Courthouse Ethics and Transparency Act
Latest action · May 13, 2022 Became Public Law No: 117-125.
Progress
Where this bill reached, and when. A stage with no date was not reached; one that failed a vote and later carried shows the date it carried.
- IntroducedOct 25, 2021
- Passed SenateFeb 17, 2022
- Passed HouseApr 27, 2022
- To the PresidentMay 3, 2022
- Became lawMay 13, 2022Public Law 117-125
Summary
Courthouse Ethics and Transparency Act
This bill requires federal judicial officers, bankruptcy judges, and magistrate judges to file periodic transaction reports disclosing certain securities transactions. The bill also requires online publication of judicial financial disclosure reports.
Specifically, the bill requires federal judicial officers, bankruptcy judges, and magistrate judges to file reports within 45 days after a purchase, sale, or exchange that exceeds $1,000 in stocks, bonds, commodities futures, and other forms of securities.
Additionally, the bill directs the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts to establish a searchable internet database of judicial financial disclosure reports. The office must, within 90 days of the date by which a report must be filed, make the report available on the database in a searchable, sortable, and downloadable format.
The bill does not require the immediate and unconditional availability of reports filed by a judicial officer or employee if the Judicial Conference finds that revealing personal and sensitive formation could endanger that individual or a family member of that individual.
Cosponsors 7
Members who signed on, in the order they did. All signed on Oct 25, 2021.
| Seat | Cosponsor | Signed on | |
|---|---|---|---|
| D-DE | Christopher A. Coons | Original | Oct 25, 2021 |
| R-IA | Chuck Grassley | Original | Oct 25, 2021 |
| R-LA | John Kennedy | Original | Oct 25, 2021 |
| D-GA | Jon Ossoff | Original | Oct 25, 2021 |
| D-IL | Richard J. Durbin | Original | Oct 25, 2021 |
| D-RI | Sheldon Whitehouse | Original | Oct 25, 2021 |
| R-TX | Ted Cruz | Original | Oct 25, 2021 |
Committees 1
Where it was sent and what each committee and subcommittee did with it, in order.
| Chamber | Committee | What it did |
|---|---|---|
| Senate | Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee | Referred Oct 25, 2021Discharged Feb 18, 2022 |
Actions 16
Everything that happened, newest first.
- May 13, 2022Signed by President.
- May 13, 2022Became Public Law No: 117-125.
- May 3, 2022Presented to President.
- Apr 27, 2022Mr. Jeffries moved to suspend the rules and pass the bill.
- Apr 27, 2022Considered under suspension of the rules. (consideration: CR H4521-4523)
- Apr 27, 2022DEBATE - The House proceeded with forty minutes of debate on S. 3059.
- Apr 27, 2022Passed/agreed to in House: On motion to suspend the rules and pass the bill Agreed to by voice vote. (text: CR H4521)
- Apr 27, 2022Motion to reconsider laid on the table Agreed to without objection.
- Feb 18, 2022Message on Senate action sent to the House.
- Feb 18, 2022Received in the House.
- Feb 18, 2022Held at the desk.
- Feb 17, 2022Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs discharged by Unanimous Consent.
- Feb 17, 2022Measure laid before Senate by unanimous consent. (consideration: CR S801)
- Feb 17, 2022Passed/agreed to in Senate: Passed Senate without amendment by Voice Vote.
- Oct 25, 2021Introduced in Senate
- Oct 25, 2021Read twice and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs.
In the Congressional Record 2
Days the Record’s own index lists this bill, newest first, with the pages and the members it names. Pages starting H are the House, S the Senate, E Extensions of Remarks.
| Where | In the Record | Members | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| House | Debate and remarks H4521–H4523Text printed H4521 | Darrell Issa R-CA, Hakeem S. Jeffries D-NY | Apr 27, 2022 |
| Senate | Debate and remarks S801Text printed S801Amendments S797, S801 | Charles E. Schumer D-NY, John Cornyn R-TX (amendment) | Feb 17, 2022 |
Research
What has been written about this bill: committee reports, cost estimates, the sponsor’s authority statement, printed hearings and the Congressional Research Service’s work.
CRS reports 4
Congressional Research Service work that CRS links to this bill or the law it became, newest first.
Cite it 4
Products on other subjects that cite it, usually among other measures.
| Product | Title | Kind | Published |
|---|---|---|---|
| R47320 | Financial Disclosure in the U.S. Government: Frequently Asked Questions | Report | May 30, 2023 |
| R47155 | Judiciary Appropriations, FY2022 | Report | Jun 10, 2022 |
| R47073 | Global Tuberculosis: Background and Issues for Congress Archived | Report | Apr 19, 2022 |
| R45046 | Congress and the War in Yemen: Oversight and Legislation 2015-2021 Archived | Report | Feb 10, 2022 |
Amendments 1
Amendments offered to this bill.
| Amendment | Description | Offered by | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| SA 4931 | In the nature of a substitute. | John Cornyn R-TX | Amendment SA 4931 agreed to in Senate by Unanimous Consent. |
Related bills 1
Companion bills and other measures the record links to this one.
| Bill | Title | Relationship | Latest action |
|---|---|---|---|
| HR 5720 | Courthouse Ethics and Transparency Act | Identical bill | Dec 2, 2021 |
Titles 6
Every title it has carried, official and short, at each stage.
- Official Title as Introduced
- A bill to amend the Ethics in Government Act of 1978 to provide for a periodic transaction reporting requirement for Federal judicial officers and the online publication of financial disclosure reports of Federal judicial officers, and for other purposes.
- Short Titles as Passed House
- Courthouse Ethics and Transparency Act
- Short Titles as Enacted
- Courthouse Ethics and Transparency Act
- Short Title(s) as Introduced
- Courthouse Ethics and Transparency Act of 2021
- Short Title(s) as Passed Senate
- Courthouse Ethics and Transparency Act
- Short Titles from ENR (Enrolled) bill text
- Courthouse Ethics and Transparency Act
Subjects
Assigned by the Library of Congress. Policy area: Law.
Text 3
Each version as it was printed, newest first.
- —Enrolled Bill
- Feb 17, 2022Engrossed in Senate
- Oct 25, 2021Introduced in Senate
Everything here is as published by Congress: the summary is the Congressional Research Service's, the action wording is the clerks', and the subjects are the Library of Congress's. How far it got is read from the actions themselves, taking the most recent one of each kind, so a bill that failed a vote and later passed is shown as having passed. Records come from this bill on Congress.gov and govinfo.gov; cost estimates are the Congressional Budget Office's, and the hearings are the printed hearings GovInfo publishes, which can appear months after the hearing.
