................. Office of Congressional Work- Ms. Susan Tsui Grundmann, Executive Director, Office of
place Rights FY 2021 Congressional Workplace Rights
Budget Request.
February 12, 2020 ................. Congressional Budget Office Dr. Phillip Swagel, Director, Congressional Budget Office
FY 2021 Budget Request.
February 27, 2020 ................. Library of Congress FY2021 Dr. Carla Hayden, Librarian of Congress, Library of Con-
Budget Hearing. gress; T.J. Halstead, Deputy Director, Congressional Re-
search Service; Ms. Maria Strong, Acting Director U.S.
Register of Copyrights, U.S. Copyright Office
February 27, 2020 ................. Government Accountability Mr. Gene L. Dodaro, Comptroller General of the United
Office FY 2021 Budget States, Government Accountability Office
Hearing.
March 3, 2020 ....................... House Officers FY 2021 The Honorable Paul D. Irving, House Sergeant at Arms, U.S.
Budget Hearing. House of Representatives; The Honorable Cheryl L. John-
son, Clerk, U.S. House of Representatives; The Honorable
Phil Kiko, CAO, U.S. House of Representatives; Mr. E.
Wade Ballou, Legislative Counsel, Office of Legislative
Counsel; Mr. Douglas N. Letter, General Counsel, Office
of the General Counsel; Mr. Michael T. Ptasienski, In-
spector General, Office of Inspector General; Mr. Ralph
V. Seep, Law Revision Counsel, Office of the Law Revi-
sion Counsel; Dr. Brian P. Monahan, Attending Physician
March 4, 2020 ....................... Members Day Hearing ........... The Honorable Rodney Davis; The Honorable Brian K.
Fitzpatrick; The Honorable Jared F. Golden; The Honor-
able Tom Graves; The Honorable Derek Kilmer
March 4, 2020 ....................... Public Witness Hearing ......... Ms. Michelle Cosby, President, American Association of Law
Libraries; Ms. Audrey Henson, CEO & Founder, College to
Congress; Ms. Lorelei Kelly, Fellow & Director Congres-
sional Modernization, Georgetown University; Mr. Andrew
Lautz, Policy and Government Affairs Associate, National
Taxpayer Union; Mr. Daniel Lips, Director of Cyber and
National Security, Lincoln Network; Ms. Laura Manley,
Director of Technology and Public Purpose Project, Har-
vard Kennedy School Belfer Center for Science and
International Affairs; Ms. Meredith McGehee, Executive
Director, Issue One; Mr. Angel Silva, DACA Recipient; Mr.
Taylor Swift, Policy Associate, Demand Progress; Mr.
Maurice Turner, Deputy Director, Internet Architecture
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Project, Center for Democracy & Technology
March 11, 2020 ..................... Architect of the Capitol FY Mr. J. Brett Blanton, Architect of the Capitol
2021 Budget Hearing.
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Date Title of Hearing Witnesses
March 11, 2020 ..................... Government Publishing Office Mr. Hugh Halpern, Director, Government Publishing Office
FY 2021 Budget Hearing.
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MINORITY VIEWS
We appreciate the efforts of the Majority to produce the Legisla-
tive Branch Appropriations bill for Fiscal Year (FY) 2021. The bill
includes funding to support the operations of the House, promote
the safety of the millions of people visiting and working throughout
the Capitol complex, continue the rehabilitation and maintenance
of our world-renowned buildings, and allow the agencies on which
Congress relies to function as effectively as possible. However,
Committee Republicans have concerns about the bill in its current
form.
The Bipartisan Budget Act of 2019 (P.L. 116–37), enacted less
than a year ago, set caps for defense and non-defense discretionary
spending for FY 2021. Committee Republicans have noted that
many of the FY 2021 appropriations bills are built upon false as-
sumptions that violate that bipartisan agreement. The Legislative
Branch is given an increase of more than five percent in this bill,
which is only possible because of the use of budget mechanisms
that were not assumed in last year’s agreement. We should not
weaken the agreement and designate funds as an ‘‘emergency’’ just
to spend more money on lower priority programs. In addition to
concerns about spending, we are also disappointed that the Major-
ity party included controversial policy riders that will need to be
reversed or modified before this bill can become law.
We want to thank Chairman Ryan and his staff for their efforts
to incorporate most of the requests submitted by Committee Repub-
licans, and we remain optimistic that we will be able to work to-
gether to address these issues as we proceed through the legislative
process.
KAY GRANGER.
JAIME HERRERA BEUTLER.
Æ
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(72)
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