Responding to the recent scandals inside the federal government, the House Republican leadership will push a legislative agenda next week of bills they say would “rebuild the trust” Americans have with their government.
Previewing the “stop government abuse” legislative package during a conference call with several reporters on Friday, House Majority Leader and Virginia Republican Rep. Eric Cantor said he’s “expecting big bipartisan support for some of these bills, if not most or all of these bills.”
“These are bills that I think reflect a route towards gaining consensus — where we can agree,” Cantor said. “So much of Washington’s time is spent on where we differ. These bills next week are bills that focus on where we can agree.”
Here are the bills in the package, according to a fact sheet provided to The Daily Caller:
- Keep the IRS Off Your Health Care — H.R. 2009, authored by Rep. Tom Price, prevents the IRS from implementing any portion of Obamacare.
- Keep Federal Bureaucrats from Ruining the Economy and Lowering Wages — H.R. 367, the Regulations From the Executive in Need of Scrutiny (REINS) Act, authored by Rep. Todd Young requires Congressional approval of regulations that cost over $100 million.
- Citizen Empowerment Act — The Citizen Empowerment Act, H.R. 2711 authored by Rep. Lynn Jenkins, creates an affirmative right for individuals to record their meetings and telephone exchanges with federal regulatory officials engaged in enforcement activities and requires that individuals be notified of such right.
- Government Employee Accountability Act — H.R. 2579, authored by Rep. Mike Kelly gives agencies the option to place employees on unpaid leave when they are under investigation for certain serious offenses.
- Government Customer Service Improvement Act — H.R. 1660 sponsored by Rep. Henry Cuellar requires agencies to adopt customer service standards and to use customer service feedback in agency and personnel reviews.
- Government Spending Accountability Act — H.R. 313, sponsored by Rep. Blake Farenthold, increases transparency with respect to taxpayer funded conference, places limits on federal conferences, and requires agency head approval for the most expensive conferences.
- Common Sense in Compensation Act — H.R. 1541, sponsored by Rep Mark Meadows would not only place limits on the size of bonuses but also limit the number of senior agency employees who may receive bonuses in any given year.
- Stop Targeting Our Politics IRS Act — H.R. 2565, sponsored by Rep. Jim Renacci would provide for the termination of employment of IRS employees who take official actions for political purposes
- Stop Playing on Citizen’s Cash Act — H.R. 2533, sponsored by Rep. Peter Roskam imposes a moratorium on IRS conference until the IG’s recommendations are implemented.
- The Taxpayer Bill of Rights — H.R. 2768, sponsored by Rep. Peter Roskam would specify the rights that citizens have when dealing with the IRS, including a right to privacy and confidentiality.
“I’m hopeful the support coming out of the House will mean that perhaps the Senate will actually pick them up and take them to the president’s desk,” Cantor said.
