H.R. 2316 would provide more rigorous requirements with respect to disclosure and enforcement of lobbying laws and regulations.

== Detailed Summary ==

<summary>
Honest Leadership and Open Government Act of 2007 - Extends from one to two years<b>Title I: Closing the ban on former senior and very senior executive personnel, former MembersRevolving Door</b> - (Sec. 101) Amends the Rules of Congress, legislative branch officersthe House of Representatives to add Rule XXVII (Disclosure by Members and employees, and such individuals who represent foreign entities from making lobbying contacts with any officer or employeeStaff of the entity in which such person served before his or her tenure terminated.Employment Negotiations).

Requires public disclosure by Members of Congress and congressional staffProhibits a Member, Delegate, or Resident Commissioner (Member) from directly negotiating or having any agreement of future employment negotiations.or compensation until after the election for his or her successor, unless such Member files a statement about such negotiations or agreement with the Committee on Standards of Official Conduct within three business days after their commencement. Requires inclusion in such a statement of: (1) the name of the private entity or entities involved in the negotiations or agreement; (2) the commencement date; and (3) the Member's signature.

Subjects to fines and penaltiesRequires a Member of CongressHouse officer or a congressional employee who wrongfully influences, onearning over 75% of the salary paid to a partisan basis, an entity'sMember to notify the Committee, within three business days, that he or she is negotiating or has any agreement of future employment decisions or practices.compensation.

Amends the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 (LDA)Requires such Member, officer, or employee to recuse himself or herself from any matter in which there is or appears to require: (1) quarterly insteadbe a conflict of semiannual filing of lobbying disclosures reports; (2) electronic filing; (3) disclosure of registered lobbyist contributions; (4) disclosure by registered lobbyists of all past executiveinterest under the Rule, and congressional employment; and (5) maintenanceto notify the Committee of certain lobbying disclosure information in an electronic data base, availablesuch recusal. Requires such individual also to submit to the Clerk of the House, for public freedisclosure, the statement of charge over the Internet.disclosure for which such recusal was made.

Amends(Sec. 102) Amends the LDAfederal criminal code to subject to prohibit a registered lobbyist from making a giftfine or providing travelimprisonment of up to 15 years, or both, a Member, officer,Member of Congress or a congressional employee of Congress, unlesswho with the gift or travel may be accepted underintent to influence, on the rulesbasis of the Housepartisan political affiliation, an employment decision or employment practice of Representativesany private entity: (1) takes or withholds, or offers or threatens to take or withhold, an official act; or (2) influences, or offers or threatens to influence, the Senate.official act of another.

Revises criteria, with regard to disclosure requirements, for determining a coalition or association of groupsProvides that retain a person to conduct lobbying activities.such individual may be disqualified from holding any federal office of honor, trust, or profit.

Makes amendments made by this Act inapplicable to political committee activities describedStates that nothing in such prohibition shall be construed to create any inference regarding whether such activity was a criminal or civil offence before the Federal Election Campaign Actenactment of 1971.this Act.

Amends the LDA(Sec. 103) Prohibits an attorney or law firm (including a professional legal corporation or partnership, or an attorney employed by such firm) which contracts to increaseprovide services to a congressional committee or subcommittee, a Member of the penalty for failureleadership of either chamber, a covered legislative branch official, or a working group or congressional caucus, from knowingly making, with the intent to complyinfluence, any communication or appearance before any Member, officer, or congressional employee on behalf of another person (except the United States) in connection with lobbying disclosure requirements.any matter on which the attorney or law firm seeks official action by such Member, officer, or employee in his or her official capacity during the term of the contract and for one year thereafter.

Amends the RulesSubjects violators of the Housesuch prohibition to require a Member of the House to prohibit all of hisfine or her staff from having any official contact with the Member's spouse if such individual is a registered lobbyistimprisonment, or is employed or retained by a registered lobbyist to influence legislation. both.<br>

Requires<b>Title II: Full Public Disclosure of Lobbying</b> - (Sec. 201) Amends the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995 (LDA) to require: (1) quarterly instead of semiannual filing of lobbying disclosures reports; (2) electronic filing; (3) disclosure of registered lobbyist on contributions; and (4) disclosure by registered lobbyists of all past executive and congressional employment.

