Description:
H.R. 1930 would amend the Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA), which governs the operation of most federal advisory committees. The bill also would impose stricter ethics requirements on committee members and would expand the applicability of disclosure requirements for some members. Additionally, H.R. 1930 would require agencies to make more information about those committees available to the public and to make the process of establishing a committee and selecting members more transparent. Finally, the bill would extend FACA regulations to cover additional advisory committees and would require the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to report to the Congress on appointments of advisory committee members. Reports from the General Services Administration (GSA), show that the federal government has about 1,000 advisory committees (with about 55,000 members) that provide advice and recommendations to about 50 departments and agencies. Those committees, also called commissions, councils, or task forces, collect a variety of viewpoints on specific policy issues. The total cost to operate such committees during fiscal year 2021 was $327 million. Under FACA, GSA maintains management guidelines for committees and advises committees on implementing them. The Office of Government Ethics is responsible for developing regulations and guidance for advisory committee members who serve as special government employees and must meet specific requirements pertaining to conflicts of interest. For this estimate, CBO assumes that the legislation will be enacted late in fiscal year 2022. The bill would take effect 30 days after enactment; thus, estimated spending under the bill would begin in fiscal year 2023 and would be subject to the availability of appropriated funds.
