What This Bill Does
This bill requires federal agencies to report to the Office of Management and Budget about times when their employees contacted social media platforms and other online services to remove posts, add warnings to posts, or restrict people's access. The Office of Management and Budget then reports these communications to Congress.
Who It Affects
Federal agencies (government offices) and their employees, the Office of Management and Budget, Congress, Inspectors General (officials who investigate agency misconduct), and social media platforms that receive communications from the government.
Key Provisions
- Each federal agency must submit a report within 90 days listing every time in the past 5 years when an employee contacted a social media platform to remove lawful speech, add disclaimers to lawful speech, or restrict someone's access to a platform. (Sec. 2(a)(1))
- Agencies must include specific details about these communications, including the employee's name and position, which platform was contacted, who at the platform was contacted, and a written explanation of why the agency took the action. (Sec. 2(a)(2))
- If an agency had no such communications in the past 5 years, it must submit a signed statement saying so. (Sec. 2(a)(3))
- The Office of Management and Budget must send a report to Congress within 210 days summarizing all these communications organized by platform. (Sec. 2(b))
- Each agency's Inspector General must review whether their agency followed this law and report findings to Congress within 210 days. If an agency did not comply, it must brief Congress within 60 days after the Inspector General's report. (Sec. 2(c))
What Changes
Federal agencies will be required to document and report communications with social media platforms about speech removal or account restrictions that they have not previously reported to Congress.
Important Definitions
- "Interactive computer service" means services defined in section 230(f) of the Communications Act of 1934. (Sec. 2(d)(3))
- "Agency" includes all federal government agencies and any office within the Executive Office of the President. (Sec. 2(d)(1))
- "Director" means the Director of the Office of Management and Budget. (Sec. 2(d)(2))
Effective Date
Not specified in bill text
I
118TH CONGRESS
1ST SESSION H. R. 1162
To require the Office of Management and Budget to report to Congress
on actions taken by Executive branch employees to censor lawful speech,
and for other purposes.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
FEBRUARY 24, 2023
Mr. PERRY introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee
on Oversight and Accountability
A BILL
To require the Office of Management and Budget to report
to Congress on actions taken by Executive branch em-
ployees to censor lawful speech, and for other purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa-
1
tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,
2
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
3
This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Accountability for Gov-
4
ernment Censorship Act’’.
5
SEC. 2. REPORTS ON FEDERAL AGENCY COMMUNICATIONS
6
WITH PLATFORMS REGARDING CENSORSHIP
7
OF SPEECH.
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(a) AGENCY REPORT TO OMB.—
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•HR 1162 IH
(1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 90 days after
1
the date of enactment of this Act, the head of each
2
agency shall submit a report to the Director of the
3
Office of Management and Budget listing each in-
4
stance during the 5-year period immediately pre-
5
ceding the date of enactment of this Act that an of-
6
ficer or employee of the agency communicated with
7
a platform (including an interactive computer serv-
8
ice) that is not owned and operated by the Federal
9
Government for the purposes of—
10
(A) removing or suppressing lawful speech,
11
in whole or in part, from or on any platform;
12
(B) adding any disclaimer, information, or
13
other alert to lawful speech expressed on any
14
platform; or
15
(C) removing or restricting the access of
16
any person or entity to any platform.
17
(2) ADDITIONAL INFORMATION.—With respect
18
to any communication listed pursuant to paragraph
19
(1), the head of the agency shall include the fol-
20
lowing information:
21
(A) The name of the sub-agency, bureau,
22
or office at which the officer or employee is em-
23
ployed.
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•HR 1162 IH
(B) The name of any officer or employee
1
involved in the communication, including their
2
position and direct supervisor or supervisors.
3
(C) The statutory authority for making the
4
communication (if any), and if no such author-
5
ity exists, an explanation for why the agency
6
viewed it in their authority to take the action.
7
(D) The name of the platform that re-
8
ceived the communication, including the name
9
and positions of employees of the platform that
10
were specifically communicated with.
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(E) A written justification summarizing
12
and explaining the purpose for taking the com-
13
munication.
14
(F) A written summary of the outcome of
15
the communication.
16
(G) A list of any other agency that was in-
17
volved in, consulted with, or otherwise coordi-
18
nated on the communication.
19
(3) CERTIFICATION OF NO COMMUNICATIONS.—
20
If an officer or employee of an agency has not en-
21
gaged in a communication described under para-
22
graph (1) during such 5-year period, the head of
23
that agency shall submit to the Director a certifi-
24
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•HR 1162 IH
cation to that effect not later than 90 days after the
1
date of enactment of this Act.
2
(b) OMB REPORT TO CONGRESS.—
3
(1) IN
GENERAL.—Not later than 210 days
4
after the date of enactment of this Act, the Director
5
shall submit to the Committee on Homeland Secu-
6
rity and Governmental Affairs of the Senate and the
7
Committee on Oversight and Accountability of the
8
House of Representatives a report, which may in-
9
clude a classified annex, that includes—
10
(A) the information on communications
11
submitted to the Director by any agency pursu-
12
ant to subsection (a); and
13
(B) a summary of the agency communica-
14
tions reported under subsection (a) organized
15
by platform (including an interactive computer
16
service) that received such communications.
17
(2) UNCLASSIFIED FORM.—The information in-
18
cluded in the report submitted by the Director list-
19
ing communications under subsection (a), descrip-
20
tions of such communications under each of sub-
21
paragraphs (A) through (D) of subsection (a)(2),
22
and the summary under paragraph (1)(B) of this
23
paragraph may not be included in any classified
24
annex and shall be submitted in unclassified form.
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•HR 1162 IH
(c) INSPECTORS GENERAL REVIEW AND ENFORCE-
1
MENT.—
2
(1) IN
GENERAL.—Not later than 210 days
3
after the date of enactment of this Act, each Inspec-
4
tor General of an agency that submits a report or
5
certification to the Director under subsection (a)
6
shall conduct a review of the agency’s compliance
7
with the requirements of this Act and submit a re-
8
port on such compliance to the Committee on Home-
9
land Security and Governmental Affairs of the Sen-
10
ate and the Committee on Oversight and Account-
11
ability of the House of Representatives.
12
(2) CONGRESSIONAL BRIEFING FOR AGENCIES
13
FOUND TO BE NONCOMPLIANT.—An agency required
14
to submit a report or certification to the Director
15
under subsection (a) that is found by the agency’s
16
Inspector General to be noncompliant with the re-
17
quirements of this Act shall brief the Committee on
18
Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs of the
19
Senate and the Committee on Oversight and Ac-
20
countability of the House of Representatives not
21
later than 60 days after the committee receives an
22
Inspector General report on an agency’s compliance.
23
(d) DEFINITIONS.—In this Act—
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•HR 1162 IH
(1) the term ‘‘agency’’ has the meaning given
1
that term in section 551(1) of title 5, United States
2
Code, and includes any office within the Executive
3
Office of the President;
4
(2) the term ‘‘Director’’ means the Director of
5
the Office of Management and Budget; and
6
(3) the term ‘‘interactive computer service’’ has
7
the meaning given that term in section 230(f) of the
8
Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 230(f)).
9
Æ
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