(Sec. 205) Amends the LDA to prohibit a registered lobbyist, a registered organization that employs one or more lobbyists, or a registrant's employee from making a gift or providing travel to a Member, officer, or congressional employee, if the person or organization has knowledge that the gift or travel may not be accepted under the rules of the House of Representatives or the Senate.

(Sec. 206) Redefines &quot;client&quot; with respect to LDA registration requirements.

Treats as the client each individual member of a coalition or association that employs or retains other persons to conduct lobbying activities. (Currently individual members are not to be so treated.)

Treats a coalition or association as the client, for purposes of the exemption from registration requirements, if: (1) total income for matters related to lobbying activities on behalf of a particular client (in the case of a lobbying firm) does not exceed and is not expected to exceed ,000 in a semiannual period during which the registration would be made; or (2) total expenses in connection with lobbying activities (in the case of an organization whose employees engage in lobbying activities on its own behalf) do not exceed or are not expected to exceed ,000 in such period.

Treats an association (and not its members) as the client if it is a nonprofit tax-exempt association and has substantial exempt activities other than lobbying regarding the specific issue for which it engaged the person filing the registration statement.

Declares that information on a member of a coalition or association need not be included in any registration if the amount reasonably expected to be contributed by such member toward the coalition's or association's legislation-influencing activities is less than 0 during the quarterly period during which such registration would be made.

Waives such disclosure requirements, with respect to lobbying activities, if it is publicly available knowledge that the organization is affiliated with the client, or has been publicly disclosed to have provided funding to the client, unless the organization in whole or in major part plans, supervises, or controls such lobbying activities.



(Sec. 207) Revises disclosure requirements regarding a lobbyist's employee who has served as a covered legislative branch official in the two years before the date on which such employee first acted (after December 19, 1995) as a lobbyist on the client's behalf. Repeals the two-year limit on the look-back period (thus requiring disclosure of the lobbyist employee's position regardless of when he or she served as a legislative branch official.)<br>

(Sec. 208) Requires the Secretary of the Senate and the Clerk of the House to: (1) maintain certain lobbying disclosure information in an electronic data base, available to the public free of charge over the Internet; and (2) make lobbying activity reports available for public inspection over the Internet within 48 hours after such report is filed.

Authorizes appropriations.

(Sec. 209) Makes amendments made by this title inapplicable to political committee activities specified in the Federal Election Campaign Act of 1971.

<b>Title III: Enforcement of Lobbying Restrictions</b> - (Sec. 301) Amends the LDA to increase from ,000 to 0,000 the civil penalty for knowing failure to comply with any LDA requirement.

Establishes criminal penalties of fines or imprisonment for up to five years, or both, for knowing and corrupt failure to comply.

<b>Title IV: Inceased Disclosure</b> - (Sec. 401) Amends Rule XXV (Limitations on Outside Earned Income and Acceptance of Gifts) of the Rules of the House to require a Member of the House to prohibit all of his or her staff from having any official contact with the Member's spouse if the spouse is a registered lobbyist or is employed or retained by a registered lobbyist to influence legislation.

(Sec. 402) Requires the Clerk of the House to: (1) post certain travel and financial disclosure reports on the public Internet site of the Clerk's Office;Office in a searchable, sortable, and downloadable format; and (2) maintain such information for at least six years after receiving such information.it.

<b>Title V: General Provisions</b> - (Sec. 501) Provides that nothing this Act or the amendments made by it shall be construed to prohibit any expressive conduct protected from legal prohibition by, or any activities protected by the free speech, free exercise, or free association clauses of, the First Amendment to the Constitution.
</summary>

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== Status of the Legislation ==

<status>
Latest Major Action: 6/4/2007: Read the second time. Placed on Senate Legislative Calendar under General Orders. Calendar No. 182.
</status>

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== Points in Favor ==

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== Points Against ==

